Chapter 50
Chapter 50
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 50
Chapter Title: Corset Counterstrategies
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While waiting for the two to finish preparing, Lord Herbert entered first, clutching a sheet of paper in his hand.
"Lady Panny needs a bit more time to get ready, so she asked me to go ahead and share my thoughts."
"Very well."
Was that all they'd prepared? No way.
I'd been looking forward to this, but if that was the extent of it, I'd be pretty disappointed.
"I'm still not all that familiar with designing, so I approached it a little differently."
"Hmm..."
Still, I pushed aside my doubts, thinking there has to be more to it or that can't be the end of it, and waited for the young lord to continue. But nothing of the sort happened.
"I pondered what it would take to make people seek out alternatives. We can't just make corsets vanish overnight, so what kind of incentive would drive them away? That's when I drew inspiration from Sir William's interview."
"What? My interview?"
Already, I had a bad feeling.
Inspiration was fine and all, but from that?
"Words like 'hourglass' and 'heavily armored knight' from your interview really shocked people. It even made some start questioning the beauty corsets were supposed to provide."
"That's an exaggeration."
"It's not. Otherwise, why would so many young ladies have shown up for the interviews?"
"Umm..."
Even Princess Elizabeth chimed in, backing up Lord Herbert's claim, but I just furrowed my brow, my expression sour.
What I'd said might rub people the wrong way, but it wasn't enough to cause shockwaves or make anyone doubt corsets.
If a few words like that were all it took, they'd have ditched corsets ages ago.
"Thanks to you, Sir William, the seed of doubt has already been planted. Now, if we water it just right, we can sprout it into something big. Spreading negative opinions about corsets could be easier than we think."
"And what's that mean?"
"We expose the ugly truth about corsets in the starkest terms possible—shock people into realizing how they ruin the body. Once that's common knowledge, folks will steer clear, just like they used to shun pants as a barbarian's symbol."
It wasn't a bad idea.
Easier and simpler to trash someone else's product than hype your own as superior.
"But most people already know corsets are uncomfortable. What more can we do?"
"The key is making that discomfort specific. There's a world of difference between 'it might hurt' and 'it could snap your ribs and leave you crippled for life.' Same warning, totally different weight, right?"
"True enough."
"With Lady Panny's help, I looked into the harms of corsets. It's horrifying."
The young lord thrust the paper he'd been holding toward me.
"This is what I wrote up with her assistance—a rundown of just how vicious corsets are. Please, take a look."
"Alright."
I took the paper with what he claimed was his writing and held it up.
A short piece, two densely packed sheets front and back.
I tried to set aside any preconceptions and read it slowly.
What Lord Herbert had written was... actually pretty good.
Anyone with even a passing interest would instantly grasp how monstrous corsets truly were.
The only issue was the overly elaborate style, as he'd strained to describe the agony in vivid detail. It came off a bit weird.
Like, 'The woman, her breath strangled by the corset, gasps pitifully, desperately chasing that one missing breath.'
Or, 'For a fleeting moment of beauty, she imprisons herself in a cage of her own making, gaining a waist so slender it might snap—only to suffer as her intestines are crushed, her lower belly bulging grotesquely, her womb displaced and useless.'
Stuff like that.
It would've been fine as a straightforward medical or scientific breakdown of causes and effects. But with all that noble flourish, it felt like some archaic BDSM novel laced with highbrow prose.
Sure, phrases like 'intestines displaced from their proper place' or 'lung capacity reduced by up to 29%' were dry. His version hit harder, making the danger feel visceral. But what if it sparked someone's interest in bondage instead?
Of course, I knew that was probably overthinking it.
Anyone awakened to sadism or masochism by that was probably wired that way already.
The biggest flaw in the young lord's plan? People don't like reading.
Text lacks punch, and folks just don't pay attention.
It's boring.
Even back on Earth, doctors railed against corsets in newspapers for decades before anything changed.
And that was a world without priestly heels to fix twisted ribs—no instant cures via holy power. You think people here will listen easily?
