Hidden Track 1 – Why is it ‘Romeo’ and Juliet?

[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.]

* * *

Contrary to his quick decision, William Shakespeare faced one difficulty. Creating a story was not the problem. In his mind, countless beautiful stories for Juliet were already unfolding.

The problem was that the genre he had in mind was romance. Juliet was the perfect protagonist, but romance couldn’t be done alone. She needed a counterpart. The most perfect man to match Juliet.

“Are you planning to look around the streets today as well?”

The Shakespeare family’s butler asked William, who was preparing to go out.

“Yes. I plan to observe people.”

“You’ve been going out quite often these days.”

Recently, William had been wandering around the city of Vernerk whenever he had time. It was all in an effort to find a match for Juliet. However, the butler looked at William with a worried expression.

Perhaps due to his profession, William usually spent most of his time at his desk, except when he had a necessary task or during his designated exercise time. To the butler, it seemed strange for William to suddenly change his lifestyle in an unfamiliar place.

“If there’s any problem, please let me know at any time.”

But there was no special reason to stop him. It’s not the proper attitude of a servant to question the master’s actions. This was all the butler could do. He bowed his head and saw William off.

The butler was a good person. As William walked slowly, he thought. He was responsible and considerate of others. Such a man would surely be able to support Juliet firmly.

William imagined the butler standing next to Juliet in his mind. Instantly, his expression frowned. The butler was certainly a decent person, but he was not a match for Juliet. The butler had the same brown hair as Juliet, which didn’t look very good together. He shook his head alone.

William, who had come out to the city, immediately took a seat at an outdoor café. He wasn’t particularly craving coffee, but he thought that a man wandering the streets alone observing people seemed too suspicious, even to himself. As soon as William sat down, a waiter came running over.

“Welcome, what can I get for you?”

“A long black, please.”

“Yes, I’ll make it deliciously for you!”

As William finished ordering, the waiter hummed a tune and conveyed the order inside the café. The man seemed friendly, energetic, and diligent. Such a man could surely make Juliet happy.

William imagined another man standing next to Juliet. The man was blond, so at least in appearance, they seemed to match well. But William shook his head once more.

The man seemed diligent, and indeed, he was constantly moving around, taking orders or tidying up. Being diligent was a strength, but if not careful, it could easily make a lover feel lonely. He didn’t even want to imagine Juliet feeling lonely.

Her match should be someone wealthy enough not to need to work, but then again, an unreliable person couldn’t be trusted. Someone with flexible working hours or someone who worked from home would be ideal. William added another line to his mental list of ‘conditions to stand next to Juliet.’

Despite sitting in the café for quite a while, no man suitable for Juliet appeared. Perhaps finding Juliet had been an overly fortunate event.

William thought with a somewhat excited feeling. There might not be a man in Vernerk who matched Juliet. If so, how about creating an imaginary character?

Just as William was about to tidy up and leave, a violinist stopped in front of the café. He took out a violin from its case, moved the bow a few times, and started playing. The melody was breathtakingly beautiful. William forgot about leaving and got lost in the man’s performance.

“Bravo!”

“His face looks familiar, doesn’t it? Could he be a famous performer?”

“Such a beautiful performance.”

“I think the first violinist from the last orchestra had a face like that.”

As the man stopped playing, the surroundings quickly became noisy. William, too, emerged from the music and was finally able to look at the man.

The performer had shining blond hair. It matched well with Juliet’s brown hair. He seemed to belong to an orchestra, but if he had the leisure to perform alone on the street, he probably had relatively flexible time management.

Could that man be the one to stand next to Juliet? 

William’s face slowly hardened as he observed the man. 

Height? It was sufficient. Standing next to Juliet, they would make a good-looking pair. Wouldn’t a musician have an unstable life? But Juliet and an artist seemed like a fairly good combination.

William’s mind was busy. He had finally found someone suitable for the male protagonist, but he wasn’t thrilled. In fact, he wanted to find fault with him for no reason.

“Thank you for listening.”

Then the man, having finished his performance, spoke. His voice felt cold and blunt. William’s expression brightened instantly. The man who suited Juliet was someone kinder and warmer than that. William nodded alone. His chaotic mind seemed to settle instantly.

Indeed, there was no man in Vernerk who suited Juliet. William imagined an imaginary man in his mind. Blond hair, Juliet had green eyes, so a man with blue eyes would suit her well. He should be moderately tall, have a job but flexible working hours, and have a kind and gentle smile…

William suddenly awoke from his imagination. The man drawn in his mind resembled William himself too much.

“That’s ridiculous.”

Forgetting that he was outdoors, William shook his head. A few people looked at him strangely, but he didn’t notice. William denied himself as if he had imagined something absurd. He couldn’t possibly stand next to Juliet. Even the thought was too much. But, was he being greedy? His eyes wavered.

While William was lost in confusion, a couple sat at the table in front of him.

“I happened to stop by last time, and the coffee was better than I expected. I wanted to come with you, Rosaline.”

The voice he heard was kind. William unconsciously looked up at the man speaking. The man had blond hair and blue eyes.

“I heard you’ve started learning about the Montague family’s business recently. You must be busy with heir training, aren’t you overdoing it because of me?”

“There’s nothing I do for you that could be considered overdoing it.”

The man seemed to be the heir to his family. That meant he would be working from home. A man who met all the conditions. William stared at him blankly.

“Really. I’m worried, so go home early and rest today, Romeo.”

Romeo.

William repeated the man’s name in his mind. 

Yes, someone like that could stand next to Juliet. 

William hastily decided on the second protagonist with a sense of being chased by something.

It was at that moment that the ending of the beautiful story that had filled his mind somehow became a tragedy.