Chapter 8.4

Somehow, Brienne managed to change into the uniform and looked at herself in the mirror. Her stiff smile didn’t look natural, but it didn’t seem bad either.

“Miss, aren’t you done yet?”  

“Ah, no! I’m coming out now.”  

What finally made Brienne move from the mirror was Diashi’s voice right outside the curtain. Before pulling back the curtain, Brienne fixed her hair one last time. With a trembling heart, she opened the curtain, avoiding Diashi’s gaze.

“Um, how do I look?”  

“Wow, Miss…”  

Diashi, her expression stiff, stood with her mouth open for a while. For Diashi, who was always so bright, not to smile—was it that strange?  

Just as Brienne was feeling discouraged, Diashi put her chin on Brienne’s shoulder.

“I can’t believe the uniform suits you so well! My taste was right after all.”  

“Pardon?”  

“Actually, I was so curious to see you in a uniform, I wanted to see it as soon as possible. Herace is always the handsome one, but maybe it’s Shylo who looks best in uniform?”  

“Shy, Shylo…”  

Diashi, as if it meant nothing, gave Brienne a thumbs up right in front of her surprised eyes.

“Anyway! You look so, so pretty. They say clothes make the person, after all!”  

Beaming, Diashi said to wait a moment and ran off to the seamstress. While she chatted, pointing at Brienne’s uniform, Brienne blinked in confusion.

It was suspicious.  

Brienne felt good hearing she looked good in uniform, but only for a moment. She started to wonder about Diashi, who kept mentioning Shylo both at the bookstore and here at the tailor’s.  

‘Could it be that Miss Diashi…’  

Maybe she liked Shylo, but didn’t realize her own feelings?

She’d heard that sometimes people don’t recognize when they’re drawn to someone, only realizing it much later.  

Brienne could understand that.  

Love is never calculated; it’s like a petal carried on the breeze by chance.  

You keep taking out that petal that fell by accident, and eventually, you wonder what the name of that flower is.  

She herself hadn’t known what her feelings were until she looked closely.

With the image of a certain man naturally coming to mind, Brienne smiled and turned away from Diashi. After glancing at the row of mannequins, she looked down at her uniform again, her cheeks slightly flushed.

How would he react?  

She wanted to show this look to Herace as soon as possible…  

As Brienne fiddled with her blouse sleeves for no reason, Diashi soon approached. Diashi waved a folded receipt so its contents couldn’t be seen and smiled brightly.

“Tada! I put the receipt on my tab. All you need to do is leave your dorm address, and they’ll deliver the new uniform in three days.”  

“Pardon? Miss Diashi, you don’t have to go that far…”  

“Oh, come on, you went through a lot being dragged around by me today. Even coming here was because I insisted.”  

With a wink, Diashi gently pushed the flustered Brienne back into the fitting room.

“Okay, then change back into your original clothes and come out slowly. I’ll wait outside!”  

“Wa, wait, Miss Diashi…!”  

As Brienne turned around in surprise, the thin lace curtain swished shut.

“Take your time! Really, take your time!”  

Brienne, her lips parted in surprise, finally put her hand on her ribbon tie when she heard Diashi’s footsteps receding.

* * *

“Ugh, I was so nervous about getting caught…!”  

Diashi, who had hurried out of the tailor’s, clutched her chest and looked around. She was clearly searching for Brienne’s escort, who must be hiding somewhere nearby.  

After clearing her throat a few times and giving a signal, Aaron, who had been hiding beside the building, appeared.

“Did you get the receipt?”  

“Yes, here it is!”  

Diashi, gesturing toward the inside of the shop window, quickly handed over the paper. Aaron opened the receipt, which already had Herace Belif’s name and signature written on it, and nodded.  

“I’ve confirmed it. You weren’t caught, were you?”  

“Of course not! Do you know who I am?”  

Having fulfilled Herace’s request as promised, Diashi insisted that her laboratory be moved as soon as possible, then waved her hand at Aaron, telling him to go now.  

Ding—at that moment, Brienne came out of the tailor shop.

“Miss Diashi?”  

“Ah, Miss! Why did you come out so quickly?”  

Surprised, Diashi turned around abruptly. Brienne tilted her head as she looked at where Aaron had just been standing.  

“What were you doing just now? Was someone there?”  

“Oh, who would be there! There was no one!”  

Diashi smiled slyly and linked arms with Brienne. Unaware of anything, Brienne smiled.  

“I see. I was worried I might have come out too early.”  

Diashi forced herself to smile at that innocent face, then turned her head and let out a sigh of relief. Why did Herace have to ask for such a troublesome favor?  

She couldn’t understand why he wouldn’t give the gift to this delicate lady himself, simply because he didn’t want to burden her.  

No matter how she looked at it, they clearly liked each other, so it didn’t seem like it would be a burden…  

‘He’s so much more cautious than he looks.’

