Calsius's sweet, languid gaze was a powerful weapon that could break Adelle's defenses. After preparing with some added makeup and a headpiece, Adelle returned to the front room to show it to Madam Fairy and Calsius. The man's opinion was very important at this moment.
A slight blush colored her cheeks. "How is it? Does this suit me?" Adelle asked without looking into Calsius's eyes.
However, Calsius was different; he didn't even glance at the offering in front of him. His eyes softened, unwilling to leave the object of his gaze.
"Beautiful."
Adelle was surprised, her body trembling slightly in response. She searched for fragments of memory in her head, trying to recall the last time Calsius had praised her like that.
"When I saw it earlier, the dress was already beautiful. And then you wore it, it's perfect. Let's take this one," Calsius said again. Then he approached Madam Fairy, who was preparing their payment.
Adelle squeezed her palms until her fingertips turned white. Her lower lip was bitten in nervousness. Her gaze dropped, wondering how she could still be standing.
"Madam, your face is red. Did the makeup just now not suit your skin?" asked one of the women who had helped her with her makeup.
"Be quiet."
Adelle left the room in a hurry. Her hands now felt cold and sweaty. "What is this again? What's wrong with me today? Please, I want to go home."
¡¡¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡!¡
"Are you full? It's late, let's go home."
Adelle didn't move a single step. At the same time, her right hand pointed in another direction, to where several sets of jewelry were displayed.
Calsius sighed. Adelle was starting to whine again.
"Let's stop there first. I want a hairpin that will match for later."
"Adelle, your appearance earlier was already perfect. What else needs to be added?" Calsius pleaded, wanting them to just go home quickly. The man wanted to try whining too, to see what it would be like if he broke the rules he had set for himself for so long.
"Just this once. I need that clip."
"No."
"Come on, please?"
Adelle didn't stop. As a result, Calsius saved his ears before they exploded. His reward was Adelle's sweet smile, which he missed so much. When was the last time Adelle smiled like that? Besides recently, it seemed Adelle's smile had disappeared after that life-threatening incident.
"Do you know, they say Duke Eddenberg and his wife's relationship is getting colder! What do you think the reason is?"
"Isn't it impolite for us to talk about such sensitive things?"
"Let it be. Besides, according to my friend, the Duchess is very sensitive to the outside world. After her move 2 years ago, the Duchess Eddenberg hasn't been seen having any activities outside the Villa."
"Isn't that strange?"
"Well, why does the Duchess confine herself to the Villa?"
Adelle listened clearly and opened her ears wide to hear what the shoppers were talking about. She didn't expect her name to be so popular everywhere and to be a topic of conversation in various places. Adelle was equally confused as to whether this was good or bad.
"Thank you very much! I will wear it," Adelle said.
The two returned home by carriage. As Rico had planned, this could be considered a date that neither of them realized.
Upon arriving home, they were greeted by the butler who said that the bathwater was ready. Calsius understood and began to part ways with Adelle from the main hall of the Villa.
"Watch your gaze, Joe. You shouldn't look at them like that," one of the servants admonished the woman named 'Joe' who was staring intently at Adelle's hand holding Calsius's arm.
"I-I'm just curious about them. Sometimes they can be so distant, and sometimes they can be so romantic."
"Shut up. This is not our business, we don't need to know."
The commotion behind her did not reach her ears.Adelle immediately entered her room. She placed the new hairpin she had just bought on the dressing table. Looking at her face in the mirror, Adelle realized something, where did the bad rumors about her come from?
"Anna, can you prepare an outfit for the masquerade ball tonight?"
"But Madam, didn't the Master forbid you from going out at night and drinking alcohol again?" Anna hesitated to obey.
"Just this once. There's something I need to find out."
Anna let out a heavy sigh. She was hesitant and conflicted about whether to obey or not. Because if Calsius found out, who knows what would happen to the Villa. But because of Adelle's whining, Anna didn't want her ears to explode.
"Alright, Madam."
Adelle smiled in relief. She sat in front of the dressing table, and after a while, Anna returned with a rose-red, off-the-shoulder dress. Adelle looked for suitable jewelry for her outfit, but it felt like something was missing. "Anna, have you seen the small rose pendant necklace?" Adelle asked, unable to find the necklace she had mentioned.
Anna shook her head slowly.
"I didn't dare to go near there, Madam. You usually tidy it up yourself," Anna replied.
Honestly, Adelle was almost frustrated looking for it. But what could she do, she couldn't keep focusing on something that was lost.
Adelle washed her skin, which had been sweating a lot that afternoon. Then she got ready by putting on her clothes, the new hairpin, and the silver fan she would never forget.
Once ready, Adelle checked her appearance in the mirror again. But for a moment, Calsius's words praising her that afternoon flashed through her mind. Adelle immediately closed her eyes, hoping that Calsius's image would disappear from her head.
"I'm entrusting this room to you, Anna. If you get caught, I will take responsibility." Adelle grabbed Anna's shoulder to carry out the important mission according to their plan.
"I-I hope you'll come home soon." Anna was too nervous to lie like this. Adelle, on the other hand, winked one eye to give Anna confidence. Adelle also laid Anna down and covered her with a blanket up to her neck.
"Try not to get caught. Just this once I will disobey Calsius. I promise."
Anna sighed again. She knew that Adelle's words were the same words every time she was involved in the plan to 'trick stupid Calsius'. Anna always worried about getting caught, although so far, everything had gone smoothly without Calsius knowing anything. According to Anna, it felt like being tied to a time bomb that could explode and destroy her at any moment.
"Anyway, Madam must be careful. I will try my best, please come home early," Anna reminded again.
Adelle, who had opened the door, looked at her for a moment. Then she put on her silver mask and nodded in response. She had to get to the horse-drawn carriage she usually used to go to masquerade balls. A secret horse-drawn carriage that had no distinctive family crest.
Don't worry, Calsius prepared that carriage.