FMV 07

Chapter: 07

As Leonard had said, as someone who helped with her father’s workshop, Aurelia’s duty was to sell instruments to anyone who wanted to buy them in exchange for a suitable price.

The fact that there wasn’t a single thing wrong with what he had said only made Aurelia feel even more upset.

“You can play it as much as you want. Mr. Deimus will need to play several instruments himself before he can make a decision, too.”

Since there was nothing wrong with Leonard’s words, David had no choice but to coax and persuade Aurelia. Perhaps it was also because he didn’t understand why Aurelia, who always greeted customers with a bright expression no matter what the circumstances, was acting so sulkily today.

In the end, at David’s words, Aurelia suppressed her dissatisfaction and began climbing the ladder.

‘It’s not that I don’t want to admit that Mr. Deimus is right.’

She knew his words were correct, but she simply didn’t want to hand it over to him.

She didn’t want this violin, which was precious to her, to become nothing more than an ordinary violin to him, something that held little value.

As if proving that feeling, she dragged her feet with every movement she made to retrieve the violin.

Even though she knew that, in this cramped vault, no matter how slowly she moved, it wouldn’t take long before the violin ultimately ended up in Leonard’s hands.

“As I said, this violin wasn’t made by a skilled craftsman.”

Leonard, who received the violin, merely gave a small nod at David’s words.

Since it hadn’t been made by someone with proper training, it was only natural that it would be crude and poorly made.

When the bow held in Leonard’s neat hand touched the strings, a delicate and intricate sound soon echoed throughout the vault.

“I didn’t know you could play a piece like this….”

Of course, since the person playing was famous for being able to perform any sheet music perfectly, his performance was flawless.

Even though the piece he played was merely a practice piece that young children would play when they first began learning the violin.

“I’ll take this violin. I think it will suit my upcoming recital well.”

Naturally, it wasn’t an instrument capable of producing an exceptionally beautiful sound.

It could produce delicate and intricate tones, but there was an unmistakable awkwardness and incompleteness to it.

Yet to Leonard, that imperfection was an advantage.

He didn’t know what kind of beginner had made the instrument, but whoever had created it must have had a delicate temperament.

‘The next violin they make will probably be capable of producing an even more delicate sound.’

That was why Leonard had deliberately chosen this violin, which seemed unlikely to attract anyone else’s attention.

There were countless instrument makers in the world who could truly be called ‘masters.’

And Leonard had always played violins of the finest quality, instruments that surpassed even the highest standards made by master craftsmen.

“There are many better violins.”

“No. This one is enough.”

The clumsiness hidden among the delicacy stood out unusually clearly, like a child who had lost their way.

It was undoubtedly the first step of someone who might one day become an instrument maker of considerable renown.

It was more than satisfactory for him to present it at his first recital in Zerphium.

“No.”

Unlike Leonard, whose lips curved smoothly upward at being satisfied with the imperfect sound produced by the instrument, Aurelia looked as though she might burst into tears at any moment.

No, it wasn’t merely that she looked as though she might cry. Tears had already welled up in her green eyes, like rain falling upon a forest filled with lush greenery.

‘I don’t want to cry.’

Even though she knew that having her violin purchased by him was quite an honor, the hardships and effort she had poured into making that violin—

and even the dreams she had dreamed while making it—

were simply too precious for her to hold back the tears that were rushing forward.

“In fact, that violin was the first one this child ever completed. Just as a first is precious to everyone, it was the first violin she made with her own hands, so naturally she grew quite attached to it. Aurelia, you have an errand to run. Mr. Felton will be arriving soon, so I want you to check the condition of the wood and settle the payment.”

In the end, David sent Aurelia, who looked as though she might start crying at any moment, out of the vault.

After all, men generally tended to find women’s tears troublesome and irritating.

Having left the vault at her father’s words, Aurelia finally let the tears she had been holding back spill down her cheeks.

