After sending Suleiman away, Margaret said, "Shall we go to the bedroom?"
As soon as Navia reached her room, she tried on the new nightgown Minerva had made for her.
It was a loose-fitting, one-piece nightgown with a collar that extended to her ribs, adorned with delicate silver lace. The sleeves were also embroidered with silver thread.
"Did you make this in one day?"
"No, I took apart some clothes I had made before and reassembled them," Minerva replied, still red-nosed and giggling.
"I have much older half-siblings, you see. So I made quite a few of these one by one..."
Clothes and shoes made thinking of her younger siblings were all sent back.
"Oh, it's an honor for you to wear them, miss!"
"I'm the one who should be honored."
Navia stood in front of the mirror, admiring herself in the pretty nightgown.
'It's a garment obviously made with love.'
The items from the Ansier Boutique, prepared with Vivian in mind, didn't suit Navia at all.
This nightgown, altered thoughtfully by Minerva for Navian, didn't look bad.
However, Navia felt awkward in it. The problem wasn't the dress but herself. Navia forced a smile.
"I'll wear it well. Thank you."
"Don't mention it."
This pajama, however, wasn't bad, perhaps because Minerva had painstakingly tailored it to suit Navia.
But she looked awkward in the dress.
It wasn't the dress's problem, but her own.
Navia drew a smile.
"I'll really wear it well. Thank you."
"Oh, don't mention it."
Margaret, who had been quietly watching Navia from the side, suddenly pulled up a chair.
"Would you like to sit here?"
Navia was puzzled, but she sat in the chair as Margaret said.
Margaret combed Navia's hair with a brush.
"Dressing up isn't just about putting on clothes. You need cufflinks when you wear a shirt, a tie pin when you tie a tie, and a pretty hairstyle when you wear a pretty dress."
Navia blinked and quietly listened to Margaret's words.
At the same time, she naturally pictured Vivian in her head.
Vivian always wore carefully styled hair with accessories and carried a handbag that matched her dress.
'She had hundreds of pairs of shoes, too.'
By the time Vivian had her coming-of-age ceremony, she had as many as five personal dress rooms.
And yet, she always habitually said, "I have nothing to wear!"
For Navia, who had only about five sets of clothes to wear, it was hard to understand.
"Well, what do you think?"
Navia looked down at her feet, then straight ahead.
"Ah..."
Margaret had gathered a bit of Navia's side hair and tied it with a black ribbon.
With both sides styled the same way, she looked much more lovely than before.
It was a look that went well with the delicate pajamas.
Minerva also clapped her hands with an admiring expression.
"It suits you so well...!"
Navia awkwardly touched her hair. She had never tried such a childlike hairstyle before.
She always tied her hair in one or, when it was longer, twisted it up herself.
If not, she just let it down and that was it.
Certainly, with this decoration, the girl in the mirror seemed to sparkle much more than before.
It was strange.
All that had changed was just touching her hair.
'It must be mostly due to my mood.'
But her appearance looked better than ever in her life.
She also liked that the ribbon was black.
After all, black was almost synonymous with Eseled's symbol. Among them, Navia was too strikingly pale.
The black silk ribbon hanging from her silver hair revealed a vivid presence.
"...It's beautiful."
Navia's cheeks were very faintly tinged with peach color.
"Thank you, Lady Margaret."
Margaret chuckled.
"I'm glad you like it."
Navia didn't particularly like looking in the mirror.
It was because of the foolish reason that she had silver hair and red eyes, unlike Agnes.
But now, looking in the mirror wasn't bad.
Watching the ribbons swaying gently on both sides didn't get boring and continued to give her a fascinating appreciation.
Navia couldn't understand why this family, with such good people, had fallen into decline.
Although they had declined, there was no difficulty in eating, sleeping, and living.
Even if the living expenses sent by Theorban were low, it was only to the extent that they couldn't buy jewelry, horses, or new carriages.
Of course, that was the problem.
'There's no power to maintain the family.'
A noble with no money or power, no different from the gentry class, was no longer a privileged class.
If this situation continued, the Eseled family might not even be able to maintain their empty title of duke.
'Good people don't always live well.'
From what Navia had seen, villains enjoyed much more.
'But Eseled doesn't seem incompetent.'
