Chapter 6 – At the Crossroads of Choice (1) (Part 9)

“You’ve arrived quickly.”

The first to greet them upon disembarking at Zepa Station was Grand Duke Ian Curtis, with a sarcastic face. Edwin wasn’t one to just listen to his sarcasm quietly.

“You didn’t have to come out; we would have managed on our own.”

The gates of hell have opened again. Lorraine and Sydney rubbed their temples as if too tired to intervene. Then Lorraine spoke first.

“Let’s move quickly. We’ve reached the time we promised the captain.”

At that, Sydney made a fuss, pulling his superior’s arm.

“Yes, Your Highness, let’s go quickly.”

Would it be an insult to say that Philip was visible in his fussing? 

Lorraine thought as she adjusted her travel bag.

Zepa, the capital of Dunant, was a port city and a stopping point for those heading to resorts. Because of this, people gathered from all over, and naturally, the market was bustling too.

Especially thanks to the geographical advantage of being close to the sea, the fish market was the most developed-.

“Wow.”

Even just passing by in the carriage, the freshness of the seafood was evident. Sydney, with his nose pressed against the window, asked his superior.

“Can’t you leave me here after we finish work?”

Unlike Moses, which was surrounded by the sea on three sides, it seemed even more fascinating to someone from the inland Fontaine.

“…Do you think that’s possible?”

Muttering to himself, Ian shook his head. At that moment, the carriage came to a careful stop.

Simultaneously, the voice of the coachman announcing their arrival was heard from the driver’s seat.

“We have arrived.”

The first thing to greet them as they disembarked from the carriage was a slightly sticky but salty breeze.

Ian and Sydney got off first. Next, Edwin disembarked, and Lorraine was preparing to get off too. She was merely short of hands because she was holding both her hat and bag.

“Careful.”

Lorraine could confidently say she hadn’t expected such kindness. Seeing her precarious descent, Edwin carefully held her arm.

“Um-.”

But then, someone spoke to them.

“Are you Miss Wiig, who booked for 11 o’clock?”

“Oh, yes. Hello.”

She quickly brushed off Edwin’s arm and approached the captain.

“Oh dear- you must have had a hard time coming. Your luggage arrived first, so we were loading it.”

The captain pointed to a medium-sized ship docked at the port.

As he said, the crew was busy moving. They slowly walked towards the ship.

“Fortunately, given the season… the sea is calm. You should have a comfortable journey to Acté. My wife says… in Zepa, this time is called the season when the tiger sleeps.”

The captain was pleasant but a bit chatty. Because of this, Lorraine unintentionally learned a lot about the captain.

Stories like how he loved his country so much that he swore he’d die in Ajidabi in his youth, or how he came to Moses for work and met his current wife, making Moses his second home.

“You’re attending a wedding, I hear.”

“Oh, yes.”

“A wedding on an island… just imagining it is so—romantic.”

The captain blushed and laughed. At that moment, Sydney, who had been listening quietly, whispered from behind.

“What did you say your relationship was…?”

Lorraine replied with a composed face.

“A brother who has money and look decent but lack only in personality.”

“…Pardon?”

The brightness is so different?

Sydney looked at her with a face that said he couldn’t understand how she could make such an excuse. Nevertheless, Lorraine shrugged nonchalantly.

“As long as it worked.”

In hindsight, it was absurd that such a baseless explanation worked.

Sydney glanced at the captain and could only sigh deeply.

***

“Are you alright?”

It took a full 40 minutes by boat to reach Acté. Ian was lying down with seasickness about 10 minutes after the boat left the port.

“Roughly.”

“The captain is worried because the sea is so calm, yet you’re seasick.”

Edwin, who had plopped down nearby, stretched out and continued speaking.

“We’re approaching the island now, so I came to let you know to prepare to get up.”

“Seems like it.”

Ian pointed to the noisy deck with the hand covering his eyes, then slowly got up. He seemed to be feeling better, perhaps due to the belated effect of the seasickness medicine.

“…Danny said… her sister pretends to be smart but surprisingly has sloppy sides.”

His purple eyes showed a hint of interest.

“I’d prefer you mind your own business.”

“But you know.”

“…….”

“Like sister, like brother, Danny is no less sloppy.”

Who’s calling whom sloppy?

