Who Stole The Empress Chapter 89

Chapter 89. The wind lantern ceremony

 

 

“Please buy me a flower….”

 

Roselyn looked at where Hannah pointed, and saw children decorated like flower spirits, each with a basket full of flowers for sale.

 

“Those who couldn't attend the flower offering ceremony would write their wishes on the flowers and float them on the ocean. Strangely enough, not once did the flowers wash up on land.”

 

Jorge, who was watching, stepped in and explained.

 

“I see. Thank you for your explanation.”

 

Roselyn sent a polite thank you, and Jorge laughed 'haha' with a face that couldn't hide his happiness.

 

“What flowers shall I buy then?”

 

What Roselyn saw right now were yellow roses, lilies, and purple statice.

 

All the flowers were beautiful, and just when Roselyn was not sure what to choose, Hannah grabbed the hem of her skirt again.

 

“There ……………………… over there.”

 

Hannah ran with Roselyn's hand in hers as if to tell her to follow.

 

In no time at all, Roselyn was already in the middle of the crowd with the child holding on to her.

 

Fortunately, Hannah stopped without going more than a few steps.

 

“Here. I like this flower.”

 

At the place where Hannah stopped, there was a boy holding a basket of flowers, which looked particularly small compared to the flowers of other children, but was still very much intact.

 

“Buy some flowers! Daisy means hope. All my blessings for your future, beautiful customer………..”

 

The child was reciting the words he must have memorized, he couldn't even lift his head to offer the flowers. The stems of the flower were crushed and the petals were shaking.

 

Roselyn looked at the basket. It seemed that he hadn't sold a single flower yet.

 

“They're beautiful daisies.”

 

Roselyn looked at the basket full of white flowers.

 

Daisies were flowers that bloomed in warm places. They were also very rare in cold Tanatos.

 

“How much is it?”

 

“10 shillings per flower…”

 

No, how much is a whole basket?”

 

The child's eyes opened wide in surprise at Roselyn's words.

 

The child had very pretty purple eyes.

 

Roselyn was happy to see the same eye color as hers and smiled 

small under her veil.

 

“Well, now really………….”

 

“Yes. Let's see. It looks like there are 100 flowers in the basket. Then this is good enough. Right?”

 

Roselyn held out a small bag of gold coins to the child.

 

The pocket contained about 10 gold.

 

When the boy checked the pocket, he was startled and gave the money back to her.

 

“It's too much, precious Lady! I can't take this much!”

 

“If you sell 100 shillings each, you will get 10 golds.”

 

But the price of ten shillings per flower was a price that the boy called high in the hope that they would bargain for it.

 

He was very grateful to the lady in front of him who paid for everything, but he also felt sorry for her.

 

“Take it, I was looking for a child who could sell a whole basket like this, not just one or two flowers. Other children had sold half of their baskets. You're the precious child I finally found, so you can have it.”

 

The gentle sound of the noblewoman's voice made the boy stare upward in a daze.

 

Tears began to trickle up into the boy's large eyes.

 

He was born as the fourth of five siblings.

 

He was disliked by his siblings. The words “precious child” were the most enchanting words he had ever heard in his life.

 

“Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you, ma'am.”

 

He was even more grateful that the lady was the first person to say “precious” to him than that she bought the flowers.

 

With trembling hands, the boy accepted the pocket Roselyn had offered him.

 

The sobbing child wiped away his tears with his fist and even took off the daisy crown that he wore on his head.

 

“I'm sorry I don't have anything for you. This is a flower crown I made myself this morning. Please accept it.”

 

The boy, who bowed down and greeted, quickly moved away.

 

Somehow, he couldn't seem to stop crying.

 

Roselyn looked at the flower crown the child had left and placed it on Hannah's head.

 

“The daisies look good on you, Hannah.”

 

“Thank you…….”

 

With the flower crown on her head and the flower basket in her hand, Hannah looked like the boy selling flowers.

 

The difference was that unlike the boy holding the flower basket, many people asked if they could buy flowers as soon as Hannah was holding the basket.

 

Hannah, who shook her head like a child who couldn't speak, glanced back.

 

Roselyn looked in the same place, wondering if the boy had returned, but she couldn't spot him.

 

“I didn't think you'd buy them all.”

 

Hannah murmured, hugging the flower basket tightly.

 

“I think it would be beautiful in my room.”

 

For some reason, Hannah seemed to like daisies very much.

 

She even smiled, which she didn't show very often, and held the flower basket tightly.

 

They returned to the side of the group that had been watching them from a short distance away, and before she knew it, the twins were standing there with three tickets.

 

“It's already sold out and there are only three. So I think Asha and the cuties can use this.”

