Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 27

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The first thing that caught my eye was the display window beyond the glass. A lavish pink dress adorned with frills and jewels, along with gleaming shoes, seized my attention.
At a glance, it appeared to be a shop specializing in children’s clothing.
I hesitated at the entrance as Duchess Elrad and Diana stepped inside without pause.
I glanced around nervously, wondering if anyone might stop me, but the staff standing at the entrance wore exceedingly warm smiles.
Suddenly, old memories surfaced.
“What are you gawking at, you little rat! Why aren’t you moving? When beggars like you loiter around, customers won’t come!”
During my days wandering the streets, I was terrified whenever the owner would emerge with a broom and chase me away, even if I was only watching from a distance.
Later, even as I grew older, I purchased all my clothing from the market, so these upscale boutiques felt utterly foreign to me.
Yet because I had washed myself clean, dressed properly, and arrived under the escort of knights, no one hurled insults at me.
Rather, their eyes gleamed with kindness, as if welcoming me inside.
That wasn’t all. Once I entered and hesitantly sat on the sofa, they even offered me refreshments and milk.
More than the dazzling clothes that captured the eye, I was utterly captivated by the attentive demeanor of these staff members.
Before I knew it, I had entered the fitting room, had my measurements taken, and was being dressed in new clothes by the attendants’ hands.
“Mm, that one is adorable and suits you wonderfully.”
“M-Madam…”
“Hmm?”
I approached the Duchess, who tilted her head curiously, and whispered softly.
“I think the staff has misunderstood something. They took my measurements and keep dressing me in clothes…”
The Duchess burst into laughter at my nearly tearful words.
“Lia, all the clothes you’ve tried on are yours. They took your measurements to tailor your wardrobe.”
“What?”
I gasped, my eyes widening in shock.
Truthfully, even now I was wearing garments far too fine for a maid.
I had asked the Duke’s Castle steward for a maid’s uniform like those worn by the other servants, but he said there were no sizes for children.
Still embarrassed about continuing to wear the clothes the Duke’s Estate provided, I earnestly requested that he have something made in my size, but his answer was to wait—and all that returned was a small apron.
Wearing that apron and attending to Diana had been my joy, so why were they having my clothes tailored at such a shop?
“Madam, I…”
“Lia!”
Just then, Diana emerged from the fitting room in her new dress.
My heart seemed to stop.
Dressed in the magnificent pink gown I had glimpsed upon arrival, Diana was nothing short of an enchanting little fairy.
“Dana! You look just like a fairy!”
Forgetting the Duchess’s presence, I even used the pet name I hadn’t called her in some time as I embraced the child.
As the beautiful girl pressed her plump cheek against mine, my heart seemed to melt into warmth.
While I was thus distracted, the Duchess began conversing with the Clothing Store staff.
Diana and I moved to the reception area of the Clothing Store.
Diana, whose nap time had passed due to our sudden outing, seemed exhausted from trying on clothes so many times, and soon fell asleep with her head on my lap.
I was spending a peaceful moment, gently patting the child’s soft belly.
“Why can’t you do this! Don’t you know I picked this out months ago?!”
A loud commotion erupted from behind.
“That’s… because you didn’t leave a deposit, I’m afraid.”
When I turned my head, I saw a girl about my age shrieking at the top of her lungs, while the shop attendants looked flustered.
Just as I frowned, worried that the commotion might wake Diana who was sleeping peacefully, our eyes met.
“What are you staring at!”
I felt as though I’d been slapped out of nowhere, but since she might have felt uncomfortable being watched, I quickly looked away.
Still, I kept my ears open, and when the girl’s mother entered the shop and heard the attendant’s whispered explanation, she hurriedly soothed her daughter and left the store immediately.
It seemed she had learned of the Duchess Elrad’s visit—the Territory’s mistress—and didn’t want to cause a scene.
* * *
“Sis, sit here! Let me do your hair!”
When we returned to the Duke’s Castle after shopping, Diana woke from her sleep.
Since it was evening, Diana had eaten a hearty meal and sat me down in front of the mirror with sparkling eyes.
Then she began brushing my hair with her delicate, fern-like hands.
“What sort of hairstyle would you like today, Miss?”
Having already played along with Diana’s doll games several times, I sat quietly and asked while accepting her touch.
“Twin braids!”
I chuckled and nodded.
My short hair, which had been jagged and uneven when crudely cut, had become quite neat during my time at House Elrad, thanks to the skilled hands of the servants.
