Chapter 13

Senir was a good conversation partner.  His gaze was not burdensome and his gestures were gentle and considerate.

He knew etiquette and stepped down quietly if Diana found it difficult to answer the question.

“Then, shall we go now?”

Time had passed and before she knew it, it was time to leave. Diana nodded and stood up with Sky in her arms.

As she stepped out of the building, she saw Senir’s carriage. Diana smiled brightly and looked back at Senir.

“Looks like it’s already been fixed! What a relief.”

“Little Young Master.”

The aide met Senir in front of the carriage. Senir nodded and said to Diana.

“I’ll take you home.”

“It’s okay. It’s near, so I can just walk.”

Diana was burdened, but at Senir’s persuasion, she soon got onto the carriage.

The huge carriage was truly different to the public carriage they used earlier. It was so cozy with its fluffy velvet seats and there was no shaking at all.

‘How could it break down? It looks so sturdy.’

Her doubt was cut short as Diana looked out of the window and shouted urgently.

“I’ll just walk from here!”

Diana hugged Sky in her arms and got down from the carriage.

“Thank you for taking me back.”

“I’m the one who should be grateful.”

Greeting him for the last time, Diana lightly turned her body.

As soon as Diana disappeared over the wall, the aide asked urgently.

“Is Miss Diana’s mother Miss Philippa? That means she’s the granddaughter of Count Ohrid…”

Senir looked at the man with an expressionless face. The man who realized his mistake bowed his head.

“I apologize. I was impertinent.”

Only then did Senir answer.

“As of now, it’s not something I can be sure of.”

“….”

“If Count Ohrid approves, then it’s Miss Philippa’s. If he doesn’t approve… ”

But would that ever happen? Senir laughed inwardly. Either way all judgment was to be made by Count Ohrid.

“Contact the count.”

***

Diana looked nervous. She glared at the sign as if it was a vicious enemy.

[Lily of The Valley Boutique]

She could see clothes on display by the large glass window. From dresses to bright blouses and skirts that could make you look ready for any banquet right away.

Diana swallowed and opened the door to the boutique.

“Welco—”

The employee, who was initially welcoming, paused before making a weird face at the sight of me.

“Diana? Are you running errands for the Miss? There’s still some time left before the dress is complete…. Anyway, why did you come through the front door? Hurry up and go around. Come back in from the back door.”

“No, today I didn’t come here to run errands.”

“What?”

It seemed like she didn’t know I had already quit working for the Bordeaux mansion. Diana soaked her dry lips and pulled herself together.

“I’m here to get clothes for myself.

“Clothes for you?”

The surprised employee soon smirked.

“Go look somewhere else. You work as a maid, don’t you know more than anyone else just how high the prices of the clothes are here? With your salary, you’d need to work a million years before you can buy even one piece.”

The employee waved her hand in dismissal, as if telling Diana to get out quickly. Diana’s face turned red.

“…I have money.”

The employee snorted loudly and folded her arms, challenging her to take the money out.

“Cut it off. Actually, you know what? Let’s see how much you got there. Even so, I’m sure there’s not much.”

Diana squeezed the pouch in her arms.

‘I shouldn’t have come in.’

She should’ve gone somewhere where people didn’t know her. Still, this was the only clothes maker she knew, so she came here, but the embarrassment and bitterness overwhelmed her.

“I’ll just look somewhere else.”

“…Yes, that’s right.”

The employee’s murmur penetrated her ears. It was then that Diana bit her lip and turned around. From inside, the boutique’s owner, the Madame, came out.

“Diana?”

“Hello.”

Diana greeted weakly.

“What brings you here?”

The employee came forward at Madame’s question. She spoke in a gentle voice, vastly different from the tone she used when she spoke to Diana.

“It’s not a big matter, Madame. Diana said she wanted to buy clothes, so I was sending her back.”

“What?”

The Madame’s eyes opened widely as she looked at Diana and the employee.

She knew right away what was happening. The clothes here were definitely too expensive for someone with a maid’s salary to buy. However, knowing Diana’s circumstances being an orphan, she also felt that it was a little too cold-hearted to just send her out.

“Sorry, Diana. The clothes here are a bit expensive. It’ll be hard for you to meet the price. What kind of clothes are you looking for?”

Madame asked gently, in a comforting manner.

“Just casual clothes.”

“What’s your budget? I’ll introduce you to the right boutique. If you have a letter of introduction from me, they’ll take care of you a little bit more.”

The employee looked at Diana with displeased eyes. It was a look saying that she already knew the Madame would do something useless like this.

‘I should just say it’s okay and go out.’

However, Diana didn’t know much about clothes. It seemed better to take Madame’s advice.

Diana shook out her leather pouch.

