ITIF Chapter 79

First Dance

“……Would that be all right with you?”

The words that came from her mouth were neither refusal nor acceptance, but rather a question asking for Kavelaseth’s own opinion.

She felt apologetic in case he had been forced to request a dance he didn’t want due to Mikhail’s somewhat unreasonable demand.

Kavelaseth let out a slight snort as if finding it absurd.

“Are you asking for the opinion of the man who just asked you to dance?”

Instead of answering immediately, Giselle Grante glanced at Mikhail.

At that, Mikhail vigorously shook his head.

Just as she was trying to interpret what his head-shaking meant, Kavelaseth spoke first.

“I’d appreciate it if you’d stop making people anxious and give me an answer—preferably one that’s a yes.”

As he said this, Kavelaseth subtly gestured around them with his eyes. She too rolled her eyes slightly to survey their surroundings.

There were certainly many watching eyes.

This matter would undoubtedly spread widely through the mouths of gossips by the end of the day.

That at today’s Founding Day celebration, that Kavelaseth had asked that Giselle Grante to dance.

‘What would happen if I refused the dance invitation here……’

Considering the rumors that had been circulating, it seemed quite an interesting situation would unfold if she were to refuse.

After all, Giselle Grante’s feelings toward Kavelaseth had always been one-way. The sight of that relationship finally being reversed might be quite thrilling as well.

‘……That’s not bad?’

Giselle Grante was having these thoughts when—

“I hope you’re not about to give me the answer I’m expecting right now.”

Kavelaseth raised one eyebrow as he spoke. Apparently her thoughts had shown on her face.

“Let me ask you just one thing first.”

“By all means.”

“I want to confirm whether the reason you’re asking me to dance is of your own will.”

Kavelaseth let out a small snort.

“You worry about the strangest things.”

“So that means…… it’s not because of Brother Mikhail’s insistence that you’re asking me to dance, right?”

As soon as her words ended, Mikhail shook his head vigorously, indicating it was nothing of the sort.

“You must have thought I was weak-willed. Extending my hand to someone I don’t want, just because of someone else’s words?”

Only then did Giselle Grante nod and place her hand on Kavelaseth’s.

“All right.”

As they moved toward the dance floor, Giselle Grante tried to assess the situation.

Come to think of it, despite Giselle Grante’s numerous confessions in the past, Kavelaseth had firmly expressed his refusal.

Even though the Amaterasu ducal house had designated Kavelaseth as the next emperor, even though his closest friend Mikhail had earnestly requested it.

That meant the reason he asked her to dance was not because of Mikhail’s insistent request, but because of Kavelaseth’s own will.

Giselle Grante’s eyes widened slightly as she belatedly realized this fact.

Without interference from others, and even voluntarily, he had invited her to dance in a public place.

That Kavelaseth.

As she mulled over this fact again now, she felt dazed.

Giselle Grante blinked rapidly as she looked at Kavelaseth’s profile.

Then Kavelaseth looked at her with narrowed eyes, and soon smiled with his eyes curved in crescents as he said:

“I look forward to it.”

“I…… look forward to it as well.”

The two people facing each other on the dance floor greeted one another and then adjusted their positions.

Just then, a new piece began.

The two began to dance to the orchestra’s performance.

“Can’t you tell me in confidence?”

While elegantly stepping, he suddenly pulled her waist close to him. Then he whispered low near her ear.

The breath touching her ear was hot, causing Giselle Grante to unconsciously shrink her shoulders slightly as she looked at Kavelaseth.

“It seems it was when the congratulatory speech began.”

Kavelaseth’s eyes narrowed as if recalling the memory.

Giselle Grante merely looked at him, waiting for the next words to follow.

“When the young lady left the banquet hall. Though the congratulatory speech was unnecessarily long.”

Giselle Grante felt a slight pang of guilt inwardly, but didn’t lose the smile on her lips.

And she opened her mouth while staring directly into Kavelaseth’s red eyes.

“You seem to have quite a lot of interest in me.”

Unlike her expectation that he would immediately deny it, Kavelaseth answered obediently.

“……I can’t say I don’t. I was somewhat looking forward to what kind of surprise you’d have for me today.”

“Unfortunately, I haven’t prepared anything special today.”

Giselle Grante rolled her eyes slightly to survey their surroundings.

Fortunately, there was no one dancing close enough to eavesdrop on their conversation.

Nevertheless, she pressed her body close to his and whispered in his ear.

“I mentioned it before, but once again, happy birthday. I didn’t expect to meet you again like this on the actual day.”

