“The person with the gentle face?”
“Yes.”
Though the bell had rung not long ago, the attendant named Puti arrived at the room quickly. When Seoho gave Puti a nod of greeting, Puti blinked in surprise, then looked at Rosetta at his call.
“Puti.”
“Your Majesty.”
“Help Seoho prepare.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Then how about Your Majesty goes to the office for a while as I help him prepare?”
At Puti’s words, Seoho’s eyes lit up as he murmured.
“Office…”
An office, he said. To Seoho, who hadn’t even properly experienced university life yet, the word ‘office’ felt very cool.
‘Really like an adult.’
As Seoho was admiring this, Rosetta turned to look at Seoho as if he’d heard that murmur. At the peculiar gaze, Seoho shook his head as if it was nothing and said.
“Come to think of it, since Rosetta is an emperor, you must have a lot of work. It’s cool that you even have an office. Go ahead. The attendant is here.”
At Seoho’s words, Puti said in surprise.
“Please feel free to call me Puti and speak comfortably.”
Seoho, who noticed Puti gauging Rosetta’s reaction, was reminded once again that this place was different from where he lived.
“Alright, Puti. I’ll speak casually once we get a bit closer. Rosetta? Go on quickly.”
Then Rosetta said something out of the blue.
“You like this sort of thing?”
“Pardon?”
Seoho asked back, but Rosetta quickly turned around and said.
“I’ll be back. I’ll return soon.”
Seoho nodded and answered.
“Yes.”
After Rosetta disappeared and only he and the attendant remained in the room, Seoho felt awkward. He had naturally sent Rosetta off, but now that he was alone with the attendant, it became uncomfortable.
When Seoho carefully turned to look at Puti, he flinched. Puti was looking at Seoho with very burdensome eyes.
“Seoho-nim.”
Puti’s eyes looking at Seoho were full of goodwill. At that gaze, Seoho smiled awkwardly and answered.
“You can call me Seoho.”
Then Puti said with a firm face as if that absolutely wouldn’t do.
“How could I dare. I’m comfortable with this.”
Having confirmed that the gentle face had turned stubborn, Seoho had no choice but to nod.
“Alright.”
Seoho was uncomfortable, but if Puti was comfortable with that, he had no intention of forcing him. Each country has different lifestyles and cultures.
When Seoho readily nodded, Puti approached Seoho and said.
“Then I’ll begin the preparations.”
“Yes. Please.”
Having someone else help him wash was an extremely embarrassing process. As he finished preparing with Puti’s help, Seoho resolved that from now on, he would at least not receive Puti’s help with washing.
***
Angel was sitting in the reception room waiting for Rosetta.
In the end, Rosetta hadn’t come to see her the previous day, but Angel didn’t mind at all. Rather, she had struggled to hold back her laughter in front of Puti who had conveyed the news.
Angel sat in the reception room with a faint smile on her lips, waiting for Rosetta to come. As the appointed time drew closer, it became increasingly difficult for Angel to manage her expression.
‘What kind of face will he be making?’
What would the destined partner ask? Wouldn’t he ask how he could return to his world with Rosetta right next to him?
‘Ah, it seems like it’ll be fun.’
Angel raised her hand to cover the corners of her mouth that were rising as if tearing, and continued her imagination. If the emperor’s face, always calm and composed, became uglily distorted, and if she could see that face right before her eyes, she thought she would be truly happy.
As Angel was stomping her feet while spreading the wings of imagination for a while, the sound of knocking on the door was heard.
“Holy Maiden-nim.”
At Puti’s voice, Angel stood up from her seat and greeted those entering the room with a bright smile from the heart.
Rosetta, Puti, and a man whose appearance was slightly different from the people here entered in order. Angel greeted Rosetta first.
“Your Majesty.”
“Holy Maiden.”
Having finished greeting Rosetta, Angel immediately turned toward the man.
“And this person is…”
As Angel trailed off, the man with a neat face smiled faintly and introduced himself.
“Hello. I’m Lee Seoho. Please call me Seoho.”
It was neither excessive nor insufficient. The man who gave a plain greeting had quite a favorable impression. The man’s eyes that met hers while greeting were clear and clean despite being a dark color. Moreover, unlike Rosetta, he seemed well-mannered.
‘Not bad…’
Angel greeted Seoho.
“Hello, Seoho-nim. I’m called Angel. Please feel free to call me Angel.”
