Chapter 25 Interlude：the Ice Beauty Of The Bakery (2️⃣)
So, Turney had completely fallen for the ice beauty at the bakery.
Day after day, he kept going to the bakery, buying bread to take home.
He ate so much bread that his friends started to worry about him a lot.
What he learned from going to the bakery so often wasn't much.
Just like the rumors said, the ice beauty at the bakery never smiled and only exchanged the bare minimum of words.
Whenever he tried to make small talk, she would just brush him off.
Because of that, Turney didn't even know the ice beauty's name.
At first, he was okay with that situation.
'I don't need to know her name; just watching her from afar is enough. I'm happy just knowing she's alive...'
There was a time when he would dreamily murmur romantic thoughts to the moon.
However, human desires just keep growing.
As he kept visiting, Turney started to feel a sense of dissatisfaction.
(I want to know a little more about her... If only I could be looked at with those cold eyes again and be called 'fool'...)
Day by day, those feelings grew inside Turney.
Finally, one day, he made up his mind.
"First, I'll ask for her name! That should be okay."
With that big decision, Turney spent a few days carefully simulating the conversation in his head and then dashed out of his house.
He chose a time when there would be the fewest customers, just before evening.
Turney first walked back and forth in front of the bakery a few times to check the situation inside.
As expected, there were no other customers in the bakery that afternoon, and the ice beauty was sitting there at the counter.
"Alright, here I go...!"
Turney clenched his fist a little and entered the store.
The ice beauty greeted him with a flat "Welcome" without a smile.
(This unfriendly greeting is just like in the simulation... Now, I'll buy some bread like usual, and then casually ask for her name. I have to act like it's no big deal...)
Turney's heart raced.
His hand holding the bread trembled.
As he aimlessly wandered around the store, he finally mustered the courage to approach the counter.
The icy beauty who took the bread from Turney wrapped it up without changing her expression.
He was mesmerized by her long fingers carefully tying a brown string around the wrapping paper, almost forgetting his original purpose, but then he snapped back to reality and opened his mouth.
"Uh, um... You always work here, right? How long have you been at this store?"
"About a while."
"Oh, I see..."
An awkward silence fell.
Turney's delicate heart felt like it was about to break, but he had rehearsed for this.
He bravely opened his mouth again.
"Uh, do you have any recommendations?"
"Not really. All the bread is delicious."
"Oh, uh..."
Silence again.
Despite having simulated this situation countless times, cold sweat began to trickle down Turney's back.
(Yeah, it was totally impossible for someone like me to talk to such a beauty...)
Just as Turney started to think that, the icy beauty finished wrapping the bread and unexpectedly looked up at him.
"Well, while all the bread is delicious, shouldn't you try the fruit breads or sandwiches over there?"
"Uh...?"
"You always buy the same kind of bread, right? I'm worried your nutrition might be unbalanced."
Turney turned bright red and froze at her unexpected comment.
(She recognized my existence...! Plus, she even knows what I usually buy, and now she's worried about my health...)
Just moments ago, Turney was sweating from her cold demeanor, but now his heart soared.
It felt like he could float up to heaven.
(This is bad... I'm so happy I might faint...)
His heart raced like a drum in his chest, yet his mind was strangely blank.
Tears welled up in his eyes.
He almost stumbled but suddenly felt a gaze and snapped back to reality.
As he cautiously lifted her face, a tall man with golden eyes peeked through a slightly opened door behind the ice beauty.
His gaze was so intense it felt like he might shoot him at any moment.
(Whoa, that's scary!!)
The happy feeling he had just moments ago vanished instantly; his stare was filled with murderous intent.
He didn't know why, but it felt like he would definitely be killed if he stayed there any longer.
Like a frog caught in a snake's gaze, Turney trembled.
"I-I'll choose a fruit-flavored bread next time. Thanks! See ya!"
With that, Turney turned on his heel and left the bakery.
Even though the ice beauty called out to him, Turney didn't stop.
If he lingered there, that man might kill him.
No matter how much he wanted to talk to the ice beauty, his life was a bit more important.
The image of those golden eyes filled with malice replayed in his mind.
Now, the fear of that tall man overshadowed the joy of speaking with the ice beauty.
(I-I gotta hurry home!)
Checking to see if anyone was following him, Turney quickly turned the corner onto the main street.
And then──.
"Watch out!"
Someone shouted, and Turney looked up.
Right in front of him were 2 large horses pulling a carriage, charging straight at him.
He froze.
(I'm gonna get hit! This is──death...)
After the sharp whinny of the horses and the unpleasant sound of wheels clashing, the shadow of the tall man rushed past him, and a strong impact hit his body a moment later.
"Huh..."
Before he knew it, a brown-skinned man had effortlessly scooped him up in a princess carry and landed on the ground.
The bread he had just bought was safe too.
