My child 15

Chapter 15. I am your servant

****

I was perplexed, but inwardly admired the man's deployment of a ridiculous story. It was something I would never have done.

The man's skill was admirable, but that didn't mean I was obligated to look out for him.

Just when I had decided to turn away, the man suddenly dropped to his knees and begged me.

"Honey, please......."

'What reason did he have to go to such lengths to cross into the Remzi Empire?’

Touched by his desperation, I turned to the sailor and asked.

"If I admit him, does that mean I'm letting him on board?"

"If you're a couple, if one of you is sure of the other's identity, you can both enter."

The man's eyes pleaded for redemption, even though I knew I was right to ignore him.

Instead of words of acceptance, I uttered words that tested the man.

"If you become my servant from this day forward, I will forgive you. I want you to kiss my shoe as proof of your commitment to being a servant."

If he was that desperate, I might be able to help for once.

Without further ado, the man came to my knees and grasped the hem of my robe.

"Yes, master."

"..."

"I am your servant."

He actually kissed my shoe.

Smooch.

The sound of the kiss made the people nearby burst out laughing. I looked down at him in disbelief.

'Crazy...................'

***

The man who had come aboard with my help followed me like a puppy chasing its master. I stopped walking in the corner of the deck, and the man stopped walking as well, turning to face me.

"What's the master's name?"

I replied.

"You don't even know the name of the person who called you 'honey'?"

The man spoke up, his voice brisk.

"So I’m trying to find out now."

I said the fake name for the first time.

"My name is Renee. What's yours?"

"I'm..................."

He rolled his eyes a little, as if he was thinking about it, and then, not too late, he answered.

"Bordeaux."

I had a feeling it was a fake name, but I didn't pry.

I didn't expect him to tell the truth.

The man spoke the lie as if it were the truth as he boarded the boat.

So what, I thought.

I let the man's eloquence get the better of me and helped him on his way, and by tomorrow evening we would be in the Remzi Empire.

It was a connection that would cease to exist once he moved on to the Empire.

I didn't feel the need to ask for his name and circumstances.

But Bordeaux kept the conversation going, asking questions as if he wanted us to continue.

"How old is Renee?"

"Twenty years old."

"I'm four years older than Renee. Twenty-four."

Bordeaux seemed to have a way with words, a way with conversation.

I replied dryly.

"I see, Mr. Bordeaux, the con man."

"Have you ever seen such a handsome con artist?"

"I saw you today. You."

I took a closer look at his complexion. I had to admit, he was good-looking. Bordeaux smiled wryly.

His blue hair flowed beautifully in the sea breeze that blew across the deck.

"So Renee has admitted that I'm handsome?"

"I thought you were an impostor, but you have a way of picking and choosing what people want to hear."

"Thank you."

I pointed out the facts.

"It's not a compliment."

I said coldly, and then burst out laughing.

"Why are you laughing?"

"It's just that I'm having a very casual conversation with a scammer I just met, and you know it's funny."

And what was really ridiculous was the fact that I was having fun talking to a man whose identity I didn't recognize.

I didn’t know if I had laughed so heartily in years.

Bordeaux, who was oblivious to my situation, said.

"Let's keep it casual in the future. My master."

As if we were going to continue our friendship when we got to the Remzi Empire.

I replied cheerfully.

"Very well."

Just then, the ship's bell rang loudly, signaling our departure. The deck shook slightly, and the ship began to move.

In the darkness of the crescent moon, we took our first steps toward the Remzi Empire.

The ship was not only carrying people to and from the Remzi Empire.

The ship was loaded with goods that would be transported to the country

Many of the items were wine.

The Lopez Empire had many vineyards, and the grapes were of high quality, producing much delicious wine.

Deep in the ship's hold, off-limits to all but the officers, were a few well-built sailors.

Among them, the overseer in charge of the ship's cargo frowned.

I was counting the oak barrels of wine, for they were one short.

"Hey, Charlie. We don't have enough wine. Have you moved everything on deck?"

One of them, a sailor named Charlie, shrugged.

"I'll go check on it right now."

The foreman slapped Charlie on the back of the head.

"Let's get things straight, please. Huh?"

Charlie shook his head and hurried back to the deck.

'Surely they've moved everything...... there's been a mistake.’

As he stepped onto the deck, he saw a blue-haired man and a woman, who appeared to be a couple, and some other passengers.

Charlie's gaze scanned the deck and stopped at a spot.

He found himself alone at the oak barrel behind the man with the blue hair.

‘Ai, you didn't finish moving one.’

Charlie walked over to the barrel, and the blue-haired man stepped aside.

Charlie, being a solo traveler, glared at the kind man before turning away.

‘To hell with the couples!’

The oak barrel on Charlie's shoulder bore the name of the region where the wine was produced.

***

Bordeaux, who claimed to be my servant, seemed to be a man of great pretensions.

When asked what he does for a living,

"I have several businesses in the Remzi empire," he said, "but my biggest one is the cafe. Do you want to come to my cafe, honey? The coffee is really good."

He made it sound like he was a big businessman.

He gestured wildly with his hands, the hem of his generous shirt flapping as he did so.

I assumed he was lying.

He didn't look like the kind of man you'd expect to be a great businessman.

If he was a successful businessman, he should at least bring a servant with him.

He wouldn't have claimed to be the servant of a woman he'd just met because of her ID.

............... also a scammer.

Bordeaux, with his easy going demeanor, seemed more free than anyone else.

He looked more like a smooth-talking hustler or a braggart vagabond than a businessman.

I asked another question as I gazed out over the deck at the sea of ruins.

"I wonder why a businessman from the Remzi Empire came to the Lopez Empire."

I didn't ask him about his profession.

I was about to part ways with him anyway. I wondered how far Bordeaux would go with his lies.

Bordeaux answered with a cool sweep of his hair.

"The only thing that can move me is the woman who broke my heart."

His answer was a surprise.

I expected him to rattle off some business-related reasons.

I lowered my voice to a whisper.

"Your real wife?"

There were sailors on deck, bustling about. I didn't want to make a fuss.

I didn't know that he had a real wife. It would get us both in trouble.

He must have thought the same thing, because he lowered his voice as well.

"No, the woman who almost became my wife. She was to be married in the Lopez empire, but she ran away."

It was a familiar story.

I thought of my wedding, all lavishly decorated, and of Gran standing there alone.

As I looked at Bordeaux, thinking of Gran, I noticed a slight resemblance between the two of them.

Of course, I didn't know Gran's face properly. It was hard to recognize him because he covered more than half his face with cotton thread.

But I thought it was unlikely that they were the same person.

There was no way a man of noble birth would have disguised himself as a braggart.

Bordeaux even kissed my shoes and crawled on the floor.

A prince of a country would never do such a thing.

Moreover, he was on a ship bound for the Remzi Empire, when he was supposed to be dealing with an unfulfilled wedding in the Lopez Empire?

I thought it was ridiculous.

'It must be someone else.’

I was convinced.

***

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