The imperial banquet hall was overly bright as always. A new red carpet had been laid out on the white marble, and the nobles on either side were glancing at each ot her, conscious of each other.
"The light of the empire, Your Majesty, the Emperor. Your Majesty, the Empress!"
With the words of the attendant, everyone tightened their heads. The door of the inner hall opened, and Fabiana and Liam walked in.
Liam and Fabiana, who couldn't even stand being in the same space with each other earlier, looked like a friendly couple, as if they had never been like that before.
The Empress's gaze, which had been glancing at the nobles with a fierce eye as if looking for someone, stopped in one place. Calix, who was standing casually on the side of the ballroom, came into view.
'Calix...!'
Before she could see him, he went from being just a beautiful boy to a complete man.
Since returning alive from the battlefield, he has never appeared in front of her, and even the private meetings she occasionally requests have been turned down.
On the other hand, it is Fabiana is a bit sarcastic. She had to hear about him from a cheap newspaper, even though he didn't even show his face.
Today, she finally sees his face. Fabiana immediately waved her hand at the attendant.
"Let them in."
"I'm starting the debutante!"
***
A few people were sitting in a row in the narrow corridor, waiting for their turn to enter. Although it was a waiting space, the distance between the chairs was quite far, and only the silence was awkward.
Odelia was also sitting in the far corner. She was straightening her back, but her fingertips were sweating. The hand resting on the hem of her dress moved fidgetily. She rolled the fan in her hand for no reason, and in her head, she was thinking about the order of things she had to do when she went inside to meet him.
'It makes more sense to me to use a spear and shield at the same time, rather than to hold the hem of hr dress while fanning herself with a fan.'
During those months, Odelia learned to dance to some extent and managed to memorize the titles of the nobles, but strangely, she hadn't been able to do enough to greet the Empress at the moment of her debutante's arrival to hear the Grand Duchess say, "That's enough."
Odelia took more than ten deep breaths, but she couldn't breathe in well. The bright light of the venue leaked out through the open door.
When the attendants called out, they went out in groups one by one, and some of them broke the string and cried or were carried away because of extreme tension. Seeing that, Odelia can't help but be nervous.
Odelia exhaled, folded and opened her sweaty palms, and looked up involuntarily. Her eyes met with the others.
Then, those who met their eyes turned their heads forward again, and they looked at each other again. The reason for this is that she is different from others in age, background, and history.
At that moment, someone spoke to her among the women.
"How are you?"
"Lady Judith."
"Do you remember me?"
"Yes, I saw you at Her Highness the Grand Duchess's banquet. How can I forget Lady Judith?"
Judith felt a fever rise in her face, so she quickly opened her fan and slightly covered her face.
"You're good at talking to people."
"After that, Young Master Montague didn't mess around, did he?"
"Yes, he hasn't been able to lift his head since that day. Oh really...... How exhilarating!"
"It's a shame we didn't get to talk that day, but I'm glad we did," she said, smiling broadly, her face a far cry from the fresh-faced look she had last time.
"We can see each other often in the future, right? I think your townhouse was near Rubelle Street... My family's townhouse is also nearby. It's a little far away, though. Later, the ladies who live nearby will get together and have a tea party, so please join us then."
Odelia was surprised by her unhesitating attitude, but she nodded cautiously.
"...I would appreciate it if you could invite me."
Was it because Judith was talking to her, they who had been watching the conversation, began to speak to Odelia one by one.
"His Highness, the Crown Prince, is your guardian?"
"I heard that you really went to the battlefield!"
"That's right, that's right! Did you fight with real weapons? And... It's like a mythical hero."
The question continued with a bit of a tail. It wasn't just curiosity. It was a small hospitality that each person tried to convey in their own way. Odelia, who couldn't let go of her nervousness, hesitated and then calmly answered. She didn't talk much, but she didn't spare any answers.
The atmosphere also softened little by little. Both the voice and the facial expressions. Faces that were unfamiliar until a while ago began to become clear one by one.
At that moment, the air in the corridor was cut through in an instant, and a sharp and clear voice flew out.
"Everyone is relaxed."
A tall and well-spoken woman stood up and cast a cold gaze to the left.
"Since you two are chatting so rudely before your audience with His Majesty, this must be how prepared you are for your debutante performance.
The atmosphere froze in an instant. As if cold water had been poured on them, the sound of laughter and speech disappeared. Odelia also turned her head to look at her.
"I'm sorry for causing a fuss. I talked a lot to relieve my tension."
The moment their eyes met, she snorted and turned her gaze away as if she had nothing more to see. 'What kind of tone do you talk like a man?' she muttered softly.
"No, we can relax and have a conversation with each other, and we don't need to be so sad or gloomy because we're not going to be slaughtered?"
However, Judith did not hold back.
"No, Lady Herdel. I was too loud."
Odelia hurriedly tried to stop Judith, but Judith continued in a voice that was as crisp as a Pomeranian.
"It's so gentle and pleasant to listen to, but why are you being so obnoxious? Who sang loudly in front of Her Majesty the Empress? It wasn't even a cuckoo."
Then the woman's face turned bright red as she said to Odelia.
"Hey, Lady Herdel! Why did you suddenly change your attitude?"
"I can change enough, because I was ignorant and misunderstood by myself at the time, so I was sorry, and now I know I was wrong."
Judith turned her head and looked at Odelia once, smiling with a very warm and lovely face. I did a good job, right? Odelia also replied with an awkward smile.
The group that shouted at Odelia was so ridiculous! Even though she was snorting, she could no longer express her dissatisfaction.
Only Odelia smiled awkwardly to fix the situation, haha.
***
Whenever the voices of the servants wearing white wigs resounded, both doors opened at once, and groups began to enter one by one with magnificent music.
Luke of the House of Borduis, daughter of Count Herod, granddaughter of the Marquis of Eastridge-
The value of the dress was noticeable before the face. The cloth was embroidered with gold thread, jewels were hung everywhere, and the jewelry around the neck was already worth the life of three people.
The Empress glanced at their face, then smiled roughly and spoke." Although they are young, they only have the freshness of the green buds that grow together, and they do not have the splendor of blooming like me."
"They raised you well."
"It shines."
"...Yes, next."
In a voice that could not be distinguished from praise or mechanical sound, she continued to talk to dozens of people, not virtue. Fabiana wanted to check Odelia's face as soon as possible.
Whether Liam looked at the young woman from the side and glanced sinisterly or not, Fabiana's gaze turned once again to Calix, who was standing a little away from the crowd.
He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, as if he wasn't interested in all this nonsense.
In the corner of the hall, Calix's eyes were indifferent. The splendor of the dress, the ceremonial greetings, and the empty laughter were all just meaningless noises.
"Now it's the last time! Helena, the young lady of the British family. Selena, the young lady of the Pierce family, and Kalia, the young love of the Jerene family... Oh! Odelia, the lady without a family!"
At the same time as the words "Odelia without a family" resounded, Calix unknowingly turned his head to look at the door.
Emotions spread on Calix's expressionless face. Fabiana's expression cooled down when she witnessed this.
His vision moved slowly, as if the moment he had been bored had stopped for a moment.
The white marble doors opened on both sides, and Odelia walked in.
The soft-grained satin rustling on her toes, the flashes of light created by the metallic decorations reflecting the sunlight, and Odelia's slow steps across the hall.
The music and the sound of the crowd were far away from Calix, and only her steps and breath seemed to be clearly heard.
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