Behind them, the carriage driver yelled, "You gotta be more careful!" as the carriage passed by.
The passersby around them applauded the man's impressive rescue.
"Are you okay?"
A smooth voice came from above him.
The eyes looking down at him were sharp yet shining with a golden hue.
The man who helped Turney was a real looker.
His features were sharp, and even though his bangs were a bit messy, it gave him a wild charm.
Turney, despite being a guy, couldn't help but let out a weird "whoa" sound because he was just too handsome.
With a cool expression, the man quickly set Turney down on the ground and extended his palm towards him.
Caught off guard, Turney was surprised and fumbled around.
"Eh?"
"Come on, hand over the cash."
"Eh, I thought you saved me in a cool way, but you're shaking me down!?"
"Tch, who'd bother with something so annoying?"
The man's tone shifted from polite to blunt, mixed with a click of his tongue.
His perfectly chiseled face was so expressionless it was oddly intimidating, and with a rough tone like the guys from the slums, Turney was completely scared and teary-eyed.
Upon thinking it over, he recognized those golden eyes.
(Of all people, it's the one who was glaring at me behind that ice-cold beauty!)
This was the worst.
Just when he thought he had escaped, he made a huge blunder and got caught so easily.
Turney braced himself for death, but just then, he heard a loud voice from behind.
When he turned around, he saw the ice-cold beauty running towards him, out of breath.
Turney was shocked.
"Kaine, Kaine! You surprised me when you suddenly jumped out, but you did great!"
"Oh, my lady."
The tall man called Kaine straightened up and quickly fixed his hair, putting on a polite smile like a cat.
Turney's eyes widened at how fast he changed.
"Eh, is he a different person...?"
Before he could finish his thought, Kaine shot Turney a sharp glare, telling him to shut up.
Turney obediently fell silent.
"My lady, what happened to the shop?"
"Well, there was a loud noise. I got worried... wait, you! From earlier!"
The ice-cold beauty tilted her head, noticing Turney.
"You seemed flustered when you left the shop, but you didn't pay for the bread. I thought maybe something was up, so I didn't stop you..."
"Ah!"
Turney snapped his fingers.
Speaking of which, in his panic, he had rushed out of the store without paying for the bread.
"Uh, I'm so sorry! I was just spaced out!"
"It's alright. You're a regular, after all. I was planning to collect the payment next time you came in, you know?"
"Wow, you're so kind... an angel...?"
What he was thinking slipped out of his mouth without him realizing it.
At that moment, Kaine, who had been standing behind the icy beauty, shot a fierce glare at Turney, making him fumble and hand over some change to the icy beauty.
Receiving the bread money, the icy beauty reminded him, "You need to be careful when walking around," and then she gracefully returned to the bakery.
Turney watched her back with a dreamy expression.
(I always thought she was just a stuck-up girl because she's usually so cold, but she's totally different! She's the type with a gap, huh...? If we were dating, would she worry about me like that? That'd be the best──)
"──Ahem, excuse me."
Turney, lost in his daydream, was jolted back to reality by Kaine's low, displeased voice.
He looked up at Kaine, who was a head taller than him, his face pale.
The polite smile he had shown earlier was now replaced by a fierce, cold expression that made Turney feel dizzy.
It was like he was facing a completely different person.
Was this guy 2-faced or something?.
As Turney started to tremble, Kaine coldly stepped closer.
"I know all about you. Turney Brandy, the shoemaker apprentice."
"W-why do you know my name!?"
"Because every time you come to the bakery, you stare at the lady with inappropriate eyes. I keep track of all such miscreants, just in case."
"...Just in case, you keep track of everything?"
"Well, until now, I ignored it since there was no real harm, but today I couldn't overlook it. It's a serious matter that you spoke to her so rudely and almost caused an accident. What if her dreams turn bad because of you?"
"I-I'm sorry..."
"Consider this your last warning. If you pull something like this again, I'll come at you with everything I've got."
Though Kaine's words were polite, he snapped his fingers right in front of Turney and flashed a big smile.
The words and actions just didn't match up at all.
Turney nodded vigorously and bolted away from Kaine, heading home.
Without looking back, Turney rushed home, panting as he opened the front door.
(Does "crush" mean to physically crush something... or does it mean to socially crush it?)
Thinking it could be both sent a chill down Turney's spine.
That guy could definitely do either.
He had no idea what the deal was between Kaine and that icy beauty, but he knew for sure that Kaine cared for her deeply.
If he wanted to make that icy beauty his, he'd have to face that tall, mysterious guy named Kaine head-on.
"No way..."
Turney muttered to himself.
He wanted to be the boyfriend of that icy beauty from the bakery.
If only he could.
But still, life was precious, after all──.
"That icy beauty is just for looking at..."
He sighed, plopping down on the floor of his room.
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