It took some time for people to react to his words.
The banquet hall, which was quiet at first, began to stir not long after.
That’s how much impact the word “engagement” from Duke Hillan’s mouth had.
Even those who had been suspiciously eyeing the two people who had appeared together just moments ago were now rolling their eyes in surprise.
Kisa recalled the conversation they had on the terrace.
[I would like to move up the announcement of our engagement.]
When Seyard first said this, she simply thought his mind had changed and asked when he was thinking of moving it up.
Then, without batting an eye, he answered that it would be today.
[Today?]
[Yes, to be more precise, right after we return to the banquet hall.]
[W-wait a moment, Seyard.]
[Do you dislike the idea, Kisa?]
[…No, it’s not that I dislike it.]
Was that the wrong answer? But seeing Seyard’s pleading gaze, something she had never seen before, she couldn’t bring herself to say otherwise.
Perhaps it was all his scheme. When Kisa inadvertently said she didn’t dislike it, Seyard hastily moved the conversation forward.
[What about Count Vansfelt? Would your father find it troublesome if we announced our engagement today?]
That wasn’t the case. At least from Kisa’s perspective, he seemed to want to make their engagement an established fact as soon as possible.
In other words, it also meant there was no one left to stop Seyard.
“Hey, engagement?”
Count Habertz’s trembling voice brought Kisa back to the present.
The Count seemed to lack the capacity to respond smoothly to Duke Hillan’s unexpected engagement announcement.
“Suddenly an engagement…So Duke Hillan is saying he is getting engaged…?”
Fortunately or unfortunately, he was soon able to step down from the stage that Seyard had prepared.
“Seyard.”
This was because Arta, with an obviously perplexed expression, stood in front of Seyard with a stiff face.
“What is this about all of a sudden?”
Even as she questioned her partner, for a brief moment, she glanced at Kisa.
Kisa, feeling somewhat guilty, avoided her gaze. Then she suddenly became conscious of the coat she was wearing.
‘Oh no.’
She had forgotten to return it to Seyard.
That was because the entire time they were moving from the terrace to the banquet hall, Kisa’s mind was so full of thoughts about the engagement that she had no room to pay attention to anything else.
It seemed that Seyard, like her, had also forgotten, and this made the picture quite strange.
‘No wonder everyone was looking suspiciously from the beginning.’
No matter how you looked at it, they didn’t appear to be a couple who had coincidentally returned in a similar manner.
To make matters worse, her embarrassment was doubled because she knew what a pair of men and women who secretly left the banquet hall usually did in secluded places like gardens.
Don’t blush unnecessarily. It would only make things look more suspicious. But it wasn’t as easy as saying it, and Kisa felt her face heating up.
No. We just had a wholesome conversation on the terrace. There was nothing unsavory like what you’re all thinking.
The innocent Kisa within her, who had been raised so conservatively that she hadn’t even kissed her fiancé Daniel since she came of age, wanted to say that.
Fortunately, the rational Kisa, who judged that things couldn’t be helped now, restrained her.
Kisa could only try to suppress the intense whirlwind of emotions within her by fiddling with Seyard’s coat.
Meanwhile, the conversation between Seyard and the princess was in full swing.
“Princess, I apologize for informing you only now. If possible, I would have liked to tell you in advance, but circumstances didn’t allow it.”
Despite Seyard’s polite apology, Arta did not relax her rigid expression. No, she actually tensed up even more than before.
“Hmph, so that remark wasn’t a joke after all.”
“I’m not so tactless as to make such a joke at the princess’s side.”
“……”
The princess closed her mouth for a moment, possibly suppressing her emotions.
The stirring among the people grew stronger. When Seyard had mentioned the engagement, everyone had first thought of the youngest princess as his partner.
The commotion was so great that a few words clearly reached Kisa’s ears.
“He’s not getting engaged to the princess?”
“Then who is it?”
“Could it be…….”
At that moment, the princess spoke as if representing them.
“So who are you getting engaged to?”
As the gaze that couldn’t even be described as beautiful in empty words was directed at her, Kisa unconsciously turned her head and again avoided the princess’s gaze.
But coincidentally, Daniel was in the spot where Kisa’s eyes landed.
He seemed to have remained in that room even after Kisa and Seyard had left, and had just returned to the hall, looking around at the whispering people with narrowed eyes.
