The Ball (2)
Amid the strains of elegant music, dozens of couples whirled across the center of the hall in time with the melody.
Schwarz and Milia were among them, dancing together.
"…"
"…"
Not a single word passed between them.
And little wonder—Milia was so mortified by the situation that her head spun. Accepting Elis’s suggestion and bringing Schwarz out onto the floor had been fine enough, but the moment they actually began to dance she found herself painfully aware of him at every turn.
If their performance could be summed up in a single phrase, it would be: Schwarz’s hard carry.
He somehow kept the dance from falling apart entirely, matching himself to Milia’s stiff, clumsy movements—so much so that the sight was almost pitiful. She had already stepped on his feet four times.
Schwarz had tried to endure the first two, but after that he half-resigned himself and cast a hardening spell on his feet. She hadn’t meant to, of course. Thinking as much, he offered a faint smile toward Milia, who was desperately avoiding his gaze and looking thoroughly lost.
Truth be told, watching her like this was rather entertaining, so he continued the dance without complaint.
How much time passed that way, he could not say.
When the orchestra finally fell silent, Schwarz followed after Milia as she walked away with her head bowed in embarrassment.
"Um… don’t take it too hard. With a little practice you’ll get much better."
"Th-thank you…"
Elis offered the encouragement, and Milia felt heat flood her face as she nodded wordlessly. Even she had to admit the display had been utterly disastrous. Without Schwarz she would have drawn open mockery from everyone around them. Wanting nothing more than to crawl into a hole and hide, she covered her burning cheeks with both hands.
"By the way, Schwarz—are your feet all right? It looked like they took quite a few stomps…"
"Ah…"
At Elis’s words Milia let out a startled "Hah!" and whipped her head toward him.
"Sorry… your feet must have hurt a lot, right?"
She hurriedly began inspecting them.
"Please don’t worry about it. I’m fine."
Schwarz answered with another gentle smile. Better keep the hardening spell a secret, he thought—just as a lively voice called out to them.
"Milia! Schwarz!"
"…?"
The three of them tilted their heads and turned toward the sound. What met their eyes was a young woman. Though a lavish dress and mask concealed her features, the reddish-brown eyes and that distinctive, cheerful voice were unmistakable.
"Princess Arze?"
"Arze unnie?"
She approached with a beaming face, as though something delightful had happened, and both Milia and Schwarz looked puzzled.
"You’ve been well, I hope?"
"Yes. And you, unnie?"
"I’ve been fine too."
They exchanged greetings. Then Arze glanced at Elis standing beside them and cocked her head.
"But there’s someone here I don’t recognize. Who’s this? She looks somehow familiar…"
"It’s good to see you, Arze. It’s been a while."
Elis offered a faint smile.
"That voice… Eli—!?"
"Shh. Keep your voice down here, please."
Elis quickly covered Arze’s mouth just as the other girl’s eyes flew wide and she started to cry out, then pressed a finger to her own lips.
"I never dreamed Her Highness would be here."
"And I never expected to run into the princess of House Lumenia."
Grasping the situation in that brief exchange, Arze gave a short cough and inclined her head lightly toward Elis. Elis returned the courtesy with a slight bow of her own. If the surrounding guests ever learned who the two of them truly were, chaos would surely erupt.
"What brings you all the way out here?"
"I wanted to spend some time with a friend. Being cooped up in the palace gets a little stifling."
"A friend… good heavens."
Arze cast a sidelong glance at Milia and Schwarz, then widened her eyes once more in open astonishment. Elis simply smiled at her without a word.
"Milia, you little rascal—when did you make such a splendid friend behind your unnie’s back?"
"Ugh… don’t cling, I can’t breathe…"
With a mischievous look and narrowed eyes, Arze slung an arm around Milia’s shoulders, grinned, and began poking her cheek with a finger. Milia let out a soft, pained whimper.
"Come to think of it, did something happen a little while ago? On my way over I saw Young Master Pention looking absolutely furious."
