Strange yet welcome.

It was an unusual night.

* * *

Though it was summer, the night air was cool.

Going out in just a negligee would obviously lead to catching a cold, so she needed to change clothes and bring a shawl. Vivianne decided to stop by her bedroom before going out.

“Um, Kian.”

Vivianne spoke calmly to Kian, who had followed her to the door.

“Would you wait here for a moment? I’ll change quickly and come back.”

Despite making the request quite politely, Kian wordlessly flung the door open and entered ahead of her.

“Why are you doing this?”

“You like it when I pick out clothes for you, don’t you?”

“But Kian… you said you dislike clothes.”

On the night she regained consciousness, Kian had clearly stated that he only dressed her to prevent other males from becoming aroused, and that he had no interest in clothes.

Why was he suddenly acting like this?

His behavior had been unfamiliar since earlier.

“I do dislike them, but we can’t go out n*ked.”

“What?”

“You said we won’t mate. So this time I need to dress you for my sake.”

Pure wordplay and completely self-centered.

Vivianne’s eyes narrowed.

Regardless, Kian paid no attention and opened the wardrobe door.

He quickly pulled out a dress. He didn’t seem to deliberate much. Rather than choosing something he liked, he appeared to grab whatever was at hand.

“Here, this one.”

What he handed to Vivianne was a moderately modest indoor dress.

“Try it on.”

Vivianne received it bewilderedly and opened her eyes wide.

“C-could you turn around for a moment?”

“Why?”

“Well… because I’m going to change clothes.”

“I know. Just change in front of me.”

He didn’t seem to understand at all. Vivianne decided to explain her feelings a bit more clearly.

“But when you stare at me like that… it’s embarrassing.”

“I need to see if it suits you. With clothes, you have to try them on to know. Don’t you agree?”

“……”

It wasn’t wrong, but the problem was his penetrating gaze. Looking out the window, there were many clouds, yet the moonlight felt unusually bright today.

“So it’s fine as long as I don’t stare directly?”

“…Yes.”

“Really, our Vivi has so many demands.”

Kian muttered as he positioned Vivianne in front of the mirror. Then he quickly pulled up her negligee and removed it.

“Ah! K-Kian…!”

Startled by his abrupt touch, Vivianne covered her chest with her hands.

Standing in front of the mirror wearing only panties, she felt so embarrassed that even her earlobes burned hot.

“I’ve seen it all before. Why the sudden modesty?”

It seemed only Vivianne felt embarrassed. Kian neatly folded the removed clothing and placed it on the bedside table with an indifferent tone. The mirror reflected the half-n*ked Vivianne and Kian watching her from behind.

What difference did this make anyway?

It was unbearably embarrassing.

“But.”

His lips in the mirror twisted slightly.

“I only undressed you. Why are you making such lewd sounds?”

“W-who made lewd sounds…!”

“Move your arms. I’ll dress you.”

He didn’t seem to have spoken with the purpose of getting an answer. It seemed like he just wanted to tease her.

Vivianne felt somewhat victimized and stretched out one arm to pull the indoor dress.

“I’ll dress myself.”

She completely shut down the possibility of him tormenting her again under the pretext of helping her dress.

“Suit yourself.”

Kian surprisingly backed away without resistance.

Vivianne, with a slightly disgruntled face, hurriedly began gathering and putting on her clothes.

The mirror reflected Kian watching her with persistent eyes. Vivianne deliberately ignored this and finished dressing.

“Let’s go now.”

“I don’t like it.”

“What?”

“It looked fine when I saw it, but now that you’re wearing it, it’s not good.”

“……”

Kian spoke with a rather brazen expression.

“You said it earlier. You have to try clothes on to know.”

“…Yes.”

She was too dumbfounded to argue.

No sooner had she finished answering than he removed what she had just put on. Vivianne was once again in the embarrassing state of wearing only panties. And as promised, she covered her chest with both arms.

“What should I put on you?”

Unlike earlier when he had grabbed whatever was at hand, he was now taking his time.

He was clearly teasing her because she was embarrassed about being undressed. If she had known this would happen, she would never have asked him to pick out a dress.

She hadn’t expected him to behave so strangely. From Vivianne’s perspective, who had no particular preferences, this was nothing short of torture.

