Player 0.4 [You have died.] [Reset in progress.]

Chapter 56

Step. Step. Step.

Thudd.

Noises around me awoke me. I peeped open one eye and saw a rather short maid standing nearby. Before her, sunlight peered through the cracks in the curtains.

Wooooosh. Wooooosh.

The curtains were pulled open, and the bedroom was flooded with light. Birds chirping outside made the morning seem far more pleasant than it really was.

"Young master Luca, I apologize for the abrupt awakening," Ben said and rolled a trolley over to my bedside. "Your family has arrived."

I groggily sat up and picked up a cup of the hot brewed tea.

The tea had clearly not been made by Denise. And now that I thought about it, since I had Ben attending to my morning needs, I hadn't seen her, nor Jasper, during my stay at the villa.

"I've already set up your bath, young master Luca," the short maid said. "I'll be taking my leave now."

She bowed and left the room, leaving Ben alone with me.

"Are all of them here? Micah too?" I asked.

I sipped the burning hot tea, the heat of which seemed to help awaken me from my slumber.

"Your brother had arrived as well," Ben replied. "However, your father was unable to make the trip. Everyone is getting refreshed from their travels. The burial ceremony will take place in a few hours."

I gazed into the dark pipping-hot tea.

In my original life, I was equally groggy and exhausted on this day, but it was because of the late-night carriage ride to get to the villa. And on that timeline, Micah was dead. His absence made my grandmother's funeral all the more somber.

"I have prepared an outfit for the funeral," Ben said and presented a modest all-black silk suit. He laid it out on a sofa nearby.

"Thank you. What about Duncan Genuiver?" I asked.

"He has already departed on the carriage you requested for him," Ben replied and handed me an envelope. "He left this with me to pass along to you."

"Thank you, Ben. You may go now," I said and undid the seal on the letter.

Ben bowed and left the room.

I took a sip of my tea and took in the letter's contents. Duncan had impressively elegant penmanship, with the lines curving beautifully without hesitation.

"Peep!"

We're going to visit Duncan at his home?

Leona finally awoke and fluttered over atop my head.

"We will, but only a few days from now," I replied.

The night before, Duncan and I had discussed his circumstances and concluded that I should visit to understand the situation on my own. However, before visiting, I needed to gather additional intel regarding the Genuiver Duchy's intricate politics and who the key players were.

"Peep!"

Is this what you'll be wearing today? Why is it so dark?

Leona hopped atop the black suit.

I felt a lump in my throat.

"My grandmother passed away last night," I explained. "Her funeral is today."

I had gone through this day before and so many other funerals, yet seeing the attire brought out a painful feeling.

It was an illness that took my grandmother, and unlike with Micah, where I just had to snub out his attackers, or with Jasper, where there were still two months to find a cure, I didn't have that same luxury with my grandmother.

But, who knows, anything is possible in a world where I keep resetting when I die.

I finished off the hot tea and stood up.

I should go see Jasper. Perhaps the fresh air did him some good.

***

"Luca!" Elda exclaimed and rushed towards me from the small dining room.

"Good morning, you two." I smiled at the red-headed twins.

Elda pulled my arm towards the small table where I had dined and played chess with my grandmother on my first night here.

It being early morning now, the view was entirely different from the prior evening. The large windows, extending from the floor to the ceiling, allowed a clear view of the bright blue sky, green fields, and the town of white buildings and red clay rooftops.

"Peep!"

Breakfast! I was starving.

Leona flew off my head, planted herself at the table, and began picking at one of the muffins.

"Peep!!"

What is this?? It's so terrible again. I forgot how bad the morning chef was.

"Try the fruit instead," I suggested to Leona.

I sat down in an empty chair and picked out what I expected to be more-or-less edible. The fruit was an easy option because only the farmer could have screwed the taste up; for others, a little strategy was required.

I scooped up a thick yogurt with cucumbers, olives, and radishes mixed in and topped it over a flat piece of toasted bread. My mouth crunched into the warm bread and filled with the refreshing taste of freshly picked vegetables. The bread was a bit too salty, but the topping covered the issue well.

"Where's Mother and Micah?" I gazed about.

"They're still handling the estate's affairs," Jarvis replied.

He looked exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes that nearly contended with Blake's.

Where have Blake and Nirre been this whole time? I haven't seen them the entire time I've been at the villa.

"You didn't get any sleep on the way here?" I asked Jarvis.

"No, because someone," Jarvis glared at Elda, "had drunk all of the sleeping aid I had made."

"You could have gone and slept now." Elda rolled her green eyes.

"I can't sleep now. If I do, I'll be in an even worse mood upon being awoken," Jarvis grumbled.

"Young master Jarvis," a servant came by and placed a cup of thick, dark liquid before my brother.

A rich aroma emanated from the cup. It was floral, with a light touch of nuts.

"What is that?" I asked.

"Coffee." Jarvis picked up his cup and took a sip. Unfortunately, his facial expression indicated its taste wasn't nearly as good as its smell.

"It normally grows in the southern islands and is quite energizing. It should wake me up," he explained and set the cup down. He tossed in two cubes of sugar along with a bit of milk.

