Hibiren Flowers And Recital (1)

The Lord’s castle in Greek City.

At the top of the castle, Berna was playing the Regana in the music hall. The Regana is a keyboard instrument similar to an organ in this world.

On Earth, where El lived, a keyboard instrument called an organ was played long before the piano appeared.

In this world, a similar instrument exists, and it is called the Regana.

The Regana holds significant meaning for Berna. It was her only dream while living in confinement.

After being forced into marriage, the only thing she asked of Count Greek was this instrument.

Her mother, who died screaming, often played the Regana. The image was so vividly imprinted in young Berna’s mind that she longed for this instrument.

Later, the Regana became, in a way, a means for Berna to develop feelings of love for Count Greek.

The Regana is installed in the hall at the top of the castle. The ceiling of the hall forms a round arch, which is the spire visible from the outside.

Inside the tall spire. Its structure was designed to enhance the resonance of the instrument’s melody.

This was a design filled with the affection of Count Greek, the father of the Greek boy. This music hall was a gift from Count Greek to Berna.

Therefore, Berna had a deep attachment to this music hall.

Berna’s hands moved.

Her fingers moved with intense passion and great speed. It was clear at a glance that she was using advanced playing techniques.

Thus, the melody flowing out was beautiful.

The Greek boy listened to the music in a daze from behind and clapped as soon as Berna’s fingers stopped.

The Greek boy also liked listening to Berna’s playing.

When he was a child, Berna often played the Regana with the Greek boy seated beside her.

Beads of sweat were hanging from Berna’s forehead, and the boy took out a handkerchief and offered it to her. Then he exclaimed in admiration.

“Mother, it seems like your skill is improving more and more! I’ve never heard such a performance even in the capital.”

“Why are you embarrassing me? It’s not that great.”

“Oh, no. It’s true!”

The more the Greek boy praised her, the darker Berna’s expression became. Soon, she quietly shook her head at him with a gloomy face.

“That’s not true. I really think my playing skills are insignificant.”

Berna was not being modest at this moment. Why would she be modest in front of her son?

The nuance in her voice was entirely sincere. In other words, Berna genuinely believed what she was saying.

As a result, the Greek boy subtly furrowed his brow without Berna noticing.

He tried to change her mind somehow, but it was no use. The Greek boy found it very unfortunate.

Of course, he knew the reason why.

In the capital, a concert is held once a year. It is on a completely different scale from the concerts held in the territories.

Although it’s called a concert, it’s more like a competition. No, it’s blatantly a competition.

A competition where many nobles, including the Emperor, participate and play the Regana – this is the Imperial Concert.

The Regana was an instrument of such significance and popularity in this world.

It was an instrument so deeply rooted in noble society that any noble born was expected to learn it.

Therefore, this concert was the biggest event in the Empire.

A competition with such a long-standing tradition.

But Berna never learned the Regana, which every noble was supposed to learn.

The reason was, of course, that Count Dedran didn’t treat his daughter as a human being and kept her confined.

Count Dedran never invested in his pawns.

It was only with the help of Count Greek that Berna started learning later in life.

Although she started late, she learned quickly. When Count Greek was still in good health, Berna once participated in this concert with him.

But the result was devastating.

She came in last place.

Since then, Berna never played the Regana in front of Count Greek again. She believed her poor skills had damaged her husband’s reputation.

Even after her husband fell into a vegetative state, the trauma persisted. She could play alone and even in front of the Greek boy, whom she had cared for since he was a child.

But she could never play in front of her husband.

She thought she might be able to play if she improved her skills, to show her growth by playing for her husband lying there.

She practiced like crazy with that thought in mind, but the result was always the same.

She couldn’t press the Regana’s keys beside her husband. Count Greek, who had loved her playing more than anyone, made her think that if she played music, he might miraculously wake up.

But the more she thought that, the less she could play.

To an outsider, it might just be music.

But for Berna, music was the crystallization of the love that connected her and her husband, so she stubbornly believed she could never let it go.

She desperately wanted to play for her husband.

She didn’t actually expect him to wake up. She just wanted to show him her growth.

If he could hear her playing and enjoy it, even from within his collapsed state, even from deep within his soul, that would be enough.

The problem was that she couldn’t play at all.

For Berna, it was nothing less than a burden on her heart. It was a trauma.

Even if she wanted to play, she couldn’t.

