“What style would you recommend to the young lord?”
“I want it to match my wife’s dress…”
“Oh, so romantic!”
“…is it.”
Seeing Killian’s face stiffen at the snort of the dressing room owner, she was convinced that he was of the same opinion as hers. However, as if the rumor that it was a famous dressing room was not false, the owner of the dressing room skillfully and seriously recommended Killian’s banquet dress. It was a style that looked more glamorous than what Killian usually wore by using dark blue fabric and gold thread decorations on the lapels and cuffs. However, when put together with her dress, it was a banquet dress that subtly looked like a couple, so both she and Killian liked it.
“Do it with this.”
“You made a really good choice. It’s a pity that I can’t see you two wearing these clothes to the banquet. You must be very beautiful.”
He looked at them with twinkling eyes, as if imagining it.
‘It’s also burdensome…’
Thinking about that, she looked at Killian, and he had the same expression as hers. They all laughed at the same time, lowered their heads and giggled, then came out with all the staff in the dressing room seeing them off.
“It seems like it was decided too soon. I wish you could try on a few more…”
“No. I really liked that dress. Honestly, I thought you had a good eye for it.”
“Well, I’ve heard a lot about having a good eye.”
“Ah, yes, yes. You must be.”
They joked and giggled again.
“I’m going to match the boots and shoes while I’m out.”
“Oh right! Did you decide to do that?”
“I should have gone earlier…”
Killian’s complexion looked bad again, probably thinking about how she almost drowned. She mustered up the courage to put her arms around his arm first.
“Come on!”
Killian looked back and forth at her and her crossed arms, then he smiled and nodded his head. Since the street where the clothing store was located was close to Le Belle Marie Street, they headed to the shoe store on foot.
“Wow!”
When she set foot on the street of Revelmarie, a ‘wow’ that had been quiet for a while came out. Darsus Street was also a street of nobles, so it was luxurious and had a lot to see, but Rebel Marie Street really seemed to be a street specialized for women. There were many cute and cute shops, and there were also many feminine and elegant shops. The cafes seemed to pay more attention to their appearance than the cafes on Darsus Street. It was said that there was a lot of eye candy. But what she liked better than seeing Lebel-Marie Street was the apologetic sound of Killian’s voice.
“If I knew you would like it this much, I would have come out more often with you.”
She knew, and Killian knew, that they weren’t meant to be together. Was there any way to say something like that? Instead of answering, she smiled broadly and entered the shoe store with him.
“Welcome! Ah! You are the prince of the Ludwig family. This one…?”
“As I said before, she is my wife. I’m thinking of ordering two pairs of boots and a pair of shoes.”
“I see. Please sit over here. I’ll bring you the original yard paper right away.”
The shop owner warmly greeted them and prepared for shoe making.
“I have one of my boots, so can’t I just match one?”
“Ryzen is colder than here and it snows a lot. We need to make boots that are waterproof and warm for the winter.”
Hearing about Ryzen made her heart pound again. If there was a lot of snow, it would be a big deal to prepare for the winter, but that meant that there would be quite a bit of precipitation in the winter.
‘Besides, the winter scenery will be beautiful, so I think it would be nice to grow it as a tourist destination. By planning Ryzen’s own winter festival…’
While she was laughing to herself as she spread her imagination, the shoemaker put thick paper under her feet and began to imitate the shape of her feet. She was embarrassed to see Killian staring at her feet and ankles with her skirt slightly raised.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Your ankle is really…”
“Yes?”
“Oh, no, nothing.”
Killian was about to say something, but he shook his head and slurred his words, but the redness on his cheeks made her think of something strange. It’s like self-praise, but Edith’s slender ankles and slender calves were so pretty that even she could barely salivate. She gestured to Killian. Then she whispered into Killian’s ear as he leaned over to her with a puzzled look on his face.
“I think it’s you who is obscene, not me.”
It was so much fun to watch Killian get up again and look bewildered. They wanted to play more, but the shoemaker held their spirits.
“While imitating the foot, choose the design you like.”
