→ Gift (3) ←
The chaotic atmosphere was naturally settled when Kalderan belatedly pulled out a gift.
“It’s the concentrate of the Vision Shake. If you dissolve it in water and drink it, that takes care of your nutrients for the day.”
…Things became chaotic in another way.
Renee received the concentrate in a daze.
“Th-thank you.”
“Have some gains.”
“…”
Kalderan laughed, and Aksan bowed his head.
Perhaps out of embarrassment on behalf of Kalderan, Aksan’s face was completely flushed.
When an awkward silence arose, the twins stepped in.
“It’s our turn now.”
“Saint, don’t be surprised.”
Renee was grateful to the twins for breaking the awkward atmosphere.
With those feelings, her face broke into an even brighter smile.
“Saying it like that makes me even more excited. What is it?”
“Here it is.”
“Keep it safe.”
Renee felt a box landing on her palm, and she ran her fingers over its surface.
‘Wood?’
It was a wooden box.
The gift couldn’t be the box itself, so what was inside must be the real gift.
“What is it?”
“It’s a fragrance.”
“It smells good.”
“Ah, thank y—”
Just as Renee was about to express her gratitude, the twins, who had been exchanging glances with Miller and Vera, approached Renee and whispered.
“It’s a fragrance for the night.”
“Vera will drop dead from the smell.”
Renee froze.
The corners of her mouth twitched.
Renee was not so naive as to not know what the twins had prepared.
Then, the twins whispered again.
“We wish the Saint come out strong in the morning.”
“We’re rooting for you.”
The scene looked like a secret deal.
Renee nodded her head subtly in response so no one would see it.
“…Fighting.”
***
The gift-giving continued for a while.
Norn gave her an embroidered handkerchief while Hela gave her gloves. Miller gave her a bracelet made from unknown bones.
When Jenny and Aisha put on the pins they had prepared in Renee’s hair, she ended up looking quite mismatched with all these different items on her.
Yet, Renee was smiling brightly.
“Did you all prepare this secretly? You must have been busy.”
“Well, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime coming-of-age ceremony. No matter how busy we are, we have to take care of such things.”
Miller responded with a hearty laugh, then Norn and Hela nodded.
Meanwhile, Jenny came towards Renee again and handed her something.
“This is a gift from Grandma.”
“Huh?”
“…A charm.”
There was only one person Jenny would refer to as ”Grandma.”
“Annalise?”
[…Go die.]
Annalise whispered so and buried her face in Jenny’s arms.
Renee’s face was filled with surprise.
She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it.
She chose different words instead.
“Thank you.”
No reply came back.
However, the atmosphere in the room grew warmer.
“Grandma does have a conscience after all.”
At Miller’s words, laughter erupted from everywhere, and thus, the formal coming-of-age ceremony began.
***
Coming-of-age ceremonies were like this in the continent.
It was a day to celebrate becoming an adult, and at the same time, it prepared one to live independently from their family.
It was a day to declare the path one would take for the rest of their lives in front of everyone.
The exact proceedings of the ceremony varied depending on the region and ethnicity, but the above aspects were the same everywhere.
Renee walked from the end of the long red carpet.
She reached Vera, who was standing in front of the altar.
When Renee knelt down, Vera spoke.
“Raise your head.”
His tone was different than usual.
Vera spoke in a reverent tone befitting the ceremony.
Renee suppressed a smile and raised her head. Then, Vera warmly asked her.
“You have now become an adult, but there is something I have yet to ask you.”
“Please ask.”
“How do you intend to live the life that has been gifted to you?”
These were the questions that the clergy of the Holy Kingdom asked during coming-of-age ceremonies.
Renee, who was now in a position to answer rather than ask this question, recalled the answers she had heard before.
An apprentice priest with a striking voice said that he would live for the gospel.
An apprentice paladin with a firm voice said he would live for the glory of Elia.
A priestess with a sweet voice said she would live a life of singing joy, and a blacksmith with a lively voice said he would live a life that would go down in history.
