Chapter 1.3

To think she’d be given a chance to dance with him!

When Helion politely extended his hand, Claire, moved, took his hand with a trembling heart. They soon moved to the dance floor.

She was so nervous that she felt like she might even forget how to walk, and she couldn’t tell if she was breathing through her nose or her mouth.

As their bodies came closer, Claire’s body stiffened even more, and at that moment, she noticed an unfamiliar scent from him.

Huh? Did he change the perfume he used?

The scent was completely different from what she had smelled from him before, so Claire slightly tilted her head. After thinking for a moment, she concluded that the reason she couldn’t smell the familiar scent from her memory was that she was so nervous her nose had gone numb.

As the music began, Helion started to move his feet first, and Claire followed his lead.

At first, she was so tense that she couldn’t even meet his gaze, but as the song reached its middle, her nerves gradually began to ease.

As her sunken voice seemed to return to normal, Claire wanted to ask if he remembered saving her before.

But she hesitated, unsure if she should suddenly bring it up. He was a man who was kind to everyone, so she worried he might not remember.

“If you have something you want to say, please go ahead.”

Noticing her hesitance and glancing, Helion spoke first.

“Um… do you remember? On the day of the banquet, you saved my life in the Imperial Garden.”

Claire, blinking several times, carefully asked about the day she had been helped.

“Ah. I think I remember.”

At that, Helion answered with a gentle smile.

Ah, thank goodness!

At the words that he remembered, the worries she’d had melted away, and Claire smiled in relief.

“Thank you so much. I wanted to express my gratitude, but I was worried you might not remember me.”

Once she got the first words out, the rest of the conversation flowed naturally, like water.

“It wasn’t even something worth being thanked for.”

“You saved my life, so of course I have to thank you!”

At her words, Helion’s smile deepened. Seeing his kind and gentle manner, Claire suddenly felt brave.

She opened her mouth, filled with the earnest hope that this wouldn’t be the last time they met.

“Um… if it’s not too forward, may I repay you?”

But it took her some time for her newfound courage to actually come out as words. Glancing at Helion, Claire hesitated several times in her heart before finally managing to speak.

“Please do.”

He accepted her offer so readily that she wondered why she had hesitated. His brightly smiling figure sparkled so much that she couldn’t look at him straight.

Am I dreaming right now?

Her mind grew hazy and her heart swelled. She wanted to pinch her cheek, but one hand was holding Helion’s, and the other rested on his shoulder, so she couldn’t.

Will I wake up from my dream when the song ends?

Claire hoped that this dreamlike moment wasn’t just a dream.

When the song ended, Helion gave a polite bow and left, but even his departing figure seemed to shine with a halo. Only after rubbing her eyes and pinching her cheek did Claire realize that the conversation she’d just had with him was all real.

Finally, I had a chance to get closer!

After that, she danced with several other men, but she couldn’t remember who any of them were. Her mind was filled only with the conversation she’d shared while dancing with Helion.

Her excitement didn’t fade even after the banquet ended and she returned to the mansion, nor when she reached her room. Her heart, full of excitement, wouldn’t calm down.

That night, Claire couldn’t sleep. She spent the whole night thinking about what gift to give him, unable to fall asleep.

What would be a good way to repay him?

She worried all night but couldn’t decide, yet just imagining how happy he’d be to receive her gift made her happy too.

“How about a handkerchief?”

By morning, unable to decide alone, Claire finally asked her maid, Mary.

“Handkerchiefs are usually gifts for lovers, so wouldn’t it be a bit much?”

Mary shook her head vigorously, strongly objecting.

“Then how about a fountain pen? No, that’s too common a gift.”

Claire wanted to avoid a gift that might be too ordinary to remember.

“How about flowers?”

“Would a nobleman even like flowers?”

“That’s true.”

Claire and Mary put their heads together in thought, but couldn’t come up with the perfect gift.

What kind of gift would leave a lasting impression?

“Then how about something to eat?”

“He can buy anything he wants to eat, so… Ah! What if I make it myself?”

“That sounds like a good idea.”

After much deliberation, they decided on a dessert as the gift. Of course, dessert was common too, but she hoped it would be different if she made it herself.

“But what kind of dessert does he like?”

“I could ask a friend who works at the Radner family’s house.”

“Really? Can you find out?”

“Of course.”

It wasn’t urgent, but as soon as Claire gave the order, Mary sent a letter right away.

A reply came from the maid working at the Radner family’s house the next day. It included details about what he liked.

“Cookies…”

Upon hearing that his favorite dessert was cookies, Claire fell into thought again.

Her hobby was baking desserts, so she’d made them a few times before, but they weren’t delicious enough to give as a gift. The cookies made by the chefs working at noble families were probably much tastier.

“Will I be able to make them well?”

“My friend’s grandmother makes amazingly delicious cookies—should I get her recipe?”

“That would be great.”

Thanks to Mary, Claire was able to get the recipe, and after practicing for several days, she finally baked some delicious cookies.

On the day she baked the cookies perfectly, Claire gathered her courage and visited the Radner family.

She worried that if she made an appointment, it might be burdensome, so she went without one, figuring the chances of Helion being there were fifty-fifty.

“What brings you here?”

When she arrived at the mansion, she was greeted by the butler.

“I’ve come to see Helion Radner.”

“Please wait a moment.”

Just hearing the words “please wait” made her heart pound. She was so nervous, sweat broke out on the back of her neck.

“Please come in.”

When he politely gestured for her to enter, her tense muscles relaxed.

I must be lucky today!

She hadn’t expected much, so she was overjoyed at the chance to deliver the gift in person, and she followed the butler with a bright smile. With every step, her heart filled with excitement.