So, in place of a mother who would fuss about what to do if they were to cut a low neckline for a child, demand that the buttons be buttoned up to the neck, and that the skirt length be made as long as possible, Ariadne herself had to restrain the tailor shop owner.

“There’s no need for that. Raise the hemline as much as possible and don’t cut the neckline too deep.”

Ariadne after her return had some dissatisfaction with the various restraints that Lucrezia imposed, but the only part where Ariadne and Lucrezia’s interests coincided was their meals.

Lucrezia would not properly feed Ariadne when Cardinal de Mare was not watching. However, Ariadne had no complaints about this.

“You’re so large it’s like you’re a man. Your breasts are so big and sagging, I thought you were a cow.”

Before her return, Ariadne was tall and slender with a solid build.

But she always felt uncomfortable about her prominent figure and moved around defensively. Although she was tall, she didn’t want to appear massive next to the thin Cesare.

In this life, Ariadne ate as little as possible. She absolutely did not want to grow. She wanted to be small and delicate like Isabella, who fit snugly in Cesare’s arms.

And she loathed revealing her figure. Ariadne wished that people’s gazes would never scan her.

“I hope it doesn’t stand out too much. Don’t make it tight or revealing, make the fit generous to cover as much as possible.”

Mrs. Marini seemed to not understand Ariadne’s instructions.

“Um… I understand your concerns.”

As she measured Ariadne, she loosened the draped fabric and showed Ariadne in the mirror.

“Basically, you have a voluminous figure. More is to come. But if you wear a loose top… Look at this. It makes you appear larger, right?”

She, on the contrary, pulled the draped fabric tightly from the back, showcasing the silhouette.

“If you wear it fitted like this, the contours are sharp and you look thinner. The same goes if you don’t want your chest to stand out. It’s better to use a bit of thick fabric to press down and make your chest contour less noticeable.”

It was indeed accurate from a professional’s point of view. It was hard to insist any further. Ariadne thought that she would have to adjust her dress as Mrs. Marini suggested, and wrap the stiffened fabric around her chest to press down the volume once more.

In the end, what ended up in Ariadne’s hands were a vibrant light green outfit, a lovely yellow outing dress, and an elegant white dress.

The shoemaker was to send the shoes soon. A few miscellaneous indoor clothes were added, and the rest was to be prepared by autumn.

The white dress was what she would wear to meet Her Majesty the Queen today.

Made from thick silk produced in the Etruscan kingdom, with a subtle sheen to its material, the dress was cleanly cut to minimize exposure and evoke elegance. It didn’t look like a young girl’s dress at all.

“My goodness, no one will recognize you, miss!”

The exclamation that Sancha spat out while styling Ariadne’s hair made Ariadne laugh with a wry smile.

“Was I that bad?”

“You weren’t without such aspects.”

Ariadne playfully slapped Sancha’s shoulder, who in return stuck out her tongue.

“Oh, it’s a compliment, a compliment! You’re pretty now.”

While braiding Ariadne’s hair and tying it half up, Sancha sighed with a bit of regret.

“But our young lady is still so young, it would be nice to dress up in a more cute and fancy style.”

Ariadne grimaced.

“I don’t suit such things. Don’t even think about trying.”

Sancha sent a mischievous smile towards Ariadne.

Because the only jewelry she had was Lucrezia’s golden earrings and a silver cross necklace, Sancha got fresh flowers and tucked them into Ariadne’s hair. They were white lisianthus in season.

Making a small bouquet with the same flowers and tying a ribbon around her wrist made a matching decoration even without any jewelry.

“Now, let’s go and meet the queen!”

Although Cardinal de Mare had brought her to the palace, Ariadne was to enter the Queen’s audience alone.

The queen’s audience was scheduled to take place in a small reception room where only women gathered, so it was inappropriate for Cardinal de Mare to enter, and also because he had a separate schedule at the palace.

But above all, the Cardinal de Mare lacked the will to take care of his second daughter carefully.

“Don’t cause any trouble and behave.”

This was the admonition Cardinal de Mare gave to Ariadne as he dropped her off at the entrance to the Queen’s Palace. Ariadne chuckled, somewhat in disbelief.

“What do you take me for?”

Does my father think of me as a walking powder keg?

However, children often know their parents’ character better than they themselves do. Ariadne was to wait in the waiting room set up in front of the Queen’s Palace until the time for the Queen’s audience.

But looking at her reflection in the glass mirror decorated on the wall, she looked much more plain than she thought, without any jewelry.

She had adorned herself generously with fresh flowers instead of jewels, but the lisianthus was not a large flower, so there was a limit to its vibrancy.

‘The backyard of the Queen’s Palace should have peonies.’

She was dressed in white from head to toe, and just adding a pink peony would make her look much more lively and noticeable.

There was well over an hour left until the queen’s audience.

Ariadne knew the Queen’s Palace like the back of her hand. Once inside the palace, there were no guards to restrict access, and there was more than enough time to briefly visit the backyard.

Ariadne slightly lifted her hem, quickly looked both ways like a squirrel, and secretly slipped out of the waiting room.

The quickest way to the backyard of the Queen’s Palace was to walk along the central corridor, but through the abandoned fountain, one could slip into the backyard without catching anyone’s eye.

Ariadne swiftly cut across the abandoned fountain towards the backyard. This was originally the most secluded place. The chance of encountering anyone was the lowest here.

“Ariadne?”

However, probability and reality differed.

“Who is it?”

The only person in Palazzo Carlo who could call her by name was Prince Alfonso. But even though Ariadne looked around, she couldn’t see anyone nearby.

“I’m here, above.”

A silhouette of a man sitting in the treetops was visible through the backlight.