Chapter 68

Soon after, the carriage arrived at the winter market.

Stepping out, April hesitated at the overwhelming crowd.

“I think I might cause a disturbance if I go in.”

“Half of them are Imperial tourists. It should be better than other markets.”

“Really?”

Somewhat relieved by his words, April surveyed the market again.

The winter market, lined with charming shops, was breathtaking from the entrance. The entire street was filled with the cinnamon scent of warm mulled wine.

Fejin asked,

“What would you like to drink first?”

“Whiskey.”

“You’re definitely from the Right Island.”

Fejin commented as he bought her requested whiskey and a cup of warm wine for himself. He held his wine while waiting for her to finish her whiskey.

April asked,

“Aren’t you drinking that?”

“I’m waiting because I thought you might ask for a sip.”

April found herself smiling at his words.

She extended her hand, took the wine he offered, and took a sip.

The bittersweet drink left its fragrance in her mouth as it went down her throat. It was a taste that made her savor winter.

“It’s delicious.”

When April returned the cup, Fejin gulped down the rest. After returning the cup to the shop and waiting for April to finish her whiskey, he became distracted by the smell of butter from within the market.

He quickly went and returned with freshly baked bread.

When Fejin tore off a piece and offered it, April took it with some uncertainty.

Though eating on the street seemed strange to her, the rising steam and butter aroma were irresistible temptations.

April tried the bread Fejin gave her.

It was so delicious it made her smile and even changed her mood. The whiskey’s aroma complemented the fresh bread perfectly.

“Let’s go.”

Fejin started walking, and April followed.

The trees covered in snow crystals sparkled brilliantly, and it wouldn’t have been surprising to find fairies hiding somewhere among the ice.

As Fejin had said, there were so many foreigners that no one seemed to notice April or call her a witch in surprise.

“Maybe because there are so many foreigners, even the locals aren’t startled by me.”

At April’s words, Fejin asked something he’d been curious about.

“Have you thought about living abroad? Like in the Empire?”

“How could I live abroad? The Lunos mansion is here.”

“You could sell the territory.”

April stopped walking at his words.

She looked as if she’d never heard such a suggestion in her life.

“Sell the territory?”

“Many people do. Lots of nobles have already gone to the Empire.”

“I see. I didn’t know because I was cut off from news.”

April nodded as she answered.

Though the bread was delicious, there was too much to see and try, so while she held the remaining bread, Fejin finished his portion and even polished off her leftover drink.

April watched with fascination as Fejin casually ate her leftovers and muttered,

“Weren’t you extremely picky and neat when you were young?”

“I still am. That’s separate from eating well.”

“I clearly remember you being a picky eater too… What exactly happened at military academy? Was it ants?”

“Ants would have been small at least. That place was full of big guys to begin with.”

“They ate that much?”

“As underclassmen, we had to share six-person dormitories. If one person messed up, all six got punished together. Then one day, a guy tried to escape to meet his girlfriend and received the academy’s worst punishment.”

“Did they hit him?”

“They starved us. I’d have preferred being hit.”

“They starved children? That’s too much.”

When April grew serious, Fejin looked rather uncomfortable.

“I meant it as a funny story.”

“What’s funny about starving children?”

“He was trying to escape to meet his girlfriend. We weren’t that young.”

“If they’re young enough to need school protection, they’re children.”

“True. You’re taking care of two factory runaways yourself.”

Fejin nodded, finally understanding April’s perspective.

She still followed the laws of the era she knew. Child labor in factories was never acceptable to April Lunos.

Fejin continued his story.

“Anyway, instead of going to the dining hall, we six had to clean the gymnasium. There we found some moldy bread…”

“You ate it?”

“Of course we did. Surprisingly, none of us got sick. Maybe we even digested the mold. We enjoyed it so much that even after graduation, we debated whether our taste buds were actually suited for mold.”

Since April, who had never attended school, found the military academy stories interesting, Fejin shared episodes that were standard repertoire when meeting his friends.

Meanwhile, April bought various items at the winter market.

There were wooden dolls powered by springs, colorful sparkling glasswork, and candlesticks in shapes she’d never seen in the Grand Duchy.

April wrote down items and names on paper. She seemed to be planning gifts for everyone she knew.

Fejin asked,

“What about yours?”

“These are all mine. I’m giving gifts because I want to give them.”

April said this while checking a bicycle-shaped planter for the garden, which was Fejin’s portion, one last time.

Though Fejin seemed satisfied enough, April spent quite a while checking for any cracks.

Assuming most gazes on her were fear and anger toward a witch, she didn’t turn around when she felt people looking.

So Fejin told her instead,

“The merchants are watching you.”

“Yes, tell them I’ll leave soon, they just need to be patient a bit longer.”

“No, it’s not that kind of look.”

At his words, April finally turned to look.

As Fejin said, the Grand Duchy merchants were watching her with faces that seemed to want to say something.

When their eyes met, the merchants finally approached one by one.

“Miss April, you might not remember, but I worked with the head of the Lunos family.”

“Me too. I’ve been too busy surviving to repay the kindness…”

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this market was created by the Lunos family’s trading ships. Many of the merchants had received help from the Lunos family.

After greeting and briefly talking with these merchants, April headed back to the carriage.

After loading April’s purchases onto the luggage carriage, Fejin and April returned to their seats.

Soon the carriage departed for the Lunos mansion.

There were more decent people than expected. Enough to think there might be more good people than bad.

Perhaps because of this, April felt her mind lightening somewhat from the heaviness that had settled after hearing Jeff’s story.

April turned toward Fejin.

“Fejin.”

“What?”

“Miller takes the profits from here now, right?”

“Yes.”

Fejin answered calmly.

Though he said nothing more, April vaguely understood why he had brought her here.

Originally, the winter market was in Lunos territory, so the Lunos family took its profits. But when people could no longer live in Lunos territory, the market moved and became a Grand Duchy business.

To prevent merchants from moving even after April’s confinement ended, Miller built shopping areas and even a railway line to the winter market.

He also expanded the bridge to make it easier for people to cross the river. It must be generating tremendous profits.

April turned to look out the window and said,

“I want to take it back.”

“You can’t. How would you manage that?”

Fejin jabbed. With the coachman listening, it was a natural response.

April thought that Fejin hadn’t brought her here by chance.

He truly wanted her to succeed.