Hela said she would live a life of laughter and peace.
And Vera said he would live a life protecting her.
Everyone had their own distinct, clear ideals.
How will I live?
Having witnessed Vera living a life bearing the weight of his words, Renee pondered.
She didn’t want to end this ceremony as a simple formality. She wanted to convey her sincerity to those who had prepared this ceremony for her amidst their busy schedules.
So Renee closed her mouth and thought deeply.
It didn’t take long.
Renee already knew what she truly wanted, so she answered in a firm tone.
“For those I love.”
She raised her head.
“To live a life that repays the love I’ve received.”
The veil on her head shifted lightly, revealing her face.
“I want to live a life giving the abundant love I have received to others.”
Her clear voice echoed throughout the hall.
Even in this dazzling venue, her clear blue eyes retained their own hue and didn’t lose their luster.
A gentle smile graced her lips.
Vera asked.
“How will you love?”
“I will love more passionately than anyone else.”
“How will you repay?”
“I will give back the love I have received to the world.”
“How will you give?”
“I will love even more than I received and spread it everywhere.”
Their words were ceremonial.
However, their meaning was anything but ceremonial.
Renee smiled even more widely.
“I have so much love that even I, being so greedy, feel burdened. So I want to share this love with those who don’t have enough.”
Now, Renee knew.
It was only one light.
That was the only thing she lost in exchange for so much love.
Thus, she felt grateful.
To those who gave her love, to those who taught her love, and also to her own love.
To the relationships that had given her the most valuable treasures in the world.
She had received so much, so she rightfully wanted to give back by adding her share.
“I will bless you.”
Vera approached.
He lightly cut off the tip of Renee’s hair and tied it together.
“Now you will swear before the Gods, so I will ask one last time. Do you truly have no regrets with your answer?”
“I have none.”
“Do you have any hesitations?”
“I have none.”
“I will seal it.”
Vera took out a wooden chest.
He put the tied hair into the box and closed the lid.
Then, he turned around and placed it in front of the altar.
“I will pray.”
Renee’s head dropped down.
Her overlapping thumbs crossed each other.
Tap—
Vera’s hand touched Renee’s forehead.
Then, Vera began to recite a prayer.
“I pray that…”
By now, she was so familiar with the prayer that she could recite it even in her sleep, and it felt tingling in her ears.
Upon hearing it, the meaning of the prayer passed through Renee’s mind.
‘…Nine.’
A prayer about nine blessings.
May all life, from birth to rest, be prosperous.
May it be just, truthful, and wise.
May it protect and guide all that it loves.
And thus, may all life be peaceful.
Although she already knew it was such a prayer, Renee felt it resonate in her heart for the first time.
So, Renee earnestly made a wish to the heavens for the first time in a long time.
May my life for my love be more faithful than anything else.
May there be laughter at the end of it all.
“…You will be blessed.”
After the prayer was over, Vera took his hand off.
Vera pulled Renee to her feet.
He spoke in a tone that was softer than before.
“Since a girl has become a woman here, it is only fitting to raise a toast for her.”
Norn came to the altar with rum named ‘Vera’ and a glass.
After handing the glass to Renee and the bottle to Vera, he returned to his seat, and Vera spoke.
“Take a sip.”
Renee extended her glass.
She immediately knew what it was from the strong scent when she swirled it around.
‘…Vera.’
Renee couldn’t help but smile.
It was that much more meaningful because she knew that it was Vera who had prepared this ceremony.
“…God bless you.”
Vera’s voice, tinged with embarrassment, tickled her ears, followed by the clinking sounds from everywhere.
With a genuinely bright smile, Renee held the glass upright and spoke.
“God bless you.”
Drinking Vera on the day of her coming-of-age ceremony.
It was quite a delightful pun.
***
The coming-of-age ceremony ended successfully.
It was satisfactory for Renee, Vera, and everyone else present.
After leaving the venue, Renee and Vera spent some time on the terrace. Then, Renee spoke up.
