Chapter 53: The Siren's Song (4)

Upon returning from the festival, Lucia wordlessly retreated to her room. She seemed somewhat dejected. Louis noticed a change in her mood.

As he watched her retreating figure, Moana gently stroked his hair with a smile.

“It’s okay. It just brought back memories for her.”

Moana assumed Louis was worried about Lucia and gave him a thumbs-up.

“Louis, you did incredibly well today!”

Her praise held deep meaning. Initially startled by Louis’s impromptu actions, Moana had been flooded with thoughts as she watched her sister perform on stage again after so long. One thought stood out above the rest:

‘Lucia truly belongs…on the stage singing.’

Ever since the accident, Lucia hadn’t sung publicly.

Moana’s small wish was to see her sister sing on stage once more. Today, with the help of this little gentleman, she saw hope for that dream coming true. Of course, she never imagined it was all part of his plan.

Without any suspicions, Moana asked Louis for a favor.

“Louis…”

“Yeah?”

“I have a request.”

“A request?”

“You passed the preliminary round today, right? So would you please continue performing with Lucia?”

Louis eagerly agreed, feeling like he’d hit the jackpot due to Moana’s unexpected request.

“Heh-heh! Sure!”

“Aww, thanks, sweetie. I’ll make something yummy for you.”

“Yes!” Louis enthusiastically nodded.

Next to him, one of the twins whined.

“Moana…what about me?”

“I want one tooooo…” Moana smiled brightly as Louis clung to her and left after promising him she’d make something tasty for them.

After quickly preparing snacks for the kids, Moana went looking for her sister.

Knock, knock.

“It’s me. Can I come in?”

“…”

There was no response. With a soft sigh, Moana opened the door.

Her eyes fell upon Lucia buried under the blanket. She gently sat on the edge of the bed and stroked what she assumed was her sister’s back.

“How was today?”

“…”

Lucia remained silent beneath the covers. Moana managed a small smile, understanding Lucia’s feelings somewhat.

“You enjoyed it, didn’t you?”

The moment Lucia stepped onto the stage today must have been so exhilarating that she now felt overwhelmed with guilt. In response to Moana’s question, the blanket slightly lowered, revealing Lucia’s eyes.

Under her sister’s gaze, Lucia hesitated before quietly admitting, “Yeah…it felt good.”

“Was it because you stepped on stage for the first time in a while or playing in front of an audience?”

”…Both.” As she replied, Lucia looked even more dejected.

Moana gently stroked her forehead. “I’m glad.”

”…Sis doesn’t hate me?”

“Why would I?”

“Well…because of me…”

Lucia was now twenty-two years old, but to Moana, she still appeared as the ten-year-old girl she had been when they were separated. With a warm smile, Moana reassured her, “As I’ve told you countless times… It wasn’t your fault. They made that choice themselves to protect the two most important people in their lives. I could never hate you, someone they sacrificed everything to save. Just like Mom and Dad, you’re precious to me above all else.”

”…”

“I have already spoken to Louis. From now on, you two will go out together at Ga-in’s nights.”

“Huh?”

“He agreed? Both standing and playing on stage.”

“But…”

“It was good for me too… seeing you on stage after so long.”

”…Sis.”

“Currently, it is only for playing but… isn’t it much better than before? You used to pale just looking at the stage, yet now you are climbing onto it. Is it because of Louis? Huhu. Anyway, if you continue performing on stage, someday maybe… won’t you be able to sing again?”

”…”

As Moana spoke calmly, Lucia’s brow furrowed slightly, and tears began to fall once more. These were tears filled with gratitude towards her sister.

“Sis…”

“Don’t cry.”

“Sis…”

“Our siren truly shines when she sings, doesn’t she?”

Having lost their parents, the sisters relied on each other for support. Moana gently embraced her younger sister as Lucia leaned into her arms.

Meanwhile, Louis and the twins quietly observed them from the doorway.

“Moana is so kind…”

“And Lucia too…”

The sensitive twins sniffled.

Louis placed his arm around their shoulders and suggested, “Hey, kiddos. Want to do something nice with me?”

“A nice thing?”

“What’s it about?” The twins tilted their heads curiously, looking at Louis.

“Oh, I’ve got an idea. Heh heh.” Louis’ eyes curved like lovely crescent moons, indicating he was hatching a plan.

And so it began. From that day forward, Louis and Lucia regularly graced Ga-in’s Night stage together.

“Don’t you forget meeeeee! Remember me!”

This was just one of many performances on this stage for them. On this particular night, Louis showcased his smooth moves while singing passionately.

“I looooooved yoooouuuu!”

Once again, Louis successfully completed “Southbound Train,” song number eighteen from his previous life’s playlist. As he finished, cheers erupted all around him.

“You were amazing tonight.”

“Louis! Over here!”

The overwhelming adoration made Louis’s heart swell uncontrollably.

“Heh…”

He tried to suppress his grin by controlling the corners of his mouth, but couldn’t help himself.

But he couldn’t contain himself any longer and started wriggling his body like a worm.

“Oh boy, did you think that would make me happy?” Louis waved at the audience while trying to control his squirming limbs. Despite the chaos, his eyes sparkled brightly.

I guess…I’m truly meant for this stage!

