Fiancee Be Chosen By The Ring - CHAPTER 23

『That man over there―the one with that kind of haircut and his military uniform―I’m sure it’s Viscount Witte. He’s been suffering from thinning hair lately. I think he’s the second-in-command is some squad unit.』

『Is not the color of his uniform from the Second Order? Basing from his insignia, he must be one of the Royal Knights.』

「It’s been a long time since the last military exercise, Lord Clavis.」

「Thank you for your guidance.」

「An acquaintance of yours, Lord Felix?」

「Who is this lady, Lord Clavis?」

「She is my fiancée, her name is Lady Aurora el le Porta.」

「Ah, from the House of Porta. I see, perhaps you’re interested about the knights?」

「Yes! What I meant to say is, I wish to hear about Lord Felix’s work.」

「Oh, I’m ashamed to say that I cannot say much. I’m a member of the 2nd Squad Royal Knights, so we do not work together that often.」

「I see… That’s a pity…」

『Lord Felix, I am certain that man is the Prime Minister’s younger brother. Please be careful since you’re a member of the First Queen’s faction! It’s said there’s a lot of rumors about him when he was young….』

『I’ll keep that in mind.』

「Hey. I never thought I’d see you in the evening party.」

「I am sorry that I have not been in touch with you, Marquis Stahlberg.」

「Is it her? She’s the rumored fiancé?」

「Yes, she is Lady Aurora el le Porta.」

「It’s a pleasure to meet you, Marquis Stahlberg. My name is Aurora.」

「Hmm… I can hardly say she suits you, but I think she’s an adorable lady. Though, she has a good body.」

「I’m proud of my fiancée. I’m not giving her to you.」

『That person over there… The one with that beard and hair, he’s probably Earl Zeiss. I think he’s from the Ministry of Finance…』

『You have a good memory.』

「Oh, is not it quite rare for a member of House of Clavis to attend this evening party. And its rumored that you’ve come with a partner other than your family.」

「I received a gracious invitation personally from Lord Loomis.」

「Oh no, young master was also quite mischievous. It’s something my father used to forgive me.」

「The House of Clavis accepted the invitation. Is not that what we call “balancing”?」

「Well, you have way with your words…」

—

(It may not work at this pace….)

Though only a half an hour have passed since the evening party started, Aurora was slowly shaking up. While whispering to Felix, she was struggling to remember the contents of Marquis Clavis’ “List of Participants” who are coming to this party. Whenever he has someone to greet and Felix needs to reply, Aurora would join in. In this way, Felix will be able to speak a few words. Through this course, she managed to establish a conversation between Felix and the participants, but Aurora herself was not very sociable. The more she tries to think of a word or to connect to a sentence or whenever she remembers the names, the more she feels like her soul is wearing out.

(It would not be good if I get tired now when I have yet to manage to mingle with any of the ladies nor got in contact with Yule el le Loomis. I would not last unless I get to take a break and get some fresh air somewhere! Ahhh, I want my needles and threads! Though I know I cannot bring needles due to the security here! But! At least let me observe the embroideries on the dresses!)

「Are you okay?」

「No…」

Felix furrowed his brows at Aurora who’s scratching her head at the moment. There was an sullen look in his eyes that made Aurora shook her head at the thought that he might be starting to get worried.

「…I’m just a bit tired.」

「Yeah, I’m getting tired this too. I’m sorry, I think I pushed everything to you.」

「Well, I wish I could be of help to you at a time like this so I think I can manage.」

(You’re surprisingly aware of this…)

Aurora took a deep breath and put a hand on her forehead. She was exhausted, a slight headache and a bit breathless from the crowd. Her feet then swayed but felt someone supporting her waist. It was a sudden gesture from her side along with the crowd buzzing around her, and that made Aurora blurted out a gasp when she found out who helped her balance.

「Oh, I apologize…」

「It’s okay.」

「Oh my, are you not feeling well?」

Looking back at the voice that reached out her, Aurora desperately rid the look of frustration on her face.

A drop-dead gorgeous looking woman, who looked somewhat past her thirties, stood there with a well-groomed looking man. Her dress which showed off her ample breasts with embroideries of large roses on a crimson background, was a flamboyant one that stood out from the rest of the crowd. The embroidery on the hem that flips greatly with each step shimmers with prism under the chandelier like a rainbow that scattered more light. It’s a great way to make sure that you’ll be able to get the most out of your money.

(Wow, what a beautiful person! Amazing embroidery! It’s too flashy but it suits her perfectly. Though her eyes are not smiling. More than that, that’s a wonderful embroidery technique. Where in the world did this embroidery come from?)

「Lady Aurora?」

「My apologies, it seems we got a little tired since it’s been a while that we’ve stayed this long in an evening party. Thank you for your concern, Marchioness Kirsten.」

She then gently looked at the face of the young man next to her and whispered ‘I’m fine’ and in return, he tilted his head to whisper to her in a low voice

『This is Marquis Kirsten’s wife. I think the man behind her is Marquis Kirsten. I heard that she’s the fashion leader of the New Royal Faction… so she’s like Lady Luna Mare’s rival?』

『Lady Luna Mare’s rival?』

A few moments later, the frowning Felix was called by the man behind Marchioness Kirsten.