“Thank you. I forgot about it, but you remembered.”
“It was my duty to do so.”
“Still, thank you.”
Renee’s attire as she replied was adorned with mismatched gifts, but it made one wonder whether the saying that clothes make the person was true.
Despite the peculiar ensemble, Renee’s beauty remained undiminished.
Vera’s gaze was on Renee.
He looked at her bright smile and her eyes.
Then, he patted his pocket.
‘…Now.’
He had to give his gift.
Since he had been too shy to give it at the ceremony, it was the perfect time to give his gift now that they were alone.
His hesitation did not last long.
Vera was not so clumsy as to miss the opportunity by hesitating.
“Saint.”
“Yes?”
“I have something prepared for you.”
Renee turned her head toward Vera.
Vera briefly looked at Renee, then took out a scroll from his pocket.
“…It’s a coming-of-age gift.”
He handed it to Renee.
“What is this?”
“It’s a magic scroll called ‘Best Friend.’”
“That’s a strange name.”
A smile appeared on Renee’s lips.
It was no wonder, considering that ’Best Friend’ wasn’t exactly a cool name for a spell.
“What effect does it have?”
She thought the spell might link things together since it was called Best Friend.
Vera answered Renee’s question.
“It’s a magic spell that connects an object to an object.”
“Object to object?”
“Yes.”
Vera’s gaze went to the shining cross on Renee’s chest.
“…I wasn’t sure what kind of gift you would like, so I prepared a gift without a form this time. Could you excuse me for a moment?”
“Um? Oh, yes.”
Renee’s head nodded.
Vera approached Renee with a tense face and took the rosary hanging on her neck.
When Vera’s hand slightly touched Renee’s chest, his face turned red.
“…It’s a spell that marks two objects so that the wearers know the status of the other. If either of us is in danger while we are apart, the other will know immediately.”
“Ah…!”
Renee’s cheeks blushed.
“…That’s nice.”
“So… may I link my cross to yours?”
Vera asked politely, unable to hide his trembling voice.
At that moment, Renee felt a surge of heat as it felt like he just proposed.
‘Ah, it’s hot.’
Is Oben actually a tropical country?
Such trivial thoughts came to mind as Vera chanted the spell.
She could feel his divinity.
It felt as if it was wrapping around both Renee and Vera.
Immediately afterward, Renee sensed a pulse from her own cross.
“…Did it work?”
When Renee touched her cross and asked, Vera answered.
“Yes, do you feel anything different?”
“…”
Renee, who had been fiddling with the cross, soon nodded in response to Vera’s question.
“…Yes, it feels warm. As if there’s heat.”
“It seems to be working well. I can also feel a warm energy.”
“Can I touch yours?”
“Yes.”
Vera guided Renee’s hand to his own rosary.
“How does it feel?”
Renee, holding both crosses in each hand, felt the rising warmth and spoke.
“The temperature is the same.”
A look of satisfaction appeared on Renee’s face.
“Vera and I are the same.”
Could this be described as similar excitement?
Could it be that Vera’s heart was similar to hers?
“…Thank you.”
There was a gentle wave of emotions welling up.
The immense emotion she couldn’t express was like a slowly rising tide.
It was like a wave engulfing her from the toes up.
Yet, Renee was not afraid.
She had the strange feeling that even if she drowned in it, there would be nothing but warmth.
“It’s the best gift.”
Renee’s head tilted forward.
Her forehead touched Vera’s chest.
“…I’m glad that you like it.”
Vera also smiled and embraced Renee, then said the words he had been saving.
“Congratulations on becoming an adult.”
“…Yes.”
Renee’s arms wrapped around Vera’s waist.
“Thank you for the celebration.”
Renee thought.
Today really felt like a gift.
Like a jewel given to her by her loved ones.
Even if she couldn’t see it with her eyes, Renee didn’t mind.
Today’s memories, their laughter, and the warmth of Vera’s embrace.
All of it had already become an unforgettable memory for her.
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