All I Wanted Was the Alimony - Chapter 36

“…Those are his clothing measurements. He passed away around the same age the Grand Duke is now, leaving me in childbirth.”

The  Empress Dowager had said that Paello bore an astonishing resemblance to her husband.

Hair, eye color, skin tone, facial features and build, even his voice.

She knew it rationally, too.

That Paello was a stranger without a single drop of shared blood. But emotionally, she said, he didn’t feel like a stranger.

“…Maybe I’m getting senile, but I keep having the delusion that the Grand Duke is an imperial family descendant.”

It was a truly dangerous statement.

But there was no trace of political calculation in her. She simply wanted to see her husband in Paello before she died.

She wanted to see what their son and grandson, who would surely resemble the previous emperor, might have looked like through Paello.

Both Paello and Lucienne understood her feelings.

But after learning her story, they found themselves even more unable to say anything.

Whether the ceremonial robe the Empress Dowager had prepared fit Paello or not, it would still be a problem.

If it did fit, the Empress Dowager would truly believe Paello to be the previous emperor’s grandson and might become even more obsessively attached.

The issue that would arise then was Sidell.

There was no need to mention how Sidell would feel witnessing that.

‘He was already clearly reluctant to hand over the Hero’s Divine Sword earlier.’

If that was the case, he shouldn’t have offered it as a prize. Why had he done that?

In any case, in Lucienne’s judgment, there was no benefit for Paello to fall out with the Emperor.

On the other hand, if the ceremonial robe didn’t fit Paello, peace might be maintained.

However, since the Empress Dowager was quite old, the shock of disappointment might not pass so simply.

‘She might waste away from the grief.’

For an average person, it might just be a brief illness, but the Empress Dowager’s health couldn’t be guaranteed.

Even if, by bad luck, something were to happen to her, no one would blame Paello.

After all, the Empress Dowager had imagined and prepared everything on her own.

But Paello’s heart couldn’t help but be burdened.

“All the other places were closed, but this one’s still open. Shall we go in?”

Lucienne snapped out of her thoughts at Paello’s calm tone. He was holding the doorknob of the shop.

“Are you going to try it on?”

“I’ve gotten curious whether it’ll fit or not.”

Lucienne felt the same.

“Then let’s go in and just check.”

Paello instructed Joad to wait at a suitable spot. Then he opened the entrance of Colt’s Boutique.

Just in time, a middle-aged woman with loosely tied blond hair was sitting at the counter desk, working. Her appearance, gripping a pencil with protective sleeves on both arms, was striking.

But her expression became strange when she saw Paello and Lucienne.

“Uh, uh?”

Checking the wall clock to the side, she looked more flustered than professionally welcoming.

“I’m Paello Ronatere. I heard the Empress Dowager had commissioned an outfit here, and I thought I’d try it on.”

“Uh, uh?”

At her confused behavior, Paello repeated himself, “If you’re new and don’t know, could you call the owner of the boutique?”

“Pardon? Ah, no! I-I’m not new! Mary, sh-she already l-left, left, left for the day.”

Startled, she stammered her words and hurriedly stood up with her hands clasped.

“P-p-please wait a moment. Y-you want to t-try it on, right? I-I’ll find, f-find its location.”

She hastily rummaged through the filing cabinet behind the counter.

Her face was as red as a tomato on the verge of bursting, and her movements were jerky like a wooden puppet being forced to move. On closer look, she also had a pronounced limp.

‘Ah, she’s physically disabled.’

That made Lucienne reevaluate Mary.

This was a boutique frequented by nobles, and yet they employed a disabled worker.

However, when Lucienne looked down at the counter desk, she soon doubted her eyes.

On the desk lay a sketchbook filled with fashion designs.

It looked nearly complete, and the designs were very beautiful.

“Is this a new product being designed?”

Lucienne was about to ask if she could see the previous pages when she realized Paello was beside her and bit her lip.

