KTBYM - Chapter 17

"Are you looking for a party dress? Or something for going out?"

"It's my outfit for going out."

He answered quickly before Eon could speak. Since things had turned out this way, he intended to secure the best possible outcome.

Even if I had a dress, I wouldn't have any occasion to wear it. I needed plain and comfortable clothes in preparation for escaping from the magic tower.

"Do you have a specific design in mind?"

"Yes. First of all, I would like the skirt to be wide. Please make the length below the knee, and I would also like the sleeves to be comfortable for movement. And as for the color..."

No particular color came to mind. I was looking around, wondering what a safe color would be that wouldn't stand out too much to others.

"Please make the skirt olive green and the top coral pink."

Eon said something hard to believe.

'Olive Green? And what? Coral Pink?'

It was the first time I had seen a man request colors like olive green or coral pink. At least for the men around me, dark green or pink was the best.

"I recommended this because Miss Selinia seemed hesitant. If you don't like it, you are welcome to change it."

"Oh my, oh my, such thoughtfulness as to even choose the color for you—you must be so lucky, young lady."

Since they were reacting that strongly, there was no need for me to go out of my way to change the color. Although I felt somewhat uneasy about it, I chose that book as my basis for judgment.

Eon asked me with a satisfied look on his face.

"Did you know? Olive green and coral pink go well with brown hair like yours."

'Right...'

They said I was picky about choosing the color, and it turned out to be because of my brown hair.

Jean, unaware of what was going on inside Eon's mind, showered me with compliments, saying things like how nice my hair was and how thoughtful the Marquis was. Wanting to shake off that beastly gaze fixed on my hair, I rolled up the hair I had tied.

"As expected, you have keen taste. Then, I will measure the young lady."

She led me inside the boutique. It was a room that looked like a fitting room. Jean struck up a conversation subtly.

"This is the first time the Marquis has visited here with the other young ladies."

She must have said it to give me a dream full of rosy colors. However, what came to mind was not rosy, but a blood-red imagination.

Clothes from high-end boutiques like Jean-Tierre stood out. It was also easy to identify who had bought them. Dressing the victims in such clothes would only increase the amount of evidence.

"But why am I..."

A mutter like a sigh escaped from my mouth.

"Oh my, why would you ask? Of course it is because you are a special person, young lady."

"Ahaha, that's right, a special person."

It was difficult to gauge whether this was a sign that my lifespan would increase or decrease. Jean thrust her hand over my shoulder.

"A man who picks out the colors of his woman's clothes? At that level, you have nothing more to worry about."

"Yes?"

"Men, by nature, aren't interested in things like dress colors. Take the Marquis, for example. He always gets his suits made in dark colors."

The next step was the waist. The measuring tape moved to the waist.

"For someone like him to recommend the color of your outfit? What does that mean? Doesn't it mean he has been thinking about nothing but you all day?"

“Oh, yes.”

I answered evasively. I understood what Jean meant by saying that, but she had completely missed the point.

'I suppose he could have thought about nothing but this brown hair all day long for several years.'

"Besides, seeing how perfectly the color suits you, young lady, I can tell just how much thought went into choosing it."

“I really hope so.”

How I wish Eon had been just an ordinary man who liked me, as Jean mistakenly thought. If so, the difficulty of this life would have been quite easy.

When I returned after finishing the measurements, the coat that had been hanging in the display window was sitting on the counter. Even to me, a fashion novice, the white fur coat looked like the most expensive item in the boutique.

Eon said, adding a hat and gloves that looked like a set with the coat.

"Please calculate all of these together as well."

"Oh my, that will make for a truly wonderful gift. The clothes will be finished in fifteen days. Since she is someone precious to the Marquis, I will pay extra attention to her."

Jean bowed her head repeatedly and smiled broadly.

"Let's put on the coat now. Let's leave that shabby, worn-out cloak behind."

Eon draped the coat over my shoulders with a smile. To me, it was a chilling smile, but Jean must have interpreted it differently. She gave me a look that seemed to say, "See? I was right."

A sigh escaped my lips involuntarily.

***

“Why?”

