I returned to the Emperor’s Villa with only one dress - it was all I wanted, and it took so long to get it completely perfect that I felt it was worth the price.
It was a truly perfect gown, made to accentuate my features, and I knew it made me look almost inhuman. It was made from a thin silk that clung to my body without revealing everything the way the sheer fabric the Emperor favored did - but this dress was far more revealing in other ways. It was more like something Xena would wear than a dress I would choose, but it wasn’t tacky or cheap looking despite the amount of skin it left on show.
I kept the dress hidden as I slipped back to my room, but put it on with the large Gallic necklace that had been left for me earlier.
There was a polished sheet of metal on one wall, and I admir