Just as Diashi was shaking her head, Brienne’s voice reached her ears.

“Miss Diashi, thank you for everything today. As a token of my gratitude, I’d like to treat you to dinner, if you have time?”  

“Ah…”  

Diashi’s face showed her regret at Brienne’s gentle voice.  

“I’m really sorry, but I have to go now. My siblings are waiting at home. I also need to organize the research assignment from the magic professor.”  

Diashi made a sad face and shook her heavy bag to show it off. But Brienne was more interested in something else than the professor’s assignment.  

“Miss Diashi… You have siblings?”  

“Yes, three! I’m actually the eldest of four.”  

The eldest? Now that she thought about it, Brienne laughed, feeling that it suited Diashi.  

“Your siblings must feel so secure with a big sister like you. It’s too bad about dinner, but there’s nothing to be done. Let’s definitely eat together next time.”  

“Sure! I’ll look forward to the delicious meal you’ll treat me to. See you soon at the Academy!”  

“Yes, take care.”  

“Goodbye!”  

Diashi walked away, waving her hand energetically. Brienne smiled and waved back, then turned toward the opposite side of the street.

Until this morning, Brienne had felt nervous about coming to the shopping street, but after meeting Miss Diashi, the place looked different. The roads she’d thought were complicated turned out to be simple, and it was fun to watch people passing by on their separate errands.  

And one more thing—she now felt confident that she wouldn’t just stand around and get pickpocketed. She’d memorized the way, even if only a little.  

Normally, she would have walked along the edge of the street to avoid being jostled by the crowd, but now Brienne walked naturally among the people.

It was around the time Brienne came out of the bookstore with the books she’d left there that Aaron, her escort, appeared in the distance.  

“Miss, let me carry your bag for you.”  

“No, it’s all right.”  

Brienne shook her head and looked down at the large bag she was awkwardly holding.  

“I’ve never left the mansion alone, so I can’t say I don’t need an escort… But while I’m at the Academy, I want to try living like a regular person.”  

“What? But Miss, that bag looks too heavy for a noble lady to carry…”  

Aaron looked at Brienne’s bag in surprise.  

But the lady just smiled softly with clear, sparkling eyes.

“I have to endure it, even if it’s heavy. I can’t keep passing my burdens onto others forever.”  

Her voice was so firm that Aaron, feeling awkward, just put his hands behind his back and nodded.  

“If you insist… I’ll go back to escorting you from behind.”  

“Thank you.”  

Brienne smiled and walked toward the carriage stop, recalling the path she’d taken.

Brienne joined the long line of people waiting for the carriage. That’s when she spotted a boy selling newspapers with his arms full.  

“Newspapers! Today’s papers!”  

“Oh, what papers are you selling this evening?”

The young boy was trying to sell papers to people waiting for the carriage. Brienne hadn’t paid attention to such scenes before, preoccupied with worry about pickpockets.

‘Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I read the newspaper.’  

Watching the scene, Brienne remembered her daily routine in Rontiano, where she would read the newspaper every morning.  

Tea, or coffee. And a newspaper on the side table. Since Brienne rarely went out, the news in the paper was often her only topic of conversation when she happened to talk to someone.  

Since coming to Roeta, she hadn’t had time to read the paper, so it was only natural that she felt drawn to the young newspaper boy. Brienne prepared the money and waited for him to come to her.

“Newspapers! Miss, would you like a paper?”  

“Sure. Can I have one?”  

“Really?! Here you go!”  

The boy’s face lit up after so many refusals. Brienne took the unfamiliar Roeta paper and folded it into her book-filled bag.  

“Do you have any newspapers with news from Rontiano?”  

“Oh, yes! For news from other countries, please go to the stand over there…”  

The boy pointed to a stand near the front of the line, where printed newspapers were displayed. Brienne looked at the stand, smiled at the boy, and left the line.

“Thank you for letting me know.”  

Aaron, surprised by her sudden change of destination, tried to follow her out of the line, but Brienne told him to wait and went to the stand.

There was a man at the small stand ahead of her.  

Brienne waited her turn and looked over the neatly arranged newspapers. Next to the stand was a sign saying they accepted documents to send to the newspaper office.

“So you want to send these documents to the newspaper office?”  

“Yes, please send them express.”  

“Okay, express… Anything else?”  

“No, that’s all.”  

Brienne heard the voices of the stand owner and the man as the man paid and turned to leave.

“Then.”  

Brienne frowned when she saw the name Bailey Newspaper among the Rontiano papers. Suddenly, she turned around.

Children’s laughter, the coachman shouting for people to move, the whistle of a departing train, the clatter of the rails.  

Amid all those sounds, only the man’s voice echoed in her ears.  

The scent of the man as he turned away brushed past her nose.  

She was sure she’d smelled it somewhere before.