My Stepmom is Too Pretty, and It’s Troubling Me – Chapter 84

“Camelia.”

“Yes, Mother? What is it?”

While I was lying in my room, Rosalyn suddenly walked in.

We had just had lunch together and even spent some time during tea before parting ways.

What could have brought her to my room so abruptly?

“Do you want to go outside together?”

“…Huh?”

That was a bit surprising, no, it was very surprising, and I couldn’t help but respond back.

Rosalyn didn’t usually bring up going out like this, and it wasn’t something she suggested often.

Sure, my not being very active had something to do with it, but still, it was definitely unexpected for Rosalyn to be the one to ask me to go out.

“…What for?”

I ended up sounding a bit like a teenage girl who was going through a phase.

I honestly had no idea why she wanted to go out.

“Apparently, a really famous band from the North is here?”

“The North?”

“Yeah. I don’t know much about it, but they came to the city today.”

“Oh…”

Well, that was quite unexpected.

Now it made sense why Rosalyn would suddenly want to go out with me.

It wasn’t an everyday occurrence, after all.

Not just any band, but one coming all the way from the North… I felt like it was the first time.

No, it was definitely the first time I was aware of it.

“Let’s go.”

“Really?”

“Yes. It’s rare for someone from the North to come… We have to go.”

“That’s true, right?”

I had been lounging around in my room, teasing Rize, and was starting to get a bit bored.

I hadn’t expected to have nothing to do since I was managing business matters so quickly and efficiently, but now, an exciting thing had come up after a long while.

It had been quite some time since Rosalyn and I had done something fun together.

“We should pick a comfortable dress, Rize. No uncomfortable stuff, please.”

“Isn’t all the clothing you bought like that, Miss?”

“That’s true, but I don’t want anything too long that would make walking hard.”

“Alright, understood.”

Most of the dresses I had bought had a somewhat casual feel, just as Rize said.

It wasn’t like I had gained weight, and I was also on the shorter side… but I had no clothes that clung tightly like a corset.

To be honest, I didn’t need to wear anything like that to look pretty.

“This one looks nice. Bright enough, and just the right amount.”

“Miss, what about shoes?”

“Just something comfortable. If I’m walking around, high heels would be a hassle.”

“Understood.”

After changing into my outfit, I left the mansion with Rosalyn.

Of course, Rize came along too.

“Mother, what makes bands from the North different?”

“Huh?”

“It is surprising that they’re from the North, but do they have any unique music or anything?”

“Oh, that?”

“Yes.”

While riding in the carriage, I asked about it.

I was intrigued by the fact that they came from the North, but honestly, I had no idea what kind of band it was.

The only thing I knew about the North was that it was cold.

“When a band came from another region before… they performed just regular classical music, right? I’m curious about what the North is like.”

“I’ve heard that Northern bands tend to focus on more lively and noisy songs when I was younger. Though I’ve never actually heard one.”

“Hmm…”

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but it didn’t seem like it would be boring.

I had dabbled in art and music when I was younger, but it wasn’t really my taste…

At least based on Rosalyn’s words, it seemed like it could be more interesting than I thought.

Classical music, while nice, wasn’t particularly exciting, after all.

“Miss.”

“Huh? Rize, what’s up?”

As I daydreamed about what the band might be like, Rize suddenly spoke up.

“Your necklace is a bit out of place.”

“I think it might be because of the wind.”

“May I adjust it for you?”

Ah.

She meant she wanted to help tidy it up?

It looked like it was not so much the front that was messy, but rather the back.

“Like this?”

“…Yes.”

After gathering my long hair and pulling it forward, I asked Rize.

It was clearly going to be a hindrance to fix the necklace with my hair in the way, and it would be easier for me to handle it myself rather than have Rize do it with one hand.

“How’s that?”

“Oh, um… It seems fine.”

“Really? Thanks. I didn’t notice it, but thanks to you, I know now.”

I expressed my gratitude to Rize.

Her face slightly…

It was just enough for me to notice sitting beside her.

I really had no idea why she was blushing.

*

-Creak…

“Miss, my lady. We’ve arrived. It seems we can’t go further with the carriage.”

“There’s definitely a huge crowd here. Rize, would you mind opening the door?”

