Alfonso's muscular chest pressed against hers. Ariadne blushed and pushed Alfonso away. It was impossible with her own strength, but he always magically moved away.
Ariadne grumbled, her lips sticking out.
“That’s because it was nearby that day.”
“I know that much of a difference.”
Alfonso could sense the changes without touching them, even just by looking at them. He could tell how intensely he studied Ariadne whenever he had the chance after she became his woman. Alfonso spoke with confidence.
“I said it’s not that bad.”
Ariadne shouted out without thinking, as a spinal reflex.
“So you’re saying you gained weight?!”
His wife didn't seem to have any worries about him. A girl like Ariadne could be like that, Alfonso thought to himself.
He smiled happily without saying anything and kissed Ariadne. It would be difficult to talk about life. This was the wisdom he had gained after a short married life.
“Ouch!”
Ariadne, whose lips were occupied, punched her husband's chest twice. However, she soon gave up resisting when his hands came after her. Alfonso, like a ghost, chose a point where Ariadne could not resist and melted her with an irresistible sweetness.
“Uh... Ugh..!”
She thought as she fell down, clinging to Alfonso's chest. This defeat was inevitable. The time and place were unfavorable. To begin with, she was wearing only a gown that looked like a dragonfly's wing. For example, she was ambushed without any armor and started the battle with only a sword. No, did she even have a sword?
Alfonso could no longer bear it when he saw Ariadne sighing with a shiver. He lifted his wife, who was so charming, wearing only a thin silk dress, and trembling delicately and quietly like a dragonfly wing, and placed her on the leather chair inside the partition. At this moment, Ariadne's eyes widened.
'Aren't you going to bed?!'
But then a dark mass swooped down on her. Her wide eyes were soon covered with her husband's kisses and even more.
"Sorry."
Alfonso apologized politely.
“If it’s a folding screen you like, I’ll order the exact same one and make it fit you.”
“...”
“Same pattern as ot? Different pattern?”
“...It worked!”
Alfonso, who was carrying out the uprising, accidentally knocked over the stained glass partition in Ariadne’s inner chamber. The thick glass shattered into pieces with a loud cracking sound, scattering in all directions. The problem was that Alfonso did not stop after that.
'Didn't Sancha and the other kids hear that?'
If the sound of glass breaking was loud in the mistress's room, it would be natural for people to come to check on Ariadne. The reason they couldn't come in was... There was only one reason. There was another sound as well.
“It’s so manly, really!”
“So what, we’re a married couple.”
Alfonso asked back with a face devoid of any emotion.
“Your maids all know that we’re married.”
Alfonso thought that the private lives of the servants were part of the division of labor that a servant who served them at close range had to know and follow. If he wanted to be a successor, it was really natural, a normal part of everyday life, for a subordinate to guide and help him know when to work hard, when to take care of himself, and when to go easy.
Ariadne, on the other hand, wanted to beat her chest at Alfonso's nonchalant attitude. Alfonso was surprisingly insensitive to what was visible to his servants. She thought there was a difference between men and women in terms of private life, but it wasn't. Ariadne had felt a similar kind of insensitivity from Juliana Gabriele.
Those who were born with noble birth regarded their servants as part of the equipment rather than as people. Just as they did not have to be careful about what they said in front of a chair, they spoke and acted without hesitation in front of servants.
“Don’t say things you wouldn’t say in front of others!”
“I’ve never said anything I couldn’t say. People should be the same on the outside and inside.”
They seemed to be talking about the same thing, but they weren't. Their conversation on this topic always went around and around like this. Ariadne put her hand to her forehead. When she lived with Cesare, they had never fought over this issue.
Cesare grew up in a palace where the King and Queen's men were everywhere, eating food that was out of sight. This was similar to Ariadne's upbringing, who had to avoid the gaze of Grandma Gian Galeazzo when she was very young, and Lucrezia and Isabella after her adolescence.
Cesare avoided everyone except for a few very close people and did not allow anyone to come near him. Even after becoming the regent, he placed extreme importance on privacy, to the point that some nobles complained that the regent was not making enough efforts for the ruling class.
But Ariadne, too, felt comfortable in that isolation. Everything had flowed smoothly back then, except that Cesare didn’t love her. Ariadne shook her head as she thought about the old days.
'Let us not be blinded by familiar misfortunes.'
It was a path she had already taken. If she did that again, her head would be in a bad state. Besides, it was a relationship that she had already cut off cleanly with her own hands so that there was no turning back. There was no room for regret.
