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“Lady Flora, please hurry. I want you to see it while it’s still light.”
“Yes, Lady Ekaterina. But what are we going to see?”
“You’ll see once you do—it’s a surprise!”

Chatting cheerfully, Ekaterina and Flora walk down the corridors of Jurnova Castle. After finishing their dance practice, the plan had been for everyone to relax until dinner, but Ekaterina had suddenly invited Flora out.

They arrive at the northeastern wing of Jurnova Castle. This area is normally unused. It is only opened as the residence of the duchess when the Jurnova ducal family receives an imperial princess in marriage.
In other words, it was the place where her grandmother Aleksandra once lived.

Ekaterina throws open the doors to a small hall there.

“Oh my!”

Countless luxurious dresses fill the room.

“They are my grandmother’s dresses.”
“So many of them…”

When Nonna, who had served that old hag, saw the inherited dresses at the ducal residence in the imperial capital, she had said—somehow proudly—that there were even more at the main estate in the duchy. Turns out she was telling the truth…

The ones in the capital were mostly taken home by my classmates who visited the ducal residence, so quite a few had been cleared out. Still, honestly, what am I supposed to do with all of this? Doing that kind of thing over and over really starts to feel like showing off—kind of tasteless.
But it did help people. Before summer vacation, when my classmate, the baron’s daughter Olga-chan, mentioned that her younger brother had attended his first formal party, she thanked me quietly. She must have sold a dress for her family and used the money to prepare her brother… and she can’t be the only one like that…
Anyway, putting that aside for now.

“Lady Flora, please look here.”

Ekaterina takes Flora by the hand and leads her to one particular dress.

“When I saw this one, I was surprised. It’s very similar to my own dress, just in a different color.”

Dress designs tend to follow certain patterns, so with this many, overlap isn’t surprising.

“We’ll be dancing together at the welcoming banquet, won’t we? I thought it would be lovely if we could match our dress designs. And I’m sure this dress would suit you beautifully, Lady Flora. If you don’t mind, I would love to dance wearing matching outfits with you.”
“Matching… Lady Ekaterina and I…”

Flora murmurs, her cheeks flushing. Then she suddenly comes to her senses.

“B-but it must be a very expensive dress, and the size—”
“Grandmother was quite tall, after all. But we still have time until tomorrow night, so the maids will do their best to alter it. Do you dislike the idea of matching with me?”
“Not at all! I’d be very happy!”

Flora clenches both hands into fists and exclaims, and Ekaterina joyfully takes those hands in hers.

“Oh, how wonderful! I’m even more excited for the banquet now!”

At that moment, the housekeeper Raisa appears, accompanied by several maids.

“Milady, we’ve brought accessories that should go well with the dresses.”
“Thank you, Raisa. Lady Flora, please try on the dress. I’ll lend you the accessories—please try them together and choose which ones you’d like to use.”
“E-eh? No, um—”
“I’d like to coordinate everything to match as much as possible, including the accessories. So please use them. Let’s dress up beautifully together. I was the one who invited you to Jurnova, after all—I want you to enjoy yourself as much as possible, Lady Flora!”

As if that were a signal, the maids take their positions.
And while Flora’s eyes dart back and forth in confusion, Raisa selects accessories, and Ekaterina says things like, “Oh, that would suit you as well,” and “Please try this one too,” bringing over dress after dress.

In no time at all it turns into a fashion show. Showered with praise—“It suits you,” “How cute,” “How beautiful”—from Ekaterina and the maids, Flora enjoys herself in a dreamlike state despite her bewilderment.

.

“Please take care of it.”
“Yes, leave it to us.”

Raisa and the maids nod at Ekaterina’s request. Not only the dress Flora tried on for tomorrow night’s welcoming banquet, but the others as well will be swiftly altered and delivered to her.
Because there is a reason they will be needed.

.

Today, the day the Imperial Prince and his friend Lady Flora arrive, consideration is given to their travel fatigue, and dinner is taken with the ducal siblings and their four friends.
However, from Ekaterina’s point of view, it doesn’t really feel like sufficient consideration.

Because dinner at a ducal household means formal attire and a full-course meal.
For Ekaterina, who has lived with this as the norm since reincarnating, it’s nothing unusual—but Flora, who grew up as a commoner, is bound to feel worn out by it. She also wouldn’t own enough dresses to wear a different one every day. So one dress, needing only the hem adjusted, is rushed so it will be ready in time for tonight’s dinner.

Learning from the reflection on the first dance, I’ll make sure Flora doesn’t end up embarrassed—I’ll support her!

Clenching her fist, Ekaterina swears this to the stars.

.

And so, dinner becomes a pleasant meal, with the four beautifully dressed friends chatting together.
For the chef of Jurnova Castle, hosting a dinner for the prince is the opportunity of a lifetime. He pours all his ingenuity and skill into each dish, presenting food that is delicious, visually stunning, and evocative of the region. Mikhail seems to have taken a liking to the main dish, sautéed great-horned beef, and renews his resolve to catch one at the hunting tournament.

Though the ingredients may be somewhat unusual, unlike Flora, this kind of dinner is probably an everyday scene for Mikhail. For a chef, having him eat their food is the highest honor. What kind of feeling must it be to live as such a person?

As Ekaterina watches Mikhail smoothly praising the dishes, she ends up staring at him. He looks back at her curiously, smiles, and she hurriedly averts her gaze, turning to Flora instead.

“Lady Flora, this Jurnova Castle has a large bath. Please relax and soothe your travel fatigue later. If you like, would you care to join me?”

In her previous life’s Europe—especially in the medieval and early modern periods—there wasn’t much of a bathing culture. People were uncomfortable being seen naked, and until fairly recently, there were Western tourists who entered hot springs in swimsuits when visiting Japan, causing trouble for inn staff.
But in this world—or rather, in the Empire—despite its many similarities to early modern Europe, bathing is loved as much as it was in her previous life’s Japan, or even in ancient Rome. Friends bathing together is nothing strange.

Flora, wearing a refined dress simply tailored from high-quality fabric woven with delicate floral patterns (you’d never guess it had been altered in a rush), smiles happily. She must realize how much care Ekaterina is putting into making her comfortable.

“Yes, Lady Ekaterina. I would love to join you.”
“After that, please come to my room. Just the two of us, chatting leisurely like girls. I’ve been looking forward to it so much.”

A girls’ sleepover means a pajama party, right? It makes me nostalgic for my student days in my previous life, but this is my first time in this life. I’ve seriously been looking forward to it.

Aleksei smiles.

“You’re having fun, Ekaterina. It’s thanks to you, Lady Flora—thank you so much for coming.”

Mikhail says nothing. Noticing that he has set down his cutlery and is holding his face, Ekaterina widens her eyes.

“Lord Mikhail, is something the matter?”
“Just… a surprise attack. No, it’s nothing.”

At that, Mikhail’s valet—a slender young man with threadlike, narrow eyes—moves. He smoothly places a glass of water in front of Mikhail.

“Ah, thank you, Luka. Aleksei, sorry, but could you chill this for me? I don’t know how to put it… I want to cool my head.”

And Mikhail drains the glass in one go—the water chilled by Aleksei’s ice magic to just before freezing.