The Soul of a Lady's Shoes
The warm scent of freshly baked bread filled the air as Chelsea drew back the curtains, letting morning light spill across the room. She set a heavily laden tray beside my still half-asleep form.
Steaming bread, fresh fruit, a bit of cheese, eggs, and bacon.
God, that looks delicious.
I stared at it blankly for a moment before shoving a piece of bread into my mouth without even fully waking up.
It had been a long time since anyone prepared breakfast for me like this.
When I nearly choked from eating too fast, Chelsea handed me a cup of freshly brewed warm tea, which made me feel just a little bit happy.
……What is this? It feels way too good.
Maybe I really was meant to be a noble.
I had been born a noble, but I’d never once experienced the typical life of one.
I’d never had a proper debutante ball at this age, nor had I ever been given a fiancé like most girls.
Not that I needed one.
Ah, but I suppose I have experienced the worst parts of noble life. Nearly killed by the Bee Swarm, those anti-noble extremists, and treated like a toy by one of Elan’s imperial princes.
Chelsea approached my still-drowsy self and began carefully combing through my tangled hair.
It should have felt awkward, but the comfort and satisfaction I felt only proved I really was the incarnation of laziness.
“Once you’ve finished eating, shall I prepare your bath?”
Finally getting to enjoy the ordinary luxuries of noble life, I realized this was what true happiness felt like.
I nodded vigorously.
“We have rose water and lavender oil for the bath. Which would you prefer?”
Understood. This was heaven!
The bathtub itself was the height of luxury.
It wasn’t made of wood but carved from polished marble, and the water was the perfect temperature.
Everything happened so naturally and smoothly that I didn’t even have a chance to summon Undine to fill the tub.
At this age, I was finally learning what it truly meant to be waited on hand and foot.
Noble life was the best. Baths were the best!
“Is the water temperature all right?”
“Perfect.”
“Please let me know if you feel dizzy at all.”
When I stepped out of the tub, Chelsea dried my body, dried my hair, and helped me into a robe. She attended to me with such devotion that I didn’t have to lift a single finger.
“You must be tired. Please rest over here.”
“Huh?”
All I’d done since opening my eyes was eat breakfast and take a bath. How could I possibly be tired?
“If you’re uncomfortable, shall I call for a physician?”
Something felt off.
I finally realized that Chelsea, who was fidgeting and anxiously studying my complexion, was under some kind of major misunderstanding.
“Do you think I’m extremely frail?”
“Yes? Are you not? I was instructed to pay special attention because Lady Crowell is of delicate constitution.”
“……What?”
“The head attendant told me. The honored guest from Dmitry collapsed the moment she arrived in Elan……”
“Haha, surely not everyone thinks that, right?”
When I asked with an awkward laugh, Chelsea subtly avoided my gaze.
That was answer enough.
I suddenly felt like crying.
I’m not that kind of character!
I’m not!
Feeling wronged was one thing, but the party was right around the corner.
As usual, I couldn’t escape last-minute cramming.
With only three hours left until the party, I had barely read five pages of the book I’d brought.
Including the table of contents, of course.
“Shall I take out the dress you’ll be wearing today?”
“Mm, sure.”
“What color should I prepare? And which jewelry?”
“There’s only one outfit anyway, so just…….”
With the fire practically licking at my feet, I answered Chelsea absentmindedly while trying to focus on the book.
I had learned about dancing and social etiquette as liberal arts subjects at the academy, but it had all been theoretical. I’d never actually put any of it into practice.
While most of my classmates went home during every break to fully enjoy noble life, I always stayed behind at the academy.
I’d used training as an excuse to avoid returning to the main family estate.
If I had gone back, would I have had the chance to apply that theory?
Escorted by my three older brothers, making my ordinary debut at a small party…….
“Lady Crowell!”
“Hm?”
“Please forgive me!”
Chelsea suddenly came running and dropped to her knees at my feet, bowing her head all the way to the floor.
Her terrified expression made even me flinch involuntarily.
What on earth was going on?
“It wasn’t me! I swear I didn’t touch anything!”
“What are you talking about?”
“It seems a thief broke into the room!”
A thief? That should be impossible with Rai around.
“The shoes, gloves, hair ornaments, and corset are all missing from the bag! Even the petticoat!”
Chelsea had gone deathly pale and was trembling, completely at a loss as if some terrible disaster had occurred.
Startled, I had lowered the book, but now I lifted it again and returned my gaze to the pages.
What? It’s not a big deal.
“If that’s all, they weren’t there to begin with.”
“Pardon?”
“I didn’t bring them.”
“How could you…… Then what about the party?”
Was it really that serious?
I glanced at Chelsea over the top of my book.
“Don’t I just need the dress, the jewelry set, and the makeup kit? Even the makeup kit is something I borrowed from Iruse……”
“B-but what about shoes?”
“These.”
I wiggled the straw-colored leather sandals I was wearing.
They were the prettiest ones I owned.
“Anyway, once the skirt covers them, no one will see the shoes, right?”
“That’s not true at all!”
“It’s not like anyone’s going to lift up my skirt, so what does it…….”
“Absolutely not!”
Did she just yell at me?
“I’ll go find some right away!”
“Hey, wait……”
Had I put too much pressure on her yesterday?
Before I could stop her, Chelsea dashed out of the room.
Left alone in the large chamber, I sat there stunned for a while.
“I don’t get it. Are shoes really that important?”
"[Shoes are a woman's soul!]"
“What are you even saying? You’re a spirit.”
Rai clearly didn’t know when to speak and when to stay quiet.
"[Master! Even if I look like this, I’m actually quite knowledgeable about the human world!]"
“I am a human, you know?”
"[That’s true, but…… Master, you’re far too much of a recluse, so your social experience is lacking…….]"
And he clearly had a death wish.
"[Lacking…… If I say that, you’ll kill me, won’t you?]"
“Be honest. There’s a way to kill a spirit, right?”
"[There isn’t. There isn’t.]"
“You’re absolutely crazy about wanting to die, aren’t you?”
I grabbed Rai by the neck and shook him violently for a while.
By the time Chelsea returned, arms full of packages, I had still only managed to read five pages of the party etiquette book.
I was doomed.
The party dress had an incredibly complicated structure.
First came the thin underdress, then the corset cinched so tightly around my waist that I felt a vague fear that my internal organs might burst. Only after that were the various pieces of the dress layered and attached.
At first glance the dress looked like a single garment, but in reality it was made of multiple separate pieces. To wear it properly, every seam had to be tightly laced together with strings.
It was probably meant to emphasize the figure as much as possible, but it also revealed the limits of clothing technology in this world.
That was why it took a full hour just to get dressed.
If not for Chelsea, I would never have been able to put on this dress. From now on, I would wholeheartedly respect the diligence of noble young ladies who enjoyed attending parties.
“Hup…… I can’t really breathe.”
“That’s perfectly normal!”
“Do people really wear this every day?”
“Some ladies even sleep in their corsets. It helps make the waist thinner, they say.”
“It doesn’t have to be that thin……”
“Of course, there are also gentlemen who prefer a full, generous figure like yours, Lady Crowell.”
That sounded far more shocking than the rumor that I was a fragile young lady.
Realizing her mistake, Chelsea looked flustered, but I had already heard it and couldn’t possibly forget.
“Ah, no! These days, being slim is…… the t-trend, so……”
“Full figure……”
“I only meant that for a noble lady, that’s all. I would never imply that you’re fat or anything like that, Lady Crowell.”
Chelsea desperately tried to comfort me as I stood there in shock, guiding me toward the full-length mirror.