The One and Only Sami Chapter 24

Was it the lingering shyness in his eyes? Or had he truly become a man in that short span? Antar had asked him a question almost without thinking, but after talking like this, he still didn’t get the feeling that Sami was fully mature.

He was nearly twenty, yet Antar didn’t know what to do with a boy who still seemed so adorable. Even though he wanted to treat him like a proper adult now that he’d come of age, Antar ultimately couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle Sami’s hair.

“Once the sun sets, take a break from your work and clear your mind. …I’d told myself I would stop treating you like a child. You’re a grown man now, but to me, you’re still like a gentle little brother.”

Sami found himself at a loss for words. Master Antar, who was currently treating him like a brother whose head needed patting, wouldn’t know in his wildest dreams. He wouldn’t know that this very “boyish” youth had, in the early hours of this morning—the very moment he crossed the threshold into adulthood—been covered in another man’s fluid from his lips and mouth down to his throat, his navel, and between his thighs.

It was a fact that even Sami himself found hard to believe.

“It really must have been a dream…”

Being scolded by the Housekeeper and having the Master pat his head—this felt like the most ‘real’ reality. One doesn’t just transform overnight because they turned twenty. It was that dawn spent tangling bodies with Razard that was the truly bizarre part.

Sami moistened his dry lips as he bowed to Antar.

Even without time to settle his confused heart, the time for the banquet drew ever closer.

Just as Master Antar and the Housekeeper had arranged, Sami finished his morning chores and began preparing for tomorrow’s entry into the fortress.

When the seamstresses heard that Sami was going to the palace, they vowed to show off their skills, tailoring high-quality clothes to fit his frame perfectly. They even called in a street barber to trim Sami’s hair neatly.

“I’m dying of jealousy, seriously.”

Hibi shot Sami a look and gave his waist a sharp slap. Drawing his back straight at the stinging pain, Sami rubbed his aching spine and grumbled.

“That hurts…”

“You have to stand up straight so I can tie the knot pretty.”

Helping him dress, Hibi used her nimble hands to pull Sami’s belt tight. As she adjusted the pleats to be long and slender for a better fit, the silhouette of his baggy trousers—previously as rumpled as a discarded bean pod—became voluminous and sharp.

“The banquet starts at night, so I picked out light-colored clothes. If I put you in dark ones, only your eyes would be floating around in the dark.”

He wore a belt cut from fine cloth, and the edges of his new vest were detailed with the intricate embroidery popular these days.

“Does it suit me?”

Sami flailed his arms and turned back and forth so Hibi could get a good look. Watching him closely, Hibi pressed her lips together and nodded.

“Yeah.”

The vest, dyed red and embroidered with blue thread, looked lavish despite being lightweight. Paired with the white, billowy trousers underneath, he looked like a boy hero out of an adventure tale.

“You could set off to find a magic lamp looking like that.”

The story of the boy seeking the lamp was one of Hibi and Sami’s favorites. Sami rubbed the bridge of his nose in embarrassment.

“I heard you’re the one carrying the offering to Harut?”

To keep the look from being ruined, Hibi used a large peacock feather to brush dust off Sami’s clothes. Standing awkwardly with his arms spread since he wasn’t used to such treatment, Sami nodded.

“Yeah, my job is to carry the silk box with the jewels. They said it’s made by weaving together gems from the mountains and gems from the sea. It’s incredibly precious.”

“You’re always so spaced out. Will you really be able to carry an offering to Harut like that?”

“I can do it. It’s the job the Master entrusted to me.”

His tone was surprisingly firm, unlike the usual lukewarm Sami. Hibi stared at his face intently before finally nodding.

Well, this fellow had always done exactly what he was told, and done it well. There was a reason Housekeeper Harna entrusted him with so many tasks. She thought that if he kept growing like this, he might even become the next Housekeeper—provided he stopped making those weird mistakes he’d been making lately.

“Well, you’re just kneeling and opening a box, so you won’t mess that up.”