“Yes, my lady.”

We arrived at the street where the band was supposed to perform.

It wasn’t just any band; the crowd had gathered more than usual because they had come all the way from the North.

Thanks to that, just as Rize said, it didn’t seem like we could get any further with the carriage.

For now, we got off the carriage.

I instructed the driver to park the carriage somewhere nearby and to take a break.

“Well… should we go inside for now?”

“That seems wise. There are a lot of people, but it’s not impossible to walk through.”

“Ha, good to know.”

I wasn’t particularly fond of large crowds, but since it had been a while since I came out with Rosalyn, I decided to bear with it.

“Camelia, should I hold your hand?”

“…Huh?”

As we slowly made our way through the throng, Rosalyn suddenly said that.

It wasn’t the weirdest thing she could have said, but it surprised me a little.

I figured it was probably for safety in the crowd, but we rarely held hands or shared that kind of close contact.

It felt a bit odd to even consider holding hands with her when I compared it to holding hands with Mother.

Anyway…

“…Should we?”

“Yeah. It would be troublesome if we lost each other in the crowd.”

“…Then let’s do that.”

It felt a bit embarrassing, but since Rosalyn was right about possibly losing each other, I agreed.

Yeah.

It wasn’t some weird thought; we were just doing it out of necessity.

“……..”

Her hand was incredibly soft, warm, and nice.

It was amusing to have such thoughts while holding hands, but I really couldn’t help feeling that way.

“…Ah.”

While I was momentarily lost in my thoughts holding Rosalyn’s hand, I suddenly caught sight of Rize beside us.

“…….?”

Rize looked at me with a questioning expression, as if wondering what was up since I kept staring in her direction.

Considering Rize’s personality, I didn’t feel as though she would get lost or separated from us at this point.

Still, there was just something…

“Do you want to hold hands too, Rize?”

“Excuse me?”

“Just in case we get separated, right? So… wanna hold hands?”

I had this sudden urge to say it.

Yeah.

I just felt like saying something.

Even though I was already holding Rosalyn’s hand, the thought of wanting to stroll around holding hands with Rize as well bubbled up strongly.

“What do you think?”

“If it’s what the Miss wants…”

“Then let’s do it.”

“…Yes.”

Rize didn’t refuse.

Since she had suggested she was fine with it, I took her hand.

It was slightly smaller than Rosalyn’s but still larger than mine.

Her hand felt delicate and fragile.

It had a smoother touch compared to Rosalyn’s, and I found it nice.

No, I actually liked it.

It felt a little weird to be giving a tactile review of someone’s hand, but wasn’t that how it felt?

“Mother. I think it’s over there.”

“It seems so. The way I see the crowd gathered around there…”

About five minutes later, we spotted a square packed with people.

There were so many people that every seat around the stage was already taken.

There were definitely… more people than usual here.

It wasn’t just us; it seemed everyone was excited about the Northern band visiting.

“Hmm… the seats…”

Among us, Rosalyn, the tallest, was looking around.

“…I can’t see anything…”

It was definitely hard to get a good view.

Most likely, even though they hadn’t started yet, the crowd had been gathering before we arrived in the carriage.

With that many people, it wouldn’t be easy to find a spot.

“Ha… what should we do…”

Rosalyn turned to us and gave a somewhat awkward smile in that situation.

I wondered if she was feeling strange, thinking it was somehow her fault.

Rosalyn often had this habit of taking any problem as her personal fault.

While it certainly wasn’t Rosalyn’s issue at all, it wasn’t our fault either.

The band hadn’t started performing yet.

“Um… should we check out a café on the second floor nearby?”

With an embarrassed smile and a hint of remorse, Rosalyn suggested.

I imagined she would be thinking something like, “I’m sorry for dragging the kids into this.”

She seemed like she would be feeling that way.

“Mother.”

“Hm?”

“I don’t think we have to go to a café on the second floor. Look…”

I pointed with my finger to one side.

After all, being in the square, there were frequently performances by bands and troupes in the city.

So, the stage and seating were usually set up.

It was the issue that all the seats were currently taken, but that wasn’t an obstacle for me.

“Shall we go up there?”

I was glad I had brought my wallet inside my dress.

I didn’t expect to use it in a place like this!