The Imperial Ball (10)

The aroma of this café is rich. They ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠must use high-quality beans.

…….

Coming to the café together had been fine. Yes, up to that point it had been perfectly fine….

But why was this woman sitting right next to me instead of in the empty seat across from me?

“Young master, aren’t you going to drink? It’ll get cold.”

“…I was just about to.”

I stared for a moment at Aria, who spoke with a smile on her face, then cautiously reached out with my slightly trembling right hand to grasp the handle of the teacup. Normally I would have supported the other side with my left hand, but I couldn’t do that now. The reason was simple: Aria, who had glued herself to my left side, refused to let go of the fingers she had tightly interlaced with mine.

My gaze suddenly drifted to our joined hands. Warm body heat flowed from where our palms met. They said people with cold hearts also had cold hands, yet I couldn’t understand why this woman’s hands were so warm. Seeing this, those sayings must all be superstitions. After all, there was no way the villainess who had coldly discarded me could possibly have a warm heart.

Truly, I couldn’t fathom this woman’s true intentions. Why was she acting so affectionately toward me now? When she left, she had done so without a trace of lingering attachment, her face icy cold. So why was she behaving like this now?

I lifted the teacup to my lips, and the fragrant scent of coffee spread through my nose. After taking a sip and setting the cup down again, I turned to face Aria, who had been openly staring at me with a gaze I could no longer ignore.

“My lady.”

“Yes?”

Her bright, sunny smile made me flinch for a second.

“Um… my lady, doesn’t it bother you? The stares from the people around us….”

I glanced down at our interlaced fingers as I asked. Sure enough, since it was before lunchtime, quite a few people were seated throughout the café. Whenever they passed by our table, they didn’t stare outright, but they would subtly glance at our joined hands. Most gazes held envious admiration for the couple, though some were mixed with jealousy or envy.

It was only natural to feel uncomfortable being the center of so much attention. Yet the fact that she continued to hold my hand like this made me naturally suspect that Aria must have some other purpose in mind.

“I’m fine with it.”

“…….”

“Or… does holding hands with me… bother you…?”

Aria tilted her head, her eyes carrying a hint of anxiety as she asked. Did it bother me? Of course it did. How could it not? But if I answered honestly here, what kind of words would come flying back at me?

‘Then may I tell Count Stuart about what happened this morning? That Young Master Leo held me tightly in his arms while he slept.’

Damn it. Why had I done something so stupid without even realizing it….

Had my desires been building up without my knowledge? …Hell.

It seemed that ever since meeting this woman, some strange tendencies had transferred to me as well.

“…It doesn’t bother me.”

“That’s a relief. I don’t dislike it either.”

She smiled brightly and squeezed my hand even tighter. It was so infuriating that I genuinely ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wanted to smack her on the head. How on earth was I supposed to endure this for an entire year?

“…….”

After Aria lifted her teacup for another sip of coffee, she glanced at me again. The look in her eyes was exactly like that of a girl head over heels in love. How could she act so convincingly? She must really be out of her mind. Otherwise, there was no way she could behave like this so openly.

“Haa….”

I let out a sigh and closed my eyes tightly. My head was starting to throb. How had I gotten tangled up with a woman like this? What kind of ridiculous suffering was this? Just what sins had I committed in my previous life?

Watching Leo sigh while still unable to pull his hand free from mine made me feel a little sorry. Was I still too much for him to handle? Well, considering how I had unilaterally forced him to do things he disliked both yesterday and today, it wasn’t strange for him to feel that way.

To be honest, even I had been a bit surprised by the incident this morning when Leo had fallen asleep holding me in his arms. I had deliberately snuggled close to him after confirming he was completely asleep, but I never imagined he would wake up still embracing me like that. Although I hadn’t shown it outwardly, the moment I woke up my heart nearly dropped to the floor from shock.

When I tried to hug him back, Leo had woken up, so I had to pretend to be asleep and it was quite the ordeal. How long had it been since Leo held me so affectionately like that? Even ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠now, it felt as though his body heat still lingered across my entire body.

