TVDWD 10

Chapter 10

Saeed wanted to untie the ribbon dangling loosely from Monica’s limp wrist right then and there.

“He called it vulgar. But this is downright pathetic.”

An unexplainable rage boiled within him at Liam, who was claiming Monica as his wife.

Unable to contain his anger, Saeed reached out to untie the ribbon, but Liam’s hand gripped his roughly.

“She’ll look for it. She’s quite fond of it.”

Just then, Taylor stepped between the two men, unaware of the tense atmosphere crackling between them.

“She’s someone very dear to me, so please take good care of her. Lucky, the low-rank beast, needs to stay with Monica, so please bring it along.”

Eventually, Liam slowly released Monica from his embrace. Seizing the moment, Saeed reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Lucky immediately jumped into Monica’s arms. Seeing this, Taylor gave Saeed a polite bow.

“Don’t worry. There are doctors at the palace.”

Effortlessly, Saeed mounted the black camel while holding Monica and Lucky.

But the black camel snorted and protested, seemingly rejecting Lucky’s presence. Saeed quickly stroked its side, patting it gently as he murmured, “Whoa, whoa,” to calm it down.

Understanding its master’s voice, the black camel quieted. Saeed hugged Monica and Lucky closer, took the reins, and shouted,

“Ture!”

His powerful voice rang out, and the black camel dashed like the wind, disappearing into the desert.

Liam stared at the spot where Saeed and Monica had vanished. If he had known it would end like this, he wouldn’t have given them the black camel.

A wave of intense love washed over him. At the same time, he was filled with frustration at not knowing how to hold onto this mirage-like woman, Soo-jung.

He ran a rough hand over his face several times, feeling as if the warmth and energy she used to bring him were draining away.

She had seemed close, but now that she was in Saeed’s arms, she felt far away—foreign.

“Duke, what are you doing? Get up. We need to head out too,” said Taylor, patting Liam’s shoulder.

He clenched his fists tightly and stood up. Under the desert sun, his black eyes darkened with obsession.

After Liam answered, he suddenly spoke again as if he had remembered something.

“But still, no.”

Liam tightened his grip on Monica’s hand. In Monica’s vision, two seashell-shaped fountains came into view.

It was clearly the same scenery she had seen earlier, but now it was tinted with a warm color and looked more beautiful.

Before long, Liam and Monica arrived at the workshop, where Tu and Taylor were already talking.

“I never imagined you could make chopsticks like this. The Duchess truly is someone favored by the gods.”

“Yes, indeed. Oh look, there she comes.”

At that moment, everyone in the workshop turned their gaze toward Monica and Liam.

“Ma’am! Look at this. These are the chopsticks I remade. I tried to copy the polygon shape you drew. What do you think?”

Tu excitedly handed the chopsticks to Monica, his voice noticeably more animated. He continued without waiting for her reply.

“Shall I bring some food?”

Monica tilted her head slightly as she accepted the chopsticks, her expression saying she didn’t understand why food was needed in this situation.

Tu noticed her expression and asked, “Shouldn’t we test them out?”

“Oh, then please bring me a handful of dried beans and two plates.”

“Pardon? Dried beans?”

“Yes. They’re enough to test whether the chopsticks were well made. Please.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Tu ordered his apprentice to bring beans and two plates. Meanwhile, Taylor walked over and whispered to Monica.

“Hey… Monica, are you really someone loved by the gods?”

“Why?”

“Well, you just seem to know so much. Even now, you’re calmly asking for exactly the things you need. It’s kind of amazing—and honestly, a little scary. I’m starting to doubt you’re the same Monica I knew.”

“If you doubt me, just believe I’m someone the gods love.”

“Ugh, I really don’t get it.”

“Is that really important to Your Highness?”

“Not really. I’m just curious. As a friend, you know?”

“Wait… friend?”

“Yes, friend.”

A strange feeling swept through Monica’s chest. Now that she thought about it, Taylor—like Liam—had come to feel familiar and comfortable.

When she first met Taylor, she had reminded her of her old friend Min-jung, but because of the strict class system, Monica never imagined she could be Taylor’s friend.

But now that the word “friend” was spoken out loud, she didn’t dislike it. In fact, she liked it a lot.

“I like the sound of that word—friend,” Monica said.

“Yes, friend.”

Taylor smiled, and Monica smiled with her. Just then, Tu’s apprentice arrived with a bowl of beans and an empty dish.

“Here are the items you requested, ma’am. But how exactly do you plan to experiment with them? Isn’t experimenting something only astronomers do?”

“Why would astronomy come up now?” Taylor asked curiously, turning to Tu.

“Um… we just thought experiments were something only astronomers did.”

“Only astronomers?” Taylor looked incredulous.

“Yes. I think they mentioned experiments when creating theories or something like that…”

As the unfamiliar word “experiment” came up in the workshop, Tu and his apprentices gathered around Monica, watching her every move curiously.

Feeling the intensity of their gaze, Monica grew nervous.

All she had intended to do was test the chopsticks by moving beans with them. She had simply chosen the wrong word.

‘I can’t just say it’s a bean-moving game now, can I?’

Their serious expressions followed every movement of her fingers. Trying to calm herself, Monica gently stroked Lucky, who squirmed in her arms.

