Chapter 73
Fortunately, the dress was one piece. While winter dresses often required combining various patterns, hot weather attire was simpler.
After putting on the petticoat and removing their knight’s trousers, Adi draped the dress over it. Since the crinoline was smaller than those used in winter, putting on the clothes alone wasn’t too difficult.
Not that it was easy, either. Adi had to pull it up while standing over the clothes, then slip their arms into the half-sleeves. The chemise showed outside, but that couldn’t be helped. The dress buttons were in the back, making it impossible to put on alone.
When they came out of the side room, Billy nodded approvingly.
“The dress over the chemise looks good too? It covers the shoulders and arms.”
Rather than showing the sword-strengthened forearms beneath, having the chemise peek out, though unusual, seemed almost stylish. They could add more accessories later if anything looked awkward.
“Now then, Lord Adrian Grimaldi.”
Billy sat Adi in a chair.
“We’ll put on the wig and apply makeup.”
Facing Adi, who sat in the chair with a dazed expression, Billy spoke firmly.
“Close your eyes.”
After placing the brown wig over their tied hair and trimming it with scissors, Billy arranged the long hair in various ways. Though they’d said they wouldn’t put it up, they seemed to be styling it their own way.
Then they applied makeup from somewhere unknown. The sensation of it brushing against skin felt strange. The unfamiliarity heightened their sense of touch. Constantly instructing them to keep their lips closed and not move, Billy touched their eyelids and cheeks before telling them to open their eyes.
Adi opened their eyes. It didn’t feel as heavy as expected.
“In society, they usually put jewel powder on the eyelashes too, but it’s night now.”
“…”
Using jewel powder for such things seemed absurd to begin with. Jewels are essentially stones. Surely no one could tolerate stone powder getting in their eyes.
Either that, or noble women must be far more resilient beings than Adi had imagined.
“Now I’ll put on the necklace. We should probably tuck the chemise inside.”
As Billy spoke and moved to unbutton it, Yuls caught their hand to stop them. Adi also stepped back.
“Ah, would you like to do it yourself?”
Billy asked with an unbothered expression. Thinking it must be because northerners dislike contact, they took out the pearl necklace and asked, “Would you like to do this yourself too?” Adi nodded while unbuttoning their chemise.
Billy tilted their head. Adi’s hands were quite smooth. However, they had too many scars. Who knows how they got such injuries, but their arms and the backs of their hands were covered in scars, and their finger joints were either bruised or calloused.
Though the overall appearance could pass for a woman, the hands seemed to give it away. Still, since their hands were small, gloves would hide it well enough.
“We’ll need gloves that reach below the elbow. I’ll prepare them in a similar color to the dress, no, slightly darker.”
Adi put on the necklace Billy provided. Seeing them wrapping the long pearl necklace around with a confused expression about how to wear it properly, Yuls reached out.
“Give it here.”
“Do you know how to properly wear a necklace?”
“I’ve seen it done enough times. It’s easier than military knots at least.”
“…”
The Duke manipulated the necklace in various ways until he created a proper arrangement. Adi couldn’t understand how twisting it certain ways could create such a pattern. One thing was certain—military knots were easier for them than this.
Perhaps the Duke was unexpectedly good at lying. That arrangement couldn’t be created just from watching a few times. It was surprising that someone in his position could do such things, despite being the one usually being adorned.
“Hair,” Yuls said. Adi moved the long brown hair to the side. Once their hair had been this long, but now it felt cumbersome. Even though it was just a wig.
Yuls looked down at Adi’s nape. Though he’d known it before, it was a slender neck. The curve extending to the shoulders looked particularly delicate, perhaps because of the dress.
When Yuls reached out to put on the necklace, Adi’s neck drew back. Catching themselves in this unconscious reaction, Adi glanced at Yuls before looking away. Ignoring his inexplicably dry mouth, Yuls fastened the necklace.
Then Billy brought a lace shawl to drape over the shoulders. They could see Adi holding their hair to one side while Yuls fastened the necklace. Was it because of the size difference? They truly looked like a man and woman together.
“It suits you better than expected!”
Billy exclaimed. Their eye for these things was indeed remarkable. But they hadn’t known their makeup skills were this good too.
“You had a twin sister, didn’t you? If she were alive, she would have turned society upside down.”
Thinking that if they could achieve this much with a twin brother, a real woman would have been truly incredible, Billy offered what they considered their highest praise.
Sadly, since Yuls had no interest in servants’ comments, his attendants never developed the skill of flattery, and Billy’s attempt lacked both form and courtesy. Fortunately, Adi didn’t seem to mind either. Besides, it wasn’t wrong.
