Chapter 171
Chapter 171
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 171
Chapter Title: Dancing with You Under the Moonlight
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The chaotic party hall was brought to a temporary close with Pine's arrival.
The young ladies who had harassed Nex were forcibly ejected, and Asha had barely succeeded in her persuasion. However...
'It's the first time I've seen Pine angry.'
Pine glaring at the people around her and clicking her tongue. This probably wouldn't end just like that.
It was likely because she'd seen someone treating her brother or sister—whom she'd known since childhood—like that.
Asha might end up facing some punishment too. After all, she'd crossed the line.
Drip, drip. As I stepped out onto the balcony, raindrops pattered against the railing.
Is this really okay?
I gave a wry smile as I stared at the status window floating before my eyes.
Nex and Sharutineth embracing each other and smiling. Their eyes were still red-rimmed from crying before breaking into laughter.
The other nobles in the party hall watched with awkward expressions but couldn't voice their displeasure because of Pine.
'The two of them do look happy.'
Even with the Love Meter at 100 percent, it wasn't pure sweetness—it left a bittersweet aftertaste.
They were parents projecting their own unfulfilled dreams onto their child.
Nex getting drenched in wine and Sharutineth nearly struck by a glass—all of it was Asha's karmic retribution.
Witnessing it firsthand must have changed their hearts. They'd seen exactly who was behind their child's mistreatment.
That might be why they'd withdrawn their objections.
Or perhaps they'd discovered an unexpected side to Sharutineth.
It felt like untangling a hopelessly knotted thread. A wound barely stitched shut.
I knew from [Knight Heart] just how twisted Nex could become.
A rival who sniped back at the player with sarcasm.
A noble who refused to use his family's signature phoenix trait out of hatred after his lover died.
"..."
I looked up at the sky and let out a brief sigh.
Yeah, as long as the ending's happy, that's what matters. Pure love or whatever.
With the Aureus family's protection from now on, Sharutineth wouldn't meet her death either.
"...Licht. Why are you out here alone?"
At that moment, a pure white girl approached me from the hall, her tail swishing gently.
Her white dress reflected the moonlight, giving off a soft shimmer.
Pine formed a stark contrast of white against the dark night sky.
"Are you drunk? How much did you drink...?"
Her cheeks were flushed. I caught and steadied her as she staggered toward me.
"Not... that much... Licht..."
Her tongue was already fully slurred. Lying's no good, Pine.
Her eyes were softly unfocused, far from her usual icy expression.
"Haa..."
Pine let out a hot sigh and pressed close to my side. Was she cold from the rain?
"Drink in moderation. What if you trip over something and get hurt...?"
She'd drunk way more than what I'd seen earlier. I chided her as she giggled, clearly beyond her limit.
"It's fine... You've got me, right?"
Hehe. A small laugh, and then I felt the soft strands of her hair against my shoulder.
Pine leaning her head against me out of habit.
What was I supposed to do with this cute, puppy-like girl? Her snowy white ears had poofed away the moment she got close.
"...Pine, don't stay out here. Go inside and rest. You'll catch a cold."
I took off my suit jacket and draped it over her.
Even if the rain wasn't splashing in, my precious person couldn't afford to get sick.
"...Hehe, my knight... Smells nice."
"...."
Pine hugged the oversized jacket with both arms, inhaling deeply. The long sleeves hid her hands and flapped around.
She looked just like a puppy rubbing against its owner's clothes and sniffing—adorable.
As I moved to stroke her hair, her wolf ears naturally flattened back.
She really was a wolfkin. I'd heard wolves could never be tamed.
"Don't ignore me, Pine."
"Don't wanna... Wanna stay with Licht longer..."
Maybe that bit of common wisdom was wrong.
Pine coquettishly spoiled toward me. Guess I'd pet her head as punishment.
"So, why were you out on the balcony alone...?"
As I gently stroked her hair without messing up her style, she gave me an oh expression and asked.
"There was no place for me to cut in."
I turned my head away upon seeing the number floating in the air.
Come to think of it, what did the Love Meter really signify?
Did this simple number truly represent the love between two people?
50% when they start dating, 100% when marriage is approved.
So what should I call the relationship between Pine and me?
"Hehe, they do look happy. Unlike us."
Pine gazed at Sharutineth and Nex, speaking in a low voice laced with slow sadness.
"I always thought parents were people who fretted over not giving their kids enough."
That was how my parents had been.
A kind mother and a somewhat gruff but warm father.
"...I guess I was wrong."
My father, the firefighter, had always been the hero in my heart.
But things in the world don't always flow smoothly.
"Like Soo-hyun's parents?"
Pine perked up her ears as she spoke. The words from her mouth were ones I hadn't expected.
"...How do you know that?"
How did Pine know about my parents? She'd seen my childhood self, sure, but that didn't make sense.
Ah, no way...
"In Tardun's trial, I met them."
Hiccuping as the alcohol warmed her body, she recited her story.
"They were... just like you, kind... and warm. They treated a total stranger like me so kindly."
Pine nodded at me, as if affirming that my words were right.
"I see..."
I'd seen Empress Bellin in Tardun's trial too, so it wasn't impossible the other way around.
