ALL NOVEL Chapter 87
Their astonished voices intertwined in confusion.
“Did I read it correctly? Or… does Lady know about this text?”
“Yes, you’re right, but… it’s just that…”
Their gazes wavered endlessly amidst the deep silence, brimming with unspoken questions.
“So, that means….”
The playful mood and the faint buzz of alcohol had vanished without a trace. Stuck in a momentary freeze, they eventually sat down across from each other, the table between them and Doloret’s letter placed beneath the vase Rakrensius had arranged.
“So… Tower Master, you just read this, right?”
“Yes… I don’t understand its meaning though.”
That could be expected since the content was in Korean, not the Empire’s language. However,
“But how do you know Hangeul if you don’t even know the national anthem?”
“Pardon?”
“No, it’s just…!”
Selleana struggled to continue, embarrassed by their previous attempt to verify if he was a compatriot from her previous life by singing a few songs – a memory she found cringe-worthy.
It seems he only knows how to read it but doesn’t understand the meaning.
So, he somehow learned Hangeul by chance…
“Where did you learn this text, then?”
“
Ah
, that…”
Rakrensius recalled something from when he was around fifteen.
“Advertising foreign language courses and magic stones on the vegetable sacks. Don’t you think there’s some kind of intention?”
Using the disguise magic learned from his mother, Rakrensius wandered around the imperial palace and picked up a vegetable sack with peculiar writing on it. It mentioned things like ‘speaking Latin language,’ ‘having a good wife,’ and ‘magic stones.’
[I remember seeing an ad like that. The words written after could be in the language of that world.]
“…Aha, so these are also letters? Not a logo? That’s interesting.”
[If it’s correct, it would probably read ‘kimchi.’]
“Kim…chi?”
[Yes. It’s a traditional dish from the region where that script is used. It’s made by salting and seasoning cabbage to make it spicy.]
“A traditional food, huh.”
With Di’s help, who could read scripts from across dimensions, Rakrensius managed to roughly guess the meaning of the phrases written on the vegetable sack.
“How do you read this?”
[It’s a phonetic script, with each character combining in various ways…]
With plenty of time on his hands, thanks to the imperial tutors giving up on him, he learned the language of a completely unknown world through his companion’s verbal teachings.
So, does the lady have knowledge about that world too…? Come to think of it, all the stories published under Wilshe’s name are from that world…
His joy at this discovery was short-lived. This was also Di’s secret.
Suppressing his excitement, Rakrensius revealed just enough truth. “I learned it.”
“From where? And who else knows this script?”
“Beyond that… it’s difficult for me to say.”
“
Ah
.”
Anything Rakrensius didn’t tell Selleana was always related to his holy relic or the imperial family.
It’s better not to pry further.
While Selleana didn’t bother to hide her disappointment, Rakrensius continued to share what he could without revealing his companion’s secrets. He, too, wanted to know more about Selleana, even if just a little.
“Does Lady know about this? The sender was listed as ‘Doli’… Isn’t that Lady Benichi’s nickname?”
“That’s right.”
When Rakrensius continued the conversation without evading it, Selleana was already surprised. Accepting his date invitation without protest, gifting her flowers, and now, not avoiding the conversation. Rakrensius was also making his own efforts, confronting a fear that Selleana could not comprehend, all in the name of understanding one another. Her heart suddenly races.
“That’s right. This letter is from Lady Doloret. We know the language used for these characters and use it to exchange secret messages.”
The reason Selleana hadn’t mentioned anything about her past life was not because she didn’t trust Rakrensius but because it was the secret of all her friends.
“Then, by any chance, do you know these phrases too?”
What the man said next were the very words Selleana and her friends had spread across the empire to find other transmigration souls. Selleana’s mouth dropped open.
“So, you’re the one who spread those vegetable sacks…?”
“Y-Yes, that was us too.”
“Oh gosh.”
The memory of discovering those vegetable sacks was still vivid. The cryptic code was exchanged using packaging distributed across the empire, with unfamiliar symbols that looked like logos. The excitement from knowing such people existed was what led Rakrensius, locked away in the cold palace, to yearn for the day he could leave the imperial palace. He wanted to personally experience the outside world, which was filled with so many interesting things.
To think was also you, Lady…
It was she who had given him the hope of leaving the imperial palace, who had sparked a desire to defy the oppression of the imperial family and covet something more. Everything that had stirred motivation within him was because of the woman standing before him. His angel, Selleana. Rakrensius could only call it fate. However…
[Do you know what Orot governs?]
