Chapter 147
Chapter 147
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 147
Chapter Title: Prince Hans' Favorable Response
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After half-forcibly foisting a few neckties on Prince Herbert and Princess Fanny, I then gifted a few more to Benian the Baronet, who quietly managed the Atelier building without drawing much attention.
There wasn't any particularly strong reaction; they just seemed moderately pleased.
From what they said, it felt like they were more happy about the fact that I'd given them prototype samples than the neckties themselves, but that didn't really matter.
If they wore them well, great; if not, oh well.
After showing Benian the Baronet two ways to tie a necktie and asking him to share any simple feedback or thoughts later on, I headed straight for Prince Hans' textile workshop.
"Lord Howard, what brings you here today?"
Prince Hans guided me smoothly into the reception room, offered me a seat, and served tea, dropping two sugar cubes into his cup as he asked.
"Nothing major. There's a garment our Atelier is designing right now, and I came to get your thoughts on it."
"Mine? Wow, what an honor!"
His ears perked up instantly at the idea that I'd come specifically for his opinion.
"Is that the one in there?"
"Yes."
He leaned forward slightly, ears still pricked up, fixing his gaze on the basket I was carrying.
His eyes sparkled, and his hands fidgeted restlessly.
I was just asking for a casual opinion, but he seemed thrilled—though since we rarely talked about designs, it made sense.
Pulling out a topic we don't usually discuss feels like it boosts trust, after all.
"Take a look first."
Without keeping him in suspense, I pulled a black necktie straight out of the basket for the eagerly anticipating prince.
"Hmm~ A cord? No, a belt? You've made it out of silk, which is unusual."
As the 160cm-long strip of black fabric emerged from the basket, Prince Hans narrowed his eyes, tilting his head this way and that to examine it, then rested his hand on his chin and stroked it thoughtfully, guessing at its purpose.
He got it right that it was something to wrap around the body, but unfortunately, he was off on the location.
To be fair, it was too thin for a scarf, too thick for a choker or necklace.
And while it was long enough for a belt, he probably hadn't jumped to the idea of wrapping this ambiguously thick fabric around the neck.
"No, this is called a necktie. It looks similar to a belt, but it's worn around the neck."
I shook my head lightly and pointed to the nape of my neck with my left hand, giving him a brief explanation of the necktie.
"The neck?"
"Cravats are so uncomfortable, so I tried making something that gives a similar vibe but feels even more comfortable to wear."
"Hmm~ I see. Could I see how it's worn?"
"Of course."
I immediately opened my shirt collar and draped the necktie around my neck.
After a moment's thought on which knot to show, I tied a voluminous Windsor knot that works for both formal and casual occasions, then closed the collar.
"Like this."
"Hmm... It looks more comfortable than a cravat, the knot seems sturdy and unlikely to come undone."
"Yes."
"But I doubt it'd be popular with beastkin."
I frowned at his blunt assessment that it wouldn't appeal to beastkin.
"What do you mean by that?"
"First off, many beastkin hate anything that tightly constricts around the neck—they're more sensitive than humans, after all."
"Hmm... But couldn't you just tie it loosely to fix that?"
"True, it's not a huge issue even if opinions are divided."
"Yes."
"But physical traits are unavoidable."
"Ah~"
Prince Hans gave an awkward smile and held up his hand for me to see.
A hand shaped like an animal's paw, just like Mari's.
It had all sorts of limitations for intricate tasks.
"For people like me, tying the knot itself is incredibly difficult, so it's hard to draw beastkin interest."
"Hm~ Good point. But I did anticipate that to some extent and even thought about solutions."
It seemed like a serious issue at first.
Fortunately, it was within the range I'd expected.
"You anticipated it? But even if you did, solving the knot problem doesn't seem easy..."
"Then take a look at this."
I flashed a confident smile as I reached into the basket, and Prince Hans eyed me skeptically.
Under his watchful, doubtful gaze, I pulled out a navy fabric strip, unfurled it, and launched into an explanation.
"If tying and securing the knot is too inconvenient, why not pre-tie it?"
"Pre-tie it? But you'd still need adjustments, wouldn't you?"
"We can make it so no adjustments are needed."
"What do you...?"
His gaze shifted to the new necktie.
He frowned, lightly ran his eyes over it, then tilted his head and furrowed his brow.
"Hmm...?"
He blinked, then looked at the necktie in my hand again.
It was shaped exactly like a necktie with a pre-tied knot ready to slip over the head.
But there was one key difference: no loop like a noose passing under the collar to hang around the neck.
"Lord Howard, with that shape... how do you even secure the necktie? You couldn't slip it over your head."
He didn't hide his baffled amusement at the design.
"The answer's on the back."
Chuckling, I spun the necktie around in my hand and pointed to the metal piece on the knot.
"You use this hook."
"A hook?"
"Yes. Hook it onto the front of your shirt at the knot, give the collar a little adjustment, and it forms a pretty convincing shape. Unless you look closely, it's hard to tell from a real necktie."
This was the clip-on tie, a style from my past life often used by people with hand issues or even police where a dangling necktie could be a liability.
It might lack some style compared to the real thing, but the convenience was top-notch.
"Ah..."
Realization dawned as he stared at the clip-on necktie, his eyes widening and head nodding.
"This would be easy to wear even with inconvenient hands. Wow, I never even thought of it."
A satisfied smile spread across his face as he fixed his gaze on the clip-on tie secured by the hook.
"No problems there at all. In fact, if it catches on with humans, beastkin might come flocking on their own, saying it's something we can wear unlike cravats."
"That would be ideal."
It was a response that didn't stray far from my expectations.
I leaned back slightly in my chair with a relaxed smile.
I knew it'd get a good review.
"Prince, could I ask one small favor more?"
"What is it?"
The mood was good.
No strong objections, so I placed the clip-on tie and regular necktie on the table and slid them toward him.
"I'll give you these two neckties I showed. Try them on and let me know about the fit or any improvements."
"I can do that. I'm happy just to have my opinion heard. By the way, don't you have a few more of those hooked ones?"
His face lit up with interest as he pocketed the necktie, then went further by asking if there were more clip-ons, showing even greater enthusiasm.
"Sadly, this is the only one right now."
"Oh no!"
I wanted to hand a few more to the prince who was showing such interest, but unfortunately, this was just a test piece—the only one in existence.
"Any plans to make more?"
"Hmm... If you want a few more, come by the Atelier. I can make them in an hour."
"Oh—really?"
A huge grin spread across his face at the promise of more.
"Would tomorrow be okay then?"
"Yes."
"Ahaha~ Thank you."
I nodded readily, and his smile stretched even wider.
His reaction to the clip-on tie was better than expected.
"You like it that much?"
"Of course. Because of these hands, I could never dream of wearing a cravat like humans do, but thanks to you, Lord Howard, I can at least wear something similar."
"I get that, but just for this...?"
"Just this? Do you know how much flak we get over cravats? 'No formality,' 'Sloppy,' 'Frivolous'... Now we can hear less of that, so I'm plenty satisfied."
"Haha..."
Prince Hans seemed to harbor a lot of resentment over not being able to wear cravats.
His face flushed slightly as he heaped praise on the necktie.
"So when you officially release them, let me know right away. I'll spread the word to the other beastkin nobles."
And without me asking or requesting, he volunteered to promote it, eyes sparkling.
"Hahaha, sure, I will."
I laughed and nodded, leaning back against the chair.
Just showing him the necktie had elicited such a positive response.
This made me start looking forward a bit to how humans in high positions, like my father or His Highness the Crown Prince, would react to neckties.