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Chapter 03
Jiana Hertin was such a minor extra that she didn’t appear in even a single line of the original novel.
She probably lived an ordinary life, completely ignorant of the main events of the story, and then died just like that.
That was how small and remote this little island was. But Jiana herself was by no means an ordinary person.
A mage.
As I skimmed through Jiana’s memories, I quickly realized the power she possessed.
“Wait, she had an incredible ability all along?”
The ability to move objects with magic!
But apparently, Jiana had only ever used that extraordinary power to dig up clams.
“While everyone else was raking through the mudflats, Jiana was gathering clams with magic. No wonder she was far quicker than the others.”
I nodded to myself.
Though Jiana was an excellent mage, the power was unfamiliar to me, who had just possessed her body. At first, it was quite difficult to handle mana.
But while waiting for the grand duke and harvesting clams in the meantime, I gradually got used to manipulating it.
By the time the grand duke arrived on the island, I was skilled enough to snatch octopuses right out of the water with magic.
“But really, asking me to catch ten more? He won’t even eat them all himself, so why is he so greedy?”
Hmm, no.
If it was the grand duke, he might actually eat all ten by himself.
I recalled my past self who had written Grand Duke Rupellen as a seafood maniac, and groaned inwardly. He, noticing my distress, gave a wicked laugh.
“Why? Can’t catch ten? Then I won’t lend you my ship.”
“Wait a second! Who said I can’t do it? I just need some time.”
“Five minutes.”
Grand Duke Rupellen pulled out his watch.
“Ten within five minutes.”
“Wow, what a ruthless ship owner!”
I clicked my tongue at the grand duke’s cruel personality.
But I had no choice—being in the weaker position meant gritting my teeth and reaching for the mudflat once again.
Catching ten isn’t the problem. But if there aren’t ten here in the mudflat, it’s impossible in five minutes!
I frantically raked through the mudflat with mana.
“One, two, three… Ah! There!”
Luckily, a family of octopuses out for a stroll was caught in my magic. Thanks to that, I managed to capture ten octopuses and present them to the grand duke just in time.
“Here, ten of them.”
I swiftly plucked the floating octopuses from midair and held them out to him.
“Oh-ho, impressive skill.”
“Then you’ll let me board your ship, right?”
“Well…”
The grand duke gave me a cryptic smile, clasped his hands behind his back, and said:
“You don’t expect me to eat them raw like this, do you?”
“What now? Why does he always want more?”
Though I grumbled inside, I put on my best capitalist smile and said:
“Of course not! I’ll make you a dish you’ve never tried before. Surely you’ll give me enough time to cook?”
“Fine. I’ll wait.”
At his signal, a sailor quickly brought him a chair. Reclining arrogantly with his legs crossed, the grand duke said:
“Cook it here, and bring it to me.”
“Here?”
“Yes, here.”
“There isn’t even a fire here!”
I stared at him in disbelief. He smirked and teased:
“Whether you fetch a flame or chop wood, that’s your problem. I want to eat while watching the sea, so cook it here.”
“He’s not scheming to keep me off his ship, is he?”
Apparently, common sense wasn’t his strong suit.
I glared at him, imagining myself smacking the back of that infuriating head. But in the end, it was me who bowed.
What else could I do? Powerless people don’t get a say.
“Fine. I’ll prepare what I need and be back.”
Seeing him nod, I dashed to my house’s kitchen. In this world I created, there actually were Korean-style ingredients like garlic and sesame oil. Though the locals didn’t really know how to use them properly in cooking.
“I’ll just have to show him the taste of K-style live octopus.”
I packed a knife and cutting board and hurried back to the pier.
The sailors were still busy preparing the ship to sail, clearly under pressure to wait for my dish before departure.
But I didn’t miss the look in the grand duke’s eyes—barely concealed anticipation.
“Good. I’ll satisfy that expectation of yours in no time.”
