Chapter 28
“The fabric quality wasn’t lowered, and you even spent your own money to make it better—how is that something to apologize for? You’ve only done good things for me, so why say you’re sorry?”
In truth, even the fabric being used now was already quite expensive. To make several dresses from higher-grade materials would cost so much that even a high-ranking noble might hesitate.
“It’s just… because you chose a newcomer like me…”
Mielle worried that her words might have somehow upset Dalia.
Even though she had added some of her own money, the amount was limited. She couldn’t afford to use the very finest materials freely.
If she were the shop owner, she would have given up her commission and used all of Dalia’s advance payment to make something truly exceptional. But since she wasn’t in charge of management, she couldn’t do that.
“Don’t say that. I didn’t choose you out of charity. I chose you because I saw potential in you. Even if it wasn’t me—anyone with a good eye would have known you were the most talented among the street designers.”
Dalia meant every word. Even if she hadn’t known the future, one look at Mielle’s craftsmanship would’ve convinced her to pay without hesitation. But Mielle’s eyes welled up with emotion at her words.
“So what you have to do, Mielle, is make the most beautiful dress for me. I’ll pay you the same amount again as an additional advance when I leave. Don’t tell Silvia about it—use it just for me.”
“Lady Dalia…”
“And in return, you can repay me with a result as beautiful as your talent. All right?”
“I promise I will.”
Mielle answered firmly, seeing Dalia’s smiling face.
“But… Lady Dalia.”
Mielle hesitated, as though she had something else to say before leaving.
“What is it? You can say anything freely.”
“It’s about… the manager’s husband.”
At the mention, Dalia’s gentle expression dimmed as she recalled the man.
“You mean Silvia’s husband? That man, Hanson?”
He had once grabbed Dalia’s arm roughly, picked fights under the pretense of soliciting customers, sneered at Mielle, and made Silvia’s life miserable. There wasn’t a single thing about him she liked.
Mielle didn’t seem to think much differently about Hanson—she just tried to be respectful since he was her boss’s husband.
“Yes… Lady Silvia gets upset easily, so I couldn’t say anything bad about him at the shop. But I’m really worried, and I felt I had to tell you.”
“Worried? About what? I haven’t even run into him lately.”
“I’m not completely sure, but…”
After hesitating several times, Mielle finally confessed her concern.
“I think you should be careful. Hanson was holding a paper with your portrait on it.”
“…”
“And below it… I’m sorry to say, but there was an amount written—it looked like a bounty.”
After Mielle left, Dalia stared at the piece of blue fabric she’d brought.
The finished dress would surely be as beautiful and radiant as a flower just beginning to bloom.
In truth, she had no immediate need for such a formal, ornate outfit. Not until she left the Ahmad estate and entered the social circles of the capital.
The period she had promised to stay hidden in this mansion was slowly coming to an end. Both Dalia and Khalid had avoided mentioning it, as if they’d forgotten.
But when Dalia saw Mielle’s sketches, she had immediately asked her to make it. She wanted Khalid to see her at her most beautiful before the time came for her to leave.
“Will I be able to say what I want to say?”
She had come to admit that Khalid had become someone important to her. Even if he wasn’t fully human, even if he lacked certain “human” qualities, her feelings toward him wouldn’t fade easily.
So when she learned that her portrait had fallen into the hands of a thug like Hanson, she felt sick to her stomach.
“No doubt, it’s Sireina or my father’s doing.”
Their efforts to track her down were moving faster than she’d expected—close enough to almost reach her.
From her past life as Sireina’s wife, she had learned one thing: the underworld was far more organized and widespread across the nation than anyone would imagine.
Soon, they would learn that she was hiding in the Ahmad estate. Perhaps they already had.
“I’ll have to leave. Even if it means leaving Khalid behind. Or maybe…”
Just then, a knock at the door made her look up.
“Do you like how the dress turned out?”
It was Khalid. He had run into Mielle on her way out and, seeing her troubled expression, had come to check on Dalia.
“…Yes. I think it’s going to be beautiful.”
“Good. I’m glad.”
Seeing her smile, the concern on his face softened. Watching him, Dalia suddenly asked,
“Khalid.”
“Yes?”
“What’s your last name? Is it Astaire? Or do you have a family name of your own?”
Which house did he belong to?
At first, she hadn’t dared ask, since he seemed intent on hiding his identity. Later, she wasn’t even sure if dragons had surnames or noble houses like humans did, so the thought never came up.
