Chapter 83
That comment was clearly meant for Alice to hear.
It was too loud to be a mere mutter, and Alice was the only one who had mentioned a dress without a corset.
Besides, currently on the second floor, there were no other customers apart from Alice and that unnamed mother and daughter.
Why pick a fight with someone you’ve never met before?
While she had been receiving a lot of attention due to the many rumors about her, most gazes were filled with curiosity and wonder.
Not like this, openly displaying hostility.
Perhaps someone who knew Alice?
But no matter how much Alice racked her memory, she couldn’t place the platinum blonde young lady.
They were clearly high-ranking nobles, so there was no way they could have crossed paths with Alice who had lived in the countryside.
Then why?
The more she thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
“My lady, I’ve brought the design book and some fabrics with lovely colors. Would you like to take a look?”
Just as Alice was about to directly ask the young lady if she was talking to her, Madame Rosewell’s voice was heard.
“…Ah.”
The platinum blonde young lady was nonchalantly sipping her tea.
The shamelessness on the young lady’s face suggested that even if Alice asked about what she had just said, she would pretend not to have heard.
Forget it. Let’s not create a scene.
Alice turned her attention away from them and looked towards Madame Rosewell.
“This is a design that’s currently in fashion, and this is a design I sketched yesterday after hearing about the Duchess’s appearance, knowing you were coming.”
Rosewell showed her various designs.
The currently fashionable design emphasized the chest and tightly cinched the corset, revealing the figure.
It had an elegant and sexy charm.
The design that Madame Rosewell had drawn after hearing about Alice’s appearance had a neckline that wasn’t too low, with small pleats.
The waistline wasn’t severely cinched either, falling gently, giving an overall pure and cute style.
Obviously, the latter suited Alice better.
Alice chose the one Madame Rosewell had designed for her without hesitation.
“I like this one.”
“We think alike. Now that I see you in person, I feel these designs suit you even better. Now, let me show you some fabrics that arrived from the south a few days ago.”
Madame Rosewell pushed aside the design book and presented Alice with a wooden board displaying small swatches of fabric.
“Here, this pale yellow fabric came from the southern Rotang territory a few days ago. The Rotang territory produces the highest quality fabrics in the empire.”
“Hmm.”
“The fabric that came this time is particularly soft, with absolutely nothing that would irritate the skin. Would you like to feel it?”
Alice ran her fingertips over the fabric.
Her golden eyes widened at the soft, silk-like touch.
“It really is soft.”
It was of much better quality than the clothes she was wearing.
“I’ll go with this one.”
Seeing the satisfaction on Alice’s face, a smile spread across Madame Rosewell’s lips.
“An excellent choice. Not much of this fabric came in, just enough to make one dress. Now, we’ll make the dress with this fabric…”
“Wait.”
Madame Rosewell’s words were cut off.
The sound of clicking heels.
Alice raised her head towards the platinum blonde young lady approaching Madame.
Indeed, the owner of the unpleasant footsteps was none other than the unnamed platinum blonde young lady who had shown inexplicable hostility towards Alice.
Once again, clear antagonism was felt in the briefly met crimson eyes.
Who on earth is she?
“Lady Chestain…?”
Chestain?
Alice quickly racked her brain.
But it was a name that had never appeared anywhere in the original story.
If so, she couldn’t be an important character.
She’s not even someone connected to Alice, so why does she dislike me?
The more she thought about it, the more ridiculous it seemed.
“Madame, did I hear correctly that you’re making a dress with that fabric? Is that right?”
“…Yes, that’s correct, but?”
Madame glanced at Alice with an embarrassed smile.
She looked apologetic for the unexpected situation arising while attending to a customer.
When Alice gave a faint smile indicating it was alright, Madame asked Lady Chestain again.
“Is there a problem?”
“Of course there is. You agreed to make my dress with that fabric, and now you’re saying you’ll make someone else’s dress with it. How can there not be a problem?”
As Lady Chestain questioned with furrowed brows, Madame’s eyes widened.
“Pardon?”
“I told you I would buy that fabric.”
“What do you mean… Lady Chestain, didn’t you reject this fabric saying you didn’t like the color?”
Lady Chestain flinched.
They were saying different things, but Madame’s words seemed to be correct.
However, the young lady didn’t back down.
Instead, she brazenly set her jaw.
“When did I? I never did that. I clearly said I would buy this fabric.”
