Chapter 10

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 10
Chapter Title: The First Dance
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She wondered if there was some etiquette she was unaware of. But that couldn't be it; she had clearly seen the other young ladies filling their dance cards earlier.
Staring at the dance card with a grave expression, Aileen suddenly realized this wasn't the most important thing right now.

“……”

Aileen glanced around before lowering her head, the card still in her hand. The scene from this afternoon's victory parade was repeating itself.
Everyone in the banquet hall was staring at Aileen. They watched the woman surrounded by tall, sturdy men with expressions of shock, whispering amongst themselves, wondering who she was.
The only difference from the parade was that the nobles here recognized Aileen almost immediately.
The rumor that the Grand Duke cherished his late nanny's daughter was widespread in high society.

“Ah… could she be the one His Excellency the Grand Duke is said to favor…?”

“So that's the young lady. Hmm, a little unexpected.”

“Isn't it a bit odd? Attending a banquet without even having a debut. Don't you think?”

“I heard her family is struggling.”

“The soldiers must be doing this on His Excellency's orders, right?”

The whispers flew like daggers, piercing her. Listening to their malicious words, she began to feel sorry for the soldiers who had asked her to dance.
If it weren't for her, they could have danced with the ladies they truly wanted to. Because of her, they were being subjected to unnecessary gossip.
Come to think of it, it had been so long since she'd learned to dance that she would likely be a mess of mistakes. It seemed better to apologize to the soldiers who had requested a dance and stick to her original plan: just congratulate Cesare and go home.
Having made up her mind, Aileen turned to Diego, the first to sign her dance card.

“Sir Diego.”

“Ah, Senon and Michele will be a little late. They have something to take care of. They might not even make it.”

That wasn't what she was going to ask, but she had been curious.

“I see. It's a shame, I was hoping to see them both.”

Before Aileen could open her mouth again, Diego spoke with a sly grin, like a street ruffian.

“How about tea sometime soon? I bought a doll. It's incredible. A truly amazing rabbit doll.”

What on earth could an incredibly amazing rabbit doll be? She couldn't even begin to imagine. While Aileen was momentarily distracted by the talk of a rabbit doll, Diego and Rotan exchanged a brief glance.

“Lady Aileen.”

Rotan smiled faintly. His usually bear-like, stern face softened in Aileen's presence.

“Did you have any trouble on your way here? I should have come to escort you myself. My apologies.”

“No, not at all. His Excellency took care of everything…”

Aileen fidgeted with her glasses, explaining hesitantly.

“He even sent someone to help me get ready, but I felt it was too much, so I sent them back. Had I known this would happen, maybe I should have just gotten dressed up.”

She had unintentionally become the center of attention. If there had been a place to hide, she would have long since taken it. Seeing Aileen's embarrassment, Rotan chuckled softly.

“You would have been in a much more difficult position had you been properly dressed up.”

Following Rotan, Diego chimed in from the side.

“Exactly. Every man in the capital would have flocked to you, my lady.”

Aileen simply blinked, not understanding what they meant. *Are they really talking to me?* she wondered doubtfully, before remembering what she had forgotten.

“Oh, right, the dance requests…”

“Have you seen the gardens? They've changed a lot.”

Just as Aileen was finally about to bring up the dance requests, Rotan posed a question. He paused for a moment, humming in thought, then continued.

“The greenhouse, I mean. I heard they brought in a new plant from the East.”

“F-From the East?”

Aileen was so excited she even stuttered.

“Yes. I hear it's a very rare plant.”

When Cesare was at the Imperial Palace, she could freely explore its gardens. The memory of wandering around, mesmerized by the abundance of plants she had only ever seen in books, was still vivid.
But for the past three years, with Cesare gone, she hadn't been able to go anywhere near the palace gardens.

“Wouldn't it be nice to take a look at the gardens before His Excellency arrives?”

“Should I?”

