Chapter 95 – If the Fluara Is Serving Everyone Well, Then I Too Am Proud!

Some time had passed since Grain returned to his duties. The unsettling shadow that Twoin had left behind had not fully cleared, but for now the vigilante corps and Syn-Fibra had taken on the matter of following up. In the meantime, Letaria and the others had received an unusual invitation from the Administration Bureau -- a "tour."

They found themselves in the uppermost level of Seldia's autonomous zone, in one corner of a classified area guarded by heavy security. Their guide was Martin Blaine, a senior Bureau official responsible for resource management and logistics.

"Oh my...! So many Fluara flowers...!"

Beyond the automatic doors lay a vast bio-cultivation farm bathed in soft artificial light -- and covering every surface of it, the Fluara flowers Letaria had once provided to the Bureau. The familiar colors peeked out proudly from between fresh green leaves, vivid and full of life.

"This plant's vitality is extraordinary. Even here, in an artificial environment, it has taken hold and grown with this much vigor."

Martin narrowed his eyes with quiet pride as he spoke.

The fact that this plant had come from another world entirely had been established after the cultivation succeeded. Its DNA matched nothing in any known star system -- not this Earth, not anywhere on record. It remained classified at the Bureau's highest level of secrecy.

"I understand this plant's medical applications were used in my own treatment."

Grain rolled his shoulder experimentally, the bandages long since removed. He was still in recovery, but his movement was already steadier and more assured than it had been.

"That's correct. Your treatment efficiency improved by eighteen percent compared to standard nanomachine therapy alone. Further data shows the flower dramatically enhances cellular regeneration even when processed into a topical compound -- and its nutritional value is exceptionally high."

"Though we are still in full verification stage. For now, it has been applied in practical terms only through the approach confirmed safest -- enhancing the efficiency of medical nanomachines."

Milea added the qualification with her eyes on the cultivation data on her terminal. Martin nodded deeply in agreement.

The specialized figures and the mechanics of the medical technology were a little beyond Letaria. But one thing came through with complete clarity: what she had brought here was helping the people who mattered to her.

"I confess the details are beyond me -- but if the Fluara flowers are being of use to everyone here, then I too am proud! And I am certain Chiara, who entrusted me with these seeds in my homeland, would be pleased as well."

Letaria smiled with open pleasure and drew herself up. The face of the lady's maid who had always believed in her -- in the lonely daughter of a duke who had only wanted to be loved -- surfaced in her mind. Chiara's prayers had traveled across the ocean of stars and were, even here, giving someone the strength to heal.

Gazing at the flowers with a look of quiet tenderness, Letaria suddenly tilted her head with a small frown of puzzlement.

"...Come to think of it -- something is rather odd. I see no butterflies. No insects at all."

In the world she had come from, flowers naturally brought winged insects -- bees, butterflies drawing nectar. But this vast farm was wrapped in a stillness that was almost startling.

"This is a fully sterile environment. Everything from pollination to nutrient management is handled entirely by machine and human hands. For someone who knows the world you come from, I imagine it looks a little lonely."

Martin smiled with a faintly apologetic tilt to his expression.

"For us, the sight of a plant growing through the agency of insects -- an uncontrolled variable -- would be the strange and fanciful thing. More like a story than a reality."

"Is that so... When you put it that way, I must say there is something enviable about never worrying whether insects will eat the leaves. I cannot pretend it isn't a little sad -- but if the flowers are growing so well and happily, then that is what matters!"

Letaria laughed softly and made her peace with it. Milea and Grain looked at each other and let themselves smile. She was always like this -- startled by the difference, and then turning to face it almost immediately. That quality in her was, as ever, genuinely good to see.

"At present, the Fluara cultivation is being conducted at several classified sites, this one included. Within this world, the plants exist only in these small numbers -- they are extraordinarily precious. We are increasing that number carefully and methodically."

In the world Letaria had come from, the Fluara was entirely common -- a flower that grew without particular remark. The idea that here, in this world, so few of them existed was something she still couldn't quite make feel real.

"Our aim is to eventually carry this beyond medical use -- to see it reach wider distribution in general markets. With Syn-Fibra's support and the Bureau's backing, I am confident that day is not far off."

Milea spoke with her eyes on the future. Martin's smile deepened with something that looked like genuine reassurance.

"We share that confidence entirely. The Bureau pledges its full effort -- for Syn-Fibra's talented researchers, and for the remarkable young lady who brought us these flowers."