The Case Files of Jeweler Richard

Yamamoto-san was supposedly an office worker at a foreign company, but it seemed that she actually worked at a flower shop on a conventional train line. She lived at home and had one younger and one older sister. Her parents were alive and well, and everyone in her family worked.

“Why did you say you had a different job?”

“Seigi. My sincere apologies. I did not mean to pry.”

“No! It’s not something you need to apologize for, rather, I am the one who should be…but how did you know? You’re…not a customer of our store.”

“If I may clarify how I did it, then first, there is the scent. The scent of fresh cut flowers is different from perfume. I would say that it is the scent of life itself, and you always have the scent of flowers about you, Yamamoto-sama. The second is, this is impolite, but the condition of your hand. Setting winter aside, those who have chapped skin at this time of the year are likely to be someone who does work with water.”

Come to think of it, it was true that when you enter a flower shop, it had that indescribable flower shop smell. Was that the scent of flowers? Richard added that his guess of her interest in handicrafts came from the knitted stuffed mascot attached to her bag, and that the guess of the “skillfulness of her hands” came from how it was highly likely that the mascot was handmade. In the eyes of this guy, it might be as if everyone was living while spreading their personal information.

“…So, um, how about me living with my parents?”

“Intuition and statistics. In the current Japan, it is not rare for women who are around the same age as Yamamoto-sama to live at home. Please forgive me for my overly forward words.”

I also somehow knew about that last one. The last time Yamamoto-san came, she saw the newspaper the previous customer left behind and remarked that she also got that paper at home. People who got the newspaper while living alone were in the minority. There was over a 30% possibility that she lived with her parents.

Yamamoto-san, who looked like she got hit back twice as hard by the opponent she had challenged, was teary-eyed and ashamed, but fortunately it seemed that she had somewhat calmed down. She glanced at me while still wearing that face.

“…Um, is this actually a detective’s office?”

“Oh, no. We are very much a respectable jewelry store. Well, the owner is an excessive beauty, though.”

It seemed that I had said a few words too many this time as well. Richard was staring daggers at me. Before I get chastised, Yamamoto-san sighed and murmured.

“A beauty, huh…my name is Yamamoto Mito, but…the kanji is unique.”*

(TN: Yamamoto-san’s first name is 美人, usually pronounced bijin and means beautiful person)

“Really? What kind of characters does it use? My name’s Nakata Seigi, but it’s actually the seigi from ‘ seigi no mikata’ , isn’t that interesting? What about you, Yamamoto-san?”

“It’s Mito, written as ‘beautiful person’! Giving your own child a name like ‘beautiful person’, isn’t that like spending two billion yen on shopping before winning the lottery?! I’m not joking.”

Yamamoto-san shouted, and I stepped a step and a half back. It was quick from there. Yamamoto-san was the type of person who would keep talking on and on if you left them to it.

She told us that she started working at the flower shop after she graduated from junior college. Then, she met her lover and they stayed together for seven years before she got dumped happily this May. I was swallowed up by her light and casual way of telling the story.

“There’s nothing more frustrating than this. He said ‘Well, that’s just how it is!’ when he found a girl who was younger and prettier than me. Both of us have already become existences like stagnant air without any excitement or fluttering hearts, so there wasn’t any sadness there, but I do feel frustrated. I feel like I’ve been overtaken by my rival. Like, what exactly am I doing? It’s not like I’m a high school student, so I’m not at the age where I can recover…”

I counted on my fingers in my head. Since it had been seven years since she graduated from junior college, did that mean Yamamoto-san was around twenty-seven years old? My mother got remarried to Nakata-san when she was long past thirty, so I thought being in your twenties was still plenty young, but it seems that her standards were different.

“That’s why, I decided to buy a garnet. It’s my birthstone since I was born in January. I don’t think anyone would ever give me a ring with a gemstone on it now, so I’m buying one for myself.”

Richard slowly nodded with downcast eyes. It was a movement that suited the expression “elegant” well.

“No matter which path you choose to walk, the act of deciding to do something is itself noble and precious.”

