Chapter Twenty-One: The Tailor and the Textile Store

“Are you having fun, Liliana?”

“Yes, I’m enjoying myself!”

“Milady is having fun, so please don’t move. Look, Milady, this color is also wonderful.”

“It’s true—oh, but the clothes that Ariana is holding are also nice…”

While seriously contemplating, I took turns to compare Elsa and Ariana’s clothes.

As of the present, the tailor and the owner of the textile store that Lord William summoned were in the guestroom. They were in the middle of choosing my husband’s clothes. There were wide assortments of clothes—some felt nice to the touch, others lustrous to the eyes, and depending on the weaving method, some kinds of patterns could be seen from a certain angle. Afterwards, the clothes were further divided into various colors and lined up in a row.

Ralph, the owner of the textile store, would proceed with various fabrics while listening to the advice of Marietta, the tailor.

To ascertain the color and texture, Lord William had to try them on.

During our picnic the other day, Lord William invited me to see a flower field. There, he mentioned that he’d like to order some clothes. Two weeks had passed since then.

Even though Cedric had a lot of fun, the picnic was met with an abrupt end due to the terrible storm. However, Lord William promised that we’d have an outing in autumn. Looking forward to it, Cedric would ask me every day, ‘Is it autumn, yet?’ Which was adorable of him…

I had a lot of fun, as well. The problem was, although I remembered spending the night at Al’s villa, and having a conversation with Lord William in the evening, my memory ended there. The next morning, I found myself sleeping alongside Cedric in Lord William’s arms.

Apparently, what I had the other night wasn’t juice, but an alcoholic beverage. Lord William transferred I, who was drunk, to my room. I was worried that I did something, but Lord William reassured me with a gentle smile.

“It’s alright, you were so cute.”

While I believed him, I read in a novel that when one got drunk, one would lose themselves. As I thought, I was somewhat worried, and at the same time, afraid, so I couldn’t bear to ask him further.

“The marquis is stylish, so dark colors will suit you well in my opinion.”

Marietta, who was alluring and dignified, was also a designer, so she kindly gave us advice. In the meantime, she drew a design in her sketchbook. Elsa, Ariana, and I took a peek.

A fantastic design was born on the paper in no time.

“How wonderful, it’s as if you’re casting a spell.”

“Hehe, thank you, Madam.”

Marietta, who had a husky voice, was a woman who rivaled Frederick in height.

Her lips were polished with bright red lipstick, while her long brunette hair was tucked into a braid.

“Even so, the wife that the marquis has hidden for over a year sure is such a lovely beauty.”

As I peered into her sketchbook, Marietta stared at me. Seen up close, her beauty dazzled me even more.

“Mario, too close.”

But suddenly, a hand grabbed Marietta’s head.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch!”

—suddenly, ‘Marietta’ screamed in a voice full of masculinity when grabbed by Lord William. As I tensed up, Elsa pulled me over.

“Don’t come within a 100-meter radius of my Liliana.”

“It hurts! Are you kicking me out of the mansion!? More importantly, it’s breaking, my head is breaking! Release me! What is this monstrous grip strength!?”

Ariana, who was as confused as me, was also being pulled over by Elsa. We didn’t understand.

Why is a male voice coming from under Lord William’s hand?

“Ma’am~ this silk from the Carlo region is of superb quality~ I brought it here with the intention of recommending it to the young lady~”

Ralph, who was a laidback man of his own pace, presented me with an exquisite black silk, but there was more than what met the eyes.

“My lord, your wife has calmed down. Why don’t you explain it to her?”

William, who was still gripping Marietta’s head, was calmly told off by Elsa.

“Don’t say a word, you bastard!”

“Don’t use foul language in front of my cute Liliana.”

Lord William rushed to me, looking somewhat troubled.

“Are you alright, Liliana?”

“I-I am, but nothing happened, uh, about Ms. Marietta—”

“—Don’t be deceived by his look, Liliana. Be careful to not get too close.”

Ariana, who was next to me, screamed. “Huh!?” Elsa scolded her for that. Meanwhile, I was too shocked to scream. When I looked at Marietta again, I saw a man painfully stroking his head. Having removed his wig, I could see that his actual hair color was black.

“Mario, look, you’ve terrified Liliana. Do something about that unsightly head of yours. A man wearing a dress, seriously?”

