The Opposite Of Indifference - Chapter 32

“I will take you to the great banquet hall for the ball and dinner,” Mrs. Galbraith said.

“With the adults?” Charlotte’s eyes lit up.

“I thought we were going to say hello to Princess Jadalin here?” The sensible Adriana asked.

“Princess Jadalin…” Mrs. Galbraith, always strict, hesitated.  “She’s not feeling well, so she can’t attend the tea party and banquet.” Mrs. Galbraith turned away, eager to go quickly.

As they all followed Mrs. Galbraith, Adriana came to Ann’s side and whispered, “Okay, how are you feeling so far? It’s not Lady Ann’s first time having a tea party with young ladies. Yes?”

It seemed to Adriana that Ann really needed a friend.

“Everyone has too many thoughts. It’s tiring.” Ann said what she felt. She was sure if someone had told her to put so many thoughts and emotions inside, she would have died of a blown head.

“Oh, how unusual.” Adriana frowned and murmured, and slipped away from Ann, convinced they weren’t meant to be friends. The other girls also kept their distance.

It wasn’t because of Ann’s flaws.

They will not be friends with each other, just as Ann cannot be friends with them. Even with completely different values, everyone had the same reaction to the ‘chance to become the best woman in the court’.

And he didn’t even notice that the best was a word that meant only one person.

When they approached the great hall, Mrs. Galbraith said, “The young ladies are wearing pre-determined colors…”

“Was this a set color?” Ophelia interrupted, suddenly touching the green gown she was wearing.

“I haven’t heard anything from my father.” Charlotte raised an eyebrow.

“The color of the dress was designated by lot so that the opportunity would be fair. His majesty ordered this not be disclosed.” As if to suggest a war of nerves between the nobles, Mrs. Galbraith pursed her lips.

“If I had been quicker, I could have roughly guessed it.” Charlotte grumbled.

“What is it?” Jane in a blue gown inquired impatiently of Mrs. Galbraith.

“They will enter, dancing one by one.” Mrs. Galbraith continued with an angry look, as if telling them each to stop interrupting. “To the tune of ‘Redfield’.”

A look of understanding appeared on the faces of the young ladies.

‘Redfield’s Song’ is a cheerful dance song featuring five virgins. The Rose Queen, the owner of Redfield Castle, invites other flowers to a banquet who quarrel with each other to show off.

The yellow color worn by Ann symbolized the Forsythia maiden; the last, and least difficult, dance.

“Today is Prince Frederick’s birthday.” Mrs. Galbraith continued, determined and burdensome. “The wittiest lady will have the honor of being invited to the Prince’s first social dance.”

All the girls except Ann gasped.

“Lady Elizabeth, the Red Rose Queen, is the first.”

Elizabeth pretty cheeks blushed. She kissed the rosary and the bible. Then resolutely stood before the entrance.

The heavy door opened. The king and queen sat on the highest throne at the banquet table, and the nobles sat on the left and right in order of rank. Well-dressed men and women stood around the center of the great hall.

The performance of the palace orchestra rang out. More refined, the melody was completely different from the song Ann heard and learned from at Windwhistle. It was definitely ‘Redfield’.

Through the music, the Herald declared loudly, “Lady Elizabeth of the House of Dulby, daughter of the Earl of Fenley, enters!”

There was no time to hesitate in order not to miss the beat. Elizabeth slipped and danced into the great banquet hall. The dark red color went well with her tan skin. Her solemn expression was also perfectly suited to the thorns of the Rose Queen.

“This will be our debut!” Charlotte exclaimed to the others in an excited voice. “I thought I would have to be older to be in the social world!

Standing next to her, Jane seemed to want to say something sarcastic. Her opportunity was lost when Elizabeth’s solo dance was over. Fluttering in the blue gown of a Lobelia maiden, Jane entered the banquet hall as the Herald announced her name.

Jane Grant suited the flower language of lobelia. It was lovely and mischievous at the same time. The woman of Lobelia, who is in charge of distrust and malice, was breathtakingly well expressed.

Her success increased the burden on Adriana, who was next in line.

“I’m rather glad my father is drunk.” Adriana stared at Count Arlin, whose red cheeks said he had binged on wine. “When you’re drunk, you’ll enjoy whatever you see.”

When Jane’s turn was over, Adriana continued with her own dance like flowing water.

Adriana was tall; her limbs were long and graceful. It suited the white lily maiden.

At the same time, the arrogantly refined expression seen through the fluttering cream-colored gown convinced her that she was indeed from the Bodegas Empire.

“Green is not a color for me!” Ophelia, who was extremely nervous, was next. Flustered, she missed her entering beats. Realizing it belatedly, she had to rush through her steps.

It was true when he said that green didn’t suit her. Even though Orphelia played the most unusual Redfield girl, she didn’t stand out compared to other ladies. For better or for worse, it was not memorable.

“This is my debut,” Charlotte, who quietly watched Ophelia’s dying steps, murmured sadly. “My father is watching. Let’s just remember that.” She stared resolutely at the Duke of Humston. “I will convince you I’m worth investing in, too.”

She really talks to herself a lot. Ann, who had been watching intently, stuck out her tongue.

