It's A Misunderstanding That I'm Dating The Villain

‘Nevertheless, it is a relief that Ludger and I agree on this. Yes, a dress that reveals the back and cleavage is indeed cold at this time of year.’

As I was being led back to the fitting room by the staff, Ludger spoke to me.

“Captain Clara.”

“Yes?”

“Did you perhaps like that dress?”

The first thing he said about the dress was that the red didn’t suit me, so it’s a bit ironic to ask now……. I was actually worried that it might really not suit me, but I couldn’t wear it anymore whether I liked it or not.

“No, I don’t really care about clothes, so I don’t have any particular preferences. The opinion of someone who has seen more dresses than me is probably more accurate.”

“….”

“It’s a bit sad to hear that red doesn’t suit me, considering I’m the Captain of the Ruby Knights. Well, I’ll go and get changed.”

The last comment was meant as a joke, but Ludger flinched.

He might have thought I was upset. Well, considering I had gone through the trouble of putting on the dress only to hear such a deflating opinion, I suppose it could be a light-hearted retaliation.

As we entered the fitting room, Madame came with a new dress.

“How about this one? It’s a dress in sky blue and teal, chosen to complement the color of the Captain’s eyes. I think it will suit you well.”

“Yes, I’m fine with anything.”

“Okay. Then, put your arms over here….”

Following the instructions, I took off the dress I was wearing and put on the new one(?).

This time, unlike the previous dress, the new one wrapped both the shoulders and back tightly, which made it look somewhat warmer. Though the fabric itself was still very thin.

As I put my arms into the soft and airy sleeves, one of the designers smiled softly and said.

“I think the Young Duke cherishes you very much.”

“Huh?”

“When you showed the previous dress, it was clear he was concerned about how revealing it was. I could tell the Duke was hesitant about letting others see you in it!”

At that, the staff members who had been assisting let out a squeal and agreed with the comment.

“That’s right! Haa, I wish my lover was also secretly jealous like that.”

“Sigh, if only I had a lover like the Duke, I wouldn’t even mind if they didn’t get jealous.”

“That’s true, though!”

I realized a beat too late what kind of misunderstanding they had.

“That’s not it!”

“Pardon?”

“That…. It seems you’ve misunderstood and think that the Young Duke and I are in a romantic relationship, but that’s not the case at all. We just had to attend this event together due to unavoidable circumstances.”

When I quickly corrected the misunderstanding, speaking as if I was rapping, they looked at each other and smiled faintly.

“That’s right… hmm. Yes, understood. We will take it as such.”

“Hehe, when you work in this line of work, people have to become more discreet and perceptive. Don’t worry about it.”

It didn’t seem like the misunderstanding had been resolved at all. This was clearly frustrating.

“Really… It’s not like that….”

“Yes, we’ll believe what the Caption says. Now, please turn your body this way.”

“….”

I regretted my decision to insist on attending the gathering with Ludger. Perhaps it would have been better to just go along with him without arguing about it.

[T/N: I’m a bit confused about this paragraph. I just translated it as it is.]

‘I hoped that there wouldn’t be any misunderstandings at the gathering. Normally, in the Empire, a partner in a social gathering often has a significant business aspect. I only interact with Ludger on professional terms. Yeah, it’ll be okay.’

I tried to turn the positive circuit around, but the anxiety began to creep in little by little.

Nevertheless, I put on the sky blue dress as if I was putting on a new skin and stepped into the salon.

“Young Duke, may I ask you to check again?”

Ludger, who was reading the newspaper, looked up and smiled at me.

“Hmm, it looks like it was chosen to match Captain Clara’s eye color. It suits you well.”

“We were rather short-sighted earlier! The refreshing color suits you so well, and we felt quite proud during the fitting.”

Ludger approached me, made eye contact, and whispered softly.

“What about you, Captain? If you don’t like it, you don’t have to force yourself to wear it.”

The boutique people are misunderstanding! Don’t be so gentle and affectionate!

I answered as businesslike as I could.

“I’m fine with anything. After all, I’m just attending the gathering as the Duke’s partner. If the Duke is satisfied, then I’m satisfied with it too.”

“….”

