Chapter 12
Culture Shock
“We do not mind at all if the laundry list increases by an article or two, so please do not be afraid to ask us in the future . ”
“Perhaps sleeping in a new place made you feel quite uncomfortable?”
“Ah, I think so…”
First thing in the morning, Iris was offered several words of consideration by a lady attendant of the Earl’s castle .
The damage they caused was enough to cause René’s soul to teeter closer to the void and disappear .
While her conscience was as good as dead, being able to plan and carry out massacres, her sense of shame seemed to be quite livid .
The attendant was efficiently changing Iris out of her nightwear chemise .
Even in Ciel-Terra, it seemed those in the elites of society had no qualms about keeping attendants who changed their clothes for them . René still remembered the days her mother would help change her clothes, but that was only because she herself was yet to be capable of it by herself . Now, she had a few reservations against having someone else do everything for her .
She was currently in a sort-of trial period, a training that would enable her to be a proper body double of the young mistress . René had lived a very simple life, so suddenly being made to live as an aristocrat gave her quite the culture shock . While her mother had indeed been handed a small fortune when fleeing from the Royal Court, their life remained a simple one, where they saved whenever they could and lived as frugally as possible . They never hired even a single servant… Though that may be more due to the fact they were in hiding than anything else .
While having her clothes be changed by another gave her quite the culture shock, so did the clothes she had to wear . René in her life so far, had never worn anything other than simple, woolen one-pieces . However, now, the article of clothing her eyes were on was… Quite a spectacle . A mixture of crimson so bright and black so gothic, their very unholy presence hurt her eyes more than any exorcism spell in existence . On that topic, is that a gown… . Or a one-piece? Filled with so many frills it seemed to be in competition with the Buddha Statue head, with ribbons hanging out of each inch of it all . The skirt was so wide, it made the waist look like a stick in comparison . One could probably see the many white panniers used to make the skirt seem fluffy from its hem .
This kind of costume would look completely at home in a certain rat palace parade .
――Hey wait, now that my memories from my time as a normal salaryman are back, I can’t help but feel really weird with one-pieces or skirts . It’s kinda a lot more air-y, like there’s nothing underneath . Is… Is there really a point in wearing this? Why on earth do women even wear these things? Does it make them stronger? What kind of amazoness race are they?
The most popular women’s underwear (the bottom one) around here seem to be really loose drawers but… . Eh, well, if I don’t look at ‘em, I can pretend I’m wearing a pair of comfy boxers .
However,
“Ow ow!”
“Oh my, is this too tight?”
Hearing Iris suddenly cry out, the attendant stopped tightening the string .
It was René’s first time putting on a corset that compressed her body from below the chest and up to her belly . Chojirou’s experience in this matter need not even be mentioned, him being your everyday salaryman on earth after all .
If I recall correctly, people realized corsets weren’t really good for your body, so they just fell out of use but…
―Yup, this really isn’t healthy to wear . Uh, well, yeah, I’m already dead, soI guess it’s fine? But it’s gonna be a pain if I can’t properly act the part of ‘Iris’ this way . I think .
After being done with her undergarments, it was time to put on that parade outfit . First came the shirt to be worn under the dress, then several pieces of clothing that seemed to form an apron, all tied up neatly with strings and ribbons that flew over everywhere, meeting one another in an intricate jigsaw puzzle pattern .
Yeah, no I’m definitely not gonna be able to put this on by myself later .
“We’re all done, miss . Please, have a looksie here . ”
Finally done, René pulled Iris’ legs to the front of the mirror and stood still .
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“Wow…”
Surely there was no other that fit the words ‘as beautiful as a doll’ quite as aptly as the girl being reflected in that mirror . Waves of hair spun like gold strings fallen over her shoulders, the girl’s mauve eyes sparkled in the brilliance of her own reflection .
In the first place, Iris, whom René had donned as her own body, looked charming already . It made sense that her natural beauty would be further livened up when she was dressed appropriately .
Even if it were a temporary abode for her, René couldn’t help but feel glee as she felt Iris’ heart leap up and down .
They were unmistakably the attire of a high-born noble . She could understand well her joy of wearing outfits she had heard of only in fairy tales .
――Okay wait a good sec here . Am I okay? Am I really okay with feeling this excited about frilly and fluffy aristocratwear?
René pondered, wiping the gentle smile off Iris’ face .
The saying went ‘To live life to its fullest in happiness is the best and most exquisite form of vengeance’ .
Like I’ll ever be satisfied with a weak and pathetic form of revenge like that . I’ll give them what they all deserve… But maybe, finding specks of happiness here and there on my way wouldn’t really be that bad, René thought .
