Aie chuckled seeing Arielle’s blushing face. Hearing Aie’s laughter, Arielle realized their original purpose.
"I-I... want to get so more paint and brushes," she said.
Irene didn’t really follow Arielle and the shop owner’s conversation. She was focused on the painting displayed on every wall of the shop. They were really beautiful. It looked realistic, but Irene knew that it was made by human hands.
***
After shopping for the things she needed, Arielle took Aie and Irene to buy her favorite snack, a sandwich and a crepe sold at a roadside in the square. William followed closely after putting everything Arielle had bought into the carriage.
Arielle bought a crepe with Frostberry jam, so did Irene who always imitated whatever she chose, while Aie bought herself a turkey sandwich. Arielle didn’t forget to buy one for William and so for the guards who were waiting near the carriage.
Arielle wore the hood of her coat because so people outside the palace were starting to recognize her as their future queen. Besides, after the rumors about the incident in Birwick, many people flocked together to et Arielle to ask to revive their family who had died from the cold of Northendell.
Arielle finished eating her crepe quickly, and so did Irene. Aie then asked Arielle to choose so dresses for Irene.
At a boutique that Arielle recognized, Aie brought Irene to choose the clothes that the girl liked.
Irene looked doubtful. She wanted Arielle to choose it for her because she didn’t know what to choose. All the dresses in that place were so beautiful, and Irene didn’t know which one would suit her better. Arielle felt more tired than usual, so Aie suggested the princess rest on one of the sofas there.
Arielle frowned slightly. She massaged her feet. She had never felt tired like this. Arielle was always full of energy. She even knew what it was like to be tortured by a dragon. Should have walked a bit around the town square wouldn’t be this tiring? Could it be because of the shoes?
Arielle felt everything was fine. She wore the shoes she always wore everyday. Aie and Irene walked closer to her and brought a catalog with so of the dresses that Aie had chosen for Irene.
"Princess Irene has beautiful fair skin, jet black hair, and sharp eyes that match the bold color as well. There are only a few dresses available at the mont for Princess Irene’s size, so I also bought so from the catalog to send to the palace. What do you think?" Aie asked Arielle.
Aie sat beside Irene and gave the catalog to Arielle. Arielle then threw Aie a small smile.
"Hm ... I like this dress. I think it will be wonderful if Irene wears this. You will be very beautiful," said Arielle, making Irene’s face blush.
Arielle nodded in agreent with all of Aie’s choices. In the past, she did not enjoy shopping. Now she understood Ronan’s feeling of wanting to buy all the dresses for her. Arielle also now felt it. She wanted Irene to wear all those beautiful dresses. She hoped that Ronan would not mind if she used almost all the money to buy Irene’s needs.
"But, Arielle... I... I’m not sure I can wear all those dresses..." Irene was still unsure even after seeing all the dresses Aie had chosen for her, although all of them were beautiful.
"Oh, it’s fine... you’ll definitely use it soday. Aie really knows how to do it," said Arielle, making Aie laugh.
Aie was the best at choosing clothes. The girl could use a different dress every day. Perhaps if it was Arielle or Tania, she would just wear the dress they used to wear. For Arielle, the most important thing was comfort, but not for Aie. She preferred aesthetics and elegance.
After all, she was one of the daughters of a Duke. Aie also had a high fashion sense. Thus, she could help Arielle and Irene to choose a dress.
After choosing many dresses, Arielle invited Aie and Irene to stop by a bakery for a while.
"Aie... do I still have a lot of money?" Arielle asked.
Aie lifted the bag of coins that Ronan gave for Arielle to use. Seeing how thick the bags were, Arielle was sure that it would be enough to buy as much bread as needed.
Before entering the biggest bakery in the capital, Arielle turned to William.
"William, approximately how many people have visited the palace?" he asked.
"Visiting? There may be around twenty royal high-ranking officers," he replied.
"N-no... I an, the person in line wants to et the king."
"Ah, that... normally there would be a hundred to two hundred people. But, since last month the palace wasn’t open, there might be a lot today. I estimate there were three hundred people waiting in line before we left."
Arielle nodded then took Irene’s hand to enter the bakery.
"Excuse , Sir," Arielle called to the shopkeeper.
"Yes, Miss? Is there anything I can help you with?" asked the man casually without knowing that he was talking to the future queen.
"Does your shop have three hundred baguettes?"
"Sorry? Three hundred? Um... hold on, Miss. Let ask first."
The shopkeeper walked through the door behind him, leaving Arielle waiting and Irene looking at all kinds of delicious cakes and breads. Aie drew closer to Arielle.
"Your Highness? Three hundred? Why so many baguettes?" she asked confusedly.
Arielle saw the snow falling again. "To cheer up people who are waiting in line. Today is colder than usual. I don’t want them to get sick and starve."
"But..."
"Ah, isn’t the money enough?"
"Of course, it’s still quite enough. It’s just that Your Majesty said this money was only used for you and Princess Irene’s needs..."
Arielle nodded in understanding. "Ah, I see. Eum... what if this also becos my need?" she asked with a wide smile that made Aie wipe her face.
If it was like this, she couldn’t hold Arielle’s desire anymore. Aie then agreed to the princess’ request. She also couldn’t stop herself from smiling when Arielle asked if they still had enough money to buy three hundred boxes of warm milk. When Aie answered that the money was still enough, Arielle smiled broadly.
Reviews
All reviews (0)