“—Because of your headlock, my wig has gotten all messed up!”

“Liliana, he’s just a cross-dressing pervert whose designing skill is his only salvation. But if you don’t like him, just say a word, and I’ll kick him out right away.”

“N-no, it’s not like that, I thought she was a gorgeous woman, so I was shocked.”

Sir(?) Marietta put the wig on Ralph’s head to fix it. Meanwhile, Ralph smiled without a care.

“Well, who’s the fool who hit his head and lost his memories?”

Marietta muttered, and Lord William’s eyebrows twitched. When I saw that Lord William was about to grab Marietta’s head again, I rushed to stop him. Marietta used Ralph as a shield and hid behind him.

“Lord William, don’t hurt him.”

“Oh, how kind of you, my cute Liliana! Mario, thank my Goddess for her benevolence!”

Instead, Lord William turned to hug me, so the crisis was averted. If I let go, he’d probably commit violence again, so I looked up at Lord William as I stayed in his arms.

“D-do you know each other?”

“Unfortunately, yes. In spite of his appearance, he was the third son of Earl Warlock and used to be my subordinate at the academy.”

‘Was’ as in, past tense?

Then, Marietta, who’d fixed his wig, answered me.

“I went to war with Will, but due to my blunder, I got injured. While it wasn’t detrimental to my daily life, it was fatal to my career as a knight. Since I was the third son, knighthood was the only way for me to make a name for myself back then. Long story short, my father disowned me. But well, I always have a penchant for cute and beautiful things, such as dresses, lace, ribbons, etc. So, I chose this job. Besides, there’s my brother.”

“I’m Marietta’s older brother. My family owns a textile store, and since he was little, Marietta loved to spend hours in our textile warehouse. After the war ended, Marietta worked at our house to gain experience, and now he’s a full-fledged designer.”

Ralph spoke nonchalantly.

My sister, Cedric, and I didn’t resemble each other all that much, but Marietta and Ralph were even more so.

“His father used to be a servant in our house, and I found out from Ralph’s mother that we’re half-siblings. My father and I didn’t get along very well, so I’d often sneak out of the mansion and end up at Ralph’s place.”

“So, that’s why you get along so well.”

No wonder, I nodded to myself. Rather than being business partners, the two had a relaxed atmosphere to them, so I didn’t doubt it when they said they were siblings.

I remembered that I was still clinging to Lord William, so I tried to get away, but he wouldn’t let me go for some reason.

“Ooh, how cute. Did I marry an angel?”

“L-Lord William?”

I called his name, before looking up at him. My forehead was instantly greeted with a kiss. I buried my face unto his chest. Behind me, Marietta was whistling, while Ralph remarked, “The two of you sure get along well.” I wanted to die from the sheer embarrassment.

Ever since that picnic, I felt that our physical contact had grown more intense. Of course, I didn’t mind it since it was Lord William. Nevertheless, it was still embarrassing, and my heart was beating rapidly. Please do it in moderation. Besides, Marietta and Ralph were present, which added to my shame. Once again, I tried to escape by pushing his chest, but he didn’t budge.

“My lord, if you don’t stop it, she’ll be overwhelmed?”

Elsa’s cool voice did the trick. When Lord William loosened his grip around me, I quickly ran away. As I hugged Ariana, who was spreading her arms to me, Elsa stepped forward to protect me and confront Lord William.

“What will you do if the young lady dies from embarrassment?”

She’s absolutely right.

I didn’t even want to die for such an embarrassing reason.

When I appealed with my eyes, Elsa stared at Lord William with disgust.

“But it’s Liliana’s fault for being so cute!”

“Of course I know that! That’s like saying when the sun goes down, night descends—or that when the moon sets, morning arrives! Look at me, I’m desperately holding myself, so you have too! Even I want to squeeze her whenever I have the chance!?”

“You’re just jealous! Don’t forget that I’m her husband!”

“Say that again after you have regained your memories, my Lord.”

Lord William groaned in defeat. Apparently, Elsa won as usual, but what the hell were they bickering about? Still, they seemed to be on good terms.

“Elsa, Elsa.”

“Yes, Milady?”

When I called her, Elsa immediately turned around.

I left Ariana’s embrace and spread my arms to Elsa.

“Elsa, you can hug me whenever you want. I love Elsa.”