“Thank you very much.”

Yamamoto-san bowed her head. They were like a teacher and student. However, Richard continued.

“Gemstones are prone to becoming companions that will accompany you longer than a lover does. Of course, this is my jewelry store, so I recommend all of my items with confidence, but when your feelings of ‘buying’ comes before ‘choosing’, then I believe you should take a little bit more of your time looking.”

That’s what I had thought. He didn’t want to sell gems to the type of person who would buy them just because they would give him any amount of money for it. He was like a breeder who wouldn’t give a pet to someone who wouldn’t take good care of it. When I asked him why, he told me that it was because stones didn’t always make people happy. When that person seemed to have a mistaken idea of the direction they desired, it would be like leading them by the hand over a dangerous bridge. It was a troubling metaphor.

Once again, Yamamoto-san looked frustrated, the same face she made when she started talking about how “beautiful people have an advantage,” before casting down her eyes in shame.

“…I’m sorry. I know very well that I’m fixating on something silly and unimportant, but I still…think that beautiful people can have that kind of complacency and freedom because they are beautiful.”

Yamamoto-san seemed like she wanted to say Richard didn’t understand her feelings. The jeweler who had experienced many battles only smiled. Was this what she meant by “afford to choose”? But, I had a feeling that he wasn’t just talking about his business experiences. Since he lived with this face, he probably had to get used to these kinds of unreasonable grudges whether he liked it or not.

Richard politely bowed slightly and attempted to change the subject.

“By the way, a moment ago you mentioned that the garnet is the birthstone of January. Yamamoto-sama, you are already familiar with garnets, I see.”

“I only know a little about it since it’s my birthstone. In the language of gems, it means ‘effort’ and ‘perseverance,’ right?”

Yamamoto-san was smiling, but her tone sounded somewhat like she was speaking ill of it.

“When I was little, I was always so happy when leaflets from the jeweler’s would come in our mailbox. I used to cut out only the gems in circles and collect them. They were pretty. I learned about my birthstone when I was in middle school, but I wasn’t too happy about it. Garnets don’t come to your mind immediately like diamonds and rubies. Am I wrong?”

“It depends on the person. Even if they are all called gemstones, there are various types.”

“Exactly. We live in a stratified society. When I became old enough to pay attention to prices, I realized that garnets aren’t very expensive stones.”

“Even so, why is it that you want to buy a garnet?”

Certainly, I didn’t think there was that much difference between lying about a generous fiancé and telling us to show her diamonds since she was born in April. However, Yamamoto-san repeated “Because I was born in January” with a bitter smile. It seemed that for her, it wasn’t a point she could lie about.

“Besides, I wanted to see the real thing for myself when I researched it. The garnet is an interesting stone. Because its Japanese name is zakuro-ishi *, you’d think there were only red ones, but there are also yellow ones, and demantoid garnets are green. But almandine garnets and pyrope garnets have different names even though they are similarly red, so I have no clue about anything anymore.”

(TN: Zakuro-ishi literally means pomegranate stone)

“A garnet has a different name depending on the subtle differences in the composition of the stones. This is mostly about mineralogy. Because you cannot see it with the naked eye, so in some cases you may not even be able to know which garnet it is until it is inspected at a facility. If you merely wish to appreciate and enjoy it, then I do not think there is a need to differentiate them so minutely. At any rate, you are knowledgeable enough to shame professionals, Yamamoto-sama.”

“Thank you very much. But, you really don’t have to fuss over me…”

Richard smiled wryly. It looked like he wanted to say the same thing to Yamamoto-san. She didn’t seem to be good with getting complimented. Just like the “disparity” between garnets and other stones, she seemed to be always comparing herself to someone above her. It was like she was frightened of Richard’s beauty.

“…To tell you the truth, I would like you to tell me about the benefits and drawbacks of being a beautiful person rather than about gemstones. Opportunities to meet with people like you are rare, so if you don’t mind…which are there more of?”

“It is overwhelmingly the latter.”

An immediate answer. Oh, here it comes, Mr. Richard with his eloquent and sharp tongue.

