The Sand Bride - Side Story 1.3

* * *

The rumors about the Sayar’s wife were famous enough that every Southern-Easterner had heard them at least once.

There were extravagant rumors, such as that she was so dazzlingly beautiful she could open a blind man’s eyes, or that she was a witch who used wicked sorcery. There were also rumors with some credibility, such as that she was the illegitimate child of a certain noble who had been abused while growing up, and that was why she avoided meeting with other Southern-Eastern nobles.

When the wedding ceremony was held, many nobles of the south-east, as well as great merchants, attended, carrying all sorts of gifts. However, because of the long, trailing silk veil and the bridal gown tightly wrapped up to her neck, the guests only learned of the bride’s slender body and small stature—barely reaching the Sayar’s chest.

They also learned that the Sayar truly cherished his bride, seeing his exceedingly joyful face throughout the three-day wedding banquet. This last piece of information was the most valuable to them.

It was because gaining the bride’s favor was easier than gaining the Sayar’s, while also allowing them to enjoy the effects of the latter.

However, none of them actually managed to have a private audience with the Sayar’s bride. Even after a year had passed and the bride had become the wife, the fact that not a single person had met her separately was still true.

But that was now over. Not a haughty noble lord, not a great merchant, but just Jeremy, a mere ambitious young merchant—he was the one who had received the Sayar’s wife’s invitation!

“Ah…….”

Jeremy entered the palace, considering every scenario: what he should say, and why she had called for him. But the moment he saw the woman presumed to be the Sayar’s wife, he forgot all the eloquence he had repeated dozens of times on his way to the palace, and only blinked stupidly.

The Sayar’s wife was too different from his expectation.

The Sayar’s wife he met had white skin, bright hair, and eyes, typical of a Southern-Easterner, but she was neither a beauty who could open a blind man’s eyes nor a wicked witch.

Her hair, neither blonde nor brown, was like the desert sand Jeremy was sick of seeing in Gharyam, and her subtle aquamarine eyes were like the deep blue forest on a summer day. Her innocent gaze and delicate features were better described as pretty or lovely than beautiful.

She was like the future of a first love from the memories of boys born and raised in a secluded, peaceful village. However, the objects she wore were excessively luxurious, placing her far from simplicity.

Jeremy, who was mesmerized by the value of the long silk belt embroidered with flamboyant geometric patterns in gold thread, the jeweled decorative cords, and the ornaments around her neck and arms, quickly bowed his head, especially upon seeing the golden crown adorning her head. Even the straps of the sandals she was wearing were studded with jewels.

“I…….”

Jeremy was nervous. He had expected her to issue orders haughtily, contrary to her appearance, but her first voice was surprisingly soft.

“Are you the one who gave me this puppy……?”

“Yes? Ah, y-yes! I am!”

She used formal polite language to a merchant? Was she truly not of noble birth? Jeremy stared blankly at Esther’s face again, then flinched at the fierce look of the warrior next to her and lowered his head.

“Thank you for coming……. Well, I don’t know anything about what to feed this puppy or how to raise it……. I’ve been feeding it like other puppies for now, but I’m not sure if it’s alright…….”

Esther hesitated and slightly pulled back the hem of her skirt. Only then could Jeremy see the puppy he had presented to the Sayar at her feet. Having received Esther’s affection, the puppy was already following its new owner well. Seeing that the Sayar’s wife seemed to dote on the puppy, just as he had planned, he brightened up and rubbed his palms together.

“Oh dear, look at me! This foolish man forgot to pay my respects! I am truly sorry! Ahem, well, feeding it is simple. You can feed it finely ground meat, a little bit of vegetables, and goat’s milk, like any other puppy.”

“I see……. Is there anything else I should know?”

“It’s a dog whose fur tends to tangle, so you should brush it regularly, and it’s good to trim it slightly with scissors if it grows too long sometimes. Ah, and going out is good too. Taking the puppy and strolling in the garden with the Sayar would be very nice.”

“Ah, yes.”

Jeremy, who had cleverly brought up the Sayar while explaining about the puppy, was proud of his eloquence, but he was flustered when Esther turned her head with an awkward expression.

Did she have a brief quarrel with the Sayar? Quickly thinking through Esther’s reaction, Jeremy changed tack and turned the conversation to her homeland this time.

“Indeed, it’s hot here, so a shade for the puppy to rest in during the day is important. My homeland was fine because the summer was short, but Gharyam is such a hot place. Speaking of which, my homeland is now busy preparing for a festival. I don’t know if you’d be familiar with it. There’s a musical instrument called Epira that is the most popular in my homeland…….”

