Chapter 106……..
“Ah, you’ve arrived just at the right time, Your Grace!”
A lady who had been complaining to the staff noticed Feydan and approached him.
“What on earth is going on here? Please explain. You’re known for your impeccable taste, Your Grace, yet you chose this cheap fabric?”
“So that’s why Your Grace is wearing another boutique’s dress? And yet you sell us such cheap clothing!”
Even though the ladies were at least a mother’s age, Feydan was a duke.
That meant they could not act recklessly toward him.
But the experienced ladies, faced with their own loss, could see nothing else.
Feydan, having never been treated this way, had no choice but to be swept up in their fury.
“Th-That wasn’t my choice, madam. It seems our staff made a mistake. We can have the dress remade quickly—”
“Then what am I supposed to wear to the appointment in three days?”
“Do you know how tight the schedule is if we try to get a new dress now? How do you intend to take responsibility?”
“When everyone else is in the newest fashion and I’m in old clothes, what happens to my dignity? My dignity!”
Each time the ladies snapped at him, the shrunken dress they held fluttered violently.
At the same time, everyone in the boutique turned their gaze toward Feydan.
Some looked at him mockingly, some with curiosity, and some with anger.
These were emotions he had never felt before.
Facing those eyes, he felt breathless.
Frozen under the deluge of gazes, Feydan finally turned and fled the boutique.
By the time I went down to the dining hall for breakfast as usual, Idris was nowhere to be seen.
“Hmm, looks like he’s a little late.”
I sipped the prepared tea and opened the newspaper beside me.
[Mariposa riding attire becomes a trend, bringing a new wave to noblewomen’s culture…]
[Boutique Blanc, launched ambitiously, faces quality issues—will the carefully built empire crumble?]
Two contrasting headlines shared the front page.
Of course, to me, both were good news.
“Are they really going to sit back and do nothing in this situation?”
I smiled contentedly and began planning my next move.
“If Blanc goes under like this, buying it cheaply wouldn’t be a bad idea.”
Of course, Feydan’s petty pride might prevent him from selling willingly.
But if I did end up buying it, acquiring a boutique at a low price was pure profit.
Even if he refused to sell, I could still scratch at his pride one more time—and that alone would be enough.
Just as I finished my tea with satisfaction, Idris entered the dining hall.
He looked like he had overslept, still in his robe, but even so, his proud face shone irresistibly.
“Good morning, Idris.”
“Did you sleep well? How’s your body?”
“My body?”
“After horseback riding, you were sore for a while.”
“Ah, I’m fine now.”
“Then shall we go again soon? You’re supposed to continue training while you still have the soreness.”
…Now I understand why the knights of the royal guard feared Idris.
Still, I nodded obediently.
“Alright.”
Since I had already started, I wanted to learn properly, and more than that…
That scenery… it was truly beautiful.
I wanted to move through it myself, experiencing it with my own body.
In that sense, his training method (?) had succeeded.
“How about the day after tomorrow? Are you busy?”
“Hmm… other than stopping by the boutique briefly in the morning, I don’t have any particular plans.”
“Then we can go in the afternoon.”
While we set the date, a light brunch was served.
Just as I picked up the cutlery, a letter arrived for Idris.
“What’s this? Something important?”
I looked at him curiously. Idris, reading the letter with a blank expression, finally looked up.
“Hmmm… it seems we’ll have to cancel the appointment the day after tomorrow.”
He shook the letter as he spoke.
“It’s an imperial command.”
The stationery bore the seal of the royal family.
A few days later, I visited the palace with Idris.
Specifically, the Crown Prince’s palace.
Because the one who had sent the letter a few days ago was none other than Ludian.
“The Crown Prince says he has something to show us?”
A maid greeted us when we got out of the carriage.
“His Highness is in the backyard.”
Following her, we arrived in the backyard and heard a familiar voice.
“Uncle! Aunt!”
…Huh?
I froze at the unexpected title while waving back at Ludian, who was smiling broadly and waving.
I glanced at Idris in surprise, and he too looked taken aback.
“Who taught you to call her ‘Aunt,’ Your Highness?”
“I asked my teacher. I wanted to know what to call the woman who will marry my uncle.”
The culprit was Ludian himself.
“But I think Your Highness’s future aunt would prefer to be called Leticia rather than that title.”
“Really?”
Ludian looked at me, as if asking my opinion.
Well, the person who will be my aunt is someone else…
I agreed with Idris.
“Yes, please call me by my name. It feels closer that way.”
“Then, Leticia! Follow me.”
Ludian grabbed my hand with one hand and Idris’s hand with the other, leading us somewhere.
“Ta-da!”
He brought us to a small clearing in the backyard of the Crown Prince’s palace.
There stood a brown, elegant horse with a golden mane.
“This is my horse!”
It seemed the Crown Prince wanted to show off the first horse he had ever owned.
Even pretending to be dignified, Ludian’s childlike pride at this moment made me laugh.
“Have you named him?”
“Yes. Brandon, and he’s male.”
“Horseback riding is a basic skill for a dignified emperor. Congratulations on coming closer to being an excellent emperor,” Idris praised.
Feeling proud, Ludian began to boast.
“I’m learning horseback riding too. At the hunting festival, I’ll ride with Mama Abba and my uncle.”
“Will Your Highness attend the hunting festival as well?”
“Yes!”
Children usually don’t attend social events, but the hunting festival was outdoors, so it seemed they were allowed to join.
At that moment, a lingering unease returned.
We still haven’t caught the mastermind who tried to kill Ludian during the founding festival.
Since we hadn’t succeeded then, someone was surely waiting for another chance to target him now.
Of course, Idris and the emperor suspected Deon, but they had no proof.
But acting without evidence would provoke the nobles aligned with Deon…
We were keeping an eye on Deon, but nothing suspicious had appeared.
Could Ludian safely attend the festival again under these circumstances?
Yet seeing the child excited to show off his riding skills, I couldn’t bring myself to say anything.
“Hee-hee, I don’t want to sleep… I want to play more…”
“I’ll wait until you wake up, so don’t worry and sleep.”
“Promise, Leticia…”
At nap time, Ludian, rubbing his sleepy eyes and whining, finally fell asleep after I made him promise.
Watching the angelic child sleep, a yawn escaped me.
Idris teased me quietly.
“I’ll wait until you wake up, so why not take a nap with Ludian?”
He was copying exactly what I had said to Ludian.
I smiled wryly at his childish teasing.
“No, thank you. Actually, I have something to discuss briefly. Shall we go out?”
We left the sleeping Ludian and quietly headed to the parlor.
Just as we reached the parlor, an unexpected visitor appeared from the opposite side.
“Her Majesty the Empress?”
“Ludian boasted that you two would come, so I thought I’d drop by.”
The Empress glanced out the window, checking the time, and continued.
“Ludian is probably napping by now. Shall we have a short tea break?”
We followed the Empress into the parlor.
She looked at us sitting side by side and, as if just realizing something, spoke.
“Now that I think about it, this is the first time I’m seeing you together.”
“You only favored Leticia, Your Majesty, which is why it turned out this way,” Idris joked.
The Empress laughed, clearly used to his teasing.
“It seems Duke is so displeased; from now on, I’ll make sure to call you both together. And…”
The Empress looked at us warmly and continued.
“Seeing you together like this, you look just like a newlywed couple—it’s really pleasant to see.”
If the Empress’s gaze seemed tinged with personal affection… perhaps I was imagining it.