‘Why does everyone keep doing the opposite of what I want?’

She had entered the Zerphium Conservatory because she didn’t want to waste the talent she possessed as a pianist and because playing the piano made her so happy.

From the moment she entered until now, she had never once lost the top position, so Aurelia’s dream of becoming a pianist was not merely some ordinary arrogance.

“I wasn’t even asking for that much.”

The vault door couldn’t block out Aurelia’s sobs.

Inside the vault, Leonard found the awkward silence and the woman’s crying that seeped through it extremely unpleasant.

The way his brows had drawn together and his lips had twisted upward made it painfully obvious just how displeased he was.

“Mr. Bernhard. As you already know, I’m an extremely busy person.”

“Yes. How could I not know?”

Therefore, he wanted to stop both the unnecessary argument and the childish woman’s crying.

He couldn’t understand why someone who was paying his own money to purchase an instrument had to be the one feeling uncomfortable.

“I’ll purchase this one and that violin over there as well. Two violins in total.”

“But….”

“Of course, this crude violin will never appear in my future recitals. I can’t possibly stand on stage holding a crude violin made by someone who isn’t a master craftsman, or even a skilled craftsman, and who made it for the first time.”

Of course, it was true that he felt disappointed.

Putting aside the fact that it was the first work made by a woman he had disliked from their very first meeting, this instrument was a perfect fit for the recital he was currently planning.

It was special because it was different from anything he had handled until now, and that was why he couldn’t completely shake off his disappointment.

‘A woman’s first work.’

Of course, there was no rule saying that a woman couldn’t become an instrument maker, but there were several conditions that made it difficult to give her much credit.

Regardless of his disappointment, what was lacking was still lacking.

“I have a temperament that makes me insist on possessing whatever I want. And this is the first time someone has ever tried to stop me from obtaining something I want.”

Leonard paused for a moment and looked around at the countless violins inside the vault.

As expected, no matter how many times he looked, there was nothing else that tempted him more than the one currently in his hands.

“There isn’t only one workshop in Zerphium that deals with violins, is there?”

Even if it sounded cowardly, he couldn’t help it.

For the first time, there was something he wanted badly enough that he would have been willing to sell everything he had been born with just to possess it.

He still didn’t know whether what he wanted was the dream of a child who knew nothing of the world, or the violin itself.

“I’ll pay you generously. If you want, I can pay twice the price of the most expensive violin here, or even more, so I’d appreciate it if you could make your decision as quickly as possible.”

At Leonard’s words, which drove the final nail into the coffin, David seemed to ponder for a moment before eventually nodding.

There probably weren’t many people who could refuse when someone was offering to purchase two violins and was even willing to pay a higher price for them.

‘With that money, I could even put a piano in Lily’s room.’

Knowing what his daughter wanted yet being unable to give it to her had always weighed heavily on David’s heart, like a fishbone stuck in his throat.

No matter how famous the Bernhard Workshop was even within Zerphium, the Bernhard family did not make violins for profit.

Because of that, they could barely make enough to get by, and they simply couldn’t afford to buy a piano for their daughter, who had never once lost the top position.

“Then we’ll do that. However, I think it would be best if you left the workshop before Lily returned.”

Aurelia had apparently gone to finish the errand David had given her, because although she had been crying without even trying to hide the sound, her sobs could no longer be heard.

That was fortunate, because if Aurelia had seen her violin being sold, she certainly wouldn’t have remained quiet.

“That shouldn’t be difficult. We’ll do that. I’ll send someone over to settle the payment before this evening.”

“Yes.”

Perhaps Aurelia might finish her errand and return, so David hurried to place the violin inside its case.

While David wiped the violin with a cloth and placed it into the case, Leonard selected a bow that fit perfectly in his hand and handed it to David.

“Then I’ll be going. Even if I leave now, I think I’ll be cutting it close on time.”

“Yes. You must always be busy, after all.”