Chapter 3. An Unusually Lucky Day

I’ve been making my own clothes from scrap fabric since I was twelve.

But since I had only made practical everyday clothes, I thought a party dress would turn out poorly….

‘Do I… have talent?’

My reflection in the mirror, wearing the light blue dress, looked back at me. My light brown hair was simply tied up neatly, but it looked quite decent, and perhaps because of a bit of eye makeup, my blue eyes looked deeper than usual.

It might be a bit plain to attend a ball like this, but if I wore the necklace my mother left me, it would be passable. The white topaz necklace wasn’t very luxurious, but it was appropriate for formal occasions.

‘…Should I leave this house and open a dress shop?’

I laughed softly at the silly thought. I didn’t have the guts or the assets for that, but, well… not everything in the world is achieved with just guts.

If I ever reached a point where I couldn’t endure it anymore, I might just throw away my status as the daughter of a baron and leave for somewhere far away.

What keeps me tied to this mansion is perhaps the ghost of my mother, who wanted me to be a perfect noble lady.

‘You must become the finest lady, Ellen. The most dazzlingly radiant diamond of the social circle….’

But, Mother. I’ve naturally become nothing more than an ash-covered kitchen maid.

* * *

“So, are you really not planning to get married this year?”

Enoch glanced at the person asking the question with an annoyed expression and put the pipe in his mouth.

He took a drag of the cigarette, half-closed his eyes, and exhaled, letting the smoke fill the cool morning air. Skipping breakfast and smoking had become a habit.

“You’re already twenty-five this year. When exactly are you planning to get married? Because you’re single, all the women in the world are only looking at you, making it difficult for other men to find brides. You’re the enemy of all men.”

Enoch gave a short laugh at the nonsense not worth responding to. Difficulty finding brides, my foot. Last year alone, twice as many unmarried men and women succeeded in getting married compared to the year before. What nonsense.

“And… you know, right? King Henry is just waiting for an opportunity to marry you off.”

“…”

“If this keeps up, you might end up in an arranged marriage with a woman chosen by King Henry.”

This part of the conversation was relatively worth listening to. Enoch put down his pipe and straightened his posture. As he straightened his back from leaning against the sofa, his large build became more prominent.

He lifted a glass of cold water instead of his pipe and nonchalantly threw out his words.

“Penelope suggested a contract marriage.”

“A con… what? A contract marriage?”

Enoch lazily glanced at the pathetic face that was as shocked as when he lost all his money at a gambling house four years ago. Enoch took a light sip of water. How did that dimwit ever become someone I could call a friend? It was truly a mystery.

“A contract marriage? What is this, a romance novel? I didn’t think she was like that. Is she delusional?”

If Penelope had heard that, she would have punched him in the face. That woman, far from being a saint, was no different from a thug.

Tapping the rim of the glass with his index finger, Enoch gave a tender smile to his only ‘friend.’

“Right. That woman is a complete romance novel fanatic. Her delusions are quite severe.”

If this idiot Warren Norbert spread this story around, it would eventually reach Penelope’s ears, and the proud lady would go berserk.

It would be quite a spectacle to watch. Enoch smiled a bit more kindly.

“Wh-what? Why are you smiling like that? Are you crazy?”

“…”

Well, it seems that this idiot has developed some sharpness after being a ‘friend’ for four years.

Enoch put down the glass and picked up his pipe again.

Warren frowned at Enoch’s haggard appearance, wearing only a bathrobe, his already pale face growing even paler as he smoked. He couldn’t bring himself to take the pipe from Enoch, so he just nagged as usual.

“Please, quit smoking and eat breakfast! You’ll die young at this rate! And think about getting married this year.”

Sometimes, I don’t know if this guy is my friend or my wife. Enoch blinked indifferently at the now-familiar nagging. He didn’t bother to say out loud that he had no intention of living long.

What’s the point of living a tedious life? When it’s time to go, you go.

He had no lingering attachments to life. So, getting married and starting a family… it was all meaningless to him.

Love? Romance? Naturally, those are things only idiots with too much time on their hands do.

“Oh, I have a date with Mercedes. I should get going.”

Here’s another idiot.