I was a bit embarrassed, so I awkwardly laughed, but Elsa pulled me into a crushing hug.

“Ooh, as always, Milady is so cute! I love you so much!”

“Hehe, I’m happy for the both of you.”

“Milady, Milady, I love you, too!”

When Ariana insisted, Elsa hugged the petite Ariana. Elsa was such a charming and patient woman.

“Don’t look so happy!”

“Too bad. Milady chose me over you. Forgive me for celebrating, my Lord.”

“You know~ my brother and the vice-captain are about to die from laughing too much~”

Ralph’s nonchalant news caused me to look up. Before I knew it, Marietta was rolling on the floor, while Al was leaning against Caddock with trembling shoulders. Frederick, who must’ve escorted the two, was also looking away while covering his mouth.

Lord William frowned at Al, but immediately turned to Elsa.

“Liliana, I’ll go somewhere else for a bit. I don’t want you to stay in the same room as this pervert. In the meantime, feel free to choose your favorite fabrics with Ralph. Cedric will need his assortment of fall attire, right?”

I got out of Elsa’s arm and faced Lord William.

“Will you order some for him as well?”

“Of course, he’s my cute brother-in-law. Considering that he eats, plays, and sleeps a lot, I’m sure he’s grown taller. If we don’t order new ones, we won’t have time to make adjustments for the sleeves and hem.”

“I see. Recently, it seems that the clothes he brought from his parents’ house have become smaller…”

Elsa’s words reminded me that Cedric’s jacket, which she helped him change into, looked a bit tight. However, I took it as a positive sign that Cedric was growing.

“Then, may I ask for Cedric’s share as well?”

“Of course, you can choose as many as you like. Excuse me.”

“Alright, take care.”

Lord William turned on his heels, but not before taking my hand and courteously kissing the back of it. When I was still in shock, he smiled sweetly at me.

“Let’s take a stroll in the garden together later, my dear Liliana.”

As a bonus, Lord William awarded my forehead with another kiss. Then, he grabbed Marietta, who was still laughing on the floor, by the neck, before dragging him out of the room. Alphonse also left, Frederick and Caddock following behind him in an accustomed manner.

“Hehe, the marquis and his wife sure are on good terms.”

As Ralph smiled casually, I tried to cool down my cheeks, wondering how to respond. At the same time, the door burst open, and Cedric appeared with a familiar-looking brunette wig.

“Hey, Sister, I found this in the hallway, is this mansion haunted?”

Cedric spoke, his expression dead serious. Upon seeing that, I burst out laughing, my embarrassment forgotten. Cedric was dumbfounded by my reaction, but I couldn’t stop laughing.

“Lord Cedric, this mansion isn’t haunted. That wig belongs to someone. I’ll return it.”

After a while, Elsa received the wig from Cedric, and went to return it to Marietta. I beckoned over to Cedric so I could introduce him to Ralph. When I mentioned that he’d be getting some new clothes, Cedric didn’t seem to be interested. However, when I asked if he’d like to wear matching clothes with Lord William, he happily began to choose the fabric with Ralph.

Afterwards, together with Cedric, I chose fabrics for the both of them with Ralph and Ariana. Elsa came back after a while and joined us.

However, even after waiting for a while, Lord William didn’t return. Before long, it was time for Marietta and Ralph to go home, so the design was postponed for another time. But since Cedric needed them, I told Marietta to do as he saw fit.

“Did something happen?”

 After seeing Marietta and Ralph off, I went to the living room and found Lord William sitting on the sofa with a haggard look on his face.

“No, it’s not a big deal. Dealing with Al and Mario at the same time took a chunk out of me. Come, Ceddie, heal your brother-in-law…”

Cedric giddily rushed over to Lord William, who placed him on top of his lap. When I was about to sit on the sofa across from them, Lord William beckoned to me. I found myself sitting on his other knee.

“Ah, this is the best…”

Lord William, who tightly hugged us, looked really tired.

Cedric nodded with understanding. Perhaps knowing what effect he had on him, Cedric began caressing Lord William’s lustrous amber hair.

When he saw how happy Lord William became, Cedric urged me to do the same. I braced myself and gently patted Lord William’s amber hair, and his happiness seemed to have multiplied.

We had so much fun, we laughed together.

---

***T/N: Aww happy times!

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