章 154: XIV: Hidden source and duels Part 5

The day of the first bout, I bounced on my feet again despite Kumiko’s best efforts to dress me up immaculately for the encounter. After the third failed attempt to tie the sash around my waist, the girl sighed and glared at me, to which I gave a remorseful smile.

“Sorry, I’m just eager.” The girl nodded and offered me the end of the sash for me to tie it up. Knowing that I was terrible at dressing myself in these strange clothes, I shook my head ‘no’ and forced myself to stop moving.

With a resolute nod, the girl finally tied the garment and stood up to look me over every angle; she began tugging and moving parts of my outfit here and there to her heart’s content, when Bao Hu came in and kneeled before me, looking me over once before stopping Kumiko’s hands.

“That is enough. She’s not going to a dance.” The look my maidservant sent him showed she begged to differ. “The emperor is waiting.”