To the idiot leaving the room excitedly, Enoch bowed politely.

It was a peaceful morning as usual.

* * *

From the morning, it was like a battlefield.

“Ellen, have you finished the tasks I gave you?”

“No, not yet.”

“Why are you so slow, child?”

Today is the day of the spring ball.

Helene and Melissa were busy preparing for the ball from the morning, while I was busy with chores.

I wasn’t given any time to prepare for the ball.

Even though my stepmother had said,

‘If you finish all the tasks I gave you today, you can attend the ball too.’

“How could you possibly attend the ball like that? Rewards are not given to the lazy, Ellen.”

“…”

I didn’t respond to my stepmother’s words and continued scrubbing the floor. Anyone could see that I was far from lazy. If there were a saint of household chores, they would come down from heaven and bless me.

“Mom, I’m ready!”

“What about Melissa?”

“She’s a bit slow. It’ll take her longer.”

“Oh, no, I’m ready too…”

Just then, Helene and Melissa, fully dressed up, came down from the second floor. I glanced at them and almost frowned. …Isn’t that too much?

“Mom, don’t I look strange? The feather decoration on my head feels too heavy.”

“What are you talking about? You need to stand out in a crowd! Don’t you know it’s beneficial to be noticeable?”

Helene, with a large feather decoration on her head, looked like a clumsy albatross. Her dress was so extravagant, adorned with so many artificial flowers, that she looked like a giant bouquet. …With that outfit, she’d be more than noticeable, she’d be a spectacle.

“If only you were taller… well, nothing we can do about that. Your face is your best asset, so don’t forget to smile when you make eye contact with gentlemen. You need to find a suitor this year.”

Since their debut, my stepmother’s main concern was marrying off Helene and Melissa. But our family couldn’t afford a dowry, so they often missed good matches.

If she really wanted to marry them off quickly, she could find matches of similar status to ours, but my stepmother was greedy and wanted to marry her daughters to high-ranking nobles. High-ranking nobles had no interest in a family like ours, which had fallen into ruin.

“Melissa! What’s with that ribbon? I told you to use the red one! You need to use bright colors with your plain looks! Go change it to the red ribbon!”

“But, the pink ribbon goes better with this dress…”

“Are you talking back to me? Didn’t you hear what your mother said?”

Melissa, as usual, followed my stepmother’s orders with a rebellious look in her eyes. Her accumulated resentment often turned into sinister malice, and I was usually the one to suffer.

“Ellen! Work faster! You’re too slow!”

As expected, the blame fell on me. My stepmother always took her frustrations with Helene and Melissa out on me.

“Oh, the only person I like in this house is Anthony, my smart son…”

That Anthony was probably hanging around the gambling house at the social club by now. Did my stepmother really not know? Or was she pretending not to know?

Even though society allowed men to enter the workforce early, Anthony, who was already gambling at such a young age, had many problems. Well, it was true that Anthony was smart.

Soon, Melissa came down with a red ribbon around her waist, and my stepmother finally nodded in satisfaction.

“Now you look presentable.”

With all preparations complete, the three women got into the old, uncomfortable carriage and left for the ball.

And I…

‘…I don’t know if I can finish by 10 o’clock, but I’ll try.’

I sighed deeply and started scrubbing the floor again.

About two hours later.

“10:15!”

Even if I got ready now, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy much of the ball, but still.

‘Just seeing the Grand Duke of Bayern from afar would be enough.’

I quickly washed up, brushed my hair, and changed into the dress. I also wore the white topaz necklace my mother had left me. And I did a simple makeup.

Given that the basics are in place, it should be enough to attend the ball.

The problem was how to get a carriage…

“Hey! Look over here!”

Surprisingly, as soon as I stepped out of the mansion, I was able to hail an empty carriage passing by.
The coachman, who had an ordinary appearance, asked in a tone that was neither rude nor particularly kind.

“Where to?”

“To the palace. Show them this invitation, and they’ll let you in.”

“Yes, understood.”

The coachman replied simply and started the carriage without further questions.

The carriage rattled as it passed over the cobblestone streets. My heart seemed to rattle along with it. No, it was definitely pounding.

Was it anticipation, or fear?

It was an unusually lucky day.