Chapter 26
When I arrived at the imperial palace, this time I encountered my brother Roxidian in a large reception room.
It was called a reception room, but with clothing racks everywhere, it looked more like a dressing room.
“You’re here.”
Roxidian glanced at me, slightly furrowing his brow and tilting his head.
“I sent Noah to fetch you quickly, so why are you so late?”
Because I came by carriage? But it didn’t seem like an important point, as he just brushed past it.
At the tyrant’s gesture, the door opened, and someone entered, bowing deeply at the waist.
“Greetings to Your Grace, the noble Duke’s Daughter. I am Bebeche, the imperial palace’s dress designer.”
Instead of returning the greeting, I tilted my head. Why had a designer suddenly appeared?
“Why did you call me here?”
“You’ll be attending the upcoming imperial banquet, right?”
Ah, that banquet where Grandfather said he’d announce the wedding date? I’d forgotten about it until now. I scowled deeply, my mood souring once more.
“Have the festival banquet dress made here today.”
“What do you mean? Design it today?”
According to Charlize’s memories, high nobles in this place often had dresses custom-made for banquets.
Of course, since there were fashions in this world too, they sometimes picked one from a catalog and modified it to suit their tastes and preferences.
Charlize, however, always went for fully custom-made to fit her perfectly.
“What are you talking about? The ducal house has plenty of exclusive designers.”
And true to her extravagant villainess nature, Charlize employed more than five—far beyond the one or two that other noble houses kept.
There were even those who vowed to design only for Charlize, so why here? I frowned, but Roxidian didn’t budge an inch.
“Are those people on the same level as the imperial staff? The palace gathers only the best talents.”
I bristled at the implication that the imperial designer was incomparable to her four designers.
Charlize’s body still had that habit of getting indignant at any slight.
“Just hurry up and take her measurements.”
“…I don’t want to. Why are you even bothering with something like this, Brother?”
Roxidian replied with a shameless expression, as if I’d asked something ridiculous.
“You’re the Emperor’s sister before you’re the Altsbeit Duke’s Daughter. You think I want you embarrassing me? Absolutely not.”
…Now he decides to care?
There was no memory in Charlize’s mind of him ever fussing over his little sister’s clothes.
“Besides, especially now. You made a promise with me, remember?”
“…So that’s why you’re getting involved?”
It didn’t add up.
He could throw his tantrums without caring what he wore, right?
But this brother of mine, who knew where he’d left his age, stubbornly insisted, and in my irritation, my hand went to the necklace.
“You already borrowed the money, didn’t you? Do I really have to summon you like this, debtor?”
He pettily brought up the money, and I surrendered, raising the white flag.
Fine, my fault for borrowing it.
In the end, after the back-and-forth, I agreed to have my measurements taken and quietly submitted to the designer assistants’ attentions.
For some reason, while they measured me, Roxidian kept chattering nonstop from behind the curtain.
It was enough to make my ears ring.
“You always show up in those deeply plunging scraps of fabric you call dresses—aren’t you cold? Wear something proper for once. Got it?”
“What does it matter? Whatever I wear.”
“It’s a problem because worthless fools’ eyes start wandering. Right?”
Ah, right—he’d cleaned up several messes Charlize had caused at the palace.
Was this his way of telling me to stop causing trouble?
But hadn’t he just told me to act more like a villainess this time?
His words didn’t match up, and I furrowed my brow.
“So, what is it? Keep causing chaos like usual, or not?”
“Cause it!”
Then say so clearly from the start. Grumbling inwardly, I held some fabric against my body.
“Just one thing I want to ask—does not attending the imperial banquet at all count as causing chaos?”
“Would that be chaos?”
“…Tch.”
“Why?”
“It’s nothing.”
I wanted to stop the wedding announcement. Was there no way?
“Hey, you’re not thinking of skipping it to chase after that Remute Territory guy’s tail, are you? How long do you plan to follow that lanky fool around?”
“Mind your own business.”
“Are you someone else’s business?”
I am. I nearly snapped back, then hesitated. I’d realized I was being too casual with this brother of mine.
The dynamic felt similar to my conversations with Yoon Ji-hoon. Honestly, it was comfortable.