‘Get it together! A villainess acts as she pleases, without asking anyone for permission!’

She simply flipped through the sketchbook. The woman turned around at the sound of the page turning.

It might have been offensive, but the woman said something unexpected.

“P-p-pencil lines m-might sm-sm-smudge and get your ha-hands dirty, so pl-please be ca-careful.”

According to her, touching them carelessly could ruin the drawing. Yet her face showed no discomfort at all.

“Oh, I see. The design is very pretty. Who drew this?”

It was just a random small talk question.

The original of the unpublished new design the boutique owner showed had appeared earlier in the sketchbook.

“Ah, th-th-that, I-I drew that… hehe, th-th-thank you.”

“?”

At the unexpected response, she looked at the woman.

She was still rifling through the filing cabinet, but her lips were stretched in delight.

“Hehe, I-I-I found it.”

She soon pulled out a thick file from the drawer.

“Th-this is the E-Empress D-Dowager’s c-c-commission document.”

She placed the file right on top of the sketchbook and opened it. The flipping pages soon settled.

Paello Ronatere.

With his name and numbers listed, a small paper with body measurements was attached, and beneath it was a design for a formal suit.

“I-I f-found the l-location. I’ll g-go g-get the outfit.”

Paello calmly took a pen from his inner pocket.

“No, wait. That won’t be necessary. Could you give me a sheet of paper?”

The woman promptly handed him a piece of paper.

Paello began copying the measurements from the document.

The confirmation process turned out to be simpler than expected. At the same time, it was a bit surprising.

Even if it was his own information, he was copying official records without permission, yet the woman didn’t seem to mind.

Just as Paello tucked the copied paper into his inner pocket—

“You crazy wench again!”

With a shout, the boutique door burst open.

“I told you not to turn on the lights without permission! Huh?”

As she turned around, the boutique owner Mary’s expression twisted in shock. She clamped her hands over her mouth.

“G-G-Grand Duchess Ronatere?”

Her gaze then shifted to the man beside her.

“Th-th-then that must be Grand Duke Ronatere?”

“That’s correct.”

Mary quickly collected herself. She lowered her head and spoke without even taking a breath.

“I sincerely apologize for the indecency, Your Grace. We’re technically closed now, and my sister stutters and is quite unwell. Sometimes, after closing, she secretly reopens and pretends the shop is open.”

“N-no, I-I-I w-was working.”

At her excuse, Mary sighed, stepped forward, and checked the file on the desk before glaring at her sister.

“Th-that’s because G-Grand Duke Ronatere said h-he wanted to s-s-s-see it…”

Her shoulders hunched deeply as she stammered harder. It was clear she had shown something she shouldn’t have.

“I asked to see it out of curiosity, knowing the Empress Dowager prepared it.”

“Yes.”

Forcing a smile, Mary closed the file. When the sketchbook underneath was revealed, her eyes briefly widened.

She pretended to act calm as she closed the sketchbook, but couldn’t hide the trembling in her fingers.

“I must’ve caused trouble by visiting outside of business hours. If not for that, your sister wouldn’t have faced any difficulty.”

At Paello’s words, Mary quickly lifted her lips into a deeper smile. “N-not at all. Once the shop is open, serving a guest is natural. I was just worried my sister might not have attended properly to Your Grace.”

“Then that’s good. She did well, so I hope you don’t scold her further. Besides, that’s not the only reason I came.”

“Pardon?”

Paello took out his wallet.

“This boutique is said to be the most renowned in the capital. Since I’m here on business, I thought I might as well purchase a dress for my wife. If it hadn’t been open today, I wouldn’t have had the chance.”

Making it clear that the shop’s sales were thanks to her sister opening the door, Paello pulled out three blank checks from his wallet and handed them to Mary.

“To commemorate our visit to the capital, I’d like to present a gift to my wife. I’d like you to create a new design exclusively for her.”