Regardless of Kisa’s feelings, time flowed unhindered, and the day of the engagement ceremony had finally dawned.
On the bright morning, Kisa opened her eyes in one of the many guest rooms of Duke Hillan’s mansion.
“Good morning, miss.”
The maid who woke Kisa greeted her cheerfully.
“Did you sleep well last night?”
“Yes, thanks to Lily taking good care of me.”
“Oh, I didn’t do anything special.”
Her name was Lily. She was the maid Seyard had introduced to Kisa yesterday.
“According to Gilliam, she’s friendly and quite good at her work. Above all, she’s diligent and not the type to easily succumb to temptation.”
He had recommended Lily as the maid who would attend to Kisa most closely.
Of course, it was a selection that considered Kisa’s future as the mistress of the Hillan ducal family after marrying Seyard.
Kisa was quite pleased with Lily’s cheerful first impression, and above all, she knew the meticulous Seyard wouldn’t recommend someone unreliable, so she gladly accepted his suggestion.
“Anyway, I was worried you might be uncomfortable in an unfamiliar bed, but I’m glad you slept well.”
Lily said as she placed a basin of washing water on the dressing table.
“Yes, it’s fortunate. If I hadn’t slept well, staying here would have been pointless.”
It was Kisa who had first asked Seyard if she could spend the night before the engagement ceremony at Duke Hillan’s mansion.
Although the ceremony would be held in the early afternoon, preparations needed to start early.
Rather than traveling from Count Vansfelt’s residence and then preparing, it seemed better to ask Seyard for one night’s lodging.
Seyard agreed readily. In fact, he went beyond mere acceptance and offered her the room traditionally used by the Duchess of Hillan, which caused quite a commotion as she tried to dissuade him.
There should be a proper order to things, even for a couple soon to be married.
Perhaps because he was raised in a monastery, he occasionally showed a tendency to be less bound by formalities than one would expect from the head of an ancient family.
“Oh my, your skin is so beautiful.”
Lily exclaimed as she applied moisturizing cream to Kisa’s face after she finished washing.
“Haha, it does look good today. All that rest and care over the past few days has paid off.”
Kisa gazed quietly into the mirror. Instead of the melancholic woman she had seen once before, she saw herself with an ordinarily bright face looking back at her.
“Yes, I like it.”
She murmured to herself in a sing-song voice.
“Um, how do I look?”
After leaving the room, Kisa asked somewhat cautiously when her eyes met Seyard’s.
“You look truly beautiful.”
Although he must have seen her in the dress when they went to have it fitted before, he responded without showing any sign of boredom.
When Kisa twirled around once, the green skirt fluttered gracefully.
Thanks to Seyard, the three dresses ordered from the royal family’s preferred dressmaker were fortunately completed on time and delivered to Kisa.
“As I mentioned before, thank you for the dresses.”
“It’s nothing to thank me for.”
He smiled gently, lowering his voice so that Lily and Gilliam nearby couldn’t hear.
“Soon I’ll be officially your fiancé.”
Fiancé. That word evoked a strange feeling in Kisa’s heart.
In fact, for Kisa, it was a more relatable term than marriage. She had never been married, but she had been engaged once, hadn’t she?
Until just two months ago, she couldn’t even imagine that anyone other than Daniel Lowens would become her fiancé.
From a very young age, she had believed her life was destined to marry Daniel and bear his children.
Yet now she was facing an engagement to Seyard.
The saying that one cannot know what the future holds suddenly felt all too real.
A question suddenly occurred to her: would her future life bring changes more dramatic than those of the past two months?
She didn’t know. But one thing was certain.
“Shall we go?”
She did not regret her decision to take the hand extended before her now. And she vowed not to regret it in the future either.
“Yes, let’s.”
And so their hands folded together.
The weather was also bright, as if celebrating Kisa’s special day.
With about three hours remaining until the engagement ceremony, the banquet hall was bustling with the ducal family’s servants busy with final preparations.
“Wow, it’s beautiful!”
Unlike the day before, the banquet hall was decorated with fresh flowers, and Kisa exclaimed in admiration as she looked around.
The floral decorations were centered around blue flowers to match the color of the second dress Kisa would wear at the engagement ceremony a few hours later.
“The fragrance is lovely too.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
An excited Kisa skipped around the banquet hall, and Seyard followed behind her with a pleased smile.
While doing so, Kisa spotted Gabriel tuning his instrument in a corner of the banquet hall.
