Chapter 64
“Uh… Is it okay to let the princess and Edith meet?”
Sabrina whispered to me.
If you don’t know, how would I?
Before I could even think, Edith had already walked up to us with a bright smile.
Princess Simona looked at Edith with curiosity.
Oh no! Edith was now our fashion salon’s irreplaceable star, and Princess Simona was one of our most powerful supporters.
If the two of them ended up as enemies like in the novel…
It was too late to separate them now—they were standing right in front of each other.
Both looked at me, waiting to be introduced.
Well, here goes nothing.
“Uh… So, Edith? This is Princess Simona from the Duke of Belfour’s family.”
Edith bowed her head with a bright smile.
“Nice to meet you, Princess!”
I wasn’t worried about Edith—she was always like sunshine, just like in the novel.
The problem was Princess Simona…
“And Princess, this is… Miss Edith.”
As I nervously introduced Edith, something surprising happened.
Princess Simona smiled brightly and reached out her hand without any hesitation.
“You’re the one who sang on stage today, right? Your song was really impressive. It was way more enjoyable than those boring operas.”
Edith blushed happily at the unexpected compliment.
“Oh my, thank you for saying that!”
Edith held Simona’s hand and smiled sweetly, making Simona smile back.
“I look forward to working with you, Miss Edith.”
“Huh? Working together? Oh—yes! I look forward to it, too!”
Edith tilted her head but smiled innocently, happy just to be with someone who liked her song.
Simona looked away from Edith and turned to me with a meaningful smile.
“You were planning all this fun without telling me?”
Simona pouted, and I gave her an awkward smile.
“Princess, well… that’s…”
I was relieved the heroine Edith and the so-called villain Simona weren’t getting along badly.
Still, since the fashion salon was being run secretly, the fewer people who knew about it, the better.
But it was a little late for that now.
Almost as if she could read my mind, Simona crossed her arms and smirked.
“There’s no way I’m missing out on something this fun.”
Then she added confidently,
“I’ll buy every dress that was shown at today’s show.”
At that moment, Lillianne and Sabrina’s faces lit up.
And I’m sure mine looked just like theirs.
If Princess Simona wore those dresses around, it wouldn’t take long before the entire high society started talking about it.
As expected of Princess Simona!
Lillianne, clearly excited, answered right away,
“I’ll get them ready for you right away!”
While walking through the city center, it was now common to see noble ladies wearing dresses from the Clina Salon, made by Lillianne.
It was all thanks to Princess Simona.
She caused a huge buzz by showing up at a high-class party wearing a mid-length dress that showed her calves.
Originally, the dresses shown at the fashion show were just above the knee, but for regular wear, they had been adjusted to fall just below the knee—around the calf area.
Because of this change, people didn’t feel as uncomfortable with the new style.
Along with Princess Simona, Lillianne from the Sinclair family and even I—someone quite talked about in high society—started wearing mid-length dresses.
Naturally, the Clina Salon’s dresses became a hot topic.
Sabrina whistled as she looked out the carriage window at the women wearing Clina dresses.
“The response is even better than I expected.”
Lillianne replied proudly,
“The shop’s orders haven’t stopped. Changing the length was definitely a good idea.”
I nodded, not even trying to hide my growing smile.
“I knew your fashion sense wouldn’t let us down, Lillianne!”
Nice, nice. Getting rich is just a matter of time now.
Sure, most women still preferred traditional long dresses, but seeing one in three women wearing these cool mid-length dresses? That was a massive success.
Even better, since the dresses were shorter, women started paying more attention to their shoes.
I had already predicted this, so I’d ordered the Clina Salon to prepare a large stock of new shoes.
A good planner must always think three steps ahead!
That’s what you call “killing two birds with one stone.”
I couldn’t stop smiling with pride.
Just then, our carriage stopped—we’d arrived at our destination.
Sabrina, wearing a navy mid-length dress, stepped out first.
Then I followed in a red-toned dress, and Lillianne stepped out in a bright yellow dress.
Naturally, all eyes turned to us.
It wasn’t just that all three of us wore mid-length dresses—it was also the fancy ribbon-decorated shoes that caught people’s attention.
Most shoes were hidden under long dresses, or only the tip showed when walking, so they were usually made simple to avoid getting caught in the fabric.
But Clina Salon’s dresses were the opposite.
Since the dress lengths were shorter, the shoes wouldn’t get caught, and that allowed us to make them more flashy and eye-catching.
As expected, women passing by began whispering.
“Aren’t those shoes so pretty? I wonder where they got them?”
“Looking at the dress length, I think they’re from Clina Salon—so maybe the shoes are from there too?”
Yes, yes—be more curious!
As I proudly walked ahead, a familiar voice called out.
“Claire! Over here! Here!”
In front of a café, Edith, wearing a lovely pink mid-length dress, and Simona, in a graceful purple mid-length dress, were waiting for us.
The two of them stood side by side, waiting for us with friendly smiles.
It felt very strange to us.
Who would have guessed?
That the heroine and the villainess of this novel would be standing next to each other, smiling like close friends.
Is this okay…?
That thought crossed my mind for a moment, but I pushed the worry away.
Oh well! It’s good if they get along, right?
The garden of the Belfour duchy, Simona’s family estate.
We were sitting around a tea table, talking about the Cliná Salon.
“You want to attract even the conservative nobles?”
Simona asked, and I nodded.
“I know it’s nearly impossible to please all the nobles. But the more visitors we get, the better.”
At first, the salon business started as something light and casual.
But now, everything had changed.
Watching the salon grow step by step from the ground up made me proud.
Whenever I mixed in the things I love and the dreams I had into the events—and they succeeded—that sense of achievement gave new meaning and motivation to my life.
Now, my goal wasn’t just to raise the property value of the salon or the land.
I wanted to create the top salon in high society.
No, more than just a salon—an entertainment experience beyond compare!
That was the goal I set for myself in this world.
Not just some extra who gets caught in the love stories of the main male lead or the second lead.
This was my story where I am the main character.
Simona looked at me and nodded, understanding my serious gaze.
“I get what you mean.”
She looked like she was thinking, then let out a deep sigh.
“Changing the mindset of conservative nobles is close to impossible.”
I sighed too, as if saying I know.
“But if we blend in what they like in the right way, their reaction might be a bit more positive.”
When I looked confused, Simona quickly explained.
“They’re the type who value elegance and honor above everything else. That’s why they think boring things like opera and symphony performances are proper culture.”
No matter how exciting or new the events at Cliná Salon were, nobles would still go to the opera and think that listening to classical music was the mark of refined taste.
“So it might be good to give them what they want—something elegant, but still with the unique charm of Cliná Salon.”
Just then, something flashed through my mind.
“Ah…!”