Then, she carefully picked up the chopsticks with her right hand and moved a bean from one bowl to the other.

“This is how we test whether the chopsticks are well made—by moving beans like this. Of course, using them this way also helps you get better at using chopsticks.”

Everyone gasped and looked at her with sparkling eyes.

“Oh! So this is what you call an experiment!”

“Looks like they turned out well. Do you think you could make more? Enough for the Sultan’s family to try them too?”

“Of course! Once we finish making them, we’ll test them ourselves with the bean experiment!”

It wasn’t anything particularly grand, yet people were so amazed. Monica’s face flushed with embarrassment.

Tu’s apprentices cheerfully carried the beans to their workstations and got back to making chopsticks.

“Monica,” Taylor called out, her voice tinged with worry.

“Yes?”

“If you show them everything like this, won’t it make it harder to trade with the Sultan?”

“No. I told you before—the fundamental issue lies in the raw materials.”

“I see. I’m looking forward to tonight’s dinner.”

“Me too.”

While Monica and Taylor were chatting quietly, Tu appeared to hesitate nearby.

“What is it?” Taylor asked, narrowing her eyebrows.

Tu came closer to Monica and whispered quietly.

“Well… there’s something I wanted to ask the Duchess, who is loved by the gods.”

“What is it?”

“Do you… by chance… know what dark energy is?”

He spoke as if revealing a secret, covering his mouth.

“Not sure. Can you explain more?”

“Are we making you uncomfortable?”

Liam interjected, concerned.

“No, not at all. You’re with the Duchess, who is loved by the gods. How could I say I’m uncomfortable? My younger brother Tree is a servant at the palace where the astronomers work. He said they’ve been terrified lately because they’ve started seeing dark energy.”

Monica shook her head, saying she didn’t know what dark energy was. But something felt oddly familiar—like it was just out of reach.

Suddenly, a dreadful premonition swept over her.

An awkward silence lingered for a moment before Tu spoke again.

“If someone loved by the gods doesn’t know, then it must be nothing. I guess I asked a silly question.”

Tu returned to his work.

Monica stood there, holding her head in thought. Then she asked Taylor:

“Your Highness, could we possibly get permission from the Sultan to visit the astronomers’ palace today?”

“Why there?”

“Because of what he said about dark energy.”

“Alright, let’s do that.”

“I knew it! This is such a losing deal!”

Taylor grumbled irritably beside Monica.

Although the chopsticks they presented at dinner were a success, it wasn’t enough to completely win over the Sultan.

He said he needed more time to think and trailed off ambiguously.

Sensing the opportunity slipping away, Taylor quickly asked:

‘While you consider, could we at least be allowed to visit the place where the astronomers work?’

Even then, the Sultan hesitated. But a few days later, he granted the princess’s request.

‘No non-Easterners have ever been allowed to visit Bayt al-Hikma before. But since I was pleased with the chopsticks tonight, I will grant this special permission to the princess and the Duchess, who is loved by the gods.’

Thus, Taylor and Monica set off for Bayt al-Hikma.

Since evening was better for stargazing, they departed early in the evening.

Bayt al-Hikma was located behind the Sultan’s central palace. It resembled a grand national library but had a tall dome tower at its center.

A servant knocked on the door while Monica and Taylor waited behind.

“You’ve arrived?”

A man resembling Tu stepped out and greeted the servant. He had already been informed of their visit and bowed respectfully.

“I am Tree, head servant of Bayt al-Hikma. It is an honor to meet you. I will guide you inside.”

Tree exchanged a few words with the servant and led them in. The interior was simple and clean, unlike the palaces of the Eastern Kingdom.

Massive pillars lined the hall, and between long tables were shelves packed with books. Despite the evening hour, many scholars were still engrossed in study.

“Bayt al-Hikma is not only for astronomy but also for various sciences. To your right is geography and agriculture; to your left is philosophy and mathematics.”

Taylor looked around in amazement and spoke up.

“We’d like to see where astronomy is studied.”

“Right this way.”

They followed Tree down a corridor. Soon, another building came into view at the center.

“There’s a building inside a building,” Taylor murmured in awe.

Tree opened a heavy iron door. Inside, a high domed ceiling poured starlight onto the floor.

Monica looked up and saw more than fifty birdcages hanging from the ceiling, each housing a blue bird calmly gazing at the sky.

Taylor observed one of the birds curiously.

“Monica! Did you see its eyes? They shimmer like rainbows!”

“Excuse me?”

“Rainbow eyes!”

Taylor pointed at the bird, and Monica stared at it, just as surprised.

“That bird is called a Monin. It observes the sun and stars all day long. Please wait here. I’ll bring the astronomers.”

Taylor and Monica nodded, entranced by the birds, and Tree quickly summoned the astronomers.

Soon, around 30 astronomers gathered around a man called Gamil.

Tree introduced them.

“Gamil, this is Princess Taylor and Duchess Monica from the Great Kingdom.”

Gamil stepped forward and greeted them politely, as if expecting them.

“Welcome. There’s not much to see, but thank you for coming. My name is Gamil. I’m in charge here.”

“Can you explain the birds on the ceiling?”

Taylor wasted no time asking.

Gamil smiled and called to one. The blue bird gracefully flew down and landed on his palm.

to be continued…