Isn’t Being A Wicked Woman Much Better? - Chapter 25

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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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Chapter 25
“Miguel. Give me your honest opinion on this style. Accept it humbly.”
‘Evaluating whether a style suits someone is something I wanted to do together with my future bride.’
Miguel, a lifelong bachelor, swallowed his melancholy and mechanically clapped his hands.
“Absolutely magnificent, sir. From head to toe, flawlessly artistic.”
“Of course. The perfection of details lies in the face, after all.”
“…Quite right, sir.”
“I should have the tailor shop stock this style of clothing as well.”
Isidore was in the midst of sweeping money through the tailor shop in Horun District.
All the clothes he wore were made at Carlos, a tailor shop operated by Blanche, and recently Carlos had become so prosperous that its reservations were booked solid for half a year.
This was because nobles interested in fashion were subtly copying Isidore’s style.
“Sir Miguel. Do you happen to know which tailor shop made the waistcoat that Sir Isidore is wearing?”
Connoisseurs often asked Miguel, Isidore’s aide, about the source of his clothes, and having been tipped off beforehand, he casually leaked the tailor shop’s information.
Consequently, the name Carlos spread through High Society in less than half a day.
Other famous tailor shops seemed to be hastily producing designs similar to what Isidore wore, but Carlos had already risen to a different status. It had earned the title of being the place frequented by the Empire’s most popular man.
The white silk ties and goat leather gloves that Isidore wore on his shirts to emphasize a pure aesthetic were selling out as fast as they could be made.
Yet Isidore could not purely rejoice in this success obtained almost by accident. Despite his all-out charm offensive, Deborah Simour had barely looked at him properly.
‘Just one second….’
Meanwhile, watching Isidore with a deepened, troubled expression, Miguel felt both exasperation and admiration simultaneously. With just a slight change in coordination, Isidore exuded an atmosphere like a bard from mythology.
Isidore, who had been admiring the seal that Deborah Simour had drawn while resting his chin in his hand, moved his beautifully shaped lips as if reciting poetry.
“…Come to think of it, her drawing is quite excellent too.”
“Sir?”
“She must have drawn it so carefully with those small hands….”
Isidore’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he unconsciously clenched and unclenched his gloved hand. This was because he kept recalling how he had held her hand to set the coordinates for the spatial magic pouch.
When he thought of that small, white hand that fit perfectly in his palm, his throat inexplicably began to sting.
“My lord. Perhaps….”
Watching his master blush at the nape of his neck while holding Deborah Simour’s drawing, Miguel narrowed his eyes shrewdly. As Miguel paused deliberately, Isidore raised his eyebrows slightly.
“What is it?”
“Are you feeling warm, sir?”
“Yes. Now that you mention it, I do seem to be feeling rather warm….”
“As I thought! This spring is much warmer than last year. I found it quite humid throughout my escort duties as well. Perhaps we need thinner fabric shirts… Ahem. Ah, no, never mind.”
Miguel rubbed his palms together cunningly while gauging Isidore’s reaction. Truth be told, he too was eyeing the garments coming from Carlos. He had no desire to fall behind the trends either.
“Go to Carlos and have clothes tailored. Just mention my name, and they’ll make them for you right away.”
“Yes, sir. At your service!”
“Since you’re my right arm, I’ll give you a special discount of 1 silver, making it 19 gold and 99 silver.”
“At your… service….”
Miguel’s loyalty could not withstand this wordplay, whether sincere or false.
“Grrr….”
In the silence that fell between them, Cookie, who had been staring endlessly at the doorway through which Deborah Simour had left, suddenly growled with fierce eyes. The withdrawal symptoms had begun. Isidore hastily soothed Cookie, who was about to throw a tantrum like a moody adolescent again.
“Cookie. Are you upset I haven’t played with you? When we get home, I’ll give you your favorite treats.”
He spoke in a honeyed voice, removing his gloves as he stroked Cookie’s spine several times, noticing the creature’s discomfort. Cookie’s ears, which had been standing rigidly upright, gradually relaxed. As he felt the soft fur beneath his touch, a faint curiosity stirred within him.
What would it have felt like to hold Deborah Simour’s hand if he hadn’t been wearing gloves?
But that curiosity, which had hovered so delicately around his chest like falling snow, vanished the moment he arrived home.
Isidore returned to the Town House, where golden pillars carved with dragons stood in magnificent display, his expression utterly blank.
* * *
‘It seems like a lot of men wearing round glasses have been appearing in the Academy lately. It must all be because of him, right?’
Watching Isidore surrounded by people once again, I shook my head in disbelief. Appearing in a scholarly style that exuded intellectualism, he had caused quite a stir throughout the Academy.
‘He’s even captured the tastes of ladies who are passionate about glasses. Beleck Simour used to be the master of this field.’
