Legal Disclaimer
This light novel is inspired by the beautiful landscapes and cultures of Bolivia and South Korea. However, the characters, events, and situations portrayed are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real persons, places, or events is purely coincidental. This content does not intend to represent or reflect the historical, social, or cultural reality of either country. The author disclaims any legal liability arising from the interpretation of these elements.
Chapter 86 — A Gift and the In-Laws
86.1 The Stone that Calms the Winds.
An elderly woman with a tight bun and a stern expression stared at her, speaking quickly and incomprehensibly.
The woman's hands gestured her complaint:
the floor, Zayra, and the red stall sign all of which were a mystery to her.
Not knowing how to communicate and with her heart racing, Zayra thought.
"What did I do wrong? I hope I'm not causing trouble."
She stepped back, looking around.
The lady showed her annoyance and, though she wanted to raise her voice, she lowered her tone to avoid attracting attention.
— "저기요… 뭐 하는 거예요?"
(Excuse me… what are you doing?)
Then, nervously, she looked around and added, almost in a whisper but firmly.
— "안 보여요?"
(Can't you read?)
Ryu was a few meters away, talking to someone.
Zayra didn't feel it was appropriate to call him over.
In a low voice and in English, she said.
"I'm sorry... I don't understand..."
***
Zayra took a breath, pulled a small flower-patterned wrap from her purse, opened it slowly,
and bowed to hand over an aquamarine pendant shaped like a teardrop.
The lady, bewildered,
took the gift with trembling hands and examined it cautiously.
Zayra added softly.
"I brought this from Bolivia; it's a stone to calm the soul.
I'm sorry if I did something wrong."
The woman stared at it, bowed, and slowly accepted it, commenting under her breath
— "참 이상한 아이네요... 그래도 예의는 있네요."
(What a strange girl... but at least she has manners.)
She nodded slightly without smiling and walked away.
The curious gazes dispersed as if the incident were already a thing of the past.
Zayra sighed and thought.
"Thank God that's settled."
From a distance, Ryu watched with concern, aware that Zayra didn't understand the language or the social rules,
yet she was respectful and didn't make excuses.
***
He approached quietly.
"Is everything okay?"
With a low, resigned laugh, she thought.
"I just want them to know I respect their rules, even if I don't understand everything."
She looked up and asked.
"Can you tell me what I did wrong this time?"
Ryu looked at her with a genuine smile the kind that hid his deep admiration for how
Zayra faced a world so different from her own.
He cleared his throat and commented.
"It seems you can't even go out to buy tangerines without winning hearts."
She raised an eyebrow and gave him a gentle nudge with her shoulder.
"Oh, you're hallucinating!"
With the tension still fresh,
they walked together toward the family home in a comfortable silence
that foreshadowed that this encounter would be only the first of many.
86.2 The Song I Actually Know.
Warm lights illuminated a wooden table,
with a white piano in the background and scents of ginger, meat, and lotus in the air.
Zayra walked alongside Ryu, wearing a white jumpsuit of light fabric,
cinched at the waist by embroidery that looked like a belt.
Intense pink, yellow,
and white Toborochi flowers were delicately woven in a subtle pattern that blended Andean tradition with modern elegance.
She didn't understand the words, but she sensed the curious glances, t
he restrained gestures, and the expectation in the air.
"Great, Zayra. You didn't learn Korean and now you can't even say 'thank you.'
Dad was right."
She laughed at herself.
Ryu, seeing her laughing self-critically, leaned in and whispered in her ear, knowing how hard she was on herself.
"You're doing great, don't worry."
Zayra smiled politely, took a deep breath, and bowed before the grandmothers.
One had wrinkled skin and a strict gaze; the other had cheerful, warm eyes.
***
She gave them alpaca blankets in natural tones,
explaining with Ryu's help that they were handmade in the Bolivian Andes.
Next, she gave Ryu's mother a fine, cream-colored alpaca shawl, so light it seemed to float.
Her mother-in-law touched it, turned it between her fingers, and murmured.
— "이건 예술이야…"
(This is art).
Zayra didn't understand the words, but the subtle smile on the mother's face was enough.
She gave Seo-Yeon a sophisticated set of Bolivianita: a necklace and small earrings.
The aunts received aquamarine pendants with different ribbons,
and the cousins received hand-braided azurite bracelets.
One of the cousins stopped to look at hers closely,
frowning slightly.
"I've never seen anything like this… it looks very special, doesn't it?"
She whispered in Korean with a hint of doubt.
Another, more perceptive, added
"They say it's from Bolivia something artisanal and rare around here."
"It must be a very valuable gift; don't you think?"
A third murmured, not wanting to seem too direct.
What caught their attention most was her: dark-skinned, elegant, and serene.
Bolivia seemed chaotic and rustic to them, but her grace defied those prejudices.
Zayra smiled until she saw the grand piano in the center.
***
She observed it for a moment, and a cousin asked in English.
"Do you know how to play the piano?"
Zayra nodded.
One of the aunts said something quickly in Korean.
