New chapters released weekly here. Read the completed novel on my patreon by clicking the banner at the bottom of the post!
______________________________________________________________________
“In ten days, you will receive your former surname ‘Fram’, and the emperor will grant you the title of Countess and the estates that once belonged to the House of Elrosa!”
Rachel’s heart trembled at the unexpected news.
Elrosa had warm weather and abundant resources. Even after sharing their wealth with Jane, the estate had earned enough money for Berengella to live in luxury.
Receiving such land meant that Rachel’s already wealthy fortune would become even more abundant.
‘This’ll be a good start.’
A small smile appeared on Rachel’s lips.
‘I want it all back. Including the Fram mansion and estates that were lost because of Theodore.’
Her heart was pounding.
After a long speech, the emperor’s carriage left. The title award ceremony would be held in 10 days and she was told to attend to receive her title, nobility plaque, and land documents.
After the carriage disappeared, Dolorosa’s eyes lit up.
“Congratulations, Lady Rachel! You’re going to be a countess!”
“Thank you, princess.”
“I can’t wait to call you Countess Rachel.”
Not to be outdone by Dolorosa, Graham, who was standing next to her, also raised his voice.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but congratulations!”
“Ahaha. Thanks, Graham. This is good for Mom, but it’s also good for Graham.”
“Really?”
Because he’ll grow up to be Graham of House Fram, not Graham the Killer!
Cian grinned.
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you for your congratulations. I didn’t realize this would be made into such a big deal.”
“Well, titles are usually given to people who’ve made great achievements in war or trade, so it’s customary to make it as extravagant as possible.”
“I see.”
In these peaceful times, there was no need to award new titles. It was the first title bestowed by Sigar, and it was expected to be a grand event.
Rachel’s eyes narrowed as she thought for a moment.
“Ah, so the dress I’m ordering for the princess today will be worn at the ceremony?”
“That’s right. You can take your time ordering the rest of the dresses, but the one she’ll be wearing at the title ceremony needs to be ordered today.”
That was a pretty tight timeline, considering how long the dress would take to make.
Rachel nodded.
“All right. Please leave it to me.”
“Thank you.”
As she finished the conversation, a new carriage pulled up where the imperial carriage had stood. It was small, but delicate and beautifully decorated.
The door opened and a woman in a well-dressed gown and her attendants stepped out.
The woman bowed politely.
“Carol, the head dressmaker of Carol’s Costume Shop, greets His Highness the Archduke.”
“Carol. It’s been a while.”
“I hope you’ve been well, and I’m honored to be of assistance this time as well, I’ll repay you with another beautiful outfit.”
Carol and Cian exchanged familiar greetings as if they already knew each other.
“Today, I need a dress for Dolorosa for a title ceremony that will be held at the imperial palace in ten days. I knew the date, but the imperial family just arrived, so I wasn’t able to contact you in advance.”
It was dangerous to go around talking about things that the emperor hadn’t yet officially announced.
Carol nodded, seemingly unconcerned.
“That’s all right. She’ll need an elegant, colorful dress.”
“You can discuss the specifics of the dress with Dolorosa and Lady Rachel over here. I’m just the one paying the bills this time.”
Carol laughed at Cian’s joking remark.
“You’ve been through a lot. All right.”
“Along with the other two, as we discussed before.”
“Yes, please leave that to me as well.”
With that, the conversation wrapped up and Carol turned to Rachel, Dolorosa, and Graham.
“I look forward to working with you. I’m Carol, the woman who’ll be making the costumes for Princess Dolorosa, Lady Rachel, and Master Graham for the title ceremony.”
“…Me and Graham? Why are we…”
Rachel, bewildered by Carol’s statement, looked to Cian for clarification.
When she made eye contact, he smiled.
“It’s a gift from me and Dolorosa. We thought you’d need a dress for the ceremony, and since you’re on a tight schedule, we thought it would be nice if we could get it together.”
“I asked Dad to give it as a gift from me, isn’t that great?”
It was a truly unexpected gift.
Graham took measurements before going to sword training with Cian, who told him there was nothing to choose from when it came to boy’s and men’s clothing except fabric and color.
Rachel and Dolorosa retired to the parlor. While workers removed fabrics and decorations from the wagons and carried them into the parlor, the staff took their measurements.
Dolorosa stretched out her arms and giggled.
“I was so happy when dad told me he’d asked Lady Rachel to help choose my dress.”
“I am so honored that you were pleased.”
“I told him that I thought it would be a great idea to have someone from the wardrobe department make Lady Rachel’s dress, and luckily, he agreed right away!”
“I see.”
“I wanted to get you something anyway, after all, you welcomed me so warmly the last time I came to visit.”
