Ayla, who had been kicked out through the iron door even before the sun came up, was heading somewhere in a carriage with a mysterious man.
The fact that she said she would do it because of Theon's kindness was the cause of that.
Convinced that Ayla would change her mind again, he led her, half awake and unable to open her eyes, to the outside, where the carriage was waiting.
When she completely came to her senses, she saw a sign out of the carriage that said they were leaving the border.
‘Something is wrong…'
Ayla quietly turned her gaze and looked at the strange man sitting across her.
He was dressed in a shocking manner that you could not see in the Stellen Kingdom.
The white pants made of silk, which looked soft, seemed to flare out from the pelvis down; but the fabric tightened when it reached the ankles, to the point that you could put a lot of clutter inside the pants.
He had something like a strange band with a peculiar color around the waist, and it was quite wide.
However, the most problematic among them was the top. His top, which consisted only of a navy silk vest, didn't even have a single button and was wide open, clearly exposing his chest and shoulders.
In addition, he was wearing a hat that looked like a roll of paper, which seemed more appropriate to say was ‘on top' of his head rather than wearing it, which was unlike anything she had ever seen before in her life.
At his carefree outfit, which he didn't seem to have any intentions of either adjusting it or covering up, Ayla thought that she had no idea where to look.
"We will be arriving soon. Princess Zenia."
The free-spirited man politely referred to Ayla as Princess Zenia, and she forced a smile at him.
Soon after, the man with the carefree clothes introduced himself as ‘Orhan' and said he came from Ruit.
It seemed that Theon did a very good job.
Orhan, who had a relatively darker skin than the men of the Stellen Kingdom, was clearly a foreigner.
‘He's also handsome. Wow… Is there really a fruit?'
Orhan looked at Ayla, who was looking at him blankly, with alertness.
Feeling his gaze, Ayla cleared her throat a couple of times, as if she were embarrassed, and then rubbed her hands against her skirt and tried to do something else.
"Ahem, but… Where are we going?"
"We are going to the mansion designated by His Highness of the Stellen Kingdom. You will dress up there and attend the banquet that will happen tomorrow."
"Ah… Yes."
Before she knew it, the carriage stopped in front of a huge mansion.
As she got off the carriage while being escorted by Orhan, the door of the mansion opened wide as if it had been waiting for her.
"Welcome. Princess Zenia."
At first glance, as they entered the magnificent mansion, about 10 young male and female servants were waiting for Ayla.
At this point, she felt like she really was Princess Zenia of Ruit and not Ayla.
‘Perfectly become Zenia so that you can fool even yourself.'
Theon's words before she got into the carriage came to her mind.
His whispering voice, his eyes full of confidence, and even his relaxed smile.
She felt like he was paying a lot of attention to this.
As their gaze focused solely on Ayla, who was blinking awkwardly, she greeted each of the servants with her eyes.
Their outfits, which she stealthily glanced at while exchanging the greetings, did not differ much from Orhan's.
Compared to the male servants, who were only wearing vests, the female servants were fully dressed; but their clothes were made of thin fabrics that showed their skin.
Whether they were wearing a top, their belly buttons were completely exposed.
While thinking that Ruit was truly a carefree country, she headed upstairs under Orhan's guidance.
***
"You want me to wear this?!"
In the mirror, Ayla could be seen wearing heavy makeup with her long hair in a braid.
Her white skin was brown due to the makeup.
Whether it was the influence of the skin tone and the makeup shade, Ayla's reflection in the mirror felt like a different person.
It was the first time in her life she was trying that makeup shade, but it suited her well.
Ayla's eyes, which were shaded to make them look clearer, and lips, painted red, made her good impression a little darker.
Ayla, who was silent while they did her hair and makeup, jumped up at the outfit brought by one of the servants.
Despite Ayla's reaction, Orhan was quietly waiting for her to calm down, as if there was no other way.
"No, not this!! How can I wear this thing?"
"It is Ruit's traditional outfit. You have to wear it."
She should have looked into it last night.
No, she should have known from the moment she saw the outfits the maids were wearing yesterday.
Ayla tore her hair at her own ignorance, not knowing how on earth she could accept this bizarre outfit.
The maids who had worked on her hair could be heard sighing, But Ayla couldn't hear anything like that.
With a tearful face, she held a piece of the fluttering turquoise outfit.
***