Arslan Senki: Legend of the Twins

34. The Past, the Present, and the Future

While the princess was up talking with Gieve, her personal attendant, Bahar, who thought her mistress was sleeping, was alone inside her own chamber. Unlike Farangis and Alfarid who got to sleep together, she got her own room to sleep, which located just across Arslan and Asa's rooms. It wasn't like she was given special treatment. There was just no other woman left to share room with her.

She was lying on her bed, staring at her pendant. She had just listened to the djinn's chatter and now was deeply musing about what she just heard.

"It's about time, eh..." she muttered, smiling sadly at the tiny object. "I've forgotten destiny can be so cruel sometimes..."

She fell silent for a moment, before getting up and left her room. Gently closing the door behind her, she let out a thin sigh and her gaze soon fell on the door of Arslan's chamber. She blankly stared it for a moment, before shifting her focus to the door next to it. Before she knew it, her feet had taken her to that door and she stopped right before it.

For a long time, she just stared. Stared, without having any intent in her mind. Her stare was blank and soulless. Finally she raised a hand and was about to knock the door, only to soon lower it. 'I shouldn't wake the princess.' She nodded to herself and started walking away.

After two minutes of walking, she arrived at the bath. She walked in, started undressing and then wrapped her torso with a white towel. She tied her short hair into a small high bun, but stopped in the middle of doing it to look at the ajar door. There, she found Farangis, staring back into her calm onyx eyes with surprise.

"Oh, evening, Farangis. Care to join me?"

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The two ex-priestesses were now inside the bath. Bahar soaked her body in the warm water, leaning against the bath's side while Farangis was soaping herself. None of them had spoken since Bahar invited Farangis to join her in the bath.

Farangis glanced over the older woman, who was closing her eyes. "Bahar-senpai?"

"Yes?"

The long-haired woman averted her gaze away and slowly shook her head, reasoning, "No... I was just checking whether you were awake or not. It is not healthy to be sleeping in a bath."

"You're right... that reminds me, I used to tell that to Alya a lot in our younger days," Bahar replied with a small smile, opening her eyes, "Ah, how time flies..."

Farangis blinked. "...just now you sounded like an old woman, Senpai."

"I am. I will turn forty this spring, actually." Bahar grinned sheepishly at Farangis and was replied with a gentle smile. "I think you are still young, Senpai... and beautiful."

"Thank you. And you too, you're way much younger and prettier than me," Bahar nodded back before cracking into laugh, "Ah, silly me! Of course you are. You are my kohai, after all!"

Farangis soaked her body and soon joined Bahar inside the wide bath, sitting next to her. "How long had you been a priestess, Senpai?" Asked her as she eyed the other woman curiously.

Bahar smiled. "Since the late head Kahina took me in, which means... twenty seven years ago. I remember the kids back in my hometown used to bully me because of weird things that keep happening whether I was around. They called it 'curse of the devils'."