The Mysterious Silver Watch
I gazed at the two pocket watches laid out on the table, lost in thought.
I wasn’t sure of every detail, but at first glance these two seemed remarkably alike—perhaps even twins. The ornamental patterns, the overall silhouette… they gave off such a strong sense of a matching pair that it was almost uncanny.
One had been a gift from a friend. The other had appeared out of nowhere just a few days earlier.
Exact timing was still fuzzy, but I suspected it had happened at the exact moment I collided with some unknown person while heading to fetch water for Edwin-ssi and Rie.
At one point I even considered that the stranger might have dropped the watch during the bump and it simply slipped into my pocket.
But if that were true, I should have filed a lost-and-found report. I hadn’t heard a single whisper about anyone misplacing anything at the academic festival.
And I’d underestimated how rare such an event would be. After all, how on earth could a watch accidentally disappear into another person’s pocket simply because they’d brushed against each other?
‘In the end, this has to be intentional. Someone deliberately slipped it into my pocket.’
I had my suspicions. The silver watch my friend had given me had appeared right after the magic communication ended with the words “Let’s meet at the academic festival.”
At the time I’d been about to ask what that cryptic message meant, but my friend had abruptly ended the call before I could find out.
Now, staring at the two watches, the true purpose of that invitation clicked into place.
To the naked eye the two pocket watches looked identical. But I couldn’t shake the feeling there had to be some difference.
Just in case, I picked up both watches and stepped out of the room.
It was perfect timing—weekend, and I’d already been granted permission to leave campus.
Several days earlier Rolex-senior had told me about master watchmakers just outside the academy who ran their own shops. Those very artisans had confirmed that my silver watch was a genuine Veizsäcker.
Today I was heading back to them to ask about the new pocket watch that had suddenly appeared.
“Lucian? Where are you going?”
As I descended the stairs, Rie’s voice drifted up from behind.
She’d clearly come to find me to continue training despite the weekend.
After exchanging greetings, I told her I had somewhere I needed to go today.
“…Is it an urgent appointment? Are you seeing a lady?”
“What? Why would you think that? It has nothing to do with women.”
“Then what is it?”
“This.”
Rie already knew my silver watch was the work of Veizsäcker, so when I set the silver watch down and held the new one beside it, she let out a small sigh.
Even she could see the two timepieces were far too identical to be coincidence.
“I know what this one is… but what about that one?”
“Someone pocketed it.”
“What?”
“I bumped into someone at the academic festival and, when I checked later, there it was in my pocket.”
“Was it someone who lost it?”
“Dropping a watch into another person’s pocket has a lower probability than getting struck by lightning. My pocket wasn’t even open—it just happened to be there.”
Rie nodded, as if she understood something in my words.
“So you’re heading to the watch shop outside the academy.”
“Yes. I’m going to ask a few questions. If this one turns out to be genuine as well, it means my friend who gifted me the silver watch and invited me to the festival is almost certainly the legendary Veizsäcker.”
“…”
“Your connections really are impressive. I’ve started to feel I can’t keep up with how surprising they are.”
Rie had every right to be stunned. The fact that she already knew I was on good terms with the former Grand Chancellor of the Draconius family was one thing; learning that the Veizsäcker was my friend was another.
Unlike Rolex-senior, who showed little interest in watches, Rie had barely reacted when I told her the silver watch was genuine. She’d simply offered a soft “Aah~” and moved on.
Still, she asked, “Then… should I come along too? It’s fine if I tag along, right?”
I couldn’t refuse, so I agreed to go together and took her hand.
At this point I wondered if it was finally time to reveal the true nature of my relationship with Rie to the academy.
But Rie, as if sensing my intention, quickly added, “Only when no one else is looking.”
She’d been painfully careful not to draw suspicion before—now she was subtly keeping an eye on others as well. It was oddly endearing.
Not because she simply cared about what others thought, but because she wanted to protect herself and, by extension, me from any potential fallout.
We walked outside the academy for about fifteen minutes before the watch shop came into view.
Business was slow on this particular day, so I could present the watch without worrying about drawing unnecessary attention.
“Welcome, young master Lucian.”
“Hello, Paul.”
“The last time you visited, the entire shop nearly collapsed. Not just anyone, but young master Lucian carrying one of Veizsäcker’s masterpieces—it was enough to shake the foundations.”
