— After that, I had returned to Wells’ Clothing Shop and took care of some small preparations that still had yet to be done. I went over the design a few more times while waiting for the model of Rose to be finished.
A couple weeks passed and Rose came to see me as I was working away in my room.
“it’s been a while, Rose.”
“Yeah, almost three weeks now, right? What have you been up to?”
“I’ve been making some accessories. I also made some decorations for your shoes as well.”
“Hee~… That fabric is beautiful and it feels so nice…. Where did you find something like that?”
“Oh that. It seems Claudia’s childhood friend is able to make it, and that’s actually why I need your help paying for it. I doubt there’s anyone else capable of making fabric equal to that.”
“…of course. It really is beautiful though. Would you mind introducing me to her later?”
“Okay, I’m sure she’d like to meet you. So, is your model finished?”
At first, I had planned on having Wells-san make the model of Rose.
However, Rose didn’t want to tell someone else her body measurements, so she had an employee of the Brad family make the model instead.
Wells-san has actually been busy making Claudia’s model in case we need it in the future.
“The model is complete. Would you like it in here?”
“Yeah. I’ve been the only one using this workshop so it should be fine.”
“Alright then, Lilia, please bring it in here.”
After Rose spoke, Lilia entered the room carrying the model of Rose that was wrapped in a cloth.
“Thank you. I’ll be in here talking with Yuzuki onii-san for a while. You can relax outside.”
“Of course.”
Lilia bowed before leaving the room. Rose watched her and then turned to the model and removed the cloth, revealing a model that resembled Rose’s body….
“Aren’t the breasts a little big?”
I said this without even thinking.
Rose’s chest is around a B or a C, slightly larger than the average size for her age. But this model is closer to a C or even a D.
“As expected of you, Yuzuki onii-san. You could tell just by looking.”
“No, it’s just…umm….”
I was the one that measured her…. That’s just an excuse.
“Well, if the chest of the model is bigger than you actually are, the chest of the dress will be loose. Unless you plan on using padding….”
Rose already has a great figure. I don’t know why she’d feel the need to use padding.
“Umm, I don’t plan on using any padding. And if you’re worried about the size, I don’t think that should be an issue.”
“Eh? What does that mean?”
“My chest has grown quite a bit over the past few weeks. So, I think this size will be closer to my own when the social event happens.”
“I-I see. But why have they been grow…. Never mind.”
“It’s because Yuzuki onii-san did so many amazing things to me~”
“– I said never mind!”
Even if she says ‘amazing things,’ every time we’ve done it I’ve had my hands and feet restrained in some way.
…I guess that’s not exactly the point.
“Anyway, you want me to design the dress according to this model then?”
“Yep, that should be fine.”
“All right. I’ll start draping but what are you planning on doing?”
“I’ll stay here for a few days before returning to the mansion. If you’re planning on starting on the dress today, can I stay here and watch? I won’t disturb you or anything.”
“I don’t mind…. I’ll go get Claudia.”
I found Claudia and brought her back to my room.
“Master, are you going to start making the dress now?”
“Yeah. I’ll be using a technique called draping to make the design. In the future, I’d like you to be able to do this on your own, so I’d like you to observe now so you can learn.”
“Okay, I’ll do my best.”
Claudia seemed really motivated. All right, let’s get started.
“Then, Claudia, grab that cheap cloth there.”
“…you’re going to use cheap cloth to make Rose-sama’s dress?”
“This is just the base cloth I’ll be using for the pattern paper. It doesn’t matter what quality this cloth is.”
My plan involves drawing out the necessary parts on pattern paper so I can calculate the proper length. I can then use the draping method to determine the exact measurements I’ll need and then copy that over to the pattern paper.
“First, we can put the cloth on the back of the model and pin it…. Then, we can pinch in the waist and pin it once more. By doing this, we can see that the cloth is now a better fit for the model. We now know that we can cut away this excess fabric here. Does that make sense?”
I turned back to look at them.
“Hee~… So that’s how draping works.”
“Master, this is revolutionary! With this, I’ll be able to make parts so easily!”
Claudia was ecstatic while Rose sat there admiring it.
“Easily…I don’t even know what to say to that. Actually –”
I stopped myself from saying what was on my mind. There’s still a lot more to draping that I haven’t shown them.
I’ve really only shown them the basics and the measurements still aren’t as precise as they can be.
“‘Actually’ what…? What is it?”
“No, it’s nothing. Let’s get this finished.”
I created the eyelets for the ribbon that would be a part of the corset in classic gothic lolita style. Rose will be able to tighten the ribbon to narrow her waist even more.