Ludger’s face showed a peculiar sense of disappointment. From the muffled sound, it was clear that the Madame and the staff, watching from the side, were trying to stifle their giggles.

“…You’re not forcing yourself to wear it, are you?”

“No, not at all! I think it’s a beautiful dress.”

“Good. Then please proceed with the final adjustments with this dress. I’ve also informed the jewellery store, so they’ll provide the necessary accessories.”

“Yes! I’ll take care of it as instructed.”

‘Jewellery store?!’

Come to think of it, wearing a dress involves not just putting it on but also wearing accessories with it!

I decided not to calculate the costs for today. After all… Ludger is the one who made the arrangements… It’s not really my fault… And for a wealthy aristocrat, it must be pocket change…

“Since your hair is short, Sir, How about pulling your hair back as much as possible and finishing with a tiara?”

“That’s a good suggestion. Check if they have a tiara made with opals…”

Don’t calculate it… Don’t calculate it…

I spent the remaining time trying to remain as indifferent as possible while the exorbitantly priced jewellery passed before my eyes.

***

After I got the dress completely tailored to my size and my makeup and hair were done to perfection, it was well past 5 p.m.

I wondered why he said to pick me up at 3 o’clock, which was an ambiguous time for a meal. It turned out to be because of this.

“How is it, Sir? You look so beautiful. You’ll surely catch everyone’s attention at the gathering!”

“Next time, please give me the chance to design a dress specifically for you. My inspiration is flowing!”

“Well… there might not be a next time… Anyway, thank you. It looks wonderful.”

The woman in the mirror did indeed look beautiful. Well… it’s not like I’m unattractive, either.

As a knight, I’m reasonably slim and well-balanced in muscle, which gives me a certain ‘grace’ in how the dress hugged my body.

I suppose I can understand why the boutique staff initially had me try on such revealing dresses.

Wearing thin gloves and holding a fan made of bird feathers, I definitely looked like an ordinary young lady who wouldn’t feel out of place in the midst of high society.

‘I feel strange….’

I had never dressed up this formally, neither in my impoverished Viscount’s family nor even after running away, so it felt very awkward.

“We’re done, Lord Duke. I apologize for keeping you waiting so long!”

Madame called Ludger and led me to the salon. Unlike before, I was wearing shoes, so I walked carefully so as not to step on the hem of the dress.

“….”

Ludger stared at me for a moment, then slowly approached me and held out his hand.

“Please, grant me the permission to escort you.”

“…We aren’t at the gathering yet, so there’s no need to be so formal right now.”

“Let’s consider this a rehearsal.”

I smiled faintly and linked my arm around his.

At the boutique…Already… It seemed it was already too late to clear up the misunderstanding… I could only hope that they wouldn’t spread strange rumors as they had assured.

As we walked to the carriage, I couldn’t help but let out a harmless joke.

“Your Highness, by how intently you were staring at me, I thought you were revolted by me seeing me in the red dress.”

“What?”

“When I first came out wearing the dress earlier, you stared at me and said that the red color didn’t suit me.”

“That’s….”

Ludger’s body stiffened slightly.

“That’s because it doesn’t match Sir’s image.”

“My image?”

“Yes. It was too provocative.”

‘Red is a strong color, but is it provocative really that provocative?’

I suppose the tastes of high-ranking individuals are hard to understand…

“If the first dress was to your taste and I upset you, I apologize.”

“No. I just wore whatever was given to me. Besides, it seemed too cold to wear in this weather.”

“….”

“In that sense, I agree with the Duke.”

Through our linking arms, I could feel Ludger’s slight trembling as he smiled. It made me acutely aware of how close we were, and the feeling was oddly unsettling.

‘Even a month ago, I would never have imagined that I would be talking to him at such a close distance.’

I had never expected to become entangled with characters from the original story.

Ludger was hovering around me under the pretext of surveillance, and Lan, who was supposed to be the male protagonist’s escort knight, came to our knight order of her own free will.

You can never predict how things will turn out in this world.

“To be fair… Next time, the Captain can also judge my outfit.”

“Pardon?”

“If you think a certain color doesn’t suit me… feel free to say it honestly.”