"Ah. That?"
Milia clicked her tongue briefly at the mention of the earlier incident and began explaining what had taken place.
"So that’s what happened. Honestly…"
"A complete disgrace."
"Right?"
Milia added her own sharp agreement, and Arze nodded.
"So… what about that other matter from before? Did it go well?"
"That? Ah…!"
What could she mean? Milia cast her mind back for a moment, then recalled the advice Arze had once given her and let out a low hum. At the same time heat began to rise in her face. Not wanting Schwarz to see, she hung her head low.
"Hmm… Milia. Don’t tell me you still haven’t…"
"I-I just haven’t found the right timing yet!!"
Watching her, Arze made a soft sound of understanding and narrowed her eyes; Milia’s face filled with panic as she cried out. She’s so adorable when she’s like this, Arze thought, then turned her gaze toward Schwarz, who had taken a step back.
"Schwarz. Milia says she’s a bit thirsty. Would you mind fetching her something to drink?"
"…Pardon?"
Schwarz tilted his head. He hadn’t heard Milia say any such thing.
"P-please…"
"Mine’s wine~"
"Understood."
But when Milia, fidgeting and glancing at Arze, reluctantly spoke up, he nodded and moved off through the crowd.
Once Schwarz had completely vanished from sight, Arze narrowed her eyes at Milia. The younger girl tried to avoid her gaze, but before long she let out a short sigh and turned back to face her.
"Milia. Your unnie is very disappointed."
"Haah. But it’s embarrassing… and a little scary, too."
Milia sighed under Arze’s chiding tone. She had made up her mind, yet actually carrying it out required considerable resolve. Of course Arze knew that. Still, if she didn’t push at least a little, the two of them would simply keep running on parallel tracks forever. She needed to force even a small intersection between them.
"Hmm… the way you keep stalling, I’m starting to think that whole ‘I like Schwarz’ story was a lie."
"What!? Th-that can’t be…!!"
Milia’s voice rose in flustered protest at the exaggerated claim. Her feelings for him were completely genuine—not a shred of falsehood.
"I understand. At your age it can be hard to know what liking someone really means."
"That’s not it at all!!"
Milia squawked, but Arze had no intention of stopping. She was certain that otherwise Milia would never take the first step.
"Well, Schwarz is a pretty decent man, but maybe he’s a bit too good for our Milia. Why not just give up and look for someone else? The world’s full of men."
"Unnie!!"
Unable to bear it any longer, Milia raised her voice, and for an instant nearby eyes turned toward her. She paid them no mind. All she could think was that Arze had insulted Schwarz and owed her an apology.
"You don’t like that idea?"
"O-of course not!"
That should do it, Arze decided, and asked with a short laugh. Milia nodded as if the answer were the most obvious thing in the world.
"Then go for it. I know a thing or two about men, and guys like Schwarz usually don’t notice unless you tell them straight out."
"Okay…"
Milia let out a low hum, sank into thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Milia, I’ll be cheering for you too!"
"Th-thank you."
Elis, who had been watching the exchange with bright interest, clenched a fist in encouragement. At that very moment Schwarz returned with the drinks.
"I’ve brought the beverages."
Wine for Arze, fruit drinks for Milia and Elis. The three girls accepted their glasses and exchanged awkward glances in silence.
"Is something the matter?"
Schwarz tilted his head at the sight of them. Come to think of it, he was fairly sure he had heard Milia raise her voice a little while ago…
Just then Arze nodded and held out her wine glass toward Milia. Milia snatched it and, before Schwarz could stop her, downed the entire contents in one gulp.
"Ah—My Lady!?"
Schwarz’s voice rose in alarm. He had never once seen her touch alcohol.
"Pwah!! That tastes weird…"
Milia exhaled a short breath and handed the empty glass back to Arze. Color was already blooming across her cheeks as the liquor took hold, and in the same moment she realized one crucial fact.
She was ridiculously weak to alcohol.