Chapter 131

High Theodor.

It was unmistakably clear to everyone that Cecilia had named her haute couture shop after her son, Theo.

Even before its opening, High Theodor had already garnered considerable fame within the social circles.

“Where have I heard that name before? Haven’t I heard it somewhere?”

“Hey! This is the place that made the clothes Young Master Theo was wearing.”

“Oh, right! And Lady Cecilia’s dress was absolutely stunning too.”

“They say the shop has a grand location right here in the city. Do you want to visit it sometime?”

“Sounds good!”

With Theo’s impressive performance at Ray’s birthday banquet, his fashion choice had also become a hot topic, stirring up much interest. Cecilia, elegantly adorned in her own dress creations, frequently appeared at various social events, drawing significant attention as well.

But that wasn’t all.

“Hm? Is the Vasque Workshop in the fashion business too?”

“Oh, sir, that place is one of our partner companies. It’s not far from here—would you like to visit? They have a beautiful selection of accessories that might interest your wife.”

“Hm, the price though…”

“Naturally! We’re offering special discounts for the grand opening as well.”

“Oh, then I definitely can’t resist!”

News that the Vasque Workshop was affiliated with the shop sparked interest even among men who normally didn’t care much about fashion. Those who came to the workshop to purchase weapons saw the advertisement and ended up buying gifts for their wives or partners.

“Do you know who I am? Hey! How dare you deny me one of those!”

“I’m sorry, sir, but cutting in between the line is not allowed.”

“If you keep this up, I’ll close your business in Winterer—!”

“Are you sure you could do that, knowing the head of the House of Ragnar is the owner’s husband?”

“Eep!”

At times, some tried to abuse their status or professions to make demands or wield power, but the moment they heard Ragnar’s name, they quickly backed down.

Every day was hectic.

Yet Cecilia’s face blossomed with a smile, a stark contrast to the exhaustion accumulating on her. She was a different person now, no longer anxiously confined to the Rose Palace, fearing Kyle’s affection would stray to someone else.

Then, one day—

Smack!

With the sound of a sharp slap, the tailor’s face jerked to the side.

“How dare you, a mere commoner, answer me back so insolently!”

The middle-aged woman, dressed in an elegant, vintage-style gown, glared at the tailor with fierce hostility.

The gazes of many customers browsing nearby instinctively turned in that direction.

“What are you looking at? Is this a show for you?”

As her sharp glare shot towards them, the onlookers quickly scrambled to leave the shop.

Normally, they would’ve lingered, sneering at anyone daring to act out in a shop under Ragnar’s protection. But, considering the status of the person involved, everyone seemed inclined to avoid the scene.

Vivianlee Narcio Mulligan.

The lady of the House of Narcio, she hailed from the Mulligan family, a prestigious southern lineage whose renown rivaled even that of the Ragnars. Her notoriously arrogant disposition had earned her quite the reputation; even her husband, the head of the household, would often avoid her presence when she was in one of her fits of rage.

“I heard you don’t accept private calls, so I came here myself to see what skill you think you have to pull that off. And yet, you dare to conduct business like this? Where’s your manager? Bring them here immediately!”

Several attendants quickly moved to the back of the shop.

Before long, Cecilia appeared.

“Madam, I…!”

“Don’t worry about the rest. Just go and take a break for now,” Cecilia said, sending the tearful tailor, who was holding her cheek, to the break room before facing Vivianlee.

“I understand you were asking for me, Madam?”

“Oh, so you’re the manager here?” Vivianlee covered her mouth with a fan adorned with peacock feathers, casting an unabashedly critical gaze up and down Cecilia’s form.

“Yes, that’s correct. If you could let me know what it was that displeased you, I’ll ensure it’s appropriately addressed.”

“You little wretch! And how exactly do you plan to fix it?”

Despite the blatant contempt, Cecilia didn’t so much as twitch an eyebrow.

“Unless you specify the issue, I’m afraid I won’t be able to assist you at all.”

“Fine. Since you insist, I’ll tell you.”

“Yes, what is it?”

“Everything! From start to finish!”

Vivianlee’s voice rose.

“A VVIP arrives, and you simply tell me to wait, offering nothing but cheap refreshments? And then you bring in an untrained girl and have the nerve to call her a tailor, bossing me around? And on top of it all, you claim it’ll take at least a week to have my outfit tailored? At the very least, you should be begging me to wear it and delivering it on a silver platter!”

The tailor and other attendants listening in the back blushed with frustration. Every word of Vivianlee’s outburst was a ridiculous exaggeration.

Cheap refreshments?

Cecilia had personally scoured the western highlands to procure teas and treats that wouldn’t offend her customers’ palates. Each item was so rare that even prominent nobles and merchants struggled to acquire them. Even if it wasn’t to one’s taste, there was no legitimate reason to call it cheap.

And an untrained tailor?

The tailors at the shop were all famous enough to launch their own brands but had chosen to work with Cecilia out of respect for her. The tailor assigned to Vivianlee, in particular, had even served at the imperial court in the past, so there was no question about their skill.

Most insulting of all was that Vivianlee had subjected this tailor to uncalled-for abuse and even hurled personal insults at them while they politely sought her understanding.

As for the waiting period—

Due to the high volume of orders, ordinary customers often had to wait a minimum of six months. They had already explained that they weren’t accepting custom orders at the moment, but Vivianlee had stubbornly insisted on having one. They had no choice but to respectfully ask her to wait for about a week.

This too, was done out of respect for the mother of Narcio’s young master, who was also a friend of Theo.

However…

The moment she heard this, she immediately slapped the attendant.

Simply because she was asked to wait.

