55: How to Pick a Dress

I was in the carriage headed to the Royal Capital again. I probably won’t be taking this road for a while.

The yellow rape blossoms were blooming vividly in the fields. Once the flowers have finished blooming, seeds could be harvested to make rapeseed oil. At the beginning of summer, the new oils are delivered to the Royal Capital.

I grasped a letter with both hands.

Dick-san, who looked serious and handsome, handed me this letter at the carriage stop.

『This is something that I wrote to guarantee your social position. If something happens and you leave His Highness Ludens’ side, then use this. It won’t work against a noble, but I think it would be of use to you if you show this to a lower positioned Imperial Guard. I don’t want to approach such a troublesome place like the noble world, but I want to be of use to the brave Ojou-san who is heading there. Rest assure, I don’t have any ulterior motives.』

(Fufu, you say really cool things, don’t you? I really want you to call me by my name, though.)

The carriage will arrive at the Royal Capital in the afternoon.

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I will be heading towards His Highness Ludens’ side tomorrow.

What should I do today?

I put the letter I’d received from Dick-san into my shoulder bag.

I went to the Hen Inn as soon as I arrived at the Royal Capital, because this was the only place I was familiar with.

I wiped the sweat off my forehead, heaved the two black bags that contained everything I owned and walked towards the inn.

I’m so glad that the guards cherished me… When I left, they fought to carry my bags for me.

But, I have to do that myself from now on.

When I got to the Hen Inn, Master was used to seeing me there, so he silently passed me the keys to my usual room.

I wrote a letter saying that I’d arrived at the Royal Capital and asked an uncle, who worked at Hen Inn, to deliver it to the Edenbach mansion with a little bit of money.

“Next, is the dress.”

I wore the usual milk tea dress with the mint coat. I headed towards the clothing store on the main street.

I left the area where a lot of mixed commoners lived near the Hen Inn, and left the area where the Royal Palace and main departments were and headed towards the flashiest area of the Royal Capital, the main street.

I think they’ll provide me with clothes that woman secretaries wear tomorrow.

But, I’ll be working at the Royal Palace under the royal family and the high ranking nobles, so I need dresses other than the one that would be provided to me. I can’t dress in shabby clothes. The only dress I have that would be alright to wear at the Royal Palace is only this milk tea dress.

I don’t need a trendy dress, but I do need a tailor-made one.

I avoided shops with gaudy ornaments hanging in them, and entered a refined-looking shop. My legs froze and I tried to get hyped up before opening the door.

Come to think of it, this is the first time I’m buying a dress…

The dress I want is something like what Ms. Dolcie wore; a composed design, a higher hem so that my ankles could be seen a little. A dress which opened a little at the neck and was easy to move in was good. I want a pretty coloured dress.

“I want you to show me some simple dresses,” I said and the uncle smiled and replied to me politely.

(There’s 5 dresses in front of me, but which one should I chose?)

Hmm, I wonder if I should just choose it like how I would choose vegetables? I went vegetable shopping with mother and Tom before.

So, I just have to look at the texture, elasticity and colour?

When I looked at them closer, all the dresses were ready made so they had little weave and looked lustrous. The seams also had a passing mark as well. It felt good to the touch. The parts which couldn’t be seen were made from more inferior materials, so that must be why it was cheap.

(What is this Ojou-san? People usually just chose dresses by the design. But she’s choosing them so seriously. She’s touching the cloth and looking at the sewing…… Is she from the same trade? I also have to up my game.) (Uncle)

I don’t know the difference between the cloth and the design, but this might be cheaper than I thought if it’s like this… This shop is amazing! This shop was a purveyor to the Imperial Household, and yet they didn’t have a signboard.

“Ojou-san, how about this one?”

The uncle showed me another 5 dresses, I checked them, and tried on the one he’d recommended and bought it.

He adjusted the size and everything costed about 60,000 G… Now, I only have a small amount of money left in my purse.

The first dress I’d ever chosen and bought would be delivered to Hen Inn.

It was different from the dresses you could wear at an evening party or ball, and even though it was close to a ready-made dress. A dress was a dress.

People who usually bought this kind of dress came to the shop in a carriage with their guards or maids. It was impossible for me to hug the dress while walking through town.

My shopping was done and I walked excitingly around town while feeling accomplished.

My purse was lighter, but it was something that I’d bought with the money I’d made. I was satisfied.

I went to the Commercial Guild and withdrew some money.

I walked a lot and my feet were tired, however I felt like I could still walk. But, I ended up returning to Hen Inn by carriage.

I did withdraw a little bit of money. It was dangerous for a lady to walk alone while they’re dressed elegantly.

That evening, I smiled while feeling the dress that’d arrived in my room. I received word about when Roberto-sama would be coming.

I haven’t had dinner yet. I could only hope that his business finishes soon.

I heard that tonight’s dinner is chicken confit, I’m really looking forward to it.

(I hope that Roberto-sama’s business would be finished soon…)