Chapter 274.1

The dress shop had a wide interior with customers browsing the displayed samples of dresses and goods, along with the attendants.

A big stir turned into a hushed silence. Everyone zipped their mouth shut with their eyes rounded in surprise in unison.

"Good heavens. Lady Arse!" Janette, the madame of the dress shop, exclaimed dramatically as she trotted over to greet the honored guests.

"What a great honor to have you come all the way here. I would have gone straight to the manor myself if you had asked."

Janette was a tailoress who's been taking charge of every garment that's been worn in the Arse Family. Her skill was absolutely impeccable but above all, it was her tendency to keep her tongue that made such long years of trade possible. Doubtless, no one has ever visited the Arse manor as often as Janette. However, no words have ever gotten out of the manor.

"I just felt like getting some fresh air today. And since my daughter has come to visit, I was thinking of getting a few new dresses for her."

Janette felt a twitch at the corner of her lips for a second. She couldn't help but to feel parched to have such important customers drop in without warning.

Moreover, Janette was well aware of the fact that the atmosphere had always been cold between Lady Arse and her daughter. Indeed, Lady Arse never once came to take a look at her daughter when Janette came over for the fitting.

Although it was natural for mothers to have many questions when their daughters start to outgrow their old clothes, Lady Arse, however, had never once shown any particular interest in her daughter's change. Truly, if only they weren't the exact spitting image of each other, Janette would most likely have doubted their relationship as a mother and daughter.

But in contrast to the past, Lady Arse was surprisingly gazing at her daughter with fervent affection today. Janette had no idea what had caused the change but she only responded with her usual tone without prying into it further.

"You have come just at the right time. We do have some new designs which I think will look great on Anika Jin." Janette sent out the signal to her assistants at once. The assistants then took her sign and started to get busy about the shop.

"Good lord! Who this might be?" said Lady Ditheo with her loud and resonant voice. With all eyes in the shop now shifted to her after her dramatic entrance, Lady Ditheo went up to Dana and held her hand.

"Never in my wildest dreams I thought I would be seeing you here, Lady Arse. I'm truly surprised."

Once again, Lady Ditheo made a great fuss when Dana introduced her daughter and her son-in-law to her.

"Have you regained your health?"

Dana had in fact secluded herself for years on the pretext of her health. Still, Lady Ditheo showed no hint of hesitation in bringing up what could seem as a rather sensitive subject. She indeed has a way to make everything sound like perfectly innocuous remarks despite the fact that she is the kind of person who says whatever comes to her mind.

"I'm now fully recovered thanks to my daughter."

Dana's such remark was something which could have sounded peculiar depending on the person. It opened to various interpretations such as that Anika Jin had literally cured the disease of her mother. But since Anika Jin was no practitioner, it also opened to the possibility that Jin had in fact returned with a cure which she had gained from the help of the king whom she married.

Such rumors were bound to grow and spread across the whole city in a few days time, just as Dana intended to.

In fact, she purposely chose to visit the dress shop as this was where countless rumors were born.

***

It didn't take long for Kasser to realize that his job was to just stand by while the ladies busily browsed around the shop. He took a seat on the sofa which seemed to be prepared for the customers just like himself.

He silently observed Eugene as she busily tried on different types of garments in the shop when a significant difference between her and other ladies caught his eyes all of sudden. She was the only one without any adornments around her neck among all the ladies in the shop.

Although he was pretty sure Eugene had worn a necklace when she left for the palace, he was confused as he couldn't quite recall the exact shape of the necklace.

In any case, his wife's empty neck was starting to get on his nerves profusely. It bothered him all the more as Lady Ditheo, who was being overly chatty around his wife and his mother-in-law, was wearing a large necklace set with huge jewels.