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Chapter 14 — The Legend of the Blue Pearl
“I used to work as a coachman for Baron Kanz’s family.”
With his face lit up by old memories, he spoke with shining eyes. Out of nowhere, I found myself listening to his love story.
“As you probably guessed, Pony was the only daughter of Baron Kanz.”
“You’re speaking in the past tense.”
“Yes. It’s all because of me…”
Again.
He stopped in the middle of speaking, his eyes filling with tears.
There are all kinds of love in this world, and perhaps theirs was one burdened by the hardships of a difference in social status.
He seemed oblivious to the fact that his fingertips had turned red and swollen, constantly fidgeting with his hands.
“Even though I knew I shouldn’t… I couldn’t resist Pony’s relentless affection.”
“Hmm. Relentless affection, you say.”
“Yes. Pony is adorable, always smiling, and she tells me… tells me she loves me all the time.”
“That must be nice.”
Ah. I accidentally let my annoyance show.
Listening to this sugary story, I couldn’t tell whether this was a counseling office or a jewelry shop anymore.
I handed him the cup of tea Anna had served.
“A noble lady who was raised so dearly… she’s far too good for an ordinary commoner like me.”
Holding the teacup, he gave a bitter smile.
“I was happy… but I was also afraid. Because I knew how it would end.”
“Please don’t cry.”
In the end, the tears that had barely clung to his eyes rolled down his cheeks.
Without saying a word, I handed him my handkerchief.
Every kind of love eventually comes to an end.
Just as there are many kinds of love, there are many ways to part.
“And in the end… the end came. Baron Kanz found out.”
“And then?”
“Of course, I lost my job, and Pony wasn’t allowed to leave her room even a single step.”
For some reason, today’s tea tasted even more bitter.
Ever since I began living again in Serna’s body, I had insisted that love wasn’t necessary.
But as someone who had once suffered because of love, I couldn’t help empathizing with his pain.
“Then Pony escaped.”
“…What?”
What did you just say?
The Baron’s daughter… did what?
“She… disguised herself in a maid’s clothes and secretly left the estate. So now… she’s living with me.”
I had imagined something like Romeo and Juliet.
Instead, their love was far bolder than I expected.
Anyone could dream of abandoning their noble family to stay beside the one they loved.
Actually doing it was another matter entirely.
In the Ether Empire, it was practically customary for nobles to keep lovers after arranged marriages.
There were countless ways to remain with someone you loved without abandoning your family.
But this man and Pony…
They wanted only each other.
A love like sunflowers, always facing a single sun.
“Wait a moment.”
It had begun as a heartbreaking romance, but the Baron’s daughter’s dramatic escape suddenly turned it into an action movie.
A question occurred to me.
“But in the middle of all this… you’re proposing? When she could be dragged back to Baron Kanz at any moment?”
“It’s simply… a promise of our hearts.”
“…”
“A promise that no matter what happens… our hearts will always stay together.”
As if putting the finishing touch on the scene, the man loudly blew his nose into my handkerchief.
I sincerely hoped he wouldn’t give it back to me.
“S-So… could you make us a ring that holds our story?”
Watching the man ask with the tip of his nose still red, I took another sip of tea.
“I can’t make it for free.”
“I’ll only charge you half of what you’ve prepared.”
“R-Really? I… I really don’t have much money.”
“I’ll put both of your stories into it.”
“So… please, be happy.”
The now-cold tea tasted overwhelmingly bitter.
Just like the love story of Pony and this man.
“My Lady.”
“If you’re going to lecture me, shhh.”
“My Lady!”
Just as always, Anna’s voice rang loudly through the shop.
Apparently, boldly slashing the price for my very first customer was enough reason for another lecture.
I covered my ears and focused on the design, but with a loud clack, she set a plate of cookies beside me.
“Anna. You see, design is all about this.”
“What are you talking about this time?”
“It has to contain sincerity.”
“Especially a proposal ring.”
She was probably thinking,
There she goes talking nonsense again.
Anna said it only with her eyes before dragging a chair beside me and plopping down.
After watching me carefully sketch the design, she frowned.
“First impressions are important.”
“Is it really okay to charge so little?”
“I want to be a bad person.”
“But unfortunately, I was born kind.”
“Are you planning to do this for every customer from now on?”
“No.”
“This is a great concept.”
“?”
“What exactly is so great about it?”
Her voice was full of skepticism.
Think about it, Anna.
Every business needs good branding and a hot topic in the beginning.
“Jewelry that holds a story.”
“Sounds pretty stylish.”
“…Are you serious?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“But what kind of gemstone is this?”
Instead of answering my question, Anna smoothly changed the subject.
Pointing at my sketch, she asked.
On the gold chain ring, cream-colored pearls completely covered the surface without any gaps.
“A pearl.”
“A pearl? The kind people use for earrings?”
“Why pearls?”
“They symbolize wealth.”
“But… you said you were making a proposal ring inspired by a tragic love story.”
“Yeah. So?”
“What does wealth have to do with tragic love?”
“Anna.”
“You’re still too young.”
If you don’t have money, you don’t have love.
If you do have money, love somehow appears.
I decided to keep the rest of that thought to myself.
There was no reason to burden Anna’s tender heart with such a cruel truth.
Still…
Where was I supposed to find pearls?
Could I even get pearls in Duke Valoran’s territory?
I had carelessly drawn the design with pearls in mind, but now that I actually needed them, I couldn’t think of anywhere to obtain them.
“You’re going to use pearls from the Valoran coast, right?”
“Really?”
“Is Duke Valoran’s territory that huge?”
“He has the largest territory in the Empire!”
“The coastline alone is enormous.”
“This is just a rumor among commoners, but they say blue pearls can be found along the Valoran coast.”
