Memoirs of the Returnee

Aerial Garden (2)

Jade’s Kes Royce advanced into Zone 3. Inside the sedan, where stars were embedded in the ceiling, I took in every detail of the Aerial Garden.

Zone 3, unlike Zones 4 and 5, had no high-rise buildings, but was dominated by buildings that were carved like handicrafts. Artifact shops, magic spell shops, weapon shops, furniture shops, etc. Only the luxury of luxuries, the high-end of high-ends from all fields were gathered here.

“How do you plan to describe the brilliance of Libra?”

Just then, Jade in the back seat asked. His questions always had a predetermined answer.

I spoke immediately.

“If possible, I would like to capture the portrait of Master Jade on a canvas-”

“My portrait?”

Jade slightly furrowed his brows.

“You’re audacious.”

“Yes. So, just this beautiful landscape of the Aerial Garden-”

“But.”

“…….”

What do you mean, ‘but’? This crazy guy suddenly became ominous.

“You’re really lucky today. Today is the only day this year that I’m free.”

I swallowed a sigh with effort.

I’m in trouble. I wrong choice of words, and I’ll end up having to paint a portrait of Jade.

“So, I ask once more.”

Jade’s sharp eyes looked at the rearview mirror. His gaze was fixed precisely on me.

“Do you have talent in painting?”

Talent in painting.

Of course, painting was just a hobby for me, and I had never received a proper evaluation from anyone, but……

I probably have it.

I know that I have a talent for painting, just as I know that I don’t have a talent for magic.

“You’re taking some time to answer. Are you not confident in yourself?”

Jade urged.

He doesn’t speak lightly. He’s as cold-hearted as he is devoid of affection, a narcissistic sociopath who only thinks about himself.

Therefore, I am out of his sight in an instant.

Ah, of course, he’s not a crazy guy who will kill me as soon as I’m out of his sight. At least until he dies, I won’t be able to set foot in the Aerial Garden.

“No.”

However, this is a crisis and an opportunity at the same time.

I have to trust my talent.

The Libra clan dislikes ‘accurate’ artifacts like images or photos. It’s one of the strange traditions that have been passed down through the generations. They even invented and wore special artifacts to prevent themselves from becoming subjects without their knowledge.

Therefore, they are rather interested in art, and pour enormous sponsorships into the entire art industry, including painting and sculpture.

Especially, the ‘Libra Art School’, which is operated by the family itself, is considered one of the top art schools on the continent.

Therefore, ‘talent in painting’ is the most suitable link that can connect them and me.

“I am confident.”

I answered like that and looked at the rearview mirror. Jade’s eyes were still glued to me.

“You’re confident… Good.”

He gave a deep smile. The driver in the driver’s seat let out a faint sigh. Does he think I’m babbling nonsense?

“If your words prove to be false, you will have to pay a fitting price.”

“Even if the brilliance blinds my eyes and chokes my throat, all I want is to capture it.”

Now, flattery comes as naturally to me as breathing.

“Hmm!”

Jade licked his lips. His face was filled with the arrogant emotions of a nobleman: anticipation, excitement, curiosity, amusement, and the magnanimity of looking down on the commoners.

He said,

“Good. Let’s go to Zone 1.”

Zone 1.

A place I couldn’t even step foot in during my previous life.

“Sir Jade-”

“Go.”

The surprised driver responded without thinking, and Jade’s face turned completely expressionless.

Indeed, a dangerous face. Perhaps the face of a murderer who could easily kill hundreds of people.

“Don’t speak back.”

“……Yes. I apologize.”

The driver answered, sweating cold sweat. I buried myself in the seat, calming my pounding heart.

I was quite excited.

As Jade said, it seems like my luck is good today.

Zone 2 had many central facilities of Libra. The Libra Knights, magic spell research institutes, workshops, R&D centers, and various other ‘departments’ that Libra had established for its own purposes were all gathered there.

—Libra’s system is no different from a small country.

Seeing the reality that I had only read about in documents was quite a new experience, but Jade’s luxury sedan, Kes Royce, did not stop in Zone 2.

It passed all of them and headed to a place where only the ‘first-class’ recognized by Libra were invited, the closest to the heart of the Aerial Garden.

The huge magic barrier surrounded by rose vines— Zone 1 of the Aerial Garden.

The sedan arrived at the entrance.

The driver stopped the car. A woman dressed in a suit, who seemed to be a housekeeper, approached.

She looked at me in the passenger seat and spoke to Jade.

“……Sir Jade.”

“He’s a painter.”

Jade introduced me as if he had been waiting.

“It’s my invitation, is there a problem?”

“No, sir.”

The housekeeper opened the door. The magic barrier was opened, and the sedan entered.

The scenery of Zone 1 was rather ordinary. It was peaceful. Most of it was living spaces for the servants, such as residences, parks, flower gardens, and facilities for hobbies such as tennis and horse riding.

“Stop here.”

Jade said in a certain garden. The driver immediately stopped the car.

“Let’s get out.”

At the driver’s words, I got out of the car first.

I looked around blankly for a moment.

“……Wow.”

It was a strange world. Flowers and trees of all shapes and colors, not just roses, tulips, and magnolias, filled the whole world.

I’ve heard about it.

The so-called [Garden of Heavenly Purity], famous for its beauty even in the Libra Aerial Garden, where all the beautiful flora of the continent grows.

“You should provide the reason for your invitation yourself.”

Jade, who had gotten out of the car, sat in a corner of the garden. Behind him, black roses and vines were blooming.

Clap, clap-

He clapped his hands. Almost simultaneously, the housekeepers appeared and placed an easel in the appropriate spot. They also promptly set up a canvas of the right size for a portrait.

