I pricked up my ears in curiosity. Jacqueline's face had turned so pale that it almost looked gray.
But unexpectedly, Rosetta waved her hand. She gently let go of Jacqueline's collar and said,
“That’s fine. What do you want?”
It seemed unnatural that she changed the subject, perhaps because she had made a slip of the tongue in anger.
I looked back and forth between Jacqueline and Rosetta, but neither of them seemed willing to talk about 'that incident'.
I was curious, but it was presumptuous of me to ask questions about the matter between the two. Above all, deciphering the markings on the note was the priority.
“Then please take a look at this.”
She took the paper from my hand with a dull expression. Rosetta raised one eyebrow and remained silent for a while.
Whether she had read it or not, there was no sign of it on her sunken face. I urged him impatiently.
“Do you understand what I mean?”
“It’s not easy not to know. When I see this, I feel completely sober.”
Rosetta folded the paper neatly and handed it back to me. My eyes widened.
“Then do you know where the place written here is?”
“At least I know why that guy brought Young Lady here.”
"Why?"
“Belcruz. In other words, this town.”
I was dumbfounded. Belcruz was the estate of Baron Lotte, about three hours away by carriage from here.
The very town where Veronica and I met and had dinner. The very town where the sapphire mines are.
Isn't the range too wide to be grouped into the same area from there to here? Rosetta seemed to notice my doubts right away.
“The origin of Belcruz is salt mines. Which mountain valley is named after that? They say salt is mined there?”
She began to muncher the nuts on her plate.
Jacqueline rubbed his face with his dry hands at that action. He rubbed it so roughly that it now looked like he had a red face all along.
But Rosetta paid no attention and continued speaking rudely.
“If you go a little further from here, you will come across a salt farm. It has been closed for a long time because business was not good. Anyway, the salt there used to be called Belcruze Mountain Salt. Even today, the locals still call this area Belcruze.”
I felt goosebumps running down my spine. I looked back at Jacqueline with some hesitation.
Is this a coincidence? Why did Jacqueline bring me to this place called 'Belcruz'?
“Then, this is, this place, really...”
I managed to piece together my disorganized thoughts. The answer I wanted came from Rosetta. She pointed at Jacqueline with her hand in a strange, curse-like gesture.
“There’s no way a guy who’s been blatantly going back and forth across the Eastern Strait wouldn’t have known about that, and since it’s hard to conclude it on his own, he brought you here. Tell us or hide it, we’ll do it ourselves.”
Jacqueline just rubbed his face with his dry hands. Judging by the fact that the tips of his ears were bald, it seemed that Rosetta's interpretation was correct.
I crossed my arms and looked at Jacqueline as if to say, “If you want to make an excuse, go ahead and try.” He opened his mouth as if he was being pushed by Rosetta and my gaze.
“I apologize for not telling you in advance. However, this is their territory, and no matter what your purpose is, if Your Highness finds out about this place, there is no way to prevent it from being exposed to the imperial family...”
Then Rosetta moved quickly. And the next moment, there was a snapping sound, and a sharp dagger was stuck deep in the table, shaking.
At some point, the movements were so quick that you couldn't even see how she moved her arms. Rosetta shouted in a rough voice, glancing around the inn.
“Don’t you all care? If you lean in one more time, I’ll cut off your dirty necks!”
It was only then that I realized that quite a few people were listening to what we were saying. I had been so focused on Rosetta that I hadn't even noticed how quiet the inn had become.
When Rosetta let go of her brow, people turned their heads awkwardly. The inn became noisy again.
Rosetta said, retrieving the dagger and putting it in her bosom.
“You little punk, didn’t I tell you to be careful with your mouth around salty people? Do you think I don’t know and just call you miss?”
Then she mercilessly struck Jacqueline on the back with his fist. There was something comical about the sturdy knight being beaten by a woman much smaller than him.
Rosetta was a 'leash', and indeed, she looked the most leash-bound I've ever seen Jacqueline.
“Then, that, Rosetta?”
I awkwardly called her name. Rosetta glanced at me and stopped beating Jacqueline haphazardly.
She sat back down in her chair again, her posture hunched over.
“Then, is the blue jewel of Belcruze, which is written here, also here?”
“It depends on how you judge something to be a jewel.”
“You said before that this was a salt mine? So, are salt crystals sometimes called jewels?”
After much thought, I came up with an answer. But Rosetta just giggled.
“Salt? From the East? Why not trade seawater for gold?”
Well, that was true. Two hundred years ago, salt would have been considered precious, but now in the empire, salt was no longer precious. Unless you found salt crystals that were a few hundred years old.