“What is more tragic than anything is not being thought of as a fellow human being. When I graduated from high school, somebody told me, ‘I just wanted to try to talk to you once,’ but it was not amusing at all. If you were going to say such a thing, why did you not just call out to me?”

“That’s impossible, the hurdle is too high.”

“Therefore, it is a drawback.”

The words were clear and definite. Richard put together his words as he looked squarely into Yamamoto-san’s face. His smile was beautiful, but there was a tinge of sadness around his blue eyes.

“Whatever the reason for wanting to talk to me, if the implication is that they wanted to talk to the owner of an unusual face, then that is not much different from wanting to see an okapi at the zoo out of curiosity. An excessively noticeable outward appearance can sometimes obstruct socializing.”

“Then, well…it really is a drawback, isn’t it. It’s nothing but a drawback.”

Richard only smiled. Yamamoto-san laughed weakly, and her gaze dropped to her lap.

“Even so, I…if it were me…I’d rather be born beautiful.”

I felt somewhat awkward and rushed into the kitchen. There were still the carefully made doll cakes from Kabuki-za left. With the form of the Seven Lucky Gods, the pure Japanese style baked sweet, which contained plenty of red bean paste, looked spherical, was sweet, and had a gentle texture. Yamamoto-san, while “aesthetically appreciating” the garnets, ate three doll cakes, told us that she would choose next time with an apologetic face, and then left. The next time she would come to the store was Sunday morning.

“Hey Richard, you said it was nothing but a drawback, but is that true…?”

“Let’s say, for instance, that while you were walking down the road, an old gentleman, who you have never met before, implored you in tears, ‘Will you accept my fortune?’ What would you do in that situation?”

A strong punch. It would be kind of funny if that was the explanation for why a manga character became a billionaire on the next page, but I would be in a fix if I played a role like that in real life. No, it wasn’t that simple. It was awful.

“…That’s scary…Someone thinking that beauty is a value that can be exchanged for anything is scary.”

“Exactly. What an abundance of fools, idiots, simpletons, rabble and evil spirits* who are drawn to a vague thing called ‘beauty’ and aimlessly draw near it. How stupid.”

I had some understanding of that. One day after work, I was eating with him at a nearby restaurant because I was late cleaning up, and someone from a faraway seat invited us to eat with them since they would pay the bill. I was still in the middle of eating curry, but we immediately left the restaurant at Richard’s urging. At the time, I didn’t think that I encountered something weird that may or may not happen in my lifetime. What occurred to me later was that Richard wasn’t fazed in the least by the “weird thing” he was dealing with. The troubles that would always be foreign to me were not so for him.

What an unpleasant talk. It truly was unpleasant. It was as unpleasant as when my elementary school classmates would tell me that “your grandma is a yakuza.” She wasn’t a yakuza. She was a legendary pickpocket. Even so.

“Look, I’m not trying to comfort you at all, and you might feel offended by this, but…”

“I can generally imagine what you are about to say.”

Was he telling me not to say it? I closed my mouth, and Richard, with a cool look on his face, gestured for me to go ahead. It seemed that it was okay for me to say it.

“For me, when I look at your face, I feel good. I feel cheered up and moved.”

“My goodness, thank you very much.”

“No, I’m the one who should be thanking you…”

“So, my beauty may bring happiness to those around me.”

His tone was extremely sarcastic. As expected, topics like these were not good. I hated feeling awkward. I was not good with complaining about how I couldn’t do anything on my own, or being told that.

“Do you want me to make some royal milk tea? Red bean paste goes surprisingly well with black tea. I’ve always thought that green tea was the one-and-only for Japanese sweets, so I kinda feel like I’ve been wasting my time until now.”*

(TN: Seigi says one and only in English here)

“One-and-only, huh. Do you know the meaning of those words?”

“…It means unique, right?”

“It does, but it also means ‘beloved person.’”

Beloved person. Like a lover?