“That’s…!”

Eventually, one of the attendants, unable to hold back any longer, tried to protest but was silenced when Cecilia raised her right hand.

Instead, she turned to the butler standing nearby and gave a few instructions.

“You know what I mean, right? Bring it.”

“Yes!”

Soon, the butler handed Cecilia a well-worn notebook.

Vivianlee’s eyebrow twitched.

She couldn’t fathom what Cecilia was trying to do.

Cecilia, however, flipped through the notebook expressionlessly until she stopped at a specific page.

“Ms. Vivianlee, it seems you visited our shop about fifteen days ago as well.”

“So what?”

“At that time, you also kicked one of our employees in the shin when they kindly asked you to wait for a moment.”

“What?”

Vivianlee’s face contorted.

“A month ago at a shop, you poured cold water on a jeweler’s face, saying they couldn’t offer you credit.”

“You…!”

“And three months ago, you demanded a full refund and compensation for damage on a dress you bought five years ago at another shop.”

“You!”

“Cases of similar refund requests total twelve, instances of violence against hairdressers or tailors amount to twenty-one, and cases of leaving unpaid credit stand at thirty-four…”

“What is the meaning of this?!”

Vivianlee’s face flushed red.

Where had they even dug up such information? And to humiliate her like this in front of so many people!

Then her eyes finally caught the title of the notebook Cecilia held.

– List of Problematic Customers.

T-that… did she just call me a p-problematic customer?

“I’m afraid won’t be able to fulfill your order, Ms. Vivianlee. I apologize, but the exit is just behind you, so please use it. Thank you.”

With a graceful bow, Cecilia turned to the staff.

“What are you all doing? Now that the troublemaker is gone, get back to work!”

“…!”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

The staff stifled laughs as they returned to their tasks.

Vivianlee’s body trembled with rage.

Had she ever suffered such humiliation in her life?

Even the knights who had accompanied her frowned deeply, their hands moving to their waists.

As the lady of Narcio and a young lady of Mulligan, it was their duty to punish anyone who sullied her name.

But then—

Splaash!

“Oh my, my hand slipped.”

“Kyaaaah!”

Suddenly, a vase appeared above Vivianlee’s head, and water poured out of it.

A completely unexpected disaster.

Vivianlee screamed and glared behind her, and her knights turned their eyes in that direction—only to freeze on the spot.

The Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace stood there with an apologetic expression.

“I was just admiring the flowers up close, and I accidentally made a mess. What should I do?” she said, though her tone betrayed no remorse.

Her gaze was utterly impassive.

“I hear in Narcio, they cut off hands when such mistakes are made. Should I offer mine?” The Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace subtly extended her hand forward, causing the knights to stumble back in fright.

Drenched and disheveled, Vivianlee trembled with rage but held her tongue. Facing off against Ragnar’s first wife and one of the Nine Dragons would only end disastrously.

“…Let’s go!” Vivianlee finally spat out, biting her lower lip as she stormed out of the shop.

Cheers erupted throughout the store.

The Mistress of Plum Blossom Palace, now smiling warmly, turned to the stoic-faced Cecilia.

“I’ve heard rumors that this place does exceptional tailoring. Could I perhaps arrange a consultation?”

Cecilia silently regarded her for a long moment before turning and speaking softly.

“…Please, come inside.”

* * *

Time flew by.

During this period, Theo officially began training the Temple Knights under the name “Kriemhild Knights,” and, as peace gradually returned, he handed a letter of introduction to Vittorio, who was preparing to depart on another trading mission.

The letter suggested that instead of working with the Ceres Trading Company, it might benefit the nearly collapsed Bacchus family to partner with the Shipping Alliance instead.

The response came quickly, and it was brief.

– When on earth did you get there?

For Naban Bacchus, it was utterly confounding. He had read in the newspapers that Theo was in the Floating Archipelago, but he hadn’t expected Theo to bring the entire Shipping Alliance to the North.

Naturally, he had no reason to refuse. The Bacchus family had been struggling with its influence waning as its head and elders had all been dragged to Winterer. This proposal offered them a lifeline.

Thus, Naban swiftly began preparing to form a joint venture with Vittorio.

“Looking forward to working together.”

“The same here. Let’s dominate the Northern market quickly while no other major trading companies have yet to settle here.”

“A monopoly is every merchant’s dream market. Hahaha!”

Under the agreement, Bacchus would handle transport and security, ensuring the Shipping Alliance could conduct trade safely, while the alliance focused on procuring goods from various regions.

The ownership split was arranged as 4:4:2—40% for the Shipping Alliance, 40% for Bacchus, and 20% allocated in Theo’s name.

The gratitude expressed toward Theo for providing this opportunity was, in part, a strategy to leverage his neutral ground during any future conflicts.

Thanks to this, Theo secured a voice within the joint venture, rapidly expanding its scale by connecting it with both High Theodor and the Vasque Workshop.

To advance in earnest, he would need a substantial amount of funds, and this joint venture would undoubtedly become a significant source of support.

Thus, as Theo managed various matters, time passed swiftly.

Before he knew it, new year had arrived.

“Theo, you’re sixteen now, right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Ah! Still a young chick! I envy you, you know that?”

“Then Selperd, this year, you’ll reach nine—!”

“Hey! Hey! You want to keep it down?”

In the North, there was a long-standing tradition of measuring age by the new year rather than by individual birthdays. Thus, Theo took a moment to reflect on his newly turned age.

Although he was still far from twenty, he could feel that time was steadily passing since his return.

However, he didn’t have the luxury to dwell on nostalgia.

– Mission Directive.

The war that had begun in the North was swiftly escalating.