Chapter 58: The Pure Heart of an Apology (2)
“But why have you been drinking so much lately? You’ve lived this way for 50 years, so it’s not like you suddenly need to drown yourself in alcohol now.”
“Well… lately, she’s been looking very down. Out of the blue, she said she’s closing her shop. Since she started talking like that, she’s gotten more and more haggard each day, but she won’t tell me why. It’s frustrating and depressing.”
The more I listened to Mr. Benen’s story, the more amazed I felt. It seemed like he had transcended the mere desire to achieve love, yet he could still think about one person for so long.
Mr. Benen wasn’t depressed because he wanted to win her love. He was simply distressed by the thought of the woman he loved closing her shop and losing her vitality.
If ever there was a pure and selfless love, this was it. A love that asks for nothing in return.
Another woman who had a similarly selfless love.
It hadn’t been long since I’d witnessed Berna’s unrequited love, and I didn’t want Mr. Benen to end up like her.
I felt a desire to help him somehow. Not that I’m some sort of matchmaker.
“Since you always bring us apples, how about I join you for a drink today? Here’s a fine whiskey with a good aroma. Give it a try.”
Today, I decided to play the part of a romantic comforter. So, I poured a glass of whiskey for him.
“Thank you.”
Of course, I didn’t mention that it was an expensive whiskey or anything like that. That wasn’t the point. This drink was for a man who had devoted 50 years to his pure love.
And the next day.
On my way to the market, I went to see Mrs. Reine. She was well-connected in the city and had her ear to the ground on all sorts of news. If you wanted to get information about the city, she was the one to ask.
“Mrs. Reine, do you know anything about a woman named Miel who owns a tailor shop up the road?”
“Hmm? Ms. Miel?”
“Yes.”
When I asked directly, Mrs. Reine tilted her head curiously. But, as expected, she answered.
“She’s good at sewing, so I occasionally have her do some work for me. We’re friendly, but I don’t know the details of her personal life.”
“I see. Really?”
“Why do you ask? Don’t you already have someone to do your sewing?”
“Haha, it’s not because I need a seamstress.”
Why does Rurin’s name always come up here?
I’ve explained to the couple before that I retired as a wizard and secluded myself in Grayke City to be with someone I wanted to spend time with. It’s not surprising they might misunderstand, but I can’t help it.
If I entrusted my sewing to Rurin, the clothes would be shredded to rags rather than mended.
Anyway, I explained the situation: Miel was planning to close her shop and hadn’t told Mr. Benen why.
“I thought, since you know so many people around here, maybe you’d know something. Do you?”
Mrs. Reine nodded with a sympathetic look.
“I did hear she recently mentioned she wasn’t taking on many new jobs. Was that the reason? Hmm, what should we do…? How about this? I’m somewhat friendly with her, so I’ll go and see if I can find out what’s going on!”
“Really? I’d appreciate that.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll do my best. But if Miel isn’t interested at all and it’s just one-sided love from Mr. Benen, I can’t get too deeply involved. You can’t force people’s hearts, after all.”
“Of course. I’m not trying to play matchmaker. I just want to understand why she wants to close the shop.”
“In that case, leave it to me!”
Mrs. Reine nodded enthusiastically. She then called out towards the back.
“Husband! Watch the shop for a bit!”
“What? I’m not on shift until the afternoon!”
“Forget shifts; I have somewhere to go. Are you going to refuse El’s request? You can’t ignore a benefactor, you know?”
“What are you talking about, you old nag?”
Mr. Knoll came out grumbling.
“What did you just say?”
When Mrs. Reine raised her eyebrows, he quickly changed his tune. I knew he would. Why say things you can’t take responsibility for?
“Alright, alright, I’ll handle it. Hahaha! I guess if it’s for El, I have no choice.”
Leaving behind Mr. Knoll, who almost went without lunch for a pointless rebellion, I followed Mrs. Reine to Miel’s shop.
***
Miel had trusted and followed Benen since childhood. Benen was two years older and had always taken good care of her, especially when her mother passed away; he was the one who had been her greatest support.
Naturally, Benen held a special place in her heart.
However, Miel felt that Benen always saw her as a little sister. He had never done anything to suggest he saw her as a woman.
Whenever their hands accidentally touched, he would pull away first and run off. He would always scold her over the littlest things.
She didn’t dislike this, but she always felt like Benen only saw her as a younger sister.
Then, when she turned 28, her father arranged a marriage for her.
Initially, she resisted, but she thought that if Benen didn’t see her as a woman, she needed to move on. So she decided to take a gamble.
If Benen tried to stop the marriage her father arranged, she would confess. That was her plan, her gamble.
