The Villainess's Exclusive Maid Is Too Good at Her Job - Chapter 68

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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 68

“Kindness beyond your station?”
Rosina didn’t even glance sideways, her eyes fixed firmly on the catalog as she replied.
“No, let me correct myself. Not kindness beyond your station, but sincerity beneath your means. That way you’ll find it easier to understand.”
Seeing Julietta Ludwig’s face flush crimson, I quickly caught hold of her arm.
“I want to wear the dress that Julietta chooses for me.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Really.”
Having calmed Julietta Ludwig down, I glanced back toward Rosina and spoke.
“I appreciate the suggestion, but I would prefer to wear a dress chosen by my friend. Julietta Ludwig is someone very special to me.”
How often did one find a friend willing to attend a High Society event she despised, simply for your sake?
She had been brought here to prepare for the High Society season, so I wanted to let Julietta Ludwig do what she wished.
‘It’s obvious to anyone that she wants to choose my dress herself.’
Besides, I had almost no eye for selecting dresses myself.
While working as Julietta Ludwig’s lady’s maid, I had studied grooming and fashion, but only to match her tastes.
Choosing my own dress was something I’d never done before, so deciding what suited me best was difficult.
In that case, it was better to accept help from someone experienced.
“Oh my, I thought you were wise, but apparently not. Very well, do as you please. What matters is your own will, not a third party’s opinion. But mark my words—you’ll regret this.”
Rosina hummed her response.
Her gaze remained fixed on the catalog.
“Janet, don’t mind what Rosina says. Come on, I’ve already picked out several dresses for you to try on.”
“You’ve already chosen them?”
“Of course. You know my taste is rather exceptional.”
As she tossed her head proudly, I laughed and nodded in agreement.
Ding-ling.
I rang the bell on the table. Shortly after, the Shop Clerk who had brought the catalog appeared.
“Help her try on the ones I’ve marked. She’s my friend, so treat her with care.”
“Yes, Miss. This way, please.”
The Shop Clerk guided me with careful courtesy.
A moment later.
“I’m opening the curtain now.”
Swoosh.
The curtain of the central fitting room drew back, revealing me in the first dress.
It was a brilliant red dress with three tiers of ruffles, adorned with a large ribbon at the neck and red roses.
“Hmm. That’s quite nice, actually. It suits you well.”
“But isn’t it a bit… too elaborate for me?”
“Everyone dresses elaborately during the High Society season. Try the next one!”
As I nodded, the Shop Clerk drew the curtain closed again.
“I’m opening the curtain now.”
Swish.
The central dressing room curtain opened for the second time.
This time, it was a striking blue dress.
I’d selected it thinking it would complement Janet’s deep indigo hair and eyes, which held a strong blue tone.
The second dress was just as magnificent as the first.
The shoulders were dramatically puffed, the waist fitted snugly, but the skirt flared out in a graceful, rounded silhouette.
“What do you think?”
“Beautiful. Blue really does suit you perfectly.”
“Really? I do like the blue myself.”
“Then I’m glad. Still, let’s try some other dresses too. We should see something more understated and elegant as well.”
And so, Janet emerged in the third dress.
This one was certainly more refined.
A pale lavender dress made entirely of plain fabric without elaborate embellishments. There was delicate lace at the neckline, though it was barely visible.
“It’s elegant and lovely. I like this one too.”
Julietta Ludwig, arms crossed, nodded with satisfaction.
After confirming Julietta Ludwig’s reaction, Janet caught a glimpse of herself in the full-length mirror, and her expression stiffened slightly.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like it…?”
Witnessing the hardened expression, Julietta Ludwig asked in a timid voice. Meeting her eyes, Janet replied with her face still tense.
“No. I was just deliberating because all three seem fine.”
“Goodness, you scared me. I thought you didn’t like it.”
Julietta Ludwig murmured with relief.
A smile spread across her face as composure returned.
“Why deliberate at all? I’ll just gift you all three.”
“What are you saying? We agreed I’d only receive one gift.”
