WNC SS 43

September.

Several months had passed since Ivan and I were married. During that time, Ivan and my married life had been without major issues. Or rather, I felt there were none.

We made love once a week. The guild’s work was busiest on weekends, and we usually took turns resting on weekdays, so the days I was with him were generally Mondays. Since our wedding night, he had consistently called me Miss Sienna. So now, I had become quite accustomed to being called by my younger sister’s name.

He also took meticulous care of all the Eldos Merchant Guild’s affairs with great diligence. The timing for purchasing new inventory, which sold like hotcakes, was so uncanny that none of the five warehouses were ever empty for even a single day. Ivan, in particular, was remarkably skilled at adjusting purchased items to minimize taxes. Thanks to him, we managed to get through the tax calculation season, which occurs every early autumn, without working overtime this year.

Life, where everything that had felt complicated was neatly organized within a day or two by his hands, was almost ecstatic. My timid father was almost blindly obedient to Ivan’s words, and I too had immense trust in Ivan’s way of handling matters.

Seeing the neatly organized ledgers, the inventory lists with not a single error, the growing number of laborers, and the bills piling up in the bank sent shivers down my spine. Yes, we had been too haphazard in our operations to be considered a major guild. Whenever I said this with self-reproach, Ivan would gaze at me for a long time and then kiss me.

My close friends continued to criticize me for not being myself, and the laborers grumbled that I had sold my pride for a title. Every time I said it was because they hadn’t properly spoken with Ivan, they would raise such a clamor. It was noisy and irritating, so from some point on, I stopped listening to them.

What does it mean to be myself? How does one do that? I’m happy as I am now, so what does it matter?

Was that the problem?

I had chased after Ivan, who had gone to inspect the site because there was an item not recorded in the ledger, intending to give him something belatedly, and I witnessed a truly horrific sight. Ivan’s hair, which he always neatly slicked back when going to work, was dripping with murky water. I stood there, stunned, unable to believe the sight of Ivan looking so disheveled, a sight I had never seen before.

I quietly looked around.

Even with Ivan standing there in such a state, not a single one of them looked flustered; they all had expressions of barely suppressed laughter. A few who noticed me belatedly, flustered, tried to say something, but I glared at them like a dog and silenced them. From the side, Uncle John, no, that damn bastard, ambled out from among the laborers standing there and bowed his head repeatedly.

“Ah, I am truly sorry. My eyesight hasn’t been good lately, so I didn’t see you leaving.”

“…”

“And you, Assistant. It’s difficult to say, but there must be a reason for these accidents to keep happening, wouldn’t you agree? Perhaps you don’t know much because you’ve never gone out on trade expeditions yourself. Instead of poking around the sites like this, why not just stick to what you’re good at, like calculating with an abacus? We’ll handle things here as we always have…”

Ping. I heard something snap in my head.

“You damn bastard, what? What did you just say?”

“Uh, uh? Eric, why are you…?”

“What did you just say? Huh?”

These accidents keep happening?

How many times has this happened? Without me knowing?

I felt like crying from shame and embarrassment. My flushed face burned. That son of a bitch, I’ve indulged him, and now he’s trying to climb all over my head.

I couldn’t see anything before my eyes. I wanted to lash out, asking why he dared to say such things to my husband, and I wanted to threaten him to say the same things to me. I felt I wouldn’t be able to calm down unless I threw that bastard right then and there.

However, something blocked my path as I lunged towards John. I stopped, unable to push away Ivan’s arm, which smelled faintly musty.

Ivan Bikoff was, unbelievably, composed.

“I am fine.”

I knew that exact expression and tone from when he would look out the window and say, “It’s raining today,” and knowing that made me even more furious. Unlike me, who wanted to tear the face of that bastard, whom I had known and been friendly with since childhood, calling him uncle, he slightly tilted his chin and stopped me with his gaze.

“Ivan, please.”

“Nothing is resolved through violence.”

“But you are currently…”

“This was something I anticipated from the start.”

“Why you?”

“Honestly, it’s been fun being able to participate directly in the guild’s management, so I acted excessively. It’s thanks to Miss Sienna granting me a lot of authority.”

“What kind of nonsense is that…”

“As an assistant of a guild, the criticism that I have no field experience is quite understandable. And most importantly.”

Ivan took a handkerchief from his pocket and calmly wiped his hands and face. The more I, heated with anger, flustered about, the more the laborers surrounding us held their breath and rolled their eyes. Because the surroundings were so quiet, his softly murmured voice sounded like thunder.

“It seems these people don’t know how much I love you. If their reason for hostility is because they care about you, I can fully understand. So I am truly fine.”

My heart sank.

Ivan’s gaze, as he looked up at me, pierced my heart. The word ‘love’ that came from his lips, those two syllables, silenced me.

Until now, I had not demanded his heart. I hadn’t even dared to. It was enough and thrilling that he was by my side, touched me, and shared the same space with me, so I lived thinking it was fine for me to love him alone.

