episode_0120

“Would you like some black tea?”

“It doesn’t seem like you have anything else, so I’ll have that.”

“Yes…”

Contrary to my worries, the Ho-in woman… no, the Tigris Countess, acted rationally.

Her tone was a bit… well, but only the tone; her actions themselves readily followed our suggestions.

It’s definitely not because she was taller than me and the fangs she subtly showed every time she spoke were as sharp as blades that I felt that way.

Even now, she’s obediently taking the black tea and sipping it.

“……”

Such perfect etiquette, not even the sound of the teacup clinking can be heard, and silence dominates the drawing room.

Can I speak first?

Or should I wait until the Tigris Countess speaks first?

Not much is known about Ho-in culture, so I don’t know how to act.

The three things I happen to remember are ‘domineering, belligerent, and quick to anger,’ so I was afraid to do anything rashly.

“Sir William was the son of the Hume Count and Countess, right?”

“… Yes, that’s correct.”

As I cautiously watched the Countess and fiddled with my teacup, her ears, which had been perked up, slightly drooped back, and the Countess spoke first.

I answered the Countess’s question a beat late, and the Countess looked at me with an indifferent expression, strongly flicking her tail and hitting the floor with a thud!

“If so, I hope you’ll act confidently; the Hume Count and Countess I know were stronger and more predatory than anyone.”

“Is that so…”

That was quite a troublesome order.

Telling me to act confidently doesn’t mean I should act rudely, and I don’t know how my parents act outside…

First, I straightened my back.

And I stared straight into the Countess’s eyes, putting strength in my gaze.

“Now that’s a bit better, though the lack of experience is a shame.”

“Let’s talk about that problem later; I’d like you to tell me why you came.”

“Why would I come to a clothing store? To get clothes made, of course.”

“What kind of clothes do you want?”

“I’d like you to make animal ear headbands and tails, and even a baby doll lingerie set.”

“…?”

As soon as I heard the Countess’s answer, I frowned.

“You already have good ones, so why do you specifically want me to make animal ears and tails?”

“They’re not for me; they’re for my husband.”

“Your husband?”

“My husband is human.”

“… Ah~”

About five years ago? Or was it six?

There was a rumor that a human nobleman was marrying into a Ho-in family as a son-in-law.

Everyone was surprised to hear that they had taken a human, not another demi-human, into a family where the most important condition for marriage was ‘strength,’ but that was this person.

“I think I remember a bit now.”

As I nodded with a slight smile, the Countess raised one corner of her mouth and chuckled, as if reminiscing about that time.

“Hmph, the empire was quite noisy because of that.”

“If even I, who am slow to hear social gossip, remember it, it must have been a very noisy incident.”

“My father opposed it with fire in his eyes, too. He eventually acknowledged him, though.”

“I see.”

Even after hearing only a few words, it was clear that there was a very exciting backstory.

A haughty and overbearing young lady and the opposition of a powerful family, and a man who overcomes this and wins love.

A delicious romance novel that makes my mouth water.

“Are you curious about the backstory?”

The Countess, who immediately noticed that I was interested in the story, wiggled her eyebrows with a sly smile.

If I weren’t working, I would have focused on listening to the story, but I shook my head, thinking of Duke Herbert and Duchess Fanny, who were probably concentrating on cutting fabric right now.

“I’m working now, so let’s hear it next time we meet.”

“I would have been very disappointed if you had said you were curious; I’m tired of the many people who can’t distinguish between public and private matters and are only interested in other people’s stories.”

“Haha…”

I gave an awkward smile as I watched the Countess sipping her tea and spouting eerie stories.

It’s just taking one customer, but why does it feel like I’m having a live interview…

I swallowed and picked up my teacup.

My hand trembled faintly because my heart started racing belatedly.

I wet my lips with the tea and calmed my heart, then straightened my expression and made eye contact with the Countess.

“What kind of animal do you specifically want, Countess?”

“I’d like you to make a rabbit and a tiger.”

“Pardon?”

I frowned again because I couldn’t understand the Countess’s words.

Why two?

“Is the tiger for your husband and the rabbit for you, Countess?”

“They’re both for my husband; I’m just a little curious about which one he’ll choose.”

“I see.”

Something’s a bit strange, but I nodded for now.

“Ahem, do you have a desired design?”

“Rumor has it that you made a headband that a royal knight wore so convincingly that even the Myo-in people were fooled; I’m sure you’ll do well, just make it look like a rabbit or a tiger, and if you can maintain a decent quality, I’ll respect your aesthetic sense.”

“What about colors or preferences…”

“I don’t really have any, so feel free to do as you please.”

It was more difficult in many ways because there were fewer conditions than Captain Baek gave.

If I had a laid-back personality, it would be a good opportunity to run wild, but if I were a picky person, customer service hell would unfold before my eyes.

“You’ll obviously be wearing the baby doll, Countess, but what is your reason for making this request?”

“Why are you asking that?”

“I’m trying to use it as a reference when deciding on the design direction.”

