“Episode 37”
On the terrace of the Sunmi deck, where the sea breeze was blowing just right, the royal family’s poetry time was taking place. Romeo, dressed in a black suit, crossed his legs and sat on the chair designated for him, lighting his cigarette.
Normally, he would have arranged to meet Daphne here, but the time her cousin arrived was much later. All the words Daphne had said in third class had been documented and sent up as a small check-sized note. They were quite humorous words.
Daphne Viewcater and a man with black hair. That part made Romeo’s head involuntarily tilt with interest. ‘She’s really disguising her identity this time. Or perhaps, for some other reason?’
No matter how much Romeo refrained from sanctioning her, riding with a traitor was not a desirable attitude.
“By the way, my cousin is really something…”
He flicked his finger against his temple.
“You found a rare one.”
A hint of interest crept into Romeo’s previously expressionless face. Just then, his Royal Club friends appeared from the top deck.
Romeo dropped the check onto the ashtray and placed his lit cigarette on it. The small report caught fire, spreading a pungent smell.
“Hmm, what to do…”
If Priscilla found out, she would blush and mutter incomprehensible words while staring at the ground. The one who had only one ear left wielded such influence over his one and only lover.
“I can’t help but be annoyed, but I’m curious about the reason.”
Romeo didn’t believe in the gossip of society. He preferred to judge based solely on what he saw.
“Romeo, are you alone? Where’s Daphne?”
Endawin, one of the few young dukes of Secradion, approached and shook his hand. Behind him followed three other boys who had made a name for themselves in the Royal Club.
“Uh, you know this face. It’s the face you think of when you think of Priscilla.”
Each of them cut the thick poems brought by their servants with cutters. Soon, the rising thick scent made Romeo look up at the azure sky.
“It smells bad.”
From them, a particularly foul odor emanated.
If Daphne were here, she would have poured drinks for them instead, Romeo thought with a wry imagination.
“Huh? What did you say?”
The idiots seemed unable to hear properly. Romeo smiled, hiding his golden eyes behind his eyelids.
“Oh, nothing. Just thought it would be fun.”
—
Daphne’s private cabin was located in the smallest section of first class.
‘Other good rooms have to be sold to others for expensive prices.’
But one aspect was guaranteed to be superior, more beautiful than any other room. Daphne was about to pull back the curtain covering the window, but she noticed that Celestian was still outside.
‘Why isn’t he coming in?’
Opening the iron door, she found Celestian still looking down at his hand as before.
‘He keeps staring at his hand every time. Does he like his hand that much?’
Daphne placed her hand on top of his. Only then did Celestian seem to come to his senses and look at Daphne.
“Why aren’t you coming in? Come in.”
“I was wondering if I could come in.”
A very naive-looking gesture.
“No, you can’t. If you do, you’ll have to take a bath, change your clothes, and all that. It would be quite a sight, wouldn’t it? The prince himself going crazy.”
Daphne dragged Celestian into the room.
Although she had led him in, her mood was very strange. After Daphne pushed his hair behind his ear, she pointed her finger at Celestian’s hair.
“Your hair, it’s…”
Daphne couldn’t say anything more, fearing it might be dyed.
“It’s dye.”
“Oh, you should have told me earlier.”
Daphne pushed him straight into the bathroom, into the shower booth.
“Don’t complain that the bathtub is smaller than in the mansion. This is the biggest one.”
Muttering, Daphne pressed and held the boiler button above the bathtub. After heating the water, she turned on the faucet. Celestian, still in his clothes, grimaced uncomfortably.
“Daphne, I’m wearing clothes.”
“Do you want to take them off in front of me then?”
Daphne held the showerhead and aimed it towards his head, but stopped short. Something seemed off.
“Wash up.”
She commanded with quite a firm voice. Trying to turn away without mercy, he called Daphne’s name softly. When she turned around, Celestian’s reddened eyes seemed even redder, perhaps due to the warm water.
“Help me.”
“You can’t wash yourself?”
Celestian rolled his green eyes around.
“The dye you used on your hair is a bit unique.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t think I can wash it by myself.”
‘Oh my.’
Daphne bit her lower lip tightly for a moment. She quickly lowered her eyes. She couldn’t help feeling defeated.
Romeo had a maid in the bathroom. When she briefly stayed with his fiancée, Daphne had experienced a maid who took care of everything from head to toe.
‘It was definitely comfortable.’
But coming from a prince who lived in a decadent palace, she hadn’t heard of using such trivial maids. It seemed like Keisha had helped in the mansion…
‘He’s a man who needs a lot of help in many ways.’
“I could come in here because of me.”
When Daphne didn’t respond, he bent his waist slightly and leaned his face closer to her.
“If you want, I’ll find a maid who can wash you better than I can.”
“The debt is owed to you, not to an unknown maid. Can’t you even grant me this small favor?”
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I’m just a noble. Should I handle someone else’s maids?”
“You say you love me…”
Celestian said abruptly.
