Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: What Are You Doing?
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What are you doing right now?
The dance was more difficult than I expected.
I was confident in moving my body,
but I wasn't all that used to delicate motions.
When I demonstrated the move Rodwell had told me to try, he nodded and gave his assessment.
"Perfect."
"Is it?"
"Yes. With that much force, you can send your fiancée flying just right."
"...Let me try again."
"Keep it in mind. This isn't fighting. Pretend you're holding an eggshell."
No, I get that...
It's just that I'm used to knights who won't even notice if I don't use this much strength.
My default power level is set way too high, you could say.
Still, if I messed up the control and hurt Laura, it would be a disaster, so I broke out in a cold sweat but practiced the dance diligently.
And around the time I got somewhat familiar with the dance.
Rita came by with the report.
"Young Master, here's the information you requested."
It was finally here.
I took the report from Rita and skimmed through it.
Expecting to uncover Laura's secret through this.
...And what I encountered was something rather gruesome.
"Confined since the age of ten?"
"Yes. The rumor is that she could read people's minds."
"Reliability of the intel?"
"Not high. But it's testimony from someone who worked for the Clarins family at the time, so there's a good chance something related happened."
Laura had been confined starting around age ten.
Until her engagement to the Dominica family was decided.
And the suspected cause was just a rumor of uncertain truth.
Even with the power of Dominica's intelligence operatives, they couldn't fully uncover the circumstances, which suggested Count Clarins had put considerable effort into covering it up.
That fact alone made one thing clear.
'Laura definitely has some unique power.'
And young Laura had revealed that power, leading to her confinement.
But that was as far as we could ascertain.
Everything after was mere speculation.
I organized the information.
'Reading people's minds?'
I didn't rate the likelihood of that being true very highly.
If Laura could really read minds,
there'd be no reason for Count Clarins not to exploit it.
Besides, just looking at how she acted around me made it obvious.
'She didn't figure out that I'm reincarnated.'
Laura was the type whose emotions showed plainly.
Not so much that she was without pretense, but more like she lacked experience in hiding them.
Sometimes she seemed too naive for a count's daughter,
but if she'd been confined since age ten and lived that way until now, it made sense.
And when she looked at me, there was no confusion or bafflement at anything inexplicable in her emotions.
Anyone would react a little if they met someone who thought of her as a novel character.
'So, probably some ability related to that.'
Exceptionally keen intuition,
or the power to predict people's actions.
The former wouldn't justify confinement, so the latter was more likely.
'No, considering Elcon's case, it could also be the power to induce actions. Can't rule that out.'
Either way, her ability had been narrowed down somewhat.
She had some power that could influence people's actions.
And unlike in the past, she could probably control it now.
Otherwise, Count Clarins wouldn't have let her out so casually.
My conclusion from this was—
'Just a bit of caution should suffice.'
I let out a light sigh.
Really, what a relief.
I wouldn't have to lay a hand on Laura myself.
And with power at that level, even if there was a slip-up, the Iron-Blooded Duke wouldn't step in personally.
So, I could enjoy this engagement with her a while longer.
I handed the documents back to Rita and wrapped up the orders.
"That's enough investigating Laura. Redirect the remaining personnel to digging into Count Clarins and his wife."
"It'll take quite some time. Is that alright?"
I nodded.
Laura was the bigger variable anyway, not me.
A man who confined his own child and silenced rumors.
Better to prepare a leash for emergencies in advance.
He seemed thorough, so it wouldn't be easy, but with all his dirty secrets, prodding hard would definitely yield something useful.
After Rita left, I leaned deeply back in my chair.
And quietly muttered to myself.
"I'm tired."
I hoped nothing would happen at the ball.
I picked up the stack of papers on one corner of the desk.
As I went through them, an image flashed in the corner of my mind: Laura's expectant face looking forward to the ball.
And on the day of the ball.
As I entered the ballroom, I realized my wish hadn't come true.
"Leonardo! Come over here, quick!"
Ah, damn it.
What now?
Before I knew it, the ball date had arrived amid all the various tasks.
Was it because I'd been constantly aware of the date?
Honestly, I hadn't cared much about the ball,
but now that the day was here, I realized I'd been subtly looking forward to it.
Not because I wanted to show off the dance skills I'd practiced for a month—
nothing like that.
It was because Kiara, who'd been Laura's dance instructor for the ball, kept making a fuss to me about it.
Something about how the ball gown suited her so well it was dazzling even to her.
I already thought everyday Laura was dazzlingly pretty,
but recalling her in riding clothes sparked some anticipation.
'Is the ball gown that different?'
It was bound to be flashier than her usual dresses, but I doubted that alone would make Kiara so excited.
As I imagined Laura in her ball gown,
Nicholas approached from afar.
