The guests who entered Ariadne’s ball were surprised by the interior decorations that looked like a fairy party in the forest. The party hall felt like another world as the band from outside played sweet melodies live without a break.

And Alfonso, who had arrived early unlike a VIP, greeted his debutante partner, who looked like the queen of fairies, with a surprised expression in the waiting room next to the main hall. Ariadne, glowing softly from head to toe, overflowed with grace that was hard to believe she was a young lady holding her debutante ball.

“You’re really beautiful. As elegant as the legendary Queen Guinevere.”

Even Ariadne, who had ignored the praises of Sancha and the maids, blushed a little this time.

“Don’t say things you don’t mean.”

“No, you’re really pretty.”

Their brief reunion was interrupted by an uninvited guest. Janobi swaggered into the waiting room as Ariadne’s ‘debutante partner’ to escort today’s debutante.

“What is this?”

Janobi’s hostile tone filled the room. As soon as Janobi, who thought he was the debutante partner and showed up dressed all in white, entered the room and looked around, he spotted Alfonso, also dressed in white, and immediately picked a fight.

“Where did you bring this guy who looks like a gigolo with just a handsome face?”

The wariness was no joke from the first meeting.

“You know a man is about his ability, right? How can you look away when you have a cool knight like your elder brother?”

It was a statement veiled as a joke but filled with sharp thorns and inferiority. While pretending to act tough, Janobi found it hard to bear his diminished self and unconsciously attacked the outside to vent his sore insides. His small eyes scanned the surroundings and landed on Ariadne’s attire. Today’s Ariadne was stunningly beautiful, but what Janobi chose to mention was something else.

“Hey, didn’t your elder brother tell you not to wear high heels?”

Ariadne had indeed worn high heels of about 2 and a half dito (approximately 9 centimeters) to enhance the train of her dress.

“You’re really stubborn, aren’t you? You don’t even listen to your elder brother?”

Ariadne looked at Janobi with an absurd expression. When Ariadne showed no signs of being scared or intimidated, Janobi took a step closer to Ariadne and lowered his voice.

“Go change your shoes and come back while I’m still saying nice things.”

When Janobi’s crown came close enough to touch Ariadne’s nose in her heels, a low male voice flew in.

“You don’t have to change since you won’t be entering with him.”

“Who are you?”

Janobi, who had been trying hard to ignore Alfonso, finally exploded. Janobi had lived only in a rural estate, so he didn’t know the prince’s face and had a vague hostility towards handsome men.

Janobi suddenly raised his fist. He seemed to think that he could just beat up a gigolo. But when Janobi raised his fist to subdue Alfonso with his proud fighting skills, Alfonso’s ceremonial sword was drawn at the speed of light, aiming at Janobi’s throat.

“Don’t do anything rash.”

Janobi was helplessly subdued by Alfonso. However, Janobi didn’t think it was because the prince was stronger than him or because he had neglected his training, but blamed it on the tool.

“Who, who are you! Are you crazy! Shouldn’t you issue a duel challenge first before drawing a sword?! Who can handle it with bare hands when you go wild with a blade?!”

A private duel without a formal duel challenge, that is, suddenly drawing a sword and threatening others, was a felony under national law.

Alfonso had a grave expression on his face. He seemed very angry. When Alfonso showed no intention of answering Janobi about his identity, Ariadne decided to kindly hint to Janobi.

“Janobi elder brother, greet him. He is the small sun of the kingdom, Prince Alfonso de Carlo.”

However, duels were held between people of the same status. When a commoner confronted a noble, the noble could beat up the commoner and send them away as long as they spared their life.

Alfonso was royalty, and Janobi was at the bottom rung of the lower nobility. A duel could not be established between Alfonso and Janobi. Janobi had no choice but to either be unilaterally slashed by Alfonso until just before becoming disabled or be dragged to court and sentenced to prison for disrespecting royalty, or worse, treason, if lucky.

