Chapter 121
Small, Kind, and Cute [Part 3]
"Does the House of Bell not have an exclusive tailor?"
Duke-ranked households should naturally have a personal tailor, at least.
The House of Delacour had a tailor, one who had worked exclusively for them for a long time, but on occasions like this, when they didn't have enough time, they needed to find additional assistant seamstresses.
"It's because our House doesn't make dresses that often..."
Arthur glanced at Marion and shrugged his shoulders.
The lineage of House Bell had been a gathering of knights for generations. Their men would prefer simply wearing their knight's uniform even for formal occasions, and their women were all the type who stayed away from dresses as far as they could, like Marion. That's why, unless they received a sudden invitation, like this time, they didn't really need an exclusive tailor.
"It sounds tough, Marion-sama. I hope you find a good tailor."
Francesca smiled bitterly as she saw Arthur being the one worrying about the dress for some reason, while Marion only nodded along to their conversation.
"Thank you! Francesca-sama. Even in the worst case, I will just go in a knight uniform, so you needn't worry about me."
" " "Of course that's not okay!" " "
Francesca and the twins retorted instantly to the chuckling Marion. Arthur's head was in his hands, as if to say 'Enough, I beg of you, no more'.
Well, she certainly, undoubtedly looked perfectly good in a knight uniform, but going to the Royal Family's evening party in male clothing was too risky. Much less with Marion being the daughter of a duke.
"Uhh, I'm confident that I will wear it better than the noble sons there... Come to think of it, how about Emma-sama? Are you not invited?"
Marion shifted her attention to Emma, who hadn't joined the conversation for a while now.
"!!!"
"Eh?!!!"
"Eh!?"
When Francesca, Marion, and the twins turned their heads, what should have been a mountain of sweets just a while ago had totally vanished.
In a flash, they understood what had happened. Emma had been so quiet because her mouth had been busy munching on sweets.
The waiter soundlessly collected the sweets wrappers and poured her a refill of the black tea for the nth time.
"Hm? House Stuart hasn't received a written invitation, probably. Mother went out in the morning, so maybe I just haven't heard about it..."
The way everyone suddenly looked at Emma made her feel a little self-conscious as she answered. Even though she talked while continuing to munch on sweets, everyone could hear her words clearly.
One might say this was the result of her grandmother, Hilda's spartan Etiquette class.
"Emma-sama... Did you eat all of them?"
'That buffet of sweet treats...' Emma was gobbling up an amount that would definitely make Francesca gain weight.
"Dessert goes to a separate belly."
'Fufufu' Emma laughed happily, but then she was noticed by George, William, and Joshua, who had arrived late to the courtyard (finally released by the Prince).
"Emma-sama! I brought you financiers today. Would you like to have some?"
Joshua handed a box of financiers to Emma.
Just smelling the sweet smell, Arthur went 'ughh' and averted his gaze. That was how many sweets he had seen today.
"Thank you! Joshua! I love financiers!"
When she opened the box, an even stronger sweet fragrance suffused the air.
The sweets Joshua prepared were always top quality.
He gathered sweets for Emma without any trouble, handpicking them from rare foreign countries and popular shops that even nobles couldn't get their hands on.
It looked delicious... But financiers surely taste heavy after eating that many sweets.
Before Arthur, Marion, Francesca, or the twins could stop her, with a 'nom', Emma had already put a financier into her mouth.
"Mmm~! It goes great with black tea!! I will have another one...............!!!"
George and William stopped Emma's hand as it reached for the second financier.
"Emma, let's hold back from having any more."
"Nee-sama, I just saw the waiter throw out a large amount of sweets wrappers earlier. There's no way you ate all of that, right?"
'Eh? I wonder what you're talking about?' While glaring at Emma, who shamelessly feigned ignorance, the brothers offered the remaining financiers to Arthur, Marion, Francesca, and the twins. But after seeing Emma's appetite, nobody could take any more sweet foods... so they refused.
Seeing that no one was going to eat, with a 'well then, another one...' Emma stretched out her hand but was prevented by George and William. It took two people to stop her.
"...........can't I just......have one more?"
Emma pleaded with moist, upturned eyes.
" "No!!" "
Even after directly receiving that insanely cute request, George and William both refused it ruthlessly.
Joshua, on the other hand, was clutching his chest, trying to withstand this stray bullet.
Are their hearts made of ice?
"But having a small, kind, and cute younger sister...... might have its challenges too," mused Arthur.