Ryu translated.
"They say you can play anything, without difficulty."
She stiffened.
She wasn't the best pianist in the world, but... she could try.
She looked up and saw her sister-in-law and mother-in-law.
Seo-Yeon, knowing her character, gave her a knowing smile.
She stood up, took a deep breath,
and walked with measured steps toward the piano, her jumpsuit flowing like a sigh.
In front of the instrument, she closed her eyes for a moment, gathered her courage,
and her trembling fingers began to dance.
Ryu followed her with his gaze, surprised.
"Since when does she play the piano?"
The melody of Niña Camba emerged like a warm breeze.
The rhythm was soft, with that nostalgic tint that evoked jungles, rivers, and wide skies.
The aunts looked at each other, bewildered.
— "What is that?"
One asked.
— "I've never heard that music. It's very... melancholic"
Another whispered.
A cousin said softly
— "It sounds like… I don't know how to explain it."
Ryu's mother narrowed her eyes.
"Since when does a young woman play with such emotion?"
Ryu couldn't look away: her profile, her posture, the delicacy of her fingers and her face.
She played as if telling a story, with every note speaking for her.
For an instant, he forgot his role as CEO and only saw the woman surrendered to her music,
showing a vulnerability, he had never seen before.
Zayra thought of her grandmother, her father, the flowers of the East, the heat of her home,
and the sounds of Santa Cruz and how she wished her mother could see her dreaming big in front of a piano in Korea.
***
When she finished, she understood that she wasn't just crossing geographical borders,
but also the invisible barriers of her traditional world.
She bowed elegantly and returned to Ryu,
feeling nervous.
Before sitting down, she whispered to him.
"Please, tell them that's the only one I know and not to ask for another."
Ryu smiled.
He stood up calmly and said aloud.
"She says she only knows that song and not to ask for an encore."
A second of silence was followed by discreet and sincere laughter:
an aunt covered her mouth laughing, the cousins giggled mischievously, and Seo-Yeon clapped proudly.
Zayra smiled, feeling more at ease, and Ryu looked at her with admiration.
"Without saying a word, she conquered what even I didn't expect: their hearts."
And in the background, one of the grandmothers murmured, as if sealing a judgment.
— "이 여자… 마음이 따뜻해."
(This girl… has a warm heart).
86.3 She Shines… Even in Silence.
Seoul breathed quietly under soft lights, and the clock marked nearly midnight.
Zayra was sleeping peacefully with a slight smile.
Ryu turned his watch between his fingers in a repetitive,
calm motion, as if he could organize not just the hours, but his thoughts.
He analyzed the day's events.
"I didn't know she played the piano."
He sighed while the family dinner continued to swirl in his mind.
Moved aunts, whispering cousins, a mother with shining eyes,
and a sister smiling in silence as if she held a secret.
And there she was, saying almost nothing... winning everyone over.
Ryu reflected.
"I thought her strength was talking and laughing,
but today she conquered my family without saying almost anything."
His fingers slid along the watch buckle.
He realized he knew very little about her.
"I thought I knew her, but how many more surprises do you have?"
***
Zayra blinked slowly, turned,
and saw him sitting there.
With a soft, sleepy voice, she said.
"Since when do you like looking at a watch so much?"
Ryu looked at her, smiled subtly, and replied.
"Since you gave it to me."
She blinked again, more awake now.
She observed him, guessing he had been awake for a while.
She yawned and asked.
"Can't you sleep?" "Not really."
He lifted his head and looked her in the eyes, and as if it were a confession, he told her.
"You surprised me today."
The words came out with the same calm with which he governed his business decisions,
but in them was a new, soft, and sincere spark.
She looked at him, not understanding.
***
Ryu smiled and added.
"You play the piano… and you never told me anything."
She stretched a little with a calm gesture and replied.
"Ah… that. It's just that I haven't done it in years."
He looked at her as if he couldn't believe it. She smiled and added.
"Remember the Baroque music festival with the children?"
Ryu nodded, watching her intently.
She sighed and said.
"My mom insisted I participate when I was 12 years old."
Ryu, interested.
"Why?"
Zayra shrugged, looking at the ceiling.
"She used to say that if we lived abroad,
we had to communicate without words, because music reaches everyone."
He observed her in silence.
She didn't say it with pride, but with simplicity and gratitude toward her mother.
And that stirred a certain tenderness in him.
She looked away and commented.
"I never liked to show off; I only did it because I felt tested.
Do you think it was wrong?"
Ryu shook his head and replied.
"It was perfect. They didn't know who they were dealing with…
now they do."
A laugh escaped her and she asked.
"Are you sure they weren't scared?"
Ryu couldn't help but laugh and told her.
"No, but they're still processing that a Bolivian girl played something they've never heard and it touched their hearts."
She blushed and huddled under the sheets.
"But remind them that's the only song I know, just in case."
Ryu couldn't help but laugh softly.
He looked at her with tenderness and whispered.
"Sleep peacefully.
You left them enchanted and me too."