Even if you were to get something like that, it wouldn't be comparable to a real sapphire. If you brought something like that to a competition, you'd be laughed at.
My thoughts were blocked again. As I groaned, Rosetta spoke indifferently.
“It’s not like there’s nothing to show you. There are things I can guess.”
I raised my head, smiling.
“You have a guess?”
“Yes. If you want, I can take you there. I don’t know if that’s what you’re looking for or not.”
At that moment, a strange halo appeared above Rosetta's head. It was as if some wise man had appeared and shown me the way while I was walking along a dark road.
In reality, it was probably the lantern light of a shabby inn, but I was desperate and desperate enough to think so. I held her hand tightly with both of my hands.
“Yes. I want to go.”
Rosetta's expression became strange. She awkwardly withdrew her hand.
“It’s difficult now. Come back here tomorrow around lunchtime. Then I’ll take you.”
I looked back at Jacqueline. He seemed to know where Rosetta was taking me since he didn't stop her.
Not that I doubted Rosetta, but I felt better knowing Jacqueline was there.
No matter how much Jacqueline loves Rosetta, he can't compromise when it comes to my safety.
It wasn't a question of right or wrong, but rather a matter of protecting Rosetta and this village from the imperial family. At least while I was still a Princess.
“Then, let’s meet again here tomorrow.”
I asked several times and stood up from my seat.
We drove for another three hours and arrived at the admiral's mansion. It was almost midnight, but it was brightly lit.
As soon as I got out of the carriage, I knew the reason.
“Your Highness!”
I almost got pushed down by Thalia who was rushing towards me. If Enoch hadn't caught me from behind, I'm sure I would have rolled down on the floor in one piece.
Irina seemed happy to see her smiling happily from behind instead of trying to stop her.
“You’re in the palace. Why did you come all the way here?”
Although I said it as if I was reproaching her, I knew that my cheeks would definitely be flushed when I looked in the mirror. How long had we been apart? I was very happy to see two familiar people.
Thalia said, her face weeping.
“No matter what, you could just leave like that without telling us!”
Perhaps because of the belief that we were blood-related, Thalia tended to treat me like a real sister.
At first, she was somewhat wary, but at some point, she began to firmly believe that I was the real Anastasia.
Unlike Irina, who still kept to her duties even though we were close, I also had a hard time being strict with Thalia because of her naivety.
I stroked Thalia's soft cheek with my thumb.
“I’m sorry. I was in a hurry and suddenly had to find a clue.”
Irina said, gently taking hold of my remaining empty arm.
“I can’t tell you how surprised everyone was when they heard that Your Highness had set off without even stopping by the palace.”
“Was it so?”
“So we set off right away. We hastily packed our bags as lightly as we could, but I’m not sure if you’ll like it.”
I turned my head in the direction Irina was pointing and ended up gaping open.
What do you mean by 'simple'? Three carriages were lined up, one of them still unloading luggage.
By any chance, these guys didn't come to the Princess's palace to rob it... When I squinted my eyes with reasonable suspicion, they both averted their gaze. It was getting more and more suspicious.
“Your Highness. Shall I prepare a banquet for you?”
Sylvia gently intervened in the scene of suspicion and avoidance.
“It’s okay. Oh, maybe Lord Jacqueline is hungry.”
I looked around for Jacqueline. He was definitely nearby when I got out of the carriage, but he disappeared for a moment.
Sylvia noticed that I was looking for him and answered.
“If it was Jacqueline, he would have gone straight back to his quarters. Should I call him back?”
“No, leave him alone. He must have had a hard time running around today. Sir Jacqueline has been a great help.”
“...That child was of help to Your Highness?”
He's not that sincere... Sylvia muttered as she did so, her elegant face clouding over for a moment.
She said this, holding my hand tightly, as if she thought it wouldn't work.
“If there is anything that makes you uncomfortable because of him, please let me know. I’d rather take care of him.”
“Not at all. He really helps me a lot.”
“If that’s the case, then that’s fortunate, but...”
Sylvia still had a worried look on her face. I deliberately opened my eyes wide and lightly held Sylvia's hand.
“It’s true.”
When I said that, Sylvia seemed to feel relieved.
Her only youngest brother had been hanging out with pirates since he was a little thick-headed, and after he grew up, he only traveled outside the East... It was understandable why she had difficulty trusting Jacqueline.
“Oh my, look at my mind. I keep making Your Highness stand up...”
Sylvia suddenly came to her senses and ordered her servants to open the door to the mansion.
Because it was a fairly windy day, as soon as I entered the mansion, heat spread through my cold body.
