ITCYLITCOTRGC CH 03

That evening, during dinner, after Sasha had visited my room earlier that day, my parents brought up the Imperial Ball just as Sasha had predicted.

I was already at a dead end. There was only one choice left for me. I gave up on everything.

Since I had little interest in fashion, I answered casually when my older brother asked me about my dress.

“You know the dress I wore last year? It’s practically new. Why?”

The idea that women were obsessed with clothes, jewelry, and handbags was nothing more than a stereotype. And the idea that men weren’t interested in fashion was just as much of a stereotype.

After hearing my answer, however, it was Sasha who jumped up in protest, insisting that it absolutely wouldn’t do.

Just from the fact that, unlike other men, my older brother liked romance novels, it was obvious that he had been born with more than the usual amount of sensitivity. With his refined eye for beauty, my older brother was quite sensitive to the latest fashion trends in the capital.

“Are you kidding me? If you wear a dress from last year again, people will think the Roha Viscountcy is struggling financially.”

“But I only wore it once! I barely wore it at all, so it’s practically new! Really. And even if I buy a new one this time, I won’t wear it again anyway.”

At the sight of me scratching my itchy ear with a fingernail, Father squeezed his eyes shut.

A moment later, he issued a stern command.

“Wife, call a dressmaker to the house. No matter how much it costs, have them make her a very fine dress.”

“No! Father, I told you I don’t need one! If you have that much money to spare, just give me some pocket money!”

“It isn’t a waste of resources. It is the circulation of wealth! And besides, it is an investment in my daughter.”

Father shook his head firmly, as if telling me not to argue any further.

Beside him, Sasha added a word with a satisfied expression.

“Mother, Lady Duoi’s salon is the most popular these days. You should contact her.”

The Roha Viscountcy was wealthy.

Compared to other noble families, their political influence was somewhat lacking, but financially, they were quite well-off.

Thanks to the generous fee they promised her, Lady Duoi postponed all her other appointments and visited our house early the next morning.

With her plump figure and extravagant dress, she looked every bit like a master of fashion.

Lady Duoi entered my room, took my measurements, held various fabrics against my body, and chattered away noisily.

I didn’t even understand all the names of the fabrics she mentioned, but Lady Duoi seemed to have found herself quite a good gossip partner.

That partner was my older brother, Sasha Roha.

“Your skin is naturally so beautiful that anything would look wonderful on you, Young Lady. A brown dress to match your hair would give you a lovely mood as well. What do you think?”

“What about burgundy instead? I heard it’s quite fashionable among women these days.”

Lady Duoi’s eyes widened at Sasha’s response.

Covering her mouth, she giggled happily before answering.

“Oh my! Young Master, you have such wonderful fashion sense. You’re absolutely right. Burgundy is quite a good choice. Ah, now that I think about it, I can remember a burgundy fabric that would look perfect against such fair skin.”

“And I think gold jewelry would look nice with it. Something simple and elegant.”

“That’s quite a daring and bold choice. Hehe. As you said, burgundy and gold go very well together.”

“Um… I don’t really understand what the two of you are talking about.”

Burgundy this, gold that.

Brown and burgundy looked almost the same to me. I couldn’t understand what was so different about them.

As the conversation between Lady Duoi and Sasha showed no signs of ending, my mind began to go blank.

Eventually, I reached the limit of my patience.

“What’s the difference between that and the dress I was originally going to wear?”

No matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t tell.

Tired of being treated like a doll, I ran to my wardrobe and pulled out one of my dresses.

“Look at this. The color is similar to the dress I wore last year, and the design is similar too.”

At my protest, Lady Duoi’s eyes widened in surprise once again.

But this time, the meaning behind her surprise was completely different from when she had reacted to Sasha.

“Oh my. The Young Lady is quite… well, down-to-earth… aren’t you? Quite different from the Young Master.”

Lady Duoi seemed genuinely shocked. She struggled to choose her words several times before finally managing to speak.

Sasha looked at me with an embarrassed expression.

“Look carefully. This one has a more vivid shade, while this one is deeper.”

“Yes! Exactly. Vivid burgundy has already gone out of fashion. Going to a ball wearing something like this? It would be like writing ‘I have absolutely no sense of fashion’ across your forehead and showing up.”

“Exactly. You’d be better off going naked than wearing something like this. There’s no way we can put her in a dress like this.”

“The Young Master is absolutely right. That’s exactly how it is.”

Lady Duoi and Sasha were completely in sync.

I looked closely at the dress and the fabrics again.

Even though the colors looked almost identical to me, the two of them continued their passionate discussion as if they were debating some matter of national importance.

Clearly, this wasn’t going to end anytime soon.

I sighed heavily.

No matter how much of a shut-in warrior I was, sometimes it was better for one’s mental health to give up quickly when something was impossible.

“Fine. Fine, I understand. Just let me have one thing my way.”

“What is it?”