The person at the center of this change was none other than the current head of the family.
'The duke is such an outstanding figure that he can't be taken lightly, even if he tries. His personality is a bit like that... but it can be interpreted as the arrogance of the ruling class.'
It meant that even if he wasn't interested in becoming great, he was a person who could maintain the status quo.
Theorban also feared him while manipulating contracts to his advantage in various businesses, including the anesthesia farm, and sending only the minimum living expenses.
What made such a person act like this? Navia became curious about the person named Lark.
It was no wonder, as she had never seen such a person in her life.
She had seen quite a few human groups in her eight lives. Was Lark surprised to see her for the first time? She felt the same way.
'But is it fortunate that he's rather indifferent?'
It seemed that as long as it didn't bother him too much, he would let her handle things as she pleased.
Then it seemed that he would not make a big deal about deciding her position.
Navia asked Margaret.
"Lady Margaret, can you deliver a letter to the duke?"
"Oh, of course."
Navia skillfully inserted the pen nib and dipped it deeply into the ink bottle to write a letter. During that time, she recalled the letter, or rather the note, she had received yesterday.
At first, she was taken aback by that note, which had a single word scribbled on a large piece of paper, then found it absurd, and finally accepted it.
'The duke really hates formalities.'
So this time, Navia wrote more concisely and abbreviated.
Duke Eseled, I'm sending you a letter because I have something to tell you.
My position has not been determined, and Count Suleiman Genegar and Countess Margaret Romanov are very worried. Could you possibly decide for me?
I'll be waiting for your decision.
-From Navia.
'It still seems long even though I tried to abbreviate it.'
Navia frowned slightly and tilted her head before putting down the pen.
"Please take care of it."
* * *
Margaret was about to take only the letter, but then she remembered what Navia had said in the kitchen.
Lark hardly ate any food. He was a person who could live without eating. Also, his perfect physique was completed without any exercise.
How could a person be like that? Margaret just thought it was because he was Lark.
'For ordinary people, not eating is strange.'
Margaret stopped by the kitchen, made the same menu they had eaten, and headed to the third floor.
"My lord, it's Margaret."
She approached Lark, who was lying on the sofa again, leaving the perfectly fine bed untouched, and sleeping like an invalid. She placed the meal on the table.
She also placed the letter Navia had written next to it.
Lark asked in a low voice, still covering his eyes with his arm.
"What is it again?"
"It's the food Navia and I ate today."
Lark let out a sigh of disbelief and lowered his arm.
"So what do you want me to do?"
When Lark, who always waved his hand or said "Whatever." or "Do as you please.", reacted aggressively, Margaret smiled strangely.
"Navia asked why you don't eat, my lord."
"I don't need to eat."
He was going to die soon anyway.
As he replied irritably, Margaret shrugged her shoulders lightly.
"I'll take your reply if you leave it in the hallway."
"Reply?"
He frowned as if to ask what she was talking about, and suddenly looked to the side.
A white letter occupied a spot on the black table today as well.
Lark considered kicking away both the food and the letter, but sighed deeply as Margaret looked at him with an annoyingly gentle smile.
"Everyone's out of their minds."
"Hehe."
He unfolded the letter and read it.
Navia's letter was full of care in every character. The beautiful writing and neat, polite tone gave the reader a strong impression of being treated well.
Also, she considered him and didn't include unnecessary weather talk or lengthy compliments and modifiers before his name, writing concisely.
Margaret, who secretly read along with him, admired the letter with a special look in her eyes.
But Lark didn't think so at all.
Annoying. Really, truly, sincerely, very annoying.
Lark's expression accurately reflected his feelings.
Like yesterday, he summoned writing tools to the table and picked up the pen without any hesitation.
Then, he scribbled anything with full malice.
Barber.
Margaret, who glanced at the content from the side, shook her head disapprovingly.
"Now, take that food and get out."
Margaret muttered, dumbfounded and exasperated, as she picked up the letter and food.
"How can our lord be less dignified than Navia...?"
"Aren't you leaving?"
Margaret left the bedroom without paying any attention to Lark's threatening behavior.
With two servants already annoying him, Lark irritably brushed his bangs aside.
"All because of one kid, they're acting foolishly."
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