Sylvia said, leaning on the stair railing.
But unexpectedly, Rosetta waved her hand. She gently let go of Jacqueline's collar and said,
“That’s fine. What do you want?”
It seemed unnatural that she changed the subject, perhaps because she had made a slip of the tongue in anger.
I looked back and forth between Jacqueline and Rosetta, but neither of them seemed willing to talk about 'that incident'.
I was curious, but it was presumptuous of me to ask questions about the matter between the two. Above all, deciphering the markings on the note was the priority.
“Then please take a look at this.”
She took the paper from my hand with a dull expression. Rosetta raised one eyebrow and remained silent for a while.
Whether she had read it or not, there was no sign of it on her sunken face. I urged him impatiently.
“Do you understand what I mean?”
“It’s not easy not to know. When I see this, I feel completely sober.”
Rosetta folded the paper neatly and handed it back to me. My eyes widened.
“Then do you know where the place written here is?”
“At least I know why that guy brought Young Lady here.”
"Why?"
“Belcruz. In other words, this town.”
I was dumbfounded. Belcruz was the estate of Baron Lotte, about three hours away by carriage from here.
The very town where Veronica and I met and had dinner. The very town where the sapphire mines are.
Isn't the range too wide to be grouped into the same area from there to here? Rosetta seemed to notice my doubts right away.
“The origin of Belcruz is salt mines. Which mountain valley is named after that? They say salt is mined there?”
She began to muncher the nuts on her plate.
Jacqueline rubbed his face with his dry hands at that action. He rubbed it so roughly that it now looked like he had a red face all along.
But Rosetta paid no attention and continued speaking rudely.
“If you go a little further from here, you will come across a salt farm. It has been closed for a long time because business was not good. Anyway, the salt there used to be called Belcruze Mountain Salt. Even today, the locals still call this area Belcruze.”
I felt goosebumps running down my spine. I looked back at Jacqueline with some hesitation.
Is this a coincidence? Why did Jacqueline bring me to this place called 'Belcruz'?
“Then, this is, this place, really...”
I managed to piece together my disorganized thoughts. The answer I wanted came from Rosetta. She pointed at Jacqueline with her hand in a strange, curse-like gesture.
“There’s no way a guy who’s been blatantly going back and forth across the Eastern Strait wouldn’t have known about that, and since it’s hard to conclude it on his own, he brought you here. Tell us or hide it, we’ll do it ourselves.”
Jacqueline just rubbed his face with his dry hands. Judging by the fact that the tips of his ears were bald, it seemed that Rosetta's interpretation was correct.
I crossed my arms and looked at Jacqueline as if to say, “If you want to make an excuse, go ahead and try.” He opened his mouth as if he was being pushed by Rosetta and my gaze.
“I apologize for not telling you in advance. However, this is their territory, and no matter what your purpose is, if Your Highness finds out about this place, there is no way to prevent it from being exposed to the imperial family...”
Then Rosetta moved quickly. And the next moment, there was a snapping sound, and a sharp dagger was stuck deep in the table, shaking.
At some point, the movements were so quick that you couldn't even see how she moved her arms. Rosetta shouted in a rough voice, glancing around the inn.
“Don’t you all care? If you lean in one more time, I’ll cut off your dirty necks!”
It was only then that I realized that quite a few people were listening to what we were saying. I had been so focused on Rosetta that I hadn't even noticed how quiet the inn had become.
When Rosetta let go of her brow, people turned their heads awkwardly. The inn became noisy again.
Rosetta said, retrieving the dagger and putting it in her bosom.
“You little punk, didn’t I tell you to be careful with your mouth around salty people? Do you think I don’t know and just call you miss?”
Then she mercilessly struck Jacqueline on the back with his fist. There was something comical about the sturdy knight being beaten by a woman much smaller than him.
Rosetta was a 'leash', and indeed, she looked the most leash-bound I've ever seen Jacqueline.
“Then, that, Rosetta?”
I awkwardly called her name. Rosetta glanced at me and stopped beating Jacqueline haphazardly.
She sat back down in her chair again, her posture hunched over.
“Then, is the blue jewel of Belcruze, which is written here, also here?”
“It depends on how you judge something to be a jewel.”
“You said before that this was a salt mine? So, are salt crystals sometimes called jewels?”
After much thought, I came up with an answer. But Rosetta just giggled.
“Salt? From the East? Why not trade seawater for gold?”
Well, that was true. Two hundred years ago, salt would have been considered precious, but now in the empire, salt was no longer precious. Unless you found salt crystals that were a few hundred years old.