“I get cold really easily, you know? So I need a large shawl.”

“A shawl…? Why do you need something so… grandmotherly? I mean, something meant for the elderly?”

Lady Duoi asked me with an awkward expression.

Sasha nodded in agreement.

“Exactly. The trend these days is off-shoulder dresses that leave the entire shoulders exposed. And you’re planning to be the only person wearing a shawl? What would you do without me, honestly?”

What would I do?

I’d probably be living quite comfortably, spending the Viscountcy’s money however I pleased.

I stuck my tongue out at Sasha and gave him a mocking look.

Then I made my demand clear once again.

“I don’t care about fashion. If I don’t get a shawl, I’m not going to the ball. Please make sure it’s prepared. Understand?”

At my firm declaration, Lady Duoi glanced at Sasha.

When Sasha reluctantly nodded as if he had no choice, Lady Duoi also nodded, though she clearly wasn’t happy about it.

Only after seeing that did I cooperate with their little doll game to the best of my ability.

Otherwise, I had a feeling they might spend the entire day making one dress.

The day before the ball, the dress and accessories arrived from Lady Duoi’s salon.

After our first meeting for measurements, I met with her several more times for dress fittings.

Perhaps because they had gone to such ridiculous lengths to choose the dress, or perhaps because Lady Duoi was simply that skilled, even I, who had little interest in clothes, had to admit that the dress was beautiful.

It was a burgundy off-shoulder dress.

The color itself ran the risk of looking somewhat old-fashioned, but thanks to the carefully designed style, it instead gave off a sophisticated impression.

Puffs decorated both sleeves, while pleated details around the chest added a cute touch to the dress, which flowed down in a full, graceful line.

Just as Sasha had ordered, the dress suited me exceptionally well.

My parents were so impressed that they repeatedly said we should have all my clothes made at Lady Duoi’s salon from now on.

That is, until I put on the shawl.

Because I had made such a fuss about getting cold easily, the shawl had been made extremely wide and thick.

It was an item that reminded anyone who saw it of a grandmother sitting in a rocking chair with a cat on her lap while knitting.

The moment I draped it over my shoulders, all the decorations around my chest were covered, reducing the beautiful dress to an ordinary-looking outfit.

Naturally, the moment Sasha saw me like that, he complained in a voice full of dissatisfaction.

“The shawl really doesn’t suit you.”

“Yes. Your brother is right. You look much prettier with your shoulders exposed.”

“But the ballroom will be so cold that I’ll catch a cold! I like my shawl. If you won’t let me wear it, then I won’t go to the ball either.”

The shawl was my secret weapon.

I had already compromised a great deal, so I issued that threat with all the determination I could muster.

Faced with my stubbornness, my family nodded reluctantly.

I returned to my room.

Then, in a cheerful mood, I began choosing a book.

“I can only take one with me, so I have to choose carefully.”

There was no one else in the room, so I stood in front of my bookshelf and began seriously considering my options.

A thick hardcover would be difficult to sneak around with, so I needed something thin with a soft cover.

“Hmm. ‘The Emperor I Married for Political Reasons Is Totally My Type’… The story is too predictable.”

Pass.

“‘The Queen Gets Married Five Times’? I think this one was a little too… bold. Better pass, in case someone catches me.”

People always had to think about the worst-case scenario, I thought, proudly praising myself for being so clever.

Then one of the new books I had recently bought caught my eye.

It was a stylish, thin book with a black leather cover.

I slowly picked it up.

“‘The Demon Duke Is Obsessed with Me’… huh.”

Romance novels were more fun the more childish they were.

The obsessive male lead was a classic among classics, but he was also exactly my type.

I nodded.

I liked it even more because it seemed like the perfect size to hide.

I stood in front of the mirror.

Then I rolled the book up and tucked it inside the front of my off-shoulder dress.

Of course, hiding a book there couldn’t possibly be completely inconspicuous.

But if I wore the shawl over it?

That changed everything.

“Oh! You can’t see it at all. Perfect! This is the one!”

I laughed excitedly.

Going to the Imperial Ball might be exciting the first time, but after that, all gatherings of people were more or less the same.

Just like in my previous life, popularity and attention followed the principle of the rich getting richer.

People who were already popular were surrounded by even more people, while outsiders like me were naturally pushed off to the sidelines.

My older brother belonged firmly to the former category.

I, on the other hand, was unmistakably part of the latter.

And even among those people on the sidelines, I was in a league of my own.

“I’ll pretend to look around with Sasha, then sneak away when he isn’t paying attention.”

There was only one good thing about the Imperial Ball.

The desserts were better than the ones at our house.

Sneaking into some random room and killing time by lying down on a bed or sofa was practically my specialty.

I felt a little sorry for Sasha, but my older brother had never once noticed me doing that.

This time wouldn’t be any different.

Thinking that, I lifted the corners of my lips into a sly smile.