Chapter 11
“Ah, I’m sorry. You spent so long talking with me, and now I feel bad. But after talking, I think I shouldn’t sell this watch after all.”
“That’s alright, ma’am. It wasn’t a consultation—it was an enjoyable conversation.”
“Thank you for understanding. Talking about it reminded me of how I felt when I first bought this. I’ll bring a different item next time.”
“Please come again!”
I kept smiling and waving until the very end.
Saying it had been an enjoyable conversation was partly something I said to manage a potential customer, but it was also sincere.
Even ordinary-looking items all had their own stories.
When you listen to those stories, you start to see not just the object, but the customer too.
Seeing excitement in the eyes of an older noblewoman, seeing passion in the eyes of a tired office worker, catching a glimpse of childlike wonder in the eyes of an adult worn down by life—it was something truly special.
‘That’s one of the reasons pawnshop work is enjoyable. I wonder if Grandfather felt the same way I do.’
When I checked the clock, it was already closing time. Just as I turned around, thinking I should start getting ready to clean—
Jingle—
The bell rang very softly. Whoever it was had opened the door very carefully.
“Welco—”
I stopped in the middle of greeting the customer.
“…me.”
‘Oh, that startled me.’
Someone completely wrapped in a black robe was standing there alone.
Not only that, the person was swaying in place.
Sway, sway.
They looked like a grim reaper. I swallowed hard.
‘Don’t tell me I broke the natural order by returning to the past, and they’ve come to take me?’
Well, if someone could return to the past, then maybe grim reapers could exist too.
Should I beg? Would they spare me if I begged? Or should I run? Wait—can only I see this?
All kinds of thoughts flashed through my mind.
Then—
“I-is this… a pawnshop?”
My tension disappeared at once.
The voice leaking out from under the robe was a woman’s, weak and trembling.
At least she had not said something ridiculous like, Sorry, could you come back a few decades later?
I put on my practiced business smile and slipped on my gloves.
“Yes, it is.”
“If I… give you an item, can you look at it for me?”
“Of course. What did you bring? Please place it here on the velvet.”
I had been smiling, but when I saw what the woman took out, I was startled for a second time.
‘My goodness.’
It was a locket-shaped pendant, the kind that could hold something inside.
Of course, the pendant itself was not what was surprising. What mattered was what it was made of.
The pendant the woman took out was carved entirely from a single emerald.
The emerald had been cut and crafted into a pendant that could open and close.
‘Wow, how much is this even worth…?’
And on top of that, it was a holy item filled with divine power.
I could not even begin to imagine how much care had gone into making it.
I was automatically becoming reverent when I noticed that the woman’s hand, sticking out from under the robe, was trembling slightly.
‘Ah. Then the reason she was swaying so frighteningly earlier… was she actually shaking?’
The first possibility that came to mind was that it might be stolen goods. What if she was trembling because she was afraid of being found out?
I had to check as a matter of procedure. So I asked carefully,
“Ma’am, do you happen to have a certificate or warranty? I need it for the appraisal.”
“…I don’t… have anything like that.”
“Then do you have a purchase receipt or auction record?”
“…I don’t know. This jewel is all I have. …Isn’t this alone enough?”
Suddenly, I remembered what that lunatic had said.
“You said your eye is picky. So when you look at an object, can you tell right away whether it is stolen or not?”
Since she had neither a certificate nor a receipt, the normal thing to do would have been to refuse.
But somehow, I wanted to hear the woman’s story.
‘Of course you can’t tell from the object alone. But when it comes to people, you can get a feeling. Whether they have other motives or not.’
Besides, the woman had asked if I could look at the valuable item. She was not trying to sell it immediately.
I set a cup of warm tea in front of the woman, who had her head lowered deeply.
“Then what connection do you have to this jewel?”
“Ah…?”
“I ask because you seem to know the value of this jewel without needing me to tell you. It looks very special.”
“…So it looks that way. Yes. It is special. Very special.”
Holding the teacup, the woman murmured quietly.
On the ring finger of her right hand was a softly shining blue ring.
“It’s a pendant my mother left to me. I was very happy when I received it. Not because it was beautiful, but because it was a gift from my mother. That made me happy.”
Then why had she come to a pawnshop with something so precious?
Judging by how well the jewel had been made, she seemed to be from quite an important family.
Had something happened at home? Had her family gone bankrupt and needed money?
While I was thinking that, her voice began to shake with tears.
“But… someone is trying to take it away from me.”
“What? Who?”
“My maternal uncle… said that someone like me does not deserve to have something like this, and that he doesn’t understand why his dead sister gave it to me… So he said he would take it back. He’s going to take it from me soon.”
What kind of madness was that?
I barely stopped myself from cursing out loud.
The woman sniffled.
“So I came here. I heard that you can leave valuable items at a pawnshop?”
Strictly speaking, leaving an item at a pawnshop was not storage, but collateral.
I felt sorry for her situation, but it seemed like she was misunderstanding something, so I was about to explain when—
“I know that if I can’t repay the money by the promised date, this jewel could be sold.”
“What? But if you know that, then why bring something so precious and valuable—”
“As long as it doesn’t end up in my uncle’s hands, that’s enough.”
The woman suddenly grabbed my hand.
“As long as it doesn’t go to my uncle. If I keep it… I’m powerless, so it will definitely be taken from me.”
Through our clasped hands, I could feel her trembling. It was fear.
“So if you… meet someone worthy of this jewel, if someone appears who will cherish this jewel more than I do… then please sell it.”
Through the hood of her robe, I caught a glimpse of green eyes wet with tears.
“It’s a very expensive jewel. If someone has enough money to buy this, then they must also have money and power. …That kind of person would be able to protect this jewel from my uncle. They wouldn’t lose it foolishly like I would. Please, so…”
As I listened to her, I let out a long sigh.
At that, she stopped speaking and looked at me, as if hoping—or perhaps bracing herself.
Then I finally spoke.
“Excuse me, ma’am. What in the world are you talking about right now?”
I let go of her hand.
“I’m not making this deal.”
Her hand fell limply.
Even though she was covered from head to toe in a black robe, I could tell.
She was in despair.
“Then… what am I supposed to do now…?”
Tears dripped from between the folds of the robe.
I shook my head, rubbed my face with both hands, and said,
“Ma’am, how could I possibly sell something that precious?”
I pushed a tissue box toward her.
Still dazed, she took a tissue, and slowly understood what I meant.
“Then…”
“I don’t know what feelings your mother had when she left this jewel to you. I also don’t know why your uncle—that damned ba… no, that damned man—is after your property. But there is one thing I know for sure.”
Carefully, I shone a light on the hinge of the pendant.
It was the most delicate part, and the weakest one.
Handing her the loupe so she could see clearly, I said,
“Emerald is a fragile gemstone. Even a small impact leaves marks very easily. If it’s a part like this hinge, it would show even more clearly. But look.”
The pendant was flawless.
There was not a single scratch.
“You say I should sell it if someone appears who will cherish it more than you? There is no one who would cherish this jewel more than you do. So there’s no way I can sell it to anyone.”
“Ah…”
“I may look a little easy to push around, but I’m not a fool. I’m not going to eagerly buy an item that has no seller.”
I said it lightly on purpose.
She lowered the loupe and stared blankly at me, and I gave her a small smile.
“So please protect it yourself. Just as you have until now—keep cherishing it from now on too.”
