The morning of the public competitive bidding arrived. It was a glorious sunny day without a cloud in sight, and for some reason, it seemed like the people of the capital were having a festival. It was the first time public competitive bidding had taken place, and the crowd was quite festive. Under normal circumstances, the Queen, King, and other high-ranking officials would only deal with selected merchants. Therefore, bribery was commonplace, and the game was advantageous to the rich. The deals were very beneficial because of their size and significance. But there were only a few merchants who could make deals with the royals. But this time, it was different because all the merchants had the opportunity to win the bid!

There were all sorts of bets going on in the bustling market, and the King left it entirely up to the Queen, who chose a public bidding method. Three days ago, the Queen received a private application for a list of items to bid for and the cost of each one. And today, she checked the merchandise out herself.

If there ever was a festive atmosphere outside the palace, it was today, and the market hummed with activity. Tensions were high, and the merchants rushed about.

“Get more!” A merchant called to his assistant.

“This isn’t going to work! Where is it?!” Someone else shouted, sounding panicked.

“Clean it! Don’t you understand what I’m saying?” A lady yelled.

Everyone was screaming and shouting at each other. Unlike last time, the proportion of women was much higher. And so the hostesses hurried about as they prepared for the day. It had become almost a matter of life and death to win the bidding. Men carried luggage, and women double-checked the items to ensure that they were in pristine condition.

Although the Queen had a soft heart, she was incredibly picky and wouldn’t just accept anything. In the end, there was only an orthogonal method. Jewelers and merchants were particularly sensitive today. “Wipe it off! Are you deaf?” A merchant shouted to his hostess, who wasn’t paying attention to what she was doing. He’d been the one who’d annoyed the Queen the last time, and he didn’t want a repeat of that.

“Oops,” the hostess said, shaking her head and making pig noises.

***

“Tighten the corset. What are you doing?” Ruth pretended that she didn’t hear anything and ordered the maids sharply.

Iris held onto the wooden bedpost and closed her eyes tightly. Two maids were fussing over her and tightening the corset. Her waist was thin, but the ladies wanted to make it look thinner still, and Iris felt like her back was going to break. She tried to protest, but she could barely breathe, and the only thing that came out of her mouth was a gurgling sound.

“There’s a dance today, Your Highness. Everyone in the capital is praising you, and everyone’s eyes will be on you,” Ruth informed her.

No one had told Iris there was a dance today, and she was confused. But she couldn’t respond because fearful thoughts flooded her mind, and her eye’s felt like they were going to pop out of her head! The maids were going to kill her if they pulled the corset any tighter. She’d never see her teacher again because she’d be dead! They’d split her in half, and she’d die in this room. But she knew the maids were experts. One of the maids made Iris gasp for breath when she yanked the corset hard, but after tightening her waist, she finally put Iris in a dress.

Iris then went to stand in front of the large oval mirror and admired the beautiful turquoise dress with a pop of fresh green and embroidered roses. There were colorful rose ribbons on the upper body and white lace on the shoulders and waist. And the sleeves were rich in color and quality. The neckline was low, and she had an emerald-green necklace around her delicate throat. The craftsmanship was exquisite, and the emeralds and diamonds were layered to resemble a chandelier.

I can’t breathe, and my throat feels heavy. Iris felt sorry for herself because she needed to walk in all of this. She admired Rosemary now because she wondered how the Queen had walked around all day in such attire. Rosemary must’ve sat like this and eaten delicious food or danced at times too. But Iris didn’t know if she could manage to do all of those things so gracefully.

The maids then braided her hair in a complicated way and put it up. And soon, her ears felt heavy. A number of strings of pearls and blue jade jewels had been braided together in her hair. And a white rose had then been placed inside the hairdo. The last items Iris put on were rose-colored shoes and a small, elegant hat.

Iris was still struggling to breathe, and her ears felt even heavier, as did her neck. And to make matters worse, the ivory bracelet got removed by a maid. She felt miserable in her pretty outfit as she walked out of the bedroom.

“Your Highness, how gracefully you walk.” When Iris stepped outside, she heard someone admiring her, and she chuckled to herself. Of course, it was magical power that assisted her grace. She’d secretly cast a spell on her body so that she couldn’t feel the weight of everything. Therefore, she felt as light as if she were floating on water. Although in reality, the outfit would put a lot of pressure on her body. And the graceful walk itself was not what she could do, so she’d cast a spell on her shoes to imitate the steps of the most elegant-looking woman, Elena In Sethang.

Iris had wanted to admire Rosemary, although she didn’t forget that Rosemary had been trying to kill her. She thought Rosemary had been a woman of respect but had soon discovered it was an illusion.