Sonidor.
If one were to define the life she had been living up till now, it would be close to compliance. Perhaps it could even be called resignation. It was mainly a resignation towards absurdity, to put it simply.
Even if she struggled and resisted, nothing would change, so let things happen as they may. Damn this wretched world.
From the moment she was born, she had been deprived of many rights that others could enjoy. It wasn’t something that would change just because she got angry or protested.
Sonidor was born as a member of the Descencia tribe and she actually had a different birth name. The name she inherited from her mother was “Dreams Made of Gold,” and “Sonidor” was a loosely translated version of her name in the imperial language. That was the first right that she was deprived of – to have her name changed into the imperial style, just like all the other Descencian tribe members had to do.
In the imperial language, Sonidor meant something along the lines of “Sleep well! Have good dreams!” As a result, whenever anyone from the empire heard her name for the first time, they would often smirk and mockingly comment on it.
For example, when it was late evening and they were parting ways with her, they would mockingly shout, “Sonidor, Sonidor!” and burst into laughter as if it were some great joke. No matter how many times she heard it, she was annoyed at such vile wordplay.
According to imperial law, the Descencian tribespeople were prohibited from inheriting surnames. This discrimination had persisted since 500 years ago when their land was trampled on by the Arche Empire. The inability to inherit a surname meant that the Descencian tribespeople were deemed inferior to commoners, without any chance of attaining a status higher than that. It didn’t matter how much they contributed to the empire since they were barred from becoming nobles.
Furthermore, the Descencian tribespeople could not leave the empire until their death.
The Descencian tribespeople originally lived on a massive island located to the south. The island had a mild climate year-round and was rich in marine resources and mana. In particular, mana overflowed to the extent that it could even be called a “landfill of mana” and the emperor of the the Arche Empire, who had invaded the island 500 years ago, referred to it as a “mana island.”
The land blessed by the gods. The indigenous people there formed a single large tribe and, imbued with the immense power of mana, they possessed mysterious abilities that were passed down through generations.
The extent of these abilities varied greatly among the tribespeople and from tribe to tribe. These included the ability to shape metal or bend iron, read the memories of objects or people, manipulate the wind, foresee the future, and more. Most of these abilities were hereditary and were passed down from parents to children and didn’t require mana like magic. Although the range and effects of these abilities were limited compared to widespread spells like “Meteor,” the fact that they could be used without relying on mana meant that they could be endlessly utilized until one’s stamina ran out. Additionally, there were some tribespeople who possessed abilities that were beyond the reach of conventional magic.
They were a presence that faced intense backlash from the imperial citizens yet they were too valuable to be discarded. In the end, the emperor bestowed upon the Descencian tribe the status of “artisans'' instead of recognizing them as imperial citizens. While they could possess personal property, they could never receive a surname nor honor despite their achievements. They would forever exist between the borders of slaves and commoners. Although their circumstances were better than that of slaves, most commoners still looked down on artisans.
Sonidor was a dream artisan. She possessed the ability to create new dreams by connecting her consciousness with that of a sleeping person. She often listened to the last words of elderly individuals facing death or fulfilled unfulfilled wishes in their dreams. Occasionally, she would receive dangerous requests that involved the retrieval of confidential information, but she would leave those matters in the hands of her assistant, Terry.
As Sonidor was in the midst of fulfilling a request that day, she sincerely wanted to give her client a piece of her mind.
“U-um, well, I have… A-Always…”
It was already the second time. She clenched her teeth and endured it once again. While there were times when she couldn’t complete a request in one go, it was rare for it to extend to three times. Judging by the client’s behavior though, it seemed like it would continue.
“The s-s-sunset is beautiful, Lady Lila.”
I should charge him extra for this. Staring at the man who was evading the conversation, Sonidor’s eyes twitched. As she listened to her client, she shifted her gaze to the sky and in an instant, the cobalt blue sky transformed into a crimson hue as if red paint had been splattered. It meant that the time to wake up was approaching.
If the land was the client’s domain, then the sky was Sonidor’s domain.
Sonidor gazed at the fading evening sunset. As her concentration wavered, cracks began to appear in the sky, but it was the usual phenomenon in her dreams where daytime would suddenly turn into evening or snow would fall in the middle of summer. In the realm of dreams, there were no fixed forms or rules, so it was always uncertain how things would appear.
Was it time for a meal? Or perhaps a trip to the restroom? Menstrual issues were always a problem too. As dark clouds gathered in the sky, lightning began to flicker. Crash, rumble! It seemed like she was feeling hungry.
“There’s suddenly lightning in the sky!”
She stared at her client who was beginning to shout.
There’s a saying that a man never forgets his first love until he dies.
Sonidor recalled a rumor that she had never paid much attention to before. She was in a position where she had yet to experience romance due to her dedication to working. She even wondered what it was like to have a first love like men do, but to think that her client’s dying wish would be to confess to his first love from his youth. She couldn’t comprehend it at all. Perhaps it was because she was a woman. Well, it was a job she was doing for money after all.
