24 — Getting Ready

With nowhere left to run, I gave in and set about preparing for the soiree the very next day.

Well, I say that, but getting a new dress was no easy feat.

My parents had given me a dress when I’d debuted, but it was off the rack, not custom-made. Same for the dresses given to me as engagement gifts and the ones that were prepared for me at the manor after I got married.

Meaning, this would be my first time ever having a dress custom-made.

A super famous haute couture madam from the capital, one so famous that even someone as untrendy as me knew who she was, personally came and measured me. I had heard from someone that this designer had a six-month waiting list for her dresses, but his VIP designer came rushing over the very next day. I worried that she might think I was self-important, since she was so famous and owned a popular shop, but...

“Goodness gracious, what a cute little lady you are! You’re so slim and have a nice figure, so it’ll really be worth my while to make a dress for you!” the madam told me as a gentle smile blossomed across her face like a flower. She was a kind middle-aged woman with gorgeous silver blonde hair.

Phew.

But what part of my flat chest and boyish hips did she mistake for a ‘nice figure?’ She’s impressed by the strangest things.

Oh, she was probably just being nice. That must be it.

Taking my measurements was the first step.

It was a little embarrassing to be measured in my underwear, from head to toe—Arms up! Look back! Everything perfect and exact!—in front of the madam, Dahlia, Mimosa, and a few other personal maids. It was like some sort of erotic humiliation scene.

And when that was done, the next step was the design.

This was Mimosa’s forte, whereas I didn’t know much about fashion design at all.

“Something that will show off Madam Fisalis’ innocent charm...”

“Something fitted and refined would suit her, since she’s tall...”

They discussed the finer points of what I ought to wear, and then the madam roughed out a design based on their conversation.

I was fascinated by her ability to draw so quickly without having it look rushed. More than the idea of the dress I was to wear, I was impressed by her skill.

Once the design was finalized for the time being, we moved on to the fabric.

The high quality silk felt the best under my hand, buttery soft and smooth, and I certainly had no qualms over how light it was.

We’ll use this liberally. It’s very expensive (as expected).

I was utterly spellbound by its exquisite texture, and it was a flawless light blue in color.

I wonder why she chose it...

~A Sudden Memory: A Conversation the Day Before~

“About my clothes...” Mr. Fisalis said, as he was instructing Dahlia and Mimosa on the preparation of my dress and jewelry. It seemed as if he had something to say about his own clothes.

“About that—there’s something you had made earlier but have not worn yet. It was supposed to be for another soiree that ended up overlapping with official business, so you did not attend,” Dalia said with an air of calm.

“Ah, yes. You’re right,” agreed Mr. Fisalis.

“What if you wore that, Master? Madam’s dress can match it.”

“...sure.”

Something about Dahlia made it hard to tell her no, and so Mr. Fisalis’ outfit took mere seconds to determine.

According to what she told me later, a sudden business trip had come up and Mr. Fisalis had been unable to go to the party. Once she’d mentioned it, I recalled a similar business trip around the time we were to be married.

Gosh, I really did completely forget about him back then.

And so ends our trip down memory lane.

In other words, if he was going to wear something he already owned, so could I. There was bound to be a coordinating dress in my dressing room.

But just as I said so, Dahlia and Mimosa closed in on me wearing frightful grins and cackling,“We’ll get something maaade.” I surrendered.

So, since Mr. Fisalis’ outfit was light blue, this would make for a coordinating dress, just as Dahlia had suggested.

I didn’t really see why we had to match, though.

Won’t we look like one of those annoying couples that gives you secondhand embarrassment? It’ll totally look like we’re overcompensating and just pretending to be in love.

Oh. Wait.

When she and Mimosa had finished their planning, the madam said, “Now, to show you what I can do!” and left for her shop excitedly.

There was no time to waste, however; jewelry was next. And like the dressmaker, the owner of a famous jewelry store in the capital came to see me.

The weight the Fisalis name carried really was something else.

I was reminded of that fact multiple times that day.

Since my dress wasn’t finished yet, we described the style and color to him, to which he replied, “Hmm, yes, I see.” He was rummaging through the case he had brought with him when he suddenly said, “How about this one?” and pulled out a hefty crimson velvet box.

When he opened the box, my eyes were dazzled by the brilliance that lay inside.

Setting the box aside, what appeared from inside was a splendid mix of sapphires and diamonds. And as if the gems themselves were not enough, the necklace had so many of them.

“Please, try it on,” the jeweler said, handing it to me like it was some trinket. His hands shook as he did, though, due to how valuable it was. Does he really expect me to take this? I thought to myself, hesitating.

“Let’s see how it looks on you,” Mimosa said, taking it in my place and resting it against my décolletage.

Thanks for having my back, again, Mimosa!

There was no denying it was beautiful when I looked in the mirror. I was sad to see that it was almost too beautiful, though, and made my face look flat by comparison.

How depressing.

I was sulking quietly to myself, and even though I didn’t say anything to the jeweler and just stared silently into the mirror, he said, “It would be unfair to compare these to gems from the duchy, but this is made with stones equal to those from other kingdoms. You have excellent taste, Madam, just as I suspected!”

He misunderstood my silence for dissatisfaction with the gems.

I wouldn’t have been able to tell if the stones were from here or elsewhere anyway!

I forced myself to smile in the wake of his error and said, “It really suits me!”

Mimosa looked back at me with a smile and agreed, “It certainly brings out the color of your eyes, Madam. It looks amazing.”

Dahlia smiled, too, and commended the jeweler. “We had other necklaces too, but I think this one is the right choice.”

...it certainly does feel expensive. Same for the dress.

Yeah, I’m better off not asking how much it costs. I’m sure I’d faint at the response if I did.

“...I’ll go with this, then...”

It’s not as if it’s coming out of my pocket!

I’d made my decision.

I realized then that it was already evening; preparing a dress and jewelry had taken the whole day.

I knew it was poor manners to sprawl out on the sofa in my room, but Dahlia and Mimosa weren’t watching, so it was fine.

I suspected they’d let me shut my eyes for a moment anyway after such a demanding day.

“Darn it, I didn’t get anything done today. No cleaning, or decorating, or gardening.”

I didn’t even get to wear my uniform at all today.

“Well, sometimes you just have days like this,” Mimosa snickered as she placed a steaming hot cup of tea in front of me.

“I had no idea going to a soiree was this much work.”

What did I do about evening parties up until then, you may wonder. Well, I could count the number of social events I’d attended on one hand. Since I was a noble, I couldn’t just wear one of my regular old dresses, but on the other hand, we didn’t have the money to get new clothes for every party, so we had to do what we could, like mixing and matching accessories and dresses so they looked like different outfits.

It was no easy task, but it was nowhere near as exhausting as this.

Was I just not motivated enough?

“Maybe we ought to make time for dance and etiquette lessons, instead of housework,” suggested a voice jokingly, but with a decisive undertone.

Who said that!?

When I glanced behind Mimosa, where the voice originated, I spotted Dahlia. She was wearing a wide grin.

I was beginning to sense a pattern.

No matter how much I argued, I always ended up studying.

I gulped in terror.

I seemed to be choking on Dahlia’s words as well as her smile. “Leave your rest and relaxation to me!” Mimosa charged in my direction, as if she were attacking a retreating enemy, with a smile rivaling Dahlia’s and a clenched fist.

What’s with all this? The evening party was just an option I agreed to after I signed the contract.

Why does everyone seem so excited by this?