Feeling confused, I fell silent for a moment, and sensing something off, a snide remark came from his side. I quickly forgot the strange feeling and shot back without thinking, my temper flaring.
A small laugh escaped, and when I turned, one of the assistants was stifling her giggles but paled the instant our eyes met.
“S-sorry! I deserve death! I just thought… seeing how similar the two of you are, your relationship must be wonderful…”
Just then, I’d changed back into my clothes and the curtain was drawn, so the tyrant witnessed the kneeling assistant.
His gaze asked what was going on.
“Well, we’re siblings—our relationship has to be good, not bad. Get up.”
“…S-sorry.”
“It’s fine.”
I brushed it off casually. But for some reason, I felt peculiar stares fixed on me.
When I turned, the designer and assistants, Noah by the tyrant’s side, and even Roxidian himself wore similar expressions.
“…Are you planning to kill that assistant later? Or fire her?”
“What nonsense. Why would I?”
“Well, don’t you retaliate against anyone who irks you?”
The tyrant leaned back in his chair, propping his chin on his hand.
Then he smirked.
“You used to hate it when people said you took after me.”
Ah, yeah, I could see hating that.
Not all real-life siblings were like that, but the ones around me hated being told they resembled each other. Apparently Charlize did too. I hated being called a female Yoon Ji-hoon.
“I still hate it.”
“Then why aren’t you dragging her off?”
“Too much hassle.”
When I gave the Charlize-like response, Roxidian just hummed and let it go.
They’d finished the lower measurements and now it was time for arms and shoulders.
No curtain needed for this, so they did it right there.
Not only the designer’s assistants but also imperial maids were mobilized to take my measurements.
The assistants and maids were easy to distinguish by their completely different uniforms.
“Could Your Grace please raise your arm like this?”
I had just lifted my arm and glanced down when—
‘Hm?’
My eyes went to the maid holding the tape measure against my arm. More precisely, to the hairpin stuck in her hair.
That hairpin… it’s mine, isn’t it?
No way I wouldn’t recognize it.
Charlize had countless accessories, but only certain ones caught her eye and pleased her, and I’d personally chosen this one to take to Remute Territory.
I’d picked it with the desperate hope that my fiancé might see me as even a little prettier, so of course I remembered.
Plus, it was the pin that the young ladies at the rowdy gathering had endlessly admired as beautiful.
’No doubt, this pin…’
I’d given this pin to a little girl.
To the smallest, tiniest one among the children I’d given wild strawberries to.
“Piren, ah, Piren is my little sister. Sh-she… lost the hairpin Your Grace gave her… So she searched outside until nightfall and… caught a cold.”
That hairpin the girl had lost was now in an imperial maid’s hair. Was it really a coincidence?
I lowered my arm.
The assistants, maids, and even the designer stared at me in shock at my sudden movement.
“Y-Your Grace…? Is something wrong?”
The designer asked cautiously, but I kept my eyes fixed on the maid with the pin and asked,
“You. Where did you get that pin?”
All eyes naturally turned to the maid with the pin.
She paled instantly, sweating bullets. She clearly hadn’t expected the question.
I felt the tyrant watching with interest from a short distance away.
Ignoring that, I strode forward. The maid collapsed to her knees.
“Why can’t you answer? Didn’t you hear my question?”
My footsteps were the only sound in the now-silent room as I approached.
The maid hurriedly adjusted her posture, kneeling and bowing her head deeply.
“S-sorry! Your Grace! I-I don’t know what’s going on, but th-this hairpin was a gift from my lover!”
Lover? My face twisted in a frown.
Terrified, the maid spilled her story in a rush.
I heard her boyfriend’s name but didn’t know who he was, until one detail hit me squarely.
“…Your lover is one of my escort knights?”
None other than the fact that this maid’s lover was one of my escort knights.
I immediately had that knight summoned.
Roxidian watched the whole thing unfold, chin propped, spectating. I was too furious to pay him any mind.
Soon, the knight in question entered the dressing room.
He looked puzzled at first, then saw me, his lover, and finally the hairpin in my hand—and turned pale.
“They say you gave her this hairpin?”
The knight’s name was Martin.
As expected, no memory of him in Charlize’s mind.
But his face felt familiar.
“Why did you have my hairpin?”