TMBS 10💖

• CHAPTER 10: The Pink Sun

Hawk looked puzzled.

“It’s not exactly rare. When there’s even a small rise in demand for something like coffee beans, suppliers show up in no time.”

Gray uncrossed his arms and rose from his seat.

“That’s only true when the buyers aren’t too cautious.”

Hawk gave him a questioning look, but Gray just winked playfully.

“Hawk, I suddenly feel like having some fun. Mind if I borrow a room?”

“With who? That shipmaster, maybe?”

“Yeah. She’s from Yumen, right? I bet she’s got a lot of interesting stories.”

“She already has a room.”

Gray smiled wider, clearly even more pleased.

“Then add to her room.”

“With what?”

“Booze, a man, a woman—whatever. Anything that suits her taste. The more twisted, the better.”

Gray had moments like this now and then—seemingly scheming something, but never making any real moves in this town. So Hawk couldn’t fully figure him out.

Not that it mattered. Whatever this pampered noble was doing outside this place was none of Hawk’s business. As long as it boosted sales and commission, that was good enough for him.

Hawk chuckled.

“Room Five.”

A few hours later, Gray stumbled out of Room Five and collapsed into a chair at an empty table.

Just how wild had things gotten in that tiny room?

He grimaced. Damn Hawk—he could at least expand the facilities with all the money he’s raking in. The room was ridiculously cramped.

Gray had always hated tight spaces. Maybe not from birth, but for as long as he could remember. Claustrophobia made his skin crawl. He’d already stepped out twice to catch his breath.

Staring blankly up at the spinning ceiling, he muttered:

“That bearded bastard… tough nut to crack.”

The Yumen merchant had no sense of business ethics, decency, or subtlety. The man drank like a fish and wallowed like a pig—and yet didn’t share a single detail about the chocolate-scented coffee bean estate.

Frustrated, Gray shook his head to clear his vision. He’d chugged a bottle of whiskey straight from the neck, and his mind was starting to slip. His stomach churned.

He leaned back, the cool wood of the table pressing against his head, shoulders, and back. His hair spilled down, tangled and damp with sweat. The alcohol-heated scalp finally began to cool.

Then, somewhere nearby, a door opened and shut. Someone approached and sat down beside him, reeking of heavy perfume. Must’ve been the woman from that suffocating little room.

The smell made Gray’s nausea worse. He scowled, feeling her hand on his arm—and immediately shoved her away. Maybe too roughly.

So irritating.

Normally, he could tolerate things. But when drunk like this, his disgust became impossible to contain.

Gray hated women as much as he hated confined spaces. Or rather, women who undressed without a second thought. They made his skin crawl.

Hawk’s earlier words had hit too close to home, and that had caught Gray off guard.

“You don’t actually like women, do you? I’d bet money you’re still a virgin.”

He hated women who stripped. Hated touching their bodies. In fact, he hated touching women at all.

Of course, he’d never had a deep relationship with anyone. The thought alone made his stomach turn.

As if mocking him, the woman reached for him again, now grazing his chest. Gray swore under his breath and grabbed her wrist, struggling to sit upright. But just then, something caught his eye.

A small boy—Ruan, was it?—stood in the shadowed recess near the shop’s entrance, grinning. He clutched someone’s hand tightly, and held a white packet close to his chest.

Gray squinted, trying to focus. The packet looked like it held sweets. And the hand…

“Huh.”

He had a pretty good idea who it belonged to. Couldn’t help but chuckle.

Acting all sharp and refined, but still as messy as the rest of us.

Soon enough, the figure stepped out of the shadows. That woman.

“Just one,” she said.

“I’m eating them all. I’m starving,” the boy pouted.

“Then you should’ve asked Hawk to bake you something.”

“Why would I, when Addy brings me snacks? Hehe.”

Gray laughed again. His bleary eyes drifted toward the exit just as the woman turned to leave. Their eyes met—maybe. Hard to tell with those dark glasses.

Still, she paused. That much was clear.

Her face, as usual, was unreadable. That sharp, cool manner of speaking from earlier now seemed like a lie.

She hated being rattled. And she left just as coolly as she came.

Gray stared blankly at the door she’d exited through, when a quiet voice slithered into his ear.

“Do you like her?”

He turned to the woman still sitting beside him, barely dressed, her shoulder strap hanging loosely. His stomach turned violently.

“Fuck.”

He couldn’t hold it in. How had he only just now noticed? Not that he’d wanted to look before.

He shook off the woman’s hand as if it were filth. Again, too roughly—she tumbled back a bit, giggling drunkenly.

“Oh dear. That lady’s long gone, you know?”

What the hell is she saying?

Gray grimaced, dizzy again. Across the room, Ruan sat at a table munching happily on his apple pie.

Goddamn it. Why’s the world spinning so hard today?

“Get lost.”

The woman read the venom in his soft voice and tossed out a snide comment about how his face matched his nasty temper, then stumbled off toward the back rooms.

Gray tilted his head toward the ceiling. The rough wooden beams spun above him like a carousel. He couldn’t take it anymore and closed his eyes. Sleep pulled at him.

Somewhere, the scent of sweet baked pie and caramelized apples drifted by. Strange, considering the stench of booze pouring off him.

It made no sense. But then again…

His thoughts spiraled again—Yumen’s estate owner, the chocolate-scented beans, Mocha Port, the damned goat-trader Halio.

What a crap day.

That goat bastard—how much more does he have to drink before he spills anything useful?

His consciousness began sinking like a whirlpool calming at last. The spinning stopped. Then, in the center of his fading awareness, a small flame sparked.

The ember grew into a blaze, and then into a burning halo. It expanded further, until it became a giant sun, dazzling and radiant.

Gray let out a quiet laugh.

It was a sun of bright pink, with a large black spot in the center.

A few days later, Gray stepped into Carlo Castle for the first time in ages. He rarely bothered with family or political affairs, but this time the prince had summoned him.

“Today, Nox is presenting the court response report on key issues. You’re his sponsor—don’t you think you should be there?”

“Nox… Who’s that again? Oh, him. He doing okay?”

“You bastard. Who are you to be asking how Nox is doing? You raised him, remember? See for yourself how well he works. Watch the speech—and stop by my office afterward.”

“Hm. Should I set aside plenty of time, then?”

“Of course.”

That prince of theirs always had a way of twisting his words when asking for attention.

Gray agreed with a half-hearted smile. What choice did he have? Royalty was royalty, after all.

As he walked through the central palace corridor, Gray barely listened to the steward guiding him. He didn’t care about schedules or reports.

The thick carpets beneath his feet seemed to sway and ripple like waves. Probably the leftover booze from the night before.

“Ugh. This is gonna suck.”

Last night, a shipment of high-end whiskey had arrived at Full Moon Tavern—enough to last a month. A gift from Count Harold, Grace’s father, who had finally learned the truth about the lake incident and sent it as a thank-you. The card had read: To the honorable Lord Gray.

Naturally, Gray and his friends had partied all night.

He brushed his hand down his pale face and waved off the steward’s concern.

“When does the grand hall show up already?”

“Almost there, my lord.”

Still feels damn far.

The steward nervously checked his pocket watch.

“My lord, at this rate, the speech will be over…”

Damn prince. Damn Nox.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m going.”

Gray started moving again. After the break, he was walking straighter at least.

He usually enjoyed a little chaos in life, but the gold carpets swinging around like vines? That was just annoying.

Still, he was starting to feel better. Looked like today was going to be another enjoyable day.

And Gray’s gut feelings were never wrong.