🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 09
“Wow, the weather’s great.”
I took a deep breath of the refreshing air that brushed lightly against my face.
The Tian Kingdom was a long, north-south island nation, with its capital located right in the middle—a popular tourist destination.
Normally, I disliked the sea without exception, but somehow the sea here felt different. Though it was coastal, the humidity was low, making the air pleasant, and the salty fishy smell of the ocean was faint. Without the sticky feeling clinging all over my body, I could finally breathe easy.
I spent the day enjoying the fresh ocean view, and when the sun began to sink toward the horizon, I returned to the inn with groceries in hand.
“You’re late, Jiana.”
“You don’t look too happy today either, my lord?”
“Tch, I just don’t get why he keeps playing hard to get when all I need is a single permit signed.”
Every morning, the duke left for the palace with firm resolve, and every evening he returned with an expression half mixed with disappointment and anger.
The king of Tian seemed far more stubborn than expected, refusing every request. But today, rather than anger, the duke’s face looked strangely… weary.
Feigning ignorance, I cautiously asked:
“What exactly are you asking His Majesty for?”
“Haven’t I told you before? Hm, well, since you’re a diver who lived your whole life on a little island, I suppose you might not know.”
For a moment, deep fury flickered in the duke’s eyes.
“I intend to slay a dragon.”
“A dragon?”
I widened my eyes in mock surprise, and the duke gave a bitter smile.
“My parents died because of a dragon. That’s why—I want revenge. And that dragon lives within Tian’s territorial waters.”
“Ah, so that’s why you’re seeking His Majesty’s permission first.”
“Exactly. But I never imagined the king would be this unyielding.”
The duke collapsed into his chair and rubbed his face with a tired gesture.
For someone who had always seemed so confident about everything, his shoulders looked unusually small and fragile today. Or was it just my imagination?
‘I feel like I should comfort him somehow…’
Moved by pity, I reached out and almost laid my hand gently on his shoulder.
But just before I touched him—
‘No, what am I thinking? Who am I to comfort him?’
I quickly pulled my hand back and instead sprang up from my seat, explaining the next day’s dish with exaggerated enthusiasm.
“Tomorrow I’ll make you salt-grilled king prawns with butter-fried prawn heads! The market just had a fresh catch of shrimp, really good ones too. You lay them over coarse salt to grill, then fry the heads separately—it’s an absolute delicacy!”
I deliberately made my gestures large and theatrical.
Cheer up, will you? Someone talking about revenge shouldn’t look as if he’s ready to climb into a coffin right this moment.
“Thank you. Let’s hope the king likes it.”
“Your Majesty the King? I told you it’s for the princess, didn’t I? Don’t tell me you already tried serving it to the king?”
“Of course not. You wound me, thinking I’m that foolish.”
“Have you ever met the princess yourself?”
“No. They say she hardly leaves the palace these days.”
In the original story, the duke became deeply disheartened after being rejected for the tenth time, and while wandering the palace gardens, he happened to meet the princess. She fell for his dazzling looks and mysterious aura at first sight.
I’d thought that presenting unusual dishes might hasten the princess’s appearance, but it seemed the flow of the original story couldn’t be altered.
“All right then. I’ll make the food even tastier, so you just hang in there, my lord. Cheer up!”
Before I knew it, I was already rooting for the duke with all my heart.
He gave a faint, amused smile at my words.
“Yes, with my little diver cheering me on, I feel much stronger.”
The next morning.
After handing the duke a plate of irresistibly delicious salt-grilled king prawns, I headed out, thinking to do a bit of sightseeing in the outskirts. I made my way toward a nearby coach stop.
That was when I heard someone calling my name from behind.
“Jiana!”
Turning around, I saw a familiar chef waving and running toward me with a bright expression.
It was the suspicious chef who had once worked aboard Duke Rupellen’s ship.
“Oh, Chef. Long time no see.”
Now that I thought about it, I didn’t even know his name.
I stopped and waited for him. Panting heavily, he caught up and said:
“Haah, haah… Jiana, where have you been staying? You’re so hard to find.”
“I’ve been staying at the same inn as the duke. But you—where have you been? Most of the crew from the Belletine are staying nearby.”
The duke had arranged accommodations for all the sailors who’d served on the Belletine.
Of course, not at the high-class inn where the duke and I stayed, but in a modest one near the port.
“Ah, my contract with the Belletine ended. From the start, the deal was only to accompany them until the kingdom.”
The chef smiled warmly as he explained.
‘No wonder. I kept seeing the others, but never him. So it was because his contract was over.’
“Since I’m no longer a ship’s cook, please just call me Karun.”
Returning his friendly manner, I smiled back.
“All right, Karun. Then you’ll be working here in the Tian Kingdom?”
“That’s actually what I’ve been wanting to talk to you about, Jiana. I’ve been looking for you because of it.”
“Me?”
I blinked in surprise, and he stepped closer.
“I kept mentioning it on the ship, didn’t I? About working here in Tian Kingdom?”
“Oh, but I’m still under contract with the duke.”
“Don’t tell me you still haven’t brought it up? Or is it that the duke refuses to let you go?”
“No, nothing like that. It’s just that I want to return to the Empire of Astria. I’d like to enroll in the Academy and properly study magic.”
“I told you before, that Academy is nothing but a waste of money!”
Suddenly Karun raised his voice at me.
“Jiana, why are you so naive about the world? That magic academy—do you know how many people lose everything chasing that dream? I’m offering you an easier, safer path, yet you stubbornly cling to the Academy!”
“Karun, that’s a bit harsh.”
“You think I haven’t seen this before? I’ve seen plenty like you—running off to the Academy, wasting all their savings, only to crawl back here to Tian. Do you know how hard the graduation exams are? Why can’t you listen when someone gives you sound advice?”
I stayed silent.
Because I wanted to see just how far he would go.
“People like you—born in some backwater island, knowing nothing of the world—there are lots of you. Some are mages, some have other talents. I’m only trying to extend a hand of salvation. Can’t you see my sincerity?”
Karun’s speech had shifted into a strange mix of honorifics and casual language. The respectful tone he’d once used was gone completely.
‘Now that I think about it…’
The way he kept losing his composure was deeply suspicious. I noticed him glancing toward one side repeatedly.
Pretending to lower my head, I stole a glance in that direction.
‘Ah.’
In the dim alley between two buildings, three rough-looking men were hiding.
‘So he’s in cahoots with them?’
The thugs were poorly concealed, clearly waiting for Karun to lure me in.
He pressed me again:
“There’s an employment office just nearby. I know the place well. With your skills, Jiana, you could start earning money immediately.”
Karun touched my arm and tried to tug me along by force.
“If you work hard for just a month, you could earn a whole gold coin. That’s a fortune for you, isn’t it?”
He had no idea that the duke was already paying me ten gold coins per day.
A whole month of nonstop work for a single coin? That was daylight robbery.
‘But if I outright refuse here and now…’
Those men in the alley might try to drag me away by force. Four against one would be far too much, especially with no passersby around.
“Please, just give me a little more time to think…”
Feigning hesitation, I quietly gauged the positions of the three hidden men.
