Chapter 03
“What…? A gardener?”
Wayne’s brow furrowed, as if he hadn’t expected those words at all.
“You’re remodeling the Viterad Mansion, where you currently live, into a memorial space for fire attributes, aren’t you?”
“…How do you know about my mansion’s affairs?”
“You’ve bought up a huge amount of land around the mansion and purchased all kinds of fire-attribute items. The rumors that you’re preparing something have already spread far and wide.”
How does he know? Because I saw it myself.
Before his death, Wayne had proposed creating a space within the imperial palace to remember the fire attributes, but he was rejected outright. So he decided to build a memorial space on his own, but he died from a rampage before it was completed.
His remaining aides, butlers, and employees tried their best to fulfill Wayne’s dream, but even that failed, and the mansion became the empire’s worst eyesore.
The imperial palace, as if waiting for that failure, quickly began erasing fire attributes from history.
It was a decision made because the disappearance of one attribute meant the empire had weakened.
“You’ve been racking your brain trying to dig up all sorts of things about me. Did the palace send you?”
“No. I found out on my own. I want to help you complete the memorial space as a gardener.”
The biggest reason the Viterad Mansion had become an eyesore was its barren garden. The large mansion had not a single small flower, not a single well-kept fence.
That’s why it felt like a graveyard.
Even if it had been well-maintained, it would have been difficult to preserve, but the gloomy atmosphere of the Viterad Mansion made even the caretakers quit, leaving it even more unmanageable.
Strange rumors spread that the dead fire attributes appeared as ghosts in the mansion, or that people caught incurable diseases, so the empire immediately demolished it. Even though Wayne had been the captain of a special forces unit that had devoted his entire life to the imperial family, the decision was merciless.
Unaware of this fact, Wayne folded his arms and looked down at Bailey with a sideways glance.
“Why would you?”
His tone implied: You’re a different attribute, so why help me?
“Because I, too… know very well how futile death can be.”
Bailey had never forgotten the death of his previous life.
“I hope that at least one person will remember me, but I’m afraid that I’ll be completely forgotten.”
“You talk as if you’ve actually died.”
“…I’ve lived a similar life. That’s why I want to help you.”
To convey his sincerity, he looked up with clear red eyes and spoke.
Then, as if Wayne’s guard had slightly lowered, his sharp gaze softened a little.
“The garden is already sufficient.”
“Aren’t you barely managing to maintain it because you can’t hire new people, afraid that reporters might sneak in?”
Struck a nerve, Wayne slightly turned his head the other way and roughly ran his hand through his hair.
Wayne’s death had been a major concern for the empire. Not only was he the last flame, but he had also been the captain of Zero, the empire’s special forces unit.
Ordinary attribute powers were classified into levels 1 through 5. But Zero Unit was so strong that they were beyond classification.
They dealt with monsters that appeared without warning. The captain of a special forces unit, which was already difficult to be selected for, could be said to be the most powerful being in the empire.
He was the most reliable ally, but the most feared enemy, so no one dared to touch Wayne.
His presence alone was remarkable enough, and he had inherited the legacy of all fire attributes, making him a figure who satisfied both power and wealth.
That’s why other attributes had been putting silent pressure on Wayne to return his remaining property to the empire upon his death. Among the rampant rumors, there were even speculations that a will already existed in the mansion, leading to incidents where reporters tried to infiltrate.
After that, Wayne did not hire new servants or allow anyone into the mansion without permission.
Since the only way into the locked-down mansion was with Wayne’s permission, Bailey had to win his heart today.
“I can help you, as a gardener.”
“How could the young lady of an earl’s family possibly do that?”
His tone implied: You, who are served by servants, how?
“Would you like to touch this flower?”
Bailey took out the fresh flower she had been wearing as a hair ornament. The tips of the blue plumbago petals were slightly wilted compared to when they were at the mansion.
“Are you mocking me right now?”
“I know that you can’t control your mana, so everything you touch burns.”
“Knowing that, you want me to burn the flower?”
