I Became a Clothing Designer in Another World - Chapter 123

"This is..."

Wrinkles deepen on the Countess's brow.

Reaching into the basket, the Countess picked up each piece of clothing one by one, examining them as meticulously as before.

The difference was that, unlike the gentle atmosphere of moments ago, we were now waiting for the Countess's decision in a chilling and sharp atmosphere, as if walking on a knife's edge.

"William, Henry, Sir Howard."

"Yes, please speak."

Clothes began to be scattered on the table one by one, and when the last headband came up, the Countess's lips, which had been closed for a few minutes, parted and my name flowed out.

A very cold voice.

With that, the Countess's gaze, which had been fixed on the clothes, turned to me.

"Should I think you are toying with me?"

Ears pressed flat and pupils swallowing most of her eyes as if an eclipse had occurred.

"......"

At the sharp gaze that felt like piercing my lungs, I swallowed a dry breath without realizing it.

Even though I expected this reaction, it was difficult to suppress the fear that I instinctively felt from the predator's eyes.

"Heh heh..."

I took a calm breath and let out a light laugh.

Since I was laughing in a situation where no one should be laughing, the Countess frowned and bared her sharp fangs.

"Right now..."

"Would you listen to my story for a moment?"

"......"

Even with the request for a chance to explain, the Countess's expression was still as cold as ice.

"I admit that the clothes are unsightly, as they reveal the body a bit too much, but I sincerely thought they would suit you well, based on several reasons."

As soon as I saw the expression that didn't wait for an answer, I added words and gazed intently into the Countess's eyes.

When speaking with sincerity, it is most effective to not avoid eye contact and to meet it with a confident expression, so even while my legs were trembling, I did not lose my smile and confident gaze.

"......"

The Countess seemed to be deep in thought, moving her ears busily and whipping her tail violently.

At the same time, the servant the Countess had brought, sensing something unusual in the Countess's behavior, sent me urgent and desperate glances with a pale face.

Ah, I'm in danger of becoming human carrot right now.

I need to draw, so I hope they'll pull out my left hand if possible...

"?"

As I was waiting for the Countess's words, hiding the trembling of my legs, the Countess's tail stopped abruptly.

"Go ahead."

And the Countess spoke as if telling me to try and talk my way out of it, crossing her legs arrogantly and folding her arms.

"Thank you."

"Stop the small talk and tell me your story quickly."

"Yes."

Unlike the Countess, who wanted to get to the point quickly, I needed a little time.

Because my head turned white from facing the fear beam, and I couldn't remember what I was going to say.

First, I took a deep breath and picked up the black silk rabbit headband.

Unlike the Earl's, which realistically reproduced the rabbit ears, this one was in a severely deformed state, except for the elongated shape.

Let's start with why I made this in the first place.

"I thought a lot while receiving the Countess's request, 'Is it okay to just end the request like this?' Because there were things that kept catching my eye."

"What is it?"

"I heard that you admire strong people, and I heard that Earl Tigris is a person who fits your ideal type, and you are the one who pointed out my posture and attitude to me at our first meeting."

"That's right."

"But in this request, you prepared headbands for your husband in two types, predator and prey, right?"

"... That's right."

"I thought that was strange."

"Ha..."

The Countess laughed in disbelief and slammed her tail hard on the floor.

"Why is that strange?"

"I don't know how the Earl acts where others can't see, but I couldn't imagine that someone who overcame the Ain race's dominance and secured a firm position would choose a weak image, and I didn't think that someone who settled in the Ain race autonomous region in human form for the Countess would choose something that goes against your taste, it's practically a waste of money."

"We are not a family poor enough for others to worry about our finances."

"I know that very well, but I'm someone who thinks that no one buys clothes for no reason, so I thought that this seemingly wasteful act must have some reason."

The Countess reacted sharply, but I smiled, acknowledged her words, and presented a new possibility.

There are occasionally people who live without thinking, but at least someone like Countess Tigris had close to zero chance of being one of them.

