This was the first time (Y/n) was there alone. Although to be fair, this would be the first time she would work there, at her new workplace. That's right, she left both the bar and the flower shop to venture into Kurva's proposal. She was scared, terrified of having made the wrong choice. But Kurva assured her that she would like it there; and that if she ever were to leave, with her new and more experience, she would have no problem finding a job better than that crusty bar. Even if the pay would never be as big as Kurva offered. That is also the main reason as to why (Y/n) decided to try. The incredible pay.
Needless to say, Kakashi wasn't quite fond of her decision. He found it astounding that she was even offered something like that. And even more crazy was to think that (Y/n) had agreed to it. He thought she simply didn't understand the type of work she was agreeing to do, and he was in all ways unable to tell or even hint to her about it. But of course, it wasn't his choice to make so he didn't really bother her much. Instead, he asserted his disagreement with snarky remarks here and there.
The thing is, that right now, as (Y/n) made her way through the empty and long halls of the building, she could feel herself becoming more and more anxious. Kurva promised her that she wouldn't do anything she wasn't comfortable with, but it still had her wondering what would specifically be her job.
"She's the girl I told you about," (Y/n) overheard Kurva's voice from behind the door of her office. Kurva had told her to meet her before her lunch with the clients so that she could further introduce any information needed, given that (Y/n) was completely in the dark. But after hearing Kurva's voice she figured she was meeting someone else, and therefore she decided to wait "She's a cute and naïve girl, perhaps too naïve..."
"It's not like you to regret a decision you make," this time a young man's voice sounded followed by his own melodic chuckle.
"I do not do such things. I have very much faith in my investment with her. I just wonder how she will face today's lunch" (Y/n) didn't intend to eavesdrop on Kurva's private conversation, but the more she overheard the more curious she was about the subject of their discussion. She had even started to lean closer to the door in her attempt at cleaner audio of the conversation.
"You need not worry, Kurva. You know all girls that started with me are now one of your greatest sources of income,"
"Indeed," she answered after a sigh. But (Y/n) couldn't quite catch what she said next.
There was suddenly a long silence that made (Y/n) lean against the door even more. Until, suddenly, the door moved. But it didn't disappear and made her fall, or simply glided to the side, no. It moved towards her face, bumping her right in the middle of her forehead. She tried to stand up and turn around, cheeks threatening to become red at the thought of Kurva thinking she was spying on her. But she wasn't able to flee. In fact, she was falling to the floor. Yet somehow, her arse never hit the floor. Instead, a slender hand caught her arm and secured her by her back preventing her from a messy fall.
She had closed her lids tight, already embracing herself for the strike. But when she opened them, she was met with very big enigmatic teal eyes. She blinked a few times, being blinded by the beauty of the person who saved her butt. 'Is it a guy or a girl?' she thought as she saw the blonde-ash long hair that fell onto their shoulder in a loose ponytail. It didn't throw any light on her question when she looked at their androgynous face. But one thing was for sure, this person reminded her of those heroes from traditional and ancient myths.
"Are you okay?" the voice sounded deep but with a smooth melody to it. (Y/n) made small but quick nods, still entranced by this person that she realized was indeed a guy after seeing his opulent and traditional robes. Not only that, but he seemed a young man of importance as well. She became even more embarrassed.
"I'm sorry," she separated, bowing immediately.
"It's alright," his smooth voice said again, gently pulling her up from her bowing position. And once again she became struck by his refined yet genuine soft smile "I wasn't careful" he added, looking intently at her. (Y/n) didn't realize his eyes were set on her as much as hers were on him, but after a long while of silence, she finally was aware of the weird situation. So once again, she bowed, apologizing for wasting his time, and quickly passed him by to get inside Kurva's office.
As soon as (Y/n) got into the office she was welcomed by Kurva who explained to her in more detail how would her first job be and what were the things she should have in mind. She explained to (Y/n) that Lina and she would have lunch with three very well-acquainted men. Although to be fair, only one of them was of importance.
