Chapter 31
“It’s not the same as confidence. Your Grace is a duke, and I am merely a baron’s daughter. Unless I chase after you, there will never be any reason for us to meet.”
Nadia said with certainty, and Heinrich, for some reason, didn’t like that.
“……I see.”
Nadia’s words were always correct.
She was a suspicious woman, but she did not seem like someone who wanted to become the duchess.
It looked as though she had a goal Heinrich could not yet see.
And once that goal was achieved, Nadia would disappear from Heinrich’s life completely.
The ladies dancing spun lightly away from their partners, twirling gracefully.
Just before they returned into the gentlemen’s arms, their elegant movements bent backward in a graceful arch.
Finally, as the lady leaned back into the gentleman’s embrace, Nadia’s step came half a beat later than everyone else’s.
From there, she moved more slowly, tracing wide arcs in her steps.
Nadia wore a faintly satisfied expression.
Heinrich, on the other hand, felt as though he had sunk into a bottomless swamp.
That very movement was one he had failed at countless times more than ten years ago.
His dance partner had always been Rivenya, and Heinrich had constantly feared that his clumsy self would not support her properly and drop her.
That fear only made his next steps more awkward, and so he often ended up stepping on Rivenya’s feet.
Every time her small feet were bruised blue from being stepped on, Heinrich was overwhelmed with guilt.
‘My lady, I’m sorry. I’m so clumsy, and I keep stepping on your feet…’
‘It’s fine, Heini. So you do have something you’re bad at! I just find it funny.’
‘But the bruise looks so bad. Let’s stop for today and…’
‘Look. What if I come in half a beat late here? Then you can step forward just a little more, and it will be fine. If you make yourself the support, neither of us will ever fall.’
That had been a secret promise between the two of them.
It was from the days when Rivenya still called him “Heini,” and so Heinrich remembered it more vividly than any other memory.
Yet Nadia had moved half a beat late at the exact same moment.
Perhaps it was nothing more than a mistake. But to Heinrich, who had matched his steps with Rivenya for years, it felt far too significant.
When the first dance ended and the time came to change partners, Heinrich could no longer endure it and stormed out.
He could feel countless eyes following his back, but he could distinguish only Nadia’s gaze among them.
Heinrich left the ballroom and climbed roughly into his carriage.
“Your Grace, what’s wrong? Are you unwell?”
Allison hurried after him with worry.
“Nothing. We’re leaving immediately.”
“But the ball isn’t over yet. You haven’t even greeted His Majesty…”
“I’ll pay my respects tomorrow. We leave now.”
“……”
“Allison, that’s an order. At once.”
His voice was harsh, and his face was terribly distorted.
It was almost as though some giant monster were chasing him, his expression was so full of fear.
Allison was bewildered at seeing his master so shaken for the first time, but dutifully obeyed.
Heinrich buried his face in his hands and stifled his breath.
He looked almost like a dead man, frozen in that position.
“That woman is not Rivenya.”
Heinrich was certain.
Even if Nadia’s gestures and habits reminded him of Rivenya, the two were utterly different people.
Rivenya had been proud, never bending easily to anyone. But her pride was so rigid that if it ever cracked, she seemed as though she might shatter entirely.
She was lofty, breathtakingly beautiful, but like a spire standing alone without any walls to protect it.
Nadia, on the other hand, was clever but full of vitality. Her foundation was fragile, yet she seemed perfectly content with it.
If she needed to bow, she would bow as much as necessary, yet that never broke her. She always had somewhere to return to, had no reason to cling desperately, and because of that, even when she faced her duties, she always carried a certain ease.
‘My wife was fiercer, prouder…’
Why on earth did Nadia remind him of Rivenya?
Heinrich resented himself and even felt betrayed by his own heart.
What tormented him even more, however, was that his eyes kept chasing after Nadia.
It was laughable enough to remain near her under the pretense of watching her.
But when Nadia insisted she would vanish from his life, it no longer felt laughable.
