“My lady, what’s the matter?”

Sending a gaze that was both affectionate and indifferent, almost unfathomable, it was none other than Ivan.

“Nothing happened.”

Not wanting anyone to catch her in this state, Biare let out a faint sneer at the situation that wasn’t going as she wished until the end.

“Nothing indeed. With such clear tear marks…”

While showing a crooked attitude as if telling her to deceive those who could be deceived, Ivan looked at her with seemingly worried eyes.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

‘Please, could you just shut your mouth? I sincerely beg you.’

As her already dizzy mind became even more complicated because of him, Biare inwardly cursed.

“If you wish, tell me. I’ll punish whoever made you cry.”

‘Ha, punishment…’

Not knowing what she was thinking, Ivan’s attitude of adding fuel to the fire was quite a sight.

“Why don’t you stop causing trouble and come to me?”

“…”

What exactly was she to him? She wondered, yet she never wanted to know what Ivan’s heart truly felt.

She only desperately wished not to be swayed by him any longer.

Exhausted beyond measure, Biare lowered her gaze to her captured wrist and then twisted it to pull it away.

“The daughter of House Ruschef dares to request of Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

“Alright. Speak, my lady.”

He was an arrogant person who would only hear what he wanted to hear and say what he wanted to say until the end.

Determined to convey her firm intention, Biare spoke while looking straight into Ivan’s eyes.

“Please, just stop…”

“What?”

“Please stop interfering in my life.”

No longer wanting to face him, Biare passed by Ivan, who seemed to have stopped, stunned by the unexpected counterattack, and left the garden.

Returning to her room, she sat weakly on the floor, not even thinking of changing out of her dress.

Unlike in the past, Dension did not attend her birthday banquet this time.

‘Why on earth…?’

Biare’s reddened eyes, which had burst with resentful indignation, became hazily blurred, and soon tears flowed down her cheeks.

Her insides were just burning black, as there was no way to find the answer to the endless question that had been rummaging through her mind all along.

In the end, the memory of her first meeting with Dension vanished like a mirage, naturally remaining only in her memories.

Biare couldn’t know why he didn’t come to the birthday banquet, but one thing was certain: their future was changing now.

‘I was wearing this dress then too…’

Fiddling with the light blue Sabrina dress, she struggled to compose her emptied heart and wiped away the remaining tear marks.

Taking a deep breath, Biare rang the chime bell, and soon maids entered one after another to attend to her.

As she was dressed more formally than usual, Biare took off the heavy and uncomfortable banquet dress, corset, and petticoat in order, and changed into a light chemise.

When she washed her face with warm water brought by another maid, she finally seemed to come to her senses.

One of the maids helping to tidy the room pointed to a pair of practice dance shoes placed to one side and asked.

“Young lady, what should we do with these dance shoes?”

Biare had hurriedly taken them out while preparing for this birthday banquet, but ended up not using them.

Looking down silently at the worn and frayed dance shoes, she answered the maid.

“Leave them here and go out.”

“Understood, young lady.”

The maids quickly tidied her room, gave a short bow, and then left with her clothes and washbasin.

Biare’s bedroom became quiet again, almost to the point of desolation, and she looked at the dance shoes with a somewhat complicated feeling.

“Sion, there will be no more days when I dance with you in the future.”

Since becoming lovers with him in her past life, Dension had always been Biare’s dance partner, which made her feel even more troubled.

Looking back, he had steadfastly attended unwanted social events with her as her partner for her sake.

‘Back then, my dancing skills were really terrible.’

A faint smile spreading across her lips, Biare gently recalled the distant memories of the past.

Not long after getting together with Dension, Biare requested him to be her partner at the first social event she faced.

Knowing well that he didn’t like social activities, she was very worried and careful when sending the letter.

Contrary to such worries, Dension readily accepted her partner request, and Biare secretly jumped for joy.

That day was when she was supposed to dance with him for the first time at the banquet hall of the Verdeum Marquis’s residence.

They were stumbling from the beginning as they danced to the accompaniment.