The memory of that day would replay in her mind. Her husband’s face, which had once loved her playing, and the memory of how she had disgraced that face, would resurface, making her so nauseous that she couldn’t even attempt to play.

Berna was a very pure person.

She had spent her childhood in confinement and had barely left the Lord’s castle even after marrying into the Greek family.

She had become her father’s puppet, so she couldn’t learn any of the things noble society required her to learn as a child.

Count Dedran’s belief that if she learned to think and became smart, she would eventually rebel, meant she was allowed to learn nothing but reading.

So she didn’t know that the Imperial Concert was not simply a place to evaluate pure skill.

She didn’t know the real reason why she had no choice but to come in last place. And Count Greek couldn’t explain it to her.

Afterward, Count Greek was struck down by one of Count Dedran’s schemes.

The person who needed to help her overcome her trauma had fallen, so Berna couldn’t escape her trauma.

In fact, Count Greek, who knew the reality of the concert, had no intention of sending Berna to the concert.

That too was a result of Count Dedran’s scheming. An unavoidable choice.

Therefore, no one could truly know whether Berna’s skills deserved last place.

The Greek boy believed that event was the cause of Berna’s trauma.

So he thought the only way to recover was to participate in the concert again and achieve good results, and he tried to persuade Berna.

“Mother, that was then, and now you’ve been practicing for several years since then. It’s different now. You can definitely be recognized. I think you could even win!”

“There’s no way…that’s possible.”

“There is a way. This trauma started at that Concert, so the best way to stop the suffering is to go back to the Concert. If you get good results, the memory of that time will naturally fade, and you’ll be able to confidently play for Father.”

“That…”

At the Greek boy’s words, Berna bit her lip. Yes. That was certain. She wanted to play for him.

Even right now.

She remembered the face of her husband, who always smiled when he heard her play.

Even in his current state, just lying there, she couldn’t help but fantasize that if she played for him, he might smile, and she had tried so hard to play the Regana beside him.

But the result was always failure. He had taken care of her, taught her what the joys of life were, and yet, she was the kind of woman who could only come in last place.

Her hands would tremble, and she couldn’t move them.

“When I practice, it’s fine… Why…why…”

“So let’s go back out there. Even if you come in last place again, it’ll be the same anyway, but if a different result comes out, you’ll be able to return with confidence!”

“But…”

“All this time, there were misunderstandings about you, and the family’s circumstances were what they were, so nothing could be done, but now it’s different, isn’t it? I think it’s okay to try again. Count Dedran is gone now too!”

“……”

At the Greek boy’s words, Berna’s eyes trembled.

It was a valid point.

If she could produce a different result, if she could show how much she had grown, she could confidently play the Regana in front of her husband.

Berna clenched her fists.

Then she took the boy’s hand. It didn’t take long before she quietly nodded.

But there was a problem.

The Greek boy was also just beginning to grow as a political prospect.

He was still too young to fully understand the vast whirlpool of Imperial politics.

So the Greek boy had no idea that the Concert was entangled in the threads of political intrigue.

The Imperial Capital.

One of the four Dukes, Delian, was reviewing the list of participants for the concert.

Delian was of royal blood. He was the head of the Delian family, which had produced the most emperors in the Empire.

Unfortunately, because the last emperor came from a collateral line rather than a direct one, his place in the line of succession had become very distant.

If he had been born just 100 years earlier, he could have aimed for the throne.

But even now, he held more than enough power. He was the head of the Delian ducal house, which had produced 13 emperors.

Therefore, he held the most power among the four Dukes.

And in his heart, he harbored the ambition to produce another emperor from the Delian house.

Of course, that ambition didn’t involve rebellion. Instead, there was a legitimate strategy.

The next emperor didn’t necessarily have to be the current Crown Prince.

In the grand mansion of the ducal house, in the study, Delian threw the list he had been reading to his subordinate, Count Michel, and spoke.

“Look somewhere in the middle of that page.

“The middle, you say?”

At the Duke’s words, Count Michel hastily began scanning the list.

In his mind, he chanted, ‘Middle, middle, middle.’

Then he read a name in the middle. The name written there was Berna Greek.

“Do you mean Berna Greek?”

When Count Michel cautiously confirmed, Duke Delian made a slight gesture indicating he was correct.

“Yes. She’s the daughter of that Count Dedran. How filthy.”