It was natural for someone who had just arrived to find it difficult to understand what was happening.
In the midst of this, their gazes locked. Daniel looked at Kisa, and Kisa looked at him.
Just as she felt Daniel’s eyes wavering, Seyard called her in a sweet voice.
“Kisa.”
Kisa immediately turned her gaze to the man standing beside her.
Seyard, with a smile like a conquering monarch, placed his arm around Kisa’s waist.
“As some of you may have already guessed, the woman who has promised to marry me is…”
He declared in front of everyone.
“Miss Kisa Vansfelt, who is here.”
In that moment, Kisa felt the urge to squeeze her eyes shut. But she barely suppressed her weak nature and looked straight ahead. She didn’t avoid Arta’s wide-eyed gaze either.
Because now she was the fiancée of Duke Hillan. If she was to stand beside him, who never lost his dignity, Kisa too had to be the same.
Does silence come when shock exceeds a certain level? The hall, which had been extremely noisy, became quiet as if cold water had been poured on it.
While everyone was confused and unable to gauge what reaction to show, only Seyard Hillan continued to speak like flowing water.
“We plan to hold an engagement ceremony at the Duke’s residence soon. I hope many of you will attend and congratulate the two of us on our connection.”
Another silence followed. The person who broke this silence was Princess Arta.
Hahaha, with a voice devoid of any laughter, she displayed flickering emotions in her eyes.
“This is truly surprising. Duke, you’ve prepared quite the eye-opener.”
“You flatter me.”
Seyard smoothly passed off her obvious sarcasm as if it were a compliment at face value.
“…Well. I should quickly return and share this joyous news with my father and mother.”
“It’s an honor.”
The princess’s eyes sharpened at his natural demeanor, but he boldly went one step further and appealed to the princess.
“I understand how busy you are. But I would very much like for the Princess to attend our engagement ceremony as well.”
His eyebrows drooped slightly.
“As my brother, Vischer, has unfortunately become a traveler of no return and cannot congratulate me, I would like for the Princess to celebrate in his stead. Would it be too much to ask? We will leave empty the seat where Vischer should have sat.”
“……”
“Of course, if you don’t wish to, feel free to say so. I don’t want to burden the Princess who has suffered such a deep wound—”
“Enough.”
The princess cut off his words midway, perhaps too irritated to listen further.
She too was not unaware of Seyard’s intentions in particularly emphasizing her relationship with his brother.
“I’ll have to check my schedule.”
She replied in an unusually stiff voice, then turned her gaze.
“Count Habertz?”
“Yes, yes! Princess!”
“I’m feeling too tired and want to go back now. Is the banquet over?”
According to Kisa’s memory of the banquet’s order, after the major donor’s congratulatory speech, there was a time for him, as the host, to share some brief thoughts.
However, perhaps lacking the courage to hold back the princess’s steps in this atmosphere, the count nodded vigorously.
“Yes, it’s over. Please go safely.”
“It was truly an enjoyable banquet.”
With those final words, the princess left the banquet hall, barely acknowledging greetings, unlike when she arrived.
Even after the princess left and the banquet came to an end, instead of heading outside, people awkwardly remained in the banquet hall, looking at Seyard and Kisa.
Though they didn’t express it directly, they seemed to hope that the couple would drop some kind of explanation.
For example, they might want to know how Duke Hillan, who had been predicted to be the princess’s next fiancé, ended up engaged to a woman with whom he had no connection and who even had a history of broken engagement.
Of course, there was no intention to satisfy their wishes. If there was information they wanted to spread in public, it could be disseminated in other ways.
What the two of them needed to do now was return to their respective homes.
“Well, shall we leave too?”
Seyard extended his arm towards Kisa.
“Yes.”
Kisa gladly placed her hand on his arm.
It was her first time receiving Seyard’s escort in front of people, so she felt a bit excited.
The two of them headed towards the exit, receiving the gazes of everyone in the hall.
By the way, Daniel was still standing nearby.
“Kisa…….”
He had a face that suggested he couldn’t believe what he had just witnessed. His eyes were demanding an explanation from Kisa.
What kind of answer was he hoping for? She couldn’t tell, but one thing was clear.
Kisa had nothing to say to him.
