The Lingerie Even a Tyrant Wears - 3
"Sit."
"Ah…!"
Perhaps the shock had simply been too much. Daisy only managed to gather her wits after Beatrix offered her a seat. Driven by the sheer instinct to survive, she sat at once and bowed her head.
"I am deeply sorry, Your Majesty."
"Forget it. Anyway, it's been a while, Daisy Araam."
When Beatrix spoke her name so casually, Daisy's eyes went wide. They had exchanged words once before, but only for a moment—hardly something worth remembering.
"You remember me, Your Majesty?"
"I do. But is that really what matters right now?"
Beatrix cut the thread of conversation short, as if she had no interest in wasting breath on nonsense. Daisy swallowed hard and nodded.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Please ask whatever you wish."
Whether Daisy's attempt at familiarity had simply grated on her, or whether Beatrix merely hated wasting time, Daisy could not say. One thing, however, was certain: the test of reading her true intentions had already begun, and Daisy had to prove herself.
Of course, failing the queen's test would not bring any direct punishment. Beatrix would simply judge her inadequate. But that judgment alone was something Daisy had to avoid if she ever hoped to succeed her house without trouble. The moment she was branded a half-measure who fell short of the queen's standards, the brothers and relatives waiting below for their chance would turn her into a target.
"…So then. How would you handle this situation?"
"Yes. First, I believe we must assess the burdens each region would have to bear if tax revenue is reduced. There is also the option of gradually lowering the overall tax rate…"
At the start of her answers she had been visibly tense. Yet the more Daisy spoke, the calmer and firmer she became. Years of tempering body and skill with a real blade had given her no small amount of nerve. It also helped that Beatrix's questions were elementary—fundamentals of estate management, the basics expected of a vassal. Anyone who had studied with even moderate diligence could have answered them.
"Enough. You may go."
She was not the sort who would ruin things. Having confirmed that much, Beatrix dismissed her. She was itching to finish the rest of these interviews and get back to the bedroom as soon as possible. That was precisely why she had come dressed in nothing but lingerie under a loose gown instead of a cumbersome dress.
Ordinarily she drew a line between men and women when she revealed her skin, but today was an exception. After days without being held, her body was burning. The fact that her visitors were all young ladies also played a part. Had she been receiving young lords, she would have dressed a little more carefully.
"Your Majesty. If I may be so bold… might I dare ask one question?"
What?
Beatrix's eyes sharpened for an instant, then she smoothed her expression. Daisy's gaze was so desperate it almost looked pitiful.
"Make it short."
"Thank you."
Daisy bowed at once and opened her mouth without delay. Only now did she realize that asking anything at all had already been a mistake… but since she had come this far, the stubborn will to satisfy her curiosity before she died gave her courage.
"I am curious where exactly Your Majesty obtained the lingerie you are wearing right now."
"This? Why?"
Don't tell me she's after Albert too?
But no one except Albert himself and the tailors should have known he was the one who gifted it. Beatrix frowned, unsettled, and waited for an answer.
"Forgive my presumption, but… I simply wondered if it might be a little… too revealing…"
Daisy squeezed her eyes shut as though bracing for death. She could have simply left. Why had she volunteered a question? Belated regret crushed her shoulders, yet—
"So you're saying it's vulgar… Well, that's fair enough."
The person in question did not look particularly offended. Her expression was as flat as if nothing had happened, her voice dry. Daisy's eyes rounded.
"Why ask if you're going to look so shocked? Did you think I'd be angry?"
"To be honest… yes. Losing my head would not have been strange. I dared to insult Your Majesty, after all."
She had not called it vulgar outright, but it was hardly any different. Losing her head would have been only natural. Anyone would have thought the same.
"That was the point. Albert gifted it to me for that reason."
It's pretty because it's vulgar. That's what turns me on.
He had said those words while tapping her face with his cock. Beatrix swallowed the memory and flicked the thin strap resting against her chest, as if to make a point of it.
