n

n

n

nFather glanced calmly at the spot where Benjamin Closer had momentarily vanished.

n

n“…Do you like such a fool?”

n

nThe voice asking the question had a disapproving tone to it. Unsurprisingly, his straight brows were slightly wrinkled as well.

n

n‘…I can’t even joke in front of my father.’

n

nWould you take it so seriously? I swallowed the laughter that was about to come out.

n

nI shook my head and answered casually while shrugging my shoulders, “It’s not like that. Just because he’s the first person to come here and talk to me?”

n

nAs I already stated, everyone avoided me and gave me a sidelong glance, except for Benjamin Closer, who had just departed.

n

nThere are only a few people in my family who will not give in to my status as the Grand Duchess.

n

n‘Of course, I like it now.’

n

nI felt quite content. I initially detested receiving people’s attention, so I went to the banquet hall’s corner.

n

nHowever, it’s possible to assume it was me because he reached out his hand silently. I nodded my head and didn’t put my hand over it.

n

n“Let’s go.”

n

n“What? Where?”

n

n“Shouldn’t you dance with your father?”

n

nSo I was led by my father to do the second dance.

n

n✿

n

nAs I let out a sigh I’m exhaustion, Aaron, who was looking at me, smiled and said, “Are you having a hard time?”

n

n“Umm… not a lot but little?”

n

n“Haha! It’s difficult because my sister, who said she’d only dance once, has been asked a few times.”

n

nI pretended not to ask, but I laughed awkwardly at Aaron’s words.

n

n“Isn’t that obvious?”

n

nI thought I was confident in managing my facial expressions.

n

n“Um, not a lot, but a little?”

n

nAaron followed my previous words and curved the corners of his eyes.

n

n“Excited.”

n

nJust then, a groan was heard from behind.

n

n‘…I’m tired!’

n

nI went out to the back of the banquet hall again. In the distance, I could see my father and Seian surrounded by nobles.

n

nAfter dancing with my father, I took a break and danced with Seian once more.

n

n“Can I dance to a song with you?”

n

nHow can I say no when his purple eyes are full of anticipation?

n

n‘It somehow looks like Thane.’

n

nIn the end, I broke my promise to dance just once and went to the center three times in total.

n

n“Ha…”

n

nI felt exhausted from the gaze that was as intense as it had been when I was dancing with Aaron.

n

n“I can’t help but notice that hair.”

n

nI answered his witty comments with equal ease. He quickly blinked in response to my reply before formally introducing me and grinning.

n

n“Haha, that’s right. Nice to meet you. My name is Zerop Xavier.”

n

n“I’m Erita Krovachatz.”

n

nIt was when we made a formal greeting.

n

n“I’d like to introduce you to my sister.”

n

n“But you’re here by yourself.”

n

nThe person next to me, Aaron, opened his mouth in a frustrated manner, “My sister has gone to rest for a while, so you’ve been introduced to me instead.”

n

n“Why don’t you leave if you’re only going to talk nonsense?”

n

nAt Aaron’s cold response, Zerop’s smirk was cut by his dagger.

n

nI was the only person who got caught in the middle and didn’t comprehend. He seemed to get along well with him.

n

n“Brother, did you know Xavier?”

n

nI glanced up at Aaron and asked in a low voice. At the same time, Zerop’s expression widened, and Aaron’s expression distorted.

n

n‘…You’re not enemies.’

n

nIt was Aaron’s straight face that I hadn’t seen in a very long time.

n

n“We’re very close. I guess the platoon leader didn’t tell you about me.”

n

nSaying that Zerop wiped away fake tears as if to express his disappointment. I just blinked silently at the situation I couldn’t understand. Are you on good terms or on bad?

n

nLooking at Zerop’s reaction, they seemed to have been friends for two years, and from Aaron’s reaction, they didn’t seem to be very close.

n

n“Erita, you can ignore him. Or should we move?”

n

nI’ll have to correct it, Aaron seemed to be annoyed with Zerop.

n

nAaron paid no attention to Zerop, implying that he was ignoring him.

n

n“Um, would you like to talk to, two people? I’ll go to the balcony for a while.”

n

nIn an ambiguous situation, my choice was to escape.

n

n“It’s dangerous to go alone.”

n

n“Ah, brother, what could be dangerous in the Imperial Palace banquet hall?”

n

nAt my words, Aaron pursed his lips in dissatisfaction.

n

nAaron’s expression of dissatisfaction meant that his eyebrows were raised by about 1mm and that the gap between his eyebrows was narrowed by 2mm.

n

n“I just want to get some fresh air for a while. Young Marquis of Xavier, may I leave first?”

n

n“Oh, of course. It’s fine.”