But now, it had become an important matter.
Before Dalia left her territory, her legal advisor, Elgernon, had warned her: if she ever married and took her husband’s name, her position in the Bourbon line of succession would fall to the very bottom. She would lose her claim to the territory altogether.
“I didn’t think much of it then… but I didn’t expect it to become such a serious issue.”
It was silly to think so far ahead, considering she and Khalid weren’t lovers—or even engaged.
But every time she saw how tenderly he treated her, the thought came naturally.
“….”
For some reason, Khalid hesitated for a long time.
If he had a house he was bound to protect—or if there was some reason beyond human understanding to preserve his name—what then? As far as she knew, the only way for a man and woman to be joined was through marriage.
As Dalia waited nervously for his answer, a shadow fell over the doorway. It was Aaron, his expression as grim as ever, standing behind Khalid.
“Pardon the interruption.”
“Oh, it’s fine.”
Aaron glanced quickly between Khalid’s curious look and Dalia’s clearly unsettled face, but he didn’t dwell on it and got straight to the point.
“Roy has arrived.”
“Already?”
“He must’ve ridden day and night as soon as he received the recall order. He’s quite the sight.”
Indeed, Roy was just as Aaron had implied.
As Dalia descended the stairs with a shawl over her shoulders, the front doors swung open with a loud bang.
“Dalia! How have you been?”
Roy’s cheerful grin flashed so brightly that his white teeth gleamed.
No wonder—his skin was completely sun-bronzed. He must have spent days under harsh sunlight, his sleeveless shirt barely intact and his complexion a deep, rich brown.
“Roy, what on earth happened to you in just a few days?”
“Huh? Nothing! But I got super strong! Look!”
“Wow, can I hang on?”
“Go ahead!”
Normally calm and mature, Dalia found herself acting playfully around Roy—he just had that effect on her.
Laughing, she hung off his arm. Even though she was light, she was still a grown woman—yet Roy’s arm didn’t lower an inch.
“How is it? Not heavy?”
“This? Nothing at all!”
He looked so full of energy that her worries about him being tired vanished instantly.
“Let’s see… not just your face—you tanned all over! How’d that happen?”
“I ran here!”
“…What?”
Did he mean he rode a horse here? Or—
“You mean from the garden entrance?”
“No, I mean really ran! On all fours like this!”
Roy demonstrated by clapping his hands together like paws—and in an instant, they turned furry.
Dalia gasped, then poked at his large, jelly-like paw pads curiously.
“Right… everyone here is part-beast, huh? I’m still not used to it. But isn’t running like that exhausting?”
“It felt great! I hadn’t run in so long!”
Dalia stared in fascination at his twitching animal ears.
Khalid had explained it before, but seeing someone’s body partially shift into their beast form like this made it feel much more real.
“Can I touch your ears?”
“Sure! Just not too hard!”
His round, golden-furred ears were warm—slightly hotter than her own skin.
“Ahhh…”
Roy tilted his head so she could reach, then squirmed and giggled when she rubbed the tips, rolling onto his back like an oversized puppy.
“Khalid’s a dragon, Aaron’s a fox… come to think of it, I never asked what kind of animal you are, Roy. I’ve never seen ears like these before.”
Judging from the golden fur with black stripes and the soft pink pads, whatever animal it was had to be adorable—but judging by the size of his transformed limbs, also quite large.
Before Roy could answer, still too distracted by her touch, Khalid spoke up calmly from behind her.
“There’s a beast like that—far to the east.”
“Yeah! But I don’t know what it’s called in your language.”
As Dalia murmured in awe and continued to play with his ears, Aaron trailed lazily behind Khalid.
“Amazing.”
“That’s nothing. Want to touch my wings?”
Khalid, apparently jealous of her fascination, seemed ready to summon his wings at any moment.
At that, Dalia flinched slightly. She had never seen his true dragon form.
If he spread his wings, would they fill the entire room?
She was curious—but not ready to face that sight yet.
“If he realizes I’m afraid, it’ll hurt him.”
Forcing a casual smile, she shook her head.
“Maybe next time. You’re wearing too many layers right now—it’d be troublesome. Roy, before you came here, did you live among your own kind?”
As she gently deflected his offer and turned back to Roy, Khalid stepped aside, his expression darkening.
“No. I’ve never met another like me. I think I’m the only one on this continent.”
“That must be lonely.”
“It’s fine! You’re the same, aren’t you, Dalia?”