The reason she suddenly thought of her old lover was that she was going to meet Cesare today. Today, the two of them were going to attend a ball hosted by Cesare's mother, Duchess Rubina. It was the Thanksgiving Ball in question.
“You look very pretty today.”
Alfonso whispered in a hazy voice. It was hard to tell whether it was an apology or just that he couldn't get away from Ariadne as usual.
It didn't even have to be an apology. The moment she saw his face, her anger melted away. He was very handsome, had short golden hair that seemed to melt the sunlight, and his white teeth shone like a Prince in a fairy tale, and most of all, he was looking at her with eyes dripping with honey.
Two blue-gray eyes stared at her, sparkling with laughter. Ariadne couldn't help but laugh out loud.
“Thank you. You look great, too.”
Today, Alfonso was wearing a magnificent robe of blue silk embroidered with gold thread. This new fabric, made by weaving two layers of silk and cutting them in half, was something Ariadne, who had traced the fashions of her past life, had brought to San Carlo half a year earlier than the original introduction.
Although similar products had occasionally been imported in the past, this was the first time that the newly improved silk had been distributed in the Moorish Empire. The improved silk had a soft, fluffy texture and was warm, making it a must-have item for fall and winter.
'The merchant who brought this in in my previous life started distribution in the spring and had less fun in the first year.'
So Ariadne decided to showcase her masterpiece on her best mannequin while everyone else was getting their winter clothes ready.
The venue was a Thanksgiving ball hosted by Leo III himself, and the model was Prince Alfonso, the sole heir to the throne of this country.
Ariadne herself was dressed in a red-and-blue silk dress, but she had no idea that her outfit would make any difference. If Sancha had known, she would have been astonished and asked what the young lady was talking about, saying that anything she put on would sell out.
'We decided to supply Udon exclusively to the Canali clothing store this winter season, and from next year, we will release it as home fashion, such as cushions and curtains at Lazzione clothing store...'
Ariadne's head was spinning. She had made a fortune in the grain business during the Great Plague, but it was a trick that could only be used once. As a Countess of de Mare, who had no land, she was disappointed that there was no steady cash flow.
Of course, she had accumulated assets, so she could make a quick buck by playing for money with the Remuins, as the old Counts of Contarini had done. Ariadne was sure she could do three times better than the late Count Contarini, but the most valuable thing she had was her reputation. That was something money could not buy.
It was a lowly thing to do to tarnish with one's own hands the name of a saint that had spread throughout the continent.
'Well, the side income is also quite good.'
She thought positively. But this was not money for fun, as she had told herself. Now that her father had stepped down from his position as Cardinal, there was really no source of income for the family, so there was nothing else to do.
Of course, now that she was married, it was only natural that she would receive living expenses from her husband. However, her husband had a huge larva attached to him.
It was his knights.
Leo III, who was secretly keeping his son in check, did not increase the budget of the palace even a single penny compared to when Alfonso was a 15-year-old boy. As a result, almost all of the palace budget went to the maintenance of the Knights Templar. Far from leaving any money, the small amount of money left over from the war by Queen Marguerite was used to supplement the maintenance costs of the Knights Templar.
Ariadne, who was fully aware of this situation, could not have accepted Alfonso's money and spent it with peace of mind.
'Just to save on living expenses, should I move into the palace?'
Living expenses, when combined, amount to much less than what each person spends individually. But Ariadne soon shook her head.
The living expenses of the de Mare mansion were largely in the form of labor costs for her people. When she entered the palace, she could only take a few of her closest maids, but most of her servants could not go with her. In particular, all the male servants, including Giuseppe, would have to be sent away.
'How could they possibly be trained like that?'
But then suddenly the carriage shook.
Hehehee!
Hehe!
The sound and vibration of the galloping horses from the front of the four-horse carriage penetrated into the carriage without any hesitation.
Judging by the circumstances, someone had forced his carriage to stop. Alfonso opened the window. A look of displeasure crossed the gentle Prince's brow.
“What is going on?”
The Prince's procession was suddenly blocked at the central gate leading into Palagio Carlo, the first gate through which guests entered the palace.
Nine guards guarding the gate rushed forward and blocked the carriage. The guard leader leading them approached the carriage and asked in a trembling voice.
“I’m sorry...! May I ask who the passenger in the carriage is?”
Alfonso's eyebrows rose. He was now riding in a four-horse carriage with the gilded laurel emblem of the House of Carlo, a vehicle reserved only for Princes.
