“…I’m tired.”
Saying this, a woman adorned in a luxurious dress lay down on the sofa in the lounge space with a soft thump.
There was only one person who would lie down like that in the lounge space.
“If you lie down like that in such a place, won’t your precious dress get wrinkled?”
“It probably will.”
Floria nodded in agreement with Kousuke’s exasperated expression.
Lately, Mia had been dragged out by Towa and had started attending parties hosted by the royal family.
For women, dresses are required for such events, and they are usually changed at the castle.
However, today, she had unusually returned still in her dress and had ended up in this state.
The dress Mia was wearing was prepared by Towa so that she wouldn’t be ashamed as a member of the royal family.
As expected, the price was such that ordinary people couldn’t afford it.
It was natural for Kousuke to be concerned about the wrinkles on the dress.
Kousuke, who had enough wealth that he wouldn’t be swayed even if one or two of Mia’s dresses were wasted, still had a common sense of money in that regard, so he felt it was wasteful.
To Kousuke, Mia, who had been pressing her face into the sofa, turned her head and said,
“That doesn’t matter. I can’t wear the same one twice anyway.”
For people belonging to high-ranking families, it was unthinkable to appear at a party in the exact same outfit.
This was true regardless of how expensive the attire was.
While there was the pride of being a leader, for women in particular, there was also the important pretense of always following the latest trends.
Kousuke understood these circumstances, but being from a common background, he couldn’t help but speak his mind.
“That’s quite wasteful.”
“Now, now. If you look at the dress itself, that’s true, but in terms of the seamstress’s skills, it’s very useful, you know?”
Creating new dresses meant that the seamstresses creating them had to constantly take on new challenges.
This undoubtedly contributed to the improvement of their skills.
If daughters of high nobles or wealthy merchants stopped showing off, it would undoubtedly be a negative in those aspects.
This was a circumstance unique to a world where commoners buy new clothes only once a year or every few years, and most make do with second-hand items.
Floria, sighing, said to Kousuke with a laugh,
“Don’t make that face. For princesses who splurge, they might only wear clothes once before changing them.”
“Ugh?! What kind of waste is that? If the country goes bankrupt because of it, calling it foolish would be an understatement.”
“Well, that’s true… but… you know. There’s a famous anecdote.”
With that preamble, Floria began to tell a certain story.
It was the story of a princess from a certain royal family.
This princess was the only daughter of the king at the time and was doted on immensely.
She was pampered to the extent that whatever she said, the king would laugh and grant her permission.
Up to this point, it was a story that could be dismissed as indulgent parenting, but some of the retainers gradually began to frown at the king’s pampering of his daughter.
This was because the princess was extremely fond of clothes, changing her dress for every meal.
Moreover, the princess would wear a dress only once before giving it to her maids or friends she had become close with.
It was an undeniable extravagance for the country, and it was natural for the retainers to frown.
One day, one of the retainers finally decided to petition the king.
This retainer was from the military, and he could no longer tolerate unnecessary financial investment in the princess’s dresses.
He suggested that instead of spending money on the princess’s dresses, it would be better to use it for national defense.
Upon hearing the retainer’s words, the king did not get angry but smiled and said to the retainer,
“I see. Indeed, expanding the military for national defense is important. However, can you generate the budget for it?”
The military is an organization for fighting, not for generating money.
The retainer, who was straightforward, honestly replied that the military could not do such a thing.
And, at the same time, the princess’s actions were no different, he said.
However, the king began to explain the “meaning” of what the princess was doing, asking other retainers as well.
The princess never patronized a single shop, but rather placed dress orders with multiple clothing stores.
Then, she would buy the ones she particularly liked and place new orders.
If she didn’t like them, she wouldn’t buy them.
Naturally, the clothing stores that received the orders competed to have their clothes chosen, and the technicians within them improved their skills.
As a result, it was said in social circles that what the princess wore became the center of trends, and this spread not only domestically but also abroad.
And by the time the princess came of age and the retainer began to offer his advice, their country had become the center of fashion.
The story is that the retainer, who was solely focused on military power, did not understand this at all.
“――――And so, there’s a story that it’s not necessarily a bad thing for those in charge to splurge.”
Floria concluded with a laugh, and Kousuke replied with a sigh,
“That’s quite a convenient story.”
Before that country became the center of fashion, it was unlikely that other countries wouldn’t do the same, and they wouldn’t just stand by and watch.
As if hearing Kousuke’s inner thoughts, Floria giggled.
“Well, I don’t know if such a country actually existed. However, it is said that there is a country that served as the model for this story? More importantly, the essence of this story is not about spending extravagantly, but about teaching the importance of nurturing technology.”
“If that’s the case, then I suppose I can understand.”
More or less, funding is absolutely necessary to foster cutting-edge technology.
In this world, it is natural for those in charge to provide financial assistance as an investment for that purpose.
If those in higher positions don’t invest, it’s difficult to achieve technological innovation.
Floria continued, stating that this story was passed down to teach that.
Kousuke nodded with an expression that was neither fully convinced nor unconvinced, and then his gaze shifted to Mia, who was still lying down.
“So, does that mean Mia is disqualified as royalty?”
“Isn’t that something you should have said sooner?”
Mia reacted to Floria’s quick reply and sat up abruptly.
“Hey!! Father, Mother, isn’t that too cruel!?”
Mia protested, but Floria easily rebutted.
“If you think so, then stop being so engrossed in managing the tower and go out to social events properly.”
“Ugh!?”
In the end, Mia did not respond to Floria’s words, merely averting her gaze and sinking back into the sofa.
I suddenly felt like writing a short story.
If I read it again, it’s full of holes lol.
Well, please forgive me for this story meant to teach a small lesson.