I added some final touches to the front of the dress. This will make the chest line much neater, and….
“Fuwa~”
Suddenly, I could hear Rose gasp behind me.
“Ah, sorry. It’s just as beautiful as the sketch you showed me so I was shocked. I’m really looking forward to you finishing it!”
“I’m happy that you like it.”
Rose was already wearing a dress that resembled the gothic lolita style, so I was expecting her to like it, but it’s still nice to hear someone praise your hard work.
“…Master, you really are amazing.”
“It really makes me happy to hear that. Thank you.”
It seems that their opinion of me is slowly increasing even more.
Once I’ve completed Rose’s dress, after studying a little more, I should be able to design a dress that Claudia will love.
“The problem now becomes…sewing. I know how to sew, I’m just not sure if I’m skilled enough to sew at the level that this dress demands.”
Well, if I could use a sewing machine it would be a different story, but…obviously, that’s impossible in this world.
“Sasha’s sewing rank is actually B. I think if she teaches you, you should be able to manage in no time.”
“Really?”
Even though she told me Sasha’s rank, I’m still unsure of how skilled she is.
“Oh, right. Umm…she’s the most skilled in our shop. All of the other workers are D ranked. She’s skilled enough to sell the clothing she makes, but not skilled enough to make clothing for the nobility.”
“I see.”
In other words, her Rank B sewing should be enough to make Rose’s dress.
If I’m able to observe her I should be able to learn quickly. For now, I’ll just have to rely on her.
Besides, Sasha is a yandere that’s completely obsessed with Claudia. If it’s for Claudia and her family’s shop, I’m sure she’ll work her hardest.
I’m sure I can feel confident in relying on her to use the pattern paper to finish all the sewing.
I was relieved to have that sorted out and returned to draping.
After working for a while, I heard Wells-san yell, “That’s not what you said before!”
Claudia turned away from the model to look at the door.
“…Claudia?”
“Umm, well, they’ve probably come to collect the debt.”
“Ah….”
I’m guessing the conversation went something like this:
“I’ve come to claim the debt you owe me!”
“We still haven’t passed the deadline yet!”
“I never said I’d wait that long!”
“That’s not what you said before!”
Something like that I’d guess.
“I’ll go check on it. You two wait here.”
After covering their living expenses and other various necessities, Wells-san should still have a few coins left. So I’m sure that should be enough to cover the debt this time.
“We could hear the commotion back here, what’s going on?”
When I reached the front of the shop, I could see an older woman pressed close to Wells-san. Behind the woman, there were two brawny men. They both looked like big balls of muscle.
“Yu-Yuzuki-kun…. This debt collector has come demanding her money.”
“Oi, oi, don’t make me out to be the bad guy! It’s only natural that you’d have to pay back the money you’ve borrowed.”
“But you promised we wouldn’t have to pay you back for another half a year!”
“Sorry about that, but things have changed.”
“You’re demanding too much! The interest you’re charging is also more than what you’re promised at the start!”
“Like I said before, stop making me look like the villain. It’s written down right here in the corner of the contract.”
The woman held out a piece of parchment and pointed to the lower right corner. There was clearly something written there, but the writing was so small and cramped that it was impossible to read.
“By the way, how much do you owe?”
I asked Wells-san this.
“We only borrowed twenty gold coins!”
“—and with interest that has become 100 gold coins!”
“It hasn’t even been a year yet! It’s impossible that our debt has increased that much!”
…this woman is clearly running a shady business. If we were in modern day Japan, the police would easily be able to handle this. But in this world…what should we do?
Rose appeared as if in response to my question.
“Is such a ridiculous interest rate allowed on this island?”
Oh, of course. The Brad family would know everything about how businesses should be run and what interest rates are allowed.
“Little girl, you don’t seem to understand. This interest isn’t something we’ve just made up. It’s standard all across this island. Are you really going to question the laws of this island?”
“…I think it was the Countess of this island that determined the interest rates. Are you saying you’re a member of the Brad family?”
“No, I’m not a member of the Countess’ family. But you’re wrong anyway, little girl. It’s not the Brad family that controls this island. I, Cynthia-sama, rule here!”
Cynthia-sama, the self-proclaimed ruler of this island.
“Fufu~, that’s quite the interesting thing to say in front of me.”
“Huh? What do you think you’re laughing at!?”
“Sorry, I just couldn’t help myself. This situation is just too funny.”
This Cynthia is calling herself the ruler of this island in front of a member of the actual ruling family.
And Rose is letting her make a fool of herself…. As expected of that devilish Rose.
