Chapter 14

Diana said she got it as a gift. So that meant it wasn’t a custom-made suit.

If the Meister’s clothes weren’t custom-made, did that mean he took off the clothes on his mannequins?

Madame took a guess, but it was indeed the answer.

While Diana was sleeping, Hermann had approached Meister Faradi to get her clothes. However, Meister Faradi said that he couldn’t do it, so Hermann threatened him. In the end, he handed over the money and simply brought the clothes Meister Faradi had been displaying.

“Looks like the person who gave Miss Diana the gift cares a lot about Miss Diana.”

“…Is that so?”

Diana’s face brightened up.

“By any chance, may I know who gave Miss Diana the present?”

In the end, Madame couldn’t resist her curiosity and asked. The tailor also paid attention.

“Well… He’s my mother’s friend, and he said he’d be my guardian.”

“Oh my, Miss Diana already got a guardian?”

Diana nodded her head.

“Oh my! That’s good news!”

It was a man rich enough to buy Meister Faradi’s clothes as a gift!

And, such a girl had such a rich man as her guardian!

The tailor and Madame exchanged glances. Their hands became very diligent.

After choosing one set of white fabric, two sets of ivory fabric, and one set of dark navy fabric with gloss, there were already four tops.

There were also four skirts and two dresses. It was the first time Diana knew that there were so many types of dresses. A dress without a waistline, a dress with an A-line skirt, a dress with Empire style.

They decided to add embroidery on the collar and sleeves, as well as bright lace ruffles on the ivory-colored collar. Diana, who was looking at the silver-decorated pins after choosing an ivory button carved with a lily pattern, suddenly came to her senses.

‘You’re crazy. Diana!’

After coming to her senses, Diana said hastily.

“U-um, I think this is enough.”

The Madame let out a sigh of regret. But the edge of her mouth was still upturned in a lion-who-had-eaten-until-it-was-satisfied smile.

“You must be tired, right? Feel free to sit down and rest for a while. I’ll go ahead and make the price list for you.”

A good seller knew when to step down. The Madame gestured to an employee while holding herself back from humming.

“Come here and give Miss Diana some tea.”

***

At the same time, the employee who was severely scolded for chasing Diana out the entrance was guarding the back door.

The back door was usually used by maids when running errands, not customers. Everyone avoided this place, where there was nothing to learn and nothing to do.

The employee burst into a rage.

‘Diana, who the hell is she? Where did she suddenly get the money?’

Diana, who was ordering clothes inside, was also a maid who used to enter from here.

‘Was she hoarding money? What a show-off!’

In the employee’s head, the memory of how she ignored Diana was already completely gone.

Someone entered while she was wallowing in her irritation alone.

“Laura?”

“Hm? It has been a long time. Why are you here?”

Laura’s comments made the employee angry.

“I’m glad you’re here! I need to ask you something!”

“What is it? I came here running Miss’ errands, so I have to go back quickly.”

“Just a minute. You know Diana, right? Since you work together….”

“Diana? She had been kicked out of the mansion long ago. What’s up with her?”

“Did you just say she was kicked out? She’s getting clothes here right now though?”

“What? What are you talking about?”

The employee explained what she saw. Laura listened to the story with a ridiculous expression on her face.

“So, where is she right now?”

Diana was on the sofa in the guest hall by the entrance. It was the first time she knew there was such a place. After all, she had always come in and out from the back door.

‘It’s my first time to be served tea here.’

Money sure was good. The treatment was different as soon as she became a guest. The almond cookie crumbled as she placed it in her mouth.

There were several magazines as well as a catalog with a silk cover on the table beside the sofa. Sick of seeing the catalog, Diana picked up a magazine.

‘Lady Atticia must’ve read this a lot.’

Diana read the magazine cover and paused.

[Introduction of Meister Faradi’s Collection]

‘Isn’t this the person Madame was just talking about?’

It was when Diana opened the magazine,

“What are you-”

Diana raised her head at the voice that was suddenly heard.

“Laura?”

Why was she here…. Ah, she probably came in order to run an errand. It looked like Laura was the one who picked up her duties after she quit.

“What are you doing here?”

“Are you asking what I’m doing?”

“I heard you were ordering clothes. From here?”

“Huh?”

“How do you know that?”

Diana’s question was answered when she saw the employee who hurriedly appeared behind Laura. She was the employee who was scolded by Madame after trying to kick her out of the entrance door.

The employee grabbed Laura with a puzzled look.

“No, wait a minute Laura. You can’t make a fuss.”

“Let me go. You just said that she mocked you. Why are you stopping me?”