“Eek!”

Janobi leaped back and nearly fell over after bumping into a decorative branch behind him. Alfonso did not bother to chase the fleeing Janobi with his sword. Janobi prostrated himself on the floor without even being told, paying respect to the prince.

“Ta, Taranto’s Janobi de Rosi greets the small sun of the kingdom…!”

He was supposed to kneel on one knee and raise the other, but he had all his limbs pressed against the floor like a frog.

He was really shaking like a frog in front of a sparrow, desperately pleading.

“I had no idea you were the prince…!”

Alfonso was still angry. Suppressing the anger between his brows, he asked.

“If I weren’t the prince, would you not have reflected on your actions?”

“What? What?”

“Would you not apologize for threatening an innocent lady, suddenly throwing punches at someone you just met, if the other person wasn’t a prince while behaving like that?”

Janobi seemed to have lost his words. In fact, he had no choice but to affirm the prince’s question. He apologized because it was the prince, and if it were a commoner, he would have swung not just fists but worse.

Ariadne was holding back her laughter inside, but Prince Alfonso seemed to be in a foul mood.

“Apologize to Lady de Mare first.”

Even though it was ordered by the prince, Janobi seemed to find it damaging to his pride to apologize to Ariadne. He got up from his prostrated position, and with a distorted expression, chewed out an apology to Ariadne as if spitting out words.

“Sorry about that.”

He seemed to barely hold back from adding, ‘It’s not my fault, it’s all because you’re tall.’

Ariadne smiled brightly and asked Janobi.

“What are you sorry for?”

Janobi became a mute who ate honey again. In fact, he wasn’t really sorry for anything inside.

After pondering for a long time, Janobi rummaged through his small mind and tried to apologize again for what he thought he did wrong the most.

“Sorry for speaking loudly and scaring you…”

Ariadne corrected Janobi clearly.

“I think you’re not getting the point at all right now, so memorize this if you don’t know. It’s none of your business whether others wear high heels or not. Whether you like what others wear or not, just think about it in your head and don’t say it out loud.”

And as if she had forgotten, she added.

“And don’t speak casually to someone you just met.”

Having said this, Ariadne kindly guided Janobi.

“Now, try apologizing properly according to the six elements.”

Janobi seemed to have had a brain freeze, standing stiff and unable to continue speaking. When Janobi couldn’t answer for nearly 30 seconds, Alfonso coldly ordered Janobi to leave.

“I hope you learned something from today’s events. You may go.”

It was really a thankful thing for Janobi, but Alfonso didn’t seem to have shown mercy, but simply didn’t want to be in the same space with someone like Janobi anymore.

“I am, I am utterly grateful, Your Highness!!”

Janobi got up from his prostrated position and hurriedly ran out of the waiting room.

Alfonso still seemed to be in a bad mood even after kicking Janobi out. Ariadne, who felt refreshed after Janobi disappeared, playfully joked with Alfonso.

“Why are you still upset? If anyone should be angry, it should be me!”

Alfonso stared at Ariadne blankly, and with a dark expression on his boyish face, said something uncharacteristic of a boy.

“Ariadne. You’re not being treated like that at home, are you?”

Alfonso tucked Ariadne’s hair behind her ear, his fingers lingering for a moment near her ear before reluctantly falling away.

“Don’t put up with that kind of treatment. You’re the ‘amazing Ariadne,’ right? You deserve much more respect.”

Ariadne was startled by Alfonso’s sudden words. She thought she wasn’t enduring anything these days and was only receiving love, so she was confused if it seemed different in the eyes of Alfonso, who grew up receiving only love.

After Ariadne stood still for a long time without a word, Prince Alfonso asked Ariadne a question, thinking he might have made a mistake.

“Ah… By the way, did I undo something you intentionally pulled out?”

At Alfonso’s question, Ariadne looked at the mirror on the wall. The hair near her ear, which Anna had skillfully pulled out on purpose, was neatly tucked behind her ear on one side by Alfonso’s hand.

