In a situation where they had to move cautiously every day, failing to handle the capital’s affairs properly, unlike Ian before the possession, could lead to significant backlash.
“Where is May?”
Sebastian, sensing approval in the words spoken with a sigh, followed Ian and said,
“She arrived two days ago and went out to meet someone related to the sales.”
Ian nodded and entered the townhouse.
“Welcome, Duke and young lady,”
The servants greeted them in unison.
Passing them, they saw the central hall with a chandelier made of diamonds and elegant engravings on the central staircase.
“Uncle, it’s sparkling.”
As the wall made of spirit stones glittered, Rose’s eyes sparkled too.
“It’s because of the spirit stones.”
“Spirit stones?”
“Yes, stones left after spirits are born.”
– Ergh
“Er?”
The Illusion spirit Ermenia descended from Rose’s arms and rubbed against the wall.
“Rose, do you want to touch it too?”
“Yes.”
Ian brought Rose close to the wall and put her down.
“It’s warm.”
Seeing Rose smile brightly as she looked back at him, Ian recalled a description from the novel.
『Why did I discover this beautiful thing only now?
Rose, who smiled bitterly at the sparkling wall, closed her eyes. She no longer wanted to see her miserable life.』
Unlike in the novel, Rose was looking at the wall, touching it, and feeling happy.
Feeling satisfied that he had changed one of Rose’s unfortunate events, Ian asked,
“Where are the rooms?”
“On the second floor.”
Ian nodded and picked Rose up again.
“Er?”
-Ergh
Ermenia seemed to like the spirit stones and wouldn’t leave the wall despite Rose calling.
“It looks like Er wants to stay longer. Rose, let’s go first.”
“Yes.”
Following Sebastian up to the second floor, they saw a luxurious hallway with a purple carpet.
On either side of the hallway, famous paintings and sculptures were displayed nicely.
“This is the room.”
Opening the wooden door engraved with the Loenbaum flower, a neat but elegant living room appeared.
“We did not prepare a separate room for the young lady.”
“Alright.”
In the Duke house, they intended to make a separate room for her, but it was a room Rose would use when she was older.
As she was still a child needing adult care, she would stay with Ian in the townhouse for now.
“What about the dresses?”
“The designer will visit tomorrow.”
Ian nodded and entered the room, with Sebastian following.
“You also needs to get fitted for clothes, my lord.”
Ian frowned.
“Me too?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll just wear my formal dress, I didn’t need them.”
“The formal dress doesn’t fit.”
When Ian looked puzzled, Sebastian walked to the dressing room and brought out the formal dress.
“Hmm.”
It was not a lie; the formal dress did not fit. The formal dress Sebastian brought was very small.
“You wore this when you was ten years old, my lord.”
Ian sighed and nodded.
“Alright.”
“I have prepared the bathwater. Please leave the young lady’s bath to the maids.”
“Okay.”
With Ian’s permission, Sebastian opened the door, and Louise, who was in charge of Rose in the Duke house, entered.
She was one of the maids Sebastian brought along for the shy Rose.
“Rose, go wash up.”
“Yes.”
Holding Louise’s hand, Rose went out, and Sebastian approached Ian.
“Baron Hanova has come to the capital.”
Ian frowned.
Baron Hanova.
He was a subordinate of Count Kale, the head of a collateral line.
“Baron Hanova is not on the invitation list, right?”
All nobles were invited to the Crown Prince’s inauguration, but that was only for those who received the noble title and land from the Emperor.
Baron Hanova, who held a title but no land, was not on the invitation list.
“He said he came to assist the Duke.”
“Did he come directly?”
“Yes. I heard that he hadn’t arrived yet and said he’d come back tomorrow. But it turns out he arrived three days ago.”
Ian crossed his arms.
‘He doesn’t seem to be hiding the fact that there’s a spy in the dukedom, does he?’
If they wanted to hide the spy, Hanova should have arrived either on the same day as Sebastian or later.
However, Baron Hanova, a subordinate of Count Kale, the head of a collateral line, had arrived earlier and didn’t even hide his presence.
Ian smirked.
“I guess he thought I was just a joke.”
Sebastian looked at Ian, waiting for his response.
“Leave him be. Recognizing Rose is the priority.”
“Yes. Shall we refuse his visit tomorrow?”
Ian thought for a moment before answering.
“No. Let him visit. I want to hear what he has to say.”
“Understood.”
***
After Sebastian left, Ian headed to the bathroom.
As Sebastian had mentioned, a large bathtub that could fit four adult men was filled with water.
Not knowing when Ian would return, they had prepared hot water, and as he got into the bath, the heat enveloped him.
“Haah.”
Ian scooped the hot water with his hand and washed his face, then leaned back in the tub.
Although his tense body relaxed, his mind raced furiously.