At the mere mention of the word ‘love’ from his lips, all six senses of Daphne reacted.
‘Ah, darn it. That love!’
Daphne began to blame herself inwardly.
The warm water starting to rise and the stifling feeling due to the rising steam made her feel choked. Moreover, Celestian seemed to continue behaving like this.
“If you’re going to share me with others, that’s fine.”
It was a decisive blow to Daphne’s possessiveness and exclusivity. For a moment, she imagined another woman wrapping his hair around her fingers.
She really had nothing to say.
“I’ll wash it for you.”
She was really wondering why this man was like this, but pretending to give in, she raised his hand.
Pointing to the bathtub, Celestian narrowed his eyes as if he didn’t like getting into the water with his clothes on, but he didn’t say anything else.
Relieved, Daphne brought the showerhead down on his jet-black hair.
‘Sharing with others?’
As the water touched Celestian’s hair, it melted into a transparent color.
“Your platinum blonde hair is a rare treasure even in Airene. If it had been dyed, I would’ve really killed you.”
“Have you been to Airene?”
Airene was a place beyond the empire’s borders, almost on the opposite side of the continent. It was a romantic island that often served as the backdrop for romance novels, a place one must visit before dying.
“No. But I’ll go.”
Airene was part of her annual twelve-month travel plan. It was a dream that seemed impossible to achieve until independence.
She sat on the rounded edge of the bathtub and sighed. Brushing away the foam and continuing to lather, she kept wrapping Celestian’s hair.
‘I’m really just wrapping his hair.’
So far, Daphne had missed this face and neck the most.
‘Really, just a few hours ago, I was planning to have it stuffed and put on display.’
“If I get hurt, you’re happy?”
“My side hurts like hell because of you. I risked my precious life to save you, and you dare to run away?”
Celestian spun his green beads and looked up at Daphne. His expression was so innocent that she felt like she had become the bad one for grabbing his hair.
“I didn’t run away.”
He muttered softly.
“Sigh…”
Those green eyes, I thought I had lost them for real. I thought I’d never see them again.
Daphne slapped the water onto his pretty face. Celestian slowly closed his eyes.
“Now wash by yourself. Anyway, I’m annoyed. If you don’t come back with your hair turned gold…”
“If I don’t come back?”
“I don’t know. They say there are crocodiles in this sea, and I’ll throw you to them.”
At the mention of crocodiles, the real ending of ‘Daphne Viewcater,’ which she always forgets, came to mind. The woman other than herself was destined to die on this ship.
‘It’s incredibly cruel.’
There was also a passage thrown by Romeo, who was stubbornly angry about something. Perhaps because only the impactful parts remained in her mind, the overall story didn’t come to mind. Well, it didn’t matter.
“…You should wash too.”
Daphne hesitated. Then, belatedly, she smiled kindly and went to check her facial features near the sink.
“Hmm.”
Her makeup was smeared all over her tangled hair. Daphne coughed.
“Could you tell me quickly?”
Daphne started washing her face quickly. She heard cute sounds coming from behind, as if someone was still wrapping their hair.
“How should I do my hair?”
Daphne combed her tangled hair with a comb.
When it came to doing things with her hands, other than matters related to money, Daphne was almost talentless.
“Cele…”
Daphne turned around absentmindedly, then quickly raised her gaze after seeing the man sitting in the bathtub facing her. The contours of his body lingered in her eyes like scars.
“Amen.”
“Huh?”
“No, nothing.”
The black dye had washed off, and slightly longer golden strands of hair were sticking to his wet cheeks.
‘He looks like a merman.’
The legend that mermaids lived far away in the Laktea Sea was a legend that Rose often told Daphne and Romeo when they were young.
Looking back now, it was just a true and exaggerated folklore. But because of the man in front of her, she had a ridiculous thought that it might not be entirely superstition.
He wiped his face with big hands. His flawless, porcelain-like face with no visible pores made the mole above his eyebrow stand out.
‘Indeed, handsome men look better when drenched in water or tears.’
She suppressed her desire to see more. Daphne turned coolly and left the bathroom after wiping her face with a towel.
Now it was time to take off this swimsuit that echoed wherever she went. For today, Daphne had bought several dresses on a whim, using her mom’s chance.
After going around and around, she had returned to where she had planned.
‘I’ll make that well-built prince’s face turn red, drenched in tears or water, and then take a picture or…’
Daphne smiled lowly and opened the wardrobe.
“Huh?”
The dresses that would shine brighter than anyone else’s on the sea were nowhere to be found.
There was only one black dress with a lace veil attached, staring at Daphne.
A small note was dangling near the chest of the dress, greeting her. Daphne took a deep breath and tore off the note.
“This lunatic.”
Daphne’s face, recognizing the finely written words at a glance, began to tremble seriously.
To my dear ‘Princess,’
To leave behind my heart full of grief for you, who love me.
─Romeo, mourning for your death.
Romeo Rascal Gazette.
This…
You bastard…