“Brother, my father is trying to marry me off. I think I’ll be leaving for another city at the end of this month.”
After that, things became strained between them. Benen said nothing. When she was on the verge of giving up, biting her lip in frustration, he came to see her the day before she was supposed to leave for the neighboring city.
He asked to meet her that night, saying he had something to talk about.
Miel was overjoyed. She thought he might finally ask her to stay with him.
But Benen never showed up at the meeting place. Miel was devastated.
With a broken spirit, she left for the neighboring city but couldn’t bring herself to marry a stranger.
She called off the engagement and wandered around the empire for a few years. She tried her hand at all sorts of jobs. Fortunately, her dexterity meant she never went hungry, and just when she thought she had finally forgotten Benen, she returned to Grayke City.
It was the tenth year since she’d left.
***
It was a bit difficult to get the story from Ms. Miel, but with Mrs. Reine’s help, we managed to learn the general details.
When Miel heard that Mr. Benen had been drinking heavily and was ruining his health, she sprang up, and Mrs. Reine gave me a meaningful smile.
“He… he didn’t come that night. So… I…”
“Wait a minute. As far as I know, Mr. Benen went to the meeting place, but Ms. Miel didn’t show up.”
“What?”
Yes, that’s exactly what Mr. Benen told me yesterday. That part seemed off, so I interjected, and both Mrs. Reine and Ms. Miel furrowed their brows, shaking their heads.
“Really…? That can’t be…”
Had these two been misunderstanding each other for over 20 years because of a mistake about the meeting place? Shouldn’t this couple have gotten together long ago?
“It’s true that Mr. Benen has been having health issues lately. But what about you, Ms. Miel? Why are you planning to close your shop? Is there something wrong with your health?”
“That’s a personal matter, so I’m sorry, but I can’t say.”
“Is that so? But if we leave things like this, nothing will be resolved. We’ll keep it a secret, so why not discuss it with us? We’ll help however we can.”
Ms. Miel’s expression suddenly darkened. Then, as if she had no choice, she sighed and began to speak.
“To be honest, as I’m getting older, my eyesight is getting worse, and I can’t see small things well anymore. So I can’t do sewing…”
Even as she spoke, Ms. Miel hesitated. She didn’t seem to want Mr. Benen to know she was getting old. Was it a youthful shyness?
“Was that the reason? There is a solution for that.”
I nodded toward Ms. Miel and Mrs. Reine.
***
A magnifying glass helps with delicate work when your eyesight is failing. While it may cause some fatigue, there shouldn’t be any issues with continuing to take on small amounts of work.
“Did you hear? Miel’s reopening her shop! Her face looks much better! What’s going on… I don’t know what happened, but… hahaha!”
That evening, Mr. Benen barged in, laughing as he spoke.
“Maybe a health issue was resolved? Actually, there’s a skilled doctor at Elena’s clinic near Ms. Miel’s shop.”
“Is that true? She was sick?”
Mr. Benen’s face fell as if his world was collapsing. I shook my head.
“It wasn’t anything serious. But there’s something more important. Please, have a seat first.”
“Alright…”
Mr. Benen placed the apples he brought on the table and sat down. Maybe because he was in a good mood, it felt like he had brought more apples than usual today.
At that moment, the dragon’s little hands crept toward the apple basket.
“Mr. Benen, do you know? Let me tell you something.”
As I poured whiskey in front of Mr. Benen, I began to speak.
***
“What is it?”
“Ms. Miel said she also went to the meeting place 25 years ago.”
“What?”
Mr. Benen, who had been drinking his whiskey, abruptly stood up with a look of disbelief.
“No way… That’s impossible. I waited for her until morning.”
“Well, maybe there was a significant misunderstanding about the meeting place. To solve the truth of that day, which you’ve both been ignoring until now, you’ll have to talk to each other.”
“Is that true? Did she really go there?”
“That’s all I know.”
I shrugged.
Ultimately, it’s a problem the two of them need to solve. That’s as far as I could help.
After hearing my words, Mr. Benen ran out of the restaurant.
And he didn’t come back that night.
To add a postscript, after that, Mr. Benen sold the orchard he cherished so much to me and bought a house in the middle of Grayke City with the money.
Thanks to that, the dragon was buried under a mountain of apples.
Even if we planned to clear the orchard, we still had to deal with the apples that had already grown. It would be a waste to throw them away, wouldn’t it? They were fed to the water buffalo, the dragon, and the people around us.
“You! I’m sick of this! Why is every meal apples?”
“Apples are great for breakfast.”
“But it’s not morning!”
“You just woke up, so it’s morning for you.”
I held out an apple to the dragon, who was pouting.
