Chapter 71 Curse
After parting ways with Kasper-san, Arnold and I visited my mentor again. Today, Arnold kept asking questions one after another, and my mentor answered them. Arnold asked in detail about the treatment methods my mentor tried on Annette, while I sat next to him taking notes.
――When Arnold's questions finally settled down, it was already past noon. As a gesture of thanks, he went out to buy lunch for three people.
It was just the two of us left, my mentor and me. In the natural silence that fell between us, I remembered Kasper-san's lonely expression.
I didn't feel like asking about my senior disciple I unexpectedly learned about, but still, wanting to shake off the uneasy feeling, I opened my mouth without much thought.
"Um, Mentor. Can I ask you something unrelated to the Self-destruction disease?"
"Oh, what is it?"
My mentor responded with a slightly tired voice and expression.
I hesitated for a moment, then spoke out impulsively.
"Why did you take me as your disciple? Just a girl from a small village..."
It was a question that had been bothering me in the back of my mind.
The reason why my mentor accepted me as a disciple, even after rejecting Arnold's request. I had wondered if it was not for any deep reason, but just a whim or pastime.
Glancing at my mentor, she touched her chin with her hand, showing a thoughtful gesture.
"Calling you who became the Royal Alchemist assistant at the youngest age just a girl from a small village doesn't seem quite fitting..."
"But, but, you didn't know that when I became your disciple. Did you see my talent at first sight?"
My mentor smirked teasingly at me and I felt like she was evading the answer, so I couldn't help but ask again.
"Surely, I couldn't have known that at that time."
She answered with a calm expression.
Then, unexpectedly, my mentor slightly lowered her head. Shadows fell on her face, but she was still smiling.
"I'm not the type to take on disciples originally, and all the applicants who came to me after retirement mentioned the words 'Self-destruction disease.'"
――I bit my lower lip, feeling like I had stepped on an unexpected landmine.
It was probably not hidden that my mentor's granddaughter had suffered from the Self-destruction disease. She had tried various treatments using her position, and it might have been a famous story in the alchemist community at that time.
If that was the case, it made sense that many applicants visited my mentor seeking treatment for the Self-destruction disease. But she must have disliked it. She had lost everything to the Self-destruction disease and had come to the remote Emme Village. If that was the reason, it was understandable why my mentor was reluctant to take on disciples.
However, Arnold should not have been like that. Until I told him, he seemed unaware of my mentor's past. So why?
Just as I was about to ask again, my mentor provided an answer to my question.
"Arnold himself didn't know about Annette, but Marcedes did. Marcedes, who was consulted by Arnold as they were from the same village, introduced him without revealing much. Looking back now, it was a cruel thing to do to a young child who had come all the way to such a remote place."
――My mentor casually mentioned it, but there were two new pieces of information revealed.
One was that Marcedes-san also knew about my mentor's granddaughter, Annette. The portrait I found in the diary had a girl who closely resembled Marcedes-san, so was that really her?
And one more thing, Arnold and Marcedes are from the same village. Before becoming mentor and disciple, they had some interaction due to being from the same village.
Both were interesting stories, but not something to delve deeply into here. I nodded thoughtfully and looked at my Mentor. When she noticed my gaze, she raised her head to look at me, narrowing her red eyes. It was a nostalgic expression.
"You seemed quite desperate to leave the village. Well, I saw you knocking on the door with Lukas behind you... Yes, you were accepted on a whim."
My mentor probably remembers the day I took a step to change my given job, as she smiled gently. While I felt warm seeing her expression, mentioning Lukas along with me made me keenly aware of the main story.
If her words were true, the reason she accepted me was whimsical - like an intuition. It's likely orchestrated by the staff for the future Hero.
Even so, my respect for my mentor remains unwavering. She gave me a new path different from the future losing heroine. Without Mentor, I would still be struggling in a small village.
"I never expected things to turn out like this... Perhaps I'm cursed and can't escape the Self-destruction disease."
"Cursed..." My mentor's tone as she uttered the word was filled with anguish.
Having moved to a remote village to avoid any further involvement with the Self-destruction disease, my mentor despised it and wanted nothing to do with it ever again. Yet, fate had brought a disciple to her doorstep, who, in their unpredictable journey, was now seeking a cure for the Self-destruction disease. While it might all be orchestrated by the heavens (or the staff), to her, it felt like an unfortunate coincidence.
While this current situation wasn't forced upon her, I couldn't bring myself to ask any further questions, considering my mentor's inner turmoil. Until Arnold returned, there was no conversation between us.
* * *
"I'll be staying in the royal capital for a while. There's nothing for me in Emme Village. Let me know if there's anything I can help with."
As we were about to leave the room, Mentor's words were directed at our backs. Arnold turned back immediately and walked towards her.
"If that's the case, at least let me prepare a room here. I can provide meals in the royal castle, or at least cover the accommodation costs if it's an inn."
"It's fine. Honestly, I'm not short on money. Besides, I want to explore freely."
My mentor still seemed reluctant to approach the royal castle. She didn't insist. Whether it was just discomfort in formal settings, lingering issues with Kasper-san, or other reasons, it was clear she wasn't in need of money.
She served as a well-paid Royal Alchemist and lived modestly in Emme Village after retirement. Savings were likely not an issue.
However, that was a separate matter. Since she came here at our request, we should bear the burden as much as possible. Arnold and I exchanged looks, wondering how to convince my mentor, but we couldn't come up with a good solution.
Arnold, looking resigned, but then he raised his head and stared at Mentor in silence. Then, in a manner that was unlike him, he began to speak timidly.
"...I'll be calling Elvira here soon. Would you be willing to meet her when she arrives?"
"Of course."
My mentor smiled happily, with an expression that showed affection like a grandparent towards a grandchild.
Looking at her profile, I vaguely thought that she must have been a very good grandmother. At the same time, for some reason, my Mentor felt oddly small.
Have I grown up, or is it something else?
I leave the room. The door closes. Through the almost closed door, I could see Mentor smiling.
――I strongly felt that I wanted to free her from the "curse" by giving her a different path.
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