Chapter 3
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 3
It appeared her brothers had yet to arrive. Gareth, the Crown Prince of the Empire and her half-brother, usually stood like a sovereign in the seats of honor on the second floor, where he could overlook the entire hall or remain the undisputed center of the ballroom’s attention.
And Aila would always be there by the Crown Prince’s side, the very picture of dignity and grace.
‘But tonight, we might not see the usual Aila Roem Guirta.’
Thalia chuckled softly, picking up a silver goblet from a small round table.
A cruel satisfaction blossomed in her chest as she recalled the sight of Aila collapsing in the middle of the ballroom not long ago, her face turning deathly pale. As she had vomited wine onto the marble floor, it looked as if she were spilling her very soul out.
It would have been wonderful if she truly had.
Thalia scratched the surface of the goblet with a sharply filed fingernail, creating a piercing screech.
She couldn’t count how many times she had prayed inwardly while watching her half-sister convulse on the floor.
Just die like that, Aila. Please, never open your eyes again.
“Your Highness.”
Lost in her dark thoughts, Thalia turned her head at the sound of a nearby voice.
A man dressed impeccably in a deep green formal doublet stood straight, one hand over his chest. His face was familiar. It took a moment for her to remember that he was a frequent guest at the banquets hosted by her mother.
His name didn’t immediately come to mind. She only vaguely recalled her mother calling him Count Serian.
“It has been a long time. Your Highness grows more beautiful with each passing day.”
The man, looking down at her with eyes full of admiration, bowed and kissed the back of her hand. A wave of revulsion washed over her, as if a damp caterpillar had crawled across her skin. However, Thalia forced a smile.
“Did my mother ask you to keep me company?”
“The Empress is always concerned for the Imperial Princess.”
The man gave a veiled confirmation.
“But even if it weren’t for Her Majesty’s request, I wouldn’t have been able to resist speaking to you. Just look around.”
He whispered into her ear as if sharing a great secret.
“Every man here is looking at you. They want to approach you as I have, kiss this beautiful hand, and shower you with passionate praise—but they are suppressing that desire. They wouldn’t want to get on the Crown Prince’s bad side, after all.”
“And you are different?”
“I am someone who earned his displeasure a long time ago.”
He flashed a sly smile.
“Thanks to that, I was given the task of attending to Your Highness tonight, so I suppose it’s a blessing in disguise.”
Thalia did not like men who clung to her with such excessive interest. In truth, she loathed them. However, having a decent shield seemed better than enduring the stinging glares of hundreds of eyes alone.
Thalia accepted his escort with the air of someone granting charity.
“What did my mother say? Did she ask you to rescue her poor eldest daughter who’s drifting about like a black sheep?”
“Her Majesty commanded me to ensure the Imperial Princess enjoys the banquet to the fullest.”
Thalia suppressed the urge to scoff.
The man led her toward the stage set up in front of the balcony. “And she instructed me to do my best to make you stand out more than anyone else in this ballroom.”
Those dancing to the melodies of the lyre, lute, and organ retreated hesitantly, casting sharp glares. But the Count paid them no mind, bowing to her ostentatiously.
“Would you grant me the honor of a dance, Your Highness?”
Thalia looked down at his slender hand, devoid of any calluses, with a look of distaste. She had not the slightest desire to touch a man she barely knew. However, the sharp gazes and whispering voices of the crowd sparked a sense of defiance within her.
They all want me to disappear. They want me to stay tucked away in a corner, as quiet as if I weren’t even here.
But I won’t let them have their way.
Thalia took the man’s hand. As if he had been waiting for the signal, he wrapped an arm around her waist and began to sweep across the stage with practiced skill.
Even Thalia, who loathed physical contact, couldn’t help but admire the man’s exceptional dancing. Count Serian knew how to move perfectly to the melody and possessed the talent to make his partner shine.
Thalia had always enjoyed dancing, but she had never felt her own movements were as elegant as they were at this moment. And it seemed she wasn’t the only one who noticed.
She scanned the surroundings over the Count’s shoulder as he skillfully spun her. She saw hundreds of pairs of eyes following her movements in unison. Everyone was unable to look away from the imperial illegitimate child they had so thoroughly despised.
Thalia felt a surge of triumph. Previously, whenever she appeared in public, people would pretend not to notice while stealing glances at her every move. But those had merely been expressions of contempt and wariness.
This time, however, was different. They were looking at her the way they looked at her mother. She could feel gazes filled with fear and fascination tangling around her body like a mess of thread.
It felt as if she had become Senevia—the most powerful, dangerous, and beautiful being in the world.
But the sweet sense of victory was short-lived. The music suddenly cut off, and the true protagonists of the banquet made their appearance.
“His Imperial Highness, the Great Crown Prince Gareth Roem Guirta, and Her Imperial Highness, the First Imperial Princess Aila Roem Guirta, are entering!”
With the loud cry of the Chief Chamberlain, the two royals passed through the entrance of the ballroom with a majestic stride and descended the marble stairs. Instantly, Thalia was cast out of the public’s interest.
Count Serian smiled bitterly and led her toward the terrace where wine and food were laid out.
“It is regrettable that our pleasant time was interrupted.”
The Count prattled on playfully as if trying to ease her stiff expression, but not a single word reached her.
Thalia stared intensely at Aila, her eyes burning. Aila was dressed in a pure white gown, looking as if she had completely forgotten the disgraceful scene she had caused just a few weeks ago.
Seeing that pretty face smiling gracefully beside her brother made Thalia’s stomach churn with hot rage.
With a persistent gaze, Thalia picked apart their dark hair, their emerald eyes, and their faces that looked as if they had been carved from ivory. They overflowed with the dignity and confidence befitting royalty. It was something that no matter how hard Senevia and she tried, they could never possess.
Senevia was a viper who had dragged the young Emperor—once praised as the Holy Emperor—into the mire of a sordid affair, and Thalia was the filth that had crawled out of that viper’s womb. Even if Senevia were to give birth to dozens of the Emperor’s sons in the future, that fact would never change.
Thalia quietly glared at her half-siblings, who were surrounded by the crowd’s fervent attention, before turning toward the table of wine glasses. Then, she noticed those who had been looking at the Princess and Crown Prince with longing eyes were now glancing at her, exchanging subtle, mocking looks.
Every nerve in her body stood on end. She wanted to gouge out all of their eyes.
Don’t you dare compare me to them.
Suppressing the urge to scream, she desperately feigned an indifferent expression, but the man beside her whispered in her ear, oblivious to her mood.
“It seems the two of them intend to ignore Your Highness’s presence. What will you do? Will you go and offer your greetings first?”
She shot the man a venomous look.
The corners of his mouth quirked up as if he found her reaction amusing.
“Isn’t that why you came here?”
Thalia bit her lip.
Just as he said, she had appeared here to ruin her siblings’ mood. To create a jarring note of discord in the place where they were receiving everyone’s congratulations. Senevia would be hoping for nothing less.
Finally making up her mind, Thalia gripped her wine glass tightly and turned toward her half-siblings. She stepped boldly through the crowd.