She thought, but…
She also began questioning whether it was really okay to get so giddy over girl clothes as a former salaryman from Earth and the current strongest Undead .
Both René and Chojiro strongly felt the need to ‘enact thy vengeance’, but couldn’t help splitting hairs over everything else .
Perhaps these would suit René, but the matter was different for Chojiro . If a child passing through the street chanced upon him in such attire, they would certainly flee while screaming for help .
――Uhh… Umm… Well, I’m a girl now and… Right, right, I’m possessing Iris now, so I think it’s better to see it from her point of view… Hm? Wait, am I really okay?
While René was lost in her maze of thoughts, the attendant finely combed Iris’ hair and puffed her face with a thin layer of white powder . With that, she was as ready for her morning as a mass-produced car fresh out of the factory .
In the castle’s servant quarters, there used to be an empty room . Originally fit for five or six people, it had since been furnished with three beds and some extra furniture . This was Dragon’s Throat’s temporary abode, a room quite far away from where Iris was to stay .
It was when the three were partaking in breakfast, that Iris entered the room .
“Morning, guys . ”
René sifted through Iris’ maze of memories and produced the greeting that would be most Iris-like .
Hugh’s hand stopped moving and the spoon from his mouth dropped to the table . For several seconds, he stared at her with a gaping mouth full of half-chewed food .
“Oh, Iris is that you!? Couldn’t tell for a moment there!”
“I could tell right away . ”
“You’ve got an inhuman sense of smell, Benedict, for god’s sake!”
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Hugh slapped Benedict’s shoulders, shaking the smoked meat sandwich almost out of his paws .
Because he was a Kobold, Benedict’s ears and nose had the sharpness of a dog’s . The party had been saved from a lot of dangerous situations exactly because of that .
Well, I mean, he couldn’t hear anything when Iris shot that magic bullet inside the bound field of ≪Silence≫ (Diana seemed to have sensed the use of magic itself), and so far, he hasn’t been able to tell I’m possessing Iris so…
“Well, what’s up with that outfit?”
“Eh, umm… The maid- I mean attendant, yes, she made me put it on . ”
“Hmm . You look good in it, Iris . Well, you’ve always been adorable, but this just takes it to a whole new level of cute . ”
Diana praised her as if it was the most natural thing in the world . Iris shrunk into her shoulders, feeling a tickle in her belly .
“I see, I see . You’re the young lady’s body double right now, so you’re supposed to wear the same clothes as her, I guess . ”
“You’ve always thought about wearing robes that have good defense and are easy to move in, so you gotta take some time to get used to these . ”
“The corset almost killed me . ”
“Ahahaha! Right, right, those really aren’t nice . Adventurers never really wear them . ”
Diana didn’t wear them, but it seemed she had experience with corsets .
Corsets were, after all, a form of undergarment that ‘improved’ one’s appearance . For an adventurer to wear something as tight, something that stifles swift movement so much, was unthinkable .
“And, this dress . It’s so complicated . Forget putting it on, I can’t even tell how to take it off . ”
“Hm…? Ah, maybe it’s because you didn’t put it on by yourself . ”
“Yup, that’s true . Miss attendant did everything herself… It is kinda embarrassing to think I’ll have to rely on her to get changed . ”
René only spoke her thoughts as is, but Hugh suddenly snapped his head back to her .
“Ey, that makes no sense . You always change clothes right in front of us like it’s nothing, but get all coy and blushy when someone else’s doing it for you?”
“Ugh, that’s not…”
René stopped, at a loss for words .
As she was before, Iris never really cared about these things . There were even times when Diana stripped her to do full body checks right in front of Hugh and Benedict .
Only, she had already been taken over by René only three days ago, so this was quite the biggish slip-up on her end .
Perhaps, this was the famed ‘6th sense’… Or something .
――Yeah hell no! I mean, Iris used to not really care, but come on…!
I’d never do something like that as ‘René’! Ah… Come on, calm down . Calm down, me . I guess it’s because I got my past life’s memories back . Gotta be careful, can’t set anyone off .
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René reminded herself not to forget that now, she was a girl .
“So? How was it, sleeping in that giant, fluffy bed all alone?”
“Oh, that was, um…”
René prayed the attendants would be tight-lipped as she mumbled her way out of Hugh’s question .
“We had a nice place to sleep too, don’t worry . ”
“Awyeah . Getting to sleep in a room that doesn’t have a shitty cold draft coming in all night . Yup, that’s my heaven right there . Food’s great too, goddamnit . ”
“Naturally . We have to deal with a dangerous quest, so they have to pay for our expenses . The reward’s gotta be big too . ”
Yet to have made her peace with this quest, Diana bit into her sandwich with more force than she had intended .