Still, Ophelia’s dance was over quickly. Charlotte raised her head with determination. The pink shoes tumbled across the marble floor to the beat, and at the correct moment they danced.

Even if she hated to admit it, Ann could see Charlotte Brennan was the best.

At the court of the Gray Heath, the symbol of the gray azalea, there could be no lady in the world who would better describe the pink azalea maiden.

“Brava!” Queen Margaret called out as Charlotte smoothed executed the most difficult moves perfectly.

Ann glanced casually at Queen Margaret and met her mother’s eyes.

‘Don’t be nervous. Just do what you normally do.’

The shape of Ambria’s mouth, which was slightly pouting, was clearly saying that.

It wasn’t a very effective encouragement. The mother had evaluated her daughter’s dance this morning as a level of punishment from God.

“Stop acting and come out, Lady Ann!” Mrs. Galbraith called Ann when Charlotte’s turn was almost over.

Ann stood where the five young ladies had gone before. She tried to forget how desperate the governess looked when she taught her how to dance. Even those memories wouldn’t be very cheering.

Before the roaring applause for Charlotte was over, the Herald called out, “Lady Ann of Belvard, the daughter of the Duke of Windwhistle enters!”

In the grand banquet hall where they took their first steps, unspoken expectations for the daughter of the famous Kintland rose, Ambria Belvard, overflowed.

Ann shattered that expectation from the beginning.

Her limb stiff and her back limp, expressions were terribly poor. The palace orchestra couldn’t catch her rhythm which was hopelessly out of step. Looking back, it seemed that the tutor always deliberately played the harpsichord slowly to match Ann’s terrible dancing skills.

Ophelia, who was barely passable, was better in comparison. Honestly, Ann didn’t care. She didn’t quite understand feelings of shame or embarrassment.

I’m sorry about this, Mother. But if you wanted a daughter who could dance well, you should have married a man who could dance well. From all angles, it was not my fault. 

Ann concluded her dance with a thick expression.

It was then. It was only a matter of time before who would burst out laughing among the audience, and none other than the King spoke very boldly. “This is the first time I’ve seen a forsythia girl like this! In Redfield’s song, the forsythia maiden brings reconciliation among quarreling flowers.

It wasn’t meant as criticism. Rather, it was a very warm and pleasant laugh.

“I had a lot of fun interpreting the role.”

No matter how much it is an interpretation than a dream, Ann is lost in her spirit.

The King continued, “Isn’t it really like the fittest of Windwhistle Rock?”

And even though it was weak, it was the King’s laugh. It was also the laugh of a man who is naturally liked by others.

The cheerful laugh soon spread to other nobles like an epidemic. Count Aroulin, who was drunk, laughed loudly along with it. Even the old priest, as stiff as a stone statue made by the Holy Church, twitched his nose.

Good is good. Ann decided to be faithful to the king’s dream interpretation. She continued to defy her beat with her stiff limbs.

Then, the yellow gable hood on his head came off.

Ann’s black hair cascaded down her shoulders. All morning my mother brushed it with lavender oil, but it was still brittle.

Still, Ann liked her messy hair. It felt like a dark, soft cloud had been placed on her shoulders. It reminded her of the sound of the rain mixing with the whistling of the crags of Windwhistle Rock. Those favorite days were the reason Ann loved her home.

However, for the reason that she could show off her modesty and splendor at the same time, as a young lady from an aristocratic family, she often wore a hat. It was like that today, too.

But what could she do about something that came loose on its own? Thanks to an unexpected force majeure, Ann revealed what she loved best—her home—in an unfamiliar and troublesome palace.

For the first time that day, Ann erased her unreadable expression. She smiled so brightly that she dazzled.

“Oh my god,” the audience murmured.

Surprisingly, Ann’s smile stopped the air in the large banquet hall. Even the orchestra stuttered. It was of a completely different kind from the praise given to the witty Charlotte Brennan. It was far more overwhelming. It was like being struck by lightning.

When Ann finished the dance, Frederick II spoke.

“I thought the Kintland rose would never bloom again in the palace. Instead, a new gray azalea has bloomed.” As the owner of the Grische royal family, it was the highest compliment he could give.

Responding sloppily to the ensuing applause, Ann stepped aside.

“But, I did much better.” Suddenly, Charlotte murmured. “Why are you stealing my attention?”

Blood stood in her eyes.

“Shh! ‘Redfield’s Song’ isn’t over yet.” Jane put her index finger to her lips.

With that one word, Ann and the five young ladies had the same thought.

The last character to finish Redfield’s song. A splendid knight who stopped by the Rose Queen’s castle after winning an honorable war. A companion who proposes to the most beautiful flower and leaves Redfield for the land of gold.

“No way!” Ophelia screamed out loud.

As if to confirm her guess the Herald announced, “The second son of the great King Frederick, who celebrated his tenth birthday today, Prince Frederick!”

A boy wearing a crown like the King’s appeared at the very door the young ladies entered in turn.

I got it right this time. He was not an angel who came down from heaven. He wasn’t even a lost fool.

Ann insisted on leaving without knowing who the boy was, but he was clearly the impeccable Prince Frederick.

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