A boy who seemed to be his pupil handed over an old catalog, and Killian and she laughed and picked out boots and shoe designs together. For winter boots, she chose a design that was quite similar, so it seemed like it was purposely tailored for a couple. After matching shoes and boots, we walked through the chilly streets and entered a high-end cafe to drink hot tea together.
‘I never thought this day would come while living as Edith…’
Compared to the early days of marriage, when her husband decided to give up, she thought she was really successful. Enjoying a happy mood, she quietly sipped her tea, but suddenly Killian’s expression began to harden. And at the same time, she heard the story of the table behind them.
“Who will Cliff Ludwig marry? My sister is already married.”
“Isn’t that Sinclair an illegitimate child? The two brothers are mad at the fox.”
Her ears perked up at the familiar name.
“Ah, please. Mrs. Sinclair certainly did. She said she sold her illegitimate daughter to the Ludwigs in that house. It seems that the Sinclair family borrowed some money from the Ludwig family.”
“You mean they gave their daughter instead of that money?”
“As a daughter, that is. She is an illegitimate child. Where is an illegitimate child treated as a child?”
She hoped their chatter would end here. Because it was true so far. But they crossed the river of no return.
“They said she was pretty. But even if the Ludwig family were sane, she wouldn’t hand down the Duchess to someone like an illegitimate daughter.”
“It’s ridiculous that she became a duchess. Instead, she’ll heat the bedrooms of the men in the house.”
Some middle-aged ladies, not knowing that one of the sons of the Ludwigs family was sitting behind them, giggled.
‘I’ve been trying to cheer him up all day, but those ladies ruin everything.’
She didn’t want to think about what Lise and Cliff were doing alone, so she couldn’t say anything in front of the people who came out. As if the sound of their laughter was annoying, Killian’s face became stern every moment. She jumped out of her seat before Killian exploded and walked slowly towards the ladies. Killian’s surprised gaze followed her.
“Oh, that is a very interesting story. Could you please tell it to me too?”
Duke Ludwig and his two sons, debating whose ‘it’ would be the tallest, looked at her in amazement.
“Who, who…?”
“Me? Don’t you know me?”
‘You must be a crazy one.’
She didn’t expect anything special from people who were not ashamed of others and talked about low-level gossip in public, but she should have known at least the faces of the people they chewed on and their families. Tsk tsk.
“I share a bedroom with one of the men you just mentioned.”
Even though she showed them the ring she was wearing on the ring finger of her left hand, they couldn’t remember who she was. Then one of them spotted Killian sitting behind her and let out an inner scream and slapped the woman sitting next to her on the arm. It was only then that the other ladies found Killian and covered their mouths in contemplation.
“How elegant… I accidentally overheard a conversation that was far from elegant, but I wanted to point out one thing.”
She said, holding the teapot in the middle of their table and pouring tea into their cups.
“Do I look like someone who will live in the same house as the woman who sleeps with my husband? Ah! You said you didn’t know who I was? If I say Edith Ludwig, no, Edith Rigelhoff, would you know it?”
The tea water overflowed the teacup and flowed over the saucer. And all the ladies were surprised by the name ‘Edith Riegelhoff’. Even though her face wasn’t known much, it seemed that her notoriety was as high as it was.
“I-I-I-I-I’m sorry, Miss Edith. Hey, that’s what we heard too!”
The lady who seemed to be the organizer of this meeting managed to excuse herself, but she kept her arrogant expression on her face – and this also required a lot of patience – and started pouring the tea over her teacup as well.
“Who didn’t say that it’s better not to talk about rumors that they can’t handle?”
The area around the table became so quiet that she could hear only the sound of the tea being poured. She put the teapot on the table only after it was empty. The table was littered with spilled tea.
“Be careful in the future.”
The ladies, unable to move even though the skirts of their dresses were getting wet from the tea spilled on the table, barely nodded. As she turned around, she pushed her face out in front of them again and whispered.
“I don’t know, but I think my husband’s is the biggest.”
Then she smiled and returned to her seat. Actually, the last words were to make Killian feel better. As long as this was the world in the book, Cliff must be at the top of all specs. maybe. When she returned to her seat and sat down, the women sitting behind them hurriedly got up and left. And only then did Killian burst out laughing.
How do you feel?
