Bab 65: A Reincarnated?
"Wait, let me see if I got It right, some merchants want to settle in the town just because I'm here?" Looking at Charlotte, Sian asked skeptically. "Usually, when they know who I am, most try to avoid me."
"That's in the past," Charlotte said serenely. "Since you're here in Solaris doing something so big, news got around fast. Many influential people contacted my family, especially the merchants. What most wanted to know was about you."
"Why?" Sian frowned.
"Because they want to know if it's safe for them to invest in this town." Illianna smiled as she answered before Charlotte.
"It's like Illianna said," Charlotte confirmed good-humoredly. "They wanted to know if you intended to settle here. Since I told my family that I was having frequent contact with you, my father tasked me with finding out if you would remain here or was just a whim of yours."
"But if the merchants want to come, that means you gave a positive response, doesn't it?" Illianna asked.
"That's right," Charlotte stated. "I told them that Sian intended to settle here, and now, many merchants are buying plots of land. Since this town is near the border between 3 kingdoms, they don't want to miss this opportunity to invest."
Still confused, Sian asked, "I still don't understand, what is the importance of me being here?"
"It's like I told you before," Illianna looked at Sian with a smug expression. "With you here, it's practically impossible for a war against another kingdom to happen, and even if it does, this region will be safe. Which means no loss for those who are settled here."
"It's not like I'm going to protect them."
"You don't even need to, your presence here already serves as a shield," Illianna replied. "Since they know you're doing business here, it's obvious you won't act explosively because that would only hurt yourself, that's why they're not scared by your presence but excited."
"That's exactly right," Charlotte said. "You here are the guarantee that they won't lose their investment in a war. But while many are excited, there are still some cautious ones afraid you'll snap and just destroy everything around."
Wisely, Illianna decided not to tell the fact that a few hours ago Sian wanted to bring the town down because of a small conflict.
"I had already figured it would happen, but not that it would be this fast," Illianna said. "I thought it would take at least another month for it to happen."
"I think this was due to the two wars that Sian stopped," Charlotte replied energetically.
Frowning, Sian denied, "I don't remember doing anything so grand."
"Even if it was indirectly, you have stopped these wars," Charlotte said. "With you here, Edrorian kingdom initiated a truce with Poutis, because of that, Tarodel was forced to pull their troops back from Prazar for fear of suffering retaliation from Poutis."
"As long as they didn't pass through this town, I wouldn't mind them." Sian shrugged.
"But they don't know that," Charlotte said optimistically. "To them, the fact that you are settling here is a complete mystery. Add to the fact that your strength frightens them, you being a duke of Hosnein also has them worried. All they can come to surmise is that the two kingdoms might form an alliance, so they'd rather not risk it."
As the conversation continued, Charlotte also reported that the merchants weren't the only ones ready to invest in the city. She also intended to bring in some citizens to take advantage of as much of the fertile land as possible. She intended to turn Solaris into a commercial center.
Seizing the opportunity, Illianna asked Charlotte to help them hire competent employees. In addition to employees, she also asked for information about suppliers who could provide the necessities the hotel was needing.
Complying with her request, Charlotte said she will contact a merchant organization from which she often does business and round up employees according to the list Illianna gave her.
"Oh, before I forget, could you recommend some artists for us?" Illianna added.
"Are they really necessary?" Sian asked.
"Good storytellers, dancers, minstrels will always be welcome anywhere," Charlotte replied. "It is very common for families and friends to get together to tell and listen to stories. This happens especially at harvest times, where farmers need to thresh the grains, so they do it while listening to stories and songs."
"That's one of the reasons I'm so popular with the kids," Illianna smiled triumphantly at Sian.
"Well, whatever." Sian shrugged and looked at Charlotte. "There's something I'd like to ask you."
"We're friends, no need to be reserved," she replied.
"It's in private," Sian looked at Winston.
"He's been with me since we were kids, you can trust him."
"I believe what he is going to ask you is not something that you want him to hear." Illianna said.
"In that case, would you excuse us?" Charlotte asked Winston.
"But Milady-"
"You worry too much. He won't do anything bad to me, he's a good person." Charlotte said confidently.