“Try this on.”

He finally seemed to have chosen, bringing her a dress. Then he watched her again like a spectator. Feeling this would only end once she quickly put it on, she moved her hands busily.

“……”

But soon, she faced a limitation.

“Um, Kian.”

“Yes?”

“I can’t put this on by myself.”

“Really?”

“I think you need to help me tie the knot in the back.”

“Women’s clothes are so troublesome to put on, aren’t they?”

He grumbled, but for a moment she saw a smile spread across his face and then disappear. So this was definitely deliberate.

What a mischievous male. After all the emotional distress he had caused her, seeing him play around like this made her feel like he regarded her as a toy.

Her fists clenched in frustration.

If only she could pay him back.

“Come here.”

She expected more torment, but his attitude was surprisingly dry. The way he tied the knot at the back of her indoor dress was even somewhat businesslike.

Meanwhile, she had been repeatedly undressed and dressed in front of the mirror.

Kian must have come right after finishing his duties, as he was still fully dressed.

“Why are you so good at this, Kian?”

Vivianne said anything to try to erase her embarrassment.

“At what?”

“Helping someone dress.”

“Must be a natural talent.”

“Stop joking. Have you dressed many women before?”

“Do I seem like I have?”

When Kian grinned and asked back, Vivianne pushed out her lower lip.

“It’s obvious just by looking. Isn’t it stranger to not be able to do something like this?”

He raised his eyebrows as he finished tying the knot in the back.

“You’re also giving strange answers, Kian. That’s not what I asked.”

“If I knew women’s clothes so well, wouldn’t I have taken out this dress from the beginning? Don’t you think?”

“……”

He paid her back exactly as he had at the training grounds earlier. Kian again spoke in circles.

While she found the maids who mocked her annoying, some of what they said was quite relatable. It seemed nobles had no interest in efficient communication.

Since she had been looking in the mirror the whole time and there had been no complaints, it seemed they were finally done. She thought she only needed to choose shoes to go out.

“The ribbon in front.”

“What?”

He wouldn’t let her go so easily.

Kian casually pulled Vivianne’s waist from behind and embraced her.

Her small, petite body was drawn helplessly into his arms like a teddy bear.

“It’s crooked, Vivi.”

Kian wrapped his arms around her and straightened the ribbon attached to the front.

Was it because their bodies were pressed together? She could feel his breathing and his heartbeat.

No, to be precise, that wasn’t the problem. The problem was the hard thing mercilessly poking her b*ttocks.

“…Are you okay, Kian?”

“What?”

“Down below, you’ve gotten big.”

“So what?”

Unlike her embarrassment, his expression was strangely nonchalant.

“It’s natural. You’re pretty, and you look sexy. Of course I’m aroused.”

“I remember how uncomfortable you were at the opera house. We don’t have to go for a walk. You should rest in the room.”

Vivianne spoke kindly, like she was doing him a favor. Although she found him hateful and detestable considering what he had done to her, she didn’t want him to be uncomfortable.

And it seemed difficult to enjoy a peaceful walk with someone in such discomfort.

“How vexing. Pretending to be considerate when you have no intention of helping me out.”

“Why would I? We made a promise.”

Vivianne asked with round eyes.

“Madam Spencer said men can quietly take care of it themselves.”

That damned Spencer. I should have destroyed her mining rights back then.

Kian seemed incredulous, letting out a hollow laugh as he released her waist.

“Yes. I’ll quietly take care of this myself. Let’s go out now, Lady Vivianne.”

Vivianne quickly stood in front of the cabinet where the shoes were kept. Three pairs of shoes were neatly arranged.

“Want me to pick your shoes too?”

“No. I’ll choose myself.”

As she promptly chose high-heeled shoes, Kian stopped her.

“Not those, these.”

Kian put the high-heeled shoes back in the cabinet and took out shoes with round toes and low heels.

“Why? We’re just going out for a bit.”

“It’s a secret.”

His eyes curved prettily.

“I’ll tell you when we get outside.”

What a cryptic male. Now she had no choice but to wear them out of curiosity.

Vivianne reluctantly put on the round-toed, low-heeled shoes.