It was rather hard to imagine that the niece of the Karthian Archmagister would co to be captivated by his political rival. He surely would never ntion his na to her before, thus leaving her without a clue on who Hughesin was when she stumbled in.
Hughesin and Kebrilio. Their rivalry was like oil and water with how stubborn and headstrong Kebrilio was. Upper society knew this of Kebrilio and thus sympathized for the young da. How unlucky she was to have such a man as an uncle, and how much more unfortunate she was to have co across a wolf like Hughesin. Aside from Hughesin, none other in Karth would dare touch even a single strand of hair of hers knowing her history.
And yet what misfortune it was that shed fall into the hand of Hughesin.
rlise was the one most concerned for Fantasia. The young lady held a soft spot in her heart the mont the countess t her, really. She was different from the other lasses rlise taught beforewon with the sa set of advantages Fantasia had were rare to co by, and rlise certainly found it quite rare to find such people within the newer generation. Determined was rlise to transform Fantasia into a dazzling gem fit for high society even before she knew of her circumstances. And to think that this young lady was connected to the son of a dear sister? How quaint!
What wasnt so nice was her knowledge of Hughesins character and the behind-the-scenes. She couldnt approve of it at all.
The middle-aged won cherished and wished to protect her. But the younger ladies felt an acrid taste in their mouths. It was jealousy. Fantasia had taken away their knight in shining armor. Their handso, masculine, strong, and charming hero had fallen for an underripe woman like her? The flas of jealousy burned away at their hearts. Were it not for the elder won impeding their paths, they wouldve long since circled Fantasia and begun their attack.
Elric, of course, had no way of knowing what in the world everyone else was thinking about him. The only thing he knew was that he was in deep trouble. The envious glares he was receiving from one half of the won made him uncomfortable and the motherly looks from the other half sent shivers down his spine.
Whatever was in store for him here, Elric didnt like it. His eyes drifted off to the left-side of the lounge to where a series of clothing racks stood. All sorts of richly silks and fabrics were hung over the racks, most of them Elric noticed to be fashioned in the form of patterned dresses. To the left of those racks stood a certain individual, an elderly person stooped at the waist. They had a few precious strands of hair left on their head; a clear indication of their advanced age. Their face was covered with aged wrinkles going this way and that and nearly hid away a pair of eyes with an unnaturally perceptive light.
A ruler was gripped in one hand and a tape asure wrapped thrice around the other arm. The most eye-catching aspect of this elder was the chalk marks pocked all over the hems of their arm sleeves.
Escorted by the married won, Elric was forced over to stand in front of the clothing racks.
Calm-faced, the countess stepped next to him. One by one, she sized each piece of clothing and compared them to Elrics person. If she liked them, they were given to the nearby maids. If she didnt, then theyd be tossed over to the elder.
Soon enough and there was a mountain of clothing resting in their hands.
Only fifteen articles of clothing were chosen in the end.
The young ladies stood silently by the clothing racks. While they were each experienced in the field of fashion, the countess was an authority in the field and her eye would most definitely choose the best clothes for an individual.
But Elric wasnt worried about that. His attention was elsewhere while the rest of the noblefolk surrounded him. The elder. Astonishnt filled their eyes in a way different to the other nobles gathered. From that look alone, Elric felt fear well up inside of him. Had she seen through his disguise?
His self-pondering was cut short when the countess began the dressing.
Elric always knew being dressed was a tedious and tireso affair, but he truly underestimated just how tedious and tireso it could be. The countess had moved on from deciding which clothes suited him to actually having him try them on. Pushed into a changing room with his personal handmaids, Elric was forced into multiple styles of dresses one after another and then pushed back out so the noblewon could opine their thoughts on the matter.
Now is it always so difficult for won to choose what to wear? He asked absent-mindedly as his handmaids busied themselves with another dress. Such a comnt earned him the ire of every noblewon there; many of them clamored about how Elric was missing out on one of the few joys in life, how being beautiful was for the sake of catching the eye of your beloved, how hard it was being a woman, and what a joy it was to allow yourself to be admired by the male populace
Elric felt regret for asking such a question after all those rebukes. It wasnt just the noblewon he irked, but even his handmaids. Their treatnt of him worsened by a smidgen after the question in ways Elric didnt even think about. Every ti a ribbon, belt, or binding was fastened, it was done with a modicum of force more than usual. The tightness around his waist was so significant that Elric briefly worried if he would faint sooner or later from it.
The kicker was the praise he received from the noblewon when he stepped out. Many marveled at the fastenings and even suggested to the dressing maids that they should perhaps tighten it a tad more.
To this, Elric felt nothing but tears.
The noblewon didnt seem ready to forgive him for his earlier remark even when the most suitable dress was finally picked out. They simply requested that they go through the dresses once more to be certain.
Only once the entire affair was over did Elric allow himself to let out a sigh of relief. Today had been an excellent lesson for how won lived in upper society. Thinking back now, the princess lessons were far more lenient than todays, wasnt it? Perhaps that was why the princess enjoyed putting people through those lessons so much, she surely wanted to vent out her frustrations onto others.
Truthfully speaking, Elric wanted to vent out his own frustrations right now.
A target ca to him quickly enough. The mustached man that was with Hughesin just the other day. And speaking of Hughesinthat was certainly a grandiose attire he was wearing. Surely his fashion sense wasnt lacking, was it? Elric wasnt sure since not a single person in the room batted an eye at Hughesins wear. That couldnt be normal attire here, could it?
His musings were cut short when Saludy spoke. It pains my heart to not have a tailored dress ready for the Banquet, dear Fantasia.
Oh no no, I have plenty enough. This much is enough to last my entire life. Elric responded.
Preposterous! I daresay you should listen to . Perhaps sire Kebrilio cared little for your garnts, but that will not be abided in this estate. Corrected Saludy. Claire, if you would gather lady Fantasias asurents and get to her new dress, we shall be off.
The general asurents have been ascertained. If the young lady would walk a little, I shall determine the best manner of dress. A proper dress demands a proper eye to how one moves. Replied the elder.
She must be a master of her craft since no other noblewon objected. Incidentally, the countess declared a start to the beginning of todays lesson right then and there.
Twenty-sothing young ladies, Elric included, stood politely there as the servants brought out the seating arrangents for the middle-aged noblewon. Taking seats in them, the won chattered with one another while Hughesin and Somiret moved closer to the walls to observe.
Today, Elric could finally say he knew what it ant to be a noble. What it ant to have the eyes of everyone in the room. A fine thing it was maybe for his classmates, but certainly not for him! The occasional glares thrown at his way from them was noticeable to even him. Truly, this was not a sensation he enjoyed. But who else would possibly know his agony?
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