“Ouch―”

“Are you alright, Bia?”

This was already the third time he had stepped on her foot, so Biare showed tears, but soon shook her head and answered.

“…I’m fine.”

She thought she should endure this much trouble since she was the one who first offered Dension the position of banquet partner.

But who would have known? That Dension Verdeum had such poor dancing skills.

“It seems to hurt a lot.”

As she quietly gazed at his eyes watching her, all discomfort seemed to disappear.

According to Dension, the previous Marquis and his wife had attached a capable teacher to improve their son’s dancing skills, which showed no talent, but the result didn’t change much.

To this, they naturally gave up on his hopeless dancing skills and humbly accepted him as he was.

In reality, Dension seemed to have memorized all the dance steps, but for some reason, his body and head seemed to move separately.

Although she knew well that he was trying hard, Biare couldn’t help but sigh as the frequency of stepping on her feet increased.

Soon, as her patience ran out, the previously merciful Biare disappeared without a trace, and she glared not unkindly at the man in front of her who didn’t know what to do.

‘Just how many times is this.’

Thinking that her feet would not survive if they were stepped on any more, Biare stopped the dance practice and said as if complaining.

“Marquis, my feet hurt too much.”

“I’m really sorry, Bia.”

Looking at Dension’s drooping shoulders with a gloomy expression, Biare patted his back with her delicate hand.

“It’s okay. Shall we rest a little and then continue?”

“Yes, that sounds good.”

At his noticeably brightened expression, she almost burst out laughing.

They took seats at a table prepared on one side of the banquet hall, and Biare decided to ask him about something she had been curious about.

“By the way, why do you call me by a nickname, Marquis?”

Since his confession, he had been calling her Bia instead of ‘my lady’.

Of course, she didn’t dislike it, but Biare was quite embarrassed to hear a nickname from someone other than family.

To this, Dension raised his thick eyebrows and rather asked back as if puzzled, in a sulky tone.

“Come to think of it, why don’t you call me by a nickname, Bia?”

Flustered by this, Biare pretended to think deeply, cleared her throat, and said.

“That’s… I still need to prepare my heart.”

“Then I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

Dension, who was smiling with satisfaction, glanced at her feet for a moment, and soon with a hardened expression, he said.

“Please wait a moment. I’ll be right back.”

As his blue eyes were moving busily, Biare nodded and answered without knowing what was going on.

“Alright. I’ll be waiting.”

He hurriedly left the banquet hall and returned after some time with a cold compress towel and ointment.

Then he casually knelt on one knee in front of Biare, and soon looked up at her and said.

“Would you place your foot on my knee?”

Feeling embarrassed at the thought of showing her foot to someone else, Biare flatly refused.

“It’s not serious enough to need such treatment.”

Nevertheless, Dension seemed concerned about her instep and spoke once more in a worried voice.

“It would put my mind at ease.”

“It’s really fine…”

Reluctantly giving her foot to him, Biare’s face turned red with embarrassment, while he still wore a worried expression.

“I’m sorry for hurting you.”

Dension carefully wrapped her foot with the towel for a cold compress, and after finishing the compress, he applied plenty of the ointment he had brought to her instep.

Biare found this situation only embarrassing, so she covered her face with her hands.

Even her family had never looked at or touched her feet so attentively.

“It’s embarrassing to even receive treatment.”

To this, he shook his head and answered in a more firm voice, as if soothing a child.

“Treatment should be received in a timely manner.”

Yet, as if something had occurred to him, he let out a shallow sigh and added with a dimple on his left cheek.

“If your instep swells again even after this, please let me know.”

Biare looked at him curiously and tilted her head.

“Are you planning to send medicine?”

No matter how effective the ointment from the Marquis’s residence was, if he really intended to send medicine, she was about to refuse, saying there was no need.

“No. At that time, I will take responsibility for you.”

At Dension’s playful smile, Biare’s cheeks turned crimson red, and she lightly slapped his shoulder, careful not to hurt him.

It was Biare’s secret that she had briefly imagined a future with him at that moment, too embarrassed to tell anyone.