“Sure, but is it really okay to go about it this way? I get it, body double, but I mean, I can tell them apart myself . Sure, Iris is bound to look close to the young lady if she’s prettied up like this, but… We’re not just some random party either, ya know? Dragon’s Throat’s quite famous ‘round here . If words about us coming and going outta the castle gets out, won’t even Night Python think there’s a chance the Earl might use Iris as the young lady’s body double?”
“You’re the one who said yes, what’s with the doubt now?”
Hugh frowned when Benedict expressed his doubt . In truth, René felt the same way .
All the servants were made aware of this fact, and while Iris would remain in the castle, Countess Catharine was to go about her daily life as usual despite being the supposed target of protection .
In other words, there’s gonna be two ‘Catharines’ in the castle at the same time . Well, gotta say, I’m not sure if this’ll help or not .
However, Hugh shook his head to dissuade those doubts .
“It’s better if they notice . I think . It’ll just get harder for them to aim for the young lady . Ya know, if they can’t tell which one’s the real one and which one’s the body double, they can’t be sure of anything, or something kinda like that . ”
“Makes sense . ”
“Well, even if things don’t go as planned, that’s on the Earl, not on us . We’re gonna follow orders, that’s what we’re here to do anyway . Don’t got no mouth to be spouting complaints about the plan . ”
Hugh put, quite indifferent about the matter altogether, but Benedict couldn’t wipe that bitter scowl off his face .
――Uh… This is where ‘Iris’ should have something to say, right?
René once more peeked into Iris’ memories and brought out the most appropriate thing for her to say . The reasoning of a child .
“Hugh . That’s fine as an adventurer, but I want to help Cathy properly . ”
René spoke through Iris’ lips and voice . She spoke words that carried no weight, words she herself did not believe in .
“Yeah yeah, I geddit, that’s fine and dandy an’ all but if things get too outta hand, we gotta bail . ”
“Yeah . So, Iris, keep yourself safe, don’t go jumping into dangerous things head first . ”
“Okaaay . ”
Iris answered, a string of disappointment in her voice .
“Leaving all that aside, Iris, you haven’t had breakfast yet right? I saved some for you . ”
“Ah, okay, thanks . ”
“Please wait a second, Mistress Iris… I thought I would find you here . ”
Just as Iris was reaching out for a sandwich, a woman in a no-frills one-piece burst open through the half-closed door .
Her hair was bundled up on top of her head and she wore triangular glasses on her eyes, this was, exactly as her appearance said (?), Catharine’s tutor for Proper Mannerisms of Ladies . This lady was to teach Iris the way of the upper-class lady within the few days she had before her quest officially started .
“Mistress Iris will have have breakfast in a separate place . I shall teach her the proper way of eating as well . ”
“O-okay…”
“Too bad . Go get your ass worked off . ”
Diana waved with a bitter smile .
It had only been one day since René met this woman, but within 10 minutes of meeting her, she had already been told to straighten her back and properly wear her shoulders several times over .
I really don’t like this lady .
“We’ll be going over the castle security details and getting a tour of this place later on . ”
“I’ll give you the short version later then . ”
“Alright . ”
René ruminated over that last conversation as she made Iris’ legs follow after the Manners tutor through the castle corridor .
The members of ‘Dragon’s Throat’… I’ve heard that, because of how adventuring parties are similar to venturing businesses, members backstabbing one-another for money is quite common, but at the very least, ‘Dragon’s Throat’ isn’t like that . It’s like, they’re a family .
She could tell the other members of the party were genuinely concerned about Iris . René understood that these feelings of concern weren’t directed at her, but as the one possessing Iris, she nevertheless started feeling a sense of solidarity for them .
And because she understood, she couldn’t help but feel pangs of guilt and regret rumble in her chest for having stolen these from Iris . After all, they were for Iris, by those who loved Iris . René felt no sense of fulfillment from these exchanges .
None could heal her bleeding wounds, none would comfort her silent sobs .
Yes, only blood spilled through vengeance alone will .
Translator: Fried Hedgehog
Eyy guise, Hedge here . Sup .
This was a pretty boring chapter to do, ngl, so not sure how y’all will feel reading it . It had a lot of worldbuilding and setting stuff up, sure but ah well . The next one should have a bit more stuff happening .
Right, right, forgot to mention this but I’ve changed the MC’s original name from Nagajirou to Chojiro, if you’ve noticed . This change has been implemented in the previous chapters as well, so no worries there . The reason is that, apparently in nanori readings, you read that kanji as Cho, not Naga . Still not really that good with nanori readings and this is quite the unconventional name Suzume-sensei chose so for this genre, hope y’all will forgive me for that blunder .
Aight, that’s all from me for now . Hedge out .