“Epira.”

A faint smile appeared on Esther’s uneasy face at the word Jeremy threw out.

“I like that instrument too. Since you mention your homeland, are you perhaps a citizen of the Kingdom of Donova?”

“Yes! It is where I was born and raised.”

Jeremy was pretending not to know that Esther’s homeland was the Kingdom of Donova, even though he had brought it up knowing the fact. At his attitude, the warrior—Nair—faintly stiffened her face. She was assigned to escort Esther on her outings because she was a woman who already had a spouse and was highly skilled in martial arts.

She had no complaints that her charge was the Sayar’s principal wife, but given her personality, which disliked the cunning, seeing a person resort to such petty tricks was torture. It was even more so because her usual nature would have been to shout Shut up before slicing his tongue, but she couldn’t do that in front of Esther.

“That’s right. I really love the Epira, too. It’s been a long time since I heard it…….”

“If it’s not too rude…….”

Jeremy, who glanced at Esther’s expression, opened his mouth cheerfully.

“Even though I look like this, I’m an Epira enthusiast. Would you allow me to play a song for you?”

“I would like that, but…… we don’t have an Epira here.”

“Oh my, I don’t call myself an Epira enthusiast for nothing! I carry it with me almost all the time, so I actually brought it when I came to the palace. Of course, this person confiscated it before I entered the palace!”

Jeremy pointed to Nair, who was standing behind Esther, with an aggrieved look. His hand was not pointing rudely but was extended politely with a straight palm, yet Nair was not obtuse enough to miss the annoying tattle hidden behind it.

She gnashed her teeth with a frighteningly subdued face, but when Esther turned around, she immediately bowed to her with a professional expression.

“It appeared to be a suspicious object, so I was keeping it in storage.”

Of course, even though it was an object she had never seen in Gharyam, she had guessed it was a type of musical instrument from the strings and its general shape, but Nair had mercilessly confiscated the Epira from Jeremy. Her principle was that one should have no tools when personally meeting royalty unless one was an escort.

“Suspicious object! Ah, why would I bring a dangerous object? It’s just a musical instrument!”

Jeremy continued to grumble with an aggrieved expression, constantly grating on Nair’s nerves, asking if it was proper escorting to prevent someone from listening to a performance when they wished to.

A murderous glint returned, but with Esther’s favor backing him, he seemed fearless. Nair glared at Jeremy and slowly opened her mouth.

“However, I am commanded by the Sayar to be responsible for Miss Esther’s safety.”

“But it’s just a musical instrument. If it’s not an instrument, you can take it back.”

“If you insist……. Understood.”

However, when Esther, who genuinely wanted to hear the Epira performance, sided with Jeremy, Nair’s face twitched in displeasure for a moment before she bowed her head and gestured to a nearby servant. It was a sign to return the Epira.

The servant quickly brought the Epira. Nair, who handed the Epira to Jeremy, who was holding out both hands with a triumphant expression, whispered with an overly gentle smile.

“If I see even the slightest hint of anything suspicious, I will sever both your arms right then and there.”

“…….”

Faced with those sincere, murderous eyes, Jeremy glanced nervously and nodded. True to her word, her threat was not an empty boast; while he was taking the playing stance, Nair stood right next to him, watching Jeremy with the eyes of a hawk. Jeremy began to play the Epira with an uncomfortable expression.

At first, his fingers kept stiffening from nervousness as he plucked the strings, but the tune quickly stabilized. In the Kingdom of Donova, a man who could play the Epira well was very popular with women, and this was the moment when the results of his bloody efforts since childhood shone brightly.

Of course, Jeremy wasn’t foolish enough to try to seduce the Sayar’s wife. However, he did harbor the inner desire to score points. With the hidden intention that this woman might one day support his business endeavors, Jeremy began to play the Epira very skillfully. As his fingers pressed and plucked the strings, a thin and delicate melody spread through the area. When listened to one way, the tone sounded cheerful, and when listened to another, it sounded sorrowful.

When a quick-witted servant brought a chair, Esther sat down to enjoy the performance. In her homeland, too, there were many men who played the Epira late at night to please their lovers.

Listening to Jeremy’s performance, Esther closed her eyes and quietly imagined being in her homeland.

She thought of the fresh grass blades that flowed like waves whenever the wind blew, the white stars scattered like grains across the blue and dark night sky, the round, dish-like moon, and the sound of the large bonfire, built with stacked logs, breaking apart in the heat. It truly felt as if she had returned to that peaceful past, to that very day.

