Chapter 26
“Ah… this?”
I smiled faintly and fiddled with the back of my neck.
I hadn’t expected him to take an interest in the accessory I was wearing.
It felt a little awkward to say that it was a gift from your superior, so I parted my lips to speak but stopped.
“It seems you received it as a gift.”
“Huh?”
“If Miss Daphne had bought it herself, she would have told some story along with it. Many ladies like to talk about where they bought their jewelry, its origin, or its history.”
He was sharp.
What he said wasn’t wrong, and there was nothing I could argue against, so I nodded.
The more I tried to add to the explanation, the stranger it sounded.
I clasped my hands tightly together and looked at him.
“Yes, I wore it today because it seemed like it was given as a gift for a special occasion.”
“It suits you well. It’s a corsage that emphasizes Miss Daphne’s kind gaze. I’d imagine it’s a gift from someone close to you.”
“…Someone close? May I ask what made you guess that?”
“Your tone, your aura… considering your personality, it seems like a gift given with thought. There’s a saying that others often see us better than we see ourselves.”
Before I knew it, I was nodding, enchanted by Sir Loiche.
It seemed he had laid out the conversation in a way to spark my interest.
‘This is different from earlier.’
I asked him with genuine curiosity.
“But Sir Loiche,” I said.
“Yes?”
“You speak really well, don’t you? Unlike before. You could probably talk this way to other ladies too.”
“Haha, thank you. Perhaps it’s because Miss Daphne gave me such great guidance just a few minutes ago.”
“No.”
Sir Loiche began fumbling and speaking awkwardly again.
Ah, I see.
The corners of my lips curled up slightly.
“Sir Loiche, could it be…?”
“……”
“You were also being watched by Lady Selvia, weren’t you? That’s why you came here.”
Finally, the puzzle pieces fell into place.
Well, someone like Lady Selvia would be worth noticing.
I picked up my clutch in a gesture of sincere support.
“Phew… I only need to come here today, but Sir Loiche, you might be summoned by Lady Selvia countless times.”
“Haha… well, Miss Daphne. Um…”
“Or am I wrong? Did I misread the situation?”
“No, that’s correct. Yes, that’s right.”
I had to make Edin’s dream come true, and Sir Loiche was far too competent… yet here we were, living with such complications.
It really made me want to cry.
“Shall we get going now? I’ll pay for the tea.”
“Miss Daphne, that’s… against etiquette.”
“We’ve been comrades for an hour. Consider it a gesture of friendliness and solidarity, so don’t feel burdened!”
I quickly paid for the tea.
It felt refreshing, and chatting with him was more fun than I expected.
Maintaining this kind of conversational distance wasn’t bad at all.
Of course, if I had to pay for two more rounds, I would have collapsed on the floor, pounding it in protest.
“This is where we part ways. Thank you and it was a pleasure.”
“The pleasure was mine as well. Take care on your way back.”
After bidding Sir Loiche farewell, I turned around with a light heart.
‘One important task done!’
Sir Loiche and I were clearly not destined to be together, and with marriage off the table in this life, I decided I would leave a letter or message for Lady Selvia to explain that it was unfortunate but unavoidable.
I happily headed back to the carriage, not even imagining what might have arrived at the dress shop.
⌜Miss Daphne…
…you are invited to the birthday banquet.
Rachel, the youngest daughter of the Leodid family⌟
“Wait, am I dizzy or something? I can’t seem to read these letters properly.”
I rubbed my eyes with my hand.
The makeup Emma had carefully applied smudged under my fingers.
But without caring, I read Rachel’s letter again; the content hadn’t changed.
I sighed deeply and stared into the air.
I had been invited to Rachel’s birthday banquet.
Assuming there would be around fifty attendees in high society, I had been granted the honor of joining them.
Of course, if I hadn’t visited the Leodid residence before, I’d probably be jumping for joy.
Even if one didn’t often attend social events, it was obvious that being invited to the birthday banquet of a lady destined to become Crown Princess was an honor everyone could recognize.
But… I…
‘I still find that family unsettling.’
Over the past few years, we had had little contact.
And yet, suddenly, Rachel was taking such meticulous care of me and even gave me a pendant. I couldn’t tell whether her intentions were good or bad.
Why had she invited me to such a special event?
Lost in thought for a moment, a new idea came to mind.
‘Wait, she might have invited more people than I thought. The Leodid Marquisate is huge!’
As long as the oddly-warded fig-tree garden was properly secured, she could invite more nobles than I had anticipated.
I glanced through the list of ladies scheduled to visit this afternoon.
There were four in total.
Even Rose was scheduled to visit for the first time today.
I made up my mind.
I would discreetly ask them whether they had been invited to Rachel’s birthday banquet.
I posed a subtle question to the next lady who arrived.
“Durra, it seems like a good season for social events these days. Don’t you think?”
“Yes. Oh, Miss Daphne, you know about it too.”
“What do you mean?”
“Rachel is hosting a very grand birthday banquet this time. So even someone like me, the third daughter of a baron, received an invitation.”
She spoke excitedly, her eyes sparkling.
Of course, her family had accumulated significant wealth through the textile business, so calling them ‘just a baron’s family’ felt slightly off.
‘At least now I know one other person besides me was invited by Rachel.’
The next two ladies I met didn’t even require subtle probing.
Perhaps because Rachel’s birthday banquet was such a highly anticipated event, they mentioned it first without me asking.
A countess’ youngest daughter, and a second daughter of a non-noble family running a large trading house—both received invitations.
‘Ah, so I was worrying for nothing.’
I could attend without concern.
After all, I was the designer in charge of her wedding dress.
Thinking back, it wasn’t strange at all for me to be invited.
After sending off the last lady, I took a short rest on the sofa.
“Miss Daphne, the next appointment is Miss Rose of the Hampton Count family. Shall I prepare tea?”
“Yes, have tea ready, and prepare snacks after taking measurements. She must be hungry.”
Today’s final client was Rose.
This was her first visit to my dress shop since promising to have a dress made.
I organized designs that suited her taste and prepared to welcome her.
‘Since today’s schedule is tight, we’ll measure her today… she must have been dieting strictly for her wedding dress. She’ll be hungry, so I’ll prepare plenty of snacks.’
Berry, Olivia, and I quickly cleaned up traces from the previous ladies’ visits.
We arranged the space just for Rose and waited quietly.
‘It’s already five minutes past the scheduled time, why isn’t she here?’
However, Rose, who had a reputation for punctuality, hadn’t arrived yet.
Since she was the last client today, her lateness wouldn’t inconvenience anyone else.
I patiently waited, as clients were occasionally late.
After thirty minutes, the door opened, and Rose appeared with a maid.
“Miss Daphne, sorry I’m late.”
She hurried in, offering an apologetic greeting.
I reassured her and quickly took in her appearance.
‘This isn’t the usual Rose.’
Where had her lively, energetic self gone?
Her cheeks were slightly sunken, and she entered the shop weakly.
Even in a dark-colored dress, her narrowed waist was immediately noticeable.
‘Something’s off.’
She looked far from a bride-to-be.
Even though I knew it was better to remain silent while running the dress shop, I couldn’t help but speak, worried about the relationship tied together by the word “friend.”
“Um… Miss Rose…”
