A Dance of Misunderstandings
Adelia and I practiced dancing. When I answered her coolly, she snorted as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Of course. You’re the kind of playboy who goes around touching every woman he sees.”
I was hit with an unexpected insult, but it didn’t land. “Then let us assume a situation in which Lord Hyunwoo asks for a dance first. Lady Adelia simply stands there, and…”
Following Judeban’s instructions, I bowed slightly at the waist and formally requested a dance from Adelia. Still looking sulky from my earlier remark, she extended her right hand in consent. I kissed the back of her hand and led her to the center of the room.
“When dancing, your right arm must always remain here. It gives onlookers a sense of stability and makes you appear well-mannered.”
Judeban suddenly grabbed my arm and forced it around Adelia’s waist. Her waist was so slender that even wrapped in my arm, there was still space left. So this is a woman’s waist, I thought, and the admiration slipped out before I could stop it.
“You really…”
“Really what?”
I hesitated, then said, “Seeing how easily you fit in one arm, I was just thinking you really are a woman. Your waist is incredibly thin.”
“If you’re trying to seduce me, stop.”
“What kind of lightning bolt is that?”
“I won’t fall for your sweet words the way other women do.”
“I had no such intention at all. Aren’t you being a little paranoid?”
“Now, now, both of you. Be quiet and try the steps slowly. Light and gentle, as if walking on clouds. Lord Hyunwoo, be careful not to step on her skirt and lead her softly—one-two-three, one-two-three…”
Judeban followed us for nearly an hour, correcting our posture at every turn. Once I had adapted to the dance, he stepped back and watched in silence. Finally, I had time to talk with Adelia in my arms. With my hand lightly around her waist, I took the basic steps and asked the question that had been on my mind since earlier.
“We’re not even having a party, so why did you come dressed in a gown? Was it because of me?”
“Don’t flatter yourself. I didn’t wear it to impress you. I simply wanted to check if it still fits after so long.”
“Is that so? It looks good to me. Good enough to wear even if the king came.”
I was about to close my mouth and focus on the dance when Adelia’s voice continued.
“How good does it look?”
The faint smile on her lips suggested she had liked my previous comment.
“Hmm… very good?”
“Why is your expression so lacking? It sounds insincere and too simple. Try being more elaborate.”
“What kind of expression are you hoping for?”
“Hmm…”
Adelia pondered for a moment before speaking. “Tell me that the sight of me in this dress fills you with such awe that you wish to become my servant.”
“I refuse. Absolutely not.”
I rejected her flatly. “I’d rather have you than become some servant.”
“Have me…?”
“You don’t know what that means? It means I’d take you as my wife.”
“What?!”
Adelia looked as though she had been struck by a bomb. She suddenly overreacted. “H-how dare a commoner speak of such things so carelessly…!”
She didn’t look angry—more flustered. She seemed genuinely shocked. I had only said it lightly, almost as a joke, so why was she taking it so seriously?
She pulled away from me, her face twisting as she shouted, “How could someone as noble as I ever become the spouse of a lowly man like you? Never even dream of marrying me! It’s utterly preposterous! If you ever utter such vulgar words in front of me again, I will not forgive you! The House of Hildegart is not something a wretch like you can aspire to!”
Adelia lifted her trailing skirt with one hand and stormed out of the room.
Sinclair approached with a stiff expression. “To think a man of lowly birth would dare propose to Lady Adelia so fearlessly… Honestly, I’m quite surprised. Lord Hyunwoo, do you happen to have multiple lives? Always remember that the House of Hildegart holds the second-highest rank of power in our kingdom. If you were not someone Lady Adelia took an interest in, you would already be a dead man.”
“……”
How had the conversation twisted so badly? I was so dumbfounded that explaining the misunderstanding felt like too much trouble, and I lost the will to speak.
I turned to Professor Judeban. “Professor, let’s stop with the social dancing. Please teach me how to converse with noblewomen instead. Talking to them is exhausting.”
Judeban, who had been wiping cold sweat with a handkerchief, gave a gentle smile. “From what I can see, this isn’t something that can be solved with lessons. I’m no doctor of romance, but Lady Adelia appears to be deeply troubled. Rather than leaving in anger, it seemed as though she fled to escape reality for some reason. The words she spat out in fury sounded more like excuses meant to hide some truth. You might do well to remember that strong denial often means strong affirmation.”
