Chapter 6: Love Interest #3

 

 

 

Chapter 6: Love Interest #3

 

“YOU see, I’ve invited a royal mage to join us today.”

“A mage, you say?”

Iris wasn’t sure how to react. After all, she couldn’t imagine why such a thing was deemed necessary.

“Cytisus.”

At the prince’s call, Cytisus de Sade revealed himself, wearing the signature black robes of a royal mage. His navy-blue hair hung in a long, loose ponytail that descended down to his waist. Behind his black-rimmed monocle sat a pair of gentle eyes that sparkled like sapphires. At twenty-three, Cytisus was a full ten years older than Reseda and Iris. He was the heir to the House of Sade, an earldom that boasted a long legacy of mages.

Oh god, it’s him! Cytisus from the true route—“The Thousand-Year Slumber!”

This was the third love interest, whose happy-bad ending was visited upon Iris in a nightmare that ultimately led her to remember her past life. Cytisus’s route was the most destructive in the entire game; hence, it was considered the “true ending” by the fans. In his route, he and Camille fell in love, blissfully ignorant of the revelation that they were, in fact, half-siblings.

At the start of the game, gifted mage Cytisus was utterly bored of the world. First, he had lost his mother at an early age; next, his wetnurse had suddenly vanished; then, lastly, his beloved had died of an illness. With no one left in his life who loved him, he dedicated himself solely to his work. But everything changed once the Holy Maiden Camille entered the picture.

Her mana couldn’t compete with his, and yet he found her endlessly charming. Though she was ten years younger than him, she showed him a world he never knew. She was the one source of light in his life. As for Camille, she’d never known a father’s love, and Cytisus’s patient, forgiving nature drew her to him.

And yet, tragically, the two lovers were related by blood. They couldn’t be together; society would never permit it. And so, in his despair, Cytisus used his mana to engulf the royal capital in a sea of flames. Eeegh! Somebody get this guy some therapy!

Iris froze, staring at Cytisus. He stared back, frowning in annoyance.

“Cytisus de Sade, at your service,” he said in a low, husky voice that carried all the sex appeal of a grown man. A shiver ran down Iris’s spine.

Oh god, it’s the same voice! It was already plenty sexy when I listened to it with headphones… I can’t take it in real life!

Iris hastily introduced herself in kind, lest he become even more displeased with her. “Likewise, I am Iris du Chevalier.” Then she looked at Reseda. “P-Pray tell, Your Highness, for what purpose have you invited this mage?”

“I thought I’d ask him to examine your scars,” Reseda replied kindly.

Then, suddenly, she remembered: in HanaKoro, Iris used her family’s influence to coerce Cytisus into doing her bidding. One of his tasks was to use his magic to conceal her scars. When Camille criticized her for doing this, Iris became so resentful, she ultimately ended up stabbing her. Alternatively, in the happy-bad ending, Cytisus trapped Iris inside a cage of fire. Her green hair made such an exquisite contrast against the scarlet flames as she ran around in a futile attempt to escape from her impending demise…

Oh god, but I can’t let the “Thousand-Year Slumber” happen in real life! The whole city will burn to ash, and then Camille will stab Cytisus, and they’ll both drift off to sleep with no guarantee that they’ll find happiness when they wake up! And today might be where it all starts! WHY?! I never asked for this! Is this that “game rebalancing” I’ve heard so much about?! Well, no thank you! I reject this route!!!

“Your Highness, I dearly appreciate your thoughtfulness, but I sense that even magic cannot undo soilpox scars.”

“Why is that?”

“Because the wounds have already healed. Perhaps magic could have been of assistance while the healing process was still underway, but there’s nothing to be done now that the wounds have closed up.”

“Yes, Cytisus said the same. But surely we won’t know until we try!”

“It’s simply not going to work, my lord. Just as magic cannot regrow a lost arm, neither can it reheal what has already healed,” Iris explained with a smile.

Cytisus watched their exchange with widened eyes. Before now, he was under the impression he had been summoned here to humor the whims of some selfish girl making absurd demands of the prince. Personally, he’d no interest in doing it, but he didn’t want to endanger his job with the royal family. Now, however, he could see that he had been mistaken. For a girl of her age, she’s actually rather sensible, he thought.

“I’m afraid Lady Iris is correct, Your Highness,” Cytisus chimed in. “That being said, there is a spell that could temporarily conceal the scars from sight.”

