There was a familiar face behind her, of which also seemed very surprised to see Valentia.
[Jays] ‘Is that you, Miss Valentia?’
[Valentia] ‘…….Mister Jays.’
Valentia called his name with confidence, but she couldn’t tell all the tension leaving her body was a result of relief or disappointment.
[Jays] ‘I called out without being sure, but to think it was really you, Miss Valentia.’
[Valentia] ‘It’s been a while.’
[Jays] ‘I didn’t expect to meet you all the way out here, but it’s good to see you.’
[Valentia] ‘What brings you here yourself, Mister Jays?’
[Jays] ‘My family owns a small merchant’s guild, so I came out here to handle some business.’
He gave an awkward smile.
[Valentia] ‘Oh, I see.’
[Jays] ‘It’s been a while since we’ve last seen each other. Why don’t we chat for a bit?’
She needed to find a place to stay for the night as soon as possible, but meeting a familiar face in a place that was so unfamiliar to her brought her a greater sense of comfort than she thought.
Valentia nodded.
[Valentia] ‘I would like that.’
[Jays] ‘Since you’re giving me some of your time, I will find you a place to stay. If you will allow me, that is, Miss Valentia.’
Had she actually managed to find a room at this inn, he never would’ve known she was in such a difficult situation at the time.
[Valentia] ‘I can’t trouble you like that.’
[Jays] ‘You are a fellow Academy graduate and we are both alumnus. And above all, I am taking up your time, so this is the least I can do to make up for it. Please allow me that.’
[Valentia] ‘Then please.’
Valentia knew that Jays was a kind person. It felt comforting to meet someone she knew in such a strange place, and so it would probably be in her best interest to accept his help if he was insisting, rather than being stubborn about it.
She thought about it for a while, and then nodded.
[Jays] ‘Let’s go and find you a room first. And you should probably eat something, too.’
[Valentia] ‘Yes, I do.’
[Innkeeper] ‘Oh, I didn’t realize the gentleman was a part of your party. Why didn’t you say something sooner? I will prepare a room right away.’
The innkeeper’s attitude suddenly changed, but then Valentia realized why that was the case.
It would seem that Jays was originally planning on staying at this inn, but that he might change his mind because of Valentia.
[Jays] ‘I don’t think will be necessary. Let us go, Miss Valentia.’
It was just as she thought, but that was all well and good since Valentia really didn’t wish to stay here. She nodded, stepping out first.
The place Jays led her to was a small inn near the city center, and once they were inside, a neatly dressed manager came out to greet them first.
[Manager] ‘Welcome. I am Sitri, the manager of the inn.’
[Jays] ‘We’ll be staying for the night. Please prepare two rooms.’
[Manager] ‘We will prepare a separate space for the dog.’
[Jays] ‘We’d like to keep him with us.’
[Manager] ‘But, dogs….’
[Jays] ‘Please consider this a favor.’
Then, she noticed Jays slip the manager a couple of coins.
Oh, she thought, Was I supposed to do it like that? Once more, Valentia was given a stark reminder of just how woefully inexperienced she was with some things.
[Manager] ‘Your family dog is also a valued customer.’
With a kind expression, the manager led her to a room.
[Valentia] ‘How will we eat?’
[Jays] ‘It’s a bit late, so why don’t we eat in our rooms and talk in the morning?’
[Valentia] ‘Thank you for your consideration.’
[Manager] ‘Then I will order your meals to be sent to your rooms. Here is where the lady will stay.’
[Jays] ‘I will see you tomorrow morning, Miss Valentia.’
[Valentia] “Yes. Tomorrow.’
The inn was fairly nice since it was so close to the square. The bed was soft and the blankets smelled clean. There were two chairs to rest in as well as a table and a personal bathroom.
Valentia sat down in one of the chairs, setting her bag down beside her.
[Valentia] ‘You must have been thirsty.’
She poured Goldie some water, and he lapped it up quickly and emptied it out within seconds. Once he was finished, he looked up at Valentia, and she poured him some more, of which he finished off, too.
That’s when she heard a knock.
[—] ‘Your meal is ready.’
When she answered the door, carried on carts and pushed in by the staff were trays of food. A stew with small amounts of meat, soft bread with jam and butter, eggs, and sausages. It was a very simple meal.
Valentia made sure to give Goldie some of his dog food before eating herself.
Now that she was safely in a comfortable room with a full stomach, all her exhaustion finally caught up with her. She thought she was only going to lie down for a moment, but in a matter of seconds, she was out like a light—like both her mind and body were completely drained.
* * *
She opened her eyes to the sound of birds. Before she knew it, it was already morning.
Maybe it was because this was her first proper night’s sleep in a long time, but she felt good. Goldie was already awake, and once he noticed Valentia opening her eyes, he ran up to her and shoved his face against her.
[Valentia] ‘Did you sleep well?’
[Goldie] ‘Woof.’
After she was able to rest so comfortably here, she thought about staying for a few more days. It was a bit pricier than other places, but considering how difficult it would be to find anywhere else, the price suddenly didn’t seem so bad.
Then, she had breakfast on her mind. Normally, if she were alone, she might’ve even skipped it, but since she was technically here with Jays, she thought it would only be right to ask him.
But while she was thinking so intensely, she heard a knock at the door, and when she answered it, Jays was already there.
