***
***
As a child, her mother tried to raise her like a nobility.
She tried to teach her embroidery with limited thread, and forced her to memorize the tone of the aristocrats as well as the beat of ball dances.
Amarion considered it useless as no one else in Amari did it, but she could not disobey her mother. Her mother had been married in a foreign country and had been sharpened and trained to the utmost.
For her mother, who was born and raised in a wealthy and warm estate, Amari was hell.
She didn’t want to know the circumstances of the land, and she didn’t even leave the castle. She spent her time embroidering the same pattern over and over. The sun.
When she found out that her daughter was learning swordsmanship, she was furious and lashed out at the servants.
–How can a lady hold a sword?
Hearing her cries, the knights rushed in and stopped her mother.
-Will she be okay if she encounters a goblin? Will she be able to return safely? Amari is such a place!
At their words, the mother sat down and looked as though she was about to collapse. She never taught her daughter anything again.
‘And that was the end of my education as a noble.’
She remembered some things, but it was not enough for her to be able to adapt to the social circle of the Capital.
She looked back through the etiquette books she had read so far and studied with renewed vigor.
However, social etiquette was not only vast, but also cryptic.
Sumona, who was her temporary etiquette teacher, taught her how to hold a fan, how to hold a glass, how to talk to a friend, as well as an acquaintance. Honestly, she could hardly keep up.
How would anyone be able to tell the difference between her placing her index finger and middle finger on a fan and placing her index finger and thumb on a fan?
She thought it would be easier to list every type of monster.
As she was groaning in frustration, Diederick entered the room.
“As your highness knows, during the social season you must be escorted by a knight.”
She nodded vigorously.
A knight escort was essential for a lady belonging to the upper class.
She remembered reading how women of knights’ families brought several knights to show off to other wives.
Diederick bowed his head and led a knight into the room.
“He will escort you this season.”
She opened her eyes wide.
She had seen him at the training ground the other day. The red-haired knight with a cheerful pout politely knelt down and kissed the back of her hand.
“I am Carlz of Denion.”
“Ah! Please get up, Sir Calz.”
Confused, she pulled her hand away.
Playfulness gleamed in Carlz’s eyes.
“Sir Carlz is a knight and employee of the Grand Duke. He is respected throughout the empire.”
At Diederick’s explanation, Carlz happily nodded his head.
“That’s right. So that’s why I will be the escort of Madame. Won’t it be great to bring a famous knight with you?”
She laughed. It had been a long time since someone talked to her so casually.
He rubbed his chin in mock seriousness.
“I will escort you… That’s a strange thing to say.”
“What?”
“In fact, if we are together, it would be more accurate to say that I am being escorted by you.”
‘That’s a joke… right?’
He smiled mischievously. But, as if he didn’t want to explain in detail, he immediately turned his head and looked at the etiquette manual she was reading.
“Ah, are you looking at ladies’ manners? This is really troublesome.”
She nodded quickly.
“It’s so difficult…”
He laughed cheerfully.
“Don’t worry, madame. From now on, I will help you.”
“Sir Carlz?”
“Yes. Since I’m pretty popular among ladies.”
Sir Carlz smiled skillfully.
It was a good-looking smile. All his perfect teeth could be seen.
She narrowed her eyes and examined his face.
She thought he was handsome….
However, she had been having a hard time distinguishing faces recently.
She could only recognize the people she saw every day… Victor, Sumona, Diederick… everyone else ran together.
Sir Carlz jumped, interpreting her expression as one of doubt.
“It is true, madame. I really am popular.”
“It’s not that I don’t believe you, Sir Carlz.”
“Don’t lie! You’re looking at me with utter suspicion now.”
“Oh, no, it’s not…”
As she waved her hands in embarrassment, Diderick and Sumona held back their laughter and covered their mouths.
It was at that moment when Sir Carlz’s impression was established. She thought of him as a raging cockatrice*.
[*E/N: a cockatrice is a mythical two-legged beast, with the body of a dragon and the head of a chicken. It was actually first mentioned in the Bible, and entered into mainstream mythology in the 14th century.]
***
In that way, preparations for the social season began in earnest, with the addition of Sir Carlz. She took etiquette classes in the morning, practiced dancing in the afternoon, and put Victor to sleep at night.
