Countess Youngae’s Money-Sweeping Makeup Shop - Chapter 8

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

8

Inside the transparent glass, a beautiful dress was displayed.

The dress was a pastel pink color resembling a peach, with white lace and ribbons decorating between the dress layers like waves.

However, the dress was neither tacky nor excessive.

Despite being pink, it looked incredibly sophisticated.

I couldn’t take my eyes off that dress.

The dress I had never been able to wear even as a child made my heart pound.

My mind also showed me an image of myself wearing that dress and smiling.

But a chill running down my spine brought me back to my senses.

When I returned to reality, a bitter taste vibrated in my mouth.

A dress like that would be expensive.

Especially in a place like this.

With the money to buy that dress, I could buy tons of these dyes and still have money left over.

Having organized my thoughts that way, I turned around and left the clothing store behind.

Just as I was about to move to another location, I heard Felix’s voice from far away.

“Ria, where are you? Ria!”

As soon as I heard his voice, I raised my hand high and waved it, but perhaps because Sillia was quite small, Felix still couldn’t spot me.

Eventually, I walked quickly toward where Felix’s voice was coming from.

Perhaps because it was almost dinner time, the streets were bustling.

“Excuse me, let me pass through… ugh!”

I was struggling to pass between people when I almost collided with someone.

Fortunately, I succeeded in dodging that person.

The problem was that I collided head-on with the person coming behind them, and I grabbed that person’s chest to avoid falling.

‘Wow, I want to hide in a mouse hole. How do I lift my head now? But I can’t keep staying like this either!’

By the time I realized what I had done, it was already an irreversible situation.

I squeezed my eyes shut, then slowly opened them and pulled my body away.

Just now, as my body leaned forward quickly, the hat covering my head fell backward.

Then my vision opened up completely.

And when I faced the person who had caught me, my body tensed up as if filled with tension.

The person looking down at me had an incredible presence.

Though their face was hidden by a black mask resembling a wolf, golden-yellow eyes were staring at me intently as if I were prey.

That person appeared to be about 30cm taller than Sillia.

They weren’t a thin person either, so just their standing there filled my entire field of vision.

Whether it was their height or build, that person seemed to be telling me they were male, but I couldn’t be certain of their gender.

Because their roughly tied navy blue hair reached down to their chest.

As I stood there unable to say anything, just staring at that person, they also quietly looked at me.

My dizzy head made my eyes look downward.

And what came into view were black pants, a dark navy cloak, and what appeared to be a wolf emblem on their chest.

“…Jesuert Youngsik?”

“Ria!”

When I heard Felix’s voice, I came to my senses again.

I quickly pulled my body away and bowed my head to the man who was ‘Jesuert Youngsik.’

“I’m sorry. I accidentally didn’t watch where I was going…”

While I was apologizing, the man looked down at me, then muttered in a small voice as he passed by me.

“A strange woman has attached herself to me. How annoying.”

…What?

I was dumbfounded.

Does he think I was following him around right now?

Weren’t you the one who came after me?

As I stood there with a stunned expression, Felix, who had approached at some point, was panting and grabbed my cloak.

“Finally found you again. What are you doing disappearing suddenly? You’d be moved if you heard the story of how hard I worked to find you.”

Felix wiped his sweaty forehead with a handkerchief and put my fallen hat back on.

“Let’s quickly buy my stuff and go back. I don’t want to get scolded by the Count for coming home late. Ugh.”

Felix seemed not to have seen the man presumed to be ‘Jesuert Youngsik’ and just kept nagging at me.

Of course, my mind was thinking about that man from earlier, so I wasn’t really listening to Felix’s nagging.

I didn’t know what Felix had said, but I walked following Felix with his voice as background noise.

***

We bought quill pens and dessert for Lili and headed to the carriage.

I asked Felix if we couldn’t have just bought the quill pen at the art supply shop earlier, but he poured out a speech saying he felt awkward and couldn’t use it unless he bought from the place he always shopped at.

And when we arrived at the store, didn’t Felix pick out tons of quill pens?

I was quietly watching that scene with questioning eyes when Felix cleared his throat and spoke as if telling me something amazing.

“It used to be once every three days, but now that I come out to buy them, it’s reduced to once a week. How about that?”

So what.

Still, if I said that directly, Felix would probably pout his lips like a duck and grumble, so I praised him saying he did well.

Thanks to that, Felix walked triumphantly like an excited puppy until we bought dessert and returned to the carriage.

