Clicking, clicking, she stepped forward. Her toes trembled and her legs wobbled unsteadily.

Each time, the clenching hand of the man filled with strength, firmly supporting her.

“Sigh…”

Evelia unknowingly exhaled a deep breath. An indescribable tension came over her.

Although it was not her first time attending a party, her heart pounded like a girl facing her debutante ball. The reason was paradoxically that she was holding the hand of the man she had wanted most in her life.

“You’ve been very tense.”

A gentle voice suddenly penetrated her ear.

Evelia looked up at him. Unlike her, he looked utterly calm even as he held her hand.

It was rather annoying, but also fortunate that at least one of them was calm. Her complex feelings leaked out in an instant.

“……This is my first time going to the ballroom with Your Highness.”

“So, are you worried?”

“Worried……sir?”

“Like the certain gaze that will be focused on you, such as Her Majesty and Lilia, and her friends.”

Evelia’s pupils shook finely. The Empress and Lilia. Just the mention of them filled her with an intense aversion, as if she was facing them.

Instinctively, her fingertips filled with strength and became stiff. Liurian gripped her hand even harder.

“They will surely look at you with an unkind gaze.”

“……I suppose so.”

“With you suddenly holding my hand and wearing the empire’s only necklace, they won’t be able to look kindly.”

Evelia let out a soft sigh.

He was right. Considering what she knew about the character of the Empress and Lilia, it was more than enough.

“Do you know that the necklace comes from Count Montrol?”

“……I’ve heard rumors to that effect.”

“You’ll also know that Count Montrol is Her Majesty’s man. So they’ll find out right away. That I’m the one who gave you that necklace.”

“…….”

“Even if they find out during the party and glare at you as if to kill you, don’t mind. I will always be by your side to protect you.”

Evelia looked up at Liurian as if bewitched. He was still looking calm, even though he was casually tossing out something far from light.

It was Evelia who began to feel anxious because of that.

“Can I really wear this necklace to the ballroom?”

“Why not?”

“If Her Majesty the Empress becomes angry, as you say, it will not only put me in trouble but also Your Highness…….”

“Are you saying I have to care about Her Majesty’s opinion even when giving a gift to my beloved?”

“That’s……!”

Evelia stopped in her tracks, her face incredulous at Liurian’s blunt response.

Look out even when giving a gift?

He was the one who’d always been obedient to the Empress. Living as her puppet, eating only what she gave, doing only what she wanted, waiting in her comfortable arms for the day he would become emperor.

Now he was voicing complaints about the Empress. It was beyond surprising; it was shocking.

Evelia stared at Liurian with trembling eyes, taking a deep breath.

Her emotions kept being shaken. Even without his changed attitude making her heart swell, now her heart was drawn to him, as if she had seen a ray of hope.

Whether that path was a safe one to trust and follow, or whether it was a dangerous path filled with traps everywhere, she still didn’t know for sure.

“Sigh.”

She exhaled the heavy breath that had built up. No matter how many times she thought about it, it was dangerous. She couldn’t just blindly rush toward him without any assurance.

So she had to ask. She had to ask and confirm.

“This necklace was something Princess Lilia really wanted. Did you know that?”

“Why should I know that?”

“It would have been good if you had known.”

“Why?”

“Because Princess Lilia wanted that necklace very much.”
Evelia faced Liurian with an unprecedented brazen face. If someone unaware of the situation heard it, they might have thought it was the ranting of a madwoman, cheering for her husband and the emperor’s love.

Liurian seemed to think so too.

“Your words now sound as if you should have gifted that necklace to Lellia instead of yourself.”

His sharply drawn eyebrows reflected his discomfort. But Evelia neither faltered nor retreated.

“She would have been very pleased, Your Highness.”

“So, you should have gifted that necklace to Lellia to please her; is that what you want to say?”

His exact point escaped on a low voice. Evelia was silent. It was an affirmative sign.

He understood the point and yet he was silent. The wait grew longer. Gradually, a budding unease began to gnaw at Evelia’s heart.

“I don’t know what you want, but even if I could turn back time, I have no intention of gifting that necklace to Lellia.”

“…….”

“Is that a sufficient answer?”

It was a perfect response. There was no word that could assure more. Yet the anxiety that had already filled her heart did not easily subside.

She needed more assurance. Just a bit. Just a bit more.

“Why?”

“What do you mean ‘why’?”

“Why do you say that you have no intention of gifting this necklace to Her Highness?”

In Evelia’s questioning voice, there was a fair amount of emotion. But there was not a single tremor in Liurian.