Just as he had done to her moments ago.

****

After the Founding Day celebration ended, on the day they had arranged to visit the Cardia ducal residence, Giselle Grante came to the ducal residence.

However, since she had other plans in the afternoon today, she had sent word through an employee that she would be visiting early.

“Welcome.”

As she entered the mansion, the butler bowed at the waist to greet Giselle Grante.

Having already seen each other several times, the butler’s attitude toward her was quite warm.

While exchanging greetings with the butler, Giselle Grante’s steps naturally headed toward the drawing room.

“Where is the duke?”

“The duke is currently at the training grounds supervising the knights’ training. Would you like to go there?”

It was just a polite question she had asked, but the butler quite earnestly informed her of Kavelaseth’s whereabouts.

‘The training grounds……’

She pondered for a moment what to do.

Since then, she had visited the Cardia ducal residence several more times, but it seemed the late empress’s portrait had been put away somewhere.

Since watching the training seemed better than waiting for Kavelaseth idly, Giselle Grante nodded and said:

“If that’s all right.”

“Then I’ll guide you to the training grounds.”

As Giselle Grante entered the mansion, she unfurled the parasol she had folded.

Then the butler extended his hand toward her as if asking for the parasol. Without declining, she handed the parasol to the butler.

The sight of the large-built butler holding the small, fluttering white lace parasol created an incongruous image.

Giselle Grante turned her gaze forward to avoid laughing.

And she moved toward the training grounds. Thinking it had been quite a long time.

In the past, she would occasionally make time to watch the training of the imperial princess’s direct knights.

It wasn’t particularly that she intended to interfere with their training.

It was just that her mere presence watching at the training grounds seemed to raise the knights’ morale.

After all, these were people who had been training in swordsmanship every day for 365 days a year, for at least ten years or more, so having someone watching seemed to provide fresh stimulation.

And it seemed the knights of the Cardia ducal house wouldn’t be much different.

If their master Kavelaseth showed his face at the training grounds even briefly, it would provide motivation to devote themselves to the daily repetitive training.

“…….”

As the training grounds came into view, Giselle Grante’s mouth opened slightly.

The training grounds were tremendously large, so large that they couldn’t all be taken in at a glance even from a distance.

It was a detail that immediately revealed the Cardia ducal house’s status.

‘Well, if they hadn’t been this thoroughly prepared, it wouldn’t have been possible to replace the reigning emperor.’

Unlike her initial casual approach, Giselle Grante began to observe the training grounds quite analytically.

Dozens of knights and the squires assisting them were each holding different weapons, fully engaged in tactical training.

While watching the training, Giselle Grante asked the butler various things.

Who was commanding the knights, and what was the current training meant to prepare for?

Contrary to her expectation that he might not know much about things beyond his duties of serving the master and managing the ducal residence, he answered Giselle Grante’s questions without hesitation.

As she walked conversing with the butler, she stopped at a spot some distance from the training grounds. The butler’s steps stopped as well.

“Won’t you go closer to watch?”

The butler asked, puzzled.

“I thought I might unnecessarily disturb their training.”

“Ah…….”

The butler opened his mouth slightly in admiration. Then he muttered as if to himself:

“Truly, the young lady is very thoughtful.”

Giselle Grante pretended not to hear the butler’s praise and continued to ask him questions.

The reason she did so was that as she quietly watched the knights training, the hand not holding a weapon felt itchy.

[Tri, if you only sit at your desk looking at documents, unnecessary fat might accumulate on your body.]

Though she now knew that had been a trap by the empress to disguise an accidental death under the guise of training, she had fully agreed with that opinion at the time.

In fact, she had been interested.

Around the time she began receiving sword training, stories of a renowned female knight were circulating throughout the empire.

As she observed the knights’ training closely for some time, the butler quietly asked:

“Are you not bored…….”

But seeing her eyes brighter than ever, he quickly continued:

“……I see you’re not.”

“Yes, it’s quite interesting.”

Giselle Grante continued to ask about the knights’ weapons and armor, training methods, and related matters, and the butler provided appropriate answers.

Giselle Grante was inwardly impressed with the butler.

‘Indeed, as someone who serves the Duke of Cardia, there’s nothing about the ducal house’s internal affairs that he doesn’t know.’

When they had been having various conversations like this for quite a while—

The vice-captain of the knights’ order, who had been constantly giving instructions to the knights, shouted:

“This concludes the tactical training. If you wish to do individual training…….”

As soon as he announced the end of group training, the knights began to remove the upper portion of their knights’ order uniforms.