“Truth be told, I brought you here planning to buy about three dresses from the start. If I had my way, I’d match you with a dozen outfits, but I know you’d refuse.”
“Julietta Ludwig.”
“Janet, listen carefully. I am of the Ludwig Family, and money is something we have in excess. If you calculate consumption as a ratio to my wealth, my purchasing three dresses is equivalent to a noblewoman from another house buying a single sleeve of a dress.”
Faced with this unusually eloquent explanation, Janet blinked in surprise.
My, was Julietta Ludwig always this articulate?
There was even a certain persuasiveness to it.
Noticing Janet’s hesitation, Julietta Ludwig added with a gentle smile.
“You’re my first real friend, Janet. Giving clothes to a friend has been a long-held wish of mine. So please, just accept this one time. All right?”
Janet flinched under the assault of Julietta Ludwig’s sparkling gaze. She had always been weak to such a look.
Knowing this, Julietta Ludwig deliberately gazed at her with even more glistening eyes.
Ugh. Showing signs of wavering, Janet’s mind raced quickly.
If she looks at me like that, I’ll accept for now and gift her some jewelry later.
Based on Julietta Ludwig’s relative consumption ratio, I won’t be able to choose anything too expensive.
“Then just this once….”
I was about to reluctantly agree.
Knock.
The sharp sound of a catalog being hurled across the table cut my words short.
Janet and Julietta Ludwig’s eyes widened in shock as they turned toward the source of the noise.
Unsurprisingly, that source was Rosina.
Sitting on the adjacent sofa, Rosina swept her gaze over Janet and Julietta Ludwig with an expression of utter disbelief.
And then.
“Do you two have your eyes glued to the soles of your feet? I wondered how you could possibly be friends, but now I see—you must have bonded over your matching lack of taste.”
“What? That’s not—!”
“Julietta Ludwig. If your money is rotting away, go donate it. That would be far more worthwhile than squandering it on three abominable dresses like those.”
Her tone was elegant, but her words were cutting and brutally direct.
“Really? Haven’t you been harsh enough already? Since when did you take such an interest in my affairs that you feel compelled to meddle?”
“I have no interest in you whatsoever. But you keep lingering in my line of sight, and in those ridiculous dresses no less!”
A sharp exhale escaped Rosina’s lips, her bangs fluttering upward before settling back down.
“Don’t criticize others’ tastes—”
“Taste requires moderation to be called taste. What you’ve displayed crosses the line into cruelty masquerading as concern.”
Shaking her head with genuine contempt etched across her features, Rosina retrieved the catalog she had thrown and opened it once more.
The pages rustled rapidly.
She flipped through them quickly, then stopped near the final pages.
“The back section of this catalog doesn’t feature new designs—it’s from the previous season. The further back you go, the older the designs become. What you selected was…”
Rosina’s eyes blazed as she stared at the catalog.
“Exactly three seasons old. But I’ve never seen dresses like these at High Society events three seasons ago. Do you understand what that means?”
“…W-what does it mean?”
“Those dresses were designed purely as filler—inventory padding for people with taste as appalling as yours. I’m sure the Shop Clerk here was shocked, wasn’t she? That you managed to select such spectacularly terrible dresses with such remarkable consistency?!”
At Rosina’s outburst, both Julietta Ludwig and Janet turned their attention to the Shop Clerk.
The Shop Clerk, suddenly the focus of their stares, visibly flinched. She looked unmistakably guilty.
“Is what she just said true?”
At Julietta Ludwig’s question, the Shop Clerk pressed her lips together tightly.
Then, with an awkward smile, she stammered out a response.
“Le Blanc respects the personal taste of all our customers.”
In High Society parlance, “personal taste” was code for “abysmal taste.”
“…Is that really how bad my eye is?”
At Julietta Ludwig’s stunned murmur, Rosina delivered the final blow.
“How fortunate that you despise the social season. Watching someone from the Ludwig Family parade about in clown costumes would have been quite the ordeal.”
Phew!
Having vented her frustrations, Rosina smiled with satisfaction.

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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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