Sir Carlz skipped training every day under the pretext of helping her. The other knights were jealous.
‘If Sumona taught me formal manners, Sir Carlz taught me informal manners.’
For example:
“When a man pulls the tip of your left sleeve, it means to go to the garden.”
“Why would he want to go to the garden?”
“Why do you think so?”
He stared at her with a mischievous smile.
As she narrowed her eyes, Sumona coughed.
The next moment, she realized what he meant.
Her face turned red in an instant.
“Why are you telling me that…!”
“Your highness should know. I don’t want to watch a duel in the middle of the capital*.”
[*E/N: he means he doesn’t want to see an innocent man get killed by the Grand Duke xD Victor is jealous~]
Sir Carlz shrugged his shoulders.
“If, by any chance, the Grand Duke sees it, push the offending man away quickly. Did you understand?”
She turned her head away from the gaze of the red-haired knight who loved to tease her.
She was worried about everything.
‘Who would court me like that?’
‘Even Victor’s affectionate gaze… I cannot understand or bear it.’
‘That’s why it makes me melt like ice in front of a fire.’
Sumona sternly criticized Sir Carlz.
“Sir, please don’t embarrass Madame. Who would dare to make such a rude offer to the Grand Duchess of Morte?”
“That’s true. You have a dragon-like man as your husband.”
Sir Carlz finished his refreshments and got up.
“You don’t have to worry. Now, shall we practice again?”
She nodded her head and followed him to an empty space in the room. Her long indoor dress, which was made for dancing, fluttered.
She learned how to dance pretty quickly. It didn’t take long for her to learn the basic four beats, the light dances of the south, and the slow and complicated foot movements of the Capital.
Come to think of it, since she was little, everyone said that she was good at everything.
She took a breath, feeling proud of herself for the first time in a long time.
Carlz greatly helped her progress.
As the self-proclaimed, ‘best dancer in the Knights Templar’, he willingly became her dance partner.
Carlz really had a knack for dancing, so he led her quite skillfully.
Although she stepped on his foot a few times, Carlz and Summona praised her often.
“That’s great, Madame. You are now almost flawless.”
“From the side, you look like a graceful swan.”
But that was the problem.
She fanned her face hard, pretending to cool off.
‘They’re really friendly people.’
Of course, the people in her hometown were also kind, but since it was a difficult place to live, friendly conversations like this rarely happened.
She had far more memories of having a splint wrapped around a broken leg or sewing leather for armor than of laughing and chatting.
It made her like this place even more.
She enjoyed the gentle atmosphere and… Victor.
When she thought of Victor, a fever rose on her cheeks again.
Naturally, a thought arose.
If she did this, would she be a suitable wife for him in any way?
Would she ever be able to become a lady worthy of him, the most respected knight on the continent?
Just then, there was a sharp knock on the door.
“Are you practicing dancing?”
“Victor!”
Victor smiled softly and walked over to her. The smell of a spring breeze lingered on his collar.
He fondly gazed at her braided and curled hair.
“Were you rehearsing for the banquet?”
“Yes. Sir Carlz is my partner.”
The Grand Duke’s gaze turned to Carlz. His yellow eyes narrowed like a griffin, and Carlz quickly stepped back.
‘What’s wrong with him?’
She looked over her shoulder, then at Victor again.
He spoke very kindly.
“Why didn’t you call me if you needed a practice partner? I was nearby.”
“Uh…”
She heard that it was against etiquette for a couple to spend excessive amounts of time together during the day, no matter what.
When she turned to look at Sumona and Diederick, they had a troubled look on their faces as if they were thinking the same thing.
Carlz’s gaze was slightly different.
To put it bluntly, his eyes said ‘Is this guy crazy?’
Then, a large hand gently turned her face towards him.
He was so close that his breath could be felt on her cheeks.
Victor spoke in a sickly sweet voice.
“Marion?”
Her face heated up in an instant.
‘Doesn’t he know that I’m weak to his face?!’
She hesitated, not knowing what to do. It was a request from him, which was rare, so of course she was inclined to grant it.
But…
She closed her eyes tightly, her heart beating out of her chest.
“I’ll just practice with Sir Carlz!”
She couldn’t break the etiquette she learned yesterday.
***