The Strongest Man’s Fake Wife Wants to Live Chapter 34

He slightly lowered his head before continuing.

“Beryl is only treated as a precious gemstone when it is green—in other words, when it is emerald. Other colors, such as aquamarine, bixbite, and heliodor, are generally used for cheap jewelry worn by commoners. Even if they are cut and polished, nobles do not wear them.”

Hearing that, Pesha was reminded of the things she had passed over without a second thought.

She had spent her childhood buried in what Io had called ‘herbalism like playing in dirt,’ far removed from luxury, so she had never paid much attention to such things. But it was true that the types of gemstones commonly accepted in high society were limited.

“The standards are extremely conservative. The upper class considers only a few designated gemstones precious and treats the rest as inferior goods.”

The same went for the few accessories Pesha currently owned simply for appearances.

“Diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Other than these four…… if you wore them to a formal ball, you would actually be laughed at.”

Pesha looked down at the stone with a hollow expression.

The aquamarine still gave off its beautiful, refined blue hue.

‘They say gemstones are luxury goods used for socializing in the first place, but it would be such a waste to throw away or sell cheaply such high-quality beryl.’

Gemstone culture was a symbol of entrenched authority.

A deep-rooted prejudice had taken hold that no matter how beautiful something was, if it fell outside the accepted standards, it was not a gemstone.

What if she could change that?

After thinking deeply for a while, Pesha opened her mouth.

“Then we just have to have it cut beautifully enough that people won’t laugh at it.”

The jeweler raised his head with a surprised expression.

“Yes? My lady, you intend to use this?”

“Yes. For now, have it cut and polished as beautifully as possible. I have a use for it.”

 

***

 

“This really makes no sense!”

At Jane’s wail, which shattered the peaceful afternoon, Owen briefly took his eyes off his documents and raised an eyebrow.

He had come to say the same thing two days ago.

It was a complaint he had already become thoroughly accustomed to, so it no longer made much of an impression on him.

“My lord, are you really just going to stand by and watch?”

Owen picked up the documents again and replied dryly.

“What is the problem this time?”

“You must have heard about it before I did, my lord, right? Apparently, my lady is scouring the entire territory and gathering jewelers this time! She clearly said at first that she was going to plant trees!”

Owen lightly nodded.

“I know.”

Jane was horrified by Owen’s complete calm.

“You know and you’re still leaving her alone? All that talk about purifying the territory and planting trees is obviously just a smokescreen! I don’t know what she intends to do by gathering all those jewelers, but what if she interferes with our emerald or topaz business, our territory’s major exports?”

Owen casually turned the pages, responding half-heartedly.

“Seems her interests have expanded. It’s good that she’s taking an interest in things outside.”

Jane squeezed his eyes shut in despair.

“That’s not something you should look at so optimistically! Have you forgotten that Fulton also said my lady was suspicious, not just me?”

Even when Jane brought up the name of his adjutant, Fulton Taylor, Owen remained indifferent.

“You kept insisting so much that Fulton just gave you whatever answer would make you stop bothering him.”

At that, Jane thumped his chest in frustration.

“Honestly, my lord, don’t you find it strange too? There’s no way that greedy and arrogant Duke Rydell would willingly give up his daughter. The marriage is obviously just an excuse. She has to be an informant sent by the Emperor to spy on Swapro!”

Owen gave a vague nod as he sorted through the documents he had finished and those that remained.

“Right. The Emperor went so far as to marry off a woman of ducal rank just to spy on some mercenary who had been given a remote, miserable territory.”

“You don’t believe a single word I say, do you?”

Jane, bursting with indignation, declared that he hated his lord and would never again offer him sincere advice, then slammed the door shut as he left.

It would be nice if he really kept his mouth shut after that.

Just thinking about how he would come back tomorrow and repeat the same thing already gave Owen a headache.

Owen raised his eyes for a moment, then lowered them back to the documents and let out a quiet sigh.

It wasn’t that he had simply dismissed Jane’s words.

In fact, somewhere deep inside his heart, those words occasionally pricked him like a small thorn growing there.

Until now, Pesha Rydell had been someone beyond his reach, no matter how far he stretched out his hand.

He had thought she would probably remain that way for the rest of his life.

And yet, now she was living under the same roof as him.

When Owen first heard that Duke Rydell had accepted his marriage to his daughter, he thought it was either a joke or a scheme by the Emperor.

He had heard countless people warn him that there was no way the duke would so readily hand over his daughter, or ask why he would willingly walk into a trap.

But Owen did not care what price he had to pay.

Because in this insignificant life of his, she was the only thing he had ever desperately wished for.

He wanted to spend even a brief moment with her.

He wanted to be bound to her as family.

The problem was…… he could not make sense of Pesha’s actions at all.

He knew that wanting her heart after forcibly binding her to him under the pretext of marriage was a shameless kind of greed.

He knew that, but……

The more he saw her standing beside him, the more they talked, the more they lived together, the more he wanted.

He wanted to know more about Pesha, and he wanted to be a good person to her.

He wanted Pesha’s sincerity.

Even if she had rejected him outright the moment he was ordered to marry her, he would still have felt the same.

The longer he thought, the less he could sit quietly in his office.

He could hardly concentrate on the documents.

“Phew……”

His mind in disarray, he got up from his seat to get some air and stepped outside the office.

As Owen slowly headed toward the garden, he spotted a group of people gathered in the distance.

Pesha was at the center of them.

She stood alongside the soldiers, speaking with a serious expression.

Owen quietly looked at her gentle purple eyes, her flushed cheeks, and the slender nape of her neck peeking out.

What on earth was going through that little head of hers?

When had she gone from being dejected after being forcibly married to the man she had hated so much to bustling about from place to place, saying she would change the territory?

He had no idea what had caused such a change in her state of mind.

It was obvious that she was moving with some kind of purpose, but he could not for the life of him guess in which direction her thoughts had gone.

It was cute watching her busily running around on her own, but at the same time, he could not deny the uneasiness he felt.

He was afraid that she might suddenly disappear somewhere one day.

It was a strange thought.

It made no sense that she, who was already bound to him to spend the rest of their lives together, would suddenly disappear.

And yet, even so, he sometimes could not shake the anxiety that Pesha might suddenly leave.

She was only a few steps away, close enough for him to approach her, yet that short distance felt unbearably far.

Without realizing it, Owen clenched his fists tightly.

It was just as he was trying to shake off his tangled thoughts.

“My lady!”

He saw a young soldier hurry over and politely greet Pesha in front of her.

Judging by his face, he was a soldier Rebecca often took along when she was working.

Perhaps he had been assigned to Pesha for convenience, so that she could give orders to the soldiers more easily.

But there was something about the soldier’s attitude that bothered him.

For someone merely reporting on his duties, he was far too friendly and familiar.

Whatever the soldier said to her, Pesha burst into bright laughter.

The sound of her laughter pierced sharply into Owen’s ears.

It became difficult for him to remain still any longer.

Without thinking, he moved his feet and naturally slipped between them.

Owen spoke in a tone that tried its best to sound casual.

“Sounds like you were having an interesting conversation?”