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“Then, I shall see you shortly.”
The moment he stepped back, my vision went dark. Sergei, blocking my view, passed by the five or six couples preparing for the next dance and took his place in the center. He stood there confidently, indifferent to the focused gaze of everyone.
As soon as the music began, a subtle voice reached my ears.
“You looked like you were having fun, Lara.”
“I was. I'm having a great deal of fun. Aren't you the same? You get to spend Princess Larisa's first ball at the Nikitin banquet instead of the Imperial Palace.”
“Yes, I'm so happy I could go crazy. My pitiful state, where I can barely manage to request a single dance.”
When I focused on the dance without answering, the rigid corners of Sergei's mouth gradually relaxed. Before long, his voice, now somewhat subdued, asked me.
“You seemed to be talking with him for an unusually long time. How was it?”
“If you mean Igor... he's Emma's brother. He's easygoing and we get along well. He doesn't spend the whole day playing pranks like some people.”
Of course, it had only been a few minutes since I'd finally caught my breath.
Sergei, who had been listening quietly to my words, suddenly asked.
“Me treating you comfortably... is it perhaps uncomfortable for you?”
“...What's wrong? Why have you suddenly become so timid? Did you hear some nonsense in the meantime?”
“If it's uncomfortable, tell me anytime. I can change it in whatever direction you want.”
Watching him make such a firm assertion made my feelings somewhat complicated. I couldn't be sure if the cause of the jealousy he was blatantly displaying toward me (looking back at his past behavior, it was undoubtedly jealousy) stemmed simply from a sense of crisis at the possibility of losing a close friend, or if it was a more troublesome obsession.
“I've never been dissatisfied with you. You're fine just as you are, Seryozha.”
I thought he would be somewhat relieved, but Sergei's expression remained tense. By then, I was also a bit exhausted and had no room left to comfort him.
After exchanging a nod with Sergei, who was gripping my hand tightly like his usual favorite stuffed animal, I returned to Igor. As if he had been watching us the entire time, our eyes met the moment I spotted him.
Whether he read some emotion in our crossing glances or not, Igor didn't say anything particular and simply led me quietly.
We danced without taking our eyes off each other's faces.
Unlike Sergei, who had led me the entire time we held hands, Igor flowed smoothly in the direction my legs moved and wherever I wanted to go. Since it was my first time dancing in such close proximity to a man who wasn't a brother or a close friend, I think I made quite a few mistakes. However, even those brief moments felt purely enjoyable. Igor's tense eyes, which occasionally flickered, were also very beautiful.
Perhaps it would be alright to dance one more song with this person.
And perhaps... Igor might make such a proposal to me. While lost in those thoughts, the music ended, and I beat him to the punch with a regretful farewell.
“I hope to see you again at the next banquet.”
Igor, silent for a moment, asked with a slightly bewildered face.
“Are you leaving already?”
“It seems so.”
“...That is a pity. Yes, Your Highness. Wherever you are, I shall find you.”
After answering with a smile, I boarded the carriage to return home, escorted by the Duchess.
“Everyone must be feeling a great deal of regret since it's the peak of the party, Lara.”
“I know. You're going to nag me, saying that as someone who must maintain the dignity of the Imperial Family, I shouldn't enjoy drinking and dancing past dawn. I know it all.”
As I watched the lights gradually fade into the pitch-black darkness, a belated sense of emptiness washed over me. It was sad to part with connections whose company was pleasant, but the most regrettable part was, after all...
'To think Valentin wasn't at my first banquet.'
Could he possibly be busier than I, the Princess? After claiming he had something important to tell me. How insolent!
'...Well, he did say he would attend the Imperial banquet.'
I'll make sure he feels the full extent of the dancing skills I've polished. I'll dance at least three times in different genres. Definitely.
The clouds covering the large full moon cleared, and the view outside the window I had been staring at blankly became miraculously bright. Then, a snow-white face brushed past like the wind. I pressed myself against the glass and scanned the road the carriage had traveled.
“Vasily, just now, Ivan was—”
At that moment, a sharp gunshot, loud enough to tear through the ears, rang out in the street.
The carriage windows shattered like fireworks. Before I could even scream, Vasily threw himself over me, pinning me to the floor of the carriage. While gunshots and screams continued, he incessantly whispered a warning in my ear: 'Stay still. Do not move.'
Good heavens, Vasily.
To be kind even at a moment like this. Even without such a warning, I wouldn't have been able to budge. How could I possibly wiggle under your weight?
Thump, thump, thump. My heart, racing with tension, beat as if it would burst, shaking my brain. Before long, an alien silence descended upon the street. Taking advantage of that brief gap, Vasily covered the shattered window with a curtain.
My senses were on high alert in every direction. The front of the carriage began to creak faintly, and a rough, hoarse voice was heard from beyond the wall.
“Is anyone inside?”
At the delinquent tone, which I had never heard from a noble, a guard, or even a servant, Vasily's grip around my shoulders tightened.
“Phew, ah, so, the name is, uh, Lari? Princess Larisa? Are you in here?”
Vasily carefully reached out with his other hand and lifted the area near the seat cushion. It was a movement to find the emergency shotgun located in the box.
“Hmm.”
A long groan echoed from beyond the wall. At the chillingly vivid stillness, Vasily's movements also paused for a moment. To avoid being detected, I continued to breathe shallowly and clutched my throbbing head.
Why... isn't he opening the door?
I looked anxiously at Vasily, whose broad upper body was held upright, making him look like nothing more than a perfect target. I knew his intention. It was likely a plan to take the first move in preparation for the worst-case scenario.
'But there's no way the sound won't leak out.'
If they fire from outside, Vasily dies.
And the name the man spoke was not Crown Prince Vasily, but Princess Larisa. If he has business with me... no matter how terrible that business is, if it means Vasily doesn't have to die...
A worst-case scenario I didn't wish for at all unfolded in my mind. Due to the fear, my stomach churned violently and my vision began to distort dizzily.
However, the man's voice that followed was more than enough to swallow my nausea.
“What is the identity of the food secretly eaten by the most impious priest in the world, who is Count Nariyan, Baron Mahikop, and also Viscount Salezar, during a blessing prayer?”
“...”
I slowly opened the hands that had been practically tearing at my hair.
What on earth was that ridiculous quiz?
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