Her eyes were stubborn, as if she would snatch the fabric away if it were right in front of her.
Well, if she had intended to back down easily, she wouldn’t have insisted with lies in the first place.
Madame seemed very perplexed by Lady Chestain’s unreasonable behavior and was at a loss for words.
“My lady, earlier you clearly…”
“Do you have any proof that I said that? Mother, didn’t I say I would buy this fabric?”
The young lady appealed to the noblewoman sitting on the sofa for help.
The noblewoman let out a small sigh before nodding.
“Yes, that’s right. Madame, we claimed that fabric first.”
With even the noblewoman joining in, Madame Rosewell was cornered.
She seemed dumbfounded, but perhaps due to the difference in status, she couldn’t openly refute.
“But there’s only one piece of fabric left…”
“I’ll take something else.”
As Madame Rosewell was at a loss, not knowing what to do, Alice spoke.
It’s not like she had a great desire for clothes anyway.
And she couldn’t just stand by and watch Madame get into trouble because of her.
Lady Chestain.
The reason she was making this unreasonable fuss wasn’t because of Madame, but because of Alice.
Her eyes, full of hostility, were still glancing at Alice.
Whatever grievance she had against Alice, she was trying to take away even the fabric Alice had chosen.
Earlier, she had said something unpleasant, clearly intending for Alice to hear.
Unless one was a fool, it was obvious who Lady Chestain was doing this for.
But… it’s really childish.
Not only was she openly showing hostility, but all she was doing was trying to take away some fabric.
Alice was someone who, upon possession, had been ordered to poison her husband.
Moreover, she had witnessed countless power struggles between Lady Quillian and Sienna.
So Lady Chestain’s spite didn’t really affect her, but if she were to fight back… it seemed Madame would suffer too much.
I know all too well what it’s like to be caught between warring whales, I can’t do that to her.
Let’s not fight with a child who’s acting at an elementary school level.
Alice turned her gaze away from Lady Chestain and looked at Madame.
“…Duchess, will that be alright?”
“It’s fine. Now that I look closely, I think the light pink next to it is prettier.”
Alice pointed to the fabric next to the pale yellow one with a bright smile.
“Then I’ll make your dress with this. …Thank you for your understanding, Duchess.”
“No, really, looking at it carefully, the color is quite awful. If I wore a dress made from that fabric, I’d look like a sickly chick.”
Alice glanced at Lady Chestain with a sneer.
That sickly chick will be you.
Lady Chestain’s face crumpled as if she had understood Alice’s implication perfectly.
I said I wouldn’t fight, not that I’d stay completely still.
This much should be fine.
Alice sipped her tea, savoring Lady Chestain’s crumpling face as dessert.
“We’ll make Lady Chestain’s dress with this fabric instead.”
“…Fine.”
Unable to refuse at this point, Lady Chestain turned around abruptly, her face flushing red and blue.
“Duchess, shall we go take your measurements now?”
Madame, having regained her composure, led Alice to the inner part of the second floor.
The area behind the curtain seemed to be for taking measurements, filled with various measuring tapes and needles.
“Please step up here.”
Alice stepped onto a small platform.
Madame brought a long measuring tape and took measurements of Alice’s arm length, waist, and chest.
“I’m truly sorry about earlier. I never imagined Lady Chestain would go so far as to lie to take away the Duchess’s fabric.”
Alice, who had been looking straight ahead, hesitated at Madame’s words, which seemed to imply she knew something.
“Lady Chestain seemed to dislike me… Do you know why, Madame? I saw that young lady for the first time today.”
“Oh my, don’t you know, Duchess?”
“No. I’ve never been to the capital before my marriage, so I’m not well-versed in social gossip.”
Alice spoke honestly.
She really didn’t know anything.
Pretending to know when you don’t only makes you look worse when you’re exposed.
Madame Rosewell hesitated, fiddling with the end of the measuring tape.
Is it something difficult to talk about?
“What is it?”
“Well, the truth is, before you married the Duke… there were talks of engagement between Lady Chestain and Duke Dearrut.”
“…What? Engagement?”
This was truly unexpected.
She had simply assumed it was related to herself, or rumors about her.
Perhaps she was looked down upon for being from the countryside, or there was gossip about only Lady Quillian dying while she survived…
Well, either way, she hadn’t thought about it in connection with Kylus.
But an engagement with Kylus?
Alice’s previously composed expression wavered slightly.
