IMCG 12

Chapter 12

But that wasn’t all. The shopping rush continued at the shoe store as well.
Black patent leather ankle boots decorated with obsidian buttons framed in gold, and calf-high dark brown suede leather boots.
He seemed desperate to buy something for me. Everything that caught his eye, he brought it to me.
And he threw it all onto the bill. So it was no wonder the pile of purchases kept growing.

“I need both styles of boots: the button-decorated ones and the Balmoral lace-up ones. Each serves a different purpose.”
Rüdiger insisted firmly. I no longer had the energy to argue with him, so I just nodded and let him have his way.
If he wanted to buy them… well, it wasn’t like I was buying them myself. I could at least let him.

Seeing how much Rüdiger bought, I even added overshoes to protect the shoes from getting ruined in the muddy streets.
Overshoes to protect the shoes… it wasn’t like they were rain covers for wet days.

“There aren’t many items that catch my eye here since it’s not the capital. Let’s just buy these for now.”
Yes… since there weren’t many things… that’s why he bought this much… I see…
I had never seen a man so obsessed with shopping in my life.
Are all nobles like this? I stuck out my tongue in disbelief.

After finishing my shopping, it was Luca’s turn. Exhausted from the anticipation, I suddenly perked up like a watered leaf at the thought of dressing Luca in this outfit or that.
I spoke excitedly, “I think teal would look good on Luca. How about this checkered pattern?”

But Luca was firm.
“I’ll choose my own clothes.”
He said it decisively—and then picked out his clothes with precision.

Unlike when Rüdiger helped me, he let Luca choose freely. He hadn’t let me choose my own clothes…!
Unable to let go of my attachment, I clung to him persistently.

“No, let me help pick. How about this? It looks princely and elegant.”
Luca glared at the outfit I suggested.
“Auntie, your taste is too…”
He took a deep breath, then, with a sigh, glanced at me and muttered hesitantly,
“Too radical… too daring… anyway, just too much…”
“Unique.”
Rüdiger, sitting elegantly in the fitting room chair reading a newspaper, added quietly.

Luca’s face brightened as if he had wanted to say exactly that.
“Yeah! Unique! I prefer something more classic.”
It seemed pretty funny that a ten-year-old would say he liked classical styles because one of the shop assistants helping Luca chuckled without realizing it.

But I couldn’t laugh at all. What’s wrong with my taste!?
Of course, even before possession, I wasn’t particularly fashionable.
Positively, it was retro; negatively, it was tacky. I thought it would work in this world…
Judging by their reactions, my taste seemed too futuristic for this world.

No wonder. That’s why I had always pretended not to notice when choosing clothes! Only now did the missing link click into place.
In the end, I couldn’t pick a single piece of clothing for Luca.
Of course, Luca chose everything well himself, but this wasn’t the scene I had hoped for…
Looking at the mountain of clothes Luca had picked, I bitterly reflected on my original expectations.

We stayed one night at the most luxurious hotel in Neuhalt.
The hotel was extravagant—one could hardly believe it was a five-star. I had never been to one, so I didn’t know exactly…
That evening, all the things we had bought were delivered to the hotel room. Without exaggeration, they filled an entire sitting room.
I wondered how we would carry all this, but the next day the hotel sent bellboys to move all the luggage to the train station.
Thanks to that, I didn’t have to lift a finger and just boarded the train. This must be what traveling is like for the wealthy in this world…

Even boarding the train wasn’t ordinary. The moment we arrived at the platform, the train conductor, dressed neatly in a navy uniform, recognized Rüdiger and approached.

“Sir, we received word that you would be boarding the train, so we’ve prepared accordingly.”
“Mm.”
“Then allow me to guide you.”

Having someone guide us as we boarded made me quietly marvel.
Indeed, Winterwald… I remembered the train belonged to the Winterwald family, or maybe they owned the railway…
Winterwald had a lot of wealth. They also owned a diamond mine that was famous and highly regarded.
So it made sense that the conductor himself would personally guide us, as the future heir had appeared.

