Chapter 42
A Three-Beat Dance
Fortunately, his pause did not turn into hesitation. Cedric once again asked me to dance, his posture flawless.
“Princess Daisy, would you grant me the honor of dancing with you?”
“Gladly.”
I replied with an Owen-style curtsy. Cedric and I moved farther away from Deimond’s group and Rachel, heading toward the main hall of the ballroom.
I looked back. Rachel was drawing closer and closer to Deimond’s group. Step by step, little by little, she approached them—until at last, Rachel and Deimond’s group stood facing one another.
Even from afar, her red curls were vivid. Rachel smiled mischievously and said something to them.
Was it a greeting for their reunion? Joy at seeing old friends after a long time? Or an apology for having been unable to stay in contact?
Rachel was not the type to apologize. Then how would she speak about having hidden her identity? Would she explain it herself, or would she let it be revealed through Deimond or someone else’s mouth?
As the minuet began, people lined up in rows. Those who saw us approaching shifted slightly to make space. I stood in the women’s line, Cedric in the men’s, facing each other.
Even while standing in formation, my gaze kept drifting toward where Deimond’s group and Rachel stood. Now, swallowed by the crowd, none of them were visible.
A lively, sprightly three-beat dance began.
To a sound like birds chirping, everyone spread their arms wide to either side and greeted their partners.
Cedric and I stepped forward in time with the rhythm, circling once each using the people on either side of us as reference points. Then we bent our knees slightly and bowed again. While we held our place, the people beside us mirrored the same movement, circling once in rhythm around us.
In that way, we repeatedly drew closer and farther apart, faced each other, then turned away.
For the first one or two turns, I couldn’t focus on the dance. My head kept turning toward where Deimond’s group was.
“Princess, please focus on me.”
When I moved off-beat several times, Cedric said this quietly as we drew close.
Failing to focus on one’s partner while dancing was extremely rude, and I startled myself. As I moved away from him, I mouthed “I’m sorry,” and he acknowledged it with a small bow.
I had rather forcefully asked him to dance because I didn’t want him to hear Rachel’s conversation, but once I focused on Cedric and the dance, I gradually began to enjoy it. The many light, bouncing steps helped.
Cedric seemed exceptionally skilled at dancing. It didn’t match the image of someone who rarely left his home and had only attended a few imperial banquets.
“Duke, you’re very good at dancing.”
I said this as we came close. Our hands lightly met, then we separated again.
“Thank you for the compliment. You are excellent as well, Princess.”
Cedric replied when we drew close again. Once more, we briefly held hands and then moved apart.
Suddenly, I found myself wondering who else he had danced with besides me. I wondered if such thoughts were greedy, but the fast rhythm left me no room to think deeply before I was close to him again.
Have you had other dance partners?
I asked only in my heart. Cedric and I came very close again, then spun behind other dancers and moved apart. For a moment, I recalled what he had once said—that he had experienced romance before.
“Princess, are you finding life in Owen agreeable?”
This time, Cedric asked me as we came close. Then we separated again.
“Thanks to you, Duke.”
I answered sincerely, but in a joking tone. As we moved apart, we didn’t lose eye contact.
“I’m glad to hear that.”
It was the final rotation. Cedric and I returned to our original positions. We bowed in time with the music to conclude the dance.
Cedric asked me for another dance. To a piece where the grandeur of brass instruments blended with the liveliness of strings, we danced again. This time, we didn’t exchange much conversation and focused on the dance.
Among the popular dances, this one involved the least contact with one’s partner. It consisted mostly of solo movements, with several formations that used the entire ballroom and involved other dancers.
Even so, my attention kept drifting toward Cedric wherever he moved.
Even when spinning around while holding hands with others, I felt eyes on me. Of course, it was likely the gaze of spectators watching the dance, but I felt slightly tense with every movement.
When I came close to Cedric again, he smiled gently. Then we spun once more.
Round and round, round and round, round and round.
When the dance ended and Cedric and I blended back into the standing crowd, my heart was pounding.
Perhaps it was because it was still a hot summer night despite the late hour. I took out my handkerchief and pressed it firmly to my forehead.
Cedric’s hand slowly moved toward me and lingered briefly near my neck. As his hand approached, that spot alone felt a different temperature.
I wondered when Yuri’s magic had worn off, when Cedric tilted his head slightly. Without touching me, he detached the end of a ribbon from my neck. The ribbon adorning the back of my hair must have been sticking to my skin.
“That was a very enjoyable time. Thank you for accepting my invitation to dance, Duke.”
“It was an honor to be your sole dance partner, Princess.”
“And who said you were the only one? Some fine gentleman might ask me for another dance.”
I replied playfully.
In truth, I had no intention of dancing with anyone other than Cedric. In this unfamiliar banquet hall in Owen, there were few men I knew, and more than that, I simply enjoyed talking with Cedric.
“That is precisely why I’ve been on high alert.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at Cedric’s steadily improving sense of humor.
They said the ball would continue until sunrise. Since Deimond planned to remain at the venue longer, I would have to stay at the Grace estate even after many guests had departed.
On a night lit brightly by the moon, it became difficult to remain inside the ballroom, so Cedric and I stepped out into the garden. We sat side by side on an outdoor bench hidden behind hydrangea bushes taller than Cedric himself. Once seated, the bushes concealed us completely.
We were enjoying the summer night air when a group of voices approached from the building connected to the garden. Judging by the voices alone, it sounded like two or three men and two women.
It felt like we might be eavesdropping, but at this point it was hard to suddenly jump up from behind the bushes.
As I thought about waiting for a natural moment to act, I heard the word “Rundra.” Without realizing it, I held my breath. When I fell silent, Cedric did as well.
“That lady from Rundra—her pronunciation is just awful. It’s hard to understand her when you talk with her.”
“But you shouldn’t demean someone over their pronunciation.”
“We’re just talking among ourselves. And look—this is how she talks.”
The man exaggerated the pronunciation of Rundra’s accent. The group burst into loud laughter.
“Now I see why she married into the Empire. Compared to that barren northern land, our Owen Empire must be far more livable. But if that’s the case, shouldn’t she at least try to adopt Owen culture?”
“I don’t like being around people from other countries. I hear people from Lornais will be coming soon too—our Empire will be full of foreigners.”
I realized I had encountered imperial supremacists once again. As I wondered what to do, this time my own story came up.
“You saw the envoy from Rundra, right? It was uncomfortable enough when the princess came, but it’s been even worse since the envoy arrived. Rundran nobles are strutting around the ballroom.”
“Exactly. Because their royalty is here, people who couldn’t get into high society before are suddenly poking their faces out.”
My eyes met Cedric’s. I suddenly realized my body was leaning far too forward. Sitting beside Cedric, I had stretched toward the direction of the voices, and before I knew it, my face was near his chest.
Without showing my surprise, I leaned back again. Even though my posture must have been uncomfortable for him since I had blocked his space, Cedric didn’t mention my rudeness.
In the meantime, the group passed by the bushes behind us. They didn’t seem to notice Cedric and me.
I half rose to check the backs of the group as they moved away.
Women in dresses flowing like river water and men in refined evening wear made of luxurious fabric walked away laughing cheerfully. Had I not known what they were talking about, I would have thought them happy Owen nobles.
“Princess.”
“Yes?”
“Please be careful with your hands. If you lean on the bushes, you may fall into them.”
I straightened my body, which had been tilted toward the hydrangeas.
“Princess, do those people trouble you?”
