Chapter 377: The Dress That Had Not Been Forgotten
In the end, Evelia’s tomato cake was sent back by Rachel to be remade.
Even Rachel herself didn’t know where she had found the courage to reject Evelia’s decision. Later, when she caught her breath and thought about it, she figured it must have been pure “survival instinct.”
In the past, she would never have dared to refuse Evelia. But now, as their relationship grew closer, Rachel had become much bolder.
The tomato cake matter was set aside for later. After all, Armand definitely wouldn’t come straight back to the manor after the New Year’s party to celebrate his birthday. Most likely, at midnight he would still be with the nobles and the royal family, watching the fireworks and counting down to the New Year.
So there was no rush to make the cake. If it was prepared too early, it wouldn’t taste as good after sitting for too long.
For now, what Evelia and Rachel needed to focus on was the matter of the formal wear.
After a few days of waiting, Anna had entrusted Kallai to deliver their clothes to Armand’s manor. From Kallai’s description, Anna was extremely busy at the moment, unable to leave her workshop, cutting fabric so quickly it was as if sparks would fly from her scissors.
Crand, meanwhile, had not only learned bookkeeping but also how to select fabric, measure it, and patch it together. His fashion sense had also improved by a whole level. Even though he was exhausted, he still joked that with all this work experience, he could now describe characters and clothes for artists to draw them even more beautifully.
Originally, Evelia hadn’t asked Anna to prepare clothes for herself. After all, Anna had already given her far too many outfits, even going so far as to prepare maternity dresses after her engagement to Armand was confirmed. Unfortunately, Armand had fallen ill at that time, the engagement banquet was never held, and the maternity dress ended up having no use.
But Anna had still sent over the clothes they needed, not only the gown Rachel had asked for on Evelia’s behalf, but also outfits for both Evelia and Armand.
Of course, Anna wasn’t a magician who could wave a wand and create clothes like in Cinderella. What she sent were the outfits she had made before, the very ones Evelia and Armand had been meant to wear at their engagement ceremony.
She remembered how, back then, they had stood in Anna’s shop imagining their beautiful future. But only now, at last, had Evelia truly held that gown in her hands.
To be honest, Evelia didn’t like long dresses.
Although she was getting used to her life as a woman, her training as an assassin had made her movements large and unrestrained. Tight, form-fitting gowns that showed off her figure felt uncomfortable to her, as if she were being wrapped up too tightly.
But she had dreamed about this dress countless times. Ever since the design had been decided, she had looked forward to the day she and her Mr. Armand would wear matching outfits to their small engagement celebration.
But in the end, that day never came.
At that time, Armand had forgotten many things, forgotten the date, forgotten the banquet, and even, for a while, forgotten that he had ever proposed. So the dress had been quietly stored away by Anna, becoming a wound in Evelia’s heart that no one wanted to touch.
But now, it could finally be taken out and worn.
Evelia and Armand needed formal wear for the New Year’s ball, and this dress was perfect.
Anna had said before that both Armand and Evelia suited white. Whether it was Armand’s black hair and blue eyes, or Evelia’s pink hair and golden eyes, both could be beautifully framed by gentle white, like precious gems lying quietly in white velvet.
“……”
Evelia took out the gown and watched the white fabric unfold in front of her.
White was the color of purity and holiness, yet now it would be worn by the “Red Crow”, a symbol of death and blood.
Looking at herself in the mirror, Evelia felt a little dazed.
Even she knew that at ordinary weddings, people wore long white dresses like this.
Even though the dress she now held wasn’t as elaborate as a wedding gown, to someone who had never been part of such occasions, it still held deep symbolic meaning.
She stood in front of the mirror, holding the dress up against herself.
The lace on the gown had mostly been chosen by Armand.
Even though their engagement banquet was meant to be a small gathering with only a few people, Armand still didn’t agree to Evelia wearing anything too revealing. So Anna had cleverly used lace to cover certain areas. The lace and ribbons were all detachable, so that after the banquet, if the two of them wanted to “spend more time together,” all of the lace could be removed to make the gown more alluring.
Evelia looked at the dress. She had always looked forward to the day she would wear it, but now that it was right in front of her, so beautiful and perfect, she almost couldn’t bear to put it on. The jewelry Anna had sent along with it was also far too valuable.
And as if Anna had already guessed Evelia’s thoughts, the accessory box included a veil.
It was pure white, without any extra decorations, just right to be worn over Evelia’s hair.
Technically, it was the type of veil meant to be worn behind the head as a decoration after braiding the hair, but to Evelia, it seemed to have a much more meaningful use. Anna probably thought so too, because she had made the size slightly larger, big enough to cover Evelia’s whole head.
Even though Evelia hesitated to wear such a precious dress, when she looked at herself in the mirror and imagined being Armand’s wife in the future, she took off her maid uniform, removing the role it represented, and put on the gown that looked almost like a wedding dress.
The fabric was soft, without the suffocating tightness she had imagined.
She really did feel protected, like a gemstone resting safely inside white velvet.
The veil was the same, when worn over her head, it covered her face but still allowed her to see everything clearly, and the size was perfect.
Click.
Just as she was struggling with how to zip up the back of the dress, Armand returned to the bedroom.
He paused for a moment when he saw Evelia changing, her whole figure wrapped in white. For an instant, a strange feeling stirred in his heart.
“Mr. Armand.”
Evelia looked at him, stayed silent for a moment, then turned her back toward him, gently calling his name.
“Would you help me with the zipper at the back?”
She swept aside her long pink hair and let the veil fall forward, exposing her back to him without a hint of caution.
“…Alright.”
Armand stepped closer, still carrying the chill of the outside air.
His fingers were cold, and he was careful not to let the temperature bother Evelia’s warm skin. But at the same time, it seemed he couldn’t help lingering in her warmth. His knuckles brushed gently against her back before his fingers hooked lightly into her loose hair, and he left a soft kiss there.
Even with her back turned, Evelia could feel it. And she could see it.
They were standing right beside the mirror, and both of them knew, the expressions they thought were hidden were being reflected there for the other to see. Even through the white veil, they could still clearly make out each other’s smiles and subtle changes in expression.
Evelia adjusted her hair and veil, then turned to face Armand. Through the layer of white, she looked at him.
“Mr. Armand… how do I look?”
She seemed a little nervous, unsure of what he would say as she noticed he had been silent all this time.
“…Beautiful.”
Armand smiled, lifting his hands to gently move aside the thin veil between them. His touch was soft, as though he were handling something fragile.
“So beautiful… it feels like I don’t deserve you.”
“Don’t say that, Mr. Armand.”
Evelia tilted her head, rubbing her cheek against the palm of his hand.
“It’s me who should… thank you, for choosing me and staying by my side.”
They had no friends or family present, no feast, not even a table full of tomato sauce.
But in this one moment, they seemed to go back to that time long ago when they decided to get engaged. In that moment, they were also doing their best to make up for the time they had lost.