Amidst receiving congratulations, Hae-na’s thoughts were filled only with Fernando, who had not yet appeared. She couldn’t fully enjoy the ball, preoccupied with thoughts of when he would come and what kind of greeting she should offer.

‘It would have been better if he had come to the ball as my partner.’

It was regrettable that it didn’t happen that way. Despite continuously looking for Fernando until yesterday, their relationship had not become any closer. Without Etienne, whom she considered an opportunity, she felt only the solid wall that Fernando had erected.

‘But I won’t easily give up on you, Fernando.’

She accidentally overheard what he had said to Etienne in the dressing room. While sharing rumors about Prince Ludvig, he held her hand and suggested they come to the ball together, but Etienne refused.

Unable to do the same, Hae-na confessed to him in the dressing room and used it as an excuse to meet him repeatedly.

She even enlisted her parents to get involved, although they came separately for this ball, she was eyeing the next opportunity.

Hae-na received compliments as the belle of the ball, but she only exchanged appropriate greetings and continued to gaze towards the door.

‘Etienne shouldn’t have come in with us.’

Hoping Etienne had changed her mind and wouldn’t come in holding Fernando’s hand.

“To ruin the once-in-a-lifetime coming-of-age ceremony like this…”
Someone approached Hae-na, grumbling discontentedly. Like her, it was Rose who welcomed her debutante this time. When Hae-na, checking who the other person was, tried to look back at the door, Rose initiated a conversation.

“Aren’t you bothered?”

“About what?”

Hae-na responded nonchalantly, sipping champagne as if it didn’t matter.

“People are only talking about Etienne.”

Upon hearing the name Etienne, Hae-na looked at Rose. She, heavily adorned, wore a disappointed expression as she failed to attract attention.

“They’re all gossiping about how Etienne will appear in a beautiful way and come with a partner. They say Etienne is the protagonist of this ball, and we’re just extras.”

“Extras.”

Hae-na muttered the most annoying word among the things Rose said. Thanks to her lovely appearance and ability to read the atmosphere well, she had always been the protagonist everywhere. Everyone loved and liked her.

However, subtly, that popularity had waned, and now it had drastically diminished to the point of being unbearable.

Many liked Hae-na, but the person she desired didn’t look at her. Due to the attention of both princes, including Fernando, people’s focus shifted towards Etienne.
Finally, Hae-na sensed the atmosphere flowing through the ball. There were more people looking at the door than at her. They were waiting for Etienne to arrive, eager to see who would accompany her.

“Yeah. The protagonist of this ball is Etienne.”

Why did it turn out like this? How did Etienne come to receive the attention of those men?

It probably started when she was sixteen. Before that, Etienne hadn’t formed deep relationships with anyone, but after becoming close to Fernando, she soon began to associate with the crown prince.

Suddenly, even Prince Rudvi expressed interest in her from time to time.

“So, it’s not that great. My debutante is a total failure.”

“That’s not what’s important.”

Hae-na shook her head. Of course, she didn’t feel good about becoming an extra after always living as the protagonist. However, now she didn’t care about anything else as long as she could have Fernando.

She needed to shake Fernando’s heart without getting excited about people’s attention.

As if responding to Hae-na’s determination, the door opened, and the direct descendants of the Suprahu Duke entered. Starting from the Duke and Duchess of Suprahu to their children.

Hae-na’s eyes sparkled when she saw Fernando slowly entering from the end.

Putting down her champagne, Hae-na went straight to Fernando, pushing aside anyone blocking her way if necessary.
And the moment Hae-na saw a woman trying to talk to Fernando, she suddenly grabbed his wrist.

“Fernando.”

In response to Fernando turning to her, she smiled as if delighted.

“I’ve been waiting. Over here.”

The woman who was about to talk to Fernando was surprised and tried to grab him, but Hae-na was faster.

She took Fernando’s wrist and silently walked toward one of the banquet halls. Whenever he paused, she would point and indicate that there was a destination.

“Here we are.”

Ascending the stairs to a relatively less crowded area, Hae-na let go of Fernando’s hand.

“Sorry for dragging you here without any explanation.”

Apologizing while looking at his indifferent face, she added an apology, hoping he would respond to her words in any way.

“It’s fine.”

Though it wasn’t a friendly tone, hearing Fernando’s response made Hae-na happy. She smiled and gestured below.

“You can see the door well from here. That’s why I brought you here.”

Seeing Fernando’s gaze directed downward, it seemed like he was listening to her. Without a pause, Hae-na continued talking to him.