My hair texture had also improved dramatically—it now had the quality of silk. When Diana first insisted on brushing my hair, the comb had caught so badly it made groaning sounds.
Looking at my transformed hair, I was struck anew by how different my circumstances had become from those days when I lived as a beggar.
“Sniff….”
Suddenly, Diana’s eyes grew misty.
“What’s wrong, Miss?”
When I asked urgently, Diana said with a whimper.
“Your hair… it’s weird….”
It seemed she was upset that she hadn’t done it as skillfully as the servants who specialized in grooming.
The servants, who had been holding back laughter at her adorable tantrum, eventually re-brushed my hair and curled it into soft waves.
Diana’s mood brightened instantly, and she bounced excitedly toward the dressing room, returning with various accessories.
‘I was nearly terrified at first.’
No matter how much I was playing along with a young lady’s whims, wearing jewelry adorned with precious gems felt deeply uncomfortable.
But since neither the servants nor the Duchess Elrad said anything, I had no choice.
Though others would surely notice, I still made it a point to remember everything I wore each time, and watched carefully as I removed and arranged them one by one.
It was then that Diana seemed to have made up her mind, raising her hand with an exclamation: “This one!”
It was a hair pin studded with pink diamonds.
“Wow….”
The deep pink diamonds, each the size of my pinky nail, looked so beautiful and precious even to someone like me who knew little about gems.
“So pretty!”
Diana clapped her hands and cried out as she inserted the pin into my hair.
Though I tried not to pay attention, the pink diamond resting on my pale pink hair looked absolutely stunning even to my own eyes.
‘Of course, others probably won’t see it that way.’
“Mom! Mom, I want to show you! Wait!”
Diana burst out of the room with an excited squeal, pushing the door open with such force.
Through the open doorway, I heard Allen’s voice: “Diana, you’ll trip running like that in the corridor!”
And at that very moment, my eyes met Allen’s as he passed by the door.
When I froze at the sight of his face after so long, Allen’s expression—which had initially seemed flustered—gradually hardened into something cold before shifting into one of utter exasperation.
“What are you doing right now?”
Allen had never been particularly kind to me from the start, but the edge in his voice now was far sharper than anything he’d directed at me before.
Crack!
Allen strode into the room and snatched the hairpin from my hands, hurling it to the floor.
A suffocating silence descended upon us.
From the moment Allen raised his hand, I had squeezed my eyes shut and remained frozen in place, while the servants in the room held their breath, watching nervously.
When I slowly opened my eyes moments later, I saw Allen’s face twisted with rage.
“Allen, what on earth are you doing?”
Then came a sharp voice from behind Allen.
It was Duchess Elrad.
She seemed to have grasped the situation from the tense atmosphere, the hairpin scattered on the floor, and my slightly disheveled hair.
“But she—!”
“Diana did it. Lia is blameless. You know that yourself.”
“But this! This is what I gave her!”
“Brother….”
Diana called out to him while fidgeting with her fingers, but Allen looked at her with resentment as well.
Then he turned his head sharply toward me and spoke.
“I hate you. I really hate you! It’s all because of you! If you had never come to our house…!”
“Allen!”
Despite Duchess Elrad’s urgent cry, Allen—his chest heaving with emotion—glared at me before stomping out of the room.
“It’s alright, it’s not your fault, dear.”
Duchess Elrad said gently as she tidied my hair.
“Allen gave it to Diana as a birthday gift not long ago, and it seems he misunderstood that you were the one wearing it.”
….
“Diana doesn’t usually wear accessories, so she doesn’t mind if she doesn’t wear them, and I thought he’d forgotten about it….”
How could he forget?
Watching from the sidelines, I could keenly feel how much Allen cherished his younger sister.
The expression “sister complex” that my former self had only known as information seemed entirely fitting.
“I’m fine, truly.”
It’s just that Diana, being treated so preciously by someone like that, made me feel a little… envious.
‘I should apologize to Allen properly soon.’
Diana had often shared her portion of food with me and had pressed her cherished dolls and toys into my hands, insisting I take them.
In all of this, Allen knew nothing of our doll play together, so his misunderstanding was truly understandable.
And if someone didn’t treasure a gift he had given and carelessly gave it away to another, he would surely feel hurt.
‘Even with an adult’s mind, I can understand this—how much more so for young Allen.’
Yet despite my understanding, an apology would not come easily.
Allen had begun isolating himself once more, and I was far too preoccupied with my own preparations to ascend to the Capital City to spare him much attention.
Thus, with nothing resolved between us, the day of the banquet arrived.

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