Rolling up my sleeves with confidence, I placed an octopus on the cutting board.
The grand duke asked:
“No fire? You’re still going to cook it?”
“This dish doesn’t need fire. Ever heard of nakji tangtangi?”
“Tangtangi?”
He tilted his head.
I curled my lips into a mischievous grin and raised the knife in front of him.
Thwack! Thwack!
The grand duke’s eyes bulged.
“What, you’re chopping it alive so mercilessly…!”
His voice even quivered a little.
“Isn’t dropping them into boiling water alive just as bad?”
Ignoring his shock, I poured sesame oil over the chopped octopus.
The writhing pieces tried to crawl off the plate.
“Don’t you think that’s too cruel?”
“Oh, don’t say that. Just close your eyes and try it once.”
“This…?”
I shoved a piece toward his mouth.
“Don’t regret it—just eat.”
The still-wriggling octopus squirmed at his lips. After a moment’s hesitation, he finally squeezed his eyes shut and popped it in.
“Ugh! It’s attacking my throat!”
“Don’t stop—chew thoroughly and swallow!”
Though he grimaced fiercely, his expression gradually brightened as he chewed.
“It’s… nutty?”
“Right? Here, have another.”
I offered him a longer leg this time.
Like a baby bird receiving food, the grand duke eagerly accepted.
“Hah, who knew this would be so delicious.”
So much for calling it merciless and cruel—he was smitten by the flavor now, constantly praising it.
As expected, my seafood-obsessed creation was true to character.
“I knew you’d like it.”
I chopped up four more octopuses on the spot.
“Shall I make soup with the remaining five?”
“Soup? What’s that?”
“It’s nothing like just boiling them. But this one does need fire, so I can’t make it here…”
“Hmph. Then hurry and make it. I’ll wait as long as it takes.”
I seized the chance to negotiate.
“In exchange, you’ll let me board your ship, right?”
“Of course. Leaving someone like you stuck on this island would be a waste of talent.”
As expected.
I smirked inwardly. After tasting this, he’d never let me go.
“Then I’ll prepare the soup right away.”
“But there’s a condition.”
I froze, halfway to taking the octopuses back to the kitchen.
“A moment ago, didn’t you promise to make me food like this every day?”
“Uh… yes?”
I answered nervously.
The grand duke’s lips curled into a satisfied smile.
“Good. What’s your name?”
“Jiana Hertin.”
“Jiana, huh.”
An unreadable expression flickered across his face.
“Jiana. I like you. My ship does have a cook, but he’s always busy feeding the entire crew. I can’t just order him to cater exclusively to me.”
“Ah… right. With so many people on board, of course.”
Not knowing where this was headed, I mumbled uncertainly.
“So I’d like to hire you as my personal chef aboard the ship.”
“Me?”
“The terms are simple. Until this ship arrives in the Astrian Empire and I safely return to my ducal estate, you’ll prepare one seafood dish for me each day. How about it?”
“Once a day…? That’s a bit much…”
“I’ll let you ride for free, and on top of that, I’ll pay you ten gold coins per day.”
Ten gold coins? A hundred in ten days?
“Insane. With that, I could easily settle down once I reach the mainland!”
Ten gold coins was roughly a million won.
In ten days, that was ten million won. If the voyage was longer, I could earn tens of millions.
I had been worrying about what to do after leaving the island. Jiana might be a mage, but she only knew how to wield magic, not the theory behind it.
To work as a mage, she’d need to study at an academy—which of course required expensive tuition.
“But with this, I might be able to cover living expenses for a whole year while studying!”
This was an opportunity. A heaven-sent opportunity.
“As expected, fate doesn’t abandon me. If it throws me onto an island twice, of course it must open a path too!”
Overjoyed, I failed to notice the grand duke’s meaningful gaze as he looked down at me, and accepted his offer without hesitation.
“Of course, Your Grace! Leave it to me.”
I had no idea then—that this was the beginning of a slave contract.
