Kays Translations

Chapter 438: Trying Embroidery

From then on, my days were divided between teaching Leon about magic potions, visiting the training ground, and stopping by the salon to see how the three embroiderers were progressing.

The monster outbreak in the eastern frontier appeared to have been brought under control. Since its source had been eliminated, no further major damage had occurred.

“Julius-sama, have you finished your morning training?”

“Yes, just now. Leon has been shutting himself inside the compounding room lately, so I thought he should get some exercise from time to time.”

When I entered the salon, Fabienne greeted me with a smile. She held a round embroidery hoop with cloth stretched across it, while Mira slept peacefully on her lap. It was still morning, yet the scene already looked remarkably relaxed.

“Oh, that may be difficult. Leon is hopeless at exercise. If he tried to swing a sword, he would probably lose his balance and fall over.”

“Surely it isn’t that bad…”

I could only smile wryly at Lady Hilda’s words. She did not appear to be joking, however, because she continued shaking her head. When I looked at Caro, she was doing the same. Apparently, they agreed completely. In that case, perhaps I should have Leon begin with a light jog. That ought to be manageable.

As soon as I sat down, Nero brought me tea. As expected, he was exceptionally attentive.

“It looks as though things are progressing smoothly.”

“It’s beginning to take shape, but… it isn’t going very well.”

Fabienne’s expression fell. Embroidery did not seem to come as easily to her as compounding magic potions. It required delicate movements of the fingers, and anyone too clumsy would repeatedly prick themselves with the needle.

I glanced at Fabienne’s fingers. There were no injuries. She was clearly not clumsy, which reassured me.

“Julius-sama, would you like to try? You’re good at making stuffed animals, so perhaps…”

“Me? Hmm. I don’t know whether this is truly an appropriate hobby for a gentleman…”

“Oh, it is perfectly acceptable. Many men work as tailors, you know.”

“You would probably make something extraordinary, Julius.”

Lady Hilda and Caro apparently wanted to involve me too and readily supported Fabienne’s suggestion. The atmosphere was making it increasingly difficult to refuse. I possessed the Sewing skill, so embroidery ought to be simple enough. But what should I do?

While I considered it, Fabienne diligently prepared an embroidery hoop for me.

She clearly wanted me to try. Perhaps she had been feeling lonely without me. Well, it could not be helped. For my adorable fiancée, I would do a little embroidery.

That was what I thought – at first.

“That’s amazing, Julius-sama! This is Mira, isn’t it? So small and adorable.”

“Kyu, kyu!”

“That hurts, Mira. Stop headbutting me!”

An excited Mira repeatedly headbutted my stomach as though demanding more. How had things come to this? Perhaps the problem was that I had used what felt like two hundred shades of white to create a delicate gradient and reproduce Mira’s appearance almost perfectly.

“I never knew Julius had such a talent…”

“As expected of a stuffed-animal maker.”

Who was a stuffed-animal maker, Lady Hilda? I had made them only because of various circumstances. I was not a professional stuffed-animal maker. I had merely become carried away because Fabienne looked so happy, and now I regretted it.

“It sounds lively in here. What is happening?”

“Mother! Please look at this!”

Caro called out to Marchioness Mulan, who had happened to enter the salon. The Marchioness looked slightly apologetic when she saw me sewing, but her expression changed the moment she saw my work. She looked back and forth between the embroidery and me. I had a bad feeling about this.

“Julius, you embroidered this, didn’t you?”

“Yes… I suppose I did.”

“It’s incredible, isn’t it? Julius finished it in no time at all. Doesn’t it look exactly like Mira?”

“Kyu!”

“Yes, yes, it certainly does. This is wonderful embroidery. Work of this quality is rarely seen.”

Everyone looked at Marchioness Mulan after she spoke. This was bad. At this rate, I would be labelled an embroidery artisan. Sensing danger, I tried to escape by claiming that I needed to train with Leon, but it did not work.

“Julius, what do you intend to do with this embroidery?”

“It was only practice… If you would like it, my lady, please take it.”

“May I? I would be delighted.”

“Ah! Mother, that’s unfair. I wanted it too!”

“Wait, I wanted it as well!”

The women of House Mulan began talking over one another excitedly. This was troublesome. I smiled wryly and looked towards Fabienne, only to find her staring longingly at the embroidery hoop. It seemed I had no choice but to make one for each of them.

I asked everyone which pose they wanted and completed the embroideries while having Mira model for me. Mira cooperated in exchange for additional dried fruit.

In the end, I completed a Mira embroidery for everyone, and each recipient was delighted. I would consider that a success. I also made them promise not to reveal that I had embroidered them. An avalanche of requests would be a nightmare.

“Master, why didn’t you come to watch me this morning?”

“Several things came up… I’ll make sure to watch properly this afternoon, so please forgive me for now.”

“Watch me? Master, you look rather tired.”

Leon cornered me during lunch, but after exhausting myself against the strong-willed women of House Mulan, I no longer had the energy to think about anything else.

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