「My, is not this an unusual group of faces?」

「Long time no see, Marquis Kirsten.」

「It’s been a while since the evening party at the King’s palace, right? This is a crazy way of inviting a person from the House of Clavis. Is this a prank invitation from the young master Loomis?」

From the very start of the evening party, Felix and Aurora were repeatedly referred to in such fashion. The Marchioness snickers behind her fan.

「Hmm, rumor has it that Lord Yule wanted to see the face of the fiancée of the young master of the House of Clavis’.」

(No way, it became a rumor… though it’s not a rumor, but a fact.)

Her eyes flickered and wandered at Aurora’s direction under the shade of her fan. At the Marchioness eyes, she was already rated as if she was not much of a lady. This made Aurora sighed deeply in resignation.

It then occurred to her that Yule el le Loomis was a man of a character who is loved by beautiful ladies. It does not matter if they’re married or not. It would not be difficult to imagine that Felix who was in the same position would not be the center of attraction among the ladies of the old royal faction and even on the new royal faction, for better or for worse. If it was rumored that there’s a lady that he wanted to see, it was only natural that all the eyes of the ladies would turn their attention towards Aurora. Besides that, beauty is not something that varies from faction to faction. Even the ladies of the houses belonging to the new royal faction has not fallen short of their admiration for Felix.

She is currently surrounded by both of those who admire Yule and Felix. The only reason why no one has gotten involve with them so far is that the ladies who are on the same side as the House of Loomis are of good pedigree and would not dare to start a conversation to nobles of higher title.

「This is your first time meeting this lady. She is my fiancée, Lady Aurora el la Porta.」

Hiding Aurora a little bit away from her gaze, Felix announced her name.

「It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Aurora.」

Aurora’s words on which she was about to take a graceful courtesy was wonderfully drowned by the Marquis’ wife’s intense voice, as if she was waiting for this moment.

「My pleasure, indeed, to talk you since the moment you came to the party! What a dress you have! I was so amazed that it’s all white!」

(Oh, to finally meet lady like this! And her personality was too different from what I imagined…)

She had the eloquent and aristocratic way of speaking that aims to catch the other party off the hook using her tone that puts them down without using words only with her demeanor. However, the content of her words were straightforward without any twists or turns, deviating from what Aurora had in prior simulations of what she would say about the dress she wore.

「And the black thread is so… novel. I could not even think of it.」

She mused while laughing behind her fan.

For the recent years, white dresses were taboo in evening parties although they were the color theme used for marriages, debutante and national affairs. The color black is called the color of mourning and so, ladies or widows wear black clothes only during funerals. In today’s trend where wearing stunning monochromatic dress are popular on evening parties, Aurora’s dress which has black embroideries designed on white dress was the most unique of all. As expected, she would naturally be like this as it was rather unusual so much that everyone has been whispering about it from the time she entered the evening party until Duchess Kirsten called out to her. There was perhaps a tacit understanding that since Duchess Kirsten was the fashion expert at the evening party, no one should interfere until she approach Aurora.

Nevertheless, the picture-perfect and predictable behavior makes Aurora want to mutter that it’s a joke. This lady seems to have a keen interest in dress making and displayed an excellent aesthetic sense, but her thoughts are surprisingly simple. Aurora got past her nervousness and decided to go with the flow, opened her fan and smiled with her mouth closed.

「You’ve got keen eyes, Marchioness Kirsten. The other lady who is said to be rivaling Duchess Laetus in the fashion society. This dress is the latest creation of Maison Balladur by Duchess Laetus and Lady Emma Pluie.」

「Their latest work?」

「Yes!」

Since noblewomen are basically just a noble, most of them are vulnerable to flattery that heightens their self-esteem. Marchioness Kirsten leaned closer at ease as Aurora throw in more words that she would be interested in『Duchess Laetus』『Lady Emma Pluie』『Maison Balladur』and『latest work』.

「Is… Is that true?」

「Yes. Duchess Laetus and Duke Laetus intervened for our sake. Lady Pluie made this from scratch just for this evening party. And it was finished within two weeks!」

Aurora knew well how the friendship between Lady Pluie and Lady Luna Mare, who have been teaming up for dress making on regular basis, is exceptional even among the aristocrats. Although she is a lady who’s dresses are recognized by the royal family, she is still a common by birth and is not originally in a position that is close to the Duchess.

However, when Lady Pluie was still a promising seamstress, Marchioness Clavis, a young lady with a good sense of style, picked up a design that had fallen in the front of Maison Balladur’s shop. She was so impressed with the fashion that she sought out the owner and ever since then, they had fostered a relationship akin to that of a friendship and a comradeship.

Marchioness Kirsten has probably worn dresses made by Lady Pluie many times. She has probably worn her dresses many times, and she must have asked her to design them many times as well. However, the relationship between them is merely of that of a “customer” and a “seamstress. If it were not for the support of Lady Luna Mare, who is like a friend to Lady Pluie, it would have been impossible for Aurora to ask, someone who is a commoner but a successful designer who is said to be “choosy about her customers,” for a commission of dress to be done within two weeks. Even if it was from a Marchioness, Lady Pluie would not accept the commission so easily.

