Chapter 380 Huh, All Of A Sudden?
Sara and the others arrived at the tea party about 10 minutes late. In Avalon, people of lower status usually enter first to welcome those of higher status. This means that arrival times vary based on rank. For instance, if you are from a Baron family, you should arrive 20 to 30 minutes early. In contrast, those from a Duke family typically arrive about 30 minutes after the event starts.
It's just a custom without any legal force, but if someone of lower status arrives late, they are seen as poorly educated. The opposite is also true; it's not looked upon favorably if higher nobles arrive early.
Of course, this tea party isn't a formal noble gathering, so there's not much need to worry about it. However, as the daughter of the Marquis Grandchester family, Chloe decided to arrive late as usual.
"This is Lady Chloe. Thank you for attending today."
"Jasmine, thanks for the invite."
Chloe entered the venue slowly, escorted by Marcato. However, Jasmine noticed that Chloe's dress wasn't one of her designs, and her face tightened a bit.
"Lady Chloe, you look different today."
"Yeah, I wanted to look a bit more mature."
While she said this casually, the real conversation was more like, "You're not wearing my dress! Your designs are too childish!"
'Oh, even though she's just a dressmaker, she's picking a fight with Lady Chloe, the Marquis's daughter? This is quite interesting. Well, Chloe isn't backing down either.'
With a cheerful expression, Sophia was a bit surprised by Jasmine and Chloe's boldness.
"This dress is my recommendation. Recently, her ladyship has been growing rapidly, and her existing dresses no longer fit. So, I had to rush to make a dress for Lady Chloe."
It's true that Chloe is in her growth spurt, but there's no way her body could change so much right before the hunting tournament that she can't wear the dress she just made. This was just a convenient excuse to smooth things over, and Jasmine understood that too.
Jasmine turned to Sophia and gave her a forced smile.
'Hmm. You're an easy person to read. If you want to do business with nobles, you should be better at hiding your intentions.'
"I'm Jasmine. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you, Madam Jasmine. I'm Sophia."
"Lady Sophia, are you Lady Chloe's chaperone?"
Then Chloe smiled widely and spoke to Jasmine.
"Hehe. She's the guildmaster of the Sophia Merchant Guild, but she took time out of her busy schedule to come with me and Sara. I asked my mother and father to let her come."
Thanks to Chloe's comment, a buzz of whispers spread through the crowd. Among the nobles attending the Grandchester territory's hunting tournament, and even among others, rumors about Sophia and the Sophia Merchant Guild were flying around.
For women who pride themselves on being trendy, Sophia is currently the number one person they want to get to know better. After all, her products are incredibly attractive, yet very hard to obtain.
The Sophia Merchant Guild is new and does not yet have a sales network in the royal capital. They have not partnered with any other merchant guilds, so customers must travel to Grandchester to buy their products. Recently, servants from noble families and merchants from the royal capital have started visiting Grandchester to purchase items.
However, due to a fever outbreak, there are now restrictions on entering and leaving Grandchester. This is to prevent the fever from spreading, but it has made the products from the Sophia Merchant Guild even harder to find.
"This is my first time accompanying someone in a setting like this, but the Young Marquis and his wife said I shouldn't feel pressured, and I thought it would be a good learning experience for me."
"Of course. Father and mother both said you would fulfill your role perfectly."
"It seems Lady Sophia is quite trusted by the Grandchester family."
"I'm really grateful for this, Madam Jasmine."
Sophia and Chloe refer to their companion as an "escort" instead of a "chaperone," suggesting they view the tea party as a casual gathering rather than a formal event for nobles. Jasmine, who lacks formal training in etiquette, doesn't catch this subtlety.
However, she notices that Chloe is not wearing the dress Jasmine designed and has changed her hairstyle, which used to feature elegant vertical rolls. This change indicates that Jasmine's designs are no longer in style, reflecting Chloe's growth and evolving taste.
'Damn, it feels like I've lost a big client.'
Jasmine felt so frustrated that she could almost grind her teeth, but she turned to her other many clients to calm herself down. As just a common dressmaker, no matter how many noble women supported her, Jasmine couldn't say anything critical to Chloe, the daughter of the young Marquis. At most, she could make some indirect, sarcastic comments. Of course, she had to treat Sara and Sophia, who were accompanying Chloe, in the same way.