This was a posture Salif’s servants had practiced since they were young. Sami repeatedly mimicked the motion of opening the box for Hibi to see. His movements were deft and confident, a silent guarantee that there would be no errors.

“They say Harut is fickle and arrogant. I heard he throws people who offend him to his favorite pets as food.”

What gossip wouldn’t be told when the subject isn’t there? A fearless Hibi whispered into Sami’s ear.

“Don’t scare me. They only say those things to tease us.”

“You say that because you don’t know how eccentric the high-and-mighty can be. …Still, it must be nice. I saw so many flower wagons heading into the castle today. It’s going to be so beautiful and grand, right?”

“I’ll be sure to tell you all about it after I see it.”

“You have to look long enough so the story sticks to your tongue.”

“Okay.”

Hibi and Sami looked at each other sheepishly and broke into playful giggles.

Sami wasn’t worried at all.

He would be coming back after the banquet anyway, and then he would have so much to tell Hibi about everything he saw.

When night fell, the lights illuminating the fortress shone white and brilliant.

“Sami, watch carefully and follow me.”

“Yes, sir.”

Sami, who had been staring around in awe, snapped to attention at Antar’s voice and scurried close to his side.

The fortress was full of wonders starting right from the gate. Twin giants, far larger than three Samis put together, guarded the palace gates with spears as tall as themselves. The pressure they exerted was so immense that while Antar showed the gold medallion used as an invitation, Sami didn’t even dare to breathe loudly.

Once past the gate, guards in red turbans patrolled in perfect lines, the sound of their snapping collars echoing as they marched in unison.

Sami clutched the belongings he brought to serve Antar and looked around. Between shrubs with long, drooping leaves, he saw a fountain spewing bright light. The fountain, gushing clear water, shimmered constantly; the shifting petals and light reflecting on the ripples looked like a beaded curtain made of jewels.

The scene was magnificent in itself, but the banquet was so lavish that it used such a fountain merely as a backdrop.

Watching beautiful dancers in clothes so thin and airy that their pale skin peeked through, one couldn’t help but be entranced.

The clear, tickling sound of instruments with thin metal plates being struck and shaken lingered in his ears. The dancers’ garments, as delicate as dragonfly wings, fluttered softly near the fountain while an acrobat nearby breathed fire.

“Wow…”

Sami jumped back, startled by the flames shooting into the air.

Forgetting his mouth was hanging wide open, he watched the acrobat’s dizzying skill blankly before inching forward again. A strange, rustling sound came from beneath the soles of his sandals. Looking down, he saw that—though he didn’t know how it was done—water was trickling beneath a floor that was transparent.

“Wo… woah…”

The floor, shining white and transparent as if molded from salt and sugar, was as lovely as crystal. He was almost afraid to step on it and flinched back.

He had vowed not to act like a country bumpkin since he came as the Master’s attendant, but seeing the castle scenery that crossed from grand into the mystical, his carefully maintained composure crumbled like sand.

“There are so many amazing things.”

Antar also smiled with a dazed expression, as if he hadn’t expected it to be this grand. At Antar’s words, Sami snapped back to his senses. Embarrassed at having spaced out, he quickly corrected his posture and bowed his head. But even with his head down, the lights illuminating the castle were so bright that his blushing face was clearly visible.

The lights. Lamps were placed everywhere as if to ensure no corner of the banquet was left in shadow, radiating a brilliant glow.

The lamps, decorated with pieces of colored glass cut into diamond shapes, each cast a multifaceted light. The embossed pillars, like woven rugs, showed their patterns even more clearly under the lamp light, tracing new silhouettes like a fresh painting with every step Sami and Antar took.

“It feels like I’m in another world.”

“I heard this is Harut’s taste this time. They say he loves special things and keeps them nearby to enjoy.”

“At this rate, a tiger or a lion might even jump out, sir.”

“Hmm.”

Moving away from the noisy fountain, they could finally whisper to each other. Sami huddled close to Antar and whispered. It was meant as a joke, but…

“He’s right over there.”