“What do you mean?”

"I think this is a bit too much for a welcome gift from Tower Master."

"The title has changed."

"That’s the thing. Of course, I can’t keep calling you that. I was just playing along with the Tower Master’s prank earlier."

"Prank?"

"It seems like you wanted us to look like a man and a woman who know each other. Aren't you right?"

"Since we are a man and a woman who know each other well, there is no need to beat around the bush so much when using the word "lovers."

After hearing the word "lover" from his mouth, I began to wonder why he had mimicked it.

"And as Miss Selinia said, it is true that I wanted to look like a couple."

Eon paused for a moment and stared at me blankly.

'What do you want from me?'

This demanding predator seemed to want much more from its prey than just flesh. However, reading his mind from the prey's perspective was a difficult task.

"How about you continue calling me Eon from now on?"

In that instant, Eon leaned toward me and narrowed his eyes. Unlike the words he had uttered, it seemed like a warning never to call his name so carelessly again. I felt uneasy, as if my pointless recklessness had hastened my own demise.

Of course, this wasn't the only reason I felt bad. In the end, I couldn't even go near the herbalist today.

It was already past two o'clock when I left the boutique. If I had parted ways with Eon then, I might have been able to go to the herbalist. However, Eon kept an eye on me under the guise of an escort. Eventually, after buying raw stones at the jewelry store with him, I was on my way back to the Magic Tower.

"Sorry."

“Sorry?”

"I will never again carelessly call upon the name of the Tower Master."

Eon let out a laugh that sounded like a sigh.

"It seems Miss Selinia has a contrarian side. But being picky about titles is just so typical of you."

It was sarcasm, implying that I had previously refused to be called Sally.

"...Anyway, these clothes..."

"It looks like Miss Selinia will be going out quite often in the future."

'You say it looks like I'll have a lot of reasons to go out. Do you mean to say that you know my entire plan?'

In that moment, I pictured myself struggling alone on his palm. My heart began to beat fast.

“Why, why did you say that?..."

This time, even my brave mouth found it difficult to maintain its composure. I was stammering without realizing it.

"Well."

The faint smile on Eon's face remained the same. However, to me, it no longer felt like a smile. It looked merely like a beast debating whether or not to bare its itching teeth.

"Miss Selinia, try to guess. Why do you think I said that?"

Eon threw out the most boring riddle in the world. I couldn't have looked any more suspicious. After all, I had even stammered once. I racked my brain and blurted out a suitable answer.

"Ah, right. You assumed that since I've just started my research, I need to buy new materials or equipment, didn't you? Just like the other new recruits?"

I even brought in other researchers to make it look like a plausible reason.

"Although we have ingredients prepared, the ingredients used vary slightly."

Eon was looking at me with a face as if he were watching an entertaining play. He looked incredibly relaxed as he leaned his head slightly against the window and stroked the tip of his chin.

"Furthermore, the Tower Master has generously supported my research with funds. Thanks to that, I will be able to try out various combinations that I wouldn't have been able to do on my own."

On the other hand, unlike Eon, I was incredibly impatient and even added a touch of flattery to wrap things up. There wasn't even time to feel conflicted about my behavior. I simply hoped that my answer would make Eon understand.

Eon nodded with a face that looked as if he were about to clap.

'Is it a success?'

"Winter is just beginning, so you should dress warmly. It would be a big problem if you caught a cold while out and about."

Eon, who had challenged me to guess why he had said such things, neither affirmed nor denied the interpretation. He simply made up his mind and evaded the question.

"Thank you for your consideration."

I barely managed to open my mouth and gave a perfunctory answer.

My mind was a complete mess, as if a bomb had dropped. To suppress the thoughts that kept trying to burst out, I had to hum a song to myself regardless of my mood. Not long after, Eon, who had been looking out the window, smiled slightly.

'Are you listening to me humming a song?'

Well, since things had turned out this way, it was much better to let him hear the song lyrics than to let him see what I was thinking. It was a bittersweet situation to call a relief, but in any case, Eon didn't speak to me anymore. I had to keep singing in my head until I arrived at the Magic Tower.

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