"His name is Soo-Yun," she kept giving her the information she thought necessary "He is the young Lord of the Land of River" (Y/n) blinked twice not only astonished by such a title but also because she had heard of big lands such as the Land of Wind were Suna's ninja were, or the Land of Lightning where Kumo's ninja was. But never the Land of River "It's a smaller country but it's right between the Land of Wind and Fire border. Anyone that wants to go one way or another must pass the Land of River," Kurva explained, seeming to have caught on (Y/n)'s ignorance. How she did though, (Y/n) didn't know, as Kurva had been preparing tea since she entered her office, therefore not sparing a single glance to the (h/c)-haired girl "Soo-Yun's father died last year, so he became the youngest Lord of the continent being only 21-years-old. Many people still oppose him despite his Land's growth since he became the leader" she continued to explain, serving herself more tea "I won't tell you the real reason why they're here"
"What? Why?" (Y/n) asked with a dumbfounded expression. She didn't understand how she was to carry out her job without all the information. Although to be honest, she still wasn't quite sure of what she had to do.
"You're not experienced enough, so I believe if you knew you would be conditioned to act unnaturally. I think you have more chances of excelling by being yourself" she said, finally looking at (Y/n) with her usual cunning smile that made (Y/n) swallow. It also made her not insist further on knowing all the details.
"And what exactly do I have to do?" she finally asked.
"Just engage in the conversation whenever you're required to, pretty much like you saw last time," she said as if it was the simplest thing to do. But it didn't help ease (Y/n)'s nerves, in fact, she found herself even more unsure than before "The only thing you have to do is be yourself, and whenever you're not sure, copy what Lina does. She is there to assist you in case you need anything," was the only thing she added. But again, it didn't resolve any of (Y/n)'s doubts.
Was it too late to back down now? (Y/n) thought perhaps. But was she willing to prove she could do it? To prove Kakashi wrong, prove to his father her worth, and prove to herself that she was able to have a real job? Absolutely. So after a few more words were exchanged, Lina came to pick her up.
She instructed her to follow her and took her to a room in order to pick some clothes for her with the help of a bunch of chambermaids. At first, (Y/n) was scared about what they would make her wear. She remembered the outfit Lina wore last time when Kakashi and her watched her work, how slightly revealing it was... She didn't want to wear anything like that. But she relaxed as soon as they made her try a traditional yet fashionable kimono that went with her skin tone and even eye and hair color. It was then that she realized that Lina was wearing an outfit similar as well. Even if Lina's was a little bolder than hers, it still had an elegant air to it.
During all the time Lina didn't talk a lot, nor seemed to be willing to. But at the same time, she seemed nice and almost even excited to have (Y/n). So despite how intimidating her golden straight eyes were, (Y/n) found herself quite comfortable and safe with her around. Even though when the moment of meeting Soo-Yun and his men came she started to feel jittery again.
Both girls stood at the other side of the door. They could listen to the men chatting by the other side already which didn't help (Y/n)'s nerves. She was playing with the inside of her sleeves, touching the texture as a self-soothing method. Lina put her hand on her shoulder, giving her a smirk that should have reassured (Y/n) but did the contrary, and finally knocked on the door.
In less than a few minutes the door opened, and (Y/n) could feel her breath leaving her body when the man in front of her inspected them both.
"Ah, Lina!" he greeted the girl by her side.
"Long time no see, Gye" the brunette to (Y/n)'s side said, pulling out her hand to him. The man, who was tall and had messy short black hair held her hand and laid a kiss on it before turning his attention to (Y/n) who swallowed nervously under his inquiring teal eyes.
"I think Soo-Yun mentioned something about another girl," he smiled at her which made her loosen up slightly. (Y/n) nodded, managing to put on a kind smile.
"My name is (Y/n), I'm honored to meet you," she said slightly bowing down.
"Please, there's no need for that," Gye smiled, stepping aside to let the two girls in.