Other fire attributes, too, were unable to control their mana, their bodies filled with heat, so everything they touched would burn.
That’s why others were afraid to even go near Wayne. He was no different from a living time bomb.
Knowing that his body was like that, asking him to hold a flower naturally sharpened his tone.
“I can revive a flower that has been burned.”
Bailey said, staring straight at him. There wasn’t a shred of falsehood in her expression. Wayne looked at her with suspicious eyes, then grabbed the plumbago stem, making sure their hands touched as little as possible.
The green leaves, which had been fresh and moist just moments ago, instantly dried up. The petals twisted and fell to the ground, and even smoke rose from the stem he was holding.
“That’s enough. Give it back to me.”
Wayne dropped the flower into Bailey’s palm as if tossing it.
The lower part of the plumbago’s stem had holes in it, completely withered and dried up.
Seeing the flower, Wayne bit the inside of his mouth hard. The feeling of killing a living thing with his own hands was certainly not pleasant. Every time he realized that he was a being who took away life just by touching it, his mouth turned bitter.
“Now I’ll revive it.”
Wayne watched the flower in Bailey’s hand with a gaze that seemed to be evaluating how well she could do.
She held the part he had just been gripping with both hands and closed her eyes tightly. Biting her lip, her hands trembling, she focused her mana.
But despite her straining, even scrunching up her face, nothing changed.
“It’s not working.”
“J-Just a moment! Please be quiet for just a little while. I need to concentrate really hard.”
Startled by Wayne’s single comment, Bailey stammered and added three more words. Sensing her earnestness, he decided to keep his mouth shut for the time being.
And then, as time passed in silence…
The withered leaves slowly began to absorb moisture again. Water droplets formed at the base of the parched stem.
The plumbago, which had been drooping like a fainted person, lifted its head and came back to life even stiffer than before.
Wayne couldn’t take his eyes off the astonishing sight happening right before him.
“Huff… Okay, it’s done.”
Bailey wiped her sweat-soaked forehead and held out the plumbago to him.
The holey part hadn’t been filled with new stem tissue. Nor had new leaves grown to replace the fallen petals.
But aside from that, it had been perfectly revived. Wayne couldn’t tear his gaze away from the flower.
“…So it was true.”
“With my mana, I rehydrated the burned flower.”
“Is this an ability all water attributes possess?”
“Yes, all of them can… do it.”
“Then I should hire a level 1 water attribute instead of you.”
“I’m not asking you to hire me with just this modest ability.”
Bailey gasped, clutching her side as if she had just sprinted at full speed.
Wayne waited for her next words, his eyes asking what else she had.
“Touch it again.”
Asking him to touch a flower that had barely been revived. That was like telling him to kill it twice.
“No.”
“It won’t die this time… Please trust me.”
Now barely able to speak, Bailey nevertheless urged him on, her blue eyes sparkling. At that look, Wayne reached out again and grasped the stem.
“…It’s not burning.”
No matter how tightly he squeezed, the flower didn’t scorch at all.
“That’s right. The things I revive… yes.”
“Does that mean they never die?”
“No. Only that they can live longer. It doesn’t mean they won’t die.”
It had been so long since Wayne had held a flower that didn’t die even when he touched it.
Having a vividly living life in his hand made his heart pound so much that he couldn’t let go.
“This seems to be an ability unique to me. The things I touch with my mana… survive longer than those touched by other water attributes. And other attributes’ mana… can’t affect them.”
“That’s a special ability. Why hasn’t it become known?”
“Because it only makes things live a little bit longer. Besides, others can inject mana into ten thousand flowers at once, but I can still only do one at a time…”
“And it takes a tremendous amount of time.”
“Because I’m level 5… But still, with my ability, I can create a garden that doesn’t burn even when you touch it.”
“…….”
“Now, are you a little more inclined to hire me as your gardener?”
Wayne, still gripping the flower tightly, turned his gaze toward Bailey. But sweat was pouring down her face like a waterfall.
“Wait, your sweat… Ah!”
Before Wayne could finish his belated realization, Bailey lurched heavily and collapsed to the side