Had Leo unconsciously reached for me? Just thinking about it made me incredibly happy. Even so, I had selfishly demanded that he take responsibility for what happened that morning. Of course it was partly to satisfy my own desires, but it was also out of consideration—I didn’t want him carrying unnecessary guilt.

Of course, I didn’t want to burden my lovely Leo with anything too excessive. I simply suggested we go out together within reasonable bounds. Since the ball lasted for three days and two nights, I made the suggestion because I wanted to go on a date with Leo during the free time before the second night’s ball.

Fortunately, Leo accepted without much resistance. We immediately prepared to go out and left the room together. When I casually took his hand on the way, perhaps because of what happened that morning, he flinched a little but didn’t pull away. The way he startled and looked back at me with slightly surprised eyes when I laced our fingers together was so adorable that I couldn’t help but smile.

In truth, I hadn’t suggested going out with any particular destination in mind; my only purpose was to have a date with Leo. As long as I could be with him, that was enough. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠So today, I decided to accommodate him as much as possible and asked where he wanted to go.

Of course, I could roughly guess the kind of place Leo would want to visit. Still, I asked just in case. And as expected, Leo chose a café. It suited him, since he usually preferred quiet places.

That was how we ended up at the café together. Our hands remained interlaced the entire time. After exchanging a few light words while drinking our coffee, Leo asked me,

“So, where is the place my lady wanted to go?”

“Pardon? Ah, well….”

Where I wanted to go? The answer had already been decided. A place where I could be with Leo. But saying that outright would obviously fluster him, so I told a harmless white lie.

“I was thinking of looking at some accessories.”

“…Accessories?”

The moment he heard that, Leo’s face stiffened noticeably. Ah. Suddenly I remembered buying the ring yesterday. Was he worried I was going to buy more couple items with him? Goodness. He was getting scared just because I made him wear one ring.

“Yes. I want to change my earrings. The ones I’m wearing now feel a bit heavy, so I thought I’d switch to something lighter… Would you come with me and help me choose?”

“Yes, well. I suppose so.”

It seemed my excuse had worked well. Leo simply nodded without any particular change in expression. I turned my head once more to look at his handsome face. Just looking at him made my heart race so much that I couldn’t calm down. I could feel Leo’s warm body heat from our joined hands. I realized anew just how great a blessing it was to be able to spend time with the person I loved.

After we finished our coffee and left the café, our next destination was the accessory shop. I had never visited such a feminine store alone before, but if my fiancée wanted to go, what choice did I have? Besides, because of my mistake this morning, today I had to act as this woman’s servant. I could only kill my emotions and go with the flow.

“Young master! What do you think of these?”

Aria had already picked up a pair of earrings and asked me with a smile. They were simple, lightweight silver flower-shaped earrings. The design seemed like it would suit Aria perfectly with her silver hair and snow-white skin.

“They’re nice. I think they’ll look good on you.”

“Oh, then could you help me put them on?”

“Pardon?”

“The truth is… I have trouble finding the holes in my ears by myself….”

Seeing her speak timidly while shyly brushing her silver side hair behind her ear suddenly filled me with unease again.

“Can’t you just look in the mirror?”

Sure enough, a personal mirror was prominently displayed on the glass accessory counter. Yet she was specifically asking me to do it.

“This morning, Young Master held me so tightly while sleeping that my ears got pressed… I think the holes might be blocked….”

“…I’ll help you.”

Damn it. In the end, I ended up helping Aria put on the earrings because of her not-so-subtle threat. As instructed, I moved to her side and looked at her profile. Her brilliant silver hair was swept behind her ear, revealing a small, delicate-looking earlobe. As I stared at it for a moment, Aria’s pale ear gradually began to flush red.

“Y-Young Master. Have you found it? The hole….”

“…Not yet. Please wait a little longer.”

Right. It was just helping her find the earring hole and put it in. What was the big deal? I slowly reached out, and the moment my fingertips touched her ear—

“Hngh…!”

“!”

The instant my hand made contact, Aria’s body twitched and she let out a strangely seductive sound. Startled, I jerked my hand away. The unusual noise drew the attention of everyone around us. My face burned with embarrassment without meaning to. She really was something else. Truly.