Selected as the New Stepmother - Chapter 52

Today is a day off for the government office and Black Swan. So I was about to go out alone to buy a dress when Rublion caught me.

“Remember we agreed to choose together?”

“Yes, do you want to come too?”

“Yes!”

While waiting for the child who said they would quickly get ready to go out, the duke who had gone to the library approached the lobby holding a large book.

“You’re wearing glasses?”

Unadorned and natural, with glasses on, he looked every bit the scholar.

My heart raced uncontrollably again without thinking.

His gaze surveyed me in my outdoor clothes.

“Isn’t it a holiday today?”

“I’m going to order a dress to wear to the gathering.”

“You could have called a designer to the mansion.”

“I also wanted to go to the square. I heard there are more people performing at the square fountain these days.”

“Hmm.”

The duke’s eyelashes moved slowly behind his glasses. I was surprised again to find not only could I see that, but his every movement looked cute.

“Are you going alone?”

“No. Rublion is coming with me.”

“I see. Then I’ll accompany you as well.”

“What? No, there’s no need…”

“I’ll be right back. I just need to put on a coat.”

I was going to tell him to just continue what he was doing, but he had already disappeared.

‘It’s fine if he comes along, but I feel strangely embarrassed.’

How should I put it. Like I don’t know how to act.

While thinking various thoughts, Rublion came down first. The child was wearing clothes the same color as the green dress I was wearing.

The shorts were quite striking.

“Let’s go, mom!”

I told Rublion, who happily took my hand, that the duke was planning to join us.

The child’s soft forehead wrinkled up.

“Tch, I was hoping for a date.”

“I’m coming along for protection.”

The duke, who had come down to the lobby with perfect timing, tapped Rublion’s grumbling shoulder.

“Have you decided where to go?”

Watching the two bicker, I nodded and answered.

“I was thinking of looking around the clothing shops in Lyub.”

“Lyub is not up to standard.”

At the duke’s words, Rublion nodded. Then the two of them walked ahead as if on cue.

“Mom, we have a clothing shop we go to. Let’s go there.”

“That sounds good.”

There’s one place I can guess. The clothing shop I visited on the day I had coffee spilled on my head.

“I just hope it’s not too expensive, wherever we go.”

“…I’ll try my best.”

From his low reply, I realized. That place would definitely only deal with expensive clothes.

[This is the timeline separator]

What on earth did they do to have not a single person in the clothing shop? Especially on a holiday like today.

“Would you like to see the design book? I’ll also bring fabric samples for special orders.”

I was dazed. I had only bought ready-made clothes from stores, but for custom-made, there was so much to do.

Choose a design, select fabric, take measurements, then choose decorations and lace, and even matching accessories.

‘I’m losing my mind.’

Rublion seemed to be having fun, going back and forth between mannequins asking me how this or that looked.

The duke was whispering something in the ear of a shop employee.

Unable to take it anymore, I said I would handle it myself. The two startled people plopped down on a sofa with a direct view of the fitting room.

“This way please.”

Following the employee into the room, a designer and helper holding a pincushion greeted me politely.

I was quite flustered having never received such treatment before, but I had no intention of showing it.

I put on the first dress I had chosen outside and came out of the fitting room. Rublion clapped excitedly saying it was so pretty.

I was curious about the duke’s thoughts too. Would I look pretty in his eyes as well?

“Try on another one.”

It would be nice if he told me if he didn’t like it…

Feeling a bit discouraged, I went back to the fitting room. My expression hardened slightly.

I put on the next dress and went out. Again, Rublion gave a thumbs up saying their mom was the best.

“…Hmm. The next one.”

He kept telling me to wear something else, as if something wasn’t to his liking. I started to get a bit annoyed.

“The next one I’ll wear is a trendy design. They say every noble lady and young lady has at least one.”

I decided to set the stage so he couldn’t say he didn’t like it.

The duke waved his hand for me to go in. I deliberately stomped into the room.

“T-this style is trendy?”

I wanted to hear that I looked pretty in the dress I was about to wear, but the design was too much for me to handle.

“Yes. Wearing a lace bolero over it is the trend.”

“But still…”

“Just try it on. It will really suit you well.”

From the bodice that revealed just a hint of cleavage to the long skirt down to the ankles. Thin shoulder straps that looked like they would snap if touched.

I knew it was trendy among women to wear chemise dresses as outerwear, but this was even more daring than that.