When I thought about Yamamoto-san again, I felt depressed. She said she wasn’t sad after they broke up but I would feel pretty down if it were me. But, how did you jump from there to “No one is ever going to give me a ring, so I’ll buy one for myself”? Was this that solo marriage or something that was all the rage right now? It wasn’t that I didn’t understand the mental attitude of buying something you wanted by yourself, but it would cost tens of thousands of yen if she was going to process it into a ring, and if she really was choosing a stone regardless of the expense, the sparkling demantoid garnets that were the color of new leaves were more than three hundred thousand yen. Even if you spent money in a moment, the pain of the expenses would gradually seep in. Furthermore, if the motive for it was being dumped by someone…

When the lingering heat died down, would she hate looking at that gemstone?

“…Richard, are you really going to sell a garnet to her?”

“I am a jeweler. It is my job to show the customer what they need, when they need it.”

But that was only when he was confident that the gem wouldn’t make the customer unhappy. You could see it by looking at his work so far. Did that mean Yamamoto-san wasn’t such a problem?

Before Richard put it away, I peered into the casket. Red gems, green gems, orange gems that looked like hard candy. They were all called garnets. It was hard to believe that so suddenly.

“The red ones are, almandine garnets…?”

“Yes. They are the so-called pomegranate color. They are comparatively affordable because it is yielded a lot consistently.”

“What about these orange ones?”

“Mandarin garnets. They belong to the same category as spessartine garnets. Other stones that go by names such as tsavorite and hessonite are all ‘garnets’ taxonomically. Garnets are often thought of as a relatively inexpensive stone, so when a stone with a rare color appears, we sometimes give them a new name like a new variety of gemstone in order to refresh their image.”

“Wouldn’t that be confusing? Even if you say the customer doesn’t have to think about the details, you can’t do that.”

“Of course, once you get used to it, you will understand. Hatcho miso*, light brown miso, dark brown miso—even if their colors or textures are different, they are all ‘miso.’ If you are not familiar with Japanese culture, you may be wondering which is which, but you will be able to distinguish them once you become familiar with them.”

(TN: Hatcho miso is miso made of 100% soybean)

Was that how it worked?

The reason why garnets came to be called zakuro-ishi was because of the red almandine garnets. In nineteenth century Europe, it seemed that the garnet was a popular stone when it came to gemstones, but lately, the green ones were becoming popular. Brazil, Madagascar, Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia—they could be mined all over. It was said that during the time when there were no appraisal organizations, garnets were confused with rubies due to the red connection, so the “rubies” in antique jewelry are sometimes garnets or spinels. It was quite a shame, considering the difference in unit price.

I wondered if Yamamoto-san called the garnet a “slightly disappointing” stone meant she was aware of these circumstances.

“…Richard, do all women know their own birthstones? I feel like you wouldn’t know unless you were really interested in that kind of thing.”

“Women are interested in gemstones, at least more than you think. It is the same as zodiac signs. Why don’t you try asking your girlfriend as a test?”

“You can’t use Tanimoto-san as a standard, she can tell me all about it. After all, she used to be the president of the rocks and minerals club…wait, no, she’s not my girlfriend! You’ve got it wrong. Not yet.”

“I see.”

Someone who you want to be your girlfriend, Richard dutifully amended. If you already knew of it, don’t say stuff like that. I was sensitive. She was born in April, so her birthstone was the diamond. The sparkling diamond would be a perfect match for her, who had a haze of cuteness about her like a delicate baby’s breath. How about a pink gold ring decorated with lots of melee diamonds? With my current savings, though, that was nothing more than a fantasy or delusion, much less a dream.

“…Buying a ring by herself because she can’t get one—she really wanted a ring, huh.”

“Well, what do you think? Seigi, put the stones away in the safe and I would like some tea in the meantime.”

“’Kay.”

Be concerned, but don’t get too deep into it. That was Richard’s style. I couldn’t do that very easily, and sometimes I got into terrible trouble. We were selling something that wasn’t cheap to an unspecified large number of people, so it was probably important to make a distinction between business and personal affairs.

While making the second cup of royal milk tea for the day, I hoped that Yamamoto-san’s garnet selection would end without any problems.