“My real name?”
Tia hesitated for a moment at Charlize’s inquiry.
Charlize was the first person to whom she confessed that she was fake, and she was also the first person to ask her real name.
That was why she couldn’t answer.
To think that only Charlize wanted to know her true self.
“Yeah, what’s your real name? I suddenly became curious.”
“My real name is Lily.”
“Lily. Then when we’re alone, I’ll call you Lily.”
“What if someone else finds out that I’m fake?”
“You can just say that it’s a nickname I gave you. What’s the problem?”
“Then only you’ll call me Lily. Lena, you should never call me Lily!”
“Okay, Tia.”
“Sister Charlize, would you call me by my real name now?”
“Yeah. Okay. Lily.”
“Yeah, thank you. Sister.”
Tia, no, Lily, smiled bashfully. Her heart was bubbling with joy as if she couldn’t leave Charlize.
How could she leave Charlize who had touched her heart to this extent?
“So Lily, are you planning to go to the orphanage from where we came?”
“Oh, that’s not it.”
“Then where?”
“We’ll go shopping first and let you know when I get home.”
Charlize nodded and decided to leave the matter.
After all, today she basically sold all her time to Lily.
It was up to Lily to decide where she wanted to go.
‘I don’t have a choice. I’ll have to listen to Lily today.’
Charlize glanced outside, taking her time to admire the scenery outside, gently pushing aside the pink curtains covering the carriage windows with her hand.
‘I feel much better now that I’m outside.’
She was getting bored staying cooped up in the room for so many days.
People should spend their time outdoors to stay healthy, this passage suddenly came to her mind.
‘Let’s take a breath of fresh air for today.’
Charlize, who had been cooped up in her room in the mansion since she came from the island of the sick to the Duke of Rebecca’s residence, stretched leisurely.
Her hunched shoulders loosened a little.
“Tia, no, Lily. Did you bring money for shopping?”
“Of course. I saved more money than you know.”
“How much?”
“It’s a secret. But if I have to hint the exact amount, it’s probably more than the price of a house in the capital. Probably.”
Charlize shook her head in amazement, seeing Lily mentioning about her money she had brought on shopping today.
How much money did she bring to spend the day?
Charlize couldn’t help but be nervous.
No, it was more like she was exhausted, not nervous.
Before even starting shopping with Lily.
For some reason, she felt like her energy was being drained rapidly.
“Haa, let’s not spend too much, Lily.”
“I’ll think about it. There are more than ten stores I’m thinking of visiting.”
“You want to buy that much? What are you going to buy?”
“We’re going to stop by a boutique and look at a few dresses there. Then go to a jewellery store to look at some latest jewelries that are trending. Oh! There’s a famous dessert place in the capital, so let’s go there. Um, then we’ll go to a restaurant for lunch. There’s a lot to do, Sister.”
“You are going to do it all today?”
“Yeah. If you don’t want to, how about you come on a date with me a few more times?”
“No. Let’s finish it just today. I think it’ll be a hassle to come out one more time.”
“Yeah. Sister. I’m so excited to go on a date with you that my heart feels like it’s going to burst. What about you?”
“I’m already exhausted just from hearing about today’s schedule. Lily.”
“Is it really hard for you?”
“…Yeah.”
Squeak–
The carriage stopped.
“Wow, I guess we’ve arrived at the capital. Sister, let’s get off quickly.”
“Yeah.”
And so the hellish shopping began.
***
Charlize and Lily stopped by the boutique first as they planned.
Lena followed them quietly into the boutique.
As a place that sold luxurious clothes for rich nobles, the interior was better than other shops.
The feeling of suffocation in the crowd was gone.
It was the first time Charlize visited a luxury boutique shop that was described in common romance novels, so she curiously looked around.
She never had to go around buying clothes for herself because the maids took care of it most of the time.
In addition, Charlize didn’t have the mindset of typical nobles, spending money like water on their outfits and changing several outfits a day.
She just kept one or two outfits that didn’t look too shabby and wore them throughout the day.
The prime reason was that she didn’t want to bother changing them again.
On the other hand, Lily had one set of nightgown, one set of clothes to wear in the morning, one set of clothes to wear at lunch, and one set of clothes to wear in the evening.
She changed her clothes three or four times a day.