Wait, wasn't this basically an informal parental meet-and-greet?
"Everyone around me seems so happy, Licht."
The moment that thought crossed my mind, a sad expression entered my view.
Rain fell in her golden eyes, like the moon. Pine was starting to tear up.
"Pine...?"
Her lips stood out prominently red and sparkling faintly.
She'd done her makeup for the party, but it was starting to smudge.
"I... honestly don't know if love or marriage... is really that important."
Moonlight settled on her unusually long lashes.
"Is that... happiness?"
She glanced sidelong at Sharutineth and Nex before speaking.
"...No matter how many novels I read, I just don't get it."
Over on Nex's side, he was already laughing and eating with Kainel and Ariel.
"Of course it's happiness. It's with the person they love."
We'd slipped away midway, and no one had even noticed.
Already three couples formed, with two pairs even exchanging marriage vows.
"Why are they so desperate about it... I'm curious."
Pine propped her chin on her hand, lost in thought. No idea who she took after.
People living lives so different from hers.
Pine sadly reached for the glass beside her to down it.
"No more drinking, Pine."
I snatched that final glass and drank it in her place. The grape scent rose bitterly spoiled.
"Ah, indirect kiss. Pervert..."
Pine, you really can't drink any more here.
As I ducked my head in embarrassment, her wolf tail slowly wrapped around my leg.
"...I read in a book that being in love feels like dancing on clouds, Licht."
She shyly brought it up while fidgeting with my hand.
Dancing on clouds as the feeling of love—who came up with such a vague line...?
"My knight, would you... dance with me just once...? I don't really know how to dance well..."
Soon after, Pine shyly spoke up. A glimpse of pure innocence without a speck of dust.
It was a familiar way of speaking.
The speech pattern I'd kept recalling right after possessing the game.
The pure white, innocent saintess of pure snow.
She was the same person. Even if someone else, Pine was Pine through and through.
"How was it? I tried imitating that passage as best I could. Truth is, I can dance pretty well, but..."
The rain began to let up. The drizzling sounds faded, leaving only silence.
The wolf who'd never let me escape from start to finish had finally caught me.
"Understood, Princess Pine Granasia."
To gift her the memory we'd left unfinished before.
"...I accept your dance request."
I knelt on one knee and swore my knight's oath.
Honestly, I hadn't thought it'd work.
"L-Licht...?"
I'd just tried imitating the heroine from a romance novel I'd read.
How did things end up like this?
I had wanted to dance with her, sure.
The inner courtyard of the party hall. No one came near after the recent rain.
"Yes? Why the sudden fuss, Pine."
The Black Knight in his helmet stood together with Pine.
"Why, why... are you taking off your shoes?"
"Oh, that?"
Licht had removed his shoes before dancing with Pine and set them aside far away.
"I'm no good at dancing."
As a swordsman, he'd swung his blade to protect Pine, but he'd never practiced dancing to uphold party etiquette.
"So... I might step on your feet."
Pine finally understood.
Licht was a commoner by birth. Even coming from another world, he probably hadn't learned to dance separately.
"...Got it. No dirt here... Let's dance right here."
She led him to the gazebo in the courtyard. White marble floors with a cleanliness magic circle.
In the cramped space, the two man and woman began to dance, syncing their breaths.
"...Licht, you don't step out with your left foot here."
"Ah, sorry. Pine..."
Pine's impression of Licht's dancing was straightforward.
Clumsy.
Too clumsy. The kind that might get rejected by a partner as hopeless.
"When you dance... you have to match your partner's movements, Licht."
Arm and foot going out together. A man lacking the confidence to even handle his gaze properly on his partner.
He kept staring at the floor, worrying about stepping on her feet first.
"Yes, slowly... You can hear the music from the hall, right? Follow that."
One step, one step. Pine overlaid her guidance onto Licht's movements.
"Ugh, sorry, Pine."
"...It's okay if you step on my feet, Licht."
Mistakes here and there were fine—it confirmed Licht had no ties to dancing with other women.
'...Doesn't seem like he's danced with the Nameless Saintess either.'
She felt she'd gained the upper hand over the person who'd long been on her mind.
Pine's lips curved up naturally. She was enjoying it without even realizing.
"Like this, huh."
As Pine raised her arm and twisted her body to the right, Licht took a step forward in sync.
"Yes, just keep... repeating that."
Their gazes stayed locked the whole time.
"Still stepping on your feet, though... Sorry."
"I said no apologies, Licht."
This time, Licht pulled at her wrist, bringing their breaths in sync.
Like magnets drawing together and apart repeatedly, the two focused on the dance.
The songs from the party hall gradually faded from earshot, and before they knew it...
"...Licht."
"What's wrong, Pine."
Under the clearest, brightest moonlight yet, Pine spoke to Licht.
"Tomorrow... will you come to our palace...?"
Her cheeks flushed shyly again, her eyes widening.
"His Majesty Locke will be there, won't he?"
"There's a reason. Licht."
She curtsied as she greeted him, finishing the dance pose.
The moment their moonlit ball came to an end.
"I want to repay you... for the chocolate you gave me before."
Pine ended the conversation with an alluring smile sent his way.