I AM NOT THE LOVE INTEREST!

Chapter 62: Little Saviors

—ARIA—

Aria’s grand fashion revolution officially began the next morning.

And almost immediately collapsed into disaster the second day.

The moment sunlight spilled through the windows of her room, reality greeted her with terrifying clarity.

The banquet was only three days away, the design remained unfinished, and every noble dress in this world apparently relied on hand stitching crafted by people who clearly possessed supernatural patience and sewing skill magic.

Meanwhile, she possessed panic.

Her room had transformed overnight into the scene of a textile-related catastrophe.

Sketches covered the floor in uneven piles while ribbons, measuring cords, lace samples, and abandoned drafts occupied nearly every surface available. Deep emerald velvet hung over the back of one chair while cream fabric spilled from an open chest beside the sofa. Several needles rested dangerously close to the edge of the table like tiny threats waiting patiently for violence.

In the center of all this chaos sat Aria herself.

Specifically, she sat frozen before the half-cut fabric with a pair of scissors still in hand while the crushing weight of her own ambition slowly consumed her spirit.

"...This is impossible."

The words left her quietly.

"No, genuinely impossible."

She lowered the scissors and stared blankly at the unfinished gown pieces spread before her. The design looked beautiful in her head. Elegant. Sophisticated. Revolutionary even.

Unfortunately, beautiful ideas still required actual labor.

And actual labor required stitching.

An unreasonable amount of stitching.

Aria slowly leaned forward before collapsing face-first onto the table with all the despair of a woman personally betrayed by fashion itself.

"I’m going to cry."

At that exact moment, the door opened.

Ren stepped inside carrying breakfast.

He stopped immediately as his gaze traveled slowly across the room, taking in the complete destruction surrounding him with the calm expression of someone mentally preparing for trouble.

Fabric draped over furniture.

Loose pearls scattered across the carpet.

Three broken pencils near the sofa.

A measuring ribbon somehow hanging from the chandelier.

And in the middle of it all...

Aria lying motionless against the table like a defeated general who lost a war.

Ren sighed softly.

"...Good morning, my lady."

Aria did not move.

"No," she answered weakly into the table. "It is not."

Ren approached carefully before setting the tray nearby.

"What happened?"

Aria slowly lifted her head just enough to stare at him with exhausted betrayal.

"I forgot sewing takes time."

Ren blinked once.

"...Yes."

"I thought designing would be the difficult part," she continued while gesturing vaguely toward the unfinished dress. "I got too excited and forgot that the true villain of fashion was manual labor."

Ren’s eyes shifted toward the gown pieces spread across the room.

To be fair, even incomplete, the dress already looked remarkably elegant. The emerald velvet contrasted beautifully against the softer cream underlayers while delicate silver embroidery patterns rested sketched carefully along the neckline and sleeves.

But elegance alone could not magically assemble itself.

"My lady attempted to complete everything alone?"

"I believed in myself."

"And now?"

"I no longer do."

The corner of Ren’s mouth twitched faintly before he stepped closer to inspect the nearest fabric piece.

Aria watched him miserably before dragging herself upright again.

"You do not understand my suffering, Ren," she declared dramatically while pointing toward the table. "I need proper seams. Clean stitching. Embroidery. Structure. Precision."

Then she narrowed her eyes at the dress itself.

"And this demonic creation requires all of it within three days, it’s already the second day!"

Ren picked up one unfinished sleeve quietly before examining the stitching.

"The seams are uneven."

"I know," Aria groaned immediately while clutching her chest. "Please stop attacking me during my emotional moment."

Ren gently placed the sleeve down again.

"Perhaps simpler designs would be more realistic."

Aria stared at him in complete offense.

"Simpler?"

"My lady only has two days left."

"Art cannot be rushed."

"My lady is currently losing a battle against her own design."

"...no, I’m not."

Ren looked unconvinced.

Aria exhaled dramatically before dropping back into her chair again.

"I severely underestimated historical fashion production," she admitted bitterly. "Modern technology truly spoiled humanity."

Ren paused slightly.

"What is modern technology?"

Aria immediately straightened.

"Nothing."

Ren narrowed his eyes faintly, giving her that quiet look whenever she accidentally said something suspicious.

At this point, Aria was convinced Ren possessed at least thirty unanswered questions about her existence but simply chose not to ask them out of politeness.

Which honestly made him more terrifying.

He finally sighed before pushing the breakfast tray slightly closer toward her.

"My lady should eat first."

"I no longer deserve food."

"My lady."

"I shall perish here surrounded by velvet and disappointment."

Without responding, Ren calmly picked up the spoon and placed it directly into her hand.

Aria blinked slowly.

"...You are becoming strangely authoritative."

"You are becoming increasingly unreasonable."

"That is because I am an artist now."

"You slept two hours."

"Art requires sacrifice."

"You stabbed yourself with a needle six times."

Aria looked away quietly.

"That was part of the creative process."

Ren stared at her silently for several seconds before finally sitting across from her.

The room gradually quieted afterward aside from Aria reluctantly eating while glaring at the unfinished dress like it personally ruined her life.

For a while, neither spoke.

Then eventually, Aria leaned back heavily against her chair before rubbing both hands over her face.

"...Maybe I was too ambitious."

Ren glanced toward her calmly.

"I can help, you still have time."

"No," Aria corrected immediately. "I have panic. Different thing entirely. And you don’t know how to sew."

Her gaze drifted slowly toward the scattered sketches surrounding her room.

Despite everything...

Excitement still lingered quietly inside her chest.

Because the dress truly was beautiful.

Even unfinished, she could already picture it clearly.

The softer silhouette.

The elegant movement of lighter fabric instead of rigid heaviness.

The delicate embroidery designed to enhance movement instead of restricting it.

It looked graceful, comfortable, and...

...alive.

Aria rested her cheek against the table afterward while staring quietly at the design.

"...I really wanted this to work."

Ren’s expression softened slightly.

"It will."

"You sound confident for someone who just looked disappointed a while ago."

"My confidence comes from observing my lady." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Aria blinked.

"What does that mean?"

Ren folded his hands neatly before answering.

"My lady becomes frighteningly determined whenever something truly matters to you."

Aria stared at him for a moment before laughing softly under her breath.

"That sounded almost supportive."

"It was intended to be."

"Oh."

A strange warmth settled faintly inside her chest afterward.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a quiet tinkling sound echoed through the room.

Aria froze immediately.

Ren’s gaze sharpened at once.

The sound came again...

It was soft and musical.

Almost like tiny glass bells chiming somewhere nearby.

Aria slowly looked down.

Then blinked.

The bracelet around her wrist was glowing.

The silver vines wrapped delicately around it shimmered faintly beneath the sunlight while tiny threads of pale gold light pulsed softly between the embedded crystals.

"Aelith’s bracelet..."

Ren stood immediately.

"My lady?"

Before Aria could answer, another chime echoed through the room.

Then suddenly, tiny lights burst through the open window.

Aria gasped softly as glowing figures darted rapidly through the air like living stars. Small winged creatures circled around the room in sparkling trails of light while faint laughter echoed softly behind them.

Ren watched them fly around us as he spoke, "Pixies? What are they doing here?"