He closed the door right behind her, and Lina immediately walked near the table sitting next to another man. Unlike (Y/n), whose eyes had been set on what she supposed was Soo-Yun. Her mind screamed, making her die from embarrassment when she saw the same blonde and majestic guy from earlier who she had so shamelessly bumped into and made a fool of herself. He looked back at her but made a warm closed-eye smile.
"Come sit?" Gye asked unsure when he realized (Y/n) wasn't moving. She snapped out of her trance, and even more embarrassed proceeded to sit on the free place saved for her: between Soo-Yun and Gye.
Immediately after, Gye served Lina and her a cup of tea so that they could join them with the amazing and full lunch they had on the round table. Both girls muttered a low 'thank you' as they tasted the warm and mild tea.
"I still believe that the more a person waits the more likely it is for the situation to become uncontrollable," the third man whose name (Y/n) still didn't know spoke, not paying much attention neither to Lina nor her "No matter how hard you try to find a solution, sometimes there simply aren't that many choices to make"
(Y/n) didn't know what he was talking about, probably on purpose. But she still observed the man as she drank from her warm and relaxing tea. He had uneven dark eyes with very short and thick eyebrows, and his also dark hair was in a buzz cut. However, even though (Y/n) didn't know what he was talking about, she did see the tone of urgency he spoke with. Almost as if he was urging Soo-Yun to listen to him. So (Y/n) looked to her right, where Soo-Yun sat with his elbow leaning over his knee.
She became struck by his beauty once again, but she quickly paid attention to something else, more specifically his calm demeanor in contrast with the man's seriousness. Soo-Yun's lips were in a thin upward line even.
"You are the one making a big deal of it, Bunta," it was Gye who talked instead of Soo-Yun.
"Am I?" he asked back with a frown. (Y/n) swallowed when she realized she was almost done with her tea, realizing she wouldn't know what to do once she wasn't busy with her cup. Especially seeing the conversation seem rather intimate and of some private importance she didn't dare to take part in. She looked at Lina, who sat graciously next to Gye, with a courteous smile as she tried a snack from the table "A fisher that doesn't know when to pull his fishing rod will end up without fish and bait" he said, but Gye just laughed at his words, unnerving him more.
"An a fisher who pulls his fishing rod too soon will end up with no fish either, you should trust my cousin more" Gye said. And meanwhile, Soo-Yun drank from his tea with a subtle smile.
"With no fish, but at least he would have a bait"
"You have to try these," Gye ignored Bunta as he picked a snack and put it on Lina's lips.
She smiled widely and thanked him, getting closer to him. (Y/n) blushed at the sight, fearing she had to do that too. But she was in no way or form ready or willing to do it. Besides, who should she approach? Soo-Yun? 'No way' she thought. Luckily for her, Gye was too enthralled with Lina, and Soo-Yun paid the same attention to her as he did to his subordinate.
"Many years ago," Soo-Yun suddenly said after a while of silence, catching everyone's attention, especially (Y/n). She had forgotten just how mellow his voice sounded "there was a village in the middle of the forest," he seemed to start telling some story, which only caught (Y/n) more off-guard "There lived a farmer whose misfortune had led him to owe a big sum of money to one of his neighbors. The man he owned the money to was old and ugly, but he had fancied the farmer's beautiful daughter for very long. So he proposed a bargain to the farmer"
Everyone had stopped eating and drinking to pay attention to Soo-Yun's intriguing story. Although perhaps it was his tone and way of telling it that made it captivating.
"The neighbor said that he would forget the farmer's debt if he could marry the farmer's daughter," he continued explaining, looking at Bunta and then at (Y/n) who was so absorbed in the matter and purpose of the story that didn't even realize his teal eyes were on her "Both daughter and father were horrified by the proposal, so the farmer suggested a change in the proposal. He said that they would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty money bag, and his daughter would pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become his wife and her father's debt would be forgiven. If she picked the white pebble she wouldn't marry him and her father's debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick the pebble, her father would be thrown into jail"
(Y/n)'s eyes widened at such a suggestion from the father. She couldn't understand why a father would still go on with a bargain that had his daughter as an object. Although giving it a second thought, the idea didn't sound that crazy when she thought of her own father.
