"You said you seemed to have seen me somewhere before, and that you thought I was… special?"
Hiltina swirled the wine in her glass, watching the liquid trace lazy circles along the rim.
She lifted the glass and looked straight ahead. "Let me guess… the next lines are supposed to be something like, 'You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen,' or, 'There are stars in your eyes,' or maybe even, *'This child is a gift I leave for you.'"
Across the table, the young man's profile was bathed in the dim candlelight, his sharp features clearly etched in shadow. Even under the harshest scrutiny, his appearance was undeniably striking.
Yet perhaps because of that very appearance, his approach—if it could even be called flirting—was catastrophically bad. He seemed like one of those types who relied solely on good looks to win over anyone and everyone.
Just as Hiltina labeled him a heartless flirt in her mind, she noticed Rast lift his chin and scrutinize her with a calculated gaze.
"Deep Blue Harbor has roughly 110,000 residents," he said, "and among them, there are only a handful of people of the opposite sex I could rate an eight out of ten."
"Whether it's the lead dancer at the opera house or a female council member, I've had close contact with them… each has her own charm, and you could say you're on par with them."
"So, the title of 'the most beautiful girl I've ever seen'? I can't give that to you… yet."
The frankness in his eyes and the casual confidence in his words left Hiltina momentarily speechless.
She parted her lips, intending to end this unexpected conversation, but his next words made her pause.
"However… compared to them, you really are quite special."
Rast smiled faintly.
"For example, if you were willing to reveal your true face, I might even give you an 8.5—possibly the first in Deep Blue Harbor."
"Huh?" Hiltina replied lazily, though the usual indifference in her gaze dimmed slightly. "Makeup is part of a woman's appearance, after all."
"Of course," Rast said lightly. "But most women dress to enhance their attractiveness. You… do the exact opposite. This seems to be a rather sophisticated disguise. It doesn't drastically alter your features, yet it completely changes your aura and the first impression you give, making it impossible for an uninformed person to connect it to your true face."
"Additionally—"
Rast reached out and pointed to the pendant at Hiltina's chest: a diamond-shaped jewel, a ruby engraved with a lifelike laurel branch.
"As far as I know, no jewelry shop in Deep Blue Harbor has this level of micro-engraving craftsmanship."
Hiltina sipped her wine and narrowed her eyes. "You a sculptor?"
"I dabbled in it for a while, out of curiosity," Rast replied. "But once I realized there was no one better in Deep Blue Harbor than me, I lost interest."
"You… know about disguises too?"
"I used to be the chief stylist at the Deep Blue Harbor Opera House—just for fun," he said. "Your disguise is clever, but you're clearly not a professional actor. There are subtle unnatural touches I could easily spot. By the way, that's how I met the lead dancer I mentioned before—the one I'd rate an eight, exceptional at ballet, and fond of wearing black stockings."
"No one asked you that…" Hiltina muttered, rubbing her temples. She looked at Rast's calm expression.
"So let me get this straight," she said. "You're telling me that at under twenty years old, you somehow became Deep Blue Harbor's best sculptor, the opera house's chief stylist, and also know all the city's most attractive people?"
"Do I look like someone who's easily fooled?" he asked.
Given his looks, the last point might have been slightly plausible. But considering everything else, the only explanation was that he was making it up.
"Ordinary people can't do this," Rast said quietly. "But I'm not ordinary."
His words remained calm, almost serene.
"My fate has been hopelessly fixed on this day. When dusk falls, everything starts over again. I am an exile of time; tomorrow will never come for me… Of course, for every other resident of Deep Blue Harbor, it's as if they have infinite chances to start over."
"Becoming a master sculptor, chief stylist, or meeting a high-ranking woman in a short span… all possible with enough trial and error. And for someone like me, with unlimited time, anything I wish to do can be done."
Rast poured the last bit of wine from the bottle into Hiltina's empty glass.
"That's why I said you're the special one."
"The doubts I mentioned before… they're not worth worrying about. Your advanced disguise, or bringing in rare carved ornaments from outside Deep Blue Harbor… it's trivial."
"Every one of the city's 110,000 residents has secrets. Even with infinite time, I have no interest in uncovering each person's privacy. But you… you're different."
Rast's gaze locked with Hiltina's, each word deliberate.
"I'm certain. In the tens of thousands of times I've experienced this day, you've never appeared in Deep Blue Harbor. Not once."
…
Tick.Tick.
The room was silent except for the ticking of the clock. Listening to Rast's calm words, Hiltina's eyes narrowed, and she unconsciously placed a hand on her waist.
Then—
Ding!
A crisp chime rang out suddenly. Hiltina looked up at the source. The clock hands clearly marked midnight.
"Already?" she said.
"We've just finished our drinks," Rast replied, holding up the empty wine bottle and smiling at her.
"So, beautiful lady… may I have the honor of another drink with you?"
His previously serious expression softened into a smile that felt warm and reassuring. Faint yet radiant under the moonlight, even Hiltina couldn't deny his beauty. Any ordinary woman would never refuse such an invitation.
"For someone of your status," he continued, "I believe Karma Fire Flowing Sand and Amber Love suit you perfectly."
Hiltina fell silent. She had seen the wine list: these were the most expensive drinks in the bar, naturally also the ones with the highest commission.
At that moment, she realized: Rast had seated himself across from her as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and had even casually opened the red wine she had ordered when she first entered.
Her thoughts stirred with a sudden realization. "Could it be that you…"
"I earn the highest commission from Karma Fire Flowing Sand and Amber Love," Rast said with a smile.
"So yes," he added, "it's exactly what you think."