In the end, Louis’s grin stretched from ear to ear.

“Heh-heh!”

The cheers coming from below made him feel invincible. This was the first time in his life that so many people had paid attention to him, so it was understandable that he got caught up in the moment.

No wonder people become celebrities!

Louis’s popularity soared with the crowd’s enthusiastic response. Riding this wave, Louis and Lucia easily advanced to the final round of the competition, which was now underway.

“Heh-heh-heh!” Responding to the cheering audience, Louis waved slightly as he exited the stage. The crowd roared louder at his adorable gesture.

Intoxicated by their applause, Louis eagerly awaited the results of the finals.

“Louis.”

“Yes?” Louis looked up as Lucia leaned down toward him.

“Are you having fun?”

“Yes! And you?” Louis beamed while gauging her reaction.

“…Me too.” Her reply was short but heartfelt.

However, her response carried many emotions within it. Louis watched as Lucia slowly stood up from her seat.

This isn’t easy.

A trauma is when someone mentally blocks off their mind after experiencing a traumatic event or accident. In Lucia’s case, she vividly witnessed her parents’ deaths right before her eyes. This horrific memory created a mental barrier, and she concluded that her singing was the cause of everything.

She didn’t want to remember it, fearing it might happen again. She desired to forget completely. These thoughts continuously tormented Lucia, leading her to mentally lock away anything related to her singing.

Well, there’s still hope though.

Louis was trying to guide Lucia to unlock her memories herself by providing motivation for her to confront and overcome these traumatic experiences. That’s what Louis aimed to accomplish.

The best way is to make her realize that this trauma isn’t truly as horrifying…

His expression turned somber. Initially, when he first joined Ga-in on stage with Lucia, he believed her trauma could be quickly resolved. Despite not being able to sing, she still showed lingering attachment to music. However, it seemed his hopes were misplaced. Regardless of how many times they performed together, Lucia never attempted to take further steps beyond their shared stage presence. This stagnation began to worry Louis.

We’re running out of time…

He couldn’t afford to spend another hundred or thousand years in Luft Hagenn.

The ship to Autumn Continent would soon depart, and before then, Louis needed Lucia to sing so they could obtain Siren’s Tears from Carrie.

As he pondered this, a loud voice boomed from the stage.

“Louis! Lucia! You’re both in the finals!”

It was incredible how popularity worked. Despite never having sung publicly before, Louis effortlessly advanced to the final round.

His eyes sparkled with excitement.

We did it!

A grin slowly spread across his face.

“Congratulations, Louis.”

“You too, sis!”

With a wide smile, Louis took Lucia’s gently extended hand, thinking:

If she won’t unlock her own chains, I’ll break them for her.

D-Day, the long-awaited day to shatter Lucia’s self-imposed shackles, would coincide with the finals of the competition.

The day after Louis and Lucia secured their spot in the finals…

“What are you doing here?”

Louis had just returned to the siren resting area from outside when he spotted someone loitering near the inn.

“Yikes?!”

Caught off guard by Louis’s sudden voice, the figure jumped in surprise. The person with their face covered by a cloth was none other than Carrie.

With his hands casually stuffed in his pockets, Louis eyed her warily. “What are you up to?”

“H-How did you know it was me?”

”…Is that supposed to be a disguise?”

“Yes… I-I tried my best.”

“If you’re going to try, at least do it properly. Anyone would think you’re a thief… Wait, don’t tell me those middle-aged guys gave you this idea?”

”…”

As soon as Louis finished his sentence, Carrie clamped her mouth shut.

“Tsk tsk.”

Louis clicked his tongue at her tacit admission. Dejectedly, Carrie lowered the cloth covering her face.

Seeing this, Louis asked, “Anyway, what brings you here?”

“I-I came to check if you’re doing well!”

“You can tell how I’m doing by watching me from here?”

“W-well, that’s…”

“Well, good timing then. I was planning to visit you anyway.”

”…Me?” Carrie looked puzzled at the unexpected statement.

Louis smiled lightly and explained, “Yes, there’s something I need your help with.”

“From me? What is it?”

“You know Ga-in’s final performance is tomorrow night, right?”

“Of course! As if I wouldn’t know Lady Lucia will be gracing the stage!”

“Yes, yes, we all know that. Enough with the small talk. So, pack the plaza to capacity tomorrow and do your best.”

“The audience? Why?”

“Well, more spectators make for better performances, don’t you think?”

”…Is that it?”

“Don’t question me further; just do as asked. It’ll help us achieve our goal. Surely, it’s not too much trouble for you, right?”

“No trouble at all! Just mobilizing my family members alone would fill up the square!”

“Great. Then see you tomorrow.” With that, Louis turned to leave.

Louis was about to leave when he abruptly stopped and hastily called out over his shoulder.

“Oh, right, Carrie.”

“It’s me, your hyung, Carrie!”

“Prepare two bouquets for tomorrow.”

“…Why?”

“Just do as I say. If you follow my orders, there’ll be cookies raining from the sky even while you sleep. Make sure they’re not too flashy.”

“Okay… Got it.” Having firmly decided that Louis was just a mischievous kid, Carrie nodded without further questioning him. He knew better than to ask why; it would only give him a headache.

With their plans set, the two parted ways, and the day quickly passed by.