"And so, as they were standing on a pebbled path near the farmer's field, the neighbor bent over to pick up two pebbles. As he picked them up, the sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles that he quickly put into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from inside" Soo-Yun kept explaining. By now Gye was paying more attention to his sake than his cousin's story, and Bunta simply wondered where he was going with the story. Lina and (Y/n) both listened dutifully, although (Y/n) was the only one who actually seemed rather involved in the story "Now, imagine that you were standing in the field," he this time addressed (Y/n) whose eyes widened slightly when their gazes met. He still wore an assertive smile "What would you have done if you were the girl?" He seemed to ask her with curious eyes "If you had to advise her, what would you have told her?" He now addressed Bunta.
"She doesn't have that many options," Bunta answered "She either refuses to take a pebble, she exposes the cheat of her neighbor, or picks a black pebble sacrificing herself in order to save her father from debt and imprisonment"
"Perhaps, if we follow logical thinking. After all, the neighbor is the one who has the bag with pebbles. Even if she were to expose him, it would be as easy as changing the pebbles rendering her as a lier" Bunta sighed, unwillingly giving up on whatever his Lord was asking of him.
"She should cheat as well," (Y/n) suddenly said "I mean, if the neighbor can cheat, then so can she" Soo-Yun's smile widened ever so slightly.
"How so? What ought she do, then?" He asked her, but she sweatdropped.
"I haven't thought of a way yet," she admitted. Soo-Yun chuckled.
"You are not that wrong, actually. This is what she did," he resumed with the story "The daughter put her hand into the bag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebbled path where it immediately became lost among all other pebbles. Then she said: 'How clumsy of me. But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which one I picked'"
"You make a great imitation of a woman, cousin," Gye laughed, drinking from his cup of sake. Lina covered her smile and Bunta gave him a disapproving look as cousin or not, Soo-Yun was still his Lord and should be treated with respect. However, the prince didn't seem to care and continued with his unwavering smile.
"Since the remaining pebble is black," Soo-Yun continued to explain normally "it was assumed that she picked the white one. And since the neighbor dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one"
"That's a very interesting story, my Lord. But I still don't understand how this girl's feat has anything to do with what we have at hand" Bunta expressed his impatience.
"The moral of the story is to not trust innocent-looking girls," Gye said, eating a chunk off a chicken leg "That's why I prefer more feisty women"
"You know that first-hand don't you?" Bunta mocked him with tired eyes. Gye's eyebrow twitched and he almost even dropped his chicken leg.
"You— !"
"The moral of the story is," Soo-Yun began, calming his cousin and his subordinate "that there is always more ways. Complex problems do have a solution, they just require more thought and less impatience" he explained, although it didn't seem to please Bunta much.
"Work smart, not hard," (Y/n) muttered, still thinking about the story.
"Precisely," Soo-Yun smiled directly at her, causing an unconscious blush to creep up (Y/n)'s cheeks.
"I would think like that," Bunta refuted "if it were a small problem. But we're talking about an imminent dilemma with repercussions for many people" again, he seemed rather anxious, but Soo-Yun remained the complete opposite.
"That is exactly why, Bunta. This matter we have at hand requires thorough consideration and examination. Just like a match of go... " he left the sentence mid-ways as he looked around the room, in thought "Lina, is there a board of go somewhere?" She smiled and nodded, stood up, and left the room for a few minutes "Say, (Y/n)," once again he addressed the (h/c)-haired girl. And although his vibrant teal eyes still made her breath get caught up in her throat, she was now considerably less tense than before "Do you know how to play go?" She could feel her cheeks heat up again when the answer was negative. But Soo-Yun seemed neither disappointed nor bothered by her answer and when Lina came back with the board he started to set it.