That’s why Lady Emma Pluie is a must-have topic in a conversation among fashionable women who are devoted to socializing.

With a smile on her face, Aurora twirled around and danced in Felix’s arms. As the hem of the black satin softly spreads out, the black pearls and black silk sewn in place glittered fantastically, accentuating the design of birds playing in the rose garden. The earrings and the hair ornament swayed along with her movement. Finally, when the rose on her chest swayed softly, just a hint of soft magic shone through. Marchioness Kirsten was taken to aback. Some people mumbled and sighed in admiration at Aurora’s tiny earlobe.

「Is not it pretty novel of Lady Pluie? Duchess Laetus says that the current fashion trend was to dye some colors on the cloth so that colors would gradually change, and then embroidery is in similar color on the entire surface to make them shine brightly when exposed to light. But everyone started to wearing the same style in the past few months. So this time, instead of dyeing, I tried to use embroidery to gradually change the color.」

「Goodness…」

Aurora smiled inwardly as she saw her eyes sparkle.

The color is certainly taboo. However, it was also true that the latest fashion, which started this spring, have spread a lot over the past few months, and already became a bit common. The ladies eyes prove that Aurora’s dress stands out more than anyone else in this wave of dresses.

Marquis Kirsten, who prides herself on being the leader of the faction’s fashion trend, cannot help but care. And if she accepted this dress, it was almost synonymous with the acceptance of this dress at the evening party tonight, and in society this year.

「This embroidery is done by the staff at Maison Balladur and by a team of embroidery craftsmen at Maison de Fabrica, a fabric merchant. They added shells and stones with a color close to the thread, and when I first saw them, it was so wonderful that I was at loss of words.」

「Well… I think it’s almost like an avant-garde, and I admit that the embroidery is beautiful.」

(I did it!)

Her words caught the ladies around her off guard, while it made Aurora gasp.

Marquis Kirsten’s aesthetic sense is nothing to scoff at. It was known that Lady Luna Mare, a fashion leader of the old royal family, supervised the dress and her approval was also received. This dress’ style will soon become the next fashion trend. Aurora thought she were noticed by a terrible lady, and from the time they spoke Aurora was already lucky. At least during the evening party tonight, no lady will ever make fun of Aurora’s dress.

「I had the impression that the number of similar dresses was increasing. Spring fashions do not last and that is a common routine for any season.」

「Duchess Laetus also asked Lady Pluie to make a dress with a colored embroidery on a white fabric. I thought it would be nice if I could be together with sister-in-law in the next evening party.」

「Yes… Duchess Laetus…」

Her expression was so grimly distorted behind the fan that one can almost hear grinding of teeth with her eyes glancing hard at Aurora’s dress. She probably wants to memorize as much information as possible and make a dress that exceeds Aurora’s dress at the next evening party.

「But is not black too much. It’s at that time of the year. Blue or green would be good」

「Perhaps, even so… Using black is like an adventure.」

Aurora touches the roses around her chest with her fingers. The seamed shells rustled, and at the same time, the scent of roses became fluffy and calming. Felix squints at the conversation, but Aurora does not notice this.

「I was nervous about how novel it would be using white and black, but I thought that if I stood next to Lord Felix in the usual dress, then I would fall behind as his shadow.」

Perhaps she was relieved after succeeding in avoiding hearing criticism about her dress but in the end, he let her true feelings. She lowered her eyes and had a forlorn look in her face.

There are not that many beautiful lady in the noble society who can stand next to a man who attracts the attention of the crown even without speaking and still look good. The most beautiful lady is his sister, and even the most beautiful princesses would hesitate to stand next to Felix. Many of the ladies who admired him would be hesitant to stand next to him if they had the chance.

Aurora’s appearance is by no means lacking. However, even if she dressed beautifully, she is still not the most beautiful woman in the world. The Countess’s skin is naturally white, but it is not particularly pale, and it is a common color in the northern part of the Kingdom of Welbum. Her face is pretty, but not outstanding, and she does not have the slender waist of the princesses in the stories, nor does she have a pretty voice.

The Marchioness seemed to understand that if a lady like Aurora, who had nothing special about her appearance, would stand alongside him, then ‘ordinary’ was not even the right word.

「I’m aware that there’s nothing special about my appearance.」

「I do not think so.」

(Huh?!)

In the middle of her words, Aurora’s hips was suddenly snatch. 『Oh my！』To that made Marchioness Kirsten utter a joyous voice as if she was a young lady. Aurora, who’s having it hard to breath due to her abdomen being squeezed, was forced to turn around. It was then that she held her breath at the beauty of the silver hair reflected in front of her eyes.

「Lord Felix?! Excuse me, this is a bit painful.」

「You are by no means mediocre.」

「Huh?」

(What is going on?! Is this the effect of his lack of sleep when we came to the party? This is not your usual face!)

He looked at Aurora, without concealing his appealing countenance, and his long, violet eyes narrowed down at her. At the same time, the well-shaped thin lips spoke.

「You looked beautiful to me than any other lady.」