"It doesn't seem very good," Elda commented and sipped on her tea.

"Not yet, it isn't; I haven't yet been able to get the preparation of the beans right," Jarvis replied and drank the coffee. "But it tastes fine when diluted with milk and sugar."

"You should have just planted a new variety of tea," Elda said.

Jarvis shrugged.

"It's the first year of the crops and the first time they've been grown on our continent. And I still need to figure out how to properly roast and prepare the beans. Since there's time before the funeral, I'll probably experiment with its preparation. It'll help me stay awake too."

Jarvis had received grandma's blessing a few years ago to plant whatever he wished on the fields surrounding the town. Aside from the setup back home, he had a very lofty research space and resources to run additional experiments at the villa.

"I'll run a few experiments as well," Elda said. "And maybe I'll stop by the library. There's a book I forgot to borrow the last time I was here."

Like Jarvis, Elda also had a space to run her experiments. The Town of Ascot, with its open and flat surroundings, was the perfect space to test out her inventions. Here, unlike in the city, the biggest concern was a field of radishes exploding rather than a house blowing up.

However, after Mother and Father passed away, it was Jarvis that went on to inherit the Arankagul Villa and management of the town. Elda wasn't part of the consideration, given she had died before even our parents.

"What about you, Luca. What will you do until the funeral?" Elda asked.

"I'm going to see about Jasper. I'm hoping he feels better," I replied.

"Oh right, you did mention he was ill," Jarvis noted.

Ah. Didn't Kathy suggest having Jarvis help as the second possible solution?

"Jarvis, could you take a look at Jasper with me?" I asked. "Perhaps you'll know what's wrong with him."

"Of course," he replied.

***

"Let me look at your fingers," Jarvis requested of Jasper.

"This again?" Jasper grumbled but extended out his hands.

We were in Jasper's chambers. The room had quite a bit more light than the one back home. The smell of his half-eaten breakfast of vegetable soup and morning tea emanated from his bedside table.

I leaned against one of the walls and watched my younger brother inspect Jasper's fingers.

Perhaps that's why he seems to look a little better?

It was only about two days, but he didn't look worse, which was a relief.

"Peep!"

He looks less pale!

Leona agreed with my observation, which made me feel a little happier about forcing Jasper to accompany me to grandma's villa.

"Hmmm," Jarvis let go of Jasper's hands. "This is a bit problematic."

"What is it?" Jasper asked. "That other gal that Luca had look at me also had a really bad expression when she inspected me. Just what is it that I'm sick with?"

"I have two theories," my brother stated. "The first is that you have caught Copper Euphoria. Your symptoms are a little different from what is usually seen, so that's likely why the doctors that saw you didn't realize that's what it was. Fortunately, it has a cure, and I even know how to prepare it. But, unfortunately, it's going to be a rather unpleasant treatment."

"Unpleasant?? That's putting it lightly!" Jasper revolted and scooched to a corner of his bed, as far away from Jarvis as possible. "I've heard one woman tell me about her getting treatment for Copper Euphoria and said it felt like every blood vessel in her body was burning up. And it went on like that for hours. No no no no…. What's the second theory?"

"Mmmm," Jarvis looked around the room. "Well, the second theory is improbable. But if that's what you're suffering from, it would pose quite a dilemma."

"But maybe it's the second theory. Maybe it's not Copper Euphoria," Jasper pleaded. "Let's test that second theory first. Or maybe I don't need treatment. It feels like a bad cold, is all. People recover from Copper Euphoria without medication all the time."

"No." I crossed my arms. "If it's Copper Euphoria, you're getting treatment."

Jasper had died in my original life. I wasn't about to have him skip out on treatment in this life.

"No, Jasper is right," Jarvis said. "I'll test my second theory first, and if everything checks out and it's not that, we'll proceed with the treatment for Copper Euphoria."

He pulled out a case from his front pocket and unlocked it to reveal a set of glass tubes.

"Is this the only medication you're taking?" He walked over to the side table and pointed to the three glass jars full of small pills.

"Yes, just those. I take them with every meal," Jasper replied.

Jarvis opened each bottle, plopped out a small pill from each, and placed them in individual tubes. He then pulled out a little dropper and procured a sample of the soup and tea to place in two other tubes.

"Why are you taking samples of my breakfast?" Jasper asked.

"I need to understand everything you're consuming," Jarvis replied. "If I don't know what else might be entering your body, the resulting treatment could end disastrously."

"Fine," Jasper shrugged. "You could just ask Denise. She makes all my meals."

Then a goofy smile filled Jasper's freckled face.

"I'm telling you, Luca, she's got a thing for me!"

My brother frowned.

"I'll come back to take samples of your lunch and dinner today," Jarvis said. "Don't tell Denise I'm taking your food samples."

"Why?" Jasper asked.

"Because… I don't want your meals to potentially adjust if she knows I'm taking samples," Jarvis said.

Jasper shrugged.

"Fine, I won't say anything."

Jarvis and I walked out of Jasper's room and into the servant's corridor.

"What exactly is your second theory?" I asked.

Jarvis had a serious expression on his face and glanced around the corridor.