Since Mansion (Days Earlier)
“Have you found her?” Mr. Gillard Rafael asked, directing his question to Ruen who was standing against the balustrade of a VIP room of the Since Mansion. Ruen’s eyes were fixed on a scenery in front of them: a beautiful sunset, similar to what he was accustomed to way, way back in the past.
A female servant of the mansion had just left the balcony after preparing two cups of tea: one for Mr. Rafael who was sitting near the coffee table and one for Ruen. The former was wearing once again his most favorite hat, a white and black checkered fedora hat, coupled with a formal suit the shade of dark blue. He sipped the contents of his cup as he waited for the latter’s response.
“Yes, I found her finally, ” Ruen answered right after he heaved a sigh. God knows how many years he had been searching for her. He never gave up. His existence in the modern world was enough evidence that Princess Lianne would also resurface somewhere sooner or later. It was just a waiting game; a game that he most certainly would play just to reunite with her again.
“Uh huh, and then?” replied Mr. Rafael, wanting more information.
“She is living in Fortville City and she has her own apartment, but no family with her.”
“Fortville?” the old man’s brow arched up. “If I’m not mistaken, the City of Fortville was once called the City of Olga.”
“Yes, ” Ruen clarified, still watching the scenery.
“Huh! How ironic is that?” Mr. Rafael couldn’t contain his amusement. “For her to resurface in that exact place, who would have known?”
Ruen didn’t give any comment regarding it, but deep inside, his blood boiled hating how twisted Fate was. The City of Olga housed the infamous cave that almost became Lianne’s burial ground if he had come seconds late of saving her. But actually, it was better this way. It would be harder to track her down if she were in some faraway country with a different language.
Mr. Rafael remained silent for a moment, sipping the tea once again until it was empty.
“I never realized reincarnation is real, ” he started once again, “if that’s what we would even call your situation. Or magic. I never believed in those until I saw you in that fateful snowy day. Just you standing here, in this day and age, are already proof that my normal life isn’t always what it seems.”
He then lit a Cuban cigar, placed it in his mouth and puffed the smoke out.
“What I don’t understand however is why you’re still here talking to me. You have finally found her after searching all these years Ruen and yet you are hesitant to approach her? You’re unbelievable.”
The sunset now was already changing its hue from a bright yellow and orange to a dull violet and brown. Ruen felt his heart clench in agony upon hearing his words. “She…I think…she doesn’t remember anymore, ” was his most honest reply.
“Are you certain?” Mr. Rafael stood up and approached him, stopping at his left side. He could clearly see the turmoil not only in Ruen’s eyes but in his heart.
“She looks…happy with her life now. I can’t bother her anymore, ” Ruen further spoke.
“Stop that nonsense!” Mr. Rafael admonished. “How much more do you have to endure? You have waited for her for years! You transcended time and space just to be with her! Why stop now?! Did it ever cross your mind that she would be happier with you in her life again?”
A look of displeasure was evident on the old man’s face. As a sixty-five-year-old man, a skilled and successful businessman and a duke at the same time in the City of Since, he has had his fair share of relationships. He was one who believed in second chances, always rooting for Ruen to find the princess after he learned of their past.
He didn’t have a family to take care of. He took Ruen home after he was discharged from the hospital and made him his personal bodyguard and eventually became his adoptive son. He helped him find her and even went as far as buy the auctioned mansion and turned it into a five-star resort so that Ruen’s search would become easier. Though Ruen didn’t express it, Mr. Rafael knew of his hardships and the unbearable torment in his heart. It became his calling in life to help him ease that torment.
“I… I can’t hurt her again, ” Ruen announced, his voice thinning to a whisper.
“Blast that boy! I have lived and loved myself. Don’t be like me, leaving the woman behind. I regretted every single day I didn’t fight for her love! Don’t torture yourself. Go to her. Make her remember!”
Ruen shifted his eyes to meet his. There it was, the kindness and sincerity in the old man’s eyes. Ruen knew then right from the start that this man could be trusted with his secret that’s why he shared it with him.
“Why do you think I bought the mansion for? Use it to your advantage. You are the rightful owner of the mansion in the first place.”
Ruen took another deep breath. The duke had a point. There should be no regrets. He could never live this new life without Lianne by his side. Call it selfishness. Call it greed. But he wanted her more than anything.
“Now tell me, what do you want? Anything I can do within my power, I will help you. But don’t you ever tell me you’re giving up.”
“Lianne has friends, ” Ruen started after a minute. “I want you to use your influence and connections and invite them for a vacation in the mansion. In the meantime, I will try…try to do something. If there’s still a flicker of hope from her, I will grab it without delay.”
“Good, I will do as you instructed. I’ll make sure she gets the same room she had in the past. Now, where will you go while this is all in the process?”
Ruen heaved a sigh and looked back at the scenery ahead.
“To the Fortville City Library.”