Even reluctantly, Winston moved away from where they were standing. But judging by his body posture, he was ready to run to where they were at any moment.
"Since I don't like stalling, I'll get straight to the point," Sian looked at Charlotte. "Are you a reincarnated person?"
Seeming to doubt what she had heard, Charlotte remained still as she stared at Sian.
Figuring she was wondering if she heard right, Sian added, "You didn't hear wrong, I asked if you were a reincarnated person."
Finally reacting, Charlotte almost jumped out of her chair.
"H-How do you know that?! Or rather, how can you talk about it openly?"
As if she had realized something, she leaned over the table enthusiastically. "Are you two reincarnated too?!"
"Only I am reincarnated, as to why we can talk about it with him, I don't know." Turning away from Charlotte's extremely close face, Illianna pondered before continuing with a serious expression. "But now that you have said, I believe there is a possibility that he is a reincarnated too."
Realizing her inappropriate manners, Charlotte excused herself as she sat down again.
"It's impossible for me to be a reincarnated," Sian denied Illianna's words. "It would be very unfair for me to be one without memories of a past life or convenient skills like yours."
"Instead of reincarnated, transmigrated would be more accurate."
Saying this, Illianna began to tell what she had just theorized. According to her, Sian might have come from another world when he was just a baby. That would be one of the reasons that even though Sian searched, he never found anything about his parents.
As for him having no skills or memory, the gods may have made a mistake. If they need the help of people from other worlds to do something, that means they are not omnipotent beings, so they are liable to make mistakes.
It would also explain why they could talk about it with Sian when the contract forbade them to comment about it with beings of this world.
"I refuse to accept this theory," Sian was indignant.
"There is also another possibility," Charlotte who had recovered from her surprise interjected. "I don't understand well since it was Ophilia who told me the details, but what was written on the reliquary your parents left, hinted that they were going through problems and were unable to be with you."
The possibility Charlotte was referring to was that instead of being brought into this world by the Gods, he was sent by his parents, who wanted him to escape some impending tragedy.
"Thinking of it that way, I guess it's possible," Illianna pondered. "If you consider that they were able to do something like that, that means they were quite powerful, which explains Sian's strength being beyond comprehension even though he was young."
According to Charlotte, the place where she came from, there was a rather famous story where a child was sent to another world by his parents who wanted him to escape alive of a tragedy. Even if it was just a fiction, the world they were in now was enough to make her believe in that possibility.
"Well, those are good theories and all, but you forgot the fact that Ophilia and Emily can also hear about it without your contract being activated." Sian calmly took a sip of tea and continued, "How do you guys explain that?"
After debating and creating random theories for a while, they went back to the original subject they wanted to talk to Charlotte about. Her situation was similar to Illianna's, she died and the next thing she noticed was a yellow shadow, and she could choose two unique skills.
Even what the shadow said to both of them was similar, including the evil that was to come. Although they tried to guess, the 3 of them couldn't think of anything that could be it that evil.
Taking advantage of the topic, Illianna brought Sian's Sacred Treasure into the conversation. According to her, the person who wrote it was probably a reincarnated as well. Taking a brief look at the sections and analyzing the annotated knowledge, Charlotte's opinion was the same.
Since they had already spent a long time talking, Charlotte didn't want to keep Winston waiting. But before she left, she handed some papers to Sian, they were the deed for some plots of land around Sian's land. She said that this was a gift as a way of thanking him for his indirect help.
Since he had nothing to offer her at the moment, Sian gifted her a communication tool and told that if she needed help, she could contact him at any time.
"We're expecting you at the opening," Sian invited Charlotte.
"Given the size of this build, were you able to get it done within the planned time frame?" Charlotte asked with a doubtful expression.
"Don't worry about it," Illianna said in a confident tone. "If we fail to meet the goal, the most that can happen is people laughing at Sian behind his back for setting a nearly impossible goal."
"Oh, thank god, that makes me so peaceful." Sian said ironically as he rolled up his eyes.
With a small giggle, Charlotte said goodbye and left, leaving a promise that she would invite some acquaintances.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone