[V3C8] Borrowing a Dress Without Permission

Cyril Ashley had never told anyone about this, but he actually disliked parties and similar events.

The ostentatious displays of wealth, the superficial interactions, the undercurrents of social maneuvering… Every time he encountered such scenes, he felt a mismatch with his desire for cleanliness.

The fall from grace in high society can happen in an instant. One small misstep becomes a lifelong weakness.

That’s why, during his time at Serendia Academy, Cyril remained on high alert during parties. Not just for his own behavior, but Monica’s as well.

Proper attire, appropriate behavior, avoiding embarrassment in dance… any display of inadequacy would become a lifelong scar for Monica.

(Of course, it was only natural for me, the Vice President, to be concerned about a student council officer’s mistakes, since that would tarnish His Highness’s reputation. Still, Monica never really got the hang of dancing… Do the Seven Sages even have opportunities to dance? If they do, her dancing skills may prove very problematic…)

“Cyril-sama, is something the matter?”

The voice of a concerned young lady snapped Cyril back to reality.

How could I be thinking of something else while escorting a lady!?

“My apologies, I was reminiscing about my time at Serendia Academy.”

Cyril was currently chatting with Miss Aurelia Harvey, daughter of Marquis Bersting.

House Bersting, the family of the Starseer Witch, was a prestigious family of mages. They were also distantly related to House Highown.

Currently, the two houses were discussing an engagement between Aurelia and Cyril. However, Cyril honestly couldn’t feel any connection to his own engagement.

Aurelia was a beautiful young lady with deep golden hair and an exquisite face, likened to a “flower spirit” by his cousin Curtis. Honestly though, her lineage was considered more crucial than her appearance.

While Cyril did carry the blood of House Highown, he was an adopted child rather than a direct descendant. Moreover, there were those who looked down on him for being of common birth.

Marrying Aurelia, a direct descendant of House Bersting, would add prestige to his standing. Also, since both Cyril and Aurelia had magical aptitude, many believed their offspring would be exceptional as well.

Yet still, Cyril couldn’t muster much enthusiasm for the engagement.

Cyril had sworn to serve House Highown since getting adopted by Marquis Highown. Marriage was a part of that duty. Since he will inherit the Marquis title, it was only natural for him to marry a wife suitable for the position.

From his biological parents, Cyril knew that a love-based marriage didn’t necessarily guarantee happiness. If his adoptive father had ordered him to engage with Miss Aurelia, he would have obeyed without question.

What Marquis Highown said to Cyril when telling him about the engagement was this:

“I chose not to seek a male heir by refusing to take a second wife. Claudia chose to marry into another household. In other words, I adopted you due to our circumstances. I don’t intend to say anything about your marriage partner, so choose any lady you wish to be with.”

If his adopted father had said “marry Aurelia”, then Cyril would have done so, but he received no such order.

(…Considering the future of House Highown, I should make this engagement a success.)

Aurelia was a modest and demure lady, and one who would put her husband before herself. She excelled in appearance, magical talent, lineage——everything about her was flawless.

Unlike a certain someone, she would never fail at dancing.

(So… why am I not enthusiastic about this?)

Chatting about popular operas with Aurelia didn’t feel as fulfilling as discussing joint research with Raul and Monica.

Eventually, Cyril reached the conclusion that he was too focused on doing his job as his father’s aide, so he wasn’t ready to think about an engagement yet. In other words, Cyril blamed his own weakness for having inappropriate feelings.

Regardless, trying to marry Aurelia while hiding such feelings would be insincere.

“…Miss Aurelia, regarding the recent engagement proposal…”

As Cyril awkwardly began, Aurelia replied with a simple “Yes?” and faced him with slightly drooping eyebrows. She seemed to already know what Cyril was about to say.

“I believe I am still too inexperienced to marry you. Please… reject the engagement from your end.”

Aurelia rejecting the engagement rather than Cyril would prevent any damage to Aurelia’s reputation.

Aurelia lowered her eyebrows in response to Cyril’s suggestion.

“You say you are too inexperienced… In that case, would you be willing to marry me after succeeding the Marquis title?”

“T-That’s…”

Cyril’s heart ached at those words.

He should respond with “happily”, but he couldn’t for some reason. Cyril felt as if his tongue had gone numb.

As Cyril could only stand there, frozen, Aurelia returned with a sad smile.

“I apologize for troubling you. But please, when the time comes, consider it just one more time.”

Leaving only those words, Aurelia walked away. Left alone, Cyril bit his lip and lowered his head.

He wanted to be honest, and gave every effort to do so… Yet it felt like he had done something terribly insincere.

That must have been because Cyril was deceiving his own heart.

However, he still didn’t know what was bothering him.

(…All I can do right now is fulfill my duties as Father’s aide, and strive to become an admirable Marquis.)

Cyril walked briskly out of the party venue and down the corridor.

In an unusual turn of events, it seemed that all of the Seven Sages were attending today’s party, including Raul and Monica.

(I should meet with them, confirm the schedule for our joint research, and report on this year’s budget and investors…)

Right now, he would prioritize his job as his father’s aide rather than thinking about unnecessary things.

As long as he did that, someday he would be able to give Aurelia a definite answer.

Whether that answer would be a yes or a no, Cyril couldn’t tell yet.

＊　＊　＊

Monica entered the waiting room led by Raul, finding Ray wrapped in curtains.

Monica understood the feeling of wanting to retreat into curtains when cornered. When people feel anxious, they often seek solace behind a curtain.

However, in this world, there were those who didn’t seek the tranquility of curtains. Raul was one such person.

“Hey, Ray. What’s up with you, wrapping yourself in curtains? Are you imitating a caterpillar?”

“T-This is the worst… I’ll be laughed at, definitely laughed at, in these clothes… of all things, in these… these…”

“Enough, just come out!”

Raul pulled the edge of the curtain, and Ray stumbled forward a few steps.

This revealed his outfit, a formal suit colored predominantly in white.

The suit was adorned with delicate embroidery and trims, looking very glamorous and tidy… but whether it suited Ray was another matter entirely.

“White, for me…? It’s insane for a shaman to wear white… I guess it’s better than a frilly blouse and shorts, but still, white… unbelievable… the Starseer Witch’s sense is just wrong…”

“It’s alright, Ray. With your flashy hair, you’ll stand out no matter what you wear!”

Ray resentfully muttered, “Curse you…” in response to Raul’s far from comforting words.

Monica tried to come up with words of reassurance. However, being unfamiliar with fashion, she couldn’t tell if the clothes suited Ray or not.

As Ray grumbled and Monica stumbled over her words, Raul started the conversation with a smile as if nothing was wrong.

“Now that Ray has changed into perfect formal wear, let’s start the ‘Operation Get Ray and His Fiancé Together’ meeting right away! I’ve come up with various ideas for today!”

Raul thumped his chest as he said this, but Ray only returned with a suspicious glance. Honestly, Monica was pretty anxious too.

Still, the two reluctantly listened to Raul’s ideas.

“Plan A! I’ll approach Ray’s fiancé and tell her about all of Ray’s good points!”

“Rejected! Rejected! Rejected! Are you an idiot? A moron? If a good-looking guy like you approaches, anyone would fall for you!”

As Ray pointed out, Raul Roseberg boasted a beauty that could only be described as a living replica of the first Thorn Witch, despite his unfortunate personality.

Although he usually draped a robe over his farm clothes, today he wore a subdued brown formal suit.

The formal suit itself was modest, with a lack of flamboyance. However, this only emphasized his beautiful rose-colored curls and mysterious green eyes.

Monica was indifferent to others’ beauty or ugliness, but having attended Serendia Academy, she vaguely understood what kind of appearance was favored by the opposite sex.

If Raul were thrown into a party venue at Serendia Academy, the female students would probably be throwing themselves at him.

But for some reason, Raul seemed confident that the plan would turn out splendidly.

“I think it’s a great plan. I’ve prepared about a hundred good points about you just for today!”

“G-Good points… about me? Eh, a hundred…”

A glimmer of expectation appeared in Ray’s pink eyes. For Ray Albright, who wanted to be loved more than anyone, having someone list a hundred good things about him aroused some expectation.

Ray fidgeted with his purple hair and, looking a bit anxious, opened his mouth.

“T-Try, um, saying a few…”

“Sure! First off, that your hair is purple! And you can speak super fast without biting your tongue at all! Also, the bugs really like you, and you’re great at harvesting cabbages…”

“…Enough, I was a fool to expect anything, even for a moment.”

Raul pouted, saying, “There are still 96 more…” However, at this rate, the remaining 96 didn’t seem very promising.

“No good? I thought it was a great plan.”

“…If you can call that a great plan, your sense is irredeemable.”

“Alright, let’s all pull ourselves back together and move on to Plan B!”

Raul dragged something out of the luggage bag he had placed in the corner of the room. Out came a flamboyant dress with rose-colored fabric and black lace.

“Thorn Witch-sama…? Um, what is this dress for…?”

“I borrowed it from my sister for today! So, Plan B! Monica will wear this and become the villainess who torments Ray’s fiancé! Then, Ray will rush in and defend her! With this, she will undoubtedly fall in love with him!”

It sounded like a plan she heard somewhere before. Specifically, two years ago, and also recently in Sechen Village.

Monica’s face froze in a grimace, but she managed to squeeze out her voice.

“Um, Thorn Witch-sama, by any chance… have you read Dustin Gunther’s works…?”

“Yeah, they’re my favorite! Oh, Monica, have you read his works too? Then your villainess act will be perfect!”

“N-No, no, no, I can’t, I caaaaan’t!”

Monica shook her head so vigorously that it seemed as if it might fly off.

Monica playing the role of a villainess? That was undoubtedly a miscast.

“M-me? Me, a villainess…”

“Remember? You acted so cool at the Supreme Council two years ago, right? If you do it like that, you can totally pull it off!”

“No waaaay!!”

What happened two years ago was only possible because of the cooperation of her friends and thorough preparation.

“Come on, please be the villainess,” repeated Raul, handing Monica the dress, but only someone like Isabelle could pull it off so suddenly.

“No good? Fine, then I’ll wear it and be the villainess myself…”

“T-That’s… well, um…”

Raul was a young man with a very beautiful face, but his body had been trained through daily gardening. To put it bluntly, he was pretty ripped. It went without saying that it would be a disaster if he put on a dress.

Ray, looking like he was on the verge of death, repeatedly shook his head.

“Stop it… please stop… I don’t want to see such a nightmarish scene…”

“No, I think it might work if I try it!”

“…W-Where does that confidence of yours come from…?”

At this rate, a nightmarish beauty (with a ripped body) would be born!

As Monica and Ray turned pale, there was a knock on the door of the waiting room.

Whoever it was, the two placed their hopes on the arrival of a savior who would somehow resolve this impending disaster!

Monica looked at the door with hopeful eyes. The savior who entered through the door was none other than Cyril Ashley.

“Excuse me, there’s something I want to confirm with Monica and Lord Roseberg…”

“Hey, Cyril, you came at just the right time! Put on this dress for a bit and play the villainess. It’ll definitely suit you, I guarantee it!”

The surrounding air chilled in an instant. Cyril scowled at Raul with a cold gaze.

“Why am I being insulted out of the blue?”

A valid question.

However, the undeterred Raul said, “Nah, Cyril, you’re the only one we can count on!” He was fully determined to make Cyril wear the dress.

Monica, on the other hand, turned pale.

Because Monica knew. She heard that Cyril was currently in discussions about an engagement.

Yet here he was, being forced to enter the party venue in women’s clothing!

(No, this is bad… Cyril-sama has worked so hard to become a splendid marquis… I can’t let him crossdress… especially today, when his fiancé is… is…)

Once she recalled Cyril’s engagement, her eyes welled up with tears again. Surely, the part of her head she bumped earlier must be hurting again.

Monica sniffed once, wiped away the tears that had come to her eyes with the back of her hand, and raised her face in determination.

“…Thorn Witch-sama, please lend me the dress.”

To avoid embarrassing Cyril, and to bring Ray and his fiancé closer, Monica straightened her back and declared with a trembling voice.

“I-I will… b-become the villainess!”

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