Chapter 23

Then, they headed towards the largest handicraft store in the capital.

The main street was indeed crowded, and she hesitated a little before stepping in.

However, Alek stood in front, and Riene held her hand.

From now on, this capital would be Lane's new town. She couldn't afford to be timid forever.

Stepping in boldly, she found that she could naturally blend in, unlike the first day she visited.

The destination was a rather large handicraft store. It seemed that they also did sewing and embroidery inside, as there were many women working.

Inside the store, several young ladies in beautiful dresses were happily chatting while selecting fabrics.

The store owner was a woman in her mid-thirties, but when she saw Alek, she came out from the back of the store to greet them.

The way they smiled at each other was very natural, unlike the somewhat awkward and polite interactions of the nobles.

"Are you here to make another dress for Riene today?"

"No, she said Lane would teach her embroidery, so we're here to buy the tools."

The store owner's gaze fell on Lane, and her eyes sparkled.

"This is a different type from Riene, but you're a beautiful lady. I'm getting ideas for a dress design. Aren't you going to make a dress for her?"

"Yesterday, she was my partner at the celebration, but there wasn't enough time, so I just made some adjustments to Riene's dress. We might need a dress for Lane too."

The two of them looked at Lane, and she hurriedly denied it.

"No, that's not necessary. I won't have any more occasions to wear it."

"It's not certain that you won't. Besides, it's considered impolite not to give a dress to your partner."

Alek's words made the store owner nod.

"Just let me take your measurements. I'll handle the design. I'll definitely make a dress that suits you."

With that, she was somewhat forcibly led into the store.

"Ah, um..."

She looked at Riene for help, but she followed along happily.

"I want to see Lane in a dress again. The dress she wore yesterday suited her, but I think a lighter color would suit her better."

"Oh, you mean the cobalt blue dress Riene wore. Yes, a lighter color would be better..."

Turning to look at Alek, he was sitting in the reception area, being served tea by another staff member, completely relaxed.

No help was forthcoming.

"What is this, such a slim waist without a corset..."

The store owner sighed as she took Lane's measurements.

"It's a waste to make just one..."

"If it were your brother, he would probably make as many as Lane wanted, but Lane would never ask for that."

"...There's no choice. I'll have to put everything into this one dress."

Lane, who was being handled, couldn't even join in their conversation.

She was asked about her favorite colors, but decided to leave everything to them.

By the time she was finally released and returned to Alek, she was completely exhausted.

"By the way, you said you would teach embroidery..."

Returning to Alek, who was relaxing in the reception area and being served tea, she took a breath and was asked by the satisfied store owner.

"Yes. I used to do embroidery work. I thought I might look for such a job while teaching Riene."

"There are plenty of embroidery jobs."

The store owner said this and stood up, somewhat excited.

"This year, elaborate embroidery dresses are in fashion, and we're short-handed. What kind of work did you do?"

"In Kikito Village, I made embroidered carpets..."

"Kikito Village!"

"...Mary, calm down a bit."

Alek advised, and the store owner sat down, looking a bit embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. I got carried away. But if you're from Kikito Village, your skills must be excellent. Would you consider taking on embroidery work?"

She said that it could be done either by coming to the store or working from home.

"Of course."

She was good at elaborate embroidery but had never embroidered a dress before, so she decided to come to this workplace at first.

"Thank you. I look forward to working with you."

Relieved that she had found a job so quickly, she thanked the store owner.

Moreover, she could continue her embroidery work.

Embroidery was indeed a job to earn income, but Lane loved the time she spent concentrating on her needlework.

Alek bought a lot of embroidery threads and fabrics at the store.

"Riene is a beginner, so it's better to buy more for practice."

"But so much..."

At first, Lane was hesitant, but the store in the capital had a wide variety of beautiful embroidery threads.

"Beautiful..."

She couldn't help but pick them up, and Alek bought everything for her.

The store owner thanked her, and as a bonus, gave her more embroidery threads and fabrics, and offered to deliver the items.

"Thank you."

They were seen off by the cheerful store owner and left the store.

Perhaps because the measurements took a long time, even though they had left early in the morning, it was already well past noon. After discussing, they decided to buy food from a street vendor and eat it in the park, rather than going to the high-class restaurant they had been to before.

"Lane, this is delicious."

She nodded at Riene's smile and threw bread crumbs to the birds gathering in the park, spending a leisurely time.

With Alek by her side, no strange people approached.

It was a peaceful, calm, and very happy day.