Episode 62
The palm of the hand I held was rough due to calluses.
As I held his warm hand, it felt like my frozen body melted away in an instant.
“You must be tired preparing for the banquet today, right?”
As we walked towards the mansion, Lloydin asked me with a concerned tone in his voice.
“I’m fine. I think you’ll be more tired than me, Your Grace. You’re truly amazing to still train on a day like today.”
I wholeheartedly commended Lloydin and gave him a resounding thumbs up.
“It’s because it’s a lifelong habit, so it’s not tiring at all.”
“Really? Maybe I should do some physical training too.”
“In that case, I’ll help you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Since we’ve talked about it, why don’t we start from tomorrow? I’ve decided to teach you horseback riding then, so let’s do that.”
“I love horseback riding. But it feels like something to do after my illness is completely gone…”
Perhaps because of a slight trauma from falling off a horse when I was young, I hesitated a bit.
“Don’t worry, I’m here.”
“Oh… right. I have Your Grace with me.”
“Yes. As long as I’m by my lady’s side, I’ll never let the same thing happen twice.”
His reassuring voice that gripped my hesitancy somehow gave me courage.
“Then I’ll start learning from tomorrow.”
I replied with determination shining in my eyes.
Seeing me like that, Lloydin smiled softly.
* * *
The banquet held at the palace to celebrate the New Year started in the late evening.
Due to the preparations for the banquet, the day passed by very quickly.
“Madam, you look truly beautiful.”
As always, Lia, who had been by my side helping with everything, looked at me with admiring eyes.
“Does it look okay?”
“It’s not just okay. Today is the best I’ve ever seen you.”
“Really?”
“Yes, come over here and look in the mirror.”
As Lia said, my reflection in the full-length mirror was much more satisfying than usual.
The wavy hair cascading down to my waist, styled neatly to give an elegant and clean impression, and the elegant lavender dress added an extra touch of grace to the atmosphere.
It was our first attendance at a banquet since the anniversary of my parents’ wedding and our own wedding at the Duke of Anaïs’s estate.
Especially the New Year’s banquet, attended not only by the capital’s nobles but also by almost all the nobles from the provinces, was of considerable scale.
Above all, the nobles had spared no effort to display the status of their families at this event, to the point where it would not be an exaggeration to say they had been waiting for this day alone.
‘I can’t afford to lose, either.’
I, too, was firmly preparing for the banquet today.
As I reminded myself not to forget the list Ian had given me, the door opened and Lloydin walked in.
There was a momentary hesitation as he entered.
“Duke.”
“…Madam.”
Calling out to him, he resumed his steps and approached me.
“Are the preparations all done?”
“Yes. We’ve just finished.”
I stared blankly at Lloydin as he came closer, from head to toe.
Dressed in a black evening suit, he looked truly stunning.
Even though he was always handsome, every time he dressed up like that, my heart couldn’t help but race with excitement and anticipation.
As I looked at him, I could feel him gazing back at me.
“What do you think?”
I brightened my eyes, hoping for his words.
“You’re so… beautiful.”
It wasn’t just beautiful; it was too beautiful, as if floating on clouds.
“You look handsome too, Duke.”
Smiling widely, I also complimented him.
“Shall we go now? Ian must be waiting.”
“Just a moment.”
“Yes?”
As I was about to take a step, Lloydin grabbed my arm.
“Why?”
I looked at Lloydin, who was blocking my path, with a puzzled expression.
“Do you remember what you said back then?”
“What do you mean?”
“When you told me you couldn’t fully enjoy the banquet because of your illness.”
“Oh, I remember.”
Thinking of the conversation we had that day, I nodded.
“I hope you can enjoy the banquet tonight without any worries, with me by your side.”
Ah…
The moment I heard those words, waves of emotion surged through me.
I was so grateful to him for remembering to address my lingering anxieties.
“Thank you. Do you remember what I said back then? I also promised that you would be able to attend such events without any trouble.”
“I remember.”
“I’ll keep my promise too. No matter what.”
The first step of that promise was already underway.
“Shall we go now for real? We might be late for the banquet.”
“Yes, let’s.”
As Lloydin offered his arm, I naturally linked mine with his.
Passing through the second-floor staircase, we stepped outside the mansion where the carriage awaited.
And standing in front of the carriage, just like Lloydin, was Ian, also dressed in evening attire.
“Ian!”
As they say, good-looking people are different from the start, and Ian was exactly like that.
Ian wore a black evening suit that was just a shade lighter than Lloydin’s. It evoked the image of a youthful Lloydin, a sight I had never witnessed.
“You look so handsome, Ian.”
Approaching Ian, I exclaimed in admiration.
“Seeing you two together, you really look alike.”
As I alternated my gaze between Lloydin and Ian, a pleased smile naturally appeared on my face.
“Ian is much better than me.”
“No, you’re the cooler one, brother.”
“Pffft!”
Seeing the brothers acknowledging each other as better than themselves was so amusing that I burst out laughing for a moment.
At that, the two men stopped their conversation and looked at me with puzzled expressions.
“Oh, sorry. My bad. You guys were just too funny, I couldn’t help but laugh.”
“It seems like we’ve shown something you shouldn’t have seen.”
As Lloydin’s expression hardened slightly, I quickly spoke up, clapping my hands.
“No, no, it’s not that. You guys just looked too good. And from my perspective, both of you look so cool.”
“Then, that’s a relief.”
Only then did Lloydin’s stiff expression gradually soften.
“Shall we go now?”
“Yes, let’s.”
“Right.”
With that, the three of us boarded the carriage and set off for the palace where the banquet was being held.
* * *
When we arrived at the entrance of the palace, the carriage came to a stop.
Even though we hadn’t entered yet, I leaned out of the window out of curiosity.
From afar, carriages were lined up, waiting to enter the palace gates.
“Wow, it’s amazing.”
With a surprised expression, I looked at Lloydin.
“It seems we’ll have to wait quite a while to get inside.”
“Yeah, looks like it. I wonder if my parents and brothers have already gone in.”
Feeling delighted at the thought of seeing my family at such an event, I smiled.
“Lukas, I’ve seen him often lately, but I haven’t seen Jade or my parents in a while.”
I wondered how my family would react to seeing me at the banquet.
And also…
“Oh!”
At that moment, something suddenly popped into my head, and I couldn’t help but let out an exclamation.
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
I quickly changed the subject to hide the thought that had just occurred to me.
While pretending to be interested in the scenery outside, I immersed myself in my thoughts as Lloydin didn’t say anything further.
Why did I only think of that now?
It’s obvious that Dahlia would attend, considering all the nobles were here.
A few days ago, I received an unexpected reply from Dahlia after sending a letter to arrange a meeting with her because of Ian’s situation.
No, thinking about it, it was quite like Dahlia.
In her letter, she said it was okay since I hadn’t done anything to warrant her gratitude.
So, in the end, Ian and Dahlia’s meeting didn’t happen, which left me a bit disappointed…
‘In the end, we’ll meet somehow.’
The power of the original story was so strong that the more I thought about it, the more fascinated I became.
Lost in my thoughts for a while, I realized that our carriage had passed through the entrance of the palace.
Seeing the magnificent palace before me, all the thoughts that had filled my mind scattered.
“Wow.”
I exclaimed in admiration as I gazed at the palace.
I vaguely remembered coming here a few times with my parents when I was young, but it was over ten years ago, so my memories of that time and the present were quite different.
Thank you for your excellent translation, dear Layana!❤️🔥