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The next day, Ekaterina rode in a carriage with Aleksei, returning to the Duke’s residence in the Imperial Capital.

.

In the vast gardens of the capital’s ducal estate, the roses had already begun to bloom. Several gardeners could be seen here and there, busy at work. From now until the appointed day, they would adjust the blooming time of each variety so that the garden would reach its absolute peak that day.
It was said that there existed no rose variety that wasn’t in the Jurnova gardens, and many varieties that could only be found in the Jurnova gardens. Bringing all of them to full bloom on a single chosen day must be quite the challenge. Even though it happened every year, it was still a major event.

.

At yesterday’s lunch, Ekaterina had been ready to clutch her head in despair, wondering what on earth she should do about her outfit. When she went back to the dormitory and half-complained to her maid Mina, the latter nodded with her usual blank expression.

“That’s the servants’ job, milady. I’ll take care of the arrangements. You just need to think about what kind of dress you’d like to wear.”

Wait—really? That’s how it works?
But thinking back calmly, during the six months I had lived at the ducal main estate after being freed from confinement, I had plenty of beautiful dresses made for me—and hadn’t done a single thing myself. New dresses would simply appear one day, and I’d just wear whatever I was handed.
And, as far as I could remember… they hadn’t really suited me that well. Whose bright idea was it to put me—blue-haired, mature-looking me—in a frilly bright yellow dress? What a bold soul.

Apparently, the proper process was that when I needed a dress, the servants—maids or butlers—would summon a regular designer. I’d then tell the designer what kind of dress I wanted, look at the design sketches, and place an order if I liked one. That was how it was *supposed* to go.

And sure enough, after serving dinner that evening, Mina went out for a bit and came back having made an appointment with a popular designer in the capital. They would be visiting the duke’s residence the following day..
Isn’t it kind of amazing that you can get an appointment for the very next day? I Got Reincarnated and My Beautiful Maid is WAY Too Competent, trademarked.
Well, maybe that’s just the power of the Jurnova ducal family’s prestige at work.

.

And so, the meeting with the designer began right away. The designer, Kamila Croce, was a rising talent just entering her thirties—a slender woman with greenish-silver hair intricately tied up.
When Ekaterina invited her to sit down, Kamila looked rather startled. That made Ekaterina wonder if daughters of a duke were actually supposed to make designers *stand* during such meetings. But, she felt too uneasy if the other person were standing. She insisted again, and the two sat across from each other at the table.

After explaining that the outfit was to welcome the Imperial Family and that she wanted a design simple enough not to be disrespectful, Kamila looked visibly relieved.

“With your beauty, milady, a simple design would only highlight it all the more. The current trend favors designs that showcase the beauty of the fabric itself, so your request fits perfectly. I have samples of some marvelous fabrics that I think would suit you—top-quality silks imported from the far East. I’m sure you’ll love them.”
“About that… Actually, there’s a material I’d like to use.”

At her signal, Mina swiftly spread several pieces of cloth across the table—the ones Khalil had handed over that morning.

“Are you familiar with Celestial Azure?”

All the fabrics were shades of blue. The darkest one, somewhere between cerulean and lapis lazuli, was breathtakingly beautiful, deep yet translucent, like the single most radiant moment of twilight before nightfall.
I mean, geez, I fell in love at first sight! The lighter shades too—some like the sky of spring, others like the high summer zenith where the heavens seem to fade into space—each and every one of them was irresistibly lovely.

Celestial Azure was the name for the dye made from lapis lazuli mined in the Jurnova duchy, crushed into pigment or dye. Which meant, naturally, that this fabric was *insanely* expensive. A dress made from the darkest shade would probably cost more than an average person’s yearly income, easily.

Back in my previous life, I had a friend in college who was obsessed with blue hues and once passionately explained that lapis lazuli had also been used as pigment and dye there too. Its English name was *ultramarine*—literally meaning “beyond the sea.” Since lapis came from Afghanistan, it was, for Europe, a blue that arrived from beyond the Mediterranean.
In this world, the same color bore the name the Blue of the Sky if translated directly. Whoever named it, good job; it’s beautiful.

“I’m familiar with Celestial Azure, yes…”

Kamila’s eyes were glued to the fabric.

“But I’ve never seen such flawless, even coloration. Is this a special material?”
“Yes. It’s dyed not only with lapis lazuli, but also with a newly discovered dye found in our domain—one that differs from the traditional method.”

The discoverer was Great-Uncle Isaak, younger brother to my grandfather Sergei. According to Aaron—whose eyes sparkled like a lovestruck maiden whenever he talked about him—Isaak was the greatest mineralogist in the Empire’s history.
Apparently, this dye wasn’t something mined but synthesized. It might be the equivalent of synthetic ultramarine from my previous world—something newly created rather than extracted.

“This new dye can produce Celestial Azure at a fraction of the cost, and even more beautifully than before. I wish to present it to Her Majesty the Empress, so that it might be recognized as a new product of the Empire.”
“Less expensive?”

Kamila bit instantly.

“That’s wonderful—ah, though of course, for the Jurnova family, price is of no concern. But this means more ladies will be able to wear this beautiful blue.”
“That is my hope.”

And the piece of crap who tried to suppress that is gone now, too.
Apparently, Great-Uncle Isaak discovered this dye ten years ago. He and his people had been developing it ever since to make stable production possible—until after Grandfather’s death, when that vile old hag decreed that such research was forbidden. She claimed that Celestial Azure, a color meant only for the nobility, must never be cheapened for the common rabble.
So Khalil and the others had nodded along politely—then continued the research in secret until they completed it. Even after the hag was gone, they couldn’t launch it right away, since it wasn’t “in fashion.”

…Now that I think about it, part of why my brother and his subordinates are so busy must be because they’re finally free to pursue all the projects that the old bat had blocked.
If that’s the case, then I’ll make Celestial Azure the next big thing, break the price barrier, and let the commoners enjoy it too. Let the old hag gnash her teeth in her grave!

“And I’d like to incorporate gemstones from our domain into the design as well. You may choose whichever you like.”

Mina presented a case full of gemstones she’d received from Aaron.
Each gem gleamed brilliantly, several centimeters across, every one vividly colored. I didn’t know much about gemstone quality, but in my previous world, these would each go for hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, even billions of yen… Just thinking about it is terrifying.
I’m just a walking advertisement, okay?! I’m borrowing them, not keeping them!

“I realize this isn’t in line with current trends, but since I’ll be representing the Jurnova domain when welcoming Their Majesties, I’d like my attire to reflect our land’s character. I plan to mount these on simple bases as brooches—please include them in the design.”

“My, what exquisite pieces! This radiant Celestial Azure and these gems… You wish for a design that’s simple and refined, where color takes center stage—yes? With these, milady, you will have a divine, ethereal beauty worthy of a goddess. An original dress, not following the trends…how wonderful. I’ll put my whole heart into this!”

With that, Kamila began sketching rapidly in her notebook.

From there, things got really heated.
Kamila wanted to keep it simple but glamorous, while I insisted it should be purely simple to let the fabric shine.
I’d thought I’d leave the design to her, but wow, who knew talking about dresses could be this fun! And knowing it might help my brother and his people gave me even more motivation.

Thanks to that, I found myself actually—just a little—looking forward to the day of the flower-viewing when I’d unveil the dress.
Just a little, though.