That’s just how it goes sometimes.
‘Why can’t you just say I like you!’
Unable to properly confess even once and unable to hold a woman’s hand until the brink of death. Mentally exhausted, Sonidor cursed to herself. However, feeling that all her efforts thus far would go to waste, she wanted to try some other method before waking up. Come on, brain! Give me some ideas so that I can make a man confess!
Sonidor expressed visible disappointment on her face and spoke.
“I was looking forward to it since you said you had something to tell me, Lephonse.”
“L-Lady Lila, it’s just that…”
In the dream, Lephonse was not an elderly man in his seventies but a young man in his early twenties and Lila was the young lady whom Lephonse had secretly admired in his youth. She was a noblewoman from a prestigious Count family and he had been employed as their gardener. Lila was the kind of woman that Lephonse could never dare dream of due to his humble background and Sonidor was currently embodying the image of that young lady.
The reason why she was able to take on the appearance of a young noble lady she had never seen before was because in the world of dreams, Sonidor could change into the appearance of “the person that the client desperately desires.” While there was no law that said she had to be human, there was never a time where she wasn’t one, so let’s just say that she was a person for now.
Fiddling with her fingers, she spoke.
“Is that all you have to say to me? Even though this could be the last time we meet, Lephonse?”
“What do you mean by last time, Lady Lila?”
Sonidor cast her gaze downward pitifully with tears in her eyes. If Terry were to witness her in this state, he would’ve thought that she had gone crazy, but this place was the dream realm where no one could interfere except her and her client.
“ … Lephonse, th-the thing is… I…”
Her client’s pupils were shaking in all directions like an earthquake. Well, it was only natural to feel bewildered when the young lady, who he had always observed from afar, was now attempting to express some kind of confession. She could understand his feelings, but why wouldn’t he eat when the table was already all set? It was driving her beyond crazy.
“Lephonse, are you going to make me say it first?”
Sonidor tightly clutched the bouquet of flowers that she had received earlier from him. As she gazed up at him, she intentionally fluttered her eyelashes. She was blatantly trying to seduce him and Lephonse’s face flushed a deep shade of red. He then licked his lips.
Now go ahead and confess! She anxiously glanced up at the sky. The clouds drew away and revealed a rift in the sky. It split open as if made of gold and the world began to crumble. They were running out of time. As if reading Sonidor’s heart, he tightly closed both eyes and spoke.
“I-I like you! I’ve always liked you. I have liked you for many years ever since I first saw you… And that has never changed…”
She let out a sigh of relief.
Finally, her job was finished. She somehow managed to get it done before time ran out. The request was to help him confess to his first love and that was Sonidor’s role up to that point. Before the pitch-black sky completely descended on them, Sonidor gently took Lephonse’s hand.
There was no need to do anything more, but it was to repay him for showing her such a beautiful world of vibrant colors. In the garden made by Lephonse’s subconscious, the harmony of flowers and the warm, dazzling colors were captivating to see. As expected of a former gardener, the garden created from his consciousness had its own distinct charm. There was a time when a famous painter in the empire came to her with a request and even then, it was a spectacular sight. It was to the extent that she would’ve loved to have it captured on a canvas if she could.
“Thank you. I never forgot you for even a single moment too.”
A garden full of beautiful flowers, his unforgettable first love, and a confession of first love. When she was convinced that she had completed the job perfectly, a smile naturally spread across her lips.
The gradually narrowing field of view finally turned pitch black.
Her consciousness was slowly being pulled back to the surface. As her sense of reality slowly returned, Sonidor experienced an enormous headache and muscle pain. It had the taste of death. If she were to go through this three more times today, she would’ve fallen into a sleep where she would not wake up for the next two days.
She wiggled her tingling toes and slowly opened her eyelids. Her own hand had been tightly holding onto her client’s hand to the point that it was sweaty. She was always reluctant to hold the hand of someone she didn’t know very well, but there was no helping it because she could not get through to their consciousness without being in physical contact. She let out a deep sigh and waited until she could move her body. All of a sudden though, her whole body began to twist as if she had a cramp.
Sonidor let out a deathly cry.
“H-Hey, Terry! Oh god, I’m dying!”
The boy, who had been dozing off in his chair, jumped up in surprise at the sudden scream. Terry staggered in a daze, tangling his legs before tripping over his own feet. Crash! Hearing the loud noise, she muttered to herself. Oh, for heaven’s sake. Both this guy and that guy.
Terry stood in front of Sonidor, clutching onto his flushed nose.
“Are you completely done this time? I don’t have to work overtime today, do I?”
“That’s more important to you when I’m literally in pain right now?”
“That is the most important thing to me. You’re saying the obvious.”
“You really. If you don’t do your job properly, I’m going to cut your pay. Now hurry and help me up!”
“That’s weird. Are you sure you can’t move your body? Your mouth seems to be moving just fine.”
With a temper tantrum, he massaged Sonidor’s arm without saying a word.
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