#023. Give Me That Horse. I’ll Buy It for a Hundred Gold Coins.
“Give me that horse. I’ll take it for a hundred gold coins. Sir Fluke, the checkbook.”
“W-Wait a moment!”
The horse dealer waved his hands frantically, his face pale. If the offer had been around ten gold coins, he might’ve tried to haggle a bit for a higher price. But being offered twenty times that amount rendered him completely speechless, unable to scheme anything.
“E-Even so, I can’t possibly accept that amount! Five gold coins… no, ten! Yes, I’ll accept ten gold coins. That’s already more than what a good thoroughbred goes for. I’d be making a profit, and Your Grace would be saving money too—so wouldn’t that be best for everyone? So—”
“Hey.”
The Grand Duke spoke in a flat tone.
“Y-Yes?”
“If you don’t need it, you can just cash the check and toss ninety coins on the street. Or go to one of those loan sharks and sell the check for ten gold coins if you prefer. If you dislike a hundred coins, adjust it however you want. Royalty doesn’t stoop to haggling. Now then, Sir Fluke.”
Perhaps the knight also felt sympathy for the dealer, as his hand trembled while presenting the checkbook. The Grand Duke calmly filled out the check as he spoke.
“I didn’t bring enough cash, so I’ll have to pay with a check. It would be difficult to vacate the shop, so I’ll send someone today to retrieve it. We’ll also collect the horse then, so please keep it safely stored until then.”
With his small hand, the Grand Duke handed over a check for an absurdly large sum. The dealer, visibly shaking, reached out and accepted it as though he might faint at any moment.
“Well, the shopping ended earlier than I expected. Shall we head to a café?”
Though it had been my request, his calm tone felt surreal coming from someone who had just spent a hundred gold coins.
I answered evenly.
“If Your Grace desires it.”
I had something I needed to ask the Grand Duke anyway, so this was a good opportunity.
Sure, I had lost my mind momentarily over that unexpected masterpiece of a horse, but there was absolutely no reason for the Grand Duke to buy me a horse twenty times more expensive than promised. We weren’t close enough for that kind of generosity.
So I had to ask. What did I owe him in return for that extra nineteen-fold expense?
The café the Grand Duke took me to was adorably quaint. Someone in their late teens or early twenties might be delighted by the place, but for someone who was three—or even sixty-five—it would simply be, “Oh, what a cute building.”
“My sister-in-law said this place is very popular among the young noble kids lately. She wanted to visit with my brother, but he’s always so busy… So we’ll enjoy it for them and pack something nice to bring back later.”
If the Empress wanted to visit with the Emperor, wasn’t this clearly a date spot? And yet he brought a girl here. If he did this without even realizing the implications, he’d become quite the lady-killer in about ten more years.
“This way, please.”
It seemed he had made a reservation, as a staff member guided us inside. Looking around, I saw the exact age group I expected based on the café’s exterior—young nobles gathered around chatting.
Maybe I should’ve suggested we talk back at the palace instead. I scurried between the curious glances being thrown our way. Having short legs meant I had to take twice as many steps to cover the same distance. It was exhausting.
We arrived at a room enclosed on all sides.
“I figured a private room would be better for conversation.”
His intentions might’ve been different, but I was still relieved. We were too young to be sitting out in public like this.
Ah, if only I could be exactly fifteen years older. At around eighteen, I could pretend to be a precocious genius. That would make blending in anywhere a lot easier.
But being three years old… no matter how hard I tried, there was no way to fit in with adults.
It wasn’t so noticeable back at the palace, but now that we were out in public, I could feel just how limiting my young age was. This wasn’t even an adult venue—just a trendy spot for the youth—and yet I still drew attention.
“May I take your order?”
“We’ll go with the patissier’s recommendation. Two drinks, three desserts. Oh, and we have an escort knight and coachman outside—please bring the recommended menu to them as well.”
“Understood.”
While I was lost in my own frustration, he ordered without even looking at the menu. In my previous life, I’d never been to a place like this in my youth, so I was honestly curious what they even served.
But since the Grand Duke was paying, I didn’t argue. I’d find out the names when the food arrived.
