Chapter 104 104. Chartreu, Part II
Editor: Aelryinth
When Gibson first came to the dressing shop, he just waited silently on the uncomfortable driver’s seat, even if it took her hours to finish her work. Even if Julietta talked to him to come inside and wait, he only refused, saying, "It’s good to wait like this." Of course, that was his job, but Julietta was not at ease when she remembered working as a maid.
In the end, Amelie, unable to see that Julietta was in a hurry to get back quickly because she was worrying about Gibson, went to the carriage and brought Gibson in by force. Sitting Gibson on a chair after dragging him onto a terrace with a puzzled look, Amelie asked, "We’re all about the same. Let’s be comfortable with each other. What kind of tea do you want? What kind of tea do you like?"
Taking off his hat with a wrinkled coarse hand, Gibson shook his head in embarrassment at Amelie’s words. The driver was not a job where one sat down and enjoyed tea, and he had no knowledge of tea.
Gibson constantly swept away the thin gray hair that was pressed by his hat and stuck to his head. Amelie clicked her tongue as she watched him gesture over his seemingly benign brown eyes.
She said carefully, making all types of tea she had prepared in the studio and putting them down in front of Gibson, "It’s summer, so I’ve brewed it in the cold water. Try drinking slowly to see if any of them are palatable."
Watching the blunt Amelie giving the tea to him, Sophie had also served tea and other snacks. Feeling uncomfortable and awkward for a long time, Gibson finally started drinking tea while three women discussed this and that and didn’t care about him.
From that day on, if Gibson didn’t come in, Amelie and Sophie went out and made sure to bring him in. After they nagged, "We would be happy if you came in alone," Gibson walked into the studio and waited. In addition, when Julietta was staying in the dressing shop longer, he went to the servant and maid’s quarters on the first floor of the mansion and rested.
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Julietta looked at Gibson for a moment and said to Sophie, who was waiting for an answer,
"You’ve dealt with those talkative and demanding actors, what are you worried about? And if you’re having a hard time or don’t think you can handle it, tell me. The dressing shop I wanted to open is the kind of store where the customers can dream, but it’s also the kind where we can proudly refuse guests. I hope it’s a place where everyone who works in our dressing shop can work comfortably and be treated respectfully, regardless of their birth."
At Julietta’s words, Amelie clicked her tongue. "Business is not going to be good that way. Besides, it’s a high-end dressing shop, dealing with aristocrats and rich people. A business can be dangerous if we deal with the nobles that way. We can’t say, ’Don’t come to our dressing shop from now on.’"
Julietta nodded. "It would be difficult at first, of course, but wouldn’t it be possible if we tried, especially if it’s the only very unique shop on the whole continent? No matter how rich and well-known aristocrats are, they can’t help but notice when designers are too busy to make clothes for them. I’ll try my best for you so you can refuse customers like that."
Sophie took the dress that Julietta was holding, put it down on one side of the workbench, ironed out the wrinkles in the dress, and smiled.
"Yes, there may be a possibility for a pretty dress like this. Everyone’s going to want to come here and order their clothes."
"Yes, I think so. I’d like to believe that it will happen. Shall we dress the mannequin now? I’m going to clean up the hall today. I’m going to make it fantastic so that the guests can admire it when they come in."
Julietta was rather lighthearted thanks to her safe debut and went out to the hall quickly. The building was quiet because it was located outside of the Eloz Street and it was early in the morning. It was so quiet that even a passer-by could hardly be spotted.
After she closed the outer window of the boulevard and the inner glass door, blocking the gazes from outside, Julietta returned to the small stage in the hall.
"Oh, every time I see it, it’s ugly. It is so scary when I’m walking by at night." Sophie was sick and tired of the mannequin.
"But it’ll be pretty if we put clothes on it. It would be better if it had a face. We have to decorate it with a hat later, too."
"Face?" Amelie, who was broad-minded, was also stunned this time.
"Don’t be surprised. Imagine dressing up and putting a hat on a statue in the park in front of the Imperial Castle."
Amelie and Sophie burst into laughter as they imagined putting a dress on a statue of the majestic first Emperor at Cheisha Park.
"What do you think? It’s not that ugly, is it?" Julietta dressed up the body mannequin, then moved away and studied it.
"I wish I could hang a necklace on it, but I’m sorry I couldn’t bring it because it was from the family of the Duke."
"This is good enough. It’s completely different from just hanging it on a hook. Because of the lights on the ceiling, it looks even prettier. How did you get this idea?"
The dress looked even more colorful thanks to the magical lights set on the ceiling of the stage she had bought with the rest of the money. Amelie helped out while Sophie was so proud of Julietta and praised her as so talented after looking at the dress put on the sculpture she didn’t want to see.
"Julie was so smart. She was so good at talking. I thought she was a genius compared to other kids her age. Sometimes she got into a lot of trouble."
"She could be a real genius."
"Yes, given what she’s done so far, she’s not just a normal kid."
Before long, the two even began to talk seriously, bringing up Julietta’s childhood. Julietta smiled at the two and went into the studio to pick another dress.
The three never noticed that there was anyone peeping through the windows next to the mansion. The man, Bart, followed the princess from the mansion of the Duke to the dressing shop under the orders of the Marquis of Oswald to investigate the princess.
The princess who visited the dressing shop early in the morning did not seem to have visited as a guest, behaving at ease with the staff. Bart, who had been waiting for the missing princess for a while inside, finally saw the princess putting her own dress on a strange torso-shaped structure inside the hall. He set off to the mansion of Marquis Oswald to report the sight immediately.
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Princess Kiellini’s debut in society had a tremendous impact on the social world of Austern.
She was praised for being the only heir to the family, and for having no one to compare her beauty to in history. The princess’s dazzling blonde and green-eyed beauty, along with her newly-released dress, was a hot topic that would not die down for days.
Simone, who was nervous and unable to decide where to attend the next party, was relieved when the invitations began to pile up in the house.
She was now in the middle of sorting out numerous invitations that had become a routine for days. She found a letter bearing the seal of the Marquis of Anais. Simone looked worried as she read the contents of a lemon-colored letter.
"The Marquis of Anais sent another letter."
The day after her debut party, the Marquis of Anais had sent a letter to see his niece. Simone, agonizing over what to do, refused his visit, citing the excuse that her niece was ill.
But today, just a few days later, the Marquis sent a letter asking if his niece was in good health. If she hadn’t gotten better yet, he hoped he would visit her. Simone was worried that she could no longer find a reason to refuse.
Vera put down the tea that Regina had given her in front of Simone who was pressing her forehead hard because of her headache, and said carefully, "Now that she is in Dublin, we won’t be able to stop her from meeting with the Marquis. If we do not let her meet with him, wouldn’t it be more suspicious?"