RMCOM 10

 Chapter – 10

Cherncinia trotted lightly like a feather toward the butcher shop.

Even 20,000 shillings would have been enough to eat beef to her heart’s content, but 50,000 shillings? She could live on meat for a whole month.

She had planned to grill cheap cuts to save money, but today, cheap meat just wouldn’t satisfy her mood. She would make a sirloin steak instead.

She had been eating nothing but soup and bread for days, so the thought of adding some grease to her meal lifted her spirits, and Cherncinia hummed a little tune.

“What can I get for you?”

As she opened the butcher shop door, the friendly-looking owner greeted her with a smile.

“Please cut me two pieces of sirloin.”

“How thick would you like them?”

“Thick.”

Thick is where the flavor is. Absolutely.

Satisfied with her order, Cherncinia nodded slightly. The butcher selected two pieces of high-quality sirloin and sliced them thickly.

The large sirloin cuts were wrapped in paper by the owner’s hands.

“Here you go. Two sirloins, that’ll be 2,000 shillings.”

After paying, she left the butcher shop in high spirits and started shopping in earnest.

Since the sun was high, the market was bustling with people. With so many sights and foods, if Ben were with her, he would have stared in wonder at everything.

Cherncinia bought as much as she could store for a long time. She had to get everything in one go; she didn’t want to return.

She walked with the now-heavy paper bag cradled in her arms.

“Ah, I should’ve brought Ben along,” she thought.

There was more to carry than she had expected. It wasn’t the weight per se—her strength was great—but holding so much in both hands was uncomfortable. A baguette sticking out of the bag also blocked her view.

“Next time, I’ll bring him along.”

She muttered absentmindedly, and her steps abruptly stopped.

Next time? There would be no next time…

She had naturally assumed there would be one. There wouldn’t be. In a few days, she would part ways with Ben, and shopping together would be over.

She had gotten used to living with him and had forgotten that their farewell was approaching.

The cheerful mood that made her hum now sank.

Just a few days together, and she had forgotten what it was like to be alone…

She suddenly recalled Ben’s question from a few days ago: whether she felt lonely.

At the time, she had casually replied “not really,” but looking back now, perhaps that wasn’t true. Being alone must have been quite lonely.

Seeing herself subconsciously thinking about being with him…

“I need to get a grip,” Cherncinia muttered, shaking her head.

Though she felt guilty toward him, her first priority was still money.

In either real life or a novel, money was necessary to change one’s circumstances.

Her urgent goal was to avoid the original story’s ending. For that, she needed money.

Her light steps had grown heavy as if carrying sandbags. Her heart felt just as heavy.

How could she wash away this guilt? Bringing him along had been a mistake from the start. Meetings are easy, but farewells are always hard…

“Haah…”

A sigh tangled with complicated emotions escaped her.

Standing in the middle of the crowded market, Cherncinia moved on.

First, she had to get home. Ben had promised to wait.

She pushed through the throng and reached a quieter end of the market. Soon, a path leading to the forest would appear.

She hurried toward the house where Ben was.

“Excuse me, have you seen a boy about 16 and a woman with red hair?”

Cherncinia stopped.

“Is that… me?”

Her head turned toward the sound. Two unfamiliar men were asking a merchant questions.

One of them was the clerk she had seen at the gambling exchange. Seeing him confirmed to Cherncinia that they were looking for her.

“Hmm… I don’t think I’ve seen them,” the merchant replied.

“Is that so? Alright, thank you,” they said, annoyance etched on their faces as they left.

They had come up empty-handed. Cherncinia quickly hid in a nearby alley, blending with the shadows in her black hoodie.

Why were they looking for her? She was certain their intentions were not innocent.

What should she do? Confront them and find out? Or quietly slip away?

They passed her alley, and she held her breath.

“Let’s make one more round,” she overheard them say as their footsteps faded.

Cherncinia watched them go. The clerk from the exchange—it must have been the Duke’s doing.

Why…?

She ran her fingers along her chin. The Duke had hidden, claiming he had no money and that he would come for it in a week.

What if he never intended to pay her at all?

Her red eyes flared like fire. One possibility filled her mind: a way to avoid giving her the money. The cleanest way to not give money:

“Get rid of me.”

With that thought, her rational mind calmed. Had he never intended to pay her…?

But it was just a hypothesis. She couldn’t jump to conclusions yet.

Once they disappeared from sight, Cherncinia left the shadows and continued her path home.

The men working with the Duke might have already entered her house.

Ben’s cheerful face flashed in her mind, seeing her off. She quickened her pace.

Whether it was fear of losing her collateral or worry for Ben, she didn’t know. She just needed to confirm he was home as soon as possible.

Ben, after seeing Cherncinia off, entered the house and tried to calm his racing heart.

Since last night, his heart had been acting strange.

From her comforting touches to the morning when she trimmed his hair, every touch from Cherncinia made his body flush and his heart race.

“Haa…”

He took a deep breath to calm himself. After a few attempts, he felt slightly better.

Ben finally looked around the empty cabin.

Without her, the cabin felt chilly. With Cherncinia, it had been a cozy refuge. Now, alone, it was cold enough to make him shiver.

Just her absence changed the atmosphere. He trembled as the cold crept through his thin clothes.

He had lived here four days. He had gotten used to being with her. Those few days had been warm and loving enough to erase years of lonely hardship.

“It’s dangerous to get too used to this…”

A sad voice lingered in the cabin.

Cherncinia had brought him as collateral. In three days, she would exchange the money and leave.

A bitter smile formed on his lips. Any further desire would only burden her. He could not allow that. A week of happiness was enough. He could not be a burden to her.

Ben sat in the chair she usually occupied, hoping to feel some lingering warmth.

But the cold wood chilled him even more.

He rested his face on the table, one hand extended. Turning his head slightly, his other hand held the one that had been bandaged by her. Though still bony, the wounds had healed and looked much better.

Ben’s eyes stayed on his fingertips, wrapped in the bandage she had applied.

‘Ouch… was it painful?’

He remembered her grimacing when his hand had been cut, almost as if she felt the pain herself. Her care was meticulous, blowing gently on the disinfected wound to help it heal. She was tender even under the guise of coldness.

“Ben…”

He smiled softly, muttering his name, feeling the weight of being called by it for the first time. She was both the one to name him and the first to call him. It filled him with joy.

He kissed the bandage on his hand. It carried her warmth and concern.

He remembered her gestures vividly—the first day she reached out, brushing his hair under the moonlight, gently blowing on his wounds. Her lips, full and red like pomegranate, seemed sweet enough to taste.

Just a thought of tasting them made him jump upright.

“Gah!”

He blushed furiously, his face burning red.

What was this unworthy thought…?