“Are you doing this because you don’t know that this is the Prince’s carriage?”
Ariadne grumbled, her lips sticking out.
“That’s because it was nearby that day.”
“I know that much of a difference.”
Alfonso could sense the changes without touching them, even just by looking at them. He could tell how intensely he studied Ariadne whenever he had the chance after she became his woman. Alfonso spoke with confidence.
“I said it’s not that bad.”
Ariadne shouted out without thinking, as a spinal reflex.
“So you’re saying you gained weight?!”
His wife didn't seem to have any worries about him. A girl like Ariadne could be like that, Alfonso thought to himself.
He smiled happily without saying anything and kissed Ariadne. It would be difficult to talk about life. This was the wisdom he had gained after a short married life.
“Ouch!”
Ariadne, whose lips were occupied, punched her husband's chest twice. However, she soon gave up resisting when his hands came after her. Alfonso, like a ghost, chose a point where Ariadne could not resist and melted her with an irresistible sweetness.
“Uh... Ugh..!”
She thought as she fell down, clinging to Alfonso's chest. This defeat was inevitable. The time and place were unfavorable. To begin with, she was wearing only a gown that looked like a dragonfly's wing. For example, she was ambushed without any armor and started the battle with only a sword. No, did she even have a sword?
Alfonso could no longer bear it when he saw Ariadne sighing with a shiver. He lifted his wife, who was so charming, wearing only a thin silk dress, and trembling delicately and quietly like a dragonfly wing, and placed her on the leather chair inside the partition. At this moment, Ariadne's eyes widened.
'Aren't you going to bed?!'
But then a dark mass swooped down on her. Her wide eyes were soon covered with her husband's kisses and even more.
***
"Sorry."
Alfonso apologized politely.
“If it’s a folding screen you like, I’ll order the exact same one and make it fit you.”
“...”
“Same pattern as ot? Different pattern?”
“...It worked!”
Alfonso, who was carrying out the uprising, accidentally knocked over the stained glass partition in Ariadne’s inner chamber. The thick glass shattered into pieces with a loud cracking sound, scattering in all directions. The problem was that Alfonso did not stop after that.
'Didn't Sancha and the other kids hear that?'
If the sound of glass breaking was loud in the mistress's room, it would be natural for people to come to check on Ariadne. The reason they couldn't come in was... There was only one reason. There was another sound as well.
“It’s so manly, really!”
“So what, we’re a married couple.”
Alfonso asked back with a face devoid of any emotion.
“Your maids all know that we’re married.”
Alfonso thought that the private lives of the servants were part of the division of labor that a servant who served them at close range had to know and follow. If he wanted to be a successor, it was really natural, a normal part of everyday life, for a subordinate to guide and help him know when to work hard, when to take care of himself, and when to go easy.
Ariadne, on the other hand, wanted to beat her chest at Alfonso's nonchalant attitude. Alfonso was surprisingly insensitive to what was visible to his servants. She thought there was a difference between men and women in terms of private life, but it wasn't. Ariadne had felt a similar kind of insensitivity from Juliana Gabriele.
Those who were born with noble birth regarded their servants as part of the equipment rather than as people. Just as they did not have to be careful about what they said in front of a chair, they spoke and acted without hesitation in front of servants.
“Don’t say things you wouldn’t say in front of others!”
“I’ve never said anything I couldn’t say. People should be the same on the outside and inside.”
They seemed to be talking about the same thing, but they weren't. Their conversation on this topic always went around and around like this. Ariadne put her hand to her forehead. When she lived with Cesare, they had never fought over this issue.
Cesare grew up in a palace where the King and Queen's men were everywhere, eating food that was out of sight. This was similar to Ariadne's upbringing, who had to avoid the gaze of Grandma Gian Galeazzo when she was very young, and Lucrezia and Isabella after her adolescence.
Cesare avoided everyone except for a few very close people and did not allow anyone to come near him. Even after becoming the regent, he placed extreme importance on privacy, to the point that some nobles complained that the regent was not making enough efforts for the ruling class.
But Ariadne, too, felt comfortable in that isolation. Everything had flowed smoothly back then, except that Cesare didn’t love her. Ariadne shook her head as she thought about the old days.
'Let us not be blinded by familiar misfortunes.'
It was a path she had already taken. If she did that again, her head would be in a bad state. Besides, it was a relationship that she had already cut off cleanly with her own hands so that there was no turning back. There was no room for regret.