"This won't work."
I shot down his proposal flat-out, convinced it had zero chance.
"Pardon? Why not..."
Lord Herbert stared at me with wide, dumbfounded eyes, unable to hide his shock.
"From my perspective, a few issues. First off, it's writing. People don't read."
"But cultured nobles read the papers, don't they?"
"Sure, but people trust writing less than hearsay, hearsay less than what they see with their own eyes. No matter how much I shout in the news, the rumors around me don't die."
Now there were even whispers that hiring beastkin meant I favored bestiality.
I was going insane from the injustice.
Corsets are so entrenched as beauty tools that badmouthing them won't draw much interest.
Not in writing, anyway.
"Pictures would hit harder than words."
"Pictures?"
"Yeah... better to show you."
I grabbed a pen and started sketching quickly on a fresh sheet.
A side view of a woman's body, corset crushing her guts so her lower belly bulged out, abdominal diagram showing organs shoved downward—just like Lord Herbert had described in writing.
"See? All that stuff you spent hundreds of words on? Right there at a glance."
"Impressive."
"You study medicine? It's awfully detailed."
"...Just picked up a few things here and there."
I noted Princess Elizabeth eyeing me—she knew it was spot-on—but now wasn't the time, so I brushed it off.
"What if we add a normal woman's body beside it for comparison?"
"The contrast would be undeniable."
"Exactly. First-timers might suspect exaggeration or bias against corsets, but then they'll check their own figures against their maids' and get uneasy. Reality won't match."
"Ooh... Brilliant. So why hasn't it been done?"
"Doctors have tried. Multiple times."
"What?"
"They've run appeals in the papers before, with even more detailed anatomical diagrams than this."
I remembered them vividly—random guts and bones popping up in the news.
But it just earned snide remarks like 'Make your wife ditch hers first.' No change.
"No way..."
Lord Herbert, who'd pinned big hopes on his idea, slumped into his chair with a look of utter despair.
I felt bad for him, but false hope wouldn't help...
"Hey... chin up. I might even run it as an ad under my name."
"......"
Couldn't just leave him moping like that, so I tossed out some encouragement, but he didn't reply.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ While the young lord wallowed after his alternative sank spectacularly...
"Sorry for the wait."
Lady Panny entered, preparations complete.
Unlike Lord Herbert with his measly few sheets, she carried a hefty bundle tucked under her arm.
Large papers that looked like patterns, plus assorted small fabric swatches.
"I've designed a new garment—an improved take on the corset."
"Ooh~"
Those four words—new garment—sent my heart racing with excitement.
I watched her eagerly, eyes sparkling, as she unrolled the large paper across the desk.
"This is my new corset design."
It covered from the hips up to just below the bust—a shorter style.
But oddly, no laces to cinch it tight, no bones like steel or whalebone in sight.
"The biggest feature? It shapes the figure without steel or whalebone stays."
"Hmm... How's that even possible?"
"Obviously, it's less effective than traditional boning. But I focused on it bridging the gap—better than nothing."
"So how does it hold the shape?"
Lady Panny grinned and picked up one of her fabric pieces.
Not silk, cotton, wool, or linen—but something familiar somehow.
I squinted at it closely.
"Witches in the southeast recently discovered a new elastomer."
"Ela... Elastin?"
"Hee hee~"
Doesn't that make hair shiny?
We have soap and oils, but no conditioner here...
As I stared in confusion, she smiled and stretched the fabric long.
It extended to double its length, held firm, then snapped back the instant she let go.
"Huh?"
I gawked, dumbfounded, as she explained with a knowing smile.
"Not elastin—elastomer. It's a catch-all for highly elastic, stretchy materials. Sometimes called rubbery substances. Natural latex counts too."
She paused a beat, then plunged ahead confidently.
"I've designed a corset that uses elastomer for figure correction—no bones needed."
"......"
My jaw dropped. I froze.
For real.
Lady Panny had unearthed something massive.