She was very sensitive to cleanliness.
Her dressing room was filled with all sorts of luxurious and expensive dresses.
She already had a bunch of new clothes, but she decided to spend lavishly today for the date with Charlize in the capital.
“Sister, do you know how hard I worked to make a reservation here?”
“We have a reservation?”
“You have to make a reservation in advance for these famous stores. If not, you can’t come. That’s how it is.”
“I see. You’re really diligent.”
“The reservation fee here is expensive. We’re the only ones in the store. I reserved the whole store for today.”
Lily stared intently at Charlize, as if begging her to praise her quickly.
But Charlize only made a dumbfounded expression.
“You reserved this store today?”
“Yeah. I’m going to have a wonderful date with my sister today. I paid the reservation for today in advance. I also paid 3 times the deposit than usual.”
“Is this store worth it?”
“Of course. Usually, you’ll have to wait at least a year for the reservation to come to this store.”
“You haven’t been in the capital that long. When did you make the reservation?”
“While Sister was locked in her room, I set everything up just for today. All you have to do is be obedient and enjoy with me.”
“…This is terrible. Lily, no, Tia.”
“Choose any dress you want. I’ll talk to the store owner. Is there any new clothes you want to buy?”
Lily called the store owner and asked.
“Do you have any new dresses, Mister?”
“The Youngest Princess of Rebecca. Apologize for not greeting you in advance. I was busy with some business and didn’t hear you come in.”
“No. I came here to buy a dress that would suit my sister today.”
“Oh my, the Eldest Princess of Rebecca is here too.”
Charlize laughed awkwardly at the owner’s respectful words.
It was because her reputation floating around the world of nobles suddenly appeared in her mind.
‘Come to think of it, is it okay for the villainous Young Lady to be walking around the capital so leisurely like this? What if I get stoned?’
She was worried for nothing.
Since there were only Lena, Lily, and the owner around her, Charlize’s anxiety subsided a little.
If there were other customers, she probably would have been kicked out of the store the moment she stepped in.
Charlize was hesitant to meet people because she knew people didn’t like her much and it was awkward to greet people who disliked her.
Especially meeting people she didn’t know well.
So she felt fortunate to have Lily and Lena around her.
“Sister?”
Lily approached her, seeing Charlize’s dark expression.
“Oh. Yes.”
“The owner said there are some new dresses that have just come. Do you want to come with me and see it?”
“Uh. Okay.”
Charlize answered nervously and took Lily’s hand.
“This is the new collection our boutique shop have made this time.”
Many beautiful dresses were hanging from the hangers.
Charlize was dazzled by the gorgeousness of the dresses.
‘I can understand why this store is popular.’
She used to think that she had no desire for clothes until now, but her thoughts changed when she saw the owner’s new collection.
They were all so pretty.
I want to try them.
They were truly beautiful.
They were like rows of beautiful flowers blooming splendidly in the garden in the Spring.
“As expected, your collection is really to my liking.”
“I just did as the Young Princess advised.”
Lily and the owner talked without hesitation, as if they had known each other from the beginning.
Charlize, who was caught in the middle, just blankly observed the dresses.
Then the hand that was holding Lily moved.
Charlize was dragged around by Lily to look at the new collection.
“Which dress would suit my sister best?”
Lily was carefully looking at the gorgeous dresses that Charlize could wear to her birthday party.
This one is too dark.
This one is too flashy.
That one is too dull.
They were pretty, but they didn’t seem to suit her sister.
Lily turned her head to ask Charlize if she liked anything.
“Sister, is there a dress you like? You need a dress for my birthday party.”
“They are all pretty.”
Charlize had poor taste in fashion.
Well, Charlize was a fool for her mother who couldn’t even move a step without her mother. And she wasn’t someone who enjoyed luxury as a hobby.
Usually, villains liked to flaunt their wealth while committing evil deeds.
But the original Charlize was different.
She was obsessed with only things related to her mother and didn’t care about anything else.
However, she had a habit of raising her hand if something or someone annoyed her.
After Kim Daneun possessed Charlize’s body, she stopped that habit.
The current Charlize was innocent.
She was someone who didn’t know anything about the world.
But she was still the infamous Charlize.
T/N: If you like my work, consider supporting me on Kofi.