Dressed for the ceremony, he looked even more charming than usual, but he couldn’t hide the faint shadow cast over his face.
Kisa instinctively started to approach him but then realized Seyard was behind her.
Now that she knew of Gabriel’s deep feelings, approaching him with Seyard in tow seemed inconsiderate.
It would be painful enough for him to witness Seyard’s engagement ceremony; how could he maintain his composure seeing Seyard next to someone else?
So Kisa said to Seyard:
“Um, I’m going to have a quick chat with Gabriel. You go ahead with your business.”
His expression darkened slightly.
“Is it something I shouldn’t hear?”
“No, it’s not that…”
Without a suitable excuse and not wanting to lie to him, Kisa revealed as much truth as she felt she could.
“I happened to learn about some of his personal concerns before. I want to ask how he’s feeling, but since it’s really a private matter, I think it would be better if we talked alone.”
As she spoke, it occurred to her that from Seyard’s perspective, he might not want others to see his soon-to-be fiancée being intimate with another man.
“I’ll really just talk to him briefly! And keep this much distance!”
But Seyard shook his head.
“That’s not it, Kisa. I have no intention of preventing you from conversing with someone of the opposite sex. I just didn’t realize you two had become close enough to share concerns.”
It sounded like he felt somewhat hurt, leaving Kisa at a loss for words.
She hadn’t expected Seyard to be sensitive about such things.
“And regarding Gabriel Williams’ concerns…”
Just as Seyard was about to say something about Gabriel.
“Your Grace.”
Gilliam, who had just entered the banquet hall, approached them with somewhat urgent steps.
“What is it?”
He quietly reported to his master’s inquiry.
“The youngest princess has just arrived.”
“The princess?”
“Yes, I’ve shown her to the reception room. She’s asking for you, saying she has an urgent matter to discuss. She also mentioned that if you’re busy with engagement preparations, she would come here herself.”
“…I see.”
He murmured softly, then turned his gaze to Kisa.
“Kisa, why would the princess arrive so early?”
Having no idea, she shook her head.
“I don’t know either.”
The Arta that Kisa knew was more likely to be late for an appointment than early.
Even if she were generally punctual, arriving three hours before the start of a reception was not conventional.
“You have no idea at all?”
As Kisa met Seyard’s eyes to answer no, she inexplicably held her tongue.
For some reason, his gaze looking down at her felt searching.
However, that was just a momentary impression, and when she looked again, he appeared the same as usual.
“This is perplexing. What could she be thinking?”
Stroking his chin, Seyard apologetically asked for Kisa’s understanding.
“I’m sorry, but I should go attend to the princess.”
“Oh, I’m fine with that.”
While it was disappointing not to be able to continue viewing the engagement preparations together, it was only proper that a princess of the kingdom should be received by someone of appropriate rank, not mere servants.
“Um, should I come along too?”
“No, that’s not necessary. Someone should remain in the banquet hall just in case. There might be decisions that need to be made on the spot.”
Since it was a reasonable point, Kisa didn’t insist further.
It would also be somewhat awkward to meet the princess together with Seyard, considering she had become a source of conflict between them.
“In any case, we can’t have the princess come to this disorderly place.”
With those final words, Seyard headed toward the main building of the mansion where the reception room was located.
Kisa stared at the space he had left for a moment, then remembered what she had been about to do.
Before the engagement ceremony began, she felt she should check on Gabriel’s condition.
“Gabriel, good afternoon.”
“…Ah, yes. Hello.”
The man responded to Kisa’s greeting more shyly than usual.
He seemed embarrassed about having revealed his unrequited love to Kisa the other day.
Kisa asked in a lowered voice:
“Will you really be all right? If you want to quit, just say so. I’ll try to arrange something.”
“No. I’m fine. I can do it.”
His attitude was uncharacteristically firm.
“This time, I will definitely play a piece befitting a celebratory occasion.”
“You don’t have to push yourself. I think even if you gave up the performance, Seyard wouldn’t withdraw his offer to help with your studies abroad.”
“…That’s not the issue.”
After hesitating briefly, Gabriel confessed something to Kisa.
“Actually, this occasion is my last chance to play for the one I love. Once I go to Octava, I don’t intend to return.”
“…”
“I’m sorry. You probably didn’t know that person would be attending today, and I’ve startled you.”
No, I knew very well.
Who else would attend Seyard’s engagement ceremony if not Seyard himself?