Nicholas in attire different from usual.
He'd swapped his usual mage's robe for a tailcoat.
Seeing him like that, I quietly admired inwardly.
'Clothes make the man, huh? True enough.'
In that drab robe, he just looked like a decently handsome mage.
But dressed in a tailcoat like that, he could pass for some high noble's son.
But he didn't seem used to the outfit, approaching me with an awkward expression.
"First time wearing a tailcoat... Feels weird."
"It suits you fine. So, practiced any dancing?"
"I told you, I'm just here to observe the custom."
"Wouldn't it be a waste to dress up like that and just stand around?"
"This is just appropriate attire for the venue."
Nicholas, still dodging any proactive approach to Kiara.
I was about to say something but held back.
'Eh, that's their business.'
No clear romantic feelings had sprouted yet, so time would tell.
Nicholas, who had sobered up at my words, glanced around and asked,
"By the way, has Miss Laura not arrived yet?"
"Laura went ahead. Tradition at the academy ball is for ladies to wait in the hall first."
"I see. What about regular balls?"
"No such custom there. Guests come from various territories, so it's not practical."
"Makes sense. Why does the academy have that tradition, though?"
Beats me.
It wasn't a topic that interested me much, so I brushed it off vaguely.
But Nicholas's curiosity was piqued, and he started theorizing why the academy had such a custom. I listened quietly as we headed to the ballroom.
And in front of the ballroom, I spotted another familiar face.
"Rodwell?"
"Ah, Leonardo."
A person I hadn't expected to run into at the ball.
Rodwell was dressed in a tailcoat, heading into the ballroom.
'Didn't he have sword practice at this hour?'
As I looked at him questioningly, he answered my unspoken query.
"Came to return a favor."
"Favor?"
"The lady from the training video you showed me. She insisted I come to the ball as thanks."
Ah, that video.
The one where he said demos without a partner don't look right, and he'd gotten it from somewhere.
I thought it was some study material he had at home, but he'd filmed it himself?
And her idea of thanks was to have him come to the ball?
Sensing something odd, not just me, Nicholas asked with interest.
"So, you're here to ask that lady to dance?"
"And you?"
"Ah, I'm Nicholas. Wandering mage and Leonardo's friend."
"A mage? Hard to tell dressed like that. Rodwell of the Paella family."
"Paella...? The Sword Saint's?"
"Didn't expect my uncle's name to ring bells among mages. Anyway, that's the Paella."
"Ah, so you're... Anyway, nice to meet you."
The two shook hands after introductions.
Nicholas wore an intrigued look, knowing something about the Paella family, but Rodwell seemed disinterested in him.
I watched them closely for a moment before wrapping up.
"Let's head in now. Lingering here will make us late."
"Sure."
Our trio entered the ballroom and arrived shortly after.
Even by my standards, the ballroom was impressively large.
Big enough to fit several research buildings, with a second-floor mezzanine.
They'd put thought into the decorations too, giving it a real ballroom vibe.
Except there was no footman announcing arrivals.
Once inside, Rodwell gave me a light nod.
"Well, I'll be off here."
"Good luck with that lady."
"What're you on about?"
"...Nothing."
I shook my head at Rodwell's response.
I'd half-expected it, but...
Did this guy really take "come to the ball" at face value, no ulterior motive?
The girl who's fallen for a guy like this has her work cut out.
As I fretted over the future of some lady I'd never met, Rodwell shrugged and vanished into the crowd.
Watching that, Nicholas signaled we'd split too.
"You go find Miss Laura. I'll watch from upstairs."
"Got it."
I nodded, and Nicholas melted into the crowd as well.
Confirming that, I headed to the center of the ballroom in search of Laura.
Students chatting in small groups parted subtly at the sight of me, whispering.
"The Little Iron-Blooded is here..."
"I heard he has a fiancée. Here with her?"
Good. Rumors about me and Laura have spread to a decent extent.
As I looked around contentedly,
I noticed a woman approaching me.
'Laura?'
No, definitely not her at a glance.
Who was coming toward me?
I stopped, puzzled, and she rushed up to me urgently.
"Leonardo! Come over here, quick!"
What was going on?
But the woman who called me turned and hurried back without explanation.
Having no choice, I followed her—
and there found Laura.
Laura, receiving fervent courtship from the Crown Prince.
"Please, you who have captured my heart. Grant me the chance to dance with you."
"No. I've already told you, I have a fiancée—"
"That flimsy engagement means nothing before me! I am—!"
...What?
I was momentarily stunned by the scene unfolding before me.
Snapping out of it, I strode up to the Crown Prince.
Stepping right up, I said it to snap him out of it.
"What are you doing right now?"
And the Crown Prince, who had been ardently courting Laura, froze at my voice.