Chapter 1 – Pressure (Part 6)

At the king’s words, Princess Karinsa, who had been waiting for the Duke to ask her to dance, brightened. Cassius, like a marionette in a puppet show, spoke dryly.

“Princess Karinsa was infatuated with the envoy from the ally three months ago, the court painter seven months ago, the visiting prince from the neighboring country before that, and the gypsy she encountered during a market inspection…”

As Cassius recited, Princess Karinsa’s face turned red, and she quietly protested to the king.

“Brother, did you share my personal affairs in the court meetings again? I’m not a child anymore, so why do you keep doing this?”

“Well, everyone’s curious about the adorable princess’s updates… Ahem, Duke Grendel! As punishment for tattling, I’ll really have you dance with Karinsa!”

The king, losing his composure, pointed a finger. Cassius replied with an unchanged expression.

“Your Majesty knows well the implications of the third in line to the throne dancing with the fourth in line at this official ball. You would never issue such an order.”

“You danced just fine when you attended with your father four years ago. Using your father’s passing as an excuse to avoid social activities won’t work anymore. Are you planning to die alone in that gloomy mansion?”

Even with the mention of his father’s death, Cassius replied in his usual flat tone.

“I only did so then because it was my duty to my father. And Your Majesty is well aware that the outcome after those dances was not favorable.”

The king could no longer insist.

Princess Karinsa, unable to bear it, tried to approach Cassius to ask him to dance. Although King Clois had threatened to make them dance together as punishment, he had no real intention of letting them do so.

The quick-witted Queen Agnes suddenly stumbled towards Karinsa and grabbed her arm.

“Oh, Sister Agnes!”

Startled enough to forget formal titles, Princess Karinsa hurriedly supported the queen.

“Princess Karinsa, I feel a bit dizzy from standing in this stuffy room for so long. Would you accompany me for some fresh air?”

The kind-hearted princess had no choice but to link arms with Queen Agnes and head to the corridor. As they left, Agnes turned her head to glance at Clois and subtly gestured.

Although he had suggested that Cassius dance with the princess, King Clois was actually displeased with Karinsa’s interest in Cassius. The queen, aware of her husband’s feelings, had cleverly taken the princess away.

‘It’s absurd to let a child who needs to be showered with love be paired with such a cold-blooded duke!’

Therefore, King Clois hoped Cassius would quickly form a bond with someone before Karinsa’s feelings deepened further.

“If you don’t want to dance, can’t you at least walk around and have some conversations? Hmm?”

The king pleaded, but Cassius, looking at the crowd circling him like hyenas eyeing prey, replied.

“With that crowd?”

Faced with the people circling with keen eyes like hyenas eyeing prey, the king could say no more.

“It seems my presence here may cause you trouble, Your Majesty, so I shall take my leave.”

The king, the hyenas, and even Princess Karinsa, who was returning with the queen, could only watch helplessly as the Duke left the ballroom. Watching from afar, Elysia wanted to applaud the Duke for leaving without dancing.

As the Duke disappeared, several nobles who had also lost interest began to leave.

“Mother, it seems like the ball is winding down. Aren’t you tired?”

Elysia gave her mother a look that said it was time to go, but Lillian just laughed softly and said,

“Don’t even think about going home until you’ve danced with more than twenty people.”

At her mother’s words, Elysia screamed internally and had to be led out by the hand of her next partner.

***

“Ah, ah… Ah… There, there. It hurts! Gently… Ugh… Ah, that’s good…”

Elysia’s voice echoed incessantly from the darkened bedroom with tightly shut doors and drawn curtains.

“You know, Miss, making such suggestive sounds while receiving a massage could lead to misunderstandings.”

Daisy remarked to Elysia, who continued to groan. Two days had passed since the ball, and Elysia was still suffering from muscle pain due to the dancing.

“Daisy, do you know how many times I danced that day? And do you know how long each dance piece was? I kept spinning around, moving this way and that without a break. Dancing was the least of it; I had to smile until my face cramped while constantly nodding along to stupid conversations!”

“Other young ladies from noble families can dance dozens of pieces in high heels after rigorous training. You complain so much because you’re not used to being active.”

