Chapter 14

She had spent so much time in front of the mirror, practicing how to keep her expression composed before the Emperor. She was no longer the powerless girl she had been after losing her birth parents. She was stronger now.

Steeling herself, she stepped forward as her name was called, moving quickly to stand before the Emperor.

“Eternal glory to the Baltian Empire. I greet His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress, the prophets of Baltian and the bearers of holy glory.”

“Ah, so you are the daughter of Marquis Inevasel.”

The Emperor replied with a kind smile as if he felt no guilt about what had happened years ago. Or perhaps he had even forgotten all about it. His shameless demeanor almost made her want to laugh, but she maintained a faint smile and nodded.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I’m Evelyn Inevasel.”

Contrary to her worries that she might not be able to control her emotions, she managed to remain calm. The Emperor tapped his chair’s armrest and let out a small sigh as if remembering something.

“Come to think of it, I hear you inherited your birth father’s ability.”

Unlike the Marquis of Inevasel, who possessed no abilities, she had inherited healing powers from her biological father. Her expression subtly stiffened at the Emperor’s words, but she replied as evenly as she could.

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

“He was truly a remarkable man. I look forward to seeing what you can do.”

The Emperor gave a warm, genial smile and offered a few empty words of blessing. Evelyn swallowed down the anger simmering inside her and answered with a polite, serene smile.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

After gazing at her for a moment, the Emperor soon raised his hand, signaling that it was time for the next young noble to step forward.

Evelyn bowed gracefully and stepped away, trying to erase his hollow words from her mind.

Not wanting to worry her family, she plastered a cheerful expression on her face as she rejoined them, pretending nothing was wrong. As a wave of nobles came up to congratulate her on her coming of age, she found her tangled thoughts slowly clearing.

The soft melody of the orchestra soon grew livelier, shifting the mood.

‘Looks like everyone’s heading to dance.’

She watched nobles flock to the dance floor as if she were a bystander watching a fire across the river. Her dancing skills were so hopeless that words couldn’t even describe them, so she consoled herself that avoiding the floor altogether would spare her humiliation.

All of a sudden, the people around her began to whisper and murmur.

“Oh my. It seems someone couldn’t stay away from the lady for long.”

“Well, a bee can’t resist a flower, after all.”

Wondering what all the fuss was about, Evelyn glanced around. When she finally saw who it was, her mouth dropped in surprise.

‘What? Why is he coming over here again…?!’

While she was distracted, a man with a mischievous smirk started making his way over to her.

“You… you!”

Her green eyes darted nervously.

The man casually closing the distance was none other than Axion. She shot him a glare and hissed under her breath so that others would not hear.

“Why are you here? Go somewhere else, now!”

“With my fiancée standing right here? Where else would I be?”

He arched an eyebrow, retorting in a low voice.

At a loss for words, she just opened and closed her mouth without saying anything.

If he danced with another lady while his fiancée was left standing alone, it would surely cause a scandal. But wasn’t this situation different? She felt wronged at the thought of being forced to become the night’s laughingstock just because of her embarrassing dancing skills.

Rising onto her tiptoes, Evelyn whispered quietly into his ear.

“You haven’t forgotten how bad I am at this, have you?”

She had already lost count of how many times she had stepped on his feet at her debutante ball. How could he possibly want to go through that again?

When she shot him a doubtful look, Axion’s lips curled faintly.

“As if I could ever forget.”

Then why was he doing this?

She was genuinely curious about what was going through her fiancé’s mind. But before she could ask what he was thinking, Axion held out his hand to her.

“Would you grant me the honor of this dance, my lady?”

‘…I’m doomed.’