CH 112

The second dance was pretty short. However, in the meantime, it was enough to instruct Seymour about this and that.

“Then, I will do everything you asked and report the results.”

Seymour said he was going to stop it.

“When is a good time?”

Even if it was up to the second dance, it seemed that Evan would really hate it if he saw me having another long conversation with Seymour. When Evan really went out of his mind…

“When [ Monita’s March ] comes out, there would probably be a lot of commotion.”

Greet after the dance.

“Then, see you on the second balcony on the east side.”

“Yes.”

As soon as we danced and parted, Seymour began to get along with people.

He was a baron from a commoner, so until now, everyone ignored him. However, because his first dance partner was Princess Elanie, and the second dance partner was me, he suddenly began to attract attention.

I was now the spouse of Young Duke Icard, the most powerful of the noble families, and everyone already knew that the Duke cared for me. Besides, I had not yet been active in the social circles of the capital.

Because of that, it must have been a surprise to everyone that I was the second dance partner of Seymore, a tycoon who could make a big impact if he came to the capital someday.

“Baron Litshua, huh.”

Evan, who had danced for the second time with Lady Olivia, also did not hide a slight surprise.

“Your ankle hurts, so why did you even dance the second time?”

“Baron Litshua was originally famous in the Southwest. He is someone who everyone is eager to talk to.”

I spoke in a slightly louder voice, being conscious of the people around me.

“He gave me a lot of advice about where to invest. Listening to Baron Litshua, I also made a lot of money.”

Those with good networking knew just how much money Seymour was raising. Unlike me, who was wrapped in a veil, Seymour had succeeded in all kinds of businesses and investments under his own name.

I could definitely see people flocking to Seymour one by one. Now, what I said to Evan would be inflated in an instant.

“Laria.”

Evan laughed as if it was ridiculous.

“You should have told me if you wanted to get advice on where to invest.”

“Well, I didn’t want to get that much. I don’t need any money.”

Even though I just laughed bashfully to gloss it over, Evan looked like he wanted to say something more though he turned around, realizing that I didn’t want to talk any more about the topic.

“Your ankle…”

“Yes?”

“You danced twice in a row, but what about your ankles?”

“I’m fine. The song was also short.”

There was no more conversation to be had.

I replied to Evan it was fine, but my ankle was a little sore. I also thought that dancing twice in a row was a bit too much, so I decided not to dance anymore. In the end, I sat still and followed Seymour’s steps with my eyes.

It was finally when Lord Gerdi approached Seymour. He smiled brightly at Lord Gerdi, as I told him, and spoke to him first.

“…Laria.”

As I was watching the scene where I gave the instructions directly, Evan called my name.

“Yes? Why?”

Watching Lord Gerdi sitting next to Seymour, I questioned Evan without turning my head. However, for a while, he gave no answer.

Noticing that, I slowly turned my head to look at him.

“Didn’t you call me…?”

“Yes. I called.”

Evan looked at me calmly with red eyes. His face hardened slightly.

“What are you looking at?”

“…Huh?”

I noticed that there was already a slight displeasure in Evan’s voice. If I answered ‘Ah, no’ or ‘Nothing,’ it wouldn’t get him what he wanted. Of course, I knew that Seymour’s name shouldn’t be mentioned here.

“Ah… That person, Lord Gerdi.”

Evan was taken aback by my words.

“He was in the fantasy the scroll book showed me.”

When I spoke calmly, Evan replied with a smirk.

“That book gives you the sickness and the cure. Why did it show you those stupid days?”

“What is the cure?”

“….”

At my question, he didn’t answer, but the nape of his neck suddenly turned red.

“And, stupid.”

I said, holding his hand.

“How do you say that? There’s a bad guy over there who really needs to be beaten. Really…”

Even though I didn’t mean to say this, suddenly, my feelings became intense.

“…I really don’t want to leave him alone. I can’t forgive anyone who hurt you in the slightest bit.”

“Laria.”

“It was generous that I knocked him out for only three weeks back then. He played with people’s hearts.”

It was only after it poured like a waterfall that I realized that I was a little exasperated. No, it wasn’t up to that point, but it felt like something out of the realm of my reason for why I spoke so energetically.

“This is a fact that very few people know about, but in fact, ancient fairies breathe life into the banquet hall of the Imperial Palace.”

