CHAPTER 20………………………………………………..
A few days later, I headed to a boutique in the city.
It was a place I knew. The last time I had gone shopping accompanied by an absurdly large group of attendants, it was the first place I visited.
The private boutique of the Kereis family.
“It has been a while, my lady.”
I came with the excuse of buying a dress.
Since I was familiar with the place, the Duke didn’t assign a crowd of attendants behind me like last time.
I looked over the dresses, then pretended to choose one at random and called over a clerk.
This was someone I had observed carefully on my way in.
A long-serving employee of the Kereis family, known for his diligence since childhood when he first began working at the boutique.
I secretly asked Kawts to look into him, and found out he had married young and already had four children.
With a family that large, no matter how hard he worked, he would always be short on money.
“This is pretty. I think I saw Lady Molangdia wearing this once.”
“M–Molangdia?”
The clerk tilted his head as if he’d never heard the name before, so I quickly whispered:
“Lower your head. Quickly.”
I grabbed his collar and tugged him down to my height.
Since I was short, our faces came quite close.
Then I whispered quietly:
“I have a proposal for you.”
“Y-Yes?”
“Shh, just listen.”
His eyes widened.
I might be a young lady residing at the Kereis estate now, but I was still only a thirteen-year-old girl.
A tiny young lady behaving so mysteriously would certainly catch him off guard.
“Here. Take this first.”
I handed him the piece of purple fabric that I’d begged Kusen for.
Of course, I held it behind his collar so the maids behind me couldn’t see.
Then I quietly explained what my proposal was.
At first he seemed flustered, but soon his face brightened.
He nodded, understanding my intention, and accepted the fabric.
‘The plan begins!’
The Duke of Kereis often visited the boutique.
A man who insisted on perfection and balance from the placement of furniture to the position of teacups.
So his clothes? All the more so.
The Duke wouldn’t even glance at most outfits.
Only garments that matched his impeccable physique and came in black or deep navy—the colors of his formal uniform—were acceptable.
“Only wearing dark solid colors worries me a bit,” I said.
“Do not worry, my lady. There are dark shades of purple as well,” Kusen replied.
Listening to me, Kusen seemed already swept up in the excitement of having such a prestigious potential customer, and put his full effort into this job…
…even without knowing who the customer actually was.
A few days later in the morning, I received a letter from the boutique’s clerk.
The Duke would be visiting that afternoon.
I quickly ran to Kusen to tell him to be prepared.
“Please, let this work!”
Everything was already set.
All that was left was to wait.
To shake off my anxiety, I deliberately snacked and took a walk.
Strolling lightly through the garden, I thought calmly:
“He should be there by now…”
As planned, the Duke would have arrived at the boutique.
While he was examining clothes, the clerk would have guided Kusen to him.
I didn’t worry for a moment that the clerk would betray me.
He was far more interested in the story I’d whispered in his ear about a master craftsman who produced purple dyes and fabrics—far more than he cared about the fabric scrap I had given him.
If things went well, he might even open business with a rare artisan who made precious dyes and textiles. For that reason alone, he had happily agreed to help.
“The Duke must have overheard Kusen and the clerk talking.”
I had specifically instructed Kusen to loudly boast about the perfection of the color.
Then, the best customer—the only one worthy of recognizing his talent—would pay attention.
That was my plan.
The Duke of Kereis, the most prestigious noble after the Emperor.
Even a single word of praise from such a man would be an honor for Kusen.
After years of being insulted and exploited by merchant guild masters who only cared about money, this would be the perfect opportunity for him.
“Please, please come running back to me delighted!”
Time passed slowly.
By evening, the sky had turned faintly red.
Feeling drained, I flopped onto my bed and stared blankly at the ceiling.
“My lady!”
I sprang up at Kawts’ voice.
Breathless and excited, Kawts exclaimed:
“M-My lady!”