 

Saying that they themselves had done it last year, the twins got the tickets for the children.

 

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Hesitantly, Arsene happily took the tickets firmly in his hand.

 

Without saying a word, Tasha patted Arsene on the head.

 

Ding ding-

 

The bell rang that the ceremony would soon begin. Roselyn hurried to her seat.

 

 

The priests of the temple appeared, pulling a large cart with wind lanterns on it.

 

The lantern ceremony consisted of ten people at a time, each holding a ticket for a lantern, and when it was their turn, they would step forward and take their turn to fly the lantern.

 

First, the royalty, nobles, and temple priests, whose turn was predetermined, would fly the lanterns while wearing the yellow Heritia flower, the symbol of Amor.

 

The language of the Heritia flower was prosperity and hope.

 

Then it was the turn of a hundred or so citizens, drawn at random.

 

Ten lanterns flew at a time. (10 people, 1 each)

 

Each of them flew the lantern into the sky with a sincere wish that it would reach the six gods.

 

On the other hand, the temple orchestra sang a sacred song in high spirits so that the lanterns they flew would reach the gods safely.

 

After all the lanterns have flown for an hour, those who could not fly float flowers into the sea with their wishes.

 

That concluded the entire flower offering ceremony.

 

Roselyn gazed in wonder at the lanterns hanging with flowers as they soared into the sky.

 

She wondered if it was really going to float, the way the flower wobbled so heavily, but before she knew it, they were let go and the lanterns floated up to the highest point.

 

“Come to the God who is far, very high, in that high place. So that this plan could be accomplished successfully.”

 

But on second thought, it was a little funny.

 

Daisy  flower's  language was hope, peace, and innocence.

 

However, her plan (kill Gillotti) was far from hope, peace or innocence.

 

It was messy, snobbish, and terribly calculating.

 

And yet, to hope that the flower of hope would reach God…. …..

 

It was a very foolish and shameless wish.

 

“It will come true. Asha's wish.”

 

As if she could read her mind, Hannah grabbed Roselyn's dress and said so.

 

The child's clear golden eyes shone as if they wanted to give her hope.

 

Roselyn carefully stroked Hannah's hair, thinking the child's heart was so beautiful.

 

“Thank you. Your wish will come true, too. Hannah.”

 

Hannah who was looking up at Roselyn nodded in reply.

 

Then Hannah, who turned around and stared somewhere, suddenly started running.

 

“Hannah?”

 

“Hannah! Where are you going?”

 

Because anyone could stop him, the startled Arsene chased after Hannah.

 

“Arsene, please stop!”

 

Too many people were walking back from the cliff after the ceremony was over, as if the waves were receding.

 

Hannah and Arsene disappeared in the waves of people.

 

“Jorge!”

 

Roselyn hurriedly called Jorge. The men accompanying her moved at Jorge's gesture.

 

“There are too many people, the place is too big! We have to spread out and search. We'll search in pairs and meet back here in twenty minutes.”

 

“Then the twins will go together and I'll go with Asha…………” 

 

“No. I think it would be better if Tasha and Jorge, who are faster on your feet, go together. I'll go with Louie as she knows her way around.”

 

It was more efficient for two highly mobile people to move together.

 

Because Roselyn, who was limping, would certainly move slower.

 

However, Jorge could not do so.

 

Roselyn smiled and said, as if she understood how Jorge felt.

 

“Don't worry about me. Shadow is always around to protect me.”

 

Shadow!

 

He was Tamon's personal guard who was always invisible.

 

Jorge's expression became lighter as he remembered the existence of Shadow.

 

“I understand. Let's gather here every twenty minutes until we find the children.”

 

Lasha and Jorge rushed away. Roselyn hastily looked around with Louie.

 

“Why did Hannah run away so suddenly?”

 

Roselyn suddenly recalled Hannah's actions. For some reason, Hannah kept looking back the whole time.

 

What exactly did Hannah see?

 

Being a disciple of the Prophet Hartz, perhaps Hannah saw something that would happen in the future.

 

'No, that's not what's important right now.'

 

 It was urgent to find the children as soon as possible.

 

“The knights are fast on their feet and have a wide radius of action, so we should look again where they had searched to be sure, Louie.”

 

“Yes, Asha.”

 

Roselyn and Louie searched everywhere in the alleyways.

 

Then at some point.

 

Arghhhh!

 

A faint scream could be heard from behind a gloomy building.

 

Roselyn and Louie slowed their footsteps and quietly walked over to where the scream was coming from.

 

And the scene they found made Roselyn and Louie's eyes widen in surprise.

Chapter end