Because she's famous for not being extravagant.

"This is purely an imagination based on my speculation... I wondered if you wanted a change."

"I wanted a change?"

"Five years is a short but long time, it's a period where you can maintain a fresh and vibrant relationship, but it's also a time when the relationship can slowly fall into a rut."

"We still have a harmonious relationship, so don't worry."

"Not every relationship cools down when it falls into a rut, this can be different for each person, so you can still have a harmonious relationship, still be intimate, and still love each other, the important thing is that you can't say that it's the exact same relationship as before, it may be harmonious but the freshness may have disappeared, or it may be intimate but the heat may have disappeared."

"......"

"Therefore, in order to escape from this staleness, not only the environment but also the people must try to change."

Usually, dramatic changes occur in the family environment when a child is born, but in the case of mixed-race couples, it is often difficult to have children.

Because even if reproduction is possible, they are not perfectly the same species.

And Countess Tigris and her husband have been married for 5 years but still have no children.

It's not slow, but it's getting to the point where they're starting to get anxious.

"I thought that the rabbit headband you requested was a subtle expression of your desire for change."

"I don't know what connection there is between the rabbit headband and my inner thoughts."

"It's not everyone, but those who have grown up strong and tough are often clumsy at expressing their inner thoughts, because they think of it as weak or embarrassing, such people often express their inner thoughts in other ways, I speculated that the other way might be the rabbit headband."

I put the headband I had been holding into the basket.

And I pushed the basket very slightly towards the Countess and said.

"And, if your husband has a different change, wouldn't it be balanced for you to have a change as well? It seems too cowardly to only change on one side, perhaps your husband would like to see your different and delicate side at least once."

I felt that the last words were too strong, but I thought I had said everything I needed to say and stepped back slightly.

"......"

A heavy silence fell in the lounge once again.

The Countess was still crossing her legs, folding her arms, and staring at me intently, and the Countess's servant and Emily were holding their breath and watching us, waiting for the Countess's reaction.

"I listened to your story well, for you being honest with me, I should be honest with you too."

"Yes, I will accept any words."

"I'm displeased."

"......"

"To think that the excuse you came up with was this... Didn't you think it was rude to arbitrarily speculate on other people's family affairs or relationships?"

"That's..."

Seeing the Countess glaring at me without hiding her displeasure, I gritted my teeth.

I'm screwed.

I'm seriously screwed.

I had a feeling that I was pushing it too hard, but it was as expected.

"I'm sorry, I was very short-sighted and acted rashly."

I immediately apologized to the Countess, organized the clothes scattered on the table, and pulled the basket towards me.

"I'll assume you're not taking this and..."

"Wait a minute."

"Yes?"

Just as I was about to put the lid on the basket and move it aside, the Countess's hand slapped my hand and stopped me.

"I didn't say I wasn't taking it."

"Cough...!"

Surprised by the Countess's unexpected remark, I choked.

"Keuh... Yes?"

I patted my chest and hurriedly suppressed my cough, and looked at the Countess with a bewildered expression.

With the current flow, it should be a rejecting flow, but to twist it like this, I was dumbfounded.

"Why... why, it's just, I just thought your rude advice wasn't completely useless."

As I was staring at the Countess, the Countess, who was hiding her tail and blushing, made excuses with an uncertain voice, getting angry for no reason.

Tsundere?

Or is she just good at separating public and private matters?

I don't have enough information to know which one it is.

But I could picture how the Countess would act in front of her husband, and the corners of my mouth were about to twitch.

"... No, I was just wondering if I should add a service as an apology."

However, if I expressed that openly, I didn't know how the Countess would react, so I calmly closed the lid of the basket and changed the subject.

"... Please do."

"Okay, please wait 10 minutes, I'll make it and bring it to you quickly."

"Ahem...!"

I turned away from the Countess, who was hiding her embarrassment with a dry cough, and headed to the workshop.

Something grand would be a bit much, so I should make a bow tie collar choker that I thought would be hidden by the scarf and took out.

The more options, the better.