Even if you were to get something like that, it wouldn't be comparable to a real sapphire. If you brought something like that to a competition, you'd be laughed at.
My thoughts were blocked again. As I groaned, Rosetta spoke indifferently.
“It’s not like there’s nothing to show you. There are things I can guess.”
I raised my head, smiling.
“You have a guess?”
“Yes. If you want, I can take you there. I don’t know if that’s what you’re looking for or not.”
At that moment, a strange halo appeared above Rosetta's head. It was as if some wise man had appeared and shown me the way while I was walking along a dark road.
In reality, it was probably the lantern light of a shabby inn, but I was desperate and desperate enough to think so. I held her hand tightly with both of my hands.
“Yes. I want to go.”
Rosetta's expression became strange. She awkwardly withdrew her hand.
“It’s difficult now. Come back here tomorrow around lunchtime. Then I’ll take you.”
I looked back at Jacqueline. He seemed to know where Rosetta was taking me since he didn't stop her.
Not that I doubted Rosetta, but I felt better knowing Jacqueline was there.
No matter how much Jacqueline loves Rosetta, he can't compromise when it comes to my safety.
It wasn't a question of right or wrong, but rather a matter of protecting Rosetta and this village from the imperial family. At least while I was still a Princess.
“Then, let’s meet again here tomorrow.”
I asked several times and stood up from my seat.
***
We drove for another three hours and arrived at the admiral's mansion. It was almost midnight, but it was brightly lit.
As soon as I got out of the carriage, I knew the reason.
“Your Highness!”
I almost got pushed down by Thalia who was rushing towards me. If Enoch hadn't caught me from behind, I'm sure I would have rolled down on the floor in one piece.
Irina seemed happy to see her smiling happily from behind instead of trying to stop her.
“You’re in the palace. Why did you come all the way here?”
Although I said it as if I was reproaching her, I knew that my cheeks would definitely be flushed when I looked in the mirror. How long had we been apart? I was very happy to see two familiar people.
Thalia said, her face weeping.
“No matter what, you could just leave like that without telling us!”
Perhaps because of the belief that we were blood-related, Thalia tended to treat me like a real sister.
At first, she was somewhat wary, but at some point, she began to firmly believe that I was the real Anastasia.
Unlike Irina, who still kept to her duties even though we were close, I also had a hard time being strict with Thalia because of her naivety.
I stroked Thalia's soft cheek with my thumb.
“I’m sorry. I was in a hurry and suddenly had to find a clue.”
Irina said, gently taking hold of my remaining empty arm.
“I can’t tell you how surprised everyone was when they heard that Your Highness had set off without even stopping by the palace.”
“Was it so?”
“So we set off right away. We hastily packed our bags as lightly as we could, but I’m not sure if you’ll like it.”
I turned my head in the direction Irina was pointing and ended up gaping open.
What do you mean by 'simple'? Three carriages were lined up, one of them still unloading luggage.
By any chance, these guys didn't come to the Princess's palace to rob it... When I squinted my eyes with reasonable suspicion, they both averted their gaze. It was getting more and more suspicious.
“Your Highness. Shall I prepare a banquet for you?”
Sylvia gently intervened in the scene of suspicion and avoidance.
“It’s okay. Oh, maybe Lord Jacqueline is hungry.”
I looked around for Jacqueline. He was definitely nearby when I got out of the carriage, but he disappeared for a moment.
Sylvia noticed that I was looking for him and answered.
“If it was Jacqueline, he would have gone straight back to his quarters. Should I call him back?”
“No, leave him alone. He must have had a hard time running around today. Sir Jacqueline has been a great help.”
“...That child was of help to Your Highness?”
He's not that sincere... Sylvia muttered as she did so, her elegant face clouding over for a moment.
She said this, holding my hand tightly, as if she thought it wouldn't work.
“If there is anything that makes you uncomfortable because of him, please let me know. I’d rather take care of him.”
“Not at all. He really helps me a lot.”
“If that’s the case, then that’s fortunate, but...”
Sylvia still had a worried look on her face. I deliberately opened my eyes wide and lightly held Sylvia's hand.
“It’s true.”
When I said that, Sylvia seemed to feel relieved.
Her only youngest brother had been hanging out with pirates since he was a little thick-headed, and after he grew up, he only traveled outside the East... It was understandable why she had difficulty trusting Jacqueline.
“Oh my, look at my mind. I keep making Your Highness stand up...”
Sylvia suddenly came to her senses and ordered her servants to open the door to the mansion.
Because it was a fairly windy day, as soon as I entered the mansion, heat spread through my cold body.
Sylvia said, leaning on the stair railing.
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