Chapter 15

Since morning, it had been much busier than yesterday.

The wedding was to start around noon, and the reception was to be held in the evening.

Since Rane would be needed as Alex's partner only for the evening reception, she decided not to attend the wedding ceremony held in the afternoon.

She had never intended to go to the wedding ceremony in the first place.

Moreover, her childhood friends would also be attending the wedding.

If they spotted her, they would surely question why she had suddenly left without a word. Besides, it would be inconvenient for her to be seen with Alex.

So, she planned to meet Ada at the reception later.

It seemed that Alex couldn't afford to be absent, and after greeting Rane, he left the mansion immediately. The splendid formal attire tailored for the hero suited him well, and she couldn't help but be captivated by his appearance.

Rane's turn was in the evening, so she had thought she could relax a bit, but it didn't seem to be the case.

After waking up and having a light breakfast, she was taken to the bath again, and her hair was washed thoroughly. Sally helped Rane, who didn't know how to take care of her hair, but she felt a bit embarrassed.

(For noble young ladies, it might be normal and not embarrassing at all.)

They apparently didn't even change clothes by themselves.

But as a commoner, Rane might have tried to decline if Sally hadn't been like a mother to her.

After that, she tried on the dress that had been adjusted and made minor corrections.

The dress had become surprisingly easy to wear overnight.

"Amazing..."

Rane, who usually did embroidery work, sincerely admired the skills of the seamstresses who made dresses for noble young ladies.

After taking off the dress for the final adjustments and having Sally make her some tea, she finally had a moment to rest.

While waiting for the dress to be completed, Sally told her various things about Alex.

It seemed that he, like Ada, had been an adventurer fighting monsters before being chosen as a hero. Moreover, he was an S-rank adventurer, of which there were only a few in the world, which showed how strong he was.

This mansion, unlike Ada's, was not provided by the country but was purchased by Alex during his adventurer days.

"The house was bought in this area for Lady Reine, with whom he lived. The capital is not a very safe place."

"I see."

Rane nodded.

Indeed, it was dangerous just a short distance away from the crowded main street.

For Alex, who often left the house on missions, this upscale residential area was a place where he could leave his sister in peace.

Alex's parents had already passed away when he and his sister were still young, and he became an adventurer to raise her. As his skills were recognized, he received more requests from the capital and moved here, but Reine, who disliked the capital without a view of the sea, often returned to her hometown. Yesterday, she had another argument with the Holy Maiden at the cathedral and returned to her hometown.

"Is she going to be okay alone?"

More concerned about whether she could travel alone than the argument with the Holy Maiden, Rane asked. It turned out that a female mage always accompanied her as a bodyguard.

After finishing her story, Sally, looking as if it was now Rane's turn, wanted to know how she and Alex had met.

"Actually..."

Having become quite close to Sally, Rane decided that it would be fine to tell her everything since Alex trusted her. She revealed the reason for her coming to the capital and her encounter with Alex.

"That's how it was..."

Sally, frowning after hearing about her relationship with Ada, said:

"It's a good thing you didn't marry such an unfaithful person. Today, let's go and meet him looking so beautiful that he'll regret it."

"Thank you."

Rane smiled.

Strangely, her anxiety from the previous day had disappeared.

It must have been thanks to that beautiful dress. Perhaps dressing beautifully is like armor for women.

Wearing the perfectly finished dress and having her hair styled, she received a light, subtle makeup to enhance her fair skin.

Rane was led to stand in front of the mirror by Sally.

A vivid, cobalt-blue beautiful dress.

If Rane had had luxurious blonde hair and a striking face, it might have been a bit too much.

But her calm wheat-colored hair and subtle makeup made her look elegantly beautiful.

"You look very beautiful."

Sally's words were not flattery but a heartfelt compliment.

"Thank you for everything."

After bowing in gratitude, she was gently reassured that the real show was about to begin.

As Sally said, she was going to meet Ada.

The reception was to start in the evening, but she had to go to the castle in the late afternoon.

After getting ready and waiting for Alex to pick her up, he returned just as the sun was setting. When he saw Rane in her dress, he was so surprised that he stopped in his tracks and stared.

Was his face a bit red because of the sunset?

"Lord Alex."

Sally called his name, sounding a bit exasperated.

"Before you get lost in admiration, don't you have something to say?"

Hearing this, Alex seemed to come to his senses, looked at Rane, and smiled softly.

"It suits you. You look very beautiful."

Hearing this, Rane blushed like a young girl.

"Thank you."