Chapter 90

Because it was the day of the family celebration of the engagement, the whole family gathered in the dining room.

Perhaps because the estate’s chef had put in extra effort, the dinner table was more lavish than usual.

“Did you two have a fight?”

Isabella noticed the strange atmosphere between Johann and Lia and asked.

“No.”

“No.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

Both answered immediately that it wasn’t so, but Isabella couldn’t shake her suspicions until the end of the meal.

Johann’s attitude toward Lia did not change.

If anything, it became more attentive.

He kept paying attention to everything Lia ate and drank.

More than that, Lia’s attitude had changed.

Lia was still kind to everyone else, but she always replied curtly to Johann’s words.

“What on earth did you do wrong to Lia?”

Unable to stand her curiosity, Isabella called her son aside after the meal and asked.

“It’s because I confessed.”

“What?”

What kind of confession could make her act so coldly?

Isabella was curious about exactly how he had confessed, but her son only said that much and returned to his room with a slightly gloomy face.

‘…Lia must still have wounds left in her heart.’

It was Johann’s fault, but Isabella still felt sorry for her son’s retreating figure.

The next day, Isabella had a light breakfast and called for Lia.

“Lia, from today you’ll be learning to dance.”

The place Isabella called Lia to was the ballroom of the Blumhart estate, which had been closed for a long time.

On one side of the ballroom stood a piano.

The ballroom was so spacious that no matter how much one spun around, they wouldn’t bump into the walls.

The ceiling was very high, and the ornate chandelier hanging there sparkled dazzlingly.

“…….”

Lia bowed her head slightly and looked at her own two feet.

‘I’m really not confident about dancing…’

A sigh escaped her.

“Don’t worry, I’ve never seen a young lady who couldn’t dance after learning from me.”

With a graceful gesture, Isabella gently lifted Lia’s chin.

“You’re going to teach me yourself?”

“Of course, I can teach better than most dance instructors.”

Isabella’s eyes crinkled softly.

“I may not have many talents, but when it comes to dancing, I’m more confident than anyone.”

She winked one eye.

Lia had heard from Penelope before.

‘When Mother was a debutante, she danced so elegantly that even noble ladies came to ask her to teach them a little.’

If Johann took after Isabella, he must also be good at dancing.

“Wouldn’t it be more comfortable for you to learn from me?”

“Yes, I think so.”

That was true.

She was already nervous about making mistakes, and if she had to learn from a stranger, she might get even more nervous and stumble.

“There isn’t much time left until the ball, so let’s just properly learn a few basic dances.”

At Isabella’s signal, the butler who had been standing nearby approached.

“Alfred will play the male role.”

“Miss Lia, I look forward to dancing with you.”

“I look forward to it as well.”

Isabella signaled to the young woman sitting at the piano, and lively music began to play.

“Watch once, first.”

Isabella danced a waltz in time with the butler.

Meanwhile, Lia sat on a chair by the wall and watched their dance.

Isabella danced with extremely elegant movements.

The butler also led Isabella smoothly.

Clap, clap, clap.

When the song ended, Lia found herself applauding.

“Do you get a sense of what it feels like?”

“…A little.”

“All right, then let’s try it ourselves.”

Isabella took Lia’s hand and led her to the center of the ballroom.

Isabella taught Lia where to place her hands, how to direct her gaze, how to do the foot steps, and many other things.

But since it was the first day, almost nothing stuck in Lia’s mind.

After more than two hours of lessons, Lia’s body felt exhausted.

‘Ugh, I had no idea dancing used so many muscles.’

“It’ll be hard now, but as you keep doing it, your body will become much more flexible and your muscles won’t hurt.”

Isabella spoke as she watched Lia massage her aching shoulders.

“Will that really happen?”

“Of course, when I first learned, my whole body screamed in pain the next day.”

A hint of nostalgia flickered in Isabella’s hazel eyes.

“Today, get a massage and rest well.”

“Yes, then I’ll go up now.”

Dragging her sore body, Lia returned to her room.

* * *

At the same time, Penelope was preparing for her tea party at the estate.

It was her first time inviting guests since recovering, so she was both excited and nervous.

‘It’s been so long since I’ve seen everyone—what if it’s awkward?’

