The Ball (2)
The Ball (2)
As they entered the ballroom, the Second Prince glanced down at his side.
The Princess, who seemed a little taller than before, was calmly surveying her surroundings.
There was nothing particularly different about her, but the Prince disliked her expression.
"Are you bored, Aisha? Even though we're walking around together for the first time in a while, you look miserable. You used to follow me around so much when you were young. It makes me terribly sad that my cute little sister is keeping her distance from me."
His grip on the Princess's hand tightened.
Her hand turned pale.
Princess Aisha flinched as if she felt the pain, but that was all.
She could have made the pain disappear by circulating her mana, but she had no intention of revealing her abilities in front of the Prince.
"Ah, did that hurt? You should have said something. I'm sorry."
The Prince loosened his grip.
Until a few years ago, she had shown a wide range of expressions, but her sudden change in personality had made her utterly boring.
It might have been amusing to see her properly terrified, but he was far too busy to bother with an ordinary younger sister.
Even now, he wanted to uncover the many expressions hidden behind that emotionless face for the first time in a while. Unfortunately, he had official business to attend to first.
"I offer my greetings to the Second Prince."
"Ah, my lord, you have come as well."
"You look even more dashing than when I last saw you, Your Highness."
"And you remain in fine health, my lord."
"..."
As he returned the nobles' greetings, he picked out those in his faction from those in his brother's, while subtly dropping hints to the neutral nobles along the way...
The moment he entered the ballroom, he was faced with a mountain of work.
'If my brother had been a useful crown prince, I wouldn't have to suffer like this...'
'No, if he were a capable brother, I might have suffered even more. Or maybe I'd be dead by now.'
As he conversed with the nobles, harboring such thoughts, he glanced to his side.
"Don't stray too far. You should stay right by your brother's side."
Noticing his younger sister trying to put some distance between them, the Prince gave her a gentle warning.
"Your brotherly affection is truly deep."
"She's my cute little sister, and there's quite an age gap between us. I have to protect her properly until she gets married."
The Princess moved back to the Prince's side.
While the Prince exchanged greetings with the other nobles, the Princess stood quietly beside him.
After a few brief exchanges with the nobles, it was time to meet the students.
Now that both the Prince and princess had arrived and the important introductions were over, the ball was truly beginning.
Music began to fill the ballroom. The center of the room had been cleared, but it remained completely empty.
No one dared to be the first to step out, out of deference to the Second Prince.
The Prince led the Princess over to the students.
As he approached, the students—who had been first-years for less than six months—froze in place.
"I came here today because I heard rumors that exceptionally talented freshmen had entered the Royal Academy."
The Prince gave the students a gentle smile as he spoke.
"I consider myself quite a good judge of character. At a single glance, I can tell that you are all brilliant talents who will become the pillars of our kingdom."
His smooth words seemed to ease the students' tension a little.
Only then did the Prince begin speaking with them one by one.
"Oh, you must be Young Lord Manuel, correct? The second son of Duke Gracia. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Oh, and you are Young Lord Iker, whom Count Piruna boasts about so much. I heard your ability utilization is remarkable. Why did you join the Knight Faculty?"
"Oh, your skills must be extraordinary. Miss Bria, was it? It doesn't matter what standing your parents hold. What matters far more is how remarkable you are, Miss Bria."
The Prince lavished every student he greeted with praise.
Most of what he said was insincere, but he was more than willing to dish out flattery of this caliber.
Although his brother was currently out of his mind, surpassing him—the Crown Prince—required playing the hypocrite and handing out empty compliments like these.
Even so, he couldn't help feeling utterly repulsed.
Smiling at the daughter of some obscure backwoods noble, speaking to half-breed noble trash dressed in fine clothes beyond their station—
—all of it was an agonizing chore for someone as noble as him.
"I am Alex."
"Pleased to meet you."
The Prince gave him only a brief reply, wary of inviting further conversation.
Fortunately, the guy didn't seem like an idiot who didn't know his place and would try to cling to him.
The bastard simply bowed and walked past him.
Then, just as he was greeting the next student...
He heard the voice of the 'bastard' who had passed by only moments earlier.
"The ball has begun, yet no one is dancing. Your Highness, how about you and I open the dance floor?"
The Prince looked over at the student who dared address the Princess, his face full of disbelief.
The nobles standing behind the Prince appeared just as stunned, but the students gathered together were not surprised.
The Prince furrowed his brow at this strange situation, but what shocked him even more was the Princess's response.
The Princess stared intently at the student holding out his hand, then raised her own and took it.
"Thank you for asking me to dance."
To anyone watching from afar, it was a heartwarming, adorable sight: a young girl accepting a dance with a boy who had not yet reached adulthood.
But the two people dancing were a royal princess and a noble's 'bastard.'
The nobles whispered among themselves as the pair walked out to the center of the floor, but the two paid them no mind and began to dance.
Though there was a significant height difference between them, they both had youthful faces, making them look endearing rather than imposing.
Unconscious smiles touched the onlookers' lips.
But there was one person who was thoroughly displeased by the scene.
He stared down at the hand that had just held the Princess's. Right now, it felt as if someone had snatched an amusing toy away from him.
The Prince beckoned to his subordinate.
"Who is he?"
A young noble stepped closer and answered him.
