‘You told me to face them while acting as if nothing happened, didn’t you?’
In truth, she wasn’t even sure she could follow Edele’s advice. She feared she would just end up hyper-aware of others’ gazes and shrink away again.
Up until now, she had deliberately worn expensive, flashy clothes and jewels to hide that fear, but the dress Edele had laid out was plain to the point of being austere. On top of that, the only accessory was a single necklace.
‘What do I do? I need to decide quickly….’
Even if she started getting ready right now, it would be cutting it close. Marsha had come an hour ago to tell her it was time to dress, but Lynnia had dismissed her and had been agonizing over it ever since. For some reason, she couldn’t forget the sound of Edele’s voice from last night.
‘That’s right. Maybe the way I’ve been doing things all this time was wrong. I might get teased again, but it won’t change anything even if it happens once more.’
Lynnia took a deep breath and called for Edele.
“Did you call, My Lady?”
However, even when Edele bowed before her, Lynnia couldn’t answer immediately; she just chewed her lip nervously.
Meanwhile, the hands of the clock kept ticking away.
Lynnia, who had been tapping the armrest of her chair with her fingertips in agitation, finally spoke as if she had made up her mind.
“I’ll leave today’s dressing to you. That’s why you prepared all this, isn’t it?”
Lynnia pointed toward the tea table.
“If by any chance I get humiliated again today, I won’t let you off the hook. …Do you still want to do it?”
“If you allow me the honor, I will do my absolute best.”
Edele’s unwavering expression, even in the face of a threat, felt strangely reliable. Lynnia rose from her seat and held out her arms at an angle.
“Then start. We’re out of time.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Edele rolled up her sleeves and began by removing the loungewear Lynnia was wearing. She then proceeded to help her into her undergarments and corset.
From that moment on, Lynnia realized that the service she had been receiving from Marsha until now was appalling.
‘She doesn’t make my body uncomfortable. She doesn’t lace me up ignorantly tight, either.’
When Marsha dressed her, she would sometimes scratch her with her nails or leave the fabric folded, pressing into her skin. When it came to the corset, she would pull the laces so hard that there were times Lynnia wondered if she would suffocate.
However, Edele tightened it firmly without causing pain.
“Is there any discomfort?”
“O-oh, no. Not at all.”
“Then I shall put on the dress now.”
“Oh, right.”
With every calm and kind word, Lynnia’s anxious heart gradually settled. That was why she found herself talking to Edele.
“Why… did you pick this dress?”
She asked the question she was most curious about.
“You may be offended, My Lady, but in my opinion, I thought this design suited you.”
“In what way?”
“You are tall and have a good frame, My Lady. Very slen—”
“Are you teasing me about being big-boned?”
Lynnia’s brow furrowed.
However, Edele shook her head and continued.
“You are very slender, so I thought you would be able to pull off a simple yet elegant design beautifully.”
“Slender? Me? Instead of being brawny?”
“There isn’t a single place on your body, My Lady, that deserves the term ‘brawny.’ If you stand tall and hold your head high, you will look very dignified and refreshing.”
It was the first time in her life she had ever heard such words. Lynnia’s cheeks flushed slightly.
“B-but in high society, women who are small, fair, busty, and have slim waists are popular, aren’t they? I’ve also heard that at my age, it’s better to look cute.”
“I don’t know who you heard that from, but in the high society I’ve experienced since I was fourteen, there were no such rules.”
“Really? Then what kind of woman is popular?”
“A woman who knows how to make the most of her own strengths. Such a woman always triumphs.”
Edele smiled brightly.
Even though they were both women, the sight of that smile made Lynnia’s heart skip a beat. Edele returned to her stoic expression, but the lingering image of that smile remained. It made her feel like it might be okay to show a little bit of vulnerability to her.
“Does someone like me… have strengths?”
“You possess too many strengths, and the reason you’ve been struggling is that you were trying to dress in a way that contradicted them.”
Edele said this while pulling the laces at the back of the dress. Then, with movements that were not fast but delicate, she tidied up Lynnia’s appearance.
“Look in the mirror, My Lady.”
Lynnia, who had been marveling at every one of Edele’s touches, suddenly snapped back to reality and looked into the mirror.
A version of herself that was completely different from usual stood there.
“It is hard to find someone who is tall and yet has such good proportions. Furthermore, you have good posture, My Lady, and no excess fat. Your skin also looks elastic and healthy.”