At this, Reseda’s eyes lit up. “Let’s do that, then!”

“We mustn’t, my lord,” Iris answered flatly.

This caught Cytisus by surprise. He was expecting Iris to leap at this proposal. After all, there was a heavy social stigma associated with soilpox scars. Besides, it was only human nature to want to conceal one’s flaws, be they large or small—and Iris’s scars were very apparent. If nothing was done, it could easily have negative repercussions over the course of her entire life.

“Lord Cytisus, how long would this concealment spell last?” Iris asked.

“Well, let’s see… By my estimation, the effects would remain intact for about two weeks.”

“That’s not very long at all. Why, I’d have to spend my whole life terrified of the spell breaking!”

And in HanaKoro, Iris was indeed afraid of that very thing; hence, she wore gloves at all times. When Camille learned about her secret meetings with Cytisus, she began to suspect that something was going on between them. Instead, Iris’s dark secret was revealed, and the concealment spell was taken away from her. But when Camille tried to convince Iris to do the right thing, it only made her more furious.

“All you’d have to do is have it recast before the end of the second week, right? There’s nothing to fear,” Reseda reassured her gently. But Iris shook her head.

“I couldn’t possibly ask a royal mage to go to all that trouble for me.”

“But Lady Iris—”

“Besides, it would be improper for us to meet in private so frequently,” Iris cut in. “Especially if Lord Cytisus is already spoken for, which I suspect he is.”

Wouldn’t want her to think I’m trying to steal her boyfriend… I mean, she IS still alive, right? Oh god, please be alive!

Iris shot him an inquiring look, but he averted his gaze. Reseda whipped his head around to look at him. “You have a lover, Cytisus?”

Uh-oh. Was it a secret?

Blushing faintly, Cytisus cleared his throat. “Back to the subject at hand, if you please. I agree that it may be inappropriate for someone of Lady Iris’s social standing to meet in private with the opposite sex.”

AHA! He didn’t deny it! Surely she must still be alive, or else his reaction would have been quite different. Perfect! You two go and live happily ever after—and stay far, FAR away from Camille!!!

Iris did a fist-pump under the table. Then she noticed them looking at her dubiously, and she hastily donned a smile more befitting of nobility.

“Er… As I was saying, Your Highness, your concern means ever so much to me. However, I’m afraid I mustn’t entertain such notions. No matter how I may try to hide my scars from the public, the fact is, they’re there. I wouldn’t want to lie to myself.”

Reseda stared back wordlessly. Iris turned to Cytisus.

“I apologize for making you come all this way. Really, there’s no need to worry.”

“I must say, you’re quite level-headed, Lady Iris,” he replied. “You’re wise to reject the allure of temporary beauty. In that case, what say you come by the Temple of Magic to do a bit of research? That way, we’ll avoid sullying your reputation with the impropriety of a private meeting. The Temple has a great number of books regarding a variety of subjects, including homeopathic remedies, so it’s possible you may learn of a different way to minimize your scars.” He turned to Reseda. “Would that work for you, Your Highness? Rather than having her depend upon my magic, why don’t we help her look for an independent solution?”

Over the course of this conversation, Cytisus realized that the young prince was trying to win Iris’s affection—he wanted to use the concealment spell as a convenient excuse to summon her to the palace. Thus, Cytisus decided to support Reseda’s little crush. After all, it couldn’t hurt to curry favor with the royal family. Besides, he’d taken a liking to Iris himself. His mother had long since died of soilpox, but if she’d survived, he couldn’t help but wonder if she would have had the same positive outlook Iris had. His conclusion: probably not. And so, he decided he wanted to help Iris.

Meanwhile, Iris had no idea about any of that. She was just thrilled to be invited to the Temple of Magic! It was a special place where few were permitted entry, and back when she played HanaKoro, it was her absolute favorite in-game location. She could recall Cytisus’s sprite art behind the text box, surrounded by bookshelves and flitting fairies… Oh, how she’d always wished she could go there in real life!

“You mean it?!” Iris looked from Cytisus to Reseda, her eyes sparkling.

“If that is what you desire, so be it.”

“Please, Your Highness!” Iris lowered her head humbly.

“You really don’t mind, Cytisus?” Reseda asked.

“It would be my pleasure,” Cytisus reassured him.

At this, Iris sprang up in her seat, and the others chuckled as her mint-green ringlets bounced all over the place.