The Life of Maria Lewellin - Chapter 33

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.”

I kept my eyes on the cute little ducklings and we continued walking on the path.

Then I Gerard’s voice, breaking the silence.

“Do you know that it’ll be Ains’ birthday soon?”

“Yes, I do.”

That’s why I’m practicing dancing so hard.

“If you don’t mind, why don’t you come with me to the celebration as my partner? I was invited.”

My eyes widened at his unexpected offer.

He must’ve thought that his explanation was insufficient so he hurriedly added he thought the explanation was insufficient.

“There will be plenty of things to see and lots of delicious food. I’ll prepare everything for you, so all you have to do is go with me and enjoy it.”

If this was usual, I would have rejoiced and gladly accept his invitation. However, I was already confirmed to attend the ball.

I’m even coming as Ains’ dance partner, the protagonist of the day.

“I’m sorry, but that’s going to be a little hard”

Gerard showed a slight frown. He probably didn’t expect a refusal.

But he soon laughed and spoke in a soft tone.

“If it’s burdensome, you don’t have to refuse. There’s nothing to worry about. I’ll stick with you.”

“It’s not like that.”

I shook my head a little.

“In fact, I was invited, too.”

“Really?”

I saw Gerard’s surprise.

“Did Ains invite you himself?”

“Yes.”

“I guess he’s very grateful to you for treating Glick.”

I laughed instead of answering. How I wish that was really the reason.

“That’s even better, anyway. Come with me. I’ll escort you perfectly.”

I’m sorry, but that’ll also be difficult.

That day, I’ll be entering the banquet hall with the Marquis of Dmitri and his wife because I’ll be attending the banquet as their relative.

“Thank you for the offer, but I already have someone I promised to go with. I’m sorry.”

Then Gerard asked me with a wry face.

“Who is it? Is it a man?”

His expression was quite funny, so I replied playfully.

“Of course.”

“Who is it? Which family is he from?”

“Hmm, he’s a man from a very famous family. “

“What? Then, isn’t he a total uncle then?!”

Then he block my way. He said he’s not moving until I told him who it was.

“Don’t jump into conclusions. It’s not what you think it is.”

I have no choice but to tell him the truth.

“I’m going to attend with my guardian, the Marquis.”

“Guardian?”

“Uh. I’ve got a few good reasons.”

“You mean… “

“Stop.”

Sure enough, I took the lead first so I continued.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you anymore. Let’s just say hello if we meet at the ball.”

“Alright. “

He looked curious, but Gerard didn’t ask me any more. I took out my watch and checked the time.

“Shall we go back?”

“Already?”

“I have an appointment in the evening.”

“Then I guess you can’t be late. Let’s go.”

Perhaps because of the mood, the walk back felt shorter. When we arrived at the annex, the sun was already setting.

“I had fun today.”

“Me too. Where are you staying now?”

“On the second floor of the annex.”

“The detached palace?”

“Yes.”

Gerard seemed to be lost in thought but then, he smiled at me.

“I’m also going to be here for a few days. Let’s go eat something delicious together next time we have time.”

“Okay, I’ll go first.”

After leaving a short farewell, I climbed the stairs leading to the annex.

Until then, Gerard just stood there with his hands in his pockets.

[Rohin, year 26, month xx, day xx

Finally! Finally! Finally!

The banquet is approaching. The ball will finally be held tomorrow night.

I practiced my last dance with Ains this evening. I think I can do it with my eyes closed now.

Cecil praised me and applauded like a seal. I wanted to thank her for teaching me so well, so I gave her a small brooch as a gift. Cecil was very grateful. I’ve been seeing her for several days now but I’ve never seen such a look on her face before.

Can I do well tomorrow? I can do it, right? Once all of these is over, I’ll fall asleep. That sounds good.]

-Maria’s Diary on a Nervous Night Ahead of a Banquet-

“Oh my, you’re so beautiful.”

“I’ve never seen such, voracious red hair.”

“How can your skin be so fair and smooth?”

Endless praises flowed from the mouths of the maids around me while their hands moved diligently without stopping. There’s no doubt that these people are experts.

On the other hand, I was just sitting in the chair absentmindedly like a barley.

Not only did I have nothing to say, but I was also frustrated by wearing acorset after a long time, so my attention was focused on it.

I’m currentlt dressing up in the mansion of the Marquis of Dmitri. The reason is, ofcourse, the birthday of Ains today.

After I finished my morning work, I went straight here afterwards. It was to dress up there and to attend a banquet with the Marquis.

“Welcome.”

Mrs. Dmitri greeted me with a friendly smile. A group of maids came in showed me the way then they asked me to waited for a moment.

From then on, a hectic time began. The first course was a bath. Seeing the big bath, I instinctively backed away and shouted.

“I washed! I washed in the morning!”

But it was useless. The maids who blocked my back stopped my movements and struck me with brilliant speech skills.