[Jays] ‘Good morning.’
[Valentia] ‘Yes. Good morning, Jays.’
[Jays] ‘Did you sleep well?’
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[Valentia] ‘I did. I don’t remember the last time I slept this comfortably.’
[Jays] ‘Then, would you like to have breakfast with me?’
[Valentia] ‘Yes, I would.’
[Jays] ‘Since we ate it yesterday, the food here wasn’t all that bad, but why don’t we find something delicious to eat this morning?’
At his suggestion, they left the inn and wandered around the plaza. This was near the central square, so there were plenty of small little shops scattered around. Eventually they settled on a nice looking restaurant.
She wanted to bring Goldie, so they couldn’t eat in the main hall, so they rented a private room instead.
[Valentia] ‘I’m sorry, but I can’t leave Goldie alone.’
[Jays] ‘That’s alright. Please, choose what you’d like.’
She ordered something that wouldn’t be too heavy for the first meal of the morning. The inn’s food was acceptable, but it was hard to compare it to the food from a dedicated restaurant.
After they’d nearly finished their meal, Valentia looked up at Jays across from her.
[Valentia] ‘Thank you for your help. I wanted to say that earlier, but there was never a chance for it.’
[Jays] ‘What do you mean, help? I only did what was obvious. More importantly, I was wondering about this yesterday, but……’
Her stomach had gotten so big at this point that it was impossible to hide. She’d been struggling for a while now, so her arms and legs were thin, but that just accentuated her stomach, making it difficult to miss.
[Valentia] ‘Yes.’
Valentia nodded. Jays looked shocked for a second, but then he quickly straightened out the look on his face.
[Jays] ‘Is it his?’
[Valentia] ‘No, never. It’s not his. Not at all.’
[Jays] “My apologies. I asked a rude question.’
Silence fell between them, before eventually, Jays’ awkward cough cut through the emptiness.
[Jays] ‘I only thought it might be since I heard word that the Imperial Prince is looking for you.’
Those words were so unexpected that Valentia just stared at Jays, blinking loosely as she did. He was looking for her?
[Valentia] ‘Why?’
[Jays] ‘I wouldn’t know about that. So when I noticed, I thought it might be his.’
[Valentia] ‘It’s definitely not. I would have no reason to hide it if it were.’
[Jays] ‘…..Right.’
In the mind of most others, her course of action should’ve been clear. If this really were the child of the Imperial Prince, she would have no reason to hide them or run away.
The truth, however, was far more complicated than that and most of the details did not bear repeating, and so she decided that Jays didn’t need to know about them.
[Jays] ‘Have you ever thought about going back?’
[Valentia] ‘And where exactly would I go even if I did?’
Jays look back at Valentia as if he were speechless.
[Jays] ‘Well, he’s looking for you.’
[Valentia] ‘We have nothing to do with each other, so I don’t have to go back just because of that.’
[Jays] ‘I see. Do you have any mind to meet him again?’
[Valentia] ‘None whatsoever.’
Valentia said this with absolute certainty.
She didn’t know why he was looking for her, but the fact remained that she did not wish to see him again, especially not like this. Just imagining him cursing her, accusing her of being pregnant with another man’s child, made her sick.
[Jays] ‘Are you traveling?’
[Valentia] ‘Well…..’
She wasn’t really sure if ‘traveling’ was an appropriate term for the aimless wandering she was doing.
[Jays] ‘Do you have any plans for the future?’
[Valentia] ‘I don’t know.’
[Jays] ‘Do you have a place to stay?’
Question after question, and with still no answers to give, Valentia smiled bitterly and shook her head.
Jays would already know the answer to that question. If she had a place to stay, she wouldn’t have been wandering around late at night, struggling to find a place while having a difficult time as she did.
[Valentia] ‘I wanted to settle down before giving birth, but things aren’t working out as I’d hoped……’
[Jays] ‘Miss Valentia.’
[Valentia] ‘Yes?’
[Jays] ‘I have something I’d like to say to you.’
He straightened out his back and looked Valentia dead in the eyes, and she immediately felt flustered by the look in his eyes.
He looked both polite, but desperate, like he was trying to fix his posture right before talking about something extremely serious.
Almost like he was about to confess.
Confess.
It couldn’t be.
Was he really trying to confess? Although, come to think of it, he was always very kind to her.
I can’t believe I never noticed, Valentia thought, silently lamenting her lack of social sense. Why didn’t she figure it out until right this moment? After he went out of his way to help her yesterday, too!
They didn’t really know each other all that well, and like he said before, they attended the same Academy together. However, perhaps showing her such consideration was only possible because he held a heart for her.
But, though she appreciated his feelings, she could never accept them. So her plan was to tell him that she would gladly pretend they never talked about this.
There was no possible chance she could accept his confession all while pregnant with Lexus’ child.
She may hate him now, but she did love him at some point.
It was then that Jays finally spoke up.
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[Jays] ‘Miss Valentia, I’d like to formally extend an offer your way. Why don’t you come work at my commerce guild?’
* * *
T/N: Korean publishers are bringing the hammer down on fan translations for manhwas and novels alike in recent days. If you are not reading this on my site, you are putting me at risk of shutting down entirely. Be a friend to me and your fellow readers
astral t/c: Oh Valentia….
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