A soft, warm breeze drifted in through the open balcony doors, as if heralding the arrival of spring.

Worn down by the insistence of those around her, and especially by her mother’s stubbornness, Astrid felt light now that she had finally shed the fur she had been bundled up in throughout the tedious winter.

Astrid stood before the mirror in her dressing room, awkwardly turning to look at herself in the elaborate dress she had put on, before finally lifting her head to ask her lady-in-waiting.

“The dress is truly beautiful, but isn’t it a little too extravagant for me?”

“Not at all, Your Highness. It suits you wonderfully.”

Astrid gave a full spin in front of the mirror.

Her heart swelled with excitement, yet at the same time, she felt uncertain of herself.

And with good reason, for she had a complex about her appearance, with her unremarkable black hair and washed-out sky-blue eyes.

She received compliments on her beauty often enough, and had lived her whole life in a position where no one would ever criticize her looks, yet as a woman of the imperial family making her debut, she could not help but be conscious of her appearance.

“I am so nervous.”

As Astrid muttered to herself with a hand pressed to her chest while dressed and stepping out of her room, her lady-in-waiting gave a small laugh and offered comfort.

“I am certain there will be a line of young lords eager to have the first dance with the princess.”

“Never mind that. I already have someone in mind that I want to dance with.”

Saying so, Astrid’s cheeks flushed red.

“Aha. You mean Duke Haimenwar, do you not?”

The lady-in-waiting smiled at the flustered Astrid.

Astrid neither confirmed nor denied it, but the way she cast her bashful gaze downward gave her answer away.

What she had hoped for and looked forward to was a meeting with Duke Lindenel Haimenwar.

Before dreaming of the romance that a girl her age might wish for as a princess, such as dancing or the attention of dashing gentlemen, Astrid bore many burdens on her shoulders.

Today was her debutante, but it could equally be said that it was the first day Astrid would stand at an official gathering as a princess.

The closer this day came, which the entire nation had been eagerly anticipating, the more nervous she had grown.

Though the greater part of that nervousness was due to the fact that she would finally be able to meet Duke Haimenwar, who had at last returned to the capital.

Her heart had been so unsettled that Astrid had even had a nightmare the night before.

She could not remember the contents of the nightmare precisely, but it had been a very long, agonizing, lonely, and even painful dream.

Having barely escaped the dream, Astrid felt a cold sweat that had soaked her back and a chill that cut to the bone.

The phantom pain throbbing through her body as though she had collided hard with something was troubling enough, but the strangest thing of all had been the tears that had burst from her without her even knowing why.

What on earth had she been so sad about?

Her chest had simply ached as though it might tear apart, and she had been gripped by a fear like someone being chased by something.

‘It is my first official appearance as the heir, and on top of that, I am meeting Duke Haimenwar for the first time in so long. That is why I am so terribly nervous.’

Letting out a sigh to ease her nerves and shake off her unease, Astrid left the dressing room a little past the scheduled time.

She then walked through the beautiful corridor of Padaldine Palace, built to celebrate her birth on the day she was born, adorned with climbing vines.

Passing the row of achromatic cherub statues carved from marble, she stepped outside and spotted her carriage.

Taking the hand carefully offered by the footman who had opened the carriage door, Astrid climbed in and settled into the seat, resting her chin on her hand as she gazed out at the passing scenery outside the window.

“…….”

The passersby who had dressed the streets in vivid colors to welcome spring were each smiling happily.

It was a peaceful moment in Hiboe, the imperial capital, a place that was as much a symbol of prosperity and safety as anything else.

Yet beneath this warm spring sunlight, Astrid’s heart felt as though it had frozen over.

A dull ache lingered in the corner of her chest, and she could not calm the fear that gripped her.

When the carriage came to a stop and Astrid stepped outside with a rather poor expression on her face, her lady-in-waiting asked carefully.

“Your Highness. Is something the matter?”

“No. I am fine.”

Before Astrid spread the magnificent interior of Lugren Palace, its four walls lavishly gilded without restraint.

Her complexion was pale, but her steps toward the ballroom did not waver.

“Her Imperial Highness the Princess approaches.”

At the lady-in-waiting’s announcement, the servant guarding the entrance to the ballroom bowed deeply.

“Her Imperial Highness Princess Astrid Rakuin enters.”

With those words, the nobles standing near the entrance began one by one to bow and offer their greetings to her.

Gradually, the crowd became aware of the princess’s arrival.

“I have never seen Her Imperial Highness before.”

“That is understandable. She is of delicate health.”

“My, my.”

Voices whispering among themselves behind raised hands drifted faintly to her ears.

“Today is her debutante, so she could hardly have been absent.”

“Being so slender, it must be difficult to stay in good health.”

The banquet hall began to stir at the appearance of the princess, who rarely showed her face in public.

Astrid walked with a somewhat stiff expression through the parting crowd, when she suddenly noticed that the attention of those bowing to greet her was elsewhere.

Following that gaze, she found a man.

His sharply upturned eyes were folded into a gentle expression, and his prominent nose, lips curved in a soft arc, and protruding Adam’s apple moved occasionally as he spoke.

He was a man of uncommonly sculpted, striking looks.

When Astrid could not tear her eyes away, the lady-in-waiting beside her whispered softly.

“Your Highness. Duke Haimenwar is over there!”

At those words, Astrid gave a slow nod.

There was not a single person whose heart had not been captured by the young man who answered a stream of questions on culture, refinement, politics, and the arts without pause, all while scattering cheerful smiles without end.

Astrid, too, just like the many young ladies hovering around him, waited with a fluttering heart for his gaze to find her.

When the music changed a little later and the time came to dance, everyone would have no choice but to seek out a partner.

Lindenel would be no different.

‘Since today is my debutante, might I not be given the chance to personally name my partner?’

Even receiving a dance request was embarrassing enough, but the thought of making one herself made her lips feel dry.

First, she needed to deal with the lady-in-waiting standing beside her, busily reciting the backgrounds of one person after another without pause.

Harper, a lady-in-waiting drawn from the daughter of the Boldein earldom to attend to Astrid, must have been counting down the days to today’s party.

Astrid lightly took hold of Harper’s arm and said.

“Harper. You are free to go now and attend to your own affairs.”

“Pardon? My own affairs. I intend to stay by Your Highness’s side.”

Harper said stubbornly, showing reluctance.

Astrid flicked Harper’s nose with her finger as though she found her endearing, and said.

“I know how long you spent getting ready to come here. I will not go far, so go and spend some time freely with your friends.”

“Your Highness…….”

At that, Harper pretended to be won over and kept glancing back before eventually making her way to where her acquaintances were.

Now that Harper had been sent off, she needed somewhere suitable to keep a low profile until the dance music began.

It was then that Astrid spotted a face she had seen a few times before.

A man of tall stature and sturdy build, with flawless fair skin, brilliant platinum-blond hair, and clear green eyes, was neatly dressed in a military uniform that seemed out of place at the venue.

Astrid knew that man. He was Bartholomew Hennessy, the eldest son of the Hennessy earldom, one of the most prominent military families in the Yuzraeni Empire.

He was a rising star in the military and was so well known as the next Margrave Hennessy, set to inherit the family before long, that even Astrid, who paid little attention to the affairs of the world, had taken notice of him.

Yet there was somewhere his gaze was directed. It did not seem as though he was simply staring into the distance.

Astrid looked with a puzzled expression toward where his gaze was aimed.

“You are truly wicked.”