“Ah…”
As Seoho was about to say something in response to Angel’s words, Rosetta cut into the conversation between the two and said.
“Let’s sit first.”
Angel obediently sat down and spoke to Seoho again.
“Seoho-nim, I think you must have been very flustered to suddenly come to this place. Do you have any questions?”
Angel secretly glanced at Rosetta’s face. While waiting for an answer that would change that handsome and composed face, Seoho asked as if he’d been waiting.
“I can communicate now, right? Will this phenomenon continue? Or should I study the writing separately?”
Angel couldn’t hide her confusion.
“Pardon?”
“Pardon?”
At Seoho tilting his head as if asking what the problem was, Angel closed her mouth.
‘That’s what you’re most curious about in this situation?’
Of course, matters related to communication were important too. But if you were suddenly dragged to this world, shouldn’t you be crying, wailing, and getting angry?
‘But language?’
Angel, who had been staring blankly at Seoho, made an effort to compose her expression and answered.
“Ah, language.”
“Yes, since it would be inconvenient if language doesn’t work, I was thinking I should study.”
Angel searched her memory. But no matter how much she searched her memory, she couldn’t recall anything related to language.
‘Because it’s not that significant.’
Angel looked at the man before her eyes again. When their eyes met, the man reflexively smiled with curved eyes.
He was someone with a pretty smile. His neatly arranged hair and clear pupils, rarely seen in those around here, suited the man’s smile very well.
‘A clean impression.’
A clear feeling like freshly piled white snow. Angel, who was taking in the aegyo-sal cutely rising under his eyes, turned at the presence felt from the side and met Rosetta’s eyes.
At Rosetta urging for an answer, Angel forcibly killed the favorable feelings that had been growing vigorously toward the man, turned back to Seoho, and answered.
“The content related to language is not accurately recorded.”
Then Seoho frowned as if regretful.
“I see. Then I should study the writing.”
Watching a face that only expressed regret without questioning or showing signs of doubt, it felt like a conscience she didn’t even know existed in a corner of her heart was raising its head.
With the strange feeling, Angel was trying to smooth out her expression when Rosetta, who had been listening to the conversation, looked at Seoho as if finding him cute.
“Seoho is very passionate about studying. To think the first thing you thought of was writing.”
Having seen Rosetta’s pleased face right before her eyes, Angel twisted the corners of her lips, then quickly arranged her expression and asked Seoho another question.
“Do you have any other questions?”
At Angel’s question, Seoho smiled awkwardly.
“Well… I was suddenly informed of today’s meeting. I didn’t properly prepare questions. Is there something I must know?”
Seoho was too different from Angel’s expectations. Not only was her expectation that he would cry and cling to be sent back to his original world shattered, but he was fundamentally someone who was strangely likable.
‘Is it because he seems upright?’
His attitude and manner of speech—nothing had rough edges, and he was well-mannered.
He wasn’t a gorgeous beauty like Rosetta, but he was a neat beauty and also possessed a gentle impression that suited that attitude.
However, just because she didn’t dislike this person didn’t mean Angel hated Rosetta little enough to wish for the two people’s peace.
‘It seems their relationship isn’t that bad either.’
She couldn’t find anxiety or anger in Seoho.
‘Is it because not much time has passed since coming here?’
He might not have properly understood the current situation of crossing over to this place. The emperor probably didn’t explain in detail facts that were unfavorable to himself either.
‘Or he might not have properly assessed the situation yet.’
Since the first thing he asked her about was related to writing, it seemed he had heard the story related to the mirror to some extent, but still, one never knew. Angel slowly opened her mouth.
“…I see. Then shall we talk about the most fundamental story first?”
Angel decided to emphasize that the reason he was dragged to this place was because of Rosetta.
“You’ve probably heard, but Seoho-nim came to this place through the mirror. And the one who called Seoho-nim is His Majesty, who is connected to Seoho-nim by the red string.”
“Yes, I heard.”
Angel continued speaking while looking at the red string that firmly connected the two people.
“You can think of it as the string connected to the two people gradually strengthening and pulling each other.”
When she looked at him with the meaning of asking if he had questions, Seoho opened his mouth.
“I heard that red string connects you to your destined partner. There’s also a story about the red string in the world I was in, but usually it’s considered the fate of becoming lovers. Does it mean the same thing here?”
