Her coming of age II

As the duke's only daughter, my coming of age is special. Unlike any other, mine will be celebrated in the palace after being recognized by the king. The ball will be held at the hall in the Astera palace, which was the crown prince's palace. I heard from Maya that I and the crown prince were of the same age. And that he was very handsome with great accomplishments.

[Interesting...] In my past life, I have dreamed of meeting a handsome crown prince, too. This is making me more excited.

"Would I be able to meet him and fall in love with him, too? Just like the novels?" I asked myself. Maybe not. It was said that though the prince wasn't engaged yet, he already has a lady on his side.

Anyways, although one of my goals is to fall in love with a handsome prince, it doesn't need to be a prince of this kingdom or the literal crown prince. The sons of the nobles were also called princes. That means, I got lots of choices.

The whole morning, I spend my time bathing and preparing myself to meet the king. I still can't get used to this lovely feature I was bestowed upon. I am wearing a white ball gown with a slight shade of light blue. It is an off-shoulder cut with a low back design, which is not common in this era. I smiled at myself. Chris, the designer was adamant at first when I instructed him about the gown that I want. This was the very first time he would create something vulgar, as he said. But I cannot be stopped. How could I be when this is the type of gown I have wished to wear for my debut in my past life. Since I have the resources now, why not make it happen, right? Apart from that wish, Aerin's body is so perfect it's a waste not to showcase it.

[I may be the first lady to introduce revolutionary things to this conservative world.]

The middle part of the gown-- the area connecting the torso and the skirt, is covered with clear crystals, making it sparkle when light shines on it. The skirt as well is slightly draped with the same crystals.

"Oh, Lady Aerin, you look majestic!" Chris exclaimed as he saw his piece being worn.

"I told you it would be perfect!" I proudly replied. Grinning.

"Oh, yes it is!" he even clapped as he circled me.

The maids assisting me in the room also giggled at Chris's high-pitched remaks.

"My lovely muse, I will be seeing you tonight!" he finally said as he kissed me on the cheek.

"Oh... are you crying?" I teased him.

"Hmmph!" he said as he wiped his tears with his index finger. He then waved his goodbye and exited the room.

Maya then assisted me to wear the long blue robe to cover my outfit.

After a moment, the door opened again. In it appears my father in his light and royal blue knight's uniform. What a handsome sight to see. I specifically instructed Chris to have the color of my gown match his uniform as I know that in every formal event, he is to wear his knight outfit.

"Are you ready?" he asked, smiling. We will be riding to the palace.

"More than ready!" I ran to hug him. And he accepted me wide open.

"You are just like your mom."

"I know!" I said even though I only know that we looked the same because of her portrait. Not because I remembered her from Aerin's memory.

"What was mom like?" I asked as I released myself from the hug. We then started to head out of the room, ready to walk down.

"Your mom?" he paused for a bit, remembering something. "She was beautiful..."

"Hmmm." I nodded.

"She was kind... full of life... and she loves to talk, just like you." when dad said those words, I felt his love for mom as well as his longingness.

But the last part he said made me sad. As far as I know, the real Aerin doesn't like talking. I would say she's much more like you, dad. Reserved and lonely. And that loneliness made her become a villain in society.

I just smiled and then continued to walk down the stair while holding my dad's arm. I did not choose an escort from our family's knights. My dad is my escort for this very important day. If the real Aerin sees this, I hope she'll be happy.