"You mean… His Majesty the Consort himself…?"
"Yes."
Good heavens. A man had been the first to gift such shameless lingerie. Daisy blinked hard, struggling to believe the words were real. Even for a fantasy, this felt like too much.
Hard to believe, I suppose.
Beatrix nodded as though she understood perfectly.
"He said it suited me. What do you think?"
Suit her or not. If forced to choose one, Daisy could only say that it did. Even if it truly did not, there was only one answer. The question itself demanded the reply she wanted to hear.
"…Yes. I think so as well."
Daisy forced the words out with a faintly awkward look. Listening to the queen boast about her husband left a bitter taste in her mouth. It sounded like nothing more than the smug claim that her husband had praised her.
Still… she's not wrong about any of it.
Clothes like that only suited someone with a body as voluptuous as Beatrix's. On a scrawny frame they would look ridiculous. The image of the fabric flapping around a flat chest like a cloak only made it worse.
"This outfit, and the milk ice you all ate—Albert had a hand in both."
Even that strange powdered ice confection that had been the talk of every young lady was supposedly Albert's creation.
What on earth is he?
Daisy had clearly heard he was an orphaned commoner who used to work for a trading company.
"You may leave now. I'm tired."
"…Yes, Your Majesty. Forgive the many impositions."
Looking thoroughly shaken, Daisy finished her farewell with a dazed expression. The shock still clung to her as she walked the corridors, and even when she finally went to bed.
The next morning, when she met her friend Anna in the empty training grounds of the Royal Palace, it was still with her.
"Her Majesty was really wearing something like that?"
Anna wiped the sweat from her brow as she asked. It was the light sweat she had worked up jogging around the grounds before Daisy arrived. She was dressed in training clothes—loose trousers and a wide-cut top—rather than a dress. Daisy, by contrast, was still in a gown.
"It's true. It was so shocking my head still feels fuzzy."
"She's always been a bold one, but still… it's surprising all over again."
A woman who casually took people's heads when the mood struck her—lingerie was hardly the strangest thing. Anna thought as much to herself and played along. Had she seen it with her own eyes it might have been different, but unfortunately she had not.
"But it suited her so well. Even though it was clearly vulgar lingerie."
"Her Majesty is an exceptional beauty. Anything would suit her. She could throw on commoner's clothes and still look like a painting."
Beautiful people look good in anything. Daisy agreed, and yet—
"That's true. It is, but…"
"What? Something else bothering you?"
When Anna tilted her head, Daisy gave a small nod.
"She looked even more beautiful than usual, somehow. That's what I can't get past."
"Vulgar, but more beautiful? Yeah, that is a little strange."
"You think so too?"
Why? They put their heads together and puzzled over it, but no answer came. Both young ladies were attractive enough, yet neither paid much mind to adornment; their passion lay in swinging swords. They could spot the beauty of a blade or a weapon at a glance, but analyzing a person's allure was beyond them.
However.
"My, the two young ladies seem to be having a rather interesting conversation."
A young girl who had quietly approached and greeted them—Alice—was a different matter entirely.
"Young Lady Miller…?"
Of all people, why did it have to be someone she wanted nothing to do with? Daisy bowed hastily even as she flustered. Anna was no better.
"Yes. You two would be Young Lady Araam and Young Lady Scala, would you not? How delightful to make your acquaintance."
Looking up with a smile because of her short stature made her look cute, yet the unchildlike glint in her eyes and the air about her stirred a strange tension.
"Yes, my lady. We are likewise delighted to meet you."
As if the earlier panic had never happened, Daisy greeted Alice with a bright smile. In truth she was only pretending to be pleased, but that degree of pretense was basic etiquette in noble society—easy enough even for someone like Daisy, who normally kept far from such artifice.
I'm staying the hell out of this.