Once the server left, I spoke.
“So. What is it that you want from me, Your Grace?”
The Grand Duke rested his chin on the table—slightly too tall for his age—and let out a small chuckle.
“I want the patissier’s recommendation.”
I smiled calmly. If he wanted to joke around, I could play along.
“Shall I sneak into the kitchen and eavesdrop? I’m small enough that they probably won’t notice me.”
“Ahahaha.”
His high-pitched laugh echoed briefly in the room. I sat still, waiting for the laughter to fade and for his gaze to return to me.
That’s how it always is. When talking to someone of higher status, you never push. You move at their pace.
“So, why did you suddenly decide to take action?”
“Because…”
There was nothing on the table yet except water. I focused my eyes on the glass as I continued.
“…I asked for more than what was promised.”
It’s better to give generously and repay debts quickly. The longer a debt lingers, the more interest it accrues. So it’s best to at least have a repayment plan in place by the end of the day.
“Ninety-five gold coins?”
He subtracted the original five promised and nailed the point. A man who understands such nuance… He could make a very good business partner—regardless of whether he liked me or not.
“Yes.”
“I didn’t expect you to care about that. If so, wouldn’t it have been better to just buy it for one silver coin?”
“As I said before, valuable things should be treated with value. If you buy something cheaply through deception, it cheapens its worth.”
That was something I learned in my previous life. Everything should be paid for according to the value I place on it—whether it’s an object, a person, or an animal. Think about it.
If I tell a stablehand to take good care of a horse, which do you think he’ll treat more preciously—’This was bought for one silver coin but it’s actually a great horse,’ or ‘This horse is worth a hundred gold coins’?
Valuable things deserve proper respect—and that includes how they’re priced.
“Well then.”
The Grand Duke removed his hand from under his chin.
“That’s an interesting perspective.”
“Your mango juice, strawberry milk, tri-color macarons, ganache cake, and soufflé pancakes are here. We’ll bring out the food for your companions shortly.”
Right on cue, the order arrived. We waited for the server to set everything and leave before picking up our forks.
“Let’s talk while we eat.”
Normally, someone would tense up at those words and put the fork back down—but I took it literally. I sipped the mango juice and cut into a pancake.
“It’s true that ninety-five gold coins was an unexpected expense—but that’s not your concern.”
Even if the amount wasn’t a big burden for the Grand Duke, nineteen times the original promise was no small leap.
“Like I told that dealer, this is about royal pride. A Grand Duke can’t bargain. I said I’d buy you a horse—not a five-coin horse. Demanding change just because the actual cost was higher than expected would be disgraceful.”
“So you don’t see it as a difference I have to repay?”
The Grand Duke shrugged while sipping his strawberry milk.
“Exactly. This wasn’t for you. Even if you weren’t involved, if I went shopping and saw a horse I liked priced at that amount, I still would’ve bought it.”
Most people would use that logic to justify a debt—but he flipped it. Since he would’ve done it for himself anyway, he didn’t consider it a debt when done for someone else. A truly unique way of calculating obligations.
But if that was the case, something didn’t add up.
“Then… why did we come here?”
I thought we came to settle accounts. But if he never saw it as a debt to begin with, why bring me—a toddler, at that—to a café meant for older kids to drink mango juice and strawberry milk?
I felt my question was entirely reasonable, yet the Grand Duke’s expression twisted oddly. It was like he was thinking, “I can’t believe I’m talking to an idiot.”
“I told you—shopping ended too quickly.”
I probably made a similar face myself. If the shopping ended early… then go home early? What did that have to do with coming here?
He realized the disconnect in our conversation and let out a small sound of realization.
“Oh, you’re wondering why we had to spend time here? Didn’t I tell you earlier—my sister-in-law asked me to take care of you.”
She asked him? I searched my memory. Ah, right. He did say she asked him to look after me. But I thought that was just about picking out a good horse.
My confusion only grew. I bit down on my lip.
Seeing my expression, the Grand Duke’s face twisted again—this time not like he thought I was stupid, but rather hopelessly slow.