Ian chuckled and muttered. Just as Edwin was about to respond, Ian stood up. As if he had never been sick, he walked energetically and said,

“They say dripping water wears away stone; aren’t you curious which of us will wear away first?”

He tapped Edwin’s shoulder and left the room.

Feeling a familiar presence, Lorraine, who was standing on the deck, turned around. As expected, Edwin, who had gone to call Ian but returned later than Ian, was standing there.

“Did you… go somewhere?”

“Something like that.”

Having spread the sails wide, the ship was now slowly approaching the dock. Lorraine glanced at Ian, who was standing a little further away with Sydney.

“You went to fetch His Highness, yet you returned later… did you get seasick too?”

“I said no.”

As the ship anchored at the pier, the deck became busy.

The crew handed over ropes to tie to the bollard and began bringing out the luggage one by one. The attendants, who firmly secured the ropes, laid out the bridge for passengers and luggage to cross.

Only then did the captain, who had come out of the wheelhouse, approach them.

“My crew and attendants will take care of the luggage, so… you may disembark.”

“Oh, yes. Let’s go.”

“I’ll come to pick you up in three days.”

Leaving the captain’s farewell behind, they disembarked to find Marquis Roben waiting.

“Welcome, Your Highness, and Your Grace.”

His face seemed to shine as if he had applied a lot of hair oil.

The first to shake his outstretched hand was Ian.

“You’ve worked hard, Marquis.”

“It’s because we’re holding the wedding so far away.”

The two seemed to be in perfect sync as if they had never been wary of each other.

“They get along well….”

“Indeed.”

Surprisingly, the two were in harmony. Lorraine watched them from a step back with Sydney.

“We should do something else.”

She was sure that getting involved there would be harmful to her mental health.

***

Fortunately, Lorraine and Edwin’s rooms were connecting rooms.

“Oh.”

After the attendants moved all the luggage and hurriedly left the room, Lorraine looked around the room. There was nothing to do until Edwin returned. Edwin was currently away to have a conversation with Marquis Roben along with Ian.

The two rooms had identical interiors and furniture positions, like a decalcomania.

In fact, there was no reason to claim a room first. However, she had already moved her share of the luggage to one of the rooms.

“If I weren’t here for work, this would be heaven.”

Lorraine muttered, fiddling with the bedding, then got up and went out to the balcony.

Standing on the balcony, the first thing she felt was the warm sunlight. Next, the vast sea came into view. Beyond the distant horizon, the mainland of Moses was faintly visible.

As she enjoyed the scenery for a moment, a figure caught her eye.

Someone was crouching in a place not easily visible to passersby due to the dense bushes.

“Huh…?”

Lorraine frowned and pushed up her glasses.

Somehow familiar…?

At that moment, the distressed voice of a maid, who was pacing beside that someone, was heard.

“Miss… please go to your room….”

“No! …That crazy…!”

The maid was looking around so frantically that one might worry about her neck.

The maid’s distress was vividly felt by Lorraine, who was standing on the balcony. Understandably, if this embarrassment was discovered, the one to suffer would be the maid.

It was a problem so simple that even a five-year-old could answer it.

Of course, the one who caused this was Juliet Roben.

However, Juliet’s actions would likely be dismissed as mere marriage blues. Even scolding might be overlooked. But in the maid’s case, if unlucky, she could be fired; if lucky, she’d face reprimand and a pay cut.

Watching the maid flustered to a pitiful degree, a scene flashed through Lorraine’s mind.

“Come to think of it….”

The people from Dunant were nowhere to be seen.

William Dunant was someone who wouldn’t care whether his son was getting married or dead, so there was no need to worry about him.

However, Asiel Dunant was the groom.

“He should have arrived before us…?”

She touched her chin and tilted her head. At that moment, Juliet shouted as if she had no will left to hide.

“That useless! What did Father see in him… Ugh, ugh.”

Lorraine’s gaze naturally turned towards the commotion.

They arrived quickly. Someone who appeared to be the head maid was covering Juliet’s mouth while directing the other maids.

“Check the surroundings….”

“Yes.”

Some seemed to be staying behind to tidy up the area.

Juliet was soon dragged into the hotel by the maids’ firm hands. Lorraine was intently watching the scene.