Anna recalled the crude curses she had learned from the knights and quietly took a step back. When one thought about it, it was Daisy's gossip that had drawn Alice over in the first place.
"Ah, but what brings Young Lady Miller all the way out here…?"
"A young lady ought to be accomplished in both the literary and martial arts. So I came for a bit of light exercise."
Come to think of it… Daisy only then noticed that Alice, too, was wearing trousers and a shirt instead of a dress.
"How diligent of you."
"Not nearly so much as you two, who form the backbone of our national defense. For me it is merely a matter of refinement."
At any rate. Alice paused, cast a relatively simple, frank glance over the two of them, and smiled.
"I heard you speaking about Her Majesty's attire, so I thought I might join in. I believe I know the answer."
"Pardon?"
Daisy's eyes went round, and the curve of Alice's lips deepened.
"I also had an audience with Her Majesty yesterday, you see."
As chance would have it, Alice had likewise seen Beatrix in nothing but lingerie. She had been just as startled as Daisy. The ending, however, had been different.
"The reason you found Her Majesty even more beautiful is simple. That lingerie, which at a glance appears only vulgar, actually set Her Majesty's jade-like form into even sharper relief."
As Alice began, both young ladies naturally leaned in to listen. Far more revealing than ordinary undergarments, and so transparent in its intent that it bordered on vulgar—yet a closer look revealed more. The luxurious fabric, the meticulous embroidery. It was the sort of garment that let one taste a so-called decadent beauty. And, as the two young ladies had said, it was also an expression of confidence: I can wear even this and still look good.
Alice presented her own thoughts as if they were the correct answer, and in truth a great deal of it lined up. To take vulgarity as a foundation and become more beautiful and elegant still—that had been precisely what Albert intended as well.
"…Furthermore, it means one must never be careless in adorning oneself, whether by night or by day. That is why I myself dared to ask whether I might wear the same attire."
"…What?"
What Alice said had been interesting enough, and clear enough to resolve Daisy's doubts. That was why the tightness in her chest had eased. Only the final conclusion came completely out of nowhere.
"Young Lady… you mean you will wear the same clothes as Her Majesty?"
Anna blinked, looking rather dumbfounded.
"Yes. Wearing the exact same outfit openly might well be taken as a challenge to Her Majesty, but lingerie is a different matter. It does not show on the outside, after all."
Even so, she had asked just in case—and Her Majesty had granted permission without the slightest hesitation. Alice genuinely praised Beatrix's mercy and looked delighted.
"But… why would you do that?"
"To cultivate a beauty capable of melting even vulgarity, one must take the steps in advance, little by little. And besides—wearing the same clothes as Her Majesty is an honor, is it not?"
Alice puffed out her chest without a shred of shame. The only ones left thoroughly confused were Daisy and Anna, who had been listening.
"In any case, it seems your curiosity has been satisfied, so I shall take my leave. Should the opportunity arise, let us meet again. We have at least become acquainted, after all."
Alice finished with an elegant farewell and departed. She had originally planned to exercise on the training grounds, but she had changed her mind.
Vulgarity. Beauty. Yearning.
Left alone on the training grounds, Daisy turned the words over and over. A desire to try on the clothes the queen herself wore began to stir in her as well. Anna, who had been standing nearby like a painted screen, felt the same.
Even if I fall short of Her Majesty, it should still be enough.
Daisy's gaze traveled over her own body. Not on Beatrix's level, she thought, but her figure had a fair amount of curve to it—enough that both she and others could see it.
"Daisy."
Anna called her name in a low voice. Daisy lifted her eyes from her own form and looked at her friend.
"Hm? What is it?"
"Shall we go buy some too?"
Beatrix was a terrifying tyrant, yet there was no shortage of people who admired her all the same—commoners, young ladies, young lords. Anna was one of them. How could she possibly resist the queen's premium?
"Let's."
Daisy was of the same mind. She nodded with a rather resolute expression.