"My Lord," Bunta interrupted his chat with (Y/n). Meanwhile, Lina and Gye had a chat of their own with alcohol, giggles, and subtle innuendo in between "A match of go—" he began to complain
"Is the perfect way to cleanse your mind. And a clearer mind is a resourceful mind" Soo-Yun replied "play with me" he said to his subordinate after setting up the board. Bunta sighed but did as he was told, and sitting down in front of him he placed the first piece right in the middle "(Y/n)," Soo-Yun called her as he placed his white piece "pay attention, you'll play against me afterward"
"What—" was (Y/n)'s genuine answer, with wide eyes and all. Her earnest reaction made Soo-Yun chuckle lightly.
But (Y/n), who was set on not disappointing him as a client, immediately focused on what was happening on the board. Only to realize she did not understand anything about the game. She once heard the game's objective was to surround your opponent's pieces. But then, Soo-Yun made a move, and Bunta's pieces were taken away, and whenever she thought Bunta had surrounded him, it was his pieces again that got taken away. And so, as soon as she thought she was starting to grasp the concept, something happened that made her just as clueless as before.
"Pardon my asking," Soo-Yun said after a while of silence that was only interrupted by Lina's giggles and Gye's boasting of battles and fights "but why did you decide to work here?" Soo-Yun asked (Y/n). But she was so focused on the brain-wracking game that it took her a few moments to realize the question was directed to her.
"I used to work in a bar," (Y/n) started, unsure of what to say as she herself still didn't have it clear "and Lady Kurva offered me this opportunity" Soo-Yun even took the liberty to give her a side-glance instead of watching the game. Unlike Bunta who seemed tormented by the game, seeing he was losing to someone who wasn't even paying his full attention to the game "I wasn't too sure at first," (Y/n) answered with honesty again, something that provoked a curve in Soo-Yun's lips.
"And what do you say now?" he asked her. She looked at the ceiling, pondering everything that happened and was happening.
"I think it's definitely better than the bar," she let go of a small chuckle without realizing that any trace of stiffness she felt before had now disappeared. In fact, she felt so comfortable next to him that she almost even forgot she was actually working.
Soo-Yun didn't say anything else, and (Y/n) continued to sit next to the boy, intently watching the game as she tried to decipher what was happening. However, luckily for her, when it was her turn to play, their time was up, and so the three men had to leave. Lina and she also left the room for it to be cleaned and inspected, but Lina left somewhere unknown while (Y/n) headed to Kurva's office.
Once there the older woman asked her typical questions. How she felt, what she thought, if she had been comfortable, and any other inquiry that followed the procedure. And to all of them, (Y/n) answered surprisingly positively. Even more when Kurva handed her the pay right there: 300 just for today. Kurva smiled at her reaction and told her she would contact her soon for her next job. And so, (Y/n) was so stunned and happy for the sudden money she just earned, that when she left the place she barely noticed that Kakashi wasn't waiting outside for her. She knew he wouldn't be there, he was out on a mission after all, and would probably not be there in time. But she at least expected to miss him waiting for her like he used to do at the bar. Besides, she kind of hoped he would ask about how it went, or at least she wanted to talk to him about it.
She only realized the lack of his only close friend when she walked for a while. She felt so weird, not only from having so much money on her, but from the lunch, she had with Lina and the men. It was weird, she felt so comfortable there, and found Soo-Yun so kind and magnificent —'Obviously, he's a Lord' she thought to herself— that it felt weird to think that she would never see them again. Yet oddly enough, she was in a pretty good mood. So much in fact, that instead of going straight home she decided to walk around the village for a while. And sooner than expected, she found something worth snooping around. Or better, said a voice that came from further down the neighborhood.
Hii I want to post the next chapter soon because Kakashi didn't appear in this one :') But right now I do not have free time at all, so sorry in advance if it takes a little bit longer than I'd like to. Also, I have a very visual idea of how I envision Kurva, Lina, and Soo-Yun, but I don't know if you prefer to see the pictures or prefer to have the image of your mind.