We were led to a carriage at the front of the train, where each carriage was essentially one private room.
“May you have a pleasant return.”
The conductor bowed deeply and left. I finally looked around the room in awe.

“This isn’t a carriage… it’s just a room.”
Of course, calling it “just a room” was an understatement. The carriage walls were covered in crimson arabesque wallpaper, and the sconces gleamed gold.
On the opposite side was a large window showing the scenery outside, half-covered with dark green curtains. There was a vintage sofa, a table, and even a separate bedroom.
I stared in awe—this was unlike any carriage, horse-drawn or hotel room I had ever seen.

Having frequently taken KTX trains in my original world, I found this train impressive; Luca, who had only lived in Emden his whole life, must have been even more amazed.
In the novel, Luca was also ecstatic and thrilled at the sight of the train.

[“It moves like this? Without a word?”]
[“Uncle, can I explore the train?”]

Luca calling Rüdiger “uncle” was adorable… though I wondered how it came to this.
Still, his wonder at the train might remain unchanged.
Maybe he couldn’t openly show it because he wasn’t on great terms with Rüdiger—he was a bit prideful.

Luca was already sitting on the carriage sofa, making himself comfortable.
I asked him gently,
“Luca, do you want to explore the train? Just for a bit?”
“Hmm? Yeah… sure. I’ll take a quick look.”

I thought he would secretly welcome my offer, but he seemed indifferent.
It wasn’t that he was holding back excitement—he simply stood up reluctantly.

Strange… as Rüdiger led Luca to the corridor, I couldn’t help but notice something odd about Luca’s back.
“If you go this way, you’ll see the driver’s cabin and the coal car. But right now, they’re busy preparing for departure, so don’t cause any trouble.”
“I’m just going to look around. I won’t cause trouble. I’m not a child.”

Luca muttered but walked quickly and confidently down the corridor.
I could hear their conversation clearly from inside the carriage.
Why was he acting so cheeky toward Rüdiger? Rüdiger hadn’t done anything to deserve it.
Thanks to Rüdiger, we could travel comfortably, and in the past few days, Luca had eaten meat until he was stuffed. Such meals would have been nearly impossible in Emden.

The shopping, the hotel—everything was thanks to Rüdiger, so I couldn’t understand the source of Luca’s inexplicable hostility.
It can’t really be because of me, right? I shook my head, trying to suppress a bit of anxiety.
What reason would Luca have to be upset at Rüdiger when he had treated us so well?

Just then, Rüdiger returned to the carriage. I quickly tried to justify Luca’s behavior in case Rüdiger might be disappointed.
“Luca isn’t acting like that because he dislikes you, Rüdiger… probably.”

“Hmm, isn’t he cute? Luca is well-mannered for his age. I wasn’t like that at his age.”
Rüdiger brushed it off lightly. I looked at him suspiciously, thinking maybe he wasn’t being sincere, but he seemed genuinely unconcerned and even offered me a suggestion.

“Miss Maybaum, would you like to explore the train as well? I can guide you.”
“Oh, no. I’m fine. Actually, I’m a bit tired.”

We had left early in the morning and just boarded, but I really was exhausted.
Accumulated fatigue from yesterday and being active since morning had caught up to me.

I slumped onto the sofa. It felt as soft as a feather beneath me.
Come to think of it, Rüdiger had allowed me to call him by name, yet he had been addressing me as Miss Maybaum this whole time.
‘Could it be because I didn’t explicitly tell him to call me by name…?’

During the shopping dispute earlier, I hadn’t had the chance to discuss forms of address. He was precise about such things.
Continuing to be called Miss Maybaum felt awkward, and it felt odd to be the only one using his name…

So I said casually,
“Rüdiger, you can call me by my name too. It’s a bit awkward if only I do.”
“Are you granting me permission?”
“There’s no permission needed for that.”

I shrugged lightly. But Rüdiger responded with utmost seriousness.
“Thank you for allowing me to call you by your name, Judith. It makes me feel as if we’ve become very close, and it’s exciting.”