That’s why I was eager to hand over everything I had into his hands. He was smart. He was good at his work, and he enjoyed it. Wanting to see that more, no, damn it, wanting to receive that love, I poured all of myself, everything I had, into him. And so, and so… I failed to consider the people around me.

I had created an excuse for those who cared for me and liked me to criticize and push Ivan away. Love? I couldn’t believe it. This wasn’t the kind of words I wanted to hear at a time like this. The tears I had held back burst forth. Gritting my teeth, I stood there resentfully and lowered my head.

Even then, Ivan continued to speak in a calm, explanatory voice.

“Also, if I hadn’t stepped on the rope strung between the items, I wouldn’t have been doused with water. It was a path many people, not just me, frequented, yet only I ended up like this, so it might truly be due to a lack of field experience. It would be unreasonable for only the person who spoke to me first to be disciplined.”

“But, that’s…”

“It’s because you set it up, isn’t it?” I raised my head, intending to say just that.

But Ivan was smiling. I stared intently at the corners of his mouth, lifted so gently. I couldn’t understand how he could smile like that in this situation. Sniffle. I made a sniffling sound. Without touching me, Ivan called me in a gentle voice.

…Me.

“Miss Sienna.”

“…”

He called me Miss Sienna. Damn, I really don’t want to answer.

“Miss Sienna?”

“…Yes.”

“I would like to discuss this with you privately afterward, but may I wash up briefly first?”

“…Yes.”

“Then let’s meet again in the Deputy Guild Master’s office in thirty minutes.”

“…”

“Will you not answer me?”

“…Yes.”

“Very well.”

Ivan’s gaze, which had not left my face, swept over the surroundings. Amidst the deathly quiet silence, John, with an awkward expression, took half a step back. My friends, who seemed to have heard the story and rushed over, were looking at Ikyun with displeased expressions.

“I was planning a long-distance trade expedition soon anyway. Tomorrow afternoon, I will post the application form on the guild’s main building notice board. Those interested, please speak to me directly or submit your name and a brief biography on the attached form.”

“…”

“Then, have a good day.”

Ivan, who bowed his head without a nod, a ‘noble’ greeting, turned away without lingering. I recalled the past half-year, thinking Ivan, who used the shower facilities next to the guild master’s office more often than I did, was simply a neat person, and my stomach churned again.

Three seconds after Ivan left the warehouse. I, who had been staring at the ceiling, inhaled sharply.

I need to know. I grabbed Adam, who had awkwardly approached instead of John, by the collar. He could have protested, but Adam meekly let me grip his wrist, letting out a single gasp. Watching his eyes roll around, I spat out.

“So, damn it, when did this start?”

“Gasp, th-that’s…”

Fortunately or unfortunately, this was the second time Ivan had been subjected to such a thing. The first time, he had stepped in a puddle, and they had received an order for a full cleaning under the pretext of neglecting warehouse management. So this time, it seemed they had set up a bucket trap to torment Ivan without cleaning.

I didn’t know whether to be glad that Ivan’s frequent showers during work hours were simply because he was a neat person, or to be pissed off that I had missed a similar incident that had happened before. With a devastated heart, I dropped Adam as if throwing him away. He coughed and averted his gaze.

Sophia, who had been standing awkwardly beside me, scraped the warehouse floor with the tip of her shoe and glanced up at me.

“…Hey, stop crying.”

“Damn it, I’m just so embarrassed…”

“Th-that…”

“I told you not to, I told you not to, damn it. Really…”

“It’s just… No, I thought you didn’t need to be so pathetic, so I just…”

“…What, damn it.”

“…Sorry.”

I wanted to die. No, I just wanted to abandon everything and leave. I hated the guild, I hated everything.

But I really didn’t think I could leave right away.

Ivan, who casually spread out a map of the continent, drew a path with his fingertip, and as I followed it with my eyes, I couldn’t close my mouth. He suggested going to Yulan by river. I sat there foolishly, then forced myself to wipe my dry face and regain my senses. The voice I barely managed to utter sounded foolish even to my own ears.

“…What? A ship?”

“Yes. Before we married, I used my personal assets to order a ship. The construction is complete, and we only need to prepare the interior furnishings. Since your father is still hale and hearty, I thought we could afford to go on a honeymoon.”

“No, that, why, if you had told me beforehand, I would have…”

“I held back because I thought you would offer to contribute money.”

“…”

“Um… Of course, I shouldn’t have decided on such a large expenditure alone. Originally, I wanted to give it as a wedding anniversary gift, but since things have turned out this way, I thought, why not depart a little sooner?”

“…That, then.”

“We’ve standardized the ledger format so you can easily exchange guild information remotely, so it should be fine for the next year or two. If you get seasick easily, we can have the ship go separately, and we can travel by regular trade route.”

“No, no… I, I like it. I like it.”

“Alright. Then let’s set the departure for the full moon next month. There are a few negotiations to be made regarding the sea route, which I will handle myself.”

“Th-then. Yes. Is there anything I can do to help…”

“Let me see.”

“…”

“Do you know how to swim?”

“…What?”