With the bolero on as well, I slowly walked out of the room.

Rublion, who had been saying only good things, said nothing about this outfit. They just stood with their mouth wide open.

“Is it that strange?”

The duke answered my question.

“That dress doesn’t seem suitable for going out.”

“…”

The annoyance I had been building up reached its limit. I smiled brightly and said.

“I’ll choose for myself since I’ll be the one wearing it.”

“…That won’t do.”

“It’s my choice.”

The duke clicked his tongue. Then he folded his arms and said.

“The first dress looked dignified so it was fine, and the second dress looked fresh so it was fine. But not that one you’re wearing now. Isn’t it revealing too much of your figure?”

“The skirt is longer and more comfortable than the previous designs though?”

“…”

“I’ll handle it myself. Worst case, I can just wear it in the mansion…”

Suddenly the duke jumped up from his seat. Startled, I took a step back.

I stared blankly at the afterimage of him going outside. Rublion, who seemed puzzled by the situation like me, said with a sleepy smile.

“It’s because mom is too pretty. That dress you’re wearing now feels like something you’d wear on your wedding night, doesn’t it?”

I was surprised by the child’s expression. It was shocking that this dress looked like that.

Is that why the duke suddenly ran away? Did it look too much like sleepwear?

‘…I guess it’s true he’s never even held a woman’s wrist.’

What a waste of a handsome face.

[This is the timeline separator]

Askal, who had left the fitting room area, leaned one arm against the wall and looked up at the ceiling.

‘Think of something else… I need to think of something else.’

Blood was rushing downwards, turning his mind blank. He forcibly tried to recall methods for importing agave fiber.

But at the end of that thought was Schmidt.

“Calm down, Askal.”

Even though he encouraged himself out loud, the heat did not easily subside.

This time he thought about the public dormitory. As he systematically calculated how to proceed, it had a calming effect.

Then he remembered that Ranson was staying at Black Swan.

Along with that, Schmidt’s words drawing a line with Ranson recently came to mind.

“Damn it…”

No matter what he thought of, Schmidt came to mind. Askal punched the wall.

“Do you need help?”

Someone approached after hearing the bang. When he turned around, there was a woman standing with her hands folded neatly. It was the employee he had seen as soon as they entered the clothing shop.

His heated body cooled instantly. Askal said with a sigh of relief.

“I need a glass of cold water.”

“Yes, I’ll bring it right away.”

The employee quickly disappeared. He touched his slightly disheveled hair, then saw that the fist that had hit the wall was a bit red.

[This is the timeline separator]

It was unbelievably cheap for the price of three dresses.

“Is this really the price?”

I glared at the duke who was pretending to be distracted beside me, then took out my purse.

‘He must have done something behind the scenes then.’

When I was looking at the design book for a while, he called over an employee and whispered something quietly.

It seems he told them to quote a lower price than the original.

“If this is really the price, I could buy all the dresses here, would that be okay?”

“We would be honored if you did so.”

I said it to gauge the duke’s reaction, but he didn’t even blink.

Well… For a duke with incalculable wealth, a few dozen dresses might just be pocket change.

“Mom, do you want to buy everything here? Should I buy it for you?”

Rublion chimed in with sparkling eyes full of expectation. Then suddenly I thought of something.

“Do you have the young master’s measurements here?”

“Yes, we do.”

While holding the child’s hand tightly as they asked why, I continued speaking.

“Then please make outfits for the young master and the duke in similar designs and colors to the dresses I bought and send them together. Here, payment for the two gentlemen’s outfits.”

“Outfits for them too? Thank you so much! We’ll make them as quickly as possible and send them to the mansion.”

The designer’s mouth corners rose to their ears at the unexpected income. Rublion’s mouth corners also went up like the designer’s, seeming to like the idea of family outfits.

“Ahem. I have something to do for a moment, so I’ll go to the carriage first.”

The duke said to Rublion and me. I realized he was planning to send us ahead and pay the remaining amount.

“Will it take long, Askal?”

I saw him flinch in surprise. I called him by name since he told me to, but he’s the one who’s more surprised.

“I’ll be out soon.”

I nodded and said.

“Rublion, shall we go out first since the duke says he has something to do?”

“Yes!”

Holding the hand of the child who was bouncing endlessly with happiness, I went out of the clothing shop. I made a mental note to casually thank him later when the mood was right.