The Northern Mad Dog Is Wagging Its Tail

  Britia tightly closed her eyes, trying to escape from the vivid image that kept coming to her mind.

 

  “I just thought Duke-nim was helping me choose a dress design in the dressing room.”

 

  In an attempt to break free from that imagination, Britia conjured up the image of the dressing room in her mind. But when Sig, holding a measuring tape, entered through the curtains, she blinked in surprise.

 

  “It might be faster than if you did it alone. But I don’t know if you can properly convey what I think.”

 

  “…I won’t know unless I try.”

 

  Britia spoke firmly. No matter how much she thought about it, she felt too embarrassed for Sig to personally take her measurements.

 

  “When you talk with the designer, sometimes better ideas can come up.”

 

  She desperately tried to persuade him. In her eager gaze, a small sign that read “Popo’s Dressing Room” briefly passed by.

 

  “Let’s give it a try, for now.”

 

  Although she had never been to a dressing room before, Britia was in a hurry.

 

* * *

 

  Popo had worked in the fabric warehouse, saving up money and emptying her deceased parents’ inheritance. A month ago, she opened the dressing room.

 

  The rents in the bustling district were exorbitant, enough to cross the river of death. So she searched for a cheaper place, and ended up in this corner. It was a rather shabby place.

 

   Thanks to that, the only visitors to the dressing room in the past month were flies and a jobless man who lived on the second floor, occasionally peeking in.

 

  “I wish someone would come…”

 

  Until just a month ago, Popo had dreamed big, but now she found herself staring blankly, looking at a shop that only attracted flies. If she continued like this, it would be a complete failure.

 

  -Ding-dong

 

  Startled by the sound of the door opening, Popo snapped out of her daze. She turned her head with anticipation, but there was no customer in sight, despite the door clearly being slightly ajar.

 

  “Is it the wind?”

 

  Popo got up from her seat and approached the door. Then, as the door swung open, a woman with pink hair entered. She was a genuine customer.

 

  “Welcome!”

 

  Upon seeing the customer, Popo was so overjoyed that tears almost welled up in her eyes. The startled customer, taken aback by the loud voice, spotted Popo and smiled warmly.

 

  “I didn’t expect to find a dressing room in a place like this.”

 

  From the woman’s warm smile, Popo sensed a good feeling. However, a tall man followed closely behind her. Popo was of such a small stature that she had to tilt her head up to see him properly. The man, dark and imposing, had scars on his face and wore an eyepatch.

 

  Popo thought, Wait, I feel like I’ve heard about a man with these characteristics somewhere before.

 

  “Come in, Duke Turas-nim. Please, come in.”

 

  The woman spoke to the man.

 

  Popo stared blankly at the man, her eyes widening in disbelief. Duke Turas? That mad dog!

 

  Britia, who had passed by the frozen Popo, looked around the dressing room in surprise.

 

  “Isn’t it beautiful?”

 

  She stood in front of a red dress, examining it from various angles.

 

  Sig, who noticed the frozen Popo and momentarily forgot that he had to attend to the customer, stood by the red dress. He carefully inspected the stitching on the shoulder line, sleeves, and hem after touching the fabric.

 

  “Did you make this?”

 

  Sig’s question snapped Popo out of her frozen state.

 

  “Uh, um, yes!”

 

  She stumbled over her words and kicked the chair that was placed beside her as she rushed towards Sig.

 

  “I-I made it.”

 

  Popo found it difficult to look him in the eye. It made her throat ache. So she subtly shifted her gaze towards Britia.

 

  “Is she going to wear it?”

 

  “She will.”

 

  As the answer came from behind, Popo felt a chill run down her spine. She broke into a cold sweat. Despite it being just a simple statement, the intimidation from the insane dog was overwhelming.

 

  “I would like to see the green fabric.”

 

  “…Yes! The green fabric, right?”

 

  Popo awkwardly smiled and quickly nodded, indicating that she would take care of it. She rushed to the warehouse and brought back a deep green fabric, draping it over her side and spreading it out on a wide table.

 

  “The color is too light.”

 

  At Sig’s comment, Popo hurriedly responded.

 

  “Darker than this, right?”

 

  “The color is too flashy.”

 

  “The texture is not great.”

 

  “It’s too glittery.”

 

  Popo huffed and puffed, exhausted from making the round trip to the warehouse.

 

  “…This one isn’t bad.”

 

  Just as Popo was about to give up, thinking that if this fabric wasn’t satisfactory, there would be no other options left, Sig finally seemed satisfied. However, that was only the beginning.

 

  Popo believed it was wrong to refer to Sig Turas as the Mad Dog of the North. He should be called the Stern One of the North.

 

  “No, not like that. It needs to be more intricate.”

 

  He meticulously examined each lace decoration and made detailed decisions about the flower embellishments he wanted to add, from the shape and color of the petals to the number. Thanks to that, it took Popo two hours to finally grasp what kind of dress Sig wanted.

 

  “How long will it take to complete this?”

 

  At Sig’s question, Popo licked her dry lips.

 

  “It will take about three weeks…”

 

  If she tried to meet all of his demands, it would take at least that much time.

 

  “…It’s going to take a while.”

 

  When Sig didn’t seem pleased with my response, Popo grew anxious.

 

  “I’ll do it within a week.”

 

  “I don’t want to compromise on quality just to rush it out within a week.”

 

  With Sig’s cold tone, Popo held her breath, her face on the verge of tears.

 

  “Britia, maybe I should…”

 

  As Sig attempted to retrieve something from his pocket, Britia stopped him, blocking his arm.

 

  “You can’t do that, Duke-nim. Three weeks is enough time to wait. Can you start by taking my measurements?”