“I was just doing what I was supposed to do.”
“What are you talking about? Not many people have treated me this warmly, the same goes for Crown Prince Atreille.”
Rachel was surprised. Atreille was a crown prince and Dolorasa was a princess, but they were both very lovely children. She couldn’t believe there was no one who treated these children warmly.
Rachel was curious, but couldn’t ask Dolorosa the reason directly, she didn’t know if the child carried any invisible wounds.
‘Perhaps the reason I treat her differently has something to do with the fact that Dolorosa, a princess, traveled far and wide as an adult. A normal princess wouldn’t travel alone and encounter a murderer.’
She pondered for a moment, then brushed the thought away.
Right now, it was more important to order the dresses for Dolorosa.
“I’ll definitely repay this favor someday, both to the Archduke and to you, Princess.”
“If you’re grateful, just help me order a nice dress!”
Rachel laughed at the straightforward answer. She was truly a pure and honest child.
After the measurements were taken, Carol came into the parlor and began to order the dresses in earnest.
The three of them worked together to choose fabrics, embellishments, shapes, and accessories. Each one was eye-poppingly colorful, beautiful, and elaborate.
Rachel let out a squeal of delight.
‘They’re all beautiful! I want to purchase them all!’
She’d experienced many things after arriving in this world, but this was her first time ordering a dress. She’d been so busy that she’d only worn Rachel’s original dresses and hadn’t bought a new one.
Dolorosa and Carol were surprised when Rachel told them that she hadn’t gotten a new dress in recent months.
“Really, you haven’t ordered a single dress in the last few months?”
“How can that be? It’s even the social season!”
“It just happened to be like that. I had a lot to deal with.”
Both Dolorosa, who was mature for her age, and Carol, who was used to dealing with nobles, quickly shut up.
Rachel’s situation was full of unexpected events such as raising a child without a husband, the title she would soon receive and the mansion said to have been bestowed by the emperor.
Dolorosa was close to tears.
“Lady Rachel… You’ve worked hard so far.”
“Not so much a hardship as a nuisance.”
Dolorosa paused for a moment, then spoke again, her cheeks flushed for some unknown reason.
“Hey, Lady Rachel. If it’s okay, can I buy you a few more dresses?”
” No. The one you’re buying me now is more than enough.”
“Well, it’s always nice to have a few, and it’s not unusual to get three or four, or even ten or twenty, per season. You’ll be receiving a title soon, so you can’t fall behind the trends!”
Carol chimed in, perhaps sensing a good sales opportunity.
“That’s right, you haven’t had a dress made in months, which would shock the socialites if they knew. Lady Melita of House Iacobs has thirty dresses made every month.”
“That many?”
The Iacobs family made a lot of money with their large merchant company. But thirty a month meant a new dress almost every day.
Rachel shook her head.
“I don’t need that many dresses, though I appreciate the offer, but I’ll only have this one tailored.”
“Come on, why don’t you just add one more dress? There’s another dress I really want to give you as a gift.”
Dolorosa looked up at Rachel with tears in her eyes.
Rachel was no match for her clear, large golden eyes.
“Uhm… All right. If the princess says so…”
“Yay! Thank you!”
“I should be the one thanking you. Thank you very much, Princess.”
“Ehehe. No, it’s just that there’s a dress in Carol’s collection that I’ve been wanting to purchase, but it isn’t something I can wear by myself, so I needed Lady Rachel’s assistance. This worked out well.”
A dress that Dolorosa, a princess, couldn’t wear alone, without Lady Rachel? She couldn’t imagine what it could be.
Carol nodded as if she knew what it was.
“You mean the dress from last time?”
“Yes! I can still order it, right?”
“Of course. Could you stop by the dressing room tomorrow? I’ll have it ready so you can try it on right away.”
“I don’t mind, but what about Lady Rachel?”
Dolorosa looked back at Rachel with expectant eyes.
Rachel smiled and nodded. She was curious about the dress she couldn’t ‘wear alone’.
“That’s okay with me, we can go to the dressing room together tomorrow.”
“Wow, I’m so excited!”
Dolorosa’s eyes twinkled like stars.
__________________________________________________________________
Enjoy my translations? Check out some of my other novels! The novels that have the most views get more reliable, consistent releases!
- Reasons to Protect the Witch’s Son
- I Found a Husband When I Picked up the Male Lead
- The Contract with the Lord was a Trap
- I Became The Mother Of the Male Lead Who Lives With An Adulterous Man
- By the Time You Came Around, It Was Already Too Late
- After the Ending, I Received the Second Male Lead as a Gift
- Unveil the Truth