That said, it didn't mean Chloe had complete control over the situation. Approaching quietly from behind Jasmine was Patricia, the daughter of the Margrave Evans.
"Lady Chloe, it's been a while."
"Ah, it's been a while, Lady Patricia."
Patricia is 15 years old, 3 years older than Chloe. She has a cute look with a soft, round face, slightly droopy hazel eyes, and hair the color of milk tea. At first glance, she seems like a calm and gentle noble girl, but her personality is quite fierce, contrary to her appearance.
"Lady Chloe has returned to the Grandchester territory, hasn't she?"
"Yes. We were holding a hunting tournament."
"I wonder if Andy... I mean, Prince Andrew participated this year?"
"Yes. He was with His Highness the Crown Prince Gerhart of Roisen."
Actually, Patricia is known for having a bad relationship with Chloe. Both Patricia and Chloe are often mentioned as candidates to be Prince Andrew's bride, but Patricia's father was the captain of the Royal Guard Knights until a few years ago, making her a childhood friend of Prince Andrew.
'Hmph, it really annoys me how she calls the prince by his nickname so casually. Anyone from the nobility would know that the prince participated in the hunting tournament without even asking.'
"Did Lady Chloe and Lady Sophia get the outfits from the territory? (They have such a country-style design)"
Patricia continues her verbal attacks.
"Still, to grow so much that your body changes suddenly, it really shows that Grandchester is the food store of Avalon. The food must be delicious (that's why you got fat)."
"Yes, this year, Grandchester is producing new specialties, including different types of sake and a new kind of Elma. Margrave Evans, who took part in the hunting tournament, really liked the new liquor. He even performed a sword dance (while drunk), which was impressive (and made me laugh). Since it's a special occasion, I will arrange to deliver some to the Evans residence later."
"Thank you for your kindness."
Margrave Evans was known for becoming cheerful and performing songs and dances when he drank. Both were welcomed as entertaining party tricks since he was pretty good at them, but for Patricia, it was an embarrassing side of her father.
'Oh my, what a spirited young lady. Chloe isn't backing down either. Still, I wonder about starting a battle right after arriving.'
Sophia decided to step in as the escort to calm the situation.
"Nice to meet you, Lady Evans. I am Sophia, accompanying Lady Chloe."
"So you are Sophia. I've heard a lot about you. The new liquor that Lady Chloe mentioned is from your merchant guild, right?"
"Yes, that's correct. Thanks to the Grandchester family, we were able to introduce new products to the world."
"I see. By the way, I've heard you also sell cosmetics. I'll buy some, so come to the Evans residence."
Since Patricia only saw Sophia as a mere merchant, she ordered her around arrogantly.
"I'm very sorry. Actually, all the cosmetics and herbal teas are sold out. The noble families who came to the hunting tournament bought a lot more than we expected, so we have run out of stock."
"Then I'll just place an order for the next production."
"We already have so many orders that we can't keep up with production, so for a while, it will be difficult to sell to anyone other than our existing customers."
"I am the daughter of Margrave Evans! You should make arrangements to share with other families!"
However, Sophia quietly shook her head.
"I still think it will be difficult."
"What did you say?!"
In fact, the Sophia Merchant Guild is having trouble producing cosmetics because of a fever outbreak in the Grandchester area. The pharmacists are focused on making oral rehydration solutions to help with the fever. As a result, they are thinking about starting a cosmetics factory in a different location.
"Are you mocking me?"
"Oh dear, Lady Evans, you are being quite rude."
The one who appeared was Victoria, the Lady of Duke Arbal. Since they met in the Grandchester territory, she had been deepening her friendship with Sophia and was also an important customer for the Sophia Merchant Guild.
"This is Lady of Duke Arbal. I apologize for the unpleasant situation..."
Patricia hurriedly greeted Victoria with a polite curtsy.
"Lady Evans, Sophia was the attendant of Grandchester's daughter before she was the guildmaster of the merchant guild. Your actions are nothing less than an insult to the Marquis Grandchester family. Are you really planning to challenge the Marquis Grandchester family to a territorial war?"
"N-no. I would never think of such a thing..."
"Then what do you mean by that?"