“Time and causality?”
[To be precise, fate.]
The friend bound to his soul was the god’s reverse scale. And the destiny governed by that god could never be a stroke of good fortune for him.
The taste in Rakrensius’s mouth grew bitter as he pondered this. It was frustrating that he couldn’t fully savor the deep connection with the owner of his heart, having to repeatedly suppress his emotions. Why?
Now, he no longer wanted to give up on anything. If everyone was born with their own fate, was it truly his destiny to know the joy of love but abandon the one who had taught him that joy? Why had the gods placed such a burden upon him?
“Master of Tower…? Is something wrong?”
Seeing the man’s darkened face and his prolonged silence, Selleana felt a pang of concern. She wondered if it had something to do with a secret he had to keep…
Knock, knock, knock.
“Yes, just leave it outside!”
In the meantime, as per her request, Glen’s maid brought in a serving tray, and once she left, Selleana wheeled the trolley inside.
I didn’t expect this kind of atmosphere when I ordered this…
Just as Selleana sat back down across from him, leaving the trolley aside for now,
“Lady.”
Rakrensius looked at her with the face of someone who had made a decision. The dark storm still swirled in his eyes.
“About when we released the sky lanterns earlier.”
“Yes.”
Why did he bring that up now…? Selleana tilted her head curiously.
“Actually, at that moment when we released the lanterns, I didn’t make a wish. But…”
Suppressing countless confessions and earnest feelings, Rakrensius hesitantly reached for Selleana’s hand on the table.
The joy of him approaching her first was short-lived. What was the source of the passion that led him to make such a troubled face…? Selleana calmly waited for his next words.
“You were right, Lady.”
“Pardon?”
“If you were to ask me for what my wish now, I would wish for your wish to come true.”
His strong hand that covered the back of hers radiated a warm heat.
“And… I might wish for that even more desperately than you.”
“Master of Tower…”
“And thank you.”
His gaze, which had been fixed intensely on Selleana, lowered slowly as Rakrensius bowed his head. His lips gently touched the back of her bare hand. It was a careful yet certain kiss.
Without moving from that spot, Rakrensius whispered softly. “Thank you for not giving up on a pathetic coward like me…” Slowly lifting his head, he looked up at Selleana with a solemn expression.
Yes. He truly would not give up. Unable to voice the promise aloud, Rakrensius imprinted Selleana’s image in his mind.
An even greater warmth than their previous kiss lingered on the back of her hand.
* * *
Really,
Lea Kim.
The next day, after Elard’s two friends returned to their own estates, Rosalli lay in bed nursing a hangover from last night’s wine party with Michi.
That foolish girl, seriously…
Even as she grumbled inwardly, a smile crept across her lips.
Though her friend had once endured her dislike for the crown prince, now she had finally claimed her own love, and it was heartwarming to see. It was so adorable how smitten and giddy she was. It seemed she had brought him here because she couldn’t bear to part, but they ended up talking only about the shocking fact that he knew Hangeul.
It was shocking, indeed. I mean, he’s not even a reincarnated Korean, so how does he know Hangeul?
Anyway, it was a relief that no trouble was caused in her house, proving she hadn’t misjudged the character of the tower master.
Though, it’s not really my house…
As the harvest festival neared its end, Rosalli’s heart became increasingly restless, and she turned over, trying to escape the feeling.
[It happened just a few days before the harvest festival was over. Even, who had been away from home for a few days, brought back a woman with pink hair.]
It would be soon…
According to the original story, Rosalli’s older brother, Evan, had been away on a tour of the territory for five days. He was supposed to return in three days according to the original plan, but…
Knock, knock, knock.
“Milady, it’s Maxwell.”
“Yes, come in.”
The fact that the butler had come in person rather than sending a maid made Rosalli think that the inevitable had come.
“A messenger arrived at the duchy gate. The young master has instructed Milady to prepare and come down as he’s returning earlier than expected.”
“Alright, I got it.”
As she sat up, Rosalli glanced at Maxwell’s face.
“…To think he would even ask me to come out and greet him. Is my brother bringing an important guest?”
“That’s… I’m not sure.”
Maxwell concealed his expression well, but as a seasoned socialite, Rosalli could tell something was up.
Indeed, the inevitable had come.