"Oop! There we go!" Milly said after putting the corset onto Ari.
"Mhm, I haven't worn this in forever." Ari adjusted the corset and said nostalgically. After graduating from the Royal Academy, Ari spent a period of time with her mother's family. At first, they were not willing to take her in because of how her mother, Daisy basically ran away to elope with her father.
The act enraged the family and resulted in her being disowned. Perhaps it would not be so bad if her mother was born a male, but because she was born a noble lady, there were certain expectations that came with it. Like marriage to strengthen bond two noble families together. Daisy running away had ruined this bond. It was akin to her family being unable to fulfil their end of the promise. Something considered especially important among the nobles.
However, when Ari informed the family news of Daisy's passing, they quickly took her in. As inhumane as noble families were, they were still humans in the end. They welcomed her with open arms and there, Ari learned of her heritage and noble etiquette.
She had to wear elaborate, detailed dresses every day with maids to attend to her every need. She had to attend noble balls. She had to help with the subjects' and territory's problems. It was a new sensation for her which quickly grew old.
Eventually, her magic advanced and she left the family to enjoy the world.
By the time Ari finished her thoughts, Milly had already finished dressing her.
The dog girl's ears perked up as she looked up and down her finished work. "It looks great on you!"
"Does it?" Ari smiled, waving her hand to summon a hand mirror.
She tilted the mirror back and forth to take a look at herself. "Fufu, he'll be excited about this." The 'he' was obviously referring to Earl. However, without context, Milly took it differently.
"If you combine it with a maid-like performance, your husband will be a very happy man! Or so my customers tell me... Hehe."
Back on the pink bench, Earl watched as the folding screen pulled itself back.
And there she was, Ari, standing tall and beautiful. If he was in heaven, she was the angel maid that was here to tend him. The light from her halo shone down on her delightful face as usual. The tiny mole at the bottom of her right eye gave her a touch of devilish charm.
The Victorian maid dress hugged her body tightly, giving the conservative style a different look. Earl assumed it must have been the work of Milly to cut it in this particular way. While Ari looked great anything, she always looked better when wearing black. The black colour of the maid outfit brought out the deep, dark colours of her hair and the paleness of her skin.
The dress reached all the way to her ankle but it did nothing to take away from the charms of Ari. This was because there was simply no way to hide her assets, especially now that she was wearing a corset.
The shape of her breasts peeked out from the white apron while the black maid dress clung tightly onto it. The snug fit of the dress made it possible to see outlines of her bra.
Ari adjusted her sleeve cuffs after noticing Earl's eyes and then proceeded to do a light twirl after. Her puffy skirt floated in the air for a few moments and fell down. Luckily for Earl, the short few seconds when the skirt was in the air was enough to show him a peek of her white stockings and high heel boots.
"This is great. It's excellent!" Earl said in a deep voice, almost breaking character.
"Right? Hehehe. Your child has great tastes, dear customer!" Milly agreed while laughing strangely.
"Fufu," Ari laughed while covering her lips with one hand from all the reaction. "Your first task shall be to dress me up later then, Aria."
"Eh?" Aria let out a stupid voice when she heard her name called. She appeared to be the only one lost in this entire shop but she could not be blamed. Why was the same woman who defeated a Council member of the Beast Kingdom with one move a few hours ago suddenly wearing a Victorian maid outfit? Weren't powerful nobles supposed to be high, proud, and mighty? "Y-yes."
"Haha," Earl giggled at Aria's cute reaction. He then playfully told her, "Tell me what you think of my mom's body later, okay?"
"Y-yes, master."
Earl enjoyed hearing the hesitancy in Aria's voice. It showed that she was not just a broken slave.
On the other side, Ari finished paying Milly. Somehow, within the timespan of when Earl talked to Aria, she was already magically out of her maid clothes.
"Thank you for your patronage, dear customer~." Milly bowed and handed three big paper bags over to Ari.
"Your shop is certainly very unique and offers a good selection of items. Keep it up." Ari nodded with satisfaction and gave her words of encouragement.
Walking over to Earl and Aria on the bench, she handed the three bags Aria naturally. Aria took the bag without complaints and held it. Earl was wowed by this small interaction. He remembered in his previous life, he always had to give his assistant and secretary specific instructions before they did anything.
The way Ari gave Aria the bags without looking at her, and Aria taking the bags without complaint gave Earl a big reminder that Aria was a slave. His slave.
Perhaps this was his biggest culture shock so far. Or would it be considered world shock?