Chapter 18

Adelina’s gaze seemed to work, as Lexion stopped walking down the corridor and looked at her.  

He held Adelina’s cheeks and rubbed her eyes with his thumbs.  

‘Hey! You’re ruining my makeup! What are you doing!’  

As Adelina’s brow furrowed slightly, Lexion leaned his head closer to her ear.  

“Next week, we’ll be busy with wedding preparations. My. Wife.”  

‘Tch. Heartless guy. Not even moved by this gaze.’  

It seems those with everything are even more so. Perhaps he plans to use me, who has nothing, to his heart’s content.  

“Not. Your wife yet.”  

Adelina pushed Lexion’s head away with her index finger and linked arms with Stephan.  

“Father. I’ll have my first dance with you.”

“Hahaha. Having a daughter is wonderful.”  

“Of course. Daughters are the best.”  

Lexion silently followed the two, who were having a warm moment.  

He thought about teasing Stephan, whose ears had turned red, but decided to pretend he hadn’t noticed.  

+++

With the announcement of the start of the second part of the banquet by the imperial attendant, Adelina’s party returned to the banquet hall.  

Just moments before, Hailyn, the maid from the Tiola Empire, had anticipated this and retouched Adelina’s makeup in the waiting room.

High-ranking nobles lightly sipped champagne and chatted below the podium of the Imperial Family.  

Adelina’s party also engaged in trivial conversations while waiting for the envoys to enter.  

“The envoys from the Tiola Empire!”  

At the attendant’s loud announcement, the envoys from the Tiola Empire approached the Emperor’s podium carrying boxes as tall as a person.  

‘Adelina Florin. They said she’s the representative Lady of Ernst.’  

Jaeyon, following his father, Prince Isya, from behind, spotted Adelina and winked at her.  

‘Is he crazy!’  

Adelina was so shocked she swallowed her champagne the wrong way.  

‘Winking while approaching Emperor Grain. He must be quite something too.’  

Lexion took the champagne from her and drank it to calm her down as she had a small coughing fit.  

The envoys from the Tiola Empire placed the box on the floor in front of Emperor Grain’s podium.  

“Your Majesty the Emperor. These are gifts prepared by the Tiola Empire. We hope for the continued glory and peace between our two empires.”  

As soon as Prince Isya finished speaking, Jaeyon stepped forward and opened the large box.  

“These are newly developed silks and jewels. They will suit the beautiful Imperial Family of the Petrus Empire well.”  

Hailyn and another maid took out the silks one by one and handed them to the Empress and the Imperial Consort.  

The Empress’s lips tightened slightly as she touched the silk.  

“We appreciate the sincerity of the Tiola Empire. We have prepared a return gift, please ensure it is delivered well.”  

Emperor Grain also recognized that the fabric was the same as that of Adelina’s dress.  

Seeing people glance at Adelina’s dress, it seemed they had all noticed.  

‘They chose the Lady of Ernst as the dress model…’  

Jaeyon had never before dressed a lady from another country in a dress made of new fabric. Whether this was a simple dress gift or had political calculations, everyone’s minds would be busy.  

“Your Majesty. This is a small personal gift from me.”  

Isya’s voice broke Emperor Grain’s thoughts.  

“A personal gift, you say.”  

An envoy standing behind Isya handed a box the size of a forearm to the Emperor’s attendant.  

Emperor Grain, upon opening the box, gripped it as if he might crush it.  

‘So, it means I no longer need a telescope.’  

Suppressing his anger, he handed the box back to the attendant and gripped the armrest of his chair tightly.  

Inside the box were four telescopes. Among them were the two telescopes Evans had been searching for.  

“Telescopes, I see.”  

“Yes, Your Majesty. These are gifts I brought. They are newly developed and very high-performing. For example, they can clearly see an eagle flying in the sky.”  

“Hahaha. They will be very useful. I will make good use of them.”  

Isya and Emperor Grain laughed heartily, each hiding their true feelings.  

+++

‘To be able to see even an eagle.’  

Evans, standing next to Sweeney, suppressed the urge to tear apart Isya’s seemingly friendly smile.  

“Evans.”  

At Sweeney’s call, Evans relaxed his angry expression and looked at her face.  

‘Sweeney. Why wouldn’t you need a telescope?’

Evans was bothered by Sweeney’s blue eyes, which were too calm today as well. He wanted to push her, who seemed too doll-like and devoid of emotion.  

‘You must have figured it out. The dragon’s weakness. But, Sweeney, you still won’t be able to kill the dragon. I won’t let it happen.’  

“My hand… hurts.”  

Evans looked down at his hand at Sweeney’s words. The hand he held tightly had turned pale. A little more pressure, and it might have broken.  

“Oh dear. I’m sorry.”  

As Evans released his grip, blood began to flow back into Sweeney’s hand, making the blue veins stand out.  

“Chellus seems to be doing quite a good job.”

“…He’s competent.”

Evans turned his head following the gaze he felt from behind.  

He met eyes with Chellus, who was spinning a champagne glass.  

‘Evans. Your dragon is now just a big lizard.’  

Chellus leisurely drank his champagne, maintaining eye contact with Evans.  

+++

The atmosphere of the banquet softened rapidly after Emperor Grain and the Empress had the first dance.  

