Chapter 15

As Adelina circled the dress room, she finally found a dress that she absolutely loved.  

“I’ll take this one. Since I need it for tomorrow, please alter it right away.”  

Unable to take her eyes off the dress, Adelina confidently told the atelier owner, ready to pay immediately.  

“Well… Miss… that dress…”  

As the atelier owner hesitated awkwardly from behind, Adelina turned around.  

“Is it already sold?”  

“Yes. I’m sorry, Miss. The dress already has an owner.”  

“No, there’s no need to apologize. It’s just quite unfortunate…”  

Adelina turned her body again to look at the dress with regret.  

“By any chance… could you make something similar… or at least with the same fabric?”  

Though it seemed almost impossible, she subtly asked, hoping that with enough money from Lexion and Stephan, it might be possible.  

“Well…”  

“It won’t be possible.”  

Before the atelier owner could finish, a stranger’s voice came from the direction of the dress room’s door.  

+++

“Sir Jaeyon, when did you arrive? If you had called for me, I would have come out.”

The atelier owner, with a big smile on his face, bowed to the man with dark brown hair.  

A beautiful woman stood behind him, seemingly accompanying him.  

“I heard you were here.”  

Jaeyon, familiar with the dress room, entered without hesitation and stopped right in front of Adelina.  

“And who might you be?”  

His sharp brown eyes scanned Adelina from head to toe as if assessing her.  

“I am Lady Adelina Florin. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Sir Jaeyon.”

Adelina, surprised by Jaeyon’s sudden appearance, collected herself and slightly bent her knees in greeting.  

‘Hey! How can you appear like this without any sign!’  

Adelina needed to meet Jaeyon, but she hadn’t expected to encounter him so suddenly in the dress room.

“So, you are the famous Miss Adelina. I expected as much, since silver hair is unique to you.”  

“Yes. I’ve heard a lot about you too, Jaeyon.”  

Responding to Jaeyon’s polite greeting with her own, Adelina smiled sweetly.  

She signaled the atelier owner to bring Lexion and Stephan.  

Jaeyon was the second son of Prince Isya. Although he could be called a prince, in the Tiola Empire, only the eldest son who inherits the title could be called a prince.  

Today, she planned to hand over the telescope to Prince Isya through Jaeyon. That’s why she visited the atelier for the third time, timing it to coincide with Jaeyon’s visit.  

“I see. Miss, what have you heard about me?”

When Jaeyon smiled, his eyes curved like a crescent moon, making him seem amiable, yet he was putting Adelina in a difficult position.  

“You are the second son of Prince Isya.”  

“Yes. And?”  

As if wanting to continue making her uncomfortable, Jaeyon leaned in with a sly smile.  

‘Look at this… what kind of trickery is this!’  

Adelina looked sharply at Jaeyon.  

Even in her past life, she was surrounded by people who enjoyed putting her in awkward situations.  

-“Hey, is today your birthday? Happy birthday.”-  

-“Uh… uh… thank you.”-  

In fifth grade, the most popular boy in school had approached her and wished her a happy birthday for the first time.  

-“But… is that birthday real? I heard you’re fake. So isn’t your birthday fake too?”-  

At his words, the kids in the classroom burst into laughter.  

-“You! Are you looking to die!”-  

In her fury, when she made the boy’s nose bleed, her aunt slapped her for the first time that night.  

Adelina clenched her fists tightly, unbeknownst to Jaeyon.  

She knew that if she gave him a nosebleed, it wouldn’t end with just a slap, but she had no intention of enduring humiliation. Once she endured it, the intensity would only increase.  

“Isn’t that enough? After all, Sir Jaeyon, you only know that I am the Marquis’s daughter. That’s the extent of what we know about each other, isn’t it? There’s no need to know more.”

“I see… I didn’t mean to upset you, Miss.”  

At Adelina’s blunt tone, Jaeyon raised his hands to shoulder height in a gesture of surrender.  

“Jaeyon, it’s been a while.”  

“It has indeed, Your Grace. Marquis.”

Upon hearing that Jaeyon had arrived, Lexion entered the dress room. Stephan also came in and exchanged greetings with Jaeyon.  

“It seems the lady has taken a liking to this dress.”

“Is that so?”  

When Jaeyon pointed to the dress, Lexion looked at Adelina’s face.  

“I heard the dress already has an owner. So I asked if it could be made with the same fabric.”  

Lexion turned his gaze to the dress that Adelina liked for the first time.  

“Jaeyon, is this fabric the one made by Pyrene this time?”  

“Yes, Your Grace. It’s a thin silk developed by my sister. It’s meant to be showcased at tomorrow’s banquet with this dress.”

After glancing at the woman who came with him, Jaeyon looked Adelina up and down again.  

“Miss, I’d like to give you this dress.”

At Jaeyon’s sudden words, everyone’s eyes turned to him.  

“Pardon?”

“I think this dress would suit you quite well. Since it was made to showcase the fabric at tomorrow’s banquet anyway, why don’t you wear it and present it?”  

Jaeyon’s words made Lexion’s expression harden.  

Adelina looked at the dress once more but then shook her head.  

“No, Sir Jaeyon. Doesn’t this dress already have an intended wearer? I appreciate the gesture, but I must decline.”