“Yes! Kawts! Tell me! It worked, didn’t it?!”
Kawts’ expression looked half-laughing, half-crying.
“Don’t tell me it failed?”
“No, it’s not that… haaa…”
“Where’s Kusen?”
“Kusen… Kusen is crying right now.”
“What?”
Kawts explained that he became flustered seeing Kusen crying, so he hadn’t caught what happened inside the boutique.
Instead, he handed me a piece of fabric Kusen had left.
“What’s this?”
“Kusen said to give it to you. It’s meant as a contract—his agreement to enter into business with you.”
“…!”
Joy surged from deep within my chest.
Seeing me bounce in excitement, Kawts finally broke into a bright smile.
“Congratulations, my lady!”
“Kyaaaah!”
After breakfast at the Duke’s residence the next morning, I asked the Duke for tea time.
Sitting with perfect posture, he brushed a speck of dust from the table and began:
“You have something to tell me?”
“I heard you visited the boutique yesterday.”
“Yes, I did.”
I tried to bring up the topic as naturally as possible.
“I went shopping there once too. And the purple fabric dress they displayed—oh, it was so beautiful, I couldn’t help admiring it.”
The Duke’s expressionless gaze slowly turned toward me.
“If you want, I will tell them to stock more purple dresses.”
“Thank you. But, Your Grace…”
He paused just as he was about to lift his teacup.
“A dress is nice, but I actually have a proposal.”
“A proposal?”
His elegant brows narrowed.
It was understandable.
A young girl offering a proposal, not a request.
He looked like he wanted to correct my choice of wording—but then he froze when he heard what I said next.
“I heard the Empire gives the title artist to painters who excel in painting and sculptors who excel in sculpture. And wealthy noble families sponsor such artists.”
“That is correct.”
Good. So far, I was playing the role of a sharp thirteen-year-old perfectly.
I steadied my breathing and continued:
“Then what about the people who make purple dye and fabric? The clerk said the only place in the Empire that can produce purple dye is the Patra region.”
The Duke’s cold, sharp gaze shifted.
“And that only one family has preserved that craft for generations. Shouldn’t someone like that be called an artist as well?”
“…”
“I just thought of it then. My parents once told me that anyone who dedicated decades of their life to a craft deserved to be rewarded.”
I raised my shoulders slightly in a cute little shrug and lifted the sweet drink before me.
The dessert-like beverage washed down my dry throat.
In the Empire, only painters and sculptors were officially recognized as artists.
They lived comfortably with support from high nobles or the imperial family and could devote themselves purely to their craft.
What I wanted was for the Kereis family to formally recognize Kusen as an artist and sponsor him.
Recognition from the Duke of Kereis himself.
Of course, I didn’t need to go this far—Kusen had already agreed to partner with me.
But beyond our contract, I wanted him to be treated like the master artisan he truly was.
“Anne.”
The Duke called my name quietly.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Our eyes met.
His unreadable, expressionless face shifted slightly as he spoke:
“An artist supported by the Kereis family, you say.”
“Hup.”
I suppressed the hiccup that threatened to escape from my nerves.
The truth was, the Kereis family did not sponsor artists.
They had done so long ago but abandoned the practice because they found it troublesome.
“Anne.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“That is quite a decent proposal.”
“Y… Yes?”
I couldn’t help flinching in surprise.
Seeing that, the Duke lifted one corner of his mouth in a faint smile and rose from his seat.
“I had heard rumors of that man’s skill before. But he kept dealing with insignificant merchants, so I dismissed him. Yesterday was my first time seeing his work in person. He is worth sponsoring.”
“…!”
Joy welled up again, and I clasped my hands together as if in prayer.
As expected—masters recognize other masters.
The perfectionist Duke and the meticulous Kusen had understood each other!
“Debuie.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Duke summoned his butler and whispered instructions into his ear.
I couldn’t hear clearly, but it must have been related to what we had just discussed.