“So be careful, Laria. The more the imperial banquet progresses, the more people lose their minds.”

Recalling Elanie’s words, I hurriedly shut my mouth, but Evan’s expression had already hardened slightly.

“I myself had forgotten, why do you care so much?”

His hand let go of mine that held him and slowly slid it into my arm. His body temperature was so hot that I jumped for a moment. Suddenly, I wondered if the fairy’s breath was affecting him as well. Did that mean he really didn’t care about that bastard at all…?

“I don’t even have any interest in that guy.”

“Well, that might be true, but still…”

“So…”

He slowly dragged me by the arm and finished his words.

“…I don’t want you to see other men.”

We sat next to each other, although the distance between us narrowed in an instant.

“If I wasn’t the main lead in your life. With your body by my side, whenever I see your eyes go somewhere else, I…”

In an instant, I stiffened at the immense presence Evan radiated.

“…I don’t want to be a good kid.”

Evan and good kid were words that didn’t go together. I noticed that he was hiding something in front of me, wearing a mask of appropriate kindness and goodness. As I was aware of that, I was already about to answer that he wasn’t a good kid.

He suddenly released my hand and touched his face.

“If you slap me on the cheek like you did here, the word will spread throughout the Capital.”

“What?”

“The damn breath of the fairy… Laria.”

He sighed and continued.

“Will you slap me on the cheek?”

Was he being serious? I answered with full consideration.

“Shall I? If you have to be hit anyway… If I hit it, it would hurt less than if you hit it yourself.”

It was when I was contemplating which cheek to slap, Elanie’s cold voice was heard in the distance.

“I really can’t help but call you stupid.”

Suddenly, there was a silence as if cold water had been poured, and everyone’s eyes turned to one side of the banquet hall.

“Does it make sense to bully a lady who is less than half your age?”

“The kid cheekily spilled orange juice on my shoe. Why would a third party intervene?”

“No, isn’t that a mistake that anyone can make? She should have apologized. Are you going to shed tears like this?”

“The Princess is out.”

Elanie and Lady Olivia were facing each other with their eyes flashing.

“You were holding a grudge during the masquerade because I had a sense of humor that was perfect for Duke Icard.”

“What? Seriously, I was trying to cut you some slack as an old lady! I should have known from the time you were playing with black magic…!”

“Don’t discriminate against the elderly. Why on earth would you look at me like that?”

The fight between the two was getting more and more intense.

“You must not forget that emotions are bound to rise more and more. Otherwise, you will have an accident. You must be as sensible as I am and always keep that fact in mind.”

Although Elanie was sensible to keep that fact in mind, her anger towards Lady Olivia seemed inevitable. Originally, the relationship between the two began to grow apart from the masquerade, but at the imperial banquet, it was a decisive turning point.

“Gosh! See this young one glaring at an elderly! In my time, you apologized unconditionally to the older people!”

“It’s funny. You told me not to discriminate against the elderly! But okay, I sincerely apologize.”

“Huh? I won’t take it all at once, but try it.”

“In the next life. I will never do it in this lifetime!”

As the fight between the two became more and more intense, I thought that they were going to grab each other’s hair because both of them could not be superior to each other in terms of strength.

“Evan, shouldn’t we stop it?”

Not only that, but no one dared to stop the two of them from fighting. The Emperor was so drunk that he couldn’t control himself, and Prince Ronald was beaten by Elanie after a few words.

“Father has to step forward rather than me… Oh, God.”

Evan groaned and stood up from his seat. Duke Icard was no longer sitting at the table of the middle-aged high-ranking nobles.

“I must go. Laria, don’t you go.”

I had no intention of going in the first place.

“It will hurt if you get even a slight hit from their floundering arm.”

Well, a little hit didn’t mean it would hurt…

Even if Evan came up, it wasn’t an easy fight to stop. It ended when Lady Olivia collapsed. Of course, she didn’t fall because she was hit or her blood pressure rises, but she falls off her high heels while trying to grab Elanie’s hair.

If she had succeeded in grabbing her hair, Lady Olivia would not have been able to escape from the crime of endangering the imperial family.

‘If Evan and Elanie get married, their relationship will be even worse…’

As I thought so, I got up quietly and moved to the second balcony on the east side.