A groan slipped through the gaps between his fingers.
He felt like an eight-year-old boy again, unable to judge anything for himself.
But now, there was no angel left to protect that little boy.
Nadia stood in the middle of the ballroom, staring blankly in the direction Heinrich had disappeared.
Perhaps something urgent had come up—but his face had looked terribly hasty, even fearful.
“My lady?”
Someone called to her and offered his hand. Likely her next partner.
“Forgive me, I think my makeup is ruined. I must fix it.”
She covered her lips with a troubled expression.
It would be unchivalrous to stop a lady from repairing her makeup, so the man smiled politely, nodded, and moved on to the next person.
Nadia slipped gracefully out through the spinning couples.
‘What on earth happened to Heini?’
She wanted to run after Heinrich immediately.
At the very least, she wanted to know where he was going.
Nadia strode from the ballroom, steps still elegant but longer than usual.
As she headed toward the waiting carriages, someone suddenly grabbed her arm.
Startled, she shook the hand off, and a flustered voice rang behind her.
“M-my apologies! I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
Turning back, Nadia saw Yuria staring at her with wide eyes.
Yuria pulled back her hand, hesitating, lips parting as though she wanted to speak.
Nadia’s anxious gaze flicked once more toward the direction Heinrich had gone.
That only made Yuria more nervous.
Finally, what Yuria blurted out was something utterly trivial.
“Lady Nadia, where are you going?”
“……Just to get some air.”
“But the ball is still in full swing. It’s a wonderful opportunity to meet more people…”
Her voice trembled, but Nadia hardly noticed.
Her mind was fixed on Heinrich, who had fled as if chased by something.
Without looking Yuria in the eyes, Nadia bent deeply in a courteous bow.
“It was a pleasure meeting you, Lady Crimson. Please forgive me for leaving so abruptly.”
She then made her way toward the carriages.
She had only taken about five steps when—
“Lady Nadia, I’m sorry!”
Yuria cried out in a strained, uneven voice.
Startled by the shrillness, Nadia turned halfway back.
“I-I was wrong. I’m so worthless, I hurt you.”
Her voice wavered so much that Nadia had to half-guess her meaning.
Nadia slowly closed her eyes and opened them again. Tears were falling from Yuria’s beautiful eyes.
The tears of a lovely woman could move anyone.
‘Even if I went to Heini, it wouldn’t comfort him…’
With a bitter expression, Nadia turned more fully toward Yuria.
Seeing this, Yuria mustered a little more courage and gently held the edge of Nadia’s sleeve.
“Lady Nadia…”
Nadia sighed softly and shook her head.
“I don’t think any of this is your fault, Lady Yuria. You don’t need to apologize.”
“But… my father was rude to you. I should have stopped him. I said I wanted to be friends, but in that moment, I froze… You must have felt so betrayed. You might never want to see me again, but still…”
Nadia looked down at Yuria’s hand clutching her sleeve. The small white hand was stiff with tension. Nadia placed her own hand gently over it and spoke kindly.
“I understand. At your age, standing up to your father isn’t easy. I truly don’t hold it against you. I only regretted that we parted without words. I’m glad we’ve met again like this.”
“Then…”
A bit of light returned to Yuria’s face. Not understanding that expression, Nadia continued in the same gentle tone.
“If the count were to see us now, you’d be in trouble. I’m already glad and happy we could speak like this, so please return inside.”
Her words were kind, and rightly so—for they were spoken from pure sincerity.
Nadia thought Yuria was a good person. That was why she believed Yuria would be ashamed of her father’s behavior and would feel sorry toward her.
It must have been difficult for a count’s daughter to apologize directly to a baron’s daughter, and Nadia was grateful she had gathered the courage to do so.
Her words were full of that gratitude—yet Yuria’s face only grew darker.
“……Lady Nadia, you truly have not the slightest expectation of me.”
It was a phrase that sounded utterly forlorn.