Chapter 18
Uh…
Isn’t this something I shouldn’t talk about yet?
‘Very rarely, there’s a small chance that someone could get hurt because of that magic stone.’
Jane is just an ordinary person with no fault of her own, but there’s a possibility she could get hurt if the stone is defective.
If that happened, the magic shop would have to pay Jane an astronomical amount, but anyway…
‘If Edin, who hates trickery above all else, finds out about this, something terrible will happen.’
Edin had a face that was both cold and quietly graceful. One couldn’t let his natural appearance lull them into carelessness.
He might even have killed Jane on the spot under the pretense of eliminating a threat to the empire.
“Ah… I was just curious.”
Ding—
At that moment, a cheerful voice came.
“Lady Daphne! You’re here early!”
It was Olivia, the manager, shouting as she arrived for work.
Thanks to her, I was able to dodge Edin’s question smoothly.
“Oh, Olivia! You’re here!”
“Of course~ I came early to help you, Lady Daphne.”
“That’s a relief! I was struggling to get everything ready by myself.”
I raised my voice as if I were welcoming her.
She walked over with lively steps and then froze upon seeing Edin.
“Oh my! Why is the Grand Duke here…!”
She had seen many high-ranking nobles, including princesses, but seeing a Grand Duke sitting on the shop sofa without an appointment seemed to shock her.
Her face flushed in surprise.
“Oh, I feel so embarrassed for acting so forward without realizing the Grand Duke was here…”
“It’s fine. It’s nice to have some energy around.”
Edin let the situation pass without making Olivia feel awkward.
Quickly, she composed herself and asked him politely.
“May I ask… what brings you to our shop?”
“I have an important engagement with Lady Daphne today. I heard she would make a shirt for me.”
“…Huh?”
I asked back without thinking.
I haven’t had a man’s shirt made in over five years. It’s not that I can’t make one, but I just didn’t want to.
I opened my mouth, as if asking the Grand Duke for another excuse, but he ignored me.
“Ah, I see. Lady Daphne will surely make a shirt that suits you perfectly. I will assist her as well. By when would you like it finished?”
She asked, holding a schedule ledger she had apparently prepared in advance.
“Well… Olivia, you know?”
“I received a summons to the royal palace next Wednesday, but none of the shirts I have are suitable. They’re outdated and don’t match current fashion.”
For reference, Edin’s clothes were made by Todden, a designer unmatched in men’s fashion in the empire. He would make and send new clothes monthly.
It’s absurd. The manager knew this, of course, and nodded.
“Then I’ll have it completed by next Saturday and send it to the Richevarden estate.”
“Let’s do that. Thank you.”
After finishing the conversation with the manager, Edin looked at me and winked.
I touched the corner of my mouth as it tried to lift into a smile and replied.
“Olivia, it seems the important conversation is over. Go prepare for the 10 o’clock appointment.”
“Yes, understood.”
As Olivia went into the storage, I lowered my voice.
“Are you really going to have it made? You’re not, right?”
“Is there anyone in the empire who knows silk as well as Lady Daphne? I want a beautiful silk shirt, so of course I would ask her.”
“But the pending schedule… ugh… isn’t that a bit too specific for a mere excuse? Olivia believes you now. I’ll just say later that the Grand Duke canceled.”
“Hmm, I really want to wear the shirt Lady Daphne makes…”
“That’s not why you came here, is it? You didn’t even tell me you had the leisure to come here. I’ve done my part; what exactly is your purpose in visiting?”
“I came to see a friend’s face, and I also made a request to help with the shop.”
He replied so brazenly it left me speechless.
He looked toward the dress storage where Olivia had gone and warned:
“Still, it’s not the author.”
“…Huh?”
“There’s been a constant bad aura in the shop, haven’t you noticed? You should be careful.”
“……”
This seems to refer to Jane.
I wisely kept my mouth shut.
“It’s clear they came to harm you. Lady Daphne, keep an eye on those close to you.”
“Don’t worry. I’m always careful.”
“I’m always here to help. Call me if needed.”
After speaking, Edin stared at my silent face and then stood up.
“I’ll be off now. As you know, I need to prepare to meet Miss Motron.”
“…Please go safely.”
“I’d like to see you one or two more times before things get busy. Until then, be careful. Don’t overdo it.”
Really.
He tells me to stop pushing myself after making me sweat over Lena. And then he says, “before it gets busy.”
I guess it means he’s planning to meet Laila officially and wants to see me once or twice before that.
‘…That time will come, I suppose.’
Why does the thought make me feel so uneasy?
I shook my head. What a big deal! Staying calm is what matters.
I took the magic stone out of my bag. Edin had left, so opening the shop came first.
“Lady Daphne! Can you help move the dresses?”
While wondering where to place the magic stone, I heard the manager’s voice from the inner storage.
I left the stone where it was and went into the storage.
The dress scheduled for fitting was heavy.
The bride loved extravagance, and since her family owned a diamond mine, they wanted the dress fully adorned.
While moving the dress, almost 20kg, I completely forgot about the magic stone.
I had no time to imagine how useful it would become.
“I didn’t expect to end up here.”
I clicked my tongue and delved deeper into the alley.
I was heading to the guild to track Jane.
The empire strictly policed the guilds, so only those in the know shared routes.
But I, the owner of a wedding dress shop visited by a few social elites, surely knew the way to the guild.
I just didn’t attend society events myself, but I had this much intelligence.
‘…So I just need to go to Doren’s tailor shop and ask for the stamp.’
I was headed to the “Guild of Summons,” experts at finding people.
It was naturally disguised as a tailor shop.
They didn’t handle messy jobs directly, but their intelligence was high, so ladies often came when they wanted information discreetly.
I arrived in front of the shop with “Doren” honestly marked as its name.
‘…The dress is so tacky.’
The dresses displayed through the window were ugly enough to make me click my tongue.
Even if they were funded by the guild, would any lady enter here blindly?
I carefully opened the door.
A man, presumably Doren, smiled brightly and greeted me.
“Hello! This is Doren, the tailor leading the social scene!”
With these dresses, he couldn’t even lead fashion thirty years ago.
I decided to endure Doren’s friendly impression and prepared to speak.
“Um, could I get a stamp?”
“A stamp? One moment.”
Doren smiled and took something from the counter, handing me an actual stamp.
“…Uh, I asked for a stamp.”
“You can take this stamp and go upstairs.”
Ah, I see.
But usually, guilds are underground.
I clenched my hands tightly and went up the stairs.
Old sewing machines, materials, and packed clothing were scattered around.
It looked nothing like a tidy guild space.
I went up and looked around.
A small door was set into the wall.
‘This must be it.’
The moment I saw it, I had a hunch this was the guild entrance.
I knocked gently on the door.
