Chapter 80
The shopkeeper scolded Roze, then suddenly turned her head toward Heivern. The middle-aged woman’s sharp gaze made him flinch without realizing it.
“You should have never let your wife wear such dreary things in the first place. It’s not enough for you to dress nicely by yourself, is it? You should buy her some bright dresses too. And—hm?—maybe some slightly sexy undergarments to set the mood. That’s what you should’ve been doing.”
“…Excuse me, could you show us some other dresses?”
Roze hastily cut in, unable to calm her burning face. Just hearing the woman mention “sexy underwear” was enough to make her dizzy. If she left her to talk any longer, who knew what else might come out of her mouth?
“Hmm, then what about this dress? Since her skin is fair, a bright pink would look nice. Or perhaps a red dress would suit her well. Husband, which do you think looks better on her?”
The shopkeeper unfolded two dresses and turned to Heivern. He rubbed his chin, studying them with surprising seriousness—more serious than when he had been looking at little Flitta’s dress earlier.
“What if we draped some lace over this pink dress? Wouldn’t she look like a fairy?”
The shopkeeper laughed lightly as she spoke, looking completely confident in her choices. But Heivern’s expression as he examined the dresses was less than satisfied.
“Don’t you have something more extravagant?”
“To find anything more extravagant, you’d have to go to the ateliers the noble ladies use. But that would be difficult. No matter how much money you bring, places like that don’t accept commoners like us.”
She shrugged as she replied. At the same moment, Heivern and Roze exchanged glances. Now that she thought about it, this shop catered to commoners. Clearly, the shopkeeper had mistaken Heivern for nothing more than a wealthy commoner.
Of course, she should have realized earlier. A true noble, especially one who regularly dressed them, would have recognized the Grand Duke immediately.
“Um… should we maybe go buy the young lady’s clothes somewhere else?”
Roze leaned close to Heivern, whispering timidly. She worried he might be offended. She hadn’t considered that shops for nobles and shops for commoners were separate. If she had thought a little, she would have realized—nobles wouldn’t shop alongside commoners. They either went to high-end ateliers or summoned tailors directly to their mansions.
The thought embarrassed her. She had only found the children’s dresses here so cute and charming, but would Heivern understand that?
“I’m sorry, I—”
She began to apologize softly, but Heivern picked up the pink dress first and spoke.
“This one looks good.”
“…Huh?”
“It’ll go well with the dress for the child. Imagine you and Flitta wearing them side by side. Doesn’t the shape of this dress look a bit like a tulip?”
He gestured toward the little girl’s dress Roze had said was pretty earlier. The shopkeeper clapped her hands.
“Oh, you’ve got an eye for these things! Exactly. A mother and daughter dressed like that will look adorable together.”
“But still…”
“Flitta will love it—wearing something similar to you.”
He cut Roze off and turned back to the shopkeeper.
“Can she try it on here?”
“Oh, of course! I’ll even help with the fitting right away.”
Since she was about to sell two of the pricier dresses in her shop at once, the woman’s face split into a delighted grin.
* * *
– Oh my, heavens. How could you hide such a lovely figure under those clothes? Your skin is soft like a baby’s, and your bust has such a beautiful shape…
“Ahem!”
Sitting on the sofa, Heivern coughed loudly at the sound of the shopkeeper’s exaggerated exclamations from behind the fitting room curtain. His face, even down to his neck, flushed red.
If she’s helping her change, then just help her—why so many comments…
And in such shamelessly embarrassing words too, when anyone outside might overhear.
– Does your husband tell you to keep yourself all covered up when he goes out? Something like, ‘Only I get to see my wife’s pretty body’?
At her teasing laughter, Heivern sighed and dragged his hands down his face. From inside the fitting room, he then heard Roze stammering in embarrassment.
– N-no, that’s not it.
– Not it? Ha! Just look at him. He must be crazy possessive. I wondered why your husband was dressed so stylishly, while you were dressed so drably. Now it makes sense. He doesn’t want other men staring at you, right?
– T-that’s really not…
– Goodness, look at this waist! So slim. I’ll have to take the dress in a lot here. But the bust… that part will need to be let out. I thought you were delicate all over, but your chest is…
“Phew…”
Heivern rubbed his face again and exhaled heavily. But then, unexpectedly, he chuckled to himself. Just imagining Roze’s mortified expression at those words made him laugh.
No doubt she was blushing furiously, flustered beyond measure. And if she realized he could hear everything, her face would only redden further.
– Your husband loves you very much, doesn’t he? Lucky you. He’s handsome, and he looks so strong, too.
“Cough!”
Heivern, who had just been smiling at the thought of Roze, nearly choked when the topic shifted to himself. His face flushed red again.
How could she say such things so easily?
Heivern felt a surge of heat rising in his lower belly and quickly jumped to his feet in embarrassment. Shamefully, his imagination had strayed to dangerous places.
You’re insane, Heivern Gwenters. Pull yourself together.
He rubbed the back of his neck and wandered aimlessly around the shop. Just then, he heard the curtain of the fitting room slide open. He quickly hurried back to the sofa and composed his expression. At that moment, Roze stepped out.
“…!”
Heivern inhaled sharply.
Wearing the pink dress, Roze stepped out with an awkward expression, her gaze falling shyly to the floor.
“Well? Isn’t your wife beautiful? I’ve sold many dresses, but never have I seen one suit someone so well. She’s slender, yet her figure is so graceful—this dress truly comes alive on her.”
It was true. Seeing her wear it made the dress appear far lovelier than when it was just on display. The shopkeeper, excited, continued chattering.
“From now on, dress her in bright colors like this. I understand you don’t want to share such a beautiful wife with the world, but still—such a dreary wardrobe for someone like her is just wrong.”
Heivern half ignored the woman, his gaze locked firmly on Roze. He could hardly look away. She was captivating.
Her hair was not pinned up neatly as usual in the ducal estate, nor plaited for an outing—it was left loose, cascading in soft waves over her bare shoulders.
And through those locks, the curve of her breasts rose gently, while her waist looked so slender one might call it a handful at most.
“Ahem.”
Heivern realized he was staring too intently and quickly cleared his throat, turning away. At the sound, Roze glanced at him nervously, misunderstanding, and gave an awkward little smile.
“As I thought, it looks strange, doesn’t it? It doesn’t suit me…”
She assumed his cough was from disapproval. Her face dimmed as she turned hastily back toward the fitting room. Heivern shot up, waving his hands.
“No—it suits you, Roze.”
“…What?”
She froze, looking back at him. Half hiding his reddened face with one hand, he spoke in a slightly hoarse voice.
“…You’re truly beautiful.”
“…!”
Roze’s face turned scarlet, as red as a tomato. The blush spread downward too, painting even the exposed skin of her chest.
“My, my. Anyone would think you two were newlyweds. But your child’s already five, isn’t she? Haven’t you already seen everything? And still you get this shy and smitten?”
The shopkeeper laughed behind her hand, teasing.
Heivern steadied himself and looked Roze over again. The dress wasn’t as extravagant as those noble ladies wore—no jewels adorned it. He might not know much about women’s fashion, but he could still tell this shop was for commoners.
Still, the fabric didn’t seem poor quality at all. In fact, it looked elegant enough for a commoner, even a bit luxurious. He recalled the clothes he’d seen people wear in the streets and nodded.
Compared to the dull outfits Roze usually wore, this bright dress lit up her whole appearance. She looked younger, almost like a shy maiden.
A satisfied smile curved Heivern’s lips as he admired her. His gaze traced her from head to toe again—until suddenly, his brow furrowed.
