Chapter 5
“Oh my, Lady Ventus?”
“Ah, Lady Royche.”
We smiled at each other, lifting our dresses slightly.
Royche Harin. She was the lady of Marquess Royche’s family, and the only noblewoman I was somewhat friendly with, given my distance from high society and tea parties.
Her doll-like pink hair and golden eyes made her already cute face look even more adorable.
Lady Royche approached me with a smile.
“Lady, did you come to have your imperial palace party dress fitted?”
“Yes, that’s right. But I didn’t expect to run into you here.”
The most famous salon in the capital was the Francfranc Salon. Its head designer was renowned enough to be exclusively in charge of making dresses for the Empire’s First Princess, so during the party season, it was packed with ladies and noblewomen.
In contrast, the salon I was currently in was a small one, not famous in the capital, specializing in custom clothing for commoner women.
I thought I’d be the only noble customer here, but it seemed I was wrong.
I first visited this place about three years ago.
The dresses of the Empire’s noblewomen were truly beautiful and extravagant, but their practicality was extremely low. Especially two years ago, it was trendy to overload dresses with decorations, and one of the ladies fainted at a party because she couldn’t bear the weight of the decorations.
If that was the case at a party, imagine hiking in the mountains or exploring caves.
The reason why the imperial noblewomen’s dresses became so flamboyant was entirely due to the rotten mindset here, which believed that women had to be adorned beautifully like splendid roses to be loved.
In fact, it was something the 10th Emperor of the Empire said himself, and from then on, everyone insisted on even more extravagant dresses.
Noblemen would also subtly compete at parties over whose wife and daughter wore more beautiful and elaborate dresses, while they themselves wore lighter and more comfortable tuxedos.
Ah, I got sidetracked for a moment.
Anyway, as someone with a lot of movement, I needed a revolutionary and new dress. I searched every salon for a dress that was more like a one-piece, but couldn’t find one.
Then, by sheer coincidence, I bumped into a designer coming out of a salon, and the drawings she dropped captivated me.
The designer I bumped into, Rima, was a commoner, but she was a talented individual who graduated at the top of her class in costume design at the Empire’s academy.
However, she dreamed of dresses different from the Empire’s trends and eventually quit the salon because their ideals didn’t match.
So, I made a proposal. My first time ever offering money for something.
I invested in her dream to open her own small salon. It was a significant expenditure from the money I had painstakingly saved, but I didn’t regret it. I believed in Rima’s abilities.
As a result, while she didn’t succeed among noblewomen, Rima’s salon gained popularity among commoners through word of mouth and was generating quite high profits.
Lady Royche, who had approached me, settled onto the sofa and folded her fan.
“I’ve been a regular here since last year.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Remember the military commemoration event at the Imperial Palace last year?”
That day was like a National Armed Forces Day event, which was held once a year in the Empire.
“Yes, I remember that day.”
“I fell in love with the dress you wore that day. It looked so comfortable and beautiful, I can’t quite express the cultural shock I experienced. So, when I asked you where you had your dress made, you told me it was here.”
Ah, I don’t remember that. It was so hot that day that I was constantly fanning myself and wasn’t paying attention. Even now, I couldn’t recall if Lady Royche had approached me then.
However, not wanting to disappoint Lady Royche, who was speaking with a blush on her cheeks, I nodded.
“Yes, yes. That’s right. I remember, Lady. Come to think of it, is the dress you’re wearing now also made here? It has fewer decorations than other dresses.”
Although it was gorgeous, it wasn’t adorned with heavy jewels or ornaments but with tiny beads that shimmered densely. When I asked about the dress, which didn’t look like a famous salon’s design, Lady Royche nodded enthusiastically with touched eyes.
“Yes, that’s right. Isn’t it beautiful? Rima, the designer here, is truly amazing. It’s a shame the Empire doesn’t recognize her talent. And after wearing dresses from here, my shoulder stiffness disappeared. It’s so comfortable and nice, I wish more noblewomen knew about it. Truly.”
“And it’s all thanks to you, Lady Ventus,” she added, smiling.
It felt good to hear Rima being praised like that. It was like… hearing compliments about a child you’ve raised well, perhaps?
As I wore a satisfied expression, Lady Royche clapped her hands as if something had just occurred to her, and moved her small lips.
“Ah, Lady. Is that carriage outside yours?”
“Carriage? Oh, yes. It’s my carriage.”
“Oh my, you bought a carriage.”
I didn’t realize that the fact I hadn’t bought a carriage had spread through high society.
While I was feeling awkward, Lady Royche just looked happy and then frowned as if recalling something.
“What’s wrong, Lady? Is there a problem?”
“Ah, it’s just that I think I’ve seen that carriage somewhere before.”
“The carriage?”
“Yes, I think I saw that carriage at the main palace when I was little. No, surely… well, um… when was that…?”
As Lady Royche’s brow furrowed, my pupils trembled, and the corners of my mouth twitched with unease.