n

nWhen asked afterward, Zerop nodded as if he was okay with it.

n

nWhen I was introduced to him by Aaron, I remembered what he said, but first I wanted to rest a little. I’m sure I can’t avoid glances when inside the banquet hall.

n

n“Then go put on this. The night air is still cold.”

n

nAt the same time as those words, Aaron’s jacket fell on the exposed shoulder.

n

nPerhaps there was still warm warmth in the cloth that touched his bare skin because he was wearing it.

n

n“Thank you. Brother.”

n

nJudging from the weather earlier, it doesn’t seem that cold, but I smiled bashfully while holding my jacket slightly.

n

n“Then let’s talk.”

n

nThen she left a greeting to Aaron and Zerop and turned around.

n

nIt was a fact I didn’t know that Zerop’s strange gaze reached behind me.

n

n✿

n

nNo shadow could be seen through the almost clouded glass door.

n

n“Is this place empty…?”

n

nFirst and foremost, there was no curtain in front of the glass door, indicating that it was a space, but I was cautious because I had previously experienced something similar.

n

n“Excited.”

n

nI opened the door slowly with a slight hint.

n

n“…?”

n

nWhen I turned around, what I saw was a very noticeable clear sky blue hair.

n

n“…The eldest son of Marquis Xavier?”

n

nWhy is this person suddenly here?

n

n“Hello, Grand Duchess.”

n

nAs soon as I remembered who he was, a handsome man with a soft impression opened his mouth.

n

nHis sharp eyes matched surprisingly well with his gentle smile.

n

n“Oh, yes. The Marquis of Xavier.”

n

nFirst of all, I hid my embarrassment and greeted him with courtesy.

n

nThen his eyes widened. It was more of a playful smile than a friendly one.

n

n“It’s an honor that you know who I am.”

n

nFortunately, he seemed to have come to the right place this time.

n

n“I was worried about what to do with this again.”

n

nThis is because I saw a couple’s passionate love affair on the balcony where I left.

n

nAfter all, I thought it was an empty place because the curtains were not closed a while ago.

n

nBefore closing the glass door, I carefully drew the curtains and tied a thick gold string.

n

n‘I made eye contact with him. How embarrassing must it be?’ It was terrible just to imagine.

n

nThud—

n

nWhen the glass door closed, I felt like I was cut off from the space I had just been in.

n

n“It’s a little quiet now.”

n

nThe door seemed to have a soundproof effect, and only a little murmur was heard.

n

n“…Certainly, this is a fantasy world.”

n

nSeeing the magic stone illuminating the balcony, these words came out of nowhere without knowing why.

n

n“Honestly, there are times when this place still feels like a dream.”

n

nTo be exact, I used to think like that when I dreamt about where I was.

n

nMaybe that’s the reality, and this is a dream based on what I want.

n

n‘….It’s okay. My head hurts just thinking about the things I have to do now.’

n

nI shook my head and brushed away my thoughts. Thinking didn’t help me at all.

n

n“Ha…” I sighed and leaned back.

n

nThe dark sky, which I looked up, was studded with stars that shone their light.

n

n“It’s pretty…”

n

nThis place was different from my original world, but the sky was the same.

n

nThe sun and moon are always in my sight when I just look up. Sometimes I like to look at the night sky by myself without thinking.

n

nI felt like I was being comforted by the bright moon.

n

nAs time passed when I could dance once, I looked up at the sky quietly. As soon as I took my eyes off the moon, other thoughts rushed to my mind again.

n

nAmong them, the two members of the Imperial Family accounted for the largest proportion.

n

nOne was Callian and the other was the Empress.

n

n“…The mask dance will be held in three days.”

n

nI pushed Callian to keep trying to expand his position, deep down there and tried to double-check my plans.

n

nAmong the banquets that lasted a week, the first day, today, had the fewest attendees.

n

nThe most crowded is the last day of the mask dance and the Emperor’s attendance.

n

nTherefore, if you want to secretly approach the Empress, there are many people, and the mask dance day was perfect.

n

nBut there was one problem, ‘If I wear a mask, my face will be covered to some extent, but my hair is like that.’

n

nAmong the nobles, my family was the only one with black hair, and I was the only one with long hair there.

n

nI lifted my hair once. Even from a dimly lit location, it was pitch black.

n

n‘It’s too risky to use magic…’

n

nIt would be annoying if someone saw my hair color change.

n

nBecause it wasn’t known that I was a wizard. To dig deeper, I didn’t inform anyone on purpose.

n

n“I’ll have to think about it a little more.”

n

nSo I sighed and mumbled it was then.

n

n“Erita.”

n

nA familiar voice calling my name could be heard.

n