Blue pearls?
There were pearls in that color?
I thought pearls only came in cream or pink.
“There’s a legend, too.”
“They say if blue eyes… somehow turn red… or something like that.”
“I never really paid attention, so I don’t know the details.”
“Then I guess I don’t have much of a choice.”
“My Lady… that look in your eyes is dangerous.”
“What are you thinking now?”
“Exactly what you’re thinking.”
“Right now.”
Let’s go to Duke Valoran’s estate.
“I have a favor to ask.”
“You certainly ask for many favors, My Lady.”
In the end…
I came back again.
Once again, I arrived at Duke Valoran’s mansion without even sending a letter beforehand.
This time, instead of stern guards, Spen welcomed me with a smile and opened the gate.
“You’ve arrived? He’s waiting for you inside.”
“It’s almost like he knew I’d come.”
“!”
I had only meant it as a joke.
But seeing Spen suddenly freeze made me wonder.
The thought disappeared the moment I saw the Duke waiting in the drawing room.
His blue eyes were as cold as ever.
His dazzling silver hair gleamed beneath the light.
And hanging from his glasses was a pearl chain.
Once again, I silently thanked fate for giving me Serna’s life.
If I were still Kim Yoonmi, someone like him would have been impossible to see even through a computer screen.
“There’s no one else I can ask besides you, Your Grace.”
“If I grant this favor…”
“What compensation will you offer?”
“Well… naturally, money.”
“Do you have much of it?”
“No.”
For the first time, he laughed aloud.
As a smile spread across his pale, flawless face, I found myself staring absentmindedly.
“Why are you laughing?”
At my foolish question, he wiped the smile from his face.
Resting his chin on one hand, he fixed me with an unrelenting gaze.
My throat suddenly felt dry.
I took a sip of the fragrant black tea.
Why was I suddenly so nervous?
We had been alone together several times already.
“Let’s hear it.”
“I need pearls to make the ring my first customer ordered.”
“They aren’t as close as my mines.”
“So I can’t provide them immediately.”
The Valoran coast lay quite far from the capital, and even from the Duke’s own main estate.
Because of its beautiful scenery, it was considered one of the favorite vacation spots among nobles.
Aside from luxurious villas, only a handful of quaint little villages rested quietly along the shore.
“Well… would it be possible to get a blue pearl?”
“Actually… cream-colored pearls would be fine too.”
“But people are greedy, you know…”
I awkwardly laughed, hoping to lighten the atmosphere.
The Duke’s expression didn’t change.
What if blue pearls were something incredibly precious to House Valoran?
What if I had accidentally stepped on a sensitive topic?
“Please forget what I just said.”
“I think I spoke out of turn.”
“Where did you hear that?”
For a brief moment…
I thought his blue eyes flashed red.
Perhaps sunlight reflected within them.
“Did I make a mistake?”
“No.”
“It’s just…”
For the first time, he let his words trail off.
Unable to continue, the Duke quietly sipped his tea.
I definitely messed up.
Anna… why did you have to tell me about blue pearls?
I should have just quietly asked for ordinary white pearls.
Now I was the one responsible for making the atmosphere so awkward.
“I’m sorry.”
“I happened to hear the legend and unintentionally spoke out of turn.”
“I hope you’ll forgive my rudeness.”
“When blue eyes burn crimson…”
“?”
“Their love begins.”
In a deep, rich voice, he softly recited the words like a verse from a song.
His quiet voice echoed loudly inside my heart.
Those blue eyes looked directly at me.
The blue-and-red gaze, holding the sun within it, wrapped itself around my entire body.
“Is that the legend you heard?”
“Uh… I’m not completely sure… but I think so?”
“What color are my eyes?”
“…”
“Blue?”
“Or red?”
A faint smile curved lips that perfectly matched the sharp corners of his eyes.
How was I supposed to answer that?
They looked blue…
And red.
“Both.”
“They’re blue… and red.”
Slowly brushing his hair back, he smiled.
Every time I saw that expression, it was unbelievably attractive.
A man with the face of an angel and the allure of something dangerously decadent.
Serna really had been blessed.
“The pearl is still blue, My Lady.”
“…Huh?”
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“What payment will you give me?”
No…
Why did he keep saying things that made no sense?
How was I supposed to answer when I couldn’t even understand him?
I still had no idea what he meant by the pearl is still blue, but it sounded as though he was agreeing to get it for me.
My mouth moved before my thoughts did.
“Is there an amount you have in mind?”
“I can’t pay much.”
“I ended up selling the ring to my customer for almost nothing.”
“There were… circumstances.”
Smiling at my answer, the Duke crossed one leg over the other.
Lately, whenever he wore that teasing smile with those icy eyes, I couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
What was he planning to say this time?
“I’ll think about my compensation later.”
“We’ll have to leave before dawn.”
“Wow, that’s fast.”
“Then… do you think you’ll be back within a week?”
“I have to include your travel time.”
“It’ll be even faster.”
“Perhaps… two days.”
“Perfect.”
“Then I’ll wait.”
“Where are you going, My Lady?”
“?”
“Aren’t you coming with me?”
“M-Me?”
“With you, Your Grace?”
“If you come along…”
“I’ll probably get there faster.”
He looked at me once again with that mischievous smile.
That handsome face was my greatest weakness.
The Duke had carefully laid a trap for his prey.
“It’s already late.”
“You should stay the night.”
“A room has already been prepared.”
Like a hunter who never missed an opportunity,
he steadily cornered me.
Into his trap.
“H-How did you already prepare all that…?”
“I have work tomorrow…”
“I’ll reduce your payment.”
“…Where’s my room?”
Even knowing it was a trap,
I had no choice but to step into it.
Money really does make people do anything.