“What kind of paint do you use?”

One of the housekeepers asked. Then, nine other housekeepers spread out oil paints. The brands were diverse.

“This one. Dephencroix.”

I chose the oil paint of the brand ‘Dephencroix’. Jade asked,

“Do you know what it is?”

“Yes. It’s an oil paint produced by ‘Dephen’, which Libra invests in. It’s the smoothest and has the best usability.”

“Hmm.”

Jade nodded slightly.

Again, I know everything related to Libra.

“Do you have a preferred pose?”

I sat in the chair. I first picked up a pencil for the sketch.

“I think a pose of contemplation or concentration would be best. Like when you’re working.”

Jade probably wants to show that he’s a businessman. He has no talent to speak of, and his aptitude is the exact opposite of a businessman’s.

He would have been successful if he had become a mercenary.

“You have taste.”

Jade struck a pose. His head tilted slightly to the side, his gaze fixed slightly downward, his hand on his chin in a thoughtful expression.

It’s ordinary, but honestly, his face is art, so the pose itself doesn’t matter.

I started drawing the sketch with a pencil.

“I can’t stay long. I’ll give you 30 minutes for the sketch. Complete it by today.”

But, the time he’s giving is just the end of the day.

So, I’m a bit worried.

Is my talent enough to satisfy Jade?

No, even if it is, when dealing with Libra, shouldn’t it be more than just ‘enough’?

──In the midst of such worries.

Suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.

It was an idea about the versatility of Perion.

If the Perion of the 「Notepad」 operates according to my will, wouldn’t it be possible to upgrade the intangible─in other words, to upgrade the ‘essence’ known as ‘talent’?

If I upgrade the talent of painting I have, wouldn’t I be able to show more than just enough ability, even if only for a moment…….

I closed my eyes. I called 「Perion」 into my body. Along with it, I set a special purpose with my will.

What I want is: an upgrade of ‘talent’, not a simple physical body.

Among them: the ability for ‘painting’.

Buzzzzz—!

The Mana Heart overheated as it sizzled.

Or it was exhilarated.

My eyes opened wide.

I saw Jade on the other side.

All the light in the world poured down on him.

Light, heat, and wind mixed together and shimmered like intense colors.

It was already a landscape like a work of art.

I threw my pencil on the grass. I started drawing immediately. I didn’t need a sketch.

I smeared oil paint from the beginning.

Wherever my eyes landed, wherever my hand went.

There was no pause in my brush strokes, no hesitation.

Jade’s appearance is more sculptural than I’d like to admit. The black rose vines swaying in the wind. Beams of light from the sun bending across the landscape.

I captured it all on canvas.

I interpreted it with my eyes and recreated it with my hands.

I immersed myself in the moment.

For a moment, I forgot everything.

My regression, my deadline, my revenge, my feelings, I put them aside.

I was just trying to paint a picture…….

* * *

Area 1 of the Aerial Garden is literally the home of the Household. Only those who desperately want to be part of the family, especially those who have been recognized by the family, are allowed to stay.

Today, however, Jade was at it again. He had allowed a certain Endex senior into Area 1.

This was the reason why Belingham Kantar was sent to [Libra’s Garden].

“Has he arrived?”

Butler Shelin nodded at him. Belingham pointed a finger in the distance.

“……Shion Ascal. That’s right.”

Shion Ascal. The wannabe loyalist he’d met at the Limto Mines.

“Yes.”

“Why was he brought here?”

The details of the Limto Mined weren’t disclosed to Jade. He had mobilized a TF team under Gaju Shale Rock to suppress all information.

“He gave master Jade a rousing pleasantries, and he’s currently working on a portrait for his assignment.”

“…….”

Rousing pleasantries.

After all, Jade is a simple character.

But the portrait is…… actually being drawn by Shion Ascal. Though it cant be seen what or how he’s drawing from this distance

“Interesting. I doubt a painting would satisfy Jade.”

Belingham moved slowly toward him. Without making a sound, he stood quietly behind Shion Ascal.

Flick.

The brush moved, its trajectory tracing Jade’s jawline. His eyes flashed expressively.

Whirr.

Rose vines sprang up. Black roses bloomed. A beam of light descended.

Whirr-!

His brush strokes were full of confidence, as intense as the blending of light and scenery.

“……”

Belingham’s mouth fell open.

He was unknowingly drawn in. His feet felt as if they were glued to the ground. The oil painting on the canvas was reflected in his grey eyes.

He had been to art school a few times, but this was the first time he had seen such an intuitive and special drawing.

A style of painting that seemed less ‘learned’ and more ‘innate’.

Moreover, there were no corrections in his brushwork. It was as if he was simply pouring out the image in his head, continuously making brush strokes.

“?”

Suddenly, Shion stopped his hand. Perhaps he sensed a presence. He turned around and was startled.

“What the…”

Belingham, who had suddenly appeared, looked flustered.

Suddenly, Jade also stood up from his seat. Ignoring Belingham, he asked Shion.

“30 minutes have passed. Is it done?”

“Ah, yes. It’s reasonably completed.”

Belingham craned his neck to examine the canvas.

30 minutes? This was drawn in just 30 minutes?

“Reasonably?”

However, Jade frowned.

“Reasonably… You’ve crossed the line.”

It seemed he didn’t like the word ‘reasonably’.

With his rough strides, he approached in an instant, his expression as if he was about to expel Shion right then and there.

“The word ‘reasonably’ in my dictionary-”

Does not exist.

He was about to say this when his words abruptly stopped.

“……”

He blankly stared at the canvas. He stared at himself, captured within the canvas.

His eyes slightly bulged.

Belingham turned his head to the side to suppress his laughter.