“What is this mournful noise?”

Esther’s peaceful imagination was lightly shattered by a single sentence. The music stopped too. While the servants and even Nair, who had been glaring at Jeremy, quickly paid their respects, Esther hesitated, rose from the chair, and looked back.

“Annoying, even in the middle of the day.”

The one who had walked up to Esther in a single stride and wrapped his arms around her waist was, of course, Karzhen. Esther turned her head. Her face was expressionless, but Karzhen made a strange face, having caught the small trace of dissatisfaction hidden within it.

“You like that bastard?”

“Huh……?”

At the sudden question, Esther looked at Karzhen. Karzhen was looking at Esther with narrowed eyes. The moment their eyes met, Esther quickly lowered her gaze, which only further irritated Karzhen.

“Ah, no.”

“Then why that expression?”

“……The music was good.”

As the atmosphere, which had been lyrical and peaceful just moments before with the Epira performance, suddenly changed with Karzhen’s appearance, Jeremy rolled his eyes and struggled to understand the situation. Then, when his eyes met Karzhen’s fierce gaze, Jeremy involuntarily hiccupped. That was how terrifying the light in Karzhen’s eyes was.

Whether he hiccupped or not, Karzhen meticulously observed Jeremy’s bright brown hair, blue eyes, and white complexion.

He was a young man who couldn’t exactly be called ugly, nor was he strikingly handsome, but his drooping eyes and flexible nose bridge made him look gentle and amiable. Karzhen pointedly pulled Esther closer into his arms and spoke.

“You hated the performances by the minstrels I brought before.”

It was natural. The music of Gharyam that Karzhen had played for her reminded Esther of her coronation, one of her nightmares.

Thinking of this, and fearing it would come back to her, Esther shook her head with a face that had turned slightly pale.

“It’s an instrument from my homeland, and I haven’t heard it in a long time…….”

“Homeland? And not because that bastard played it?”

It sounded almost mocking, but Nair, noticing the suspicion lurking behind it, sighed inwardly. She had never regretted pledging her loyalty to Karzhen, but even to her, Karzhen was being excessively tiresome about his wife.

“No. It has nothing to do with that person.”

“Then why are you taking his side?”

Karzhen narrowed his eyes, looking alternately at Jeremy and Esther.

“And why do you keep calling him ‘that person’ again and again? Since when was a mere merchant in a position to be addressed with polite language by my wife?”

Karzhen glared at him fiercely, as if Jeremy had demanded Esther use polite language. Jeremy was so terrified that he felt another hiccup coming on.

Esther tried to be as calm as possible, but Karzhen’s mind had long been focused only on the sight of Esther he had just witnessed.

The face that was languidly relaxed, the lips that held a subtle smile. Esther listening to the Epira performance looked more at peace than when she was asleep. Karzhen was seeing such a serene Esther for the first time. No, even without that sight, the Esther he had seen until now had only four aspects:

Her listless appearance, her terrified appearance, her appearance on the bed, and her sleeping appearance. He had never, ever seen her face look so languid and pleased, as if directed toward someone she missed, or as if she were having a beautiful dream.

Above all, it was more suspicious that Esther, who had never invited anyone—no, had never even said she wanted to see anyone—had expressed a desire to meet this man for the first time. She had said it was because of the puppy, but he heard she hadn’t even named it yet.

Perhaps she wanted to meet that bastard using the puppy as an excuse? Were they actually acquaintances from the Kingdom of Donova?

Karzhen’s suspicion grew like a snowball, now reaching the point where he was imagining Jeremy and Esther sweetly embracing each other in some village in the Kingdom of Donova he had never even visited.

Esther, unaware of this, opened her mouth again, fueling his delusion.

“I’m not taking sides or anything, I just… he’s from the same homeland…….”

“That bastard homeland talk!”

At his suddenly raised voice, Esther flinched and immediately closed her mouth. Karzhen brought his face right up to Esther’s and snarled.

“Why, were you two flirting in that homeland or something?”

Esther shook her head with a look of panic.

“That’s not it.”

“You looked absolutely heartbroken to see him.”

“It’s not…….”

Esther repeated the same words and shook her head again, but Karzhen was not yet free from suspicion. He stared intently at Esther’s face, trying to find even the slightest trace of a lie within it. The gaze, clouded with suspicion, shifted to Jeremy, turning into rage and jealousy.

From a certain point, Karzhen began to be wary of any young Southern-Eastern man on sight. Every fair-skinned, slender young man from the south-east seemed like a potential rival to him.