Yuls looked down at Adi with worried eyes. As Billy said, they truly had looks that could overturn society.
“More beautiful than expected.”
“Right?”
“Yes. People will remember this.”
“If Your Grace ever takes a wife, I can use these skills to—”
Billy stopped mid-sentence. Come to think of it, though they knew it wasn’t true, rumors had circulated about these two being involved. And now, dressed up like this, they looked so feminine…
“…”
Billy stood there with an expression that suggested they didn’t know how to feel about the situation. Then Bert and Roy entered.
“Your Grace, are the preparations complete?”
“The guards are coming this way too…”
Roy stopped mid-sentence as he entered. These were certainly people he knew. The Duke and Billy were familiar faces. But he’d never seen the woman sitting there. The face was familiar. Of course it was familiar. It was Adi Grimaldi.
Just changing the hair color to brown altered their whole atmosphere. But more than that, somehow their shoulders and figure were impossible to believe were male. Whether from makeup or not, their pink cheeks looked like crushed roses. Against their characteristically pale northern skin, it gave them such vitality.
“…Adrian?”
To anyone’s eyes, they were undoubtedly a woman.
While Roy was surprised by Adi’s transformation, Bert was surprised for a different reason. This was a real woman.
“Wow, it’s perfect! Billy, you’re really skilled!”
They must have become quite close. Roy seemed to have become friendly with Billy too. Billy also rejoiced with a “Right?” Saying they hadn’t known their skills were this good, that who would have thought they could disguise a man as a woman so perfectly—neither Yuls nor Bert spoke up.
Well, since they were a woman, dressing them as one naturally made them look like one.
“Adi, where’s your knight’s notebook?”
Bert asked. Adi took the notebook from their discarded shirt. Knights never part with their notebooks. Until death. If they’d prepared a corpse for their sake, this should go with it too.
With Bert waiting to receive it, Adi hesitated briefly before opening the notebook and tearing out several pages.
“…”
“Here it is.”
“The torn parts?”
“Whoever searches for me, whoever investigates, they won’t think I acted alone. If I’m found dead, they’ll assume the person who hired me killed me.”
Having said this, Adi folded the torn papers and tucked them inside their dress and chemise.
“And such a person wouldn’t leave traces of themselves.”
“That makes sense.”
Bert said as he received the notebook. This would be passed to Ivan. Then Ivan would arrange everything convincingly. Meanwhile, the Duke would leave Palesa with Adi.
“Roy.”
“Yes.”
“Give this to Ivan. If he’s not there, give it to Gavin. Tell them to move as quickly as possible. We’ll be leaving soon too.”
“Understood.”
Roy moved quickly. Watching Roy leave, Bert, apparently judging they were far enough away not to be heard, called out, “Adrian.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Let me ask one thing.”
“Please do.”
“His Grace ordered us to prepare a corpse.”
Adi looked up at Bert. Looking at them like this, they really looked like a wom—no, they were a woman. How had they not known all this time?
“A female one.”
“…”
“I thought it better to ask you directly.”
Suddenly, Bert remembered how they’d been so casual about dress around each other as fellow knights. Why had they done that? Who would have thought there was a woman mixed in with the knights?
“Was it Adrian who died, the Count’s child?”
“…Adrian was sickly. Everyone knows that.”
Bert nodded. Everyone in Dalkatir knew Adrian Grimaldi was in poor health. They’d thought he would die any moment, but it was Adrina who died. People said Adrian’s curse had died with her, restoring him to full health.
That wasn’t it.
“Are you…”
He wanted to ask if that was alright with them. But had Adi ever had a choice? And Count Grimaldi…
…When he thought they were a son, he had understood. What Adi had done must have been a serious matter for the Count’s house. But thinking of them as a daughter…
How could he treat them that way?
“Please speak, my lord.”
“Do you have any distinguishing marks? Scars that only family would know about?”
“The recent injuries from the Count, and a stab scar on my ankle.”
“The ankle. From that assassin, I assume.”
Adi nodded at Bert’s words. Even those scars had healed completely now.
“I see. I understand, Adrian.”
Bert hesitated after speaking. Should he call them Adrian? The name Adrian didn’t suit the woman in the blue dress. Especially if it wasn’t even their real name.
“…Adrina?”
“Please call me Adi.”
Yes, Adrian and Adrina. Both could be called Adi.
Lilina
Guh even Bert knows now
I wanna see how Roy’s gonna react to Adi being a woman especially since Adi saw him buck naked and everything else already