The man was like a masterpiece that a great artist had devoted their life to creating.
His forehead, half-hidden by black hair, was neat, and his flawless white skin was like marble. His dark eyebrows and the elegant line of his nose were as beautifully sculpted as if by the hands of a god. His reddish lips were as captivating as the final touch that brings a sculpture to life.
But what captured my attention most strongly were his eyes.
Slightly elongated horizontally, giving them a profound depth, the irises sparkled mysteriously with the light of pure gold. Those eyes added allure and gravitas to the beautiful face of a man who appeared to be in his early twenties.
I stared, spellbound, at his golden eyes, faintly tinted crimson by the night market lights.
The eye contact, which could have been considered rude for lasting so long, ended when the man asked the girl how he could get freesias.
"Is there another merchant selling freesias?"
Urgency seeped through his voice—he really seemed to need those freesias.
"Excuse me..."
I cautiously called out to the man. His gaze turned back to me.
I held out the freesias to him.
"I don't know your circumstances, but you seem to need these flowers more than I do."
The man stared at the bouquet I offered for a few seconds before carefully accepting it.
"I will repay you."
'A noble? He's using informal speech with a stranger.'
I didn't particularly like his tone, but I'd already extended the favor. I shrugged lightly and said.
"Then buy me some other flowers to put in my vase instead of the freesias."
I had no intention of receiving a grand reward for a bouquet worth only a few coins.
"Is that enough?"
The man asked, as if suggesting I name another price.
"Really, just a bouquet of flowers is plenty."
When I smiled, the man ordered the girl to wrap up all the remaining bouquets.
"I don't need this many."
But seeing the girl's face brighten at this unexpected fortune, I didn't want to refuse further.
'This much should be fine.'
I thanked the man and waited quietly for the girl to finish wrapping all the flowers.
"Here you are. I'll put them in a basket so they're easier to carry."
The girl showed her sense by neatly placing the wrapped bouquets into a basket that seemed to have been used to bring flowers to the night market.
"Thank you."
The flower basket was quite heavy when I received it.
After the man paid, he nodded once in greeting and disappeared.
'How brusque. His stiff way of speaking makes him seem like a soldier.'
I watched the back of his head as he quickly walked away, but only for a moment.
"If I keep this up, the pub will close."
I lifted the heavy flower basket and headed toward the pub.
[My daughter is sick, so I'm closing the shop for a while.]
"Wow, nothing's going right today."
I sighed upon seeing the notice posted on the pub door.
After trembling with frustration, I clenched my fist, wished for the child's speedy recovery, and turned around dejectedly.
'I'll just go home.'
I had no will to find another pub.
"I'll just sleep early."
From Rickel Street to my home was a bit far, but walkable.
'Besides, the shared carriages probably won't be available either.'
I pushed through the crowd that filled the streets and headed home.
It seemed like every citizen of the empire had come out to enjoy themselves, but as I reached the entrance of Indar Street, where I lived, the crowd thinned noticeably.
'Not many people visit a cemetery park on a day like this.'
Aside from the vast Grizel Park that took up most of Indar Street, there were only a few modest townhouses—it was far enough from the festival's clamor.
In the distance, I could see the green-roofed house where I rented a room.
'First thing when I get in, I'll wash up...'
The rent was cheap because of the view of the tombstones, but if I overlapped with other residents' bathing times, the water would trickle out like a spring.
I was checking my wristwatch and calculating the other residents' return times when a familiar-looking man emerged from a side alley.
'That freesia man?'
It was the man I'd encountered at the flower stall earlier.
'He must be heading to Grizel Park.'
The man was carrying the freesia bouquet and a box from a wrapped toy shop.
It seemed that while I had gone to the pub and found it closed, he had stopped by a toy shop, so our arrival times had coincidentally aligned.
'He shouldn't go that way.'
The direction he was heading was the main gate of Grizel Park, but it was currently under construction.
'He'll be wasting his time.'
Since the cemetery park took up almost an entire street, if he went to the main gate and had to go back to the temporarily open west gate, it would take quite a while.
'And there's not much time left to enter Grizel Park anyway.'
I didn't want him to have wasted his trip after I'd given him those freesias.
'I'll meddle one more time.'