The reason she suddenly thought of her old lover was that she was going to meet Cesare today. Today, the two of them were going to attend a ball hosted by Cesare's mother, Duchess Rubina. It was the Thanksgiving Ball in question.
“You look very pretty today.”
Alfonso whispered in a hazy voice. It was hard to tell whether it was an apology or just that he couldn't get away from Ariadne as usual.
It didn't even have to be an apology. The moment she saw his face, her anger melted away. He was very handsome, had short golden hair that seemed to melt the sunlight, and his white teeth shone like a Prince in a fairy tale, and most of all, he was looking at her with eyes dripping with honey.
Two blue-gray eyes stared at her, sparkling with laughter. Ariadne couldn't help but laugh out loud.
“Thank you. You look great, too.”
Today, Alfonso was wearing a magnificent robe of blue silk embroidered with gold thread. This new fabric, made by weaving two layers of silk and cutting them in half, was something Ariadne, who had traced the fashions of her past life, had brought to San Carlo half a year earlier than the original introduction.
Although similar products had occasionally been imported in the past, this was the first time that the newly improved silk had been distributed in the Moorish Empire. The improved silk had a soft, fluffy texture and was warm, making it a must-have item for fall and winter.
'The merchant who brought this in in my previous life started distribution in the spring and had less fun in the first year.'
So Ariadne decided to showcase her masterpiece on her best mannequin while everyone else was getting their winter clothes ready.
The venue was a Thanksgiving ball hosted by Leo III himself, and the model was Prince Alfonso, the sole heir to the throne of this country.
Ariadne herself was dressed in a red-and-blue silk dress, but she had no idea that her outfit would make any difference. If Sancha had known, she would have been astonished and asked what the young lady was talking about, saying that anything she put on would sell out.
'We decided to supply Udon exclusively to the Canali clothing store this winter season, and from next year, we will release it as home fashion, such as cushions and curtains at Lazzione clothing store...'
Ariadne's head was spinning. She had made a fortune in the grain business during the Great Plague, but it was a trick that could only be used once. As a Countess of de Mare, who had no land, she was disappointed that there was no steady cash flow.
Of course, she had accumulated assets, so she could make a quick buck by playing for money with the Remuins, as the old Counts of Contarini had done. Ariadne was sure she could do three times better than the late Count Contarini, but the most valuable thing she had was her reputation. That was something money could not buy.
It was a lowly thing to do to tarnish with one's own hands the name of a saint that had spread throughout the continent.
'Well, the side income is also quite good.'
She thought positively. But this was not money for fun, as she had told herself. Now that her father had stepped down from his position as Cardinal, there was really no source of income for the family, so there was nothing else to do.
Of course, now that she was married, it was only natural that she would receive living expenses from her husband. However, her husband had a huge larva attached to him.
It was his knights.
Leo III, who was secretly keeping his son in check, did not increase the budget of the palace even a single penny compared to when Alfonso was a 15-year-old boy. As a result, almost all of the palace budget went to the maintenance of the Knights Templar. Far from leaving any money, the small amount of money left over from the war by Queen Marguerite was used to supplement the maintenance costs of the Knights Templar.
Ariadne, who was fully aware of this situation, could not have accepted Alfonso's money and spent it with peace of mind.
'Just to save on living expenses, should I move into the palace?'
Living expenses, when combined, amount to much less than what each person spends individually. But Ariadne soon shook her head.
The living expenses of the de Mare mansion were largely in the form of labor costs for her people. When she entered the palace, she could only take a few of her closest maids, but most of her servants could not go with her. In particular, all the male servants, including Giuseppe, would have to be sent away.
'How could they possibly be trained like that?'
But then suddenly the carriage shook.
Hehehee!
Hehe!
The sound and vibration of the galloping horses from the front of the four-horse carriage penetrated into the carriage without any hesitation.
Judging by the circumstances, someone had forced his carriage to stop. Alfonso opened the window. A look of displeasure crossed the gentle Prince's brow.
“What is going on?”
The Prince's procession was suddenly blocked at the central gate leading into Palagio Carlo, the first gate through which guests entered the palace.
Nine guards guarding the gate rushed forward and blocked the carriage. The guard leader leading them approached the carriage and asked in a trembling voice.
“I’m sorry...! May I ask who the passenger in the carriage is?”
Alfonso's eyebrows rose. He was now riding in a four-horse carriage with the gilded laurel emblem of the House of Carlo, a vehicle reserved only for Princes.
“Are you doing this because you don’t know that this is the Prince’s carriage?”
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