Chapter 1 (Part 1)

[Today I saw a beautiful woman. I was able to learn her name by asking people. Juliet Capulet.

I want to write my first work in Vernerk for Juliet.]

* * *

“Did you say the Montagues are not invited at all?”

As she was organizing the guest list for the ball, she asked curiously. The bad relationship between the Capulet and Montague families was nothing new. However, since she had become Juliet, they had never not invited the Montagues.

It was a matter of etiquette. Simply ostracizing a family due to a bad relationship would make them appear uncultured.

“Yes. Is there a need to invite the household of our enemy?”

Her mother’s sharp words gave her a strange sense of unease.

It was true that the Montagues and their family did not get along well, but they were not enemies. There was no political rivalry or event that could be called a family feud. It was just minor incidents accumulated over generations, leading to an ill-fated relationship where they tried to embarrass each other when meeting in social circles.

Things were going strangely. The sudden change made her feel as if the ground was shaking beneath her feet. Her mother’s abrupt declaration was shaking the only reason she could feel at ease as she had become Juliet.

She had become Juliet. In other words, until seven years ago, she was not Juliet.

Anyone who suddenly found themselves as Juliet Capulet with the Montagues as their adversaries would easily understand the despair she felt. After all, everyone knew Juliet’s fate.

When she first realized the situation, she resolved to flee. She was thirteen at the time. In Korean age, she would be fifteen, but it was still a young age. However, thirteen was also the age when Juliet met her tragic end. She had to hurry before she met a tragedy by procrastinating.

‘What are you doing?’

Someone casually spoke to her as she was about to set off.

‘Do you know me?’

‘What are you talking about?’

She would never forget the expression he had, as if he were looking at the world’s biggest fool. And that annoying boy was Romeo.

In the original, Romeo met Juliet at a ball he had sneaked into. It was certainly strange for Romeo to casually speak to Juliet at the Capulet’s gate. Moreover, his curt manner showed no trace of romance. Her plan was completely revised.

Observing the situation, she realized a few facts. The Montagues and Capulets lived as neighbors and did not get along well. But they were not enemies.

Romeo and Juliet had been childhood friends since they were about six years old. Although it was a somewhat hostile relationship to call them friends, they had known each other for a long time. Lastly, this place was not Verona, but a country with a fantastical name, Vernerk.

She concluded that this was not the world of ‘Romeo and Juliet.’ At least, it was not the ‘Romeo and Juliet’ of Shakespeare that she knew. And she was finally able to settle into her new life with peace of mind.

But now, to speak of the enemy’s household.

“Juliet, could you help me hang these decorations?”

The mansion was bustling with preparations for the ball, indifferent to her betrayal. Her mother handed her a sparkling glass bead.

“The beads are beautiful.”

“They are not just beads. These are Masterpieces. Handle them with more care, dear.”

No sooner had her mother finished speaking than the sand inside the bead began to gleam. Each grain of sand emitted a ray of light, which refracted on the surface of the glass bead and scattered in all directions. She watched the scene with her mouth agape.

Masterpieces were the only magic that existed here. But it was not the kind of magic she imagined, which could be controlled at will. Nor could the activation of the magic be prevented if unwanted. It chose its own excellent artworks or talented artists.

The effects of a Masterpiece varied. Emitting light like the glass bead in her hand was a very simple effect. If a Masterpiece resided in a sword made by a great craftsman, it became a magic sword that could cut anything. A fairy tale book chosen by a Masterpiece could project its story into the air like an animation.

Not only tangible objects but also intangible art could become Masterpieces. Some plays would cause rain to fall in the theater according to the weather in the play, putting people in trouble. Looking at such things, it seemed the effects of a Masterpiece were not always helpful. What effect it would have, whether it would be good or bad, was unknown until the magic was activated.

There was only one commonality among all Masterpieces. Masterpieces could not be damaged in any way.

So her mother’s advice to handle it carefully was quite pointless. Even if she were to throw the glass bead to the ground right now, it would not break. She tossed and caught the bead in the air repeatedly.

“Juliet!”

“Yes, Mother. Should I place this over here?”

Her mother raised her voice. She quickly lowered her tail and helped with the decorations. After finishing her tasks, she returned to her original seat and resumed organizing the invitations. But her hands soon slowed down.

To be honest, she hoped the ball would not take place.

She was afraid of her mother’s sudden obstinacy. She feared the worsening relationship between the two families, as if following the original story.

Her hand stopped while flipping through the invitations.

[William Shakespeare]

She felt a chill run down her spine. It was a name too familiar and, above all, one she wanted to avoid. Strictly speaking, he was the one who killed Juliet.

She tried to calm herself for a moment. The fact that Shakespeare existed in the same world as her was nothing to be anxious about. In the original, there was no way Juliet would invite Shakespeare to a ball. This was another piece of evidence that the place she was in was not the world of the tragic ‘Romeo and Juliet.’

Yet the unease strangely did not disappear. She raised her head and looked around. Her mother was engrossed in decorating the hall. She cautiously hid the invitation in her skirt.

Contrary to her wishes, the day of the ball was approaching fast. Today, all the invitations had been sent out. Except for the one she had hidden.

She stared intently at the invitation in her hand. Her mother had not noticed that she had taken out an invitation. If the day of the ball came like this, she could safely get through it without meeting him. But Shakespeare would end up being a rude person who ignored the invitation without notice. She let out a small sigh.

The only reason she didn’t want to deliver the invitation to Shakespeare was her intuition. That was hardly a reason. She looked at the address written on the invitation. The Shakespeare residence, where William Shakespeare lived, was located right in the middle between the Capulet and Montague residences. It was within a stone’s throw.

How could she not have heard his name until now? She had even visited the Shakespeare residence a few times. It was a very familiar surname, so she had felt uneasy then too. But there was no one named William there. Something was definitely strange.

She got up and began preparing to leave. She couldn’t just continue feeling uneasy. She had to find out the source of this anxiety. She tightly gripped the invitation in her hand.

“I am from the Capulet family. I would like to see Mr. William Shakespeare.”

After conveying the simple message that an invitation had been omitted, the butler guided her to the parlor. He told her to wait a moment and went to call William Shakespeare. She sat on the sofa in the parlor. She realized she was tapping the armrest of the sofa and belatedly stopped the movement. She felt her heart beating fast.

Before long, the butler returned with a man. His tall stature and broad shoulders, which would be a head taller than her if he stood beside her, caught her attention. The man with blond hair and gentle-looking eyes was a textbook example of a handsome man.

She stared at him, momentarily entranced. He had a face much more suited to romance than someone like Romeo. She thought his sparkling blue eyes were beautiful.

At that moment, his blue eyes widened.

“Juliet?”