As I thought this, the distance between me and the man grew closer.
"Excuse me!"
I quickly ran over and cautiously touched the hem of the man's sleeve as he passed by. Well, I tried to. But just as my hand was about to touch somewhere on his sleeve, the man grabbed my wrist.
"Ah!"
With my wrist caught in the man's firm grip, I froze with a bewildered expression.
I felt like a frog before a snake—unable to move freely.
"You."
After a moment, the man checked my face and released my hand. I carefully rubbed my wrist with my other hand.
'That hurts like hell.'
It didn't seem like he'd used much force, but my wrist was already red in the shape of his hand.
'It's going to bruise.'
Since I was the one who'd grabbed a stranger on the street, I couldn't entirely blame the man. I lowered my sleeve to cover my wrist and smiled.
"We met on Rickel Street earlier. Do you remember?"
The flirtatious-sounding line gave me goosebumps, but in this situation, if I kept my mouth shut, the atmosphere would only become more awkward.
The man looked at my wrist and replied.
"You gave me the freesia bouquet."
Fortunately, the man was quite cooperative in the conversation.
Edwin was carefully observing the woman's wrist, which would soon bruise.
'I was too sensitive.'
Edwin briefly reproached himself.
The war he had entered immediately upon becoming emperor had ended after eight years with the victory of the Regensia Empire.
He no longer needed to live with his guard up and alert like before, but habits ingrained in his body weren't so easily shed.
When he sensed someone approaching from his blind spot, he subdued them as if they were an assassin. He realized it the moment he grabbed the woman's wrist.
It was a wrist suited for holding a pen, not a sword. As soon as he recognized she wasn't an enemy, he released the tension in his hand, but it was already too late.
'That freesia woman?'
Edwin recognized the woman at once. She had remained in his memory because of how she had stared at his face as if spellbound.
The woman rubbed her wrist, as if in pain. Even though he'd released the pressure midway, he could still break bones with his bare hands.
He was slightly concerned that he might have seriously injured her.
She wasn't an enemy soldier, nor was she a sturdy knight he could push around. Rather, she was someone he should protect and look after.
While Edwin was considering compensation, the woman lowered her sleeve to cover her wrist and asked.
"We met on Rickel Street earlier. Do you remember?"
"You gave me the freesia bouquet."
When Edwin answered indifferently, the woman smiled faintly in relief and glanced up at his face.
"It's nothing, really—but were you heading to Grizel Park?"
At the woman's words, which accurately pinpointed his destination, Edwin's brow furrowed.
Back when he had first ascended the imperial throne, Edwin's appearance was beautiful in an androgynous way, not yet fully matured as a man.
On the battlefield, such looks invited mockery from enemies.
He was also young, so fearing he might demoralize his own troops, he fought on the front lines and acted more cruelly and fiercely.
It was quite bothersome. So Edwin didn't like the type who threw themselves at him because of his handsome appearance.
Edwin began weighing the woman's kindness against his displeasure.
"This road only leads to the main gate of Grizel Park."
Sensing something amiss, the woman hastily added.
"I only stopped you to tell you it's under construction."
The woman's voice trailed off toward the end. The gaze that had been lingering on his cheek also dropped downward.
"If you're heading to Grizel Park now, you should go through the west gate."
The scales in Edwin's mind, which had been evenly balanced, tipped entirely toward the side of the added favor.
"Thank you."
When Edwin offered a brief thanks, the woman waved her hands.
"It's nothing, really. I've said what I needed to say, so I'll be going now."
Looking embarrassed, the woman quickly spoke, then lifted the flower basket she had set down. After giving Edwin a small bow, she tried to leave immediately.
"Wait."
Edwin blocked the woman's path.
"Your wrist."
"My wrist?"
"Let me see it."
When Edwin gestured with his chin, the woman hid one hand behind her back.
"It's fine."
"Do you want to make me into a scoundrel?"
Only after he urged her again did the woman hesitantly extend her wrist. It didn't seem broken.
"Remember this—go to the temple nearby at dawn. Give them the name Everett Rohas."
After giving her his adjutant's name, Edwin turned away.
He didn't know it then. That she would think his name was Everett Rohas. Nor what that misunderstanding would set in motion.