Judeban offered a scholar’s insightful advice on the situation. I was startled. “Does that mean Adelia has feelings for me?”
“Well, I can’t say for certain. As I’ve said, I’m no doctor of romance.”
The king’s expected arrival was now only fifteen days away. Of the bandit groups that had openly appeared, only two remained. The Lion Heart Unit chose “The Two Shadows, Lafilwood” as their next target. However, Lafilwood was not a bandit chieftain but a lord who ruled over three villages. None of them were on the scale of a city like Nobern; they were all small rural settlements. As a result, the lord’s residence was not a castle but a manor, and he commanded twenty knights. Each knight had one or two squires, bringing Lafilwood’s total forces to just under sixty men.
Until now, we had only fought bandits who lacked proper training and wielded crude weapons. This time, we would face a regular army that had received formal training. With twenty fully armed knights wearing helmets and armor, Lafilwood’s military strength could not be taken lightly.
Through prior investigation, we learned of Lafilwood’s reputation. His subjects suffered under heavy taxes and forced labor, and he was widely reviled as a greedy, tyrannical pig. Most vile of all was the local law he had enacted: every girl in his domain who reached the age of fifteen was required to spend one night with the lord.
To me, it was nothing short of an evil law. Yet when Adelia heard the story, a strange atmosphere seemed to emanate from her.
“Hmm. The First Night Right, is it?”
“It’s an evil law, right?”
“I’m not so sure. It’s hard to say definitively.”
Adelia and I had infiltrated one of Lafilwood’s three villages since morning to gather information from the residents. While doing so, we stopped by the home of a girl who was scheduled to be taken to the lord’s manor the following evening and listened to her parents explain the situation in detail.
“I don’t want to go! I don’t want to sleep with that fat, ugly lord! Mother! Father! Please save me! I don’t want to go to the manor tomorrow! I want to run away!”
The girl, who would turn exactly fifteen on her birthday tomorrow, suddenly clung to me and pleaded.
“My lord! I beg you, please buy me! If it’s you, my lord, I don’t mind! I’ll do my best to serve you in bed! No matter how unreasonable your demands, I’ll accept them all, so please! Sob!”
The girl wrapped her arms around my knees and wept loudly, refusing to let go. I looked at Adelia, who sat across the table with an indifferent expression. She spoke calmly, as if it were nothing.
“If you’re interested, why not buy her?”
I was surprised once by her words, and twice more by the parents’ response.
“My lord, if you wish to purchase our daughter, please don’t hesitate. We welcome it wholeheartedly. Take her and use her for cleaning or kitchen work. Bedside service is fine too. We’ve had her doing farm work since she was three, so she’s quite dexterous and works very well.”
I never expected to see parents selling their own child. I was deeply shocked.
“If you allow us to see our daughter once a year, that would be enough. Please take her into your household and use her however you like.”
I had heard that in poor households, selling daughters to wealthy families was common. On Earth, it might be seen as inhumane, but in this world, it was not viewed that way at all. A daughter sold into service would become a maid, receive food and clothing, learn various skills, and earn wages paid at regular intervals. She would not be permanently separated from her parents either; they could exchange letters and meet during holidays. When she came of age, a capable master might even arrange a marriage for her and provide a house and dowry as a congratulatory gift. In every way, living as a maid in a rich household was far more advantageous than remaining in poverty with one’s parents for life.
Still, while I had known about the practice of selling children, experiencing it firsthand left me with a strange, fresh shock. I wanted to understand the girl’s plight and help her, but with Haida and Evynee already in my household, I had no need for another maid. I politely declined and left the house with Adelia.
The problem we needed to worry about was not whether to take in a commoner’s child. Dealing with Lafilwood was far more urgent.
“Just the fact that he’s violating the village girls should be enough grounds to arrest Lafilwood, right?”
Adelia mounted the horse tied in front of the house and shook her head with a heavy expression.
“That is not considered a crime.”
“What about imposing excessive taxes and forcing his subjects into labor to decorate his manor?”
“That, too, is a legitimate act of governance for a lord.”