“What?”

‘When have I ever?’ 

The astounded Diana looked at the employee. Rather, it was that employee who laughed at her! As if it was intolerable, the employee was happy on the inside looking at Diana’s suffering, all the while pretending to stop Laura.

“You got money from somewhere and are now buying clothes here? Tell me the truth. You stole something didn’t you?”

This time, not a single word left Diana’s mouth.

Laura considered her a pain in the neck and even her attitude towards the end wasn’t good. However, she thought it was all over because she had left the mansion.

But, she didn’t expect this to happen since she had now quit her job.

“You were living in the mansion like a beggar! It wasn’t enough to just let you get kicked out of the mansion…!”

It was at that moment.

“Just what is all this fuss about?”

“M-Madame?”

The employee’s face turned pale. Madame, who saw Laura standing next to the employee, opened her mouth.

“Just how did she get in here…. Don’t tell me, you’re the one who let her in?”

Madame rebuked the employee with a fierce look. The employee replied in a trembling voice.

“N-no, All I said w-was that Diana is here….”

“You….”

Madame clenched her teeth and said to another employee in the back.

“Bring her out.”

“Yes, I understand.”

She spoke to the employee who was being dragged.

“You’re fired.”

“Yes? Madame! Madame! I made a mistake!”

“Don’t even think about stepping in here again.”

The employee who was being dragged ran forward in surprise. But she was soon captured by another employee and got dragged back. Diana looked at the whole situation with her eyes wide open.

Madame sighed as she shook her head and looked back at Laura.

“Laura, you should get out of here, too. You know that only customers can come in here.”

“But, Diana is also here!”

Diana flinched at Laura’s shout. Madame obscured Diana from Laura’s gaze.

“I don’t know what you’re mistaking here, but Miss Diana is our customer. I won’t tolerate you being rude anymore.”

Laura’s face distorted.

“Are you really… saying that Diana is a customer? That’s impossible.”

Madame only said until that much before looking back at Diana. Diana got up from the sofa in a hurry.

“I’m sorry, Miss Diana. Our employee truly committed such a discourteous act.”

Diana bit her lips and walked past Laura. She felt as if she was sitting on pins and needles. She only wanted to buy clothes.

“Are the calculations done?”

“The clothes will be completed in 15 days.”

The employee behind Madame gave out the check. The prices for the fabric, labor, and accessories were all listed and totaled at the end.

She wondered if she was really that absent-minded when choosing as the total price was about two-thirds the amount she brought.

Diana took the leather pouch out of her pocket. As soon as she took out the gold coin, someone took a deep breath.

“Wh-what’s this?”

After being quiet for a while, Laura opened her mouth again.

“You really have money?”

Laura had a shocked look.

“I-it’s impossible. Where did you, from where did you get this gold coin? Tell me the truth!”

As Laura almost broke in, the startled staff stopped her.

“Laura! Why are you like this?! Are you crazy?!”

“You’re not letting me go?!”

The reason Laura couldn’t be dragged out and only be blocked was that she was the maid of Baron Bardeaux’s Lady, a customer the Lily of The Valley Boutique cared about.

“You’ve been acting poor and pitiful, doing everything alone, and yet you’ve been hiding such money….”

“I simply received my mother’s inheritance.”

Diana cut off Laura’s words and said.

“What?”

“I said I received my mother’s inheritance.”

However, Laura’s reaction was strange. She laughed out loud, as if it were ridiculous.

“What kind of inheritance do you have? Your inheritance is….”

The surprised Laura covered her mouth and shouted again.

“T-There’s no way you have an inheritance!”

“Hm?”

There’s no way? Diana tilted her head suspiciously.

“Why, are you so sure that I don’t have an inheritance?”

“….”

Laura rolled her eyes like she was flustered. Suddenly, she shook off the employee’s hand and ran out of the boutique.

“What’s up with her?”

Not just her, the question was on everyone’s face.

***

Atticia Bordeaux saw Laura, her maid, rushing in and clicked her tongue. Atticia said to the maid who attended her.

“Finally you’ve come. Since Laura has come back, you go out.”

The maid bowed politely and quickly left the room. Laura ran straight to Atticia without a single glance to the maid who was getting out.

“Miss, I’ve just witnessed a really huge matter!”

“What’s the fuss about?”

Atticia raised her gaze from the magazine and asked Laura.

“More importantly, when did they say they could finish the needlework? I told you that I have to have it by next week if I’m going to attend the Imperial Ball, didn’t I?”

“Ah….”

At that moment, Laura remembered why she had to go to the Lily of The Valley Boutique in the first place.