“Pfft!”

Seeing Alfonso at a loss, Ariadne messed up his hair, partly as a joke. The hairstyle of the prince, who had come from the palace with perfume, was naturally disheveled.

Alfonso was startled and reached out to mess up Ariadne’s hair in return, but Ariadne had already anticipated Alfonso’s movement and pulled away a timing ahead.

The two faced each other and laughed.

At that moment, a servant from the de Mare household came and informed them that it was time.

“Cardinal de Mare is currently giving a speech to the guests inside. It’s almost over, so when we give the signal, you can enter with the music.”

Alfonso and Ariadne quickly tidied their disheveled hair and clothes and straightened their posture.

“Please welcome my second daughter, today’s debutante.”

− Clap clap clap clap!

Cardinal de Mare, who had no idea that the prince was his daughter’s debutante partner, only talked about his daughter without mentioning the prince in his greeting. The prince didn’t mind and faithfully escorted the debutante, the protagonist of the day, as the role of the debutante partner.

“Shall we go, young lady?”

Ariadne brightly smiled and placed her left hand on Alfonso’s right arm, which he offered to help her up the stairs, and nodded. The two, dressed in dazzlingly white clothes, took a step into the main hall against the background of the band’s performance.

− “Looking like this, the second daughter is so pretty too, right?”

− “The man next to her is really handsome too. Who is he?”

− “Isn’t that perhaps Prince Alfonso?”

A slight commotion arose among the guests who recognized that the prince was the debutante partner of the de Mare family’s second daughter. Rumors quickly filled the main hall, saying they didn’t know they would push this far, that the de Mare family was investing much more in the second daughter than the eldest, and that this wasn’t Cardinal de Mare’s connection but a personal friendship between Queen Marguerite and the second daughter.

Isabella was also among those who belatedly realized that Ariadne’s partner was Prince Alfonso. Isabella almost broke the fan she was holding.

‘How dare she!’

She had been pretending to be docile, staying locked up in the house, but who knew when she had lured the prince.

Camelia de Castiglione, the Marquis’ daughter standing next to Isabella, whispered to Isabella with a thin smile on her lips.

“Isabella, isn’t the title of ‘San Carlo’s greatest talent’ now passed to your younger sister? Your parents must be so happy to have outstanding daughters.”

Despite the last sentence added like an excuse, it was clear that Camelia’s intention was to upset Isabella. But it was such a well-landed blow that she had nothing to say.

Regardless of Isabella’s trembling shock, the ball sailed smoothly.

The debutante and her partner were to walk along the blue carpet laid in the center of the main hall to the stage at the far end of the main hall, greet the guests there, briefly listen to Cardinal de Mare’s introduction of the debutante, toast with fruit wine, and dance the first waltz.

It was the moment when they arrived at the stage at the end of the main hall and Alfonso was helping Ariadne up the stairs first.

“His Majesty the King’s congratulatory message has arrived!”

The official sent from the palace announced in a loud voice that the king’s congratulatory message and envoy had arrived.

Ariadne and Alfonso looked at each other in surprise from the top and bottom of the stairs. Ariadne thought she had received everything she could from the palace, ending with the hydrangea in the early morning and the prince in the morning. Ariadne mouthed to Alfonso.

“What’s going on?”

Alfonso also shook his head.

“I don’t know either.”

The fact that the prince was here now was unknown to either of his parents. Alfonso watched the delegation bringing the king’s congratulatory message, worrying about where the word had leaked from.

The delegation sent from the palace blew a horn to draw the guests’ attention. At the sound of the horn, the guests hurriedly paid the same respect to the incoming envoy as they would when seeing His Majesty the King.

Ariadne also quickly knelt on one knee and bowed her head. Except for Cardinal de Mare and Prince Alfonso, who nodded, all the guests in the room were kneeling.