—Nine years later.

Taller and more gracefully featured than her peers, Ariante’s charming facial features captivated attention wherever she went. However, despite the possibility of admiring herself in the mirror with her tall and refined figure, the girl’s expression seemed somewhat displeased.

She tried lifting her hair, which hung down, attaching it to the back of her head, and also attempted folding the sleeves’ rich lace inward to hide them. Unsatisfied, she sat down on the chair next to the mirror, stretching her legs out with a rebellious expression.

“No! It’s tacky! Vainty, Vanity!”

Although she had matured considerably compared to her childhood, her loud voice still resonated through the living room. Vainty came out of the dressing room murmuring, holding three boxes in her hands, followed by Bridget, who also carried a large box on each side.

“Miss, it’s not tacky! It’s elegant!”

Vainty chattered while scolding.

The girl looking at the mirror was Ariante. Celebrating her sixteenth birthday last winter and finally welcoming the debutante season, Ariante stood at the ambiguous boundary between a mature lady and a young girl. And the sight displeased her to the point of reconsidering it.

Ariante, standing in front of the mirror again, said, “Look!”

Vainty, who had put down the boxes, put her hands on her hips and pretended to sigh. As Ariante grew from a seven-year-old child to a sixteen-year-old girl, Vainty also aged. However, they still quarreled well.

Vainty said, “Miss, it’s really not tacky. Miss, look at yourself! What’s wrong with this dress?”

The source of the problem was the dress… as always.

Ariante had been looking forward to the debutante dress for a long time, even before her sixteenth birthday. However, when it was time to make the dress, Roseanna, the dressmaker, rejected all the ambitious designs Ariante had presented.

[Lady, this season is a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. And it’s also the formal debut in front of His Majesty. But for such an occasion…]

Roseanna picked up two designs.

[Wearing a black dress embroidered with lace is not possible. And this… no, what on earth is this?]

Ariante’s artistic spirit was greatly wounded by Roseanna’s reaction, which seemed to say she would endure anything. Ariante asked what that meant, but she couldn’t get an answer. Anyway, Roseanna was determined, turning down all of Ariante’s designs.

[Regarding the dress, I will discuss and decide with the Duke and the Duchess. Don’t worry, Lady. It’s your debutante, and how can I be neglectful?]

Recalling Roseanna’s words, Ariante started to get angry in earnest, pursing her lips and beginning to make a scene.

“I hate this beige color! And what about these ribbons? Am I six years old? And this pink here! Unless I’m tiny and cute like Crony, does this even make sense?”

Vainty sighed with her head turned away. At that moment, Bridget approached Ariante from behind and said, “Miss, Lord Guildmore’s daughter may be small and cute, as everyone acknowledges, but, in my opinion, this dress really suits you. Pink is not too much, and it’s a very subtle color, isn’t it? In my view, you look like a fairy. If you wear a sparkling wand and a pointed hat here, it would be perfect!”

Ariante made a face that seemed like she might vomit just thinking about it and looked back at Bridget.
“Bridget, didn’t I say I looked like a fairy when I was seven? But now, at sixteen, do I still look like a fairy?”

Bridget blinked her round eyes.

“Oh, is that not good? There are small fairies and big fairies, you know.”

“Then, even when I become a grandmother, I’ll still look like a fairy.”

“Of course. There’s no rule that grandmothers can’t be fairies, right?”

This time, Ariante was victorious. Smirking, she turned her head towards the mirror and said, “Now I understand why Jerry and Meggie are so cheerful.”

When the topic turned to children, Bridget chuckled.

“Children being cheerful is the best.”

At that moment, Vainty opened the lid of the box she had brought. Inside, a small and adorable tiara was wrapped in soft velvet and silk. Seeing it, Ariante’s slightly pouty expression softened.

“Oh, this tiara. Haven’t seen it in a while. I nagged so much about when I could wear this when I was little, making my mom miserable.”

Vainty said, “Finally, that day has come. Aren’t you happy?”

Ariante’s lips twitched.

“In fact, I insisted on bringing it out even today, despite being told not to wear it.”

When Ariante turned ten, she had worn this tiara and appeared before the King of Elmerat as the official heir of the Duke’s family. Since then, she had wanted to wear tiaras and other accessories occasionally, but Sédélois opposed it, so they had been preserved until now.

“Father pretends not to care, but he’s secretly timid. He said to keep it well and pass it on to the child when I become a mother. How does he know whether I’ll have a child or not?”

Vainty and Bridget exchanged glances.

“Your Ladyship speaks so casually about something His Grace might find offensive.”

Ariante snorted.