"There were rumors that a noble student was acting as the Princess's escort. It seems he wasn't a proper noble after all."
The Prince nodded at his subordinate's words. If that was the case, it made sense that he could dance with the Princess.
Yet understanding the reason did nothing to lessen his irritation.
Until now, the Prince hadn't paid attention to the Princess's surroundings.
Ever since the Princess had fled to the academy alongside Katrin, he had paid her no mind.
She hadn't even properly awakened, and since she had voluntarily disappeared from the royal palace, he had felt only mild regret at losing an entertaining toy.
Even now, he didn't care to pay her much attention. But, as always, he made a point of remembering anyone who offended him.
The Prince stared intently at the half-breed dancing with the Princess.
Dancing with someone so much shorter than me was far harder than I'd expected.
On top of that, with every eye in the room fixed on us, the tension naturally multiplied several times over.
In the end, I had to put in a lot of effort, using my physical abilities and mana just to match my movements to the Princess's steps.
Fortunately, as time passed, the stiffness in the Princess's body gradually eased.
Then, as others began joining the dance one by one, the eyes fixed on us scattered.
The dance became considerably easier.
"Are you feeling a bit better?"
The little lady answered softly.
"Thank you."
Both my question and her answer carried several meanings.
There was no need to ask what those meanings were.
As she danced, she looked immensely at ease.
As soon as the song ended, I escorted the Princess off the floor.
Dancing was far more exhausting than I'd expected, too.
I'd thought dancing would be easy with my physical traits and mana control.
But that had been pure arrogance on my part.
Learning from books, listening to explanations, and sneaking a peek at my sister during her lessons hardly counted as properly learning to dance.
I barely managed to keep up for one song. Continuing any longer was impossible.
I'd rather be surrounded by monsters and slice away at them with my sword.
Instead of heading toward the Prince, I led the Princess over to Katrin.
Anyone could tell at a glance that the Princess had no desire to be with the Prince.
Upon seeing Katrin, the Princess let out a quiet sigh of relief, and Katrin smiled warmly back at her.
Afterward, Katrin gave me a silent look of gratitude.
Everyone else was enjoying themselves, but someone was still glaring in our direction with a scowl.
The Second Prince looked thoroughly displeased.
'Don't tell me I've already been targeted.'
A Prince in such an exalted position couldn't possibly waste his attention on a worthless bastard like me.
Besides, looking at the moody prince, I didn't feel particularly scared.
My repeated deaths had numbed me to fear.
'I've really broken down quite a bit, haven't I?'
Others might call it bold, but no matter how I looked at it, it was hardly a good sign.
After all, it meant I could no longer react sharply to danger.
Fortunately, thanks to my mana sensing and other abilities, I seemed fine for now, but it was hard to say how things would turn out down the line.
'Well, it's not like I can do anything about it right this instant.'
If I fixed the Ego and figured out how to level up, maybe I'd find a way. For now, though, I was completely at a loss.
Fortunately, the Prince didn't come over to pick a fight just because the Princess was with Katrin.
To be honest, the Prince looked too busy dealing with the nobles to pay attention to the Princess anyway.
Only now did the Princess finally begin to enjoy the party. She chatted lightly and sampled the spread of food.
To me, it seemed as though she could finally breathe.
Until now, I had assumed the Princess had come to the academy at such a young age simply to hide her abilities and stay out of the princes' sight.
But her departure for the academy seemed to stem from far more complex reasons than I had imagined.
I quickly pushed aside the curiosity creeping into my mind.
Since I had rescued the Princess from the Prince's clutches anyway, there was no need to pry into whatever complicated motives lay behind it.
If I pried unnecessarily, I might end up dragged into even deeper trouble.
I was enjoying the ball from a slightly secluded spot, watching the Princess and Katrin, when it happened.
"You are Young Lord Alex De Gracia, correct?"
A young noble stepped up and extended his hand to me.
"Yes, I am Alex."
I shook his hand.
"Ah, I haven't introduced myself. I am Viscount Daniel."
"Yes. Pleased to meet you."
Still holding my hand, he looked me up and down. His gaze was thoroughly repulsive.
"Fascinating. I came over out of curiosity to see who could possibly displease the Prince, only to find a pathetic little 'bastard' like this."
I stared back at him in genuine amazement.
To mock me so blatantly and directly to my face... I never expected to hear something like that in a setting like this.
He jabbed me firmly in the chest with a finger from his other hand.
"You might still be too young to understand, but no matter what you do, you must always read the room and mind your steps. You probably acted out of ignorance, but you severely offended the Prince just moments ago."
Though he spoke politely despite the difference in our ages, there was not the slightest hint of respect in his tone.
And that finger jabbing into my chest soured my mood just as much as the Prince had.
My foul mood actually made it easier to put on an act.
I cast my eyes downward, let my voice tremble, lowered my volume, and asked him:
"D-Did... did the Prince send you?"
My terrified act, which I hadn't used in a while, worked even better than I'd expected.
"Why would the Prince waste his time caring about a mere 'bastard'? You may not know who I am, but I simply stepped forward to clear away an eyesore before it displeases the Prince any further."
The moment I acted frightened, the young noble dropped his formal pretense and spoke like an old, crafty aristocrat.
It didn't suit him at all.
Besides, he claimed I wouldn't know who he was, but I knew exactly who he was.