The carriage the Grand Duke gave me was without the Grand Duke’s family crest. In fact, I felt somewhat relieved when I received it. I thought I didn’t have to say that I received that carriage from the Grand Duke.
But am I being exposed like this right away…?
Would it be better to just say I bought the Grand Duke’s carriage first?
But then, they might think I have some connection to the Grand Duke.
Lady Royche was kind and pure, but she wasn’t known for keeping secrets. I didn’t want to create strange rumors in high society for no reason. I was already considered strange enough.
As I was gauging Lady Royche’s reaction, a voice called out from behind me.
“Lady Ventus, your dress is complete.”
It was Rima. I stood up and turned around to see Rima standing next to a mannequin dressed in a gown.
The off-shoulder dress was fitted to the waist, then flared out voluminously below. The light color, closer to a warm beige than white, was also luxurious, and the densely embroidered beads and jewels along the chest sparkled beautifully under the light.
“Wow, it’s exactly what I wanted, Rima.”
“You flatter me. Ah, hello, Lady Royche.”
“Rima, it’s been a while. Oh my, oh my, it’s so beautiful.”
Lady Royche clapped her hands in delight at my dress. Even I thought it was a truly beautiful dress.
“You won’t need a separate corset. The dress itself will provide the necessary correction.”
“It’s perfect, Rima. Truly.”
“No, not at all.”
I looked at Rima, who was smiling awkwardly, seemingly embarrassed by the praise, then turned back to Lady Royche.
Her earlier curiosity seemed to have vanished as she was engrossed in Rima’s dress.
Relieved, I said to Rima, “Rima, please send this along with about ten casual dresses.”
“Yes. I’ve already made more dresses for you to wear when you go on expeditions.”
“Okay. Thank you. The payment…”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll send you a separate invoice when I send the clothes.”
Rima glanced at Lady Royche and changed the subject.
In truth, Rima was an angel who made clothes for me for free. Even though she said this because of Lady Royche, she probably wouldn’t charge me this time either.
Truly, thank you always, Rima.
“Well then, Lady Royche, I’ll be going now.”
“Oh, yes. Lady Ventus. See you at the party.”
Leaving Lady Royche, who smiled brightly, I exited the salon.
As soon as I stepped out, the flashy carriage that didn’t suit the outskirts of the capital caught my eye, and I sighed.
“It seems impossible to ride this around.”
A carriage that looked like something from the Imperial Palace. It was indeed no ordinary carriage. Why on earth did he give it to me?
I wanted to grab the Grand Duke by the collar and shake him, asking why, but that expressionless face wouldn’t give me an answer. I just thought I’d have to buy a new carriage before going to the party and got into the carriage.
* * *
“Miss, don’t eat that.”
Liche sternly snatched the chocolate cookie I was holding. I watched the retreating cookie with tearful eyes, then screamed at the powerful grip on my shoulder.
“Hilda, I think my shoulder is gone. Liche, is my shoulder still attached?”
“Yes, it is.”
“Really? That’s surprising, since I can’t feel anything.”
“Don’t exaggerate, Miss. Your dress reveals your shoulders, and it would look unsightly if there’s any flab. You absolutely must capture the hearts of the young men today.”
I was already past marriageable age.
I pursed my lips at Hilda’s worried voice. I understood Hilda’s concern.
I was in a situation where I had to marry quickly. Because in this wretched place where women had low status, I couldn’t inherit the title of Countess.
Originally, since there was no direct heir, the title should have gone to another branch family.
However, considering the Ventus family’s long-standing lineage and the fact that I had lost both my parents at once, the Emperor specially announced that he would wait until I married and my husband inherited the Count’s title.
The Emperor’s intention was appreciated, but the problem lay elsewhere.
It was that I had no interest in marriage.
Considering that most noblewomen in the Empire married between the ages of nineteen and twenty, twenty-three was quite an old age. But even now, I had no thoughts of marriage.
But the rumors in high society weren’t that I didn’t want to marry, but I couldn’t.
They said I’d missed my chance after struggling alone to revive a fallen noble house, or that I didn’t know how to run a household because I was always away on monster subjugations, or that my boyfriend dumped me on a mission, and so on.
The rumors, by then, had grown legs and arms and eventually became a very tangible entity chasing me down.
Ah, this sad reality. Thinking about it makes me angry again.
Hmph, I’ll earn a lot of money and show those who criticize me that I can live well on my own. I can live perfectly fine even without a title. When I get older, I’ll even publish a book titled “I Was Happy Alone…”.
“Agh! That hurts!”
A scream escaped me as her hands sculpted my cheekbones.
Hilda’s hands, which had moved from my shoulder to my face, were pressing on my bones as if trying to reshape my face.
“Miss, your face will become smaller. Oh, stop flailing so much.”
“My face feels like it’s not just getting smaller, but disappearing!”
Liche and another maid held my flailing arms and legs. Hilda, having restrained my movements, then began to reshape my face.
