The place we were led to was the Princess’s Emerald Palace, specifically the massive dressing room on the first floor.
The walls were coated entirely in gold, dozens of mirrors adorned the room, and an overwhelming amount of dresses and accessories hung everywhere.
The number of mannequins alone seemed to exceed the number of servants in the ducal residence.
‘This isn’t a dressing room, it’s practically an exhibition hall…’
I thought, trying hard to close my gaping mouth in amazement, and glanced over at Madame Zed.
“H-h-huhh…”
She was on the verge of falling over from sheer astonishment.
Certainly, if I found this place fascinating, Madame Zed must have been feeling dizzy with excitement.
Seeing our reactions, the princess seemed quite pleased, clearing her throat and placing her hands on her hips.
“Well, what do you think? This is my treasure trove!”
“It’s truly magnificent, Your Highness.”
“It’s like heaven… Gasp.”
Madame Zed, who had been marveling absentmindedly, suddenly covered her mouth.
The princess chuckled as if she had expected this.
“I know, everyone is awestruck when they see it for the first time!”
The princess twirled around in place and then pointed at Madame Zed with a sly smile.
“So, you’ll be making clothes for me to wear from now on!”
“…What?”
This time, Madame Zed’s jaw dropped for a different reason.
Her mind seemed to have frozen as she stared blankly, blinking before swallowing a scream.
She then looked at me with wide, trembling eyes. They seemed to say, ‘Your Grace, you didn’t mention this.’
I gave her a gentle smile. If I had told you, you would’ve jumped out of the carriage…
“Hm? Why such a reaction? Don’t tell me you don’t want to?”
“Oh, no! It’s not that at all!”
Madame Zed frantically waved her hands in the air, jumping in place at the princess’s questioning look.
“I-I was just completely unprepared….”
“Life is full of the unexpected! Don’t you know that at your age?”
It was quite a sight to see the fourteen-year-old princess giving life advice to a middle-aged woman well over forty.
“I-I’m sorry!”
Madame Zed seemed too preoccupied to care about that detail, however. She repeatedly bowed her head, then timidly lifted it and asked in a shaky voice,
“Th-then, Your Highness. Could you tell me what kind of dress design you have in mind…?”
“Hmph!”
The princess placed a hand on her chin, rolled her eyes, and smiled mischievously.
“I’m going to have you make several dresses, but one of them will be for my upcoming birthday banquet, so I’d like it to be quite special.”
“A b-birthday banquet….”
“Yes! Now, listen carefully.”
Madame Zed hurriedly pulled a notebook from her bosom, ready to jot down the princess’s words.
“I want something that is simple yet glamorous, calm yet intense, plain yet striking, innocent yet alluring!”
…What on earth is she talking about? What did I just hear? Is this like asking for a warm frappuccino? Is that it? Like ordering an iced Americano with no shots and no ice?
I stared at the princess in a daze, then turned my head towards Madame Zed with concern. At this point, I felt guilty for offering up Madame Zed to the princess.
However, when I actually looked at Madame Zed…
“M-my goodness! Such a genius description! I’m overflowing with inspiration!”
…I saw her furiously scribbling something in her notebook, her eyes gleaming.
The image of her trembling like a rabbit before a lion had long disappeared.
‘Well, she wasn’t normal, either.’
I gave up trying to understand. I had momentarily forgotten that the madness was not just in the princess, but in Madame Zed as well.
“This is wonderful, perfect!”
Madame Zed exclaimed, snapping her notebook shut, her eyes shining.
“May I start working immediately, Your Highness? Brilliant ideas are just pouring out of me!”
“Hehe, good. Go on, Madame Geranium!”
“Yes!”
It’s Madame Zed…
❖ ❖ ❖
The chaotic dress design madness involving the princess and Madame Zed came to an end about three hours later.
I saw with my own eyes the kind of synergy that occurs when a crazy person meets another crazy person.
“Your Highness! What if we attach this decoration here?”
“Madame Zeki! You’re a genius!”
“You flatter me!”
Each time, the name the princess called Madame Zed was different, but it seemed it didn’t even register in Madame Zed’s ears, who was now blind to all else.
They were so intensely passionate… no, they were beyond passionate, to the point where the vast dressing room seemed to be burning with their frenzy.
To be a sane person stuck like a slice of ham between two lunatics….
After pouring her heart and soul into the task, Madame Zed said she had to start working immediately before she forgot all these amazing ideas and rushed off to the atelier.
Thus, later in the afternoon, I found myself having tea with the princess in the backyard of the Emerald Palace.
“Ah, this has been the most satisfying time I’ve had in a while.”
The princess, looking content, brushed back her wavy platinum hair.
“As I thought, my instincts aren’t wrong! Where on earth did you find such a gem, Duchess?”
Well, I took her from you.
Instead of answering, I just looked at the princess with a calm smile.
“I’m glad you’re pleased. Madame Zed was quite worried the whole way to the imperial palace.”
“Was there anything to be worried about?”
“She was so nervous she didn’t know what to do.”
“Hmph, what’s so special about the imperial palace?”
“Meeting Your Highness, no amount of worry could be enough.”
“So many things to worry about!”
The princess laughed, utterly lacking in self-awareness.
She drained her honey-sweetened milk tea in one go, then shrugged her shoulders.
“Hmph, I’m quite tempted. Duchess, are you sure you don’t want to hand over that tailor to me?”
“I-I’m sorry, Your Highness.”
As I began to express my refusal, looking troubled, the princess burst out laughing and waved her hands.
“Okay, okay, I know! She’s a tailor the Duchess has already laid claim to, so I can’t take her. I was just joking.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Consideration? Hah… Still, since she’s already working on my outfit, I’d like to ask for one more favor. Would that be alright?”
“Another favor?”
“Yes, I’m thinking of preparing a gift for my family!”
The princess chuckled quietly as she said this.
“Hmmm~ and in another sense, I am tempted by that tailor. But we’ll talk about that later.”
The princess grinned and picked up a tart from the three-tier tray, popping it into her mouth.
‘Those two really do get along well.’
The ones brimming with enthusiasm were the two of them, but it was I, sitting beside them and drinking tea, who felt drained.
At this point, it seemed that in the original story, the princess hadn’t discovered Madame Zed just for her skills.
“Hm, more importantly.”
“Yes, what is it?”
Leaning her chin on her hand, elbows on the table, the princess tilted her head, looking as if she were offering a great favor.
“Is there anything you want from me, Duchess? Since you’ve done me a favor, I thought I’d return the favor and grant you a wish.”
‘Got you.’
This was exactly what I’d been waiting for.
♧♧♧
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