She had invited mostly young ladies she’d been close to before she got sick, but she was still a bit worried.

Penelope’s guests began to arrive at the estate one by one, and the young ladies gathered in small groups in the glass conservatory.

“Oh, my goodness. Penelope!”

Sabina, the Lady of Crysel and Penelope’s closest friend and cousin, was the first to approach and hug her.

“I’m so happy to see you looking so well!”

“Thank you for worrying about me, Sabina.”

“I heard from Aunt, but you really do look wonderful.”

Sabina dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief and held Penelope’s hands tightly.

“Let’s meet often from now on.”

Sabina linked arms with Penelope as she spoke.

“Yes, let’s see each other often, Sabina.”

Penelope greeted the other young ladies warmly.

Once all the young ladies had arrived in the conservatory, the tea party began.

At first, they talked about Penelope’s recovery.

“Lady Penelope, next time I’ll invite you to my house, so please come.”

Olivia, wearing a bright yellow dress, brushed cookie crumbs from her lips with a handkerchief as she spoke.

“Please come to our house too. It’s been so lonely without you, Lady Penelope, who always tells such fun stories.”

The young lady beside her quickly chimed in.

“Just invite me and I’ll go anywhere.”

Penelope’s eyes curved brightly as she replied.

“Now that Lady Penelope is healthy again, there will only be happy things at the House of Duke Blumhart.”

Sabina said, sipping her tea.

“That’s right, and this time, the Duke of Blumhart got engaged, too.”

Olivia, sitting across from her, added.

“Lady Olivia, how is that a cheerful thing?”

Celine, who always liked to nitpick, made a cold comment.

A brief silence fell.

“He got engaged to a commoner. Isn’t that actually a very bad thing for the reputation of the House of Blumhart?”

Celine, oblivious, kept running her mouth.

“Lady Celine, what do you mean, ‘bad thing’?”

The other young ladies tried to signal her with their eyes, but it had no effect.

“Lady Celine, that’s a very rude thing to say.”

The smile had vanished from Penelope’s lips, which had been smiling throughout the tea party.

“Oh, I only said it because I was thinking of you, Lady Penelope.”

Celine looked as if she felt wronged.

“How is it thinking of me to insult the person who will become my new sister-in-law?”

Penelope retorted sharply.

“…What?”

Celine was flustered as Penelope defended Lia.

She was shocked that a noble young lady she was close to would defend a mere commoner instead of her.

“How can you call a mere commoner woman ‘that person’? Lady Penelope, why are you taking the side of such a low-class woman and scolding me…?”

“Lady Celine! That person is not only my brother, the Duke of Blumhart’s, fiancée, but she also made a magic potion to save my life—she’s my benefactor.”

Penelope cut Celine off sharply.

The other young ladies let out small exclamations, realizing the rumors were true.

“So I hope that from now on, no one will ignore or insult her in front of me.”

“Who would dare do that to the Duke of Blumhart’s fiancée?”

“That’s right.”

The young ladies looked at Celine and answered Penelope.

“…I’m sorry, Lady Penelope. I didn’t know. I wasn’t thinking.”

Celine apologized to Penelope, her face flushed.

“…Since you’ve apologized, I’ll accept it.”

Penelope finally relaxed her stiff expression and accepted the apology.

There was still a trace of anger in her voice.

“I heard from my mother, but so the rumors were true.”

“You’re really welcoming an amazing person into your family, congratulations.”

“Who would dare look down on someone like that?”

“Of course, she’s the benefactor of House Blumhart.”

The young ladies all praised Lia to cheer Penelope up.

Thanks to that, Penelope’s mood improved.

“…I’m sorry, everyone. I got a bit worked up and was rude to you all.”

Feeling embarrassed that she had raised her voice in front of everyone, Penelope rose from her seat.

“It’s all right, I’d be angry too if someone spoke badly of my benefactor.”

“Of course.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

Penelope placed her hand over her chest and gave a small bow before sitting down again.

“Lady Celine, you won’t ever do that again, right?”

Sabina looked at Celine and asked.

“Yes! Of course.”

Celine replied with an awkward smile.

The tea party ended peacefully after that.