Chapter 37
Iris gazed at her reflection in the mirror, wearing a dress so splendid it felt as though she’d be scattering jewels in every direction just by walking around.
‘Is this the trend these days?’
No, the women of the imperial palace don’t follow trends—they set them.
Even if she couldn’t quite keep up with piling on all sorts of jewels, this dress design would probably soon become the fashion.
‘It’s a bit overwhelming; I want to take it off quickly.’
Glancing at the empress and the maids whispering as they looked at her, Iris spoke softly.
“How is Her Majesty the Empress’s dress coming along?”
“You don’t need to worry; it’s been well made.”
“I see…”
It seemed her suggestion hadn’t been taken. It was a bit disappointing, but what could she do? People don’t change in an instant.
“By the way, with the Crown Prince leaving for the Kingdom of Cecil, what are you going to do about a partner?”
“Oh, His Highness said he’d assign one of his close knights to me.”
“Good, you’ve handled it appropriately.”
Iris responded with a bright smile and tried to take off the dress.
But at the empress’s gesture, instead of helping her remove it, the maids brought something out from the dressing room.
“That dress would go well with a diamond necklace and earrings.”
“Y-Yes?”
Iris’s eyes wavered for a moment at the sight of the massive diamond necklace placed before her. How could she possibly wear something so ostentatious?
“I-I have a pearl necklace…”
“You’re going to stand by my side, and you think something like that will do? Come now.”
At the empress’s gesture, the maids naturally placed the necklace around her neck and the earrings in her ears.
The weight on her neck and ears felt so heavy, it was almost suffocating, yet exquisite.
‘If I lose this at the party, I’m done for.’
The empress finally nodded, as if satisfied.
She then told Iris to turn around slowly, carefully inspecting her from the side and back before finally giving permission to change out of the dress.
‘Phew.’
The thought of strutting around the party in that dress already made her feel overwhelmed. If she lost even a single jewel, how much would that cost?
Iris changed back into her original dress and sat beside the empress.
“I’m worried whether I’ll be able to wear it properly and return it…”
As Iris spoke with a sigh-laced laugh, the empress furrowed her brow, as if she’d heard something strange.
“Why would you return it? It’s yours now.”
“What?”
“Do I look so lacking that I’d take back something I’ve given?”
“N-No, that’s not what I meant!”
Iris frantically waved her hands.
“It’s just that it’s too precious for me…”
“It may be to you, but not to me.”
“Haha, I see.”
She was on the verge of tears at the empress’s generosity.
The problem was that if she tried to sell the dress and accessories the empress had personally bestowed, rumors would spread instantly, so she couldn’t even use them to pay off her debts—she’d have to keep them.
‘Fine, I’ll just gratefully accept them.’
The budget allocated for the empress’s dignity was probably beyond anything Iris could imagine, and she couldn’t forcibly return something the empress had declared she wouldn’t take back.
‘It’s extravagant, but it’ll make for a nice memory.’
She might never wear it again, but perhaps one day, far away, it could be something to look back on.
‘And maybe, after a long time, I could sell it?’
For now, Iris decided to carefully store the dress.
The empress and the dressmakers began discussing how to adorn Iris’s hair, while Iris gazed out the window, as if it wasn’t her concern.
‘My opinion probably won’t matter much anyway…’
Thinking this, she glanced at the empress’s profile and saw her deeply contemplating with a serious expression.
Perhaps because she had no children yet, or maybe because she was lonely, she seemed to be focusing on Iris as if playing with a doll.
“Oh, I don’t like roses.”
As the dress was entirely white, someone suggested red roses as an accent, but Iris raised her hand in refusal.
“Is there a reason?”
“They were the flowers my first husband often gave me.”
“…I see.”
Since her first husband was a foreign noble, not much was known about him.
Iris had never spoken a word about him before, so it was easy to sense the lingering resentment in her attitude.
“I thought they’d go well with your red eyes.”
“Haha, I suppose so. My first husband used to say similar things when he brought them.”
As she spoke somewhat indifferently, the empress fell silent for a moment before quietly asking,
“May I ask what kind of person your first husband was?”
Her cautious tone surprised Iris. After a moment of crossing her arms and thinking about him, she said,
“When I think about it, I didn’t really know him well. I was foolish, wasn’t I? Marrying a man I barely knew…”
She gave a bitter smile.
“I know many people are curious about my first husband, but I don’t have much to say. He was a foreign noble, and he had a wife back in his homeland, that’s about it.”
At Iris’s words, one of the maids gasped in surprise.
“……”
“How convenient it must have been for him. A commoner girl he could toy with without consequences. Well, thanks to him, I entered high society, so my life did change, but I don’t feel the least bit grateful.”
The empress listened to her words and remained silent for a long time. The maid’s expressions weren’t pleasant either.
It made sense—nobody likely knew the truth about her first marriage.
‘Back then, it was just my first divorce, so no one paid much attention.’
People only started saying Iris was cursed by the goddess of love after her third divorce.
“…Yet you managed to marry again.”
The empress spoke. Iris couldn’t exactly say, ‘Well, that’s when I hardened my heart and decided to make a business out of alimony,’ so she replied vaguely,
“That’s just how the heart works. Let’s believe one more time. Just one more time. But in the end, it always turned out the same…”
She concluded her words calmly.
“It’s easier to just think it’s all my fault.”
“……”
“Oh, did I make the mood too heavy? Don’t worry about it too much. I’m fine now.”
Iris gave the empress a bright smile, but the empress looked troubled, as if unsure what expression to make.
Seeing the empress’s face like that for the first time, Iris couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
“What’s so funny?”
“I’m just happy because it feels like Your Majesty is concerned about me.”
“…I’m not particularly concerned.”
“Then I guess I was mistaken, haha.”
Iris shrugged and suggested a different hair accessory to the dressmaker—a silver thread adorned with small red gems that matched both the dress and her eyes.
The empress and the dressmaker easily agreed.
“It should be fine to take it as is. See you at the banquet.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Thank you once again.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll see you then. I’ll send a carriage.”
“Thank you for that as well.”
And so, Iris returned to the mansion with the expensive dress and accessories given to her, while Aster, trembling, stored them in the dressing room.
“I’ll have to stay up all night guarding the dressing room.”
“No need for that.”
Aster made a fuss, saying she’d never seen such dazzling clothes in her life.
For Iris, who usually lived in solitude, it felt unfamiliar.
As she watched the chattering girl, unaccustomed to such liveliness in the mansion, a thought suddenly occurred to her.
‘Who could the Crown Prince’s close aide be? I suppose I’ll find out on the day.’
And on the day of the banquet, an unexpectedly familiar face came to find her.
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