As Adelina politely declined, the woman who had accompanied Jaeyon approached her.  

“I am Hailyn, a lady-in-waiting from the Tiola Empire. Miss, this dress was meant for me. Since our body sizes are similar, please try it on. I am sure it will suit you better than it does me.”

At Hailyn’s words, Adelina looked at the dress again.

It was a white dress with a very slight pink hue like cherry blossoms. It was an A-line dress that didn’t require a petticoat, with large vertical pleats made of very thin fabric to create fullness.

What Adelina liked most was that the chest area was covered with lace embroidered with pearls and embroidery. The sleeves were made of very thin fabric that came down to the elbows, covering more of her bare skin.  

It was perfect. It was a dream dress, so beautiful that Adelina wanted to wear it as a wedding dress.  

“Go ahead, Adelina. Try it on.”  

Duke Lexion said to Adelina, who couldn’t take her eyes off the dress. At the same time, he glanced down at her legs, signaling her to hand over the telescope.  

‘Ah! That’s right! I need to give the telescope! I can hand it over while wearing this dress!’  

Yes. Just try it on once. Once I go back into the mirror, it will be hard to wear a dress that I like so much, so let’s just try it on once.  

“Shall I…?”  

Adelina feigned reluctance, giving a slight smile to Jaeyon and Hailyn.  

“Miss, it seems you came alone without a maid or lady-in-waiting, so I’ll help you.”

Hailyn hurriedly led her to the dressing room, as if worried Adelina might change her mind.  

“This is…”  

“Shh! It must be delivered to Prince Isya.”  

As soon as Adelina entered the dressing room, she removed the telescope that was bandaged to her calf.  

She had already received the telescope from Lexion in the carriage and hidden it. In other ateliers, she hadn’t even removed her underdress while changing clothes for fear of it being discovered.  

“I understand.”

As soon as Hailyn received the telescope, she attached it to the inside of her thigh and wrapped it tightly with a bandage.  

“The thigh is uncomfortable.”  

“But it’s better here. There are hardly any who would put their hands inside the thigh to check.”  

Hailyn placed her index finger on her lips as if sharing a big secret and helped Adelina change clothes.  

+++

‘Adelina…’  

Seeing Adelina in the changed dress, Duke Lexion’s eyebrows furrowed, and his forehead wrinkled involuntarily.  

“Uh… isn’t it pretty?”  

Adelina thought she looked quite pretty in the mirror, but when there was no reaction from the others, she became dejected.  

‘Lexion… you don’t have to frown like that! You jerk!’  

Perhaps trying on someone else’s dress was a mistake. It seems that a tailored dress doesn’t suit anyone other than its owner.  

“No, Miss. You are beautiful.”  

Jaeyon was the first to break the silence and approached Adelina with long strides.  

Hailyn, finding something amusing, pursed her lips and smiled at Jaeyon’s actions.  

“My daughter will be the most beautiful at tomorrow’s banquet.”  

Marquis Stephan halted Jaeyon by the shoulder and approached Adelina, offering his arm.  

“Ahem.”  

Duke Lexion belatedly approached Adelina, pushing Stephan aside, and stood beside her in front of the full-length mirror.  

Seeing their reflection in the mirror, Lexion’s expression softened considerably.  

“You’re beautiful.”

Hearing Lexion’s words after a long pause, Adelina’s cheeks turned pink like peach blossoms.  

“Miss, I will give you this dress. Please wear it at tomorrow’s banquet.”  

Hearing Jaeyon’s voice from behind, Adelina turned to look at him.  

Jaeyon’s brown eyes sparkled even more than when they first met, perhaps due to the dress room’s lighting.  

“What? But…”  

“Do it, Adelina. Jaeyon, I’ll pay for the dress.”

As soon as Lexion finished speaking, Marquis Stephan was about to pull out a blank checkbook from his jacket pocket.  

“No, I will just give it.”  

Jaeyon touched the sleeve of Adelina’s dress.  

Stephan, with a displeased expression, removed Jaeyon’s hand from Adelina’s sleeve.  

Lexion turned around and crossed his arms.  

“What? But…”  

When Adelina looked at him with surprised eyes, Jaeyon extended his right hand to her, as if inviting her to be his partner at the banquet.  

“In return, please dance with me once tomorrow. And allow my sister to paint a portrait of you. I’m sure she’ll love it.”

Jaeyon, as if enticing her, gently curved his eyes into a crescent moon shape.  

‘Should I… Yes! It’s not free! I’ll dance and be a model! That’s fair compensation for labor!’  

As if entranced, Adelina extended her right hand to take Jaeyon’s hand.  

‘That expensive dress is becoming mine! I’ll wear it when I really get married later!’  

“Pay with money.”  

Just before Adelina’s hand touched Jaeyon’s, Lexion seized her hand.  

Adelina glanced at Lexion and tried to pull her hand away, but Lexion held it firmly, making it impossible to withdraw.  

“Alright, Sir Jaeyon. One dance tomorrow. One portrait.”

Still, Adelina was not one to retreat easily. She extended her left hand to take Jaeyon’s hand.  

“It is an honor, Miss.”  

When Jaeyon kissed the back of Adelina’s hand, her large eyes widened even more, as if she hadn’t expected it.  

“Adelina.”  

Lexion called her name, unable to hide his displeasure.