In the past, as soon as the rumor spread that the Sayar, Karzhen’s wife, was from the Kingdom of Donova and that because of her, the issue of Areshi had been changed from war to a demand for compensation from the Kingdom of Donova, not only the Kingdom of Donova but also other nations became eager to win Esther’s favor.

Initially, diplomats and ambitious young nobles who wanted Gharyam’s patronage came with gifts, emphasizing that they were also Southern-Easterners, trying somehow to converse with Esther. Among them were even swindlers who lied, claiming they had an acquaintance with Esther in the Kingdom of Donova.

But each time, Karzhen’s eyes would roll and his body would tremble with jealousy, leading them to realize the Sayar was excessively jealous. They then changed their strategy, switching their visitors to women, children, or the elderly, and sending gifts through them. It was a wise choice.

If Esther were to give her heart to any of them—no, to any person other than himself—Karzhen would surely rave like a wild beast and tear that person apart, alive. Because he had coveted her so much, yet could not possess her and had no guarantee of ever doing so, Karzhen filled his emptiness with vigilance and suspicion.

Like a terrifying gatekeeper in a story, he was cutting off Esther’s opportunities for new emotional exchanges and striving to take that place for himself.

His suspicion had subsided but was not completely gone. Karzhen squeezed Esther’s hand, which he was holding as a warning.

“Just try to look at someone else. I’ll tear apart any bastard who tries, man or woman. Understand?”

“Yes…….”

Esther nodded meekly, but her face was terrified. Seeing this, Karzhen eased the strength in his hand. He gently stroked her fingers and rubbed her palm as if comforting her, then opened his mouth with a visibly relieved expression.

“Well. Since you said it’s not, it’s fine.”

“…….”

“Go inside first.”

Karzhen commanded the servants with a nod to take Esther away. After confirming that Esther, holding the puppy, had been led away by the servants, he approached Jeremy.

Jeremy, who had been lost in awe at the Sayar’s jealousy, which exceeded all imagination, flinched and hunched his shoulders when Karzhen came right up to his face.

“Do you now sell smiles, in addition to puppies, you son of a b***h?”

“Huh? Ah, no, of course not!”

Seeing Karzhen’s eyes blazing with jealousy, Jeremy hurriedly shook both his hands.

Selling smiles. It was the kind of thing one would say about an attractive minstrel aiming for a high-status wife’s concubine position. Jeremy stammered, having not expected to hear such a thing from the Sayar, much less about being his male concubine.

“I-I just purely intended to play a song for her. Of course, I’m not an Epira player, but in my country, a man who plays this well is popular with women, you see. It’s embarrassing to say, but I worked hard at it for that reason……. I brought it because I pride myself on having a skill level comparable to a professional musician, so I wanted to play it for her.”

“A man who plays that well is popular?”

However, Karzhen seemed to focus on a different part of Jeremy’s excuse. He snarled fiercely, glaring at Jeremy like a wolf pondering where to take a bite. Jeremy hurriedly waved his hands.

“Ah, no! I certainly didn’t harbor any thought of trying anything with that person, and, well, that is… even outside of a romantic relationship, the Epira is a beloved instrument in our kingdom, so I wanted to play it for her!”

“It better be.”

Karzhen looked down at Jeremy with an arrogant face.

“Or I’ll make you regret being alive.”

“Ha, haha……. Y-yes. How dare anyone aim for the Sayar’s wife? Whose wife is she, after all?”

Faced with the trustworthy warning, Jeremy bowed and smiled awkwardly. Seeing Jeremy emphasize that Esther was his wife, Karzhen smiled with satisfaction.

Pleased by the man’s servile attitude—as if he would embed his forehead into the ground—Karzhen allowed Jeremy to leave safely. Jeremy, who had wanted to disappear a moment ago, immediately jumped up and scurried after the servants without even taking the time to pick up his Epira the moment he was told he could go.

Karzhen watched the fleeing figure, like a scared mouse, and preened, thinking that Esther would never fall for such a bastard. Then, he noticed the Epira Jeremy had left behind.

It was an instrument he had never seen before. But recalling Jeremy’s words that a man who played it well was popular in Esther’s homeland, Karzhen pondered, then called a servant and ordered them to bring an identical instrument to his office.

‘It doesn’t look that difficult.’

Thinking of Jeremy, he smiled confidently, certain that if a bastard like that could play it, there was no way he couldn’t.

He had never once played a musical instrument, unlike his mastery of swords and spears, but he believed that since he handled weapons with almost divine skill, he would easily be able to play the Epira, too.