“I heard another extraordinary rumor just a few days ago. That he’s acquainted with the great Draconius, and that he’s the one who devised the most widely used martial art in Lebechia.”
The rumors really had spread far and wide. It made sense; each tale was so extraordinary that silence would have been the anomaly.
“What brings you here today?”
“I need you to verify something for me.”
“Verify?”
“Yes. First, this watch.”
I placed the silver watch I’d received from my friend on the counter.
Paul’s eyes widened. “Oh!”
The very piece that millions could never afford to buy was now in his hands. As a master watchmaker himself, seeing the flawless craftsmanship—every engraving, every gear—made it impossible for him to stay calm.
“This is definitely a Veizsäcker creation, isn’t it?”
“Without a shadow of a doubt. I’d stake my entire career on it. The engravings, the engraving techniques, the internal mechanism—they are all unmistakably his.”
“Then what about this one?”
I slid the newly appeared pocket watch across the counter.
Paul blinked, then let out a small gasp. “Ah…”
“Young master Lucian… may I touch it?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you.”
He took the watch from me and began to examine it with the utmost care, turning it over, peering into every corner, every detail.
When he was satisfied, he excused himself and headed toward the workshop at the back, clearly intending to consult his fellow artisans.
“No matter how I look at it, they’re too identical, young master Lucian.”
While Paul was away, Rie leaned in and whispered the obvious.
I agreed, yet I knew that even master watchmakers rarely duplicated a masterpiece. Most created works because they were artisans, not machines. Every movement was handcrafted, and the margin for error was immense.
‘And yet the one that ended up in my pocket was indistinguishable from the other.’
That was why I had brought both watches here.
If this new one turned out genuine as well, then my friend who had gifted me the silver watch and invited me to the festival truly was Veizsäcker.
“Young master Lucian.”
A few minutes later Paul returned, his face unusually weary.
He placed the new watch on the counter beside the silver one.
“This pocket watch… where did it come from?”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t answer that. It’s a personal matter.”
“I see. If I’ve caused any distress, I apologize. I only asked because I was curious.”
“It’s fine. More importantly, what do you think of the watch itself, Paul?”
“Before I give you my final answer, let me state one thing clearly. Veizsäcker has never produced two identical works. Every timepiece he has created so far has been unique—no overlaps, no duplicates. Humans tend to repeat patterns subconsciously, but he deliberately breaks every convention to create something entirely new.”
“I’ve heard as much. That’s why the entire kingdom wanted one of his watches.”
“Exactly. That’s why I once dismissed such a match as impossible… but this watch… it does seem to be a genuine Veizsäcker.”
I hadn’t expected the confirmation to shock me. I’d already suspected as much.
All that filled my mind now was the urgent need to reach my friend through magic communication at once.
“Young master Lucian, there is something I must tell you.”
I looked at him expectantly.
“Veizsäcker has never created matching pieces before, yet when he does produce two identical works, it is almost always for a specific purpose—gifting one to someone who has shown kindness, or to a loved one to whom he has promised a future.”
“Two in a matching pair?”
“Precisely. In my limited understanding, this watch appears to have been given to you for exactly that reason.”
“So they really are twins.”
Paul nodded in agreement.
After gathering both watches, I asked him once again to keep the matter a complete secret.
“Of course. I’m a watchmaker, and I’m also the owner of this shop. Most of my customers are nobles, and the easiest way to maintain those relationships is by protecting their secrets at all costs.”
That was why Rolex-senior had introduced me here and why such a shop could thrive right outside the academy in Lebechia.
“Rie.”
As we left the shop, I held out the new pocket watch to Rie.
She blinked in surprise. “What are you doing?”
“Paul said these two are a pair—one given in gratitude, the other to a promised lover. And Rie, you are both to me. You have every reason to accept this.”
I extended the watch toward her again.
Rie stared at the watch and me in turn, then whispered, “Thank you,” her cheeks flushing as she lowered her head.
“We’ve handled everything. Shall we head back?”
“Ah, yes. Let’s.”
“Oh, Lucian. When we get back…”
Was she hinting she wanted to do something even more intimate over the weekend?
Well, it was the weekend, and last time we’d spent it…
“You know you have training to do, right?”
“…”