 

  Relieved that she might not lose her first customer, Popo happily grabbed the measuring tape.

 

  “But Britia, if it takes three weeks, you won’t be able to wear it until a week after the hunt competition.”

 

  Sig’s expression subtly grew anxious.

 

  “There’s a banquet after the hunting competition. I hope you can wear it then…”

 

  Britia fell into deep thought.

 

  “Oh, then maybe somewhere else…”

 

  “What did you think of the dress you saw earlier?”

 

   As it seemed that the reluctant customer was about to go elsewhere, an anxious Popo brought out the red dress. It was the dress that initially caught Britia and Sig’s interest.

 

  “If we just need to make alterations, it can be done within a week. How about trying it on once?”

 

  Popo looked at Britia with an earnest face.

 

  “It suits you so well. It should just need a few alterations!”

 

  After seeing Britia come out wearing the dress, Popo clapped her hands.

 

  “Duke-nim, is it alright?”

 

  Britia moved her body around, looking at Sig.

 

  When Sig first saw the dress, he actually found a couple of things he didn’t like about it. However, as she put on the dress, he had a strange experience where the issues seemed to disappear.

 

  In the end, Popo’s dress shop was able to receive an order for two dresses from a memorable first customer.

 

* * *

 

  That evening, when Kyra heard the news that Duke Scandars was pushing himself as the Crown Prince’s fiancé, she burst into laughter, telling him to leave the mansion.

 

  “I thought it was suspiciously quiet, but I guess you’re having such delusions, huh?”

 

  Britia thought she looked terribly villainous. And as if to prove it, Kyra sent a letter to the Duke Scandars, boldly demanding a large sum of money.

 

  The prince seemed very pleased with her painting. In order to catch his eye, she needed money to buy materials. The amount was 50,000 gold.

 

  In response, Duke Scandars sent her twice the amount, expecting a great deal from her.

 

  “Is it okay to deceive him like this? What if he finds out that you asked His Highness to be your matchmaker?”

 

  Whispering in fear of being overheard, Britia asked Kyra as they entered the cafe following Kyra’s suggestion to go to the shopping district to repay the debt she owed.

 

  “We can’t do this if we’re caught, so we’d better devour as much as we can right now.”

 

  “Why are you talking like a fool?” Kyra said.

 

  “I think I should go back home once. Judging by the situation, even if I come face to face with Rutheorford, he won’t be able to lay a finger on me.”

 

  Kyra burst into laughter, anticipating how amusing that would be.

 

  “Don’t say that because it’s dangerous.”

 

  Upon hearing that, Kyra stared at Britia intently.

 

  “You worry too much. If we consider him an enemy, he’s annoying, but if we consider him on our side, the irritating Harty Slanford is ten times worse on your side.”

 

  I’m sure that man will be really annoying, Kyra scoffed, as if she was getting tired of it. But judging by the way her tail looked pleased, she seemed to be enjoying the situation.

 

  “Well, there’s nothing we can do if it turned out that way. Anyway, it’ll take some time for me to buy a wand, so just give me something to do and wait patiently.”

 

  As she got up from her seat, she urged Britia.

 

  “It doesn’t matter if you eat it or not. Just order everything. I plan to spend all this money today and squeeze even more money out of our gullible duke.”

 

  Britia was certain as she looked at Kyra. She was indeed an extraordinary person that ordinary people like herself couldn’t understand.

 

  “Order everything.” Kyra said so, but in reality, Britia couldn’t just order anything and everything. She mustered up the courage to order two cups of tea and two desserts.

 

  “I feel like I’m too timid even in my own thoughts…”

 

  As soon as they arrived at the shopping district  today, Kyra took Britia to a jewelry store and handed her a ruby necklace, a stark contrast between the two.

 

  “Britia.”

 

  When will Kyra come? Just as Britia finished drinking her cup of tea, a somber voice called out to her. Startled, she looked around and realized that a man was approaching from behind.

 

  “…Count Huate.”

 

  Recognizing him, Britia found him sitting on the chair opposite her, leaning his back against it. His lips, pale and bluish, were chapped, and his disheveled hair clung to his face as if damp. His dark, small eyes behind the glasses remained fixed on the floor.

 

  “Um, yes. Please have a seat.”

 

  Britia was taken aback by his sudden appearance and his action of sitting in front of her without being asked to. Nevertheless, she tried to smile.

 

  “It’s been a while. What brings you here?”

 

  As Britia asked, he pursed his lips, avoiding eye contact. His voice was too low, making it difficult for Britia to hear. When she tilted her head in confusion, he wrinkled his brow and spoke again.

 

   “I understand you’re in a difficult situation.”

 

  Indeed, Britia was in a difficult situation, right at this moment. But she pressed her lips tightly and listened to what he had to say. Otherwise, his voice was too faint to comprehend.

 

  “I need to transfer Lockhart’s grains and wine, but I can’t pass through Huate.”

 

  Bowing her head, Britia understood what he was saying and nodded.

 

  “I’m willing to help.”

 

  Britia was greatly surprised by his offer. He was someone who maintained a very close relationship with Duke Robley, to the point where he could be considered Robley’s right-hand man.

 

  But now, he was suggesting that he betray Robley and assist Lockhart. Britia was suspicious of his proposal. Given the already unfavorable reputation of Count Huate, she couldn’t help but wonder if this was a trap disguised as help.

 

  “But there is a condition.”

 

  Huate placed a small box on the table and abruptly stood up from his seat. Without even saying goodbye, he vanished.

 

  Left alone, Britia pondered what had just happened and cautiously opened the box that he had left behind.

 

  Inside the box, there was a diamond ring and a small note.

 

  [The condition is that you marry me.]

 

  Numerous question marks filled Britia’s mind.