Instead of tension, lively music, people’s laughter, and the sweet scent of champagne filled the banquet hall.  

Emperor Grain gathered all the dukes of the empire to converse with the foreign royals.  

Lexion, surrounded by them, drank a cocktail while keeping his full attention on the center of the banquet hall.  

“Dancing with a daughter is quite something.”  

“Father, are you having fun?”

“It seems so. Thanks to you, I’m dancing freely for the first time in a long while.”

Marquis Stephan lifted Adelina’s hand and spun her around. It was the first dance he had since Rose’s death, and though it felt awkward, it wasn’t bad.  

“Then, from now on, I’ll have all my first dances with you, Father.”

“Hahaha. Having a daughter is truly wonderful.”  

Stephan could momentarily forget his worries with Adelina’s bright laughter.  

Jaeyon approached them as Adelina and Stephan finished their dance. He politely bowed slightly and extended his hand to Adelina.  

“Lady Adelina, would you honor me with a dance?”  

“Sir Jaeyon, it would be an honor.”  

Without hesitation, Adelina placed her hand in Jaeyon’s. She intended to quickly fulfill the obligation of dancing with him in return for the dress and then rest.  

The lively music from just moments ago changed to a sweet melody. As they faced each other and embraced, people’s eyes turned to Adelina’s dress.  

“If you don’t know the dance, just step on my feet.”  

Jaeyon whispered quietly enough for only Adelina to hear. He had heard she lived like a commoner in Ernst, so she might not know the dances of the nobility.  

“It’s okay. I know how to dance.”  

Adelina stepped closer to Jaeyon. Though she had never danced to or heard this music before, it was already playing out in her mind.  

Jaeyon slightly tightened his grip on Adelina’s waist, pulling her even closer.  

The chandelier lights reflected in Adelina’s surprised eyes, making her shine so brightly that it was impossible to distinguish between the silver threads and her hair.  

“I will start painting your portrait tomorrow afternoon.”  

“Alright, then please send the painter to the palace where I am staying.”  

Adelina readily agreed. It was only natural for Jaeyon to hurry, as he had to leave once the envoy meeting ended.  

“I will be the one painting it.”  

“Pardon?”  

“I am quite skilled at painting, especially portraits.”  

With Jaeyon’s innocent smile, the music ended.  

+++

Emperor Grain looked disapprovingly at Jaeyon dancing with Adelina.  

“Hahaha. A collaboration between the Tiola Empire and Ernst.”  

Prince Isya seemed determined to provoke him today, laughing heartily beside him and getting on his nerves.  

“Don’t they make a fine pair?”  

Prince Isya spoke loudly, forcing those around him to agree.  

‘Arrogant Tiola Empire brats! Just wait a little longer. Soon, you too will be under the dragon’s claw!’  

Emperor Grain tried to maintain an indifferent expression as he drank from the golden goblet.  

-“I will unify this world. I will become the greatest emperor in history.”-  

This was Emperor Grain’s ambition when he ascended to the throne at the age of 15. Many young people of Petrus, including Duke Austin, dedicated their lives to him.  

The Aslan Continent was divided into various large and small empires and kingdoms. The small countries constantly crossed borders to seize each other’s lands. The Petrus Empire had less than ten years of peace in a century.  

‘Thanks to that, we have been able to build a formidable military. Fools who think the dragon is Petrus’s most powerful weapon. The most powerful weapon of Petrus is myself and the Knight Order!’  

Emperor Grain called the blond young man standing next to the Empress.  

“Yes, Your Majesty. Did you call for me?”  

“Leophris, what do you think? Do you like her?”

At his words, the blond young man turned toward the center of the banquet hall.  

Adelina, who had just finished her dance, was bowing slightly to Jaeyon, holding the hem of her dress.  

“Yes, she’s worth having.”

Leophris’s softly curved lips twisted with greed.  

“Hahaha. Then you should have her.”

Emperor Grain downed the contents of the golden goblet in one go.  

+++

While conversing with the royals of other empires, Duke Lexion kept his eyes on Adelina and Jaeyon dancing. His eyebrows furrowed every time he heard the boisterous voice of Prince Isya.  

As soon as the music ended, Lexion headed to the center of the stage.  

“Adelina.”  

Standing next to Adelina, Jaeyon looked at her with a regretful expression.  

“Lady, after your dance with the Duke, would you dance with me once more?”  

Jaeyon grasped the folds of Adelina’s dress and rubbed them, as if to say one more dance for the cost of the dress.  

Lexion slightly furrowed his brow and removed Jaeyon’s hand from Adelina’s dress.  

Since they were pretending to be in love, showing irritation in such a situation wouldn’t be a bad thing.  

“Tsk. Didn’t you notice Adelina’s feet were hurting? Didn’t you feel it while dancing?”  

How dull. Adelina’s step range had slightly decreased, yet he didn’t notice.  

“Lady? Was that so?”  

Jaeyon looked down at Adelina’s feet, as if he had committed a grave sin.  

“No, it was fine. I enjoyed dancing with you, Sir Jaeyon.”  

Adelina shot a ‘Why are you doing this!’ look at Lexion and held Jaeyon’s hand.  

She wondered how Lexion could see her feet, which were barely visible under the dress.  

Lexion detached Adelina’s hand from Jaeyon’s and lifted her up.  

“Duke!”  

“Take a break for a moment”