Chapter – 31
The voice of Jerome came from the direction of the parlor.
Leaving the confused children behind, Croft leapt up and headed out of the study.
“Where’s the door supposed to be, and why are you doing this here?”
The window connecting to the outside in the parlor burst open with a loud creak.
Jerome looked up, smiling brightly, only to freeze stiffly when he saw the grim expression of Croft.
“Ah, no, it’s just… it seemed like the shop was closed, so…”
“Then why not just go back? Why call someone through a window?”
Croft’s piercing blue eyes sharpened.
“Who do you think you are, ordering Mariposa around…?”
“Croft!”
Mariposa, startled, pushed Croft away from the window.
Once Croft disappeared and Mariposa appeared, glittering in the soft sunlight, Jerome’s face lit up.
“Mariposa!”
“Hi, Jerome. What’s up?”
“I heard you were reopening your curio shop. Here, Mr. Rick wanted me to give you this as a congratulatory gift.”
Jerome handed over a basket wrapped in cloth. Mariposa lifted the cloth and inhaled the delicious aroma.
“Wow… smoked duck!”
Rick was the owner of the poultry shop where Jerome worked. He had a big heart and often gave food to Mariposa and Sasha, but this was the first time he had given something he had prepared himself.
Mariposa smiled, thinking she would have to thank him later.
“I’m not even sure if I’ve officially reopened yet. You just came because of my letter. Thank you.”
“Oh, no, I’m just running an errand…”
Jerome laughed awkwardly, following Mariposa, only to stiffen at the cold, harsh gaze Croft sent from behind.
“Mariposa, you’re reopening your curio shop?”
Croft’s curio shop doubled as a magic consulting office, but sometimes it opened to sell trivial antiques to humans in order to manage finances.
Croft, however, disliked selling. He neither wanted to interact with humans nor repeatedly adjust the shop’s perception-altering magic whenever it opened.
Understanding his feelings, Mariposa quickly apologized.
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to do it on my own. I just wanted to discuss it with Croft first.”
For the past few months, the shop remained closed due to Croft’s firm opposition. Only people who knew the children remembered the shop; otherwise, it had vanished from public memory. Mariposa regretted this, as she had finally started to gain regular customers.
“Mariposa, we need to discuss this properly.”
In fact, Croft was not surprised. Mariposa had been suggesting selling antiques for a few days, but Jerome’s congratulatory visit had left Croft’s mood completely twisted.
“Mariposa, I have shop matters to discuss, so you’re busy. Little one, go on home.”
“Uh, okay?”
Jerome hesitated, then met Croft’s cold, piercing gaze and hurriedly backed away.
“Goodbye… Mariposa, I’ll write another letter…”
Bang!
The shop window slammed shut with a loud noise.
Jerome jumped in shock.
Before Mariposa could say anything, the curtain hid her face.
Jerome swallowed hard.
‘Did that window just… close by itself?’
Was it a trick of the mind? Or just the wind?
He shivered as he remembered Croft’s fierce, blizzard-like gaze, then pedaled away on his bicycle.
After confirming Jerome had left, Mariposa scolded Croft.
“Croft! You just used magic, didn’t you? Jerome saw it! That could’ve been a disaster!”
“That guy’s too slow to notice.”
“That’s not an excuse! You always have to be careful!”
Even if he had known, he could have just erased Jerome’s memory with magic.
Croft ignored Mariposa’s scolding and returned to the study, legs crossed on the sofa.
“Was that Jerome?”
“Yes. Sasha, look at this. Mr. Rick gave us smoked duck.”
“Duck?!”
Sasha eagerly lifted the cloth to peek at the duck. Croft gently pushed her hand down without hurting her, magically moving the basket away.
“No drooling.”
“I’m not! I just want to smell it!”
Sasha’s dreamy eyes followed the floating basket into the kitchen, ignored by Croft as he sat down.
“Mariposa, I want to talk about something I mentioned earlier.”
Mariposa chased after Sasha, then sat back down opposite Croft, trying to gauge his mood.
“The last time we opened the shop a few times, right? I thought it would be nice to reopen properly and get things organized…”
“Are you talking about telling that guy?”
“I thought it would help with promotion since he knows people in the market.”
About two years ago, Jerome had accidentally met Mariposa at the poultry shop. They got along well and maintained a friendly bond, but just mentioning Jerome made Croft react like this.
“Why do you dislike Jerome, Croft?”
“I don’t like how he looks.”
Mariposa recalled Jerome’s appearance: brown hair, brown eyes, freckles here and there. Plain but cute.
“Don’t give excuses. You’re not the type to care about appearances.”
Croft was left speechless. Eventually, he shrugged his hair back and admitted:
“Jerome lacks… everything. Appearance, wealth, ability. Everything.”
Mariposa tilted her head in confusion, then quickly understood.
“Croft!”
Her cheeks flushed bright red.
“What do you mean by that! Jerome’s just a friend!”
“Are you sure he’s just a friend?”
“I’m sure! And he’s the only friend I have…”
Although she had turned fourteen, Mariposa was still immature, especially in understanding social bonds. She treasured friendships, particularly with Jerome, and had no romantic interest in him.
“Don’t worry about that, then. He’s just a friend.”
“You could make other friends.”
“All the kids our age left town to find work, you know that.”
“Then go to the neighboring town.” Croft muttered.
Mariposa looked at him curiously.
“You don’t have any friends either, Croft.”
Croft clammed up, turning his gaze toward the kitchen.
“Where’s Sasha?”
“Don’t change the subject. You don’t have friends either.”
“I’ll go check.”
“Croft!”
Mariposa stood up, but Croft teleported ahead of her. The sofa where he had been sitting was now empty.
“Running away again…”
It was clear from the magic that he genuinely wanted to avoid the topic.
Mariposa sighed.
‘He always does this whenever friends are mentioned.’
Croft Lin, owner of Lin’s Magical Curio Shop and a magician expelled from Magia, now cared for Mariposa and Sasha.
He had countless secrets, but recently Mariposa had been investigating one in particular: the hundreds of letters that arrived every couple of months.
Though she had lived in the shop for five years, she only discovered these letters 2 years and 6 months after moving in. Croft claimed they were from friends, but refused to explain further.
Even after all this time, Mariposa only knew one thing: these were not ordinary letters.
‘They’re definitely not from friends.’
In all those years at the curio shop, Croft had never met anyone else, yet letters kept arriving regularly from supposed “friends.” Mariposa needed to find out the truth.
