Chapter 32
“There must be more than a hundred… They’ll all be too small before I even get to wear them.”
In the end, Miela looked teary-eyed at Elena. But Elena kindly explained,
“It’s okay, Lady Miela! All of my clothes are 100% custom-made, so I can only make a maximum of three outfits a week!”
“Huh? Then…”
“Yes, I’ll send you the clothes from the design book gradually over six months. I’ll come every month to take your new measurements.”
For the record, the design book contained a total of fifty dresses—not a hundred! It only felt that way to Miela.
For noble young ladies from prestigious families, fifty dresses were considered a bare minimum. It seemed Miela’s sense of reality still hadn’t caught up.
‘Guess I’ll get to see that surprised squirrel look a lot more in the future.’
Istin felt pleased at the thought of seeing that cute expression again.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave now. See you again later.”
At last, the tailor Elena left. Miela was just about to finally catch her breath when—
“Phew…”
“It’s not over yet, Miela.”
Istin’s voice thundered down like a bolt from the blue. It even had a mischievous undertone.
“W-What?”
“We still have to order accessories like indoor wear, hats, and shoes. You’re not planning to walk around barefoot, are you?”
“No…”
Miela shook her head weakly. She already felt like all her energy had been drained. Not even a full day of farm work back in the village had made her this exhausted.
Istin whispered something to lift her spirits.
“Right. I know it’s tiring, but hang in there just a bit longer. It’ll be lunchtime soon.”
“L-Lunch?!”
Suddenly, Miela’s eyes sparkled with life again, and she reflexively swallowed her saliva.
‘She really is such a simple one.’
Istin chuckled inwardly.
* * *
‘It’s so soft, the texture feels weird every time I step! Even if these shoes were brand-new, I bet they wouldn’t give me blisters.’
Wearing leather shoes for the first time after always wearing stiff wooden ones felt awkward.
For context, the shoes Miela used to wear were ones her mother had bought for her before she passed away. They were old and tight now, but she never threw them away—not just because she couldn’t afford new ones, but also because she wanted to keep something that reminded her of her mom.
‘I remember the first time I wore them… I got a splinter in my foot and it swelled up so badly. I think I walked the same way back then too…’
Lost in thought, Miela paced around the room in tiny steps. Istin, watching her, casually remarked,
“You look like a chick that just hatched from an egg.”
“A-A chick? What do you mean…?”
Worried he was criticizing her for not acting like a proper noble lady, she flinched. But Istin chuckled and added,
“I mean you’re cute. You look adorable.”
“…!”
Miela’s jaw dropped. She wasn’t used to being called cute by someone cuter than her! It was honestly surprising.
She hadn’t realized just how weak she was to compliments. Every time someone praised her, her heart soared like she could fly.
“You have such beautiful hair, like strongly brewed milk tea! This color is rare. You’d look amazing in soft pink, sky blue, mint—anything, really!”
The hat designer’s enthusiastic praise made the corners of Miela’s mouth twitch upward involuntarily.
‘Wow… It’s the first time someone complimented my hair. People always made fun of it, saying it looked like straw.’
Of course, when her mom was alive, she always praised Miela—not just her hair, but everything about her, saying how lovely she was.
“My daughter even smiles like an angel, doesn’t she? Hm?”
But after her mother passed, Miela only ever heard harsh words and scolding. Maybe that’s why she’d shrunk into herself so much.
Still, kind words had a strange power. They made her cheeks flush, made her feel shy and want to run away… yet at the same time, she couldn’t help but want to hear more.
‘Ugh, I shouldn’t get used to this…’
Whenever her heart felt like it was melting from warmth like this, Miela would force herself to pull back.
When the real heroine returned, she’d have to give up her place as the young lady of the house, so she couldn’t afford to rely too much on the Baloire family.
But that determination was shattered the moment she stepped into the dining hall of the duke’s estate.
“…!”
The dining table stretched endlessly, two or three times longer than the one at the villa. The chandelier on the ceiling sparkled like starlight, making the entire place look like another world.
“W-Wowwwww…!”
Her light brown eyes were wide as saucers, her mouth agape as if her jaw might fall off. The gasp she let out echoed throughout the grand hall.
Wooaaah—wooaaah—wooaaah—
“Huh. You’re really amazed, huh? Is it that impressive?”
Istin was more fascinated by Miela’s reaction than the dining hall itself.
To him, this size of a dining hall was standard. The one at the villa was extremely modest. The royal palace’s banquet room was even more extravagant than this.
‘If we ever have to visit the palace, I’ll need to be careful. She might faint from shock.’
Miela, finally regaining her senses, stammered a question.
“I-Is this entire space really for eating? For real?”
“Of course. Sometimes it’s used as a banquet hall or a conference room. We invite dozens of retainers and seat them on either side, and my father, the family head, sits right there.”
Istin pointed to the head seat at the end of the table. As expected, it was more ornate than the others.
“Our seats are here, Miela.”
Istin pulled out a chair right next to the head seat for her. Then he sat down across from her.
“It’s rare, but sometimes we have meals just with family. In those cases, the two of them sit across from each other beside the head seat. We sit next to them. Got it?”
He was teaching Miela basic etiquette—just in case she made a mistake.
After thinking for a moment, Miela slowly spoke.
“Yeah, I get it. But, um… don’t you think it might feel kind of lonely, sitting just the four of us at such a long table?”
“Huh. I’ve never thought about it that way…”
Istin shrugged. Feelings like loneliness were unfamiliar to him.
‘She’s always been so cheerful even on her own… Guess she doesn’t like being alone after all.’
It was unexpected. Like a plant that withers the moment it’s forgotten.
Istin reaffirmed his resolve—to spend time with her every day and make sure she never felt lonely. Just then, the servants entered with a trolley.
“Your appetizer, sir and miss. It’s a seafood soup simmered with goat’s milk cream and fresh shellfish.”
“Wow!”
Miela’s eyes sparkled. Seafood! Her mother had only ever described it—she’d never even seen it in real life, let alone tasted it.
Well, that made sense. She had lived in a small mountain village her whole life. She used to imagine what the ocean looked like.
‘Even this duchy probably isn’t that close to the sea…’
Miela was curious. How were they even getting such fresh seafood?
‘Wait, could it be… magic?!’
She quickly came up with her own answer. After all, most of the unbelievable things she’d seen since coming to the duke’s estate involved magic.
“Oh my gosh, it’s delicious…”
She carefully scooped up a spoonful of the soup and took a sip, and her eyes went wide. She’d expected it to be really salty and fishy, but it wasn’t at all. The cream melted softly in her mouth!
“Lady Miela, if you need anything, please ring the bell at any time and we’ll come right away.”
The servants soon left with the empty trolley. Istin had arranged for it, worried Miela might feel overwhelmed and lose her appetite with too many maids hovering behind her.
Once they were alone, Miela timidly asked,
“By the way, Istin. I’ve been wondering about something…”