The Madame raised her eyebrows as a copper coin came out followed by some silver coins.Then, as soon as a shiny gold coin came out, a gasp echoed throughout the room. It wasn’t just one gold coin as well.

Diana, who was counting her money, didn’t hear.

“If it’s this much, where would a good place be to go?”

“What is this!? Why do you have that much money?”

The shocked employee pointed a finger at Diana.

“…But you said I wouldn’t have a chance?”

“If you have that much, of course you have a chance! Whoa, it’s impossible. Where did you get that money?!”

Diana’s forehead wrinkled.

Why does she have to get interrogated like this just to buy clothes? Let’s just give up buying from here.

“I’ll just go to another place.”

Diana replied gloomily and turned around.

“P-please wait! Miss Diana!”

Miss Diana? The Madame approached, gently grabbing Diana’s shoulders and elbows. Her touch was as soft as a feather.

“Why are you in such a hurry?”

Diana, who couldn’t understand the situation, opened her eyes wide and saw the Madame smiling softly.

“Our employee was a little rude, wasn’t she? I’ll apologize on her behalf. I’m sorry. Please forgive her.”

“Yes?”

“Surely the employee herself also has to apologize. You! Quickly apologize to Miss Diana.”

“Ma-Madame?”

“You can’t even recognize a customer, even going as far as to try and kick her out. Just what were you doing all this time?”

Madame stared at the employee with a cold face. The employee was startled and bowed her head.

“N-no, i-it’s because-”

“Are you in a position to make excuses now?”

“Oh, no. I’m not.”

The flustered employee bowed in the direction of Diana.

“S-sorry, Diana.”

“It should be, ‘I apologize, Miss Diana’, right? I’ll see you later, alone.”

The employee’s face paled into a deathly white. Diana was also stunned by the sudden change in attitude.

“So how many pairs were you planning to get?”

“Uhm… I haven’t thought about it. How many pairs can I get?”

Diana glanced at the employee who was about to collapse at any moment.

‘Just what is going on here?’

“If the amount is that much, it’s enough to get as many as you want.” The Madame said while guiding Diana inside.

“But, where are we going?”

“Of course we’re going to take your measurements.”

“You said you’ll introduce me to another boutique….”

“No.”

Madame said firmly.

“You can also get it here. I’ll even give you the best one.”

It took a lot of money to get casual clothes. No matter how many pairs there were, she could still buy them all. A slightly cheaper dress was also within her budget.

It was a big catch. Madame quickly called in an employee with her eyes shining.

After entering the inner room and waiting for a while, a tailor holding a tape measure came in.

The tailor made Diana stand on a white platform. She then took what Diana was holding.

“I’ll put your luggage aside for a while.”

“Yes? Ah, yes!”

“Don’t be nervous. Be as comfortable as you can, we’re only taking your measurements.”

The tailor with a sweet voice used the tape measure on her. Her gestures were skillful yet careful. In the time between, the Madame came in bringing a fabric sample.

“This is the fabric that is used most when making a blouse. For the top, we tend to use a lot of bright colors. How is it?”

Diana reached out her hand and rubbed the fabric.

“It’s really soft.”

“There are many different colors. Miss Diana’s skin is white, so dark colors would look good on you.”

Madame, who was continuing her explanation, saw Diana’s clothes and murmured.

“Hm? The clothes that you’re wearing right now are made of a very good fabric. The sewing is also precise… Where did you get it?”

It was a basic design, so she almost ignored it, but it was made of a surprisingly good fabric.

“It’s not that I bought it, but rather I received it as a gift,” Diana said shyly.

“Oh my, it’s a gift?”

Diana tilted her head at the Madame’s extremely surprised expression

“Is it an expensive type of clothing?”

It was just something in the basket, right? She accepted it because in that circumstance she couldn’t refuse. Although she did notice that the way it felt over her body was different.

“May I take a closer look?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll take a look then.”

Madame approached and looked at the clothes that Diana was wearing. She carefully examined the seams, sleeves, collar, and even skirt.

“The fabric… No, don’t tell me… Hm….”

“Is there a problem?”

Diana asked at the sight of Madame who seemed to be contemplating for some reason.

“No. It’s not that there is a problem. No… wait a minute.”

The Madame shouted after turning over the waistband of her skirt.

“Meister Faradi?!”

(t/n: Meister is just ‘master’ in German. A title.)

“F-Faradi?”

The tailor, who was quietly waiting next to her, was surprised and asked again.

It seemed like she was the only one who didn’t know who he was.

“Is he a famous person?”

Madame explained passionately at her question as if asking how she couldn’t know who Meister Faradi was.

“Yes! He’s a famous Meister! He’s a Meister at El-Corte. Oh my gosh, Miss Diana, did you say that you received the clothes as a gift?”

“Yes? Ah, yes-”

Just why in the world are they like this?