Her desire to see the plants crushed her desire to go home. With a flushed face, Aileen asked if he could guide her to the gardens, and Rotan replied as if he'd been waiting for the question, saying he would escort her.
It was only after she had excitedly walked to the gardens with Rotan that Aileen remembered the dance requests again.

“Ah…”

At Aileen's sigh, Rotan, who was leading her to the greenhouse, turned back with a puzzled look. Aileen held up the dance card on her wrist, her face falling.

“I feel like everyone missed their chance to mingle with other ladies because of me. That's why I was planning not to dance, but to just greet His Excellency and go home.”

“Please don't do that, Lady Aileen.”

Rotan's plea was so earnest that Aileen replied with a small smile.

“Then how about I dance just one song with you, Sir Rotan? And let the others go.”

“…That sounds acceptable.”

Thanks to Rotan's quick nod, Aileen was able to set aside a mountain of worries and smile. As the two of them chatted and laughed, they soon found themselves in front of the greenhouse.

“Take your time looking around.”

“What about you, Sir Rotan?”

“I must return to the banquet hall. You needn't worry about the way back.”

It seemed he would send someone to fetch her. Aileen thanked him and entered the greenhouse alone.
The inside of the glass greenhouse was rather humid. The moonlight streaming in kept it from being dark, but it wasn't exactly bright either.
As she walked deeper inside, searching for the new plant from the East, she heard the greenhouse door open behind her.

“Sir Rotan?”

Thinking Rotan had returned, Aileen turned around. And froze. She saw Cesare entering the greenhouse with his characteristically unhurried stride.
He was wearing a formal uniform, slightly different from the one she had seen at the victory parade. The man, bathed in the midnight moon, looked even more dangerous. His lips, which seemed poised to whisper sweet nothings, curved into a pleasant smile.
Aileen belatedly bowed her head. She moved one leg back, bent her knee, and lifted the hem of her dress slightly, showing her respect to royalty.

“Your Excellency, the Grand Duke of Erzet.”

Cesare, too, addressed her formally.

“Lady Elorde.”

“Congratulations… on your victory.”

Unsure if she was following the proper etiquette, she offered her congratulations hesitantly. Then, she heard the sound of laughter. Aileen slowly raised her head.
The figure backlit by the moon was smiling broadly. His red eyes crinkled into crescents. His joyful smile was so beautiful that Aileen could only stare. Completely captivated by him, she belatedly asked a cautious question.

“Did I… make a mistake?”

“No.”

Cesare shook his head, still smiling, and said,

“It just reminded me of old times.”

He reached out to Aileen. His gloved hand tapped her dance card.

“You have to save a dance for me too, Aileen.”

She hurriedly unfastened the dance card and offered it to him respectfully. Cesare glanced at the signatures inside and let out a short laugh. He wrote his name on the empty first line.
[Cesare Traon Kal Erzet]
As if that spot had always been his, there was no hesitation in his signature.
After signing with a fluid hand, Cesare personally fastened the dance card back onto Aileen's wrist.
Aileen stared at the card dangling from her wrist. She thought that if anyone else saw it, they'd mistake it for a joint petition from the soldiers.
*I can't believe His Excellency would ask me to dance, too.*
Now she was trapped, destined to stumble awkwardly through a dance in the banquet hall. Her mind went blank just thinking about what people would whisper when they saw her dancing with Cesare.
It would be useless to make the excuse that she was afraid of making a mistake while dancing with him. He would simply reply that he would lead, so she had nothing to worry about.
And he was the type of person to do just that. It was Cesare who had taught Aileen how to dance. He had taken the small child and acted as her partner, personally teaching her the steps.
The reason Aileen's dancing was still clumsy, however, was because she never finished her lessons. In the middle of learning, her mother had caught them and given her a terrible scolding.

“How dare you be so disrespectful to the Prince…! Making him waste his precious time on something as trivial as your dance lessons!”