After getting on the carriage, I squeezed my eyes shut at the butt hell that was about to begin again.

It would be better to just fall asleep, right?

Just as I was trying to sleep…

Tap tap.

At the sensation of someone tapping my knee, I slowly opened my eyes.

“What?”

“Aren’t you going to look at the scenery outside? It’s the landscape you like.”

“What’s so interesting about scenery. I want to sleep a bit…”

Following Felix’s words, I turned my head toward the window.

The scenery passing by in the opposite direction of the carriage’s movement made me unconsciously open my mouth.

“Wow.”

When had I ever seen such scenery?

Pink flowers spread across a vast meadow, and orange and pink mixed together as if pollen had risen up, filling the sky completely.

Light spread through white clouds here and there, making it seem like a god might descend from there.

Having always seen only the lights of buildings, when I took in such scenery, I felt a sense of openness in my heart and breath rose from my lower abdomen all the way to my throat.

People say they feel overwhelmed when moved by beautiful things – could this be that kind of sensation?

As I watched the scenery, losing track of time, Felix didn’t say anything until we passed that landscape.

***

“Ria.”

Felix spoke to me when the manor began to be visible in the distance.

“What?”

“Should I take care of sending the ball dress this time too? Or do you have something specific you want?”

“Huh? There are dresses at home too.”

“You want to wear something you’ve already worn again? Everyone will laugh at you.”

“What were you originally planning to send?”

“Originally? I was going to send a blue-toned dress like usual.”

“Then couldn’t you send something more glamorous?”

“Something glamorous? Suddenly? You never liked glamorous things before.”

I didn’t like them?

Then what about the dress I saw when I woke up today?

If that wasn’t glamorous, how much more glamorous could it get?

That might be a bit too much.

But going to a ball isn’t that different from going to your cheating ex-boyfriend’s wedding.

If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be okay to be even more glamorous than this morning?

If I’m going to change anyway, completely changing seems like it would make me more famous.

I nodded my head and looked at Felix with sparkling eyes.

“Yeah, something flashy!”

Felix tilted his head but soon nodded with a bewildered expression.

“I don’t have an eye for dresses, so I’ll send a designer around tomorrow. Look at them then and choose whatever you like.”

“You have a lot of money. Is it okay to spend money like that?”

“Do you know how much money Father gave me to spend on buying you dresses? Since you haven’t called designers or anything all this time, the money has been piling up.”

“Then instead of a dress, couldn’t you just give me that money?”

“Then it would all get taken away. Don’t you remember? When I gave you money to buy things, your older brother took it all. I wondered why he would take all of that.”

At his sighing and shaking his head, I clenched my fist tight then released it.

What kind of older brother steals his younger sister’s money?

Is he a thug?

Calm down, calm down.

After slowly breathing and settling my mind, I looked at Felix seriously.

“I’ll come to the ball transformed, so you dress up as flashily as possible that day too. Got it, Felix?”

“Flashily? Ugh, that sounds exhausting already. Please tell them not to put makeup on me. I don’t want to be covered in all that white stuff.”

“What makeup? Your natural face is better.”

“Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. Thanks?”

Felix’s face turned bright red as he stammered a response and nodded.

Meanwhile, the carriage arrived in front of the manor.

Felix familiarly stood up first and got out of the carriage.

Then he extended his hand to me.

I didn’t think much of it earlier, but this is way more embarrassing and awkward than I expected!

But when in Rome, do as the Romans do!

I squeezed my eyes shut then opened them, suppressing my emotions, then familiarly took his hand and gracefully stepped down from the carriage.

Felix rattled off various pieces of advice even though I’m not a child, then got back in the carriage and left.

After confirming the carriage had departed, only then did I start walking.

Usually in places like this, doesn’t anyone come out to greet you?

With the sun almost setting, walking alone through this long entrance to enter the manor felt somewhat eerie and lonely.

I looked around and smiled.

Well, I guess no one’s coming out!

I’ve walked paths like this my whole life.

Don’t underestimate someone who lived a 15-minute walk from the bus stop!

I put strength in my steps and bravely walked to the manor.

Passing through the manor entrance, which wasn’t as far as I thought, I arrived at the manor door and pushed it open forcefully to enter.

Then I made eye contact with an expressionless middle-aged man.

“Who are you.”

The man had distinct blue hair and deep pink eyes.

Plus extremely sharp eyes and a heavy atmosphere.

Just making eye contact with him made my breath catch.

I instinctively knew.

That person,

He’s Sillia’s adoptive father.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————