Valerian, The Legendary

133 What Happened?

Valerian and Fragrantia spent a night in the battlemage tower and the next morning, the two were off to the imperial capital, it was the first prince’s wedding. Fragrantia asked the old man personally to allow Valerian a week off to attend the ceremonies as the brother of the prince.

The old man was reluctant but Fragrantia pressured him by saying that Valerian had won him honor by doing so well in the assessment and he should learn to reward his students. This statement calmed the old man, and the empress finally managed to get Valerian out of the academy.

Before departing, he did not forget to pay a visit to his music teacher, Lilian. The lady was humbled by his gesture and the wish he made, which literally made him the hero of the commoners. To show her gratitude, they all decided to give away the most expensive Filum Vita.

Valerian wanted to reject but Fragrantia said, “You should accept gratitude with grace. Or you will be hurting their emotions.”

Valerian accepted the instrument with both hands and sat said that he will return to learn after his vacation. Then they left the academy. Fortuna was sitting on his shoulder looking at the few beasts tied to the carriage at the gates. The young man said, “Not everything is food, your highness.”

Fortuna meowed in dissatisfaction, then she curled up into a ball of fur as if throwing a tantrum.

Valerian and Fragrantia were riding the royal carriage. However, to Valerian’s surprise, another carriage was following them, it belonged to the Sapientia empire, boarded by her excellency, the empress of the country, and her younger daughter. This was simply a surprise to Valerian.

As they sat inside the carriage, he asked, “Why are they following us?”

Fragrantia shrugged and said, “They wish to return with us. So, I did not deny them, after all, I still have to show some courtesy as the hostess.”

.....

Valerian shook his head, and said, “You are too pretentious, aunt. Do they not wish for their daughter to live in peace with our family?”

Fragrantia ignored everything and only focused on the last two words, Valerian said, ‘Our Family.’

The child inside the empress woke up and praised herself, ‘You see, I am so witty, I finally succeeded in melting the ice covering his heart. Praise Vita.’

Valerian would have rolled his eyes at the lady. The two talked about a lot of interpersonal matters of the family and the empress found a good advisor in the young man. Valerian was able to look at things objectively and this was precisely the reason he was able to see through the tricks of the situations.

The ride continued and they all reached the woods, and Valerian drifted towards the conversation he had with Fragrantia last night.

He asked her, “How can a person induce emotions in their music?”

At first, Fragrantia was stumped, but then after much thought, she said, “Emotions come from the thoughts and memories we have for and of people we hold close. It is not only sadness or love for the close ones, but also, anger and hatred for your enemies. To bring forth something like this, one must bring out their true thoughts while playing the music, probably then you might get to make a piece of your own.”

The strongest emotion in his heart was that of pain, hardly ever did he experience love and joy in his small life. How could he make a joyful piece his own? Sitting opposite him, Fragrantia said, “You should visit her, probably you will find a solution.”

She could tell what was going through his mind at this moment. Valerian looked at her and asked, “What will we say to the people following us?”

Fragrantia shrugged her shoulders and said, “I will deal with them, you go.”

Valerian could not help but feel warmth spreading inside him and leaned over to embrace her. Fragrantia was surprised by this sudden display of affection but regardless, she smiled and her eyes turned into inverted crescents. She patted his back and said, “Go, you will make me cry, and the people will think our relationship is bad.”

Valerian chuckled and picked up his Filam Vita before leaving the carriage and dashing into the woods. The cat was still riding his shoulder with complete proficiency. She did not move regardless of the bumps and the jumps that came during the run.

...

After Valerian left, the convoy stopped and Stephanie sent a maid to ask what happened. To the query, Fragrantia’s maid replied, “His highness was inspired and decided to practice in the woods for a bit.”

The maid was confused and relayed the message back to her mistress, a confused lady alighted the carriage with her daughter and came to a camp set for Fragrantia. After the warriors reported her arrival. They were allowed inside.

...

While the empress of the Lumen Empire was throwing him under the bus, Valerian was kneeling in front of the big tree. He smiled and said, “I am here again, mum. How have you been?”

The winds made the tree leaves rustle. Valerian smiled and then he unwrapped the instrument covered in a silk cloth. He said, “I learned music, I will play something for you.”

Then he cast a spell, and a stool of rock appeared in front of him, Valerian took a seat and then placed the instrument on his lap. Then he began to play songs, he did not think about anything and just played by his memory. Fortuna had jumped down from his shoulder the moment he started.

The scene was nothing less than a painting, a boy sitting under the tree, with the sun shining upon him through the canopy of the leaves, with his eyes closed and the instrument laying on his lap, while a kitten sat at his feet, glistened with the sunlight, her fur shimmering as if diamonds scattered over her body.

As he was playing the music, Valerian recalled how Flos met him through the remnant in his pendant. How she caressed his hair. At this moment, his fingers became gentle and the notes became clearer and softer. His emotions of joy, related to his mother made him treat the instrument in his hand with care.

Leaning forward, the boy opened his eyes slowly and began to channel mana through his fingers. He found that the wind mana did not resound well when channeled through the shadow element string. These strings represented the seven elements, but they were made of copper only. Thinking about it, he began to channel all seven elements through his fingers when he touched the strings.

His speed was slow at first, but his proficiency to control the mana channel in his body increased. Valerian gained speed, and then he recalled the feeling from earlier again, and something surprising happened. The sound began to resound throughout the area and slowly spread in the surroundings.

He did not know this and was immersed in his music, at this moment, he gave up the score and also the sequence and timing. He was playing by heart.

...

Fragrantia, Stephanie, and Ashlyn were having tea, while a couple of maids stood at the side. They were not talking and things looked slightly stressed, but suddenly, a melodious voice began to echo in the surroundings. The people were surprised, and they looked at the source of the sound.

The empress said, “Ensis, pay more attention to the security, do not be dazed by the music, you can hear it later as well.”

Ensis was standing in a daze, and these words made her wake up. She immediately tightened the guards. The sound had an intense calming effect and made the people feel joyous for no apparent reason. The gentle tone and the slow pace of the music were indeed mesmerizing for the people.

Fragrantia closed her eyes and she could almost see, Flos smiling at Valerian while she caressed his hair as he sat down in her lap with a rare smile on his face. This was his own music, and unknowingly, tears leaked from the corner of her eyes.

She was not the only one who was driven to this state, Stephanie was also experiencing the same thing. She was also crying with Ashlyn. They did not know why but this music was inducing them with an urge to cry and smile at the same time. The warmth in their hearts and the grief in their hearts were something too complicated.

...

Valerian stopped after he was done, and found that Fortuna had turned into a silver dragon. She was gazing at him with a steady gaze. Following the end of the music, the little dragon climbed the shoulders of the boy and then rubbed her face against his. She was consoling him, as he could not cry even after such pain in his heart.

After they calmed down, the two returned to the convoy and as soon as they came out of the woods, a lot of eyes were locked on them. Valerian looked at the kitten on his shoulder and found nothing out of the ordinary.

He asked, “What happened?”