“I-is that so?”
“Seeing this, you resemble Count Krissus. Both of you were born with a fine skeletal structure.”
Lynnia, who had only ever heard things from Marsha like, ‘No man would like a woman with such a big build,’ ‘You must wear the cutest, flashiest dresses possible to cover up your flaws, My Lady,’ and ‘It would be better to lose more weight,’ found Edele’s words pleasant yet suspicious.
“Are you lying to try and get on my good side?”
To that, Edele looked at Lynnia in the mirror with an indifferent face and replied.
“There is nothing I want to gain by going that far.”
“O-oh, I, sorry.”
After apologizing, she realized the roles had been reversed and felt a bit embarrassed, but the situation was too awkward to say anything else.
Edele acted as if nothing had happened and sat Lynnia down in front of the vanity.
“Take a close look at your face in the mirror. Your usual makeup does not suit you, My Lady.”
“Is that so? I don’t know much about these things, so I just let Marsha do whatever she wanted.”
Lynnia tilted her head, noticing Edele seem to clench her teeth.
However, Edele immediately continued in a calm, measured voice.
“You naturally have a healthy complexion, so if you add more rouge, you look like a drunkard at first glance. Your features are already distinct, so drawing your brows and eyeliner on thickly on purpose is also awkward.”
“Ah… they told me that was the trend….”
“In truth, you have no need for trendy makeup, My Lady. You simply need to show your charms exactly as they are.”
Edele applied toner and cream to Lynnia’s face, added a touch of powder, and lightly groomed her eyebrows. The only thing she added color to was her lips, and even then, she only applied a hint of rouge that most closely matched the natural color of Lynnia’s lips.
“This is quite enough.”
Lynnia thought it was practically a bare face, but for some reason, it seemed far prettier than when she wore heavy makeup, so she didn’t complain.
After finishing the makeup, Edele applied a little camellia oil to Lynnia’s hair, brushed it out finely, fixed only half of it at the back, and let the rest of her locks flow down naturally.
“It would be nice to curl the ends here, but I’m not very good with the curling iron….”
“Then I’ll call Marsha to do that later.”
Edele then picked up the necklace one last time and fastened it around Lynnia’s neck.
“It is fortunate that there was a necklace that suits the dress so well. Who chose this dress and necklace, My Lady?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure if it’s a coincidence, but I chose both of them.”
“Pardon? Really?”
Edele looked genuinely surprised. Sensing an opportunity for mischief, Lynnia put on a playful expression.
“Why? Is it cheap? Is it weird?”
“N-no. Quite the opposite… is what I think.”
“The opposite?”
“Yes. You fundamentally have an eye for quality.”
“Is that true?”
This time, it was Lynnia who asked back in surprise.
“Before, I would pick out dresses or jewels, but Marsha would say every single one of them was too ‘commoner-like,’ so after that, I just used what she picked for me.”
Once again, Edele’s expression turned cold. This time, it wasn’t a mistake.
Lynnia realized that Edele was angry at Marsha. But Edele also possessed an exceptional talent for hiding her expressions.
“The items you chose, My Lady, are actually quite aristocratic. Of course, you should continue to refine your taste, but it would be better to trust your own intuition more.”
With that, Edele finished dressing Lynnia.
Lynnia looked at herself in the mirror and felt a flutter in her heart.
The dress she wore was from the year her brother became a Count… it was the first dress I had deliberated over and chosen at a boutique frequented by the nobility.
The necklace, too, had been purchased that same year. At the time, I had hesitated so many times because it felt far too expensive.
‘I even lost sleep for days after receiving the necklace, just staring at it.’
But after being snubbed at every party I attended and having my tastes criticized even by the head housekeeper, I had intentionally tucked away the dresses and jewelry I had chosen myself.
Yet, the Duchess, who was praised for her perfection, had acknowledged that I had ‘a good eye.’
My shriveled confidence felt as if it were beginning to swell little by little.
* * *
On the second day of the Viscountess Emerson’s party, Lynnia took several deep breaths in front of the Emerson estate before finally stepping inside.
‘Act like nothing is wrong. Act like nothing happened.’
Reciting the words Edele had taught her like a spell, Lynnia sat in her assigned seat.
Just like yesterday, she was surrounded by noble ladies.