The muscle pain throughout her body and the still-burning pain in her feet made it impossible to walk properly. Apart from barely managing to go downstairs for meals, she had spent the past two days in her room receiving Daisy’s massages.

Marion came in and gave her a look of disdain.

“El, it’s truly amazing that despite all that effort, not a single marriage proposal has come in. I guess that’s a talent in itself?”

“If it weren’t for the muscle pain, I’d smack you right now. And will you stop calling me by that nickname?”

“Elysia, was there really no one who seemed to take a liking to you? That’s why I kept telling you to soften your expression. By the end, you couldn’t even stop frowning.”

Even Lillian came into Elysia’s room to start nagging.

Elysia recalled the end of the ball. Exhausted, with a face like a melted corpse, she was dragged around by her partner, stepping on his feet multiple times as she stumbled. The man, whose face she barely remembered, initially looked at her with pity, but as she continued to step on him, he visibly grew displeased and ended the dance quickly.

As Elysia continued to groan in pain, Lillian finally softened her expression and patted Elysia’s head. She took Marion, who continued to tease, out of the room and said,

“Alright. You really did work hard, Elysia. There will be another opportunity. Just rest for now.”

Elysia was relieved that it ended there and continued to groan under Daisy’s massage.

***

The royal palace, the King’s private office.

King Clois was unable to sit still, pacing back and forth in front of his desk, expressing his anger with his entire body. The King once again forgot his dignity and pointed a finger at Duke Cassius de Grendel, who stood before him, expressionless and unmoving.

“You! You! You! I’m the King of this country, and yet I’m dealing with your marriage affairs? Do you think I’m a matchmaker?”

“I don’t understand what you mean, Your Majesty.”

Cassius replied without a change in expression.

“Don’t pretend you don’t know! You’ve rejected every marriage proposal that comes your way, and at the ball, you didn’t even let anyone approach you. Now, noble families with daughters of marriageable age are requesting audiences with me! For days now, I’ve been inundated with your marriage proposals! Every day, every day, every day… Ugh…”

Clois pretended to cry as if overwhelmed with sorrow. King Clois’s words were not an exaggeration. Despite Cassius’s icy demeanor at the ball, nobles believed they still had a chance because he showed no interest in any particular woman, and they continuously requested audiences with the King.

Initially, Clois was fooled once or twice, but when he could no longer stand it, he announced that he would not grant any more private audiences for the time being. In response, several noble families banded together to request an audience, claiming there was an urgent matter concerning the country.

Clois, who hadn’t expected competing families to join forces in their desire to marry off their daughters to Cassius, thought there might actually be a serious issue and accepted the audience.

“Your Majesty. Duke Grendeldom has always been an unwavering supporter of the royal family, with royal blood running through its veins. The Grendel family’s contributions to strengthening the kingdom under your young reign have been significant. You know well how the late Duke acted as a senior figure for the kingdom in place of the late King…”

“Why is your preamble so long? Didn’t you say it was an urgent matter?”

“The young head of the Grendel family is capable, but he’s been managing both the household and external affairs alone for a long time without a mistress. If he marries and stabilizes the household, he can fully support Your Majesty and focus on state affairs.”

“Do you think I can force him to marry?”

“How could the loyal Duke of Grendel refuse Your Majesty’s command? It would be for the benefit of both the Grendel family and the royal family.”

“Well, in the past, royal orders and consent were absolutely necessary for the marriages of nobles. But it would be rather unfair to single out Duke Grendel for such an order. So, I shall take this opportunity to decide the marriages of all the nobles. I hereby command that your children marry one another.”

“Your Majesty!”

Nobles who had no intention of uniting their families with others shuddered and called out “Your Majesty.” Clois stood up, signaling the end of the audience.

“From this moment onward, anyone who dares to mention the marriage of Duke Grendel will be beheaded!”

Of course, the nobles knew that the fair-minded King Clois would not actually execute them. So, even as they were blocked by the royal guards, they shouted at the top of their lungs for the King to consider Duke Grendel’s marriage until Clois retreated to his private office.

It was only natural that King Clois, after such tiring days, would vent his frustration on Cassius.