In the novel, Count Kale, the head of the collateral line, never moved directly.
He always used his minions to carry out all sorts of nefarious schemes and pressured Rose.
This time was no different; he had sent a minion to stir trouble.
But why did he send them to the capital?
Ian and Rose would not live in the capital forever. After the inauguration and parties, they had to return to the dukedom.
‘Did he suspect the mine?’
Ian clicked his tongue.
It seemed likely that they had indeed discovered the mine.
Despite efforts to conceal it, Ian knew it was impossible to hide it completely since more than half of the personnel in the dukedom were spies.
The important thing was determining how much it had been revealed.
Did they only know of the mine’s existence, or did they also know about the diamond extraction?
Ian’s response would vary greatly depending on this.
“I have no choice but to listen to what they have to say.”
***
In the first-floor reception room, a mannequin dressed in a splendid gown stood, and a stack of design books filled with dress sketches lay on the table.
The dresses sparkled under the sunlight streaming through the glass windows, each one more beautiful than the last.
Ian glanced at the dresses indifferently, while Rose munched on a snack.
“Excuse me, Duke?”
The designer who had brought the dresses called out to Ian, sweating profusely.
Without sparing a glance at the staff from the dress shop, Ian called out to Sebastian.
“Send them away.”
“Yes, sir.”
Two servants approached the dress shop staff.
“Duke! Please give us another chance! Duke!!”
The staff member called out desperately, but Ian only handed a milk cup to Rose.
“Next designer.”
The mannequin and design books in the reception room were quickly replaced with new ones.
“Hello, Duke. I am Ang Osral, the head designer of Ang Dress Shop.”
The man greeted with a graceful gesture, raising his pinky finger, and walked over to the mannequin.
“This piece, I must say, is something I poured my heart into for ten days and nights. Here, at the chest, I’ve used pearls, and on the lace here, emeralds, which when illuminated…”
“Send him away.”
The man was dragged out, looking bewildered.
Ian pressed his temple with one hand, feeling a headache coming on.
‘Are they all possessed by the spirit of sticking jewels on clothes?’
Sebastian had called every dress shop in the capital, and this was the fifth one.
But none of them seemed to know how to make clothes for a child.
No matter how warm it was, why did a child’s dress need to have open shoulders and so many jewels?
Most importantly…
“Ah, this is a corset. Starting to wear a corset from a young age will give her a waist so slim that even ants would be envious…”
It was natural for them to recommend a corset to a five-year-old child.
‘If I knew this would happen, I should have entrusted it to Herry Lay.’
Ian leaned back on the sofa, recalling Herry Lay who was making Rose’s clothes in the dukedom.
For the first time since arriving in the capital, Ian tasted regret.
Rose, noticing Ian’s unusual demeanor, tilted her head and called out to him.
“Uncle?”
“Yes.”
Though his answer was kind, it carried a hint of discouragement, unlike his usual self, prompting Rose to set down her milk cup.
She approached Ian on her knees and asked,
“Uncle, are you hurt?”
“No.”
Ian was struggling with how to break the cursed prejudice and stereotypes, but he couldn’t answer that to Rose.
Suddenly, he felt something small and soft touch his cheek.
It was a familiar sensation he had felt back on Earth.
Ian quickly opened his eyes and looked at Rose.
“Sister May said that if I do this when Uncle feels down, it’ll cheer him up.”
Rose smiled bashfully.
“…Rose.”
A cheek kiss to cheer up her uncle—what a lovely idea Rose had come up with.
Ian, who brushed off the idea that May had taught her this, hugged Rose tightly, feeling deeply moved.
‘Alright. If there’s nothing suitable, I might as well design it myself.’
With this decision, Ian reduced the time spent on pointless meetings.
“Sebastian.”
“Yes, Duke.”
“Send back any dress shop that brings a mannequin with a corset, more than four jewels on a dress, or any dress with open shoulders.”
Having watched numerous dress fittings with Ian, Sebastian nodded and gave instructions to the servants.
There was a commotion in the hallway, which soon quieted down.
One of the servants who had gone outside returned and reported,
“Only three dress shops remain.”
‘Three shops still left?’
Surprised by the unexpected result, Ian looked at the servant with interest.
Feeling Ian’s gaze, the servant nervously spoke up.
“Shall I bring them in?”
“Yes.”
As the servant turned to leave, Ian called him back.
“Have all three come in together.”
“All three, Duke?”
“Yes. They don’t need to bring their design books, just the mannequins with their best pieces.”
“Understood.”
The servant nodded and left.
Shortly after, three people came in, each carrying a mannequin draped in cloth, looking quite nervous.
Ian, who had been keeping a stern face, was surprised to see a familiar face among them.
“Herry Lay?”
Why was the person who should be making clothes at the Duke residence here?