When I came back to my senses, I found myself sitting in a bubble filled bathtub.

Afterwards, I was taken somewhere again. They made me wear the undergarments, and a corset that they tightened on my waist to the point that a weird sound came out, and finally, they dressed me with a rich light green dress that stands out with elegance.

No, it was the beginning, not the end. From head to toe, there is no place left untouched by the busy maids.

I didn’t even thought of stopping them. It was a process that had to be done anyway. How long has it been ?

“It’s done, Miss Maria. “

At last I opened my eyes at the glad words I heard.

They took a full-body mirror in front of me and I opened my mouth as soon as I saw myself without realizing it.

….Amazing.

Originally, Maria was never a face to fall out somewhere. She was not one of the most beautiful women, but she was the type who stood out with elegance with her distinct facial features.

They decorated it as much as they could, so I couldn’t take my eyes off the mirror. Narcissism wasn’t for nothing, and that’s what I thought of.

“You are really beautiful.”

“No young lady will be as beautiful as Miss Maria.”

The maids exclaimed and poured out praises here and there. I knew that it’s just sort of lip service, but I felt good to hear the praise anyway.

“Are you all set?”

As I turned my head, I could see the Marchioness entering the room.

I sprang to my feet.

There was a look admiration on the face of the woman who walked towards me.

“Oh my, that suits you very well.”

“Thank you. The marchioness is really beautiful, too.”

“Hoho, then shall we go out?”

We head outside and the Marquis of Dmitri was already waiting in front of the carriage.

We soon got in the carriage side by side, and the white horses carrying the us began to run vigorously towards the imperial palace.

My heart is racing. In fact, I didn’t think much when I first went here, but when I saw the spire of the palace, reality gradually came down on me.

Where will the banquet be held? It’s the crown prince’s birthday party, so it must be very colorful, right?

My expectations were not in vain. As soon as we arrived at the banquet hall after passing through the palace corridor, my mouth opened widely.

I did not expected that one day, the medieval banquet hall I saw on TV was spread out in front of me.

‘Shall we go?’ If it weren’t for the Marchioness, I might have stood in there blankly all night long.

I did not know that there was a place like this in the palace.

“Long time no see, Lord Dmitri.”

“Oh, you look so beautiful today Madam.”

“How have you been?”

As soon as we entered, greetings poured in from all over the place. Of course, it was directed at the Marquis and Marchioness, not at me.

“Are you perhaps Lady Maria Lewellin?”

When I looked back at the familiar name, I met eyes with the girl I had never seen before.

Who is it? This is strange. I’ve never met her before but her features seems somewhat familiar…

“Yes, that’s right.”

When I answered with a slight doubt, the girl smiled broadly.

“I’m Erica of the Hailan family. I’ve heard a lot about you from my mother. It’s an honor to meet you.”

Unlike her, who was excited, I just stood there dumbfounded.

The Marchioness tilted her face toward me and whispered, covering her mouth with a fan.

“It’s Mrs. Margaret’s daughter.”

I see. No wonder it feels like I’ve seen her before.

“Nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you, as well.”

The mystery of the genes is really amazing. I returned a soft greeting.

Erica wasn’t the only one greeted me. Greetings continued here and there, and I smiled and responded to them.

The reason why they knew me was clear. It’s probably because of a social gathering the Marchioness organized a few days ago. In fact, it was on a scale small enough to be embarrassing to call it a meeting, but the ripple effect was greater than expected.

The wives who attended the meeting at the time all worked hard to spread my existence.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes, I’m all right. “

I replied to the Marchioness, smiling gladly and nodding my head.

The greeting time passed, and I finally had the time to look around. The interior was very spacious.

The tables were arranged in the shape of a diagonal line and the center was empty. It seems that that’ll be the dance floor for later.

….. It’s much bigger than I thought.

I moistened my dry throat with a beverage in a crystal goblet glass, and he was deeply impressed.

Of course, I only do it inwardly, but I haven’t lost my elegance on the outside. I’m here as a relative of the Marquis of Dmitri after all.

Most of the people in the banquet hall were young ladies and gentlemen. Everyone, not to mention the girls were dressed up to the fullest. Thanks to this, it was so fun to watch.

Another interesting thing is that whenever someone enters, a man standing by the door shouts the name and the family where the guest came from when they arrive.

As expected, the class society is different. Would it be like this at other banquets as well?

Then, the eyes reached the center of the stage.

The thought of dancing with Ains over there soon made me nervous.

We’ll probably be the center of all attention.

Even if I was embarrassed, it seemed that I should never make mistakes.

‘….Turn, turn, then turn right.’

I gently glanced down and repeated the dance movements in my head, when I heard another loud shout from the entrance door of the banquet hall.

“The second son of the Borhin Family from the Kingdom of Brittany, Lord Gerard is entering!”