The Incandescent | Book 7 | The Fairy arc

Chapter 9 ~ The Rancid Nightmare

Killian returned home late at night from his walk. Fireflies glowed around him as he stepped out of the forest, his footsteps halting when he saw the silhouette of a young woman standing near the house. Killian eagerly walked forward, his smile dwindling when he noticed the somberness on her face.

"I will ask again," Mara said strongly, her voice uncompromising. "Why?"

It was the reason why she became a private detective. Answers to the greatest mystery begged to be revealed, refusing to be in vain. Mara would not let this go, even if she had to force the answers from her father.

Killian took a deep breath before slowly letting it out. I can't keep putting this off. I suppose it's time I finally told her. She needs to know, Killian thought, feeling it was unfair to keep such information from her. He had been unwilling to do so in the past, but now he felt it was a suitable time to revisit unpleasant memories, to finally confide in his daughter.

"I will tell you over tea," Killian promised, needing a warm drink to help him clear his mind.

Mara carefully scanned Killian's face for any sign he might back down from his promise. Seeing he was indeed serious, she conceded and stepped back into the house.

Killian prepared Mara's favorite tea blend of oolong almond rose with red rose petals, saffron, amaretto, dark chocolate, peony buds, and sencha green tea. He poured tea into two cups and took them to the porch area just outside the dining table. A blue rooftop covered the porch area from the rain. There was a small table and two chairs so two people could sit and drink tea while watching the rainfall.

However, it wasn't rainy that night. Killian sat across from Mara after setting down the tea. The cool night air wafted with the fragrant scent of tea as fireflies danced. For a moment, there was nothing to break the silence of the night. Fireflies continued dancing, and father and daughter drank tea.

Then out of nowhere, Killian's voice carried through the night.

"Vinessa Haidesur was the daughter of my father's rival business partner, Scypere Haidesur. Vinessa was engaged to a noble man named Ruyesli Calire, but she didn't love him, and she wanted to marry me.

"My father, Merdan Decuir, discovered our romance. Instead of reprimanding me as he should have, he allowed us to meet, hoping for the end of rivalry. He arranged meetings with Vinessa's father to attempt peaceful negotiations.

"Per my father's hopes, the rivalry ended. Instead of business rivals, my father and Vinessa's father became business partners. The business partnership strengthened upon our marriage, joining the two families. All was well, with prosperity and success.

"The only one who opposed our marriage was my older brother, Ilucian Decuir. He warned me against her, but I foolishly didn't listen, blinded by love.

"Vinessa was already pregnant with you by the time we married. I rejoiced when you were born. I held you every day, singing to you as you slept. I took you everywhere with me, so proud was I of you. Even Vinessa's former fiancé wished us well, gifting you with flowers and a pearl music box. He married a mermaid named Annasca and moved to the seaside with her.

"Life was a fairytale. The business flourished like my marriage. My older brother was to inherit the business from my father. They worked alongside each other, learning everything there was to know about weaponry, metal, and gemstones. Even though my brother had the best teacher, he was no metalsmith. He refined swords, but he had no talent in design. I created the family emblem and my own personal emblem that would always remain with me.

"Ilucian taught me the family business and he was amazed at my remarkable skill. He wanted me to inherit the business, since I was more knowledgeable and skillful, but I didn't want to. I wanted a simple life, away from confining matters of business. I left that to my brother, since I didn't want to deal with any of the complicated office work that came with running a business. Math and numbers were something I was not good at, but it was something my brother excelled at. So naturally, he was the suitable choice for the role. I opted to be an ordinary metalsmith with my father as my supervisor.