“I’m planning to use it in bed; it’s our wedding anniversary soon, so I wanted to create a slightly different atmosphere.”

“……”

The Countess bluntly revealed her private life with a nonchalant expression, without a moment’s hesitation.

Is this the spirit of the Ho-in people?

I understand the reason, but I wish she would have put it a little more indirectly.

I don’t know what kind of expression to make when it comes in without warning.

“I understand… Then I’ll make the tiger one based on yours, and I’ll make the rabbit one with appropriate references from others.”

“Alright.”

Still, it was fortunate that the reason was clear.

Since it’s for that purpose, I should make the accessories cute and fluffy, and the lingerie sexy.

I massaged my neck and got up from my seat.

“Then, I need to measure your size to use as a reference when making the clothes, so I’ll call another female employee, please wait a moment.”

“Okay.”

_

“Hmm…”

I sat down at the workbench after roughly figuring out what I needed to know from the Tigris Countess and sending her back, spinning a pen and falling into deep thought.

The manufacturing method is definitely already established, so there’s nothing to worry about.

The design is a bit vague, but if I use the colors that generally come to mind, I’ll likely succeed.

Nevertheless, the reason why I’m sitting here with such a serious expression is that I can’t easily understand why the Countess made this request.

It’s strange for me to interfere in other people’s married life, but the Tigris couple’s relationship, as it appears on the outside, wasn’t smooth enough to plan an event like this.

And it’s not like the Tigris family members are that affectionate.

Of course, there can be exceptions to all of this, so I could just brush it off, but that rabbit on the order list kept bothering me.

A person who pointed things out to me with her eyes or attitude, even though I’m a complete stranger, is going to dress her husband as a rabbit?

Could the rabbit ears be some kind of trap?

Like how you’ll die if you say ‘yes’ to the question ‘Do I look fat?’, will a marital fight start if he chooses that one?

Or am I just fantasizing too much?

Ah~ Seriously, I should have just listened to the two of them’s love story.

I’m dying of curiosity.

“Tsk…”

I stopped the pen I was spinning and put the tip on the paper, clicking my tongue.

I should make what they asked me to make first, and then find out about what’s bothering me separately.

_

Because of the suspicions that kept causing strange fantasies to run wild in my head, I wondered if I was thinking with too much prejudice, so I looked for my mother as soon as I got off work.

“Mother, do you know much about the Tigris Countess?”

I wasn’t sure, but I had a feeling that my mother would know a lot about her, so I just threw out the question right away.

“… The Tigris Countess? Are you talking about Henrietta?”

“Yes.”

And like that choice was the right answer, my mother called the Tigris Countess very affectionately and put a soft smile on her face.

“We haven’t had a chance to see each other since she grew up because she and we were busy, but when she was a little tyke, we used to see her often; she was a very cute child.”

“… Cute?”

But the characteristics that came out of my mother’s mouth seemed a bit different from the person I knew.

No matter how I looked at it, she wasn’t someone who had a cute impression.

Her sharp gaze and large physique felt more intimidating than cute.

“Hehe~ Of course, she’s grown up to be a picky child now, but in the old days, she was a child who was friendly with humans even though she was a demi-human; she especially liked His Majesty the Crown Prince and your father.”

“Not a knight, but a wizard?”

“Either way, they’re strong, aren’t they? They’re not like that anymore because they’re both old now, but back then, they were people who competed for the title of strongest in the empire, wouldn’t the noble faction guys call us butchers for no reason?”

“I see.”

“Henrietta asks them about what happened during the civil war every time they meet, so the two of them were incredibly wary of her, but the Ho-in people aren’t the type to care about that.”

“Hmm…”

Except for the childlike behavior, the image is definitely consistent with the present.

But the question about the request still wasn’t easily resolved.

She admires strong people, but a rabbit…

“But why are you suddenly asking about this?”

“The Tigris Countess came to our atelier today and commissioned us to make clothes, so I asked because it was my first demi-human client.”

“Hmph~ Is it because her wedding anniversary is slowly approaching?”

“You knew?”

“Of course, the child who had been singing since she was young that she wanted to marry a strong man who could beat her really caught a person who looked exactly like her ideal type and got married.”

“Ooh…”

A story that could give me a clue flowed from my mother’s mouth.

I hurriedly took out my notebook and quickly scribbled the story my mother was telling onto the paper.

“That man is also so amazing, how he won against a child who can tear people apart with her bare hands without mana… Still, I’m glad that they seem to be getting along well.”

Wait, what?

“Uh… tears people apart?”

“Yeah, like pulling out carrots like this.”

My mother pretended to pull out her arm with a serious expression.

“Wow…”

What is that man?

How strong is a human to win against and capture a woman like that?

No, more than that, why a rabbit to someone like that…

I felt like my head was getting a little more complicated.

“Ahem…”

I scratched my head, wrote ‘It is necessary to make the clothes very durable’ at the bottom of the notebook, and carefully closed the notebook.