His hair flowed naturally across his forehead as if styled without effort, and the indigo vest that emphasized his slender waist, paired with gold-rimmed glasses that matched his blonde hair, maximized his dandy charm.
How many entry points does he have? He’s a professional idol incarnate.
‘…But this time, I’d give it a 9 out of 10. I’m sorry.’
I turned away, feeling regretful.
Of all things, he had to start a trend with those round glasses. For a moment, I felt dizzy, as if I’d been transported back to the Engineering Campus, so I had no choice but to deduct one point.
‘Tsk, glasses frames should be chosen according to face shape, yet everyone’s wearing round gold-rimmed glasses….’
Every time I encountered male students awkwardly imitating Isidore’s intellectual styling, I found myself frowning with dissatisfaction.
‘…But aren’t they copying too blatantly?’
This Academy had far too many shameless copycats who thoughtlessly mimicked others’ carefully curated fashion. It seemed that no matter how often Isidore changed his clothes and hairstyle, apparently out of dislike for overlapping styles, it only backfired—everything he wore became a trend.
Whatever he does spreads like wildfire. He must be exhausted.
‘Being too handsome is a sin too. By the way, even in a novel’s world, there are fashion icons.’
I suddenly remembered a certain celebrity who caused a sensation whenever they wore anything. The clothes and sneakers that celebrity wore were always sold out in less than a second.
‘If I used Isidore as a sponsorship model, I’d make a fortune.’
While I was fantasizing about using him as a sponsored model and raking in money, I belatedly realized I was lost. The landscape around me, where I stood alone, felt distinctly different from the elaborately landscaped Academy Main Building or the solemn and serene atmosphere of the Magic Tower.
‘Since I have no memory of this place, it doesn’t seem to be where the Spirit Hall is located either.’
Since Deborah frequently lingered near the Spirit Hall trying to encounter Philaf, by process of elimination, this place had to be either the Knight Training Ground or where theology was taught.
‘Even if I knew where this was, I still wouldn’t know the way. Why am I even thinking about this?’
I looked around and entered a narrow path winding between dense trees. But no matter how far I walked, this wretched shortcut showed no signs of ending.
As someone with no sense of direction, I felt quite disheartened. If only I had a reliable maid, this wouldn’t have happened.
‘How does Deborah not have a right-hand woman!’
Usually, when you possess someone, you get at least one trustworthy maid as a basic item, right?
But I don’t have one.
In truth, it was rare for a young lady of a high noble house to wander about alone like I did now. While there were quite a few young male nobles who went about unaccompanied, high-ranking noble ladies typically employed trustworthy noble ladies as their maids.
Becoming a maid to a high noble brought considerable perks, so in the early days of the Academy, many young ladies wanted to serve as Deborah’s maid. But it didn’t take long before they all couldn’t endure Deborah’s personality and begged tearfully to quit.
‘Over that time, the maid position was replaced more than thirteen times. Among them, nine young ladies developed unexplained severe abdominal pain and stress-induced hair loss.’
In the end, this year there were only two applicants for the maid position. Two people who would be better off absent. Melly Mayangs and Aisha Doshu.
The moment I saw the names that Duke Simour’s Aide showed me as maid applicants, my spine went cold. In the novel, they were villains who tormented the heroine alongside Deborah.
The reason I felt a chill was because of the attitude they displayed in the original work when Deborah was brought to trial for blasphemy. The two maids posed as victims coerced by Deborah while covering up their own misdeeds.
Bat-like creatures who spit out what’s bitter and swallow what’s sweet.
‘Well, only flies gather around dung.’
But I wasn’t actually Deborah, and I certainly wasn’t mad enough to drag those flies around with me. So at the start of the semester, I made it clear multiple times that I would go about alone.
However, going about alone like this proved more difficult than I’d anticipated. I needed someone to guide me, someone with no sense of direction, and to provide information about the rumors spreading around and various useful details.
How do I cultivate a subordinate who keeps their mouth shut yet remains capable?
Leaning my weary body against a tree, lost in contemplation, I turned my head at the distant sound of rustling—a welcome distraction.
I’ll have to threaten them into escorting me to the rear gate where the carriage awaits.
Now thinking with the cunning of a proper villainess, I strode purposefully toward the source of the disturbance, but the moment I glimpsed that pink hair, I quietly retreated my steps.
Damn it. Of all people, I had to encounter my number one person to avoid.
“Kyaaaah!!”
Just as I attempted to slip away unnoticed, Miya Binoshu let out an ear-splitting shriek and tumbled to the ground.
“Ow…”
She remained seated, whimpering softly, then turned those large eyes toward me with a pitiful gleam.
“…Miss Deborah. I’m terribly sorry, but would you be able to help me? I can’t seem to get up.”

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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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