"I simply wanted to request to purchase products from the Sophia Merchant Guild. Even though the Marquis Grandchester family is backing her, it feels like she is mocking the Margrave Evans family by saying she can't sell us her products."
Patricia raised her face and glared at Sophia.
"It's true that products from the Sophia Merchant Guild are in short supply. Our family is also eagerly waiting for them. There are probably others here who are waiting for their orders from the Sophia Merchant Guild. Are you planning to take those important products away from them?"
"I would never think of taking anything away."
"I thought I heard you say, 'Give some from the other families.' Was that just my imagination?"
"That was... um..."
Under Victoria's pressure, Patricia shrank back and trembled. Then, Victoria turned to Sophia and gave her a slight nod.
'Oh, I see. So she's putting on a show for us.'
"Lady of Duke Arbal, I was lacking in words. Lady Evans, actually, there is an outbreak of fever in the Grandchester territory. Due to the lord's order that 'human life comes first,' the pharmacist who was supposed to make cosmetics now has to create medicine for the fever."
"Oh, I see. I'm sorry I didn't know that."
"I apologize for not explaining it properly."
Sophia deeply bowed her head to Patricia. However, the nobles watching from the side realized that Sophia's etiquette was not that of a mere common merchant. They also understood, from the similarity to Sara, who stood next to Chloe without saying a word, that she was at least related to the Marquis Grandchester family.
"If Sophia says so, then it must be true. But Lady Evans, you shouldn't be too selfish and trouble others. Please refrain from childish behavior."
"I will take your words to heart."
Thanks to Victoria's intervention, the situation was resolved, but seeing Chloe, who was already full of fighting spirit even before taking a sip of tea, made Sophia unable to help but hold her head in despair.
However, the problem didn't end there. This was because Victoria had brought her 6-year-old son and 3-year-old daughter to the tea party. Moreover, she had kindly dressed her daughter Eugenie in a "Sophia Merchant Guild" dress.
Jasmine was obviously aware and it was clear from her eyes that she was checking Eugenie's dress. Eugenie's dress was one of the gifts from the Sophia Merchant Guild to the Arbal family as a thank you for purchasing a large Spieluhr.
'I never thought she would wear it today.'
"Lady of Duke Arbal, may I ask where your dress was made?"
"Oh, of course. This dress was a gift from the Sophia Merchant Guild. Don't you think it's very cute?"
"Indeed it is."
Victoria responded to Jasmine's question with a smile. Jasmine was doing her best to keep her own smile from twitching.
"Lady Sophia, if it's not too rude to ask, were the dresses given to Lady Chloe, Lady Sara, and Lady Eugenie made by the dressmaker in Grandchester?"
"Actually, the Sophia Merchant Guild is considering setting up a fashion department, and we are providing various prototypes to the Marquis Grandchester's family to get their opinions."
"Oh, a fashion department?"
"Yes, the goal is to focus on simplicity and comfort while maintaining an elegant design. We aim to avoid too many decorations and instead create well-made pieces using high-quality fabric and strong sewing techniques. Since we do not use decorations to hide flaws, we must carefully manage fabric production, and finding skilled seamstresses can be quite difficult."
"Does keeping the decorations simple mean it's a dress you wear every day?"
"I can't say for sure yet. I believe this design fits well in a setting like this, but does our outfit stand out too much? Since it's a piece from a young designer, there might be some flaws."
Sophia smiled brightly at Jasmine.
The tea party was held during the day, and it was considered proper to wear dresses with less skin showing. If a dress was too simple, it would end up looking dull, so Jasmine preferred to add small jewels to her daytime dress and layer her skirt with fluffy crinolines for a more glamorous design.
On the other hand, the daytime dress designed by Lucas used fabric with a gradient color from the weaving stage, included fine embroidery, and had lace peeking out at certain points, yet the overall design was very simple. Lucas also avoided designs that would tighten a growing girl's body with corsets and excluded crinolines that would restrict movement.
"I really like the dresses from the Sophia Merchant Guild. The best part is that they're comfortable to wear. I want my child to wear comfy clothes too."
"Thank you very much."
"Of course, I'm looking forward to Jasmine's dress as well. You're going to show us a new design today, right?"
"Of course!"
Thus, Victoria's words prompted the start of the tea party and the unveiling of Jasmine's new dress.
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