◈ 171. [Side Story] Partner
It almost developed into a romantic atmosphere just like that.
Also, that never happened in my life.
It was because I stepped on the serenade’s feet four times within 10 minutes of starting dance practice.
“right… ugh… … .”
At first, he laughed and said it was okay for a serenade, but after his foot was stepped on four times, he ended up crouching down and weeping.
i’m sorry Are you sick a lot?
“Are you doing this on purpose, sir? … ?”
Serenade looked up at me with red eyes.
“It’s not that you don’t like the girl and you’re bothering her… … ?”
“Not really. I have no such bad taste.”
You ask me to teach you how to dance, but then you harass me by stepping on my feet in succession? It’s creative, but it’s too complicated bullying.
Looking down at Serenade’s reddened feet, I let out a small sigh.
“I’m so sorry. I guess I’m not good enough.”
It was much more difficult than I thought to move while breathing with someone.
Even so, I never thought I would step on my fiancée’s foot so gently.
“It reminds me of my engagement day. It was already 10 years ago.”
The serenade that arose with my support murmured.
“Looking back, I wasn’t really good at dancing back then.”
“Did I step on your foot then?”
“Did you just step on your foot? My skirt caught my foot and the two of us fell side by side.”
Serenade covered her mouth and laughed.
“It was painful and embarrassing, but that time… It was the happiest moment of my life.”
The serenade, which he muttered far away, shook his feet a few times and nodded vigorously.
“Now, the pain is gone! This time, I will teach you well from the beginning!”
Serenade came half a step closer to me.
“Come on again. from the hand.”
My left hand and Serenade’s right hand are clasped together.
She took my right hand with her left hand and guided me to place it under her left armpit.
“Put it here. yes like this.”
And Serenade’s left hand was on my shoulder.
This is the basic posture of the waltz, a representative ballroom dance.
Our bodies are so close that we can almost breathe. If you listen a little, you will be able to hear each other’s heartbeat.
“… It’s okay.”
Serenade, who met my gaze, hurriedly lowered her eyes and caught her breath.
“Now I’m going to go step by step. I will lead until you get used to it.”
I moved my feet cautiously as the serenade led me. Be careful not to step on Serenade’s feet.
“Ego, relax your body. Don’t be nervous and take it slow. left foot forward. right foot to the side. collect and like Bring your right foot behind your left foot to the side. How are you doing… … .”
Time passes like that.
“One, two, three. great. One, two, three. That’s it.”
After that, I was able to practice the dance without stepping on the serenade’s feet anymore, probably because my tension was relaxed and my body was warmed up.
Serenade also seemed to have relaxed and smiled with a more comfortable face.
“You get used to it quickly, sir!”
“… .”
“If you practice a little more, you will have no problems at official events.”
I looked at her natural smile, which I had never seen before.
Serenade couldn’t make eye contact for a long time and quickly lowered her eyes again. The cheeks are red.
While staring at her like that, I slowly raised my voice.
“serenade.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Your family will soon be destroyed.”
The warm air froze.
Serenade’s shoulders stiffened at my sudden words. With a creak, the steps stopped.
Serenade, who was looking at me with a stiff face, stuttered.
“… yes? what is that… … .”
“It’s literally a serenade. Your family will soon perish.”
I glanced toward the window. The image of us dancing in this auditorium will also be seen outside the building.
“Keep dancing. There will be eyes watching over us.”
I started to lead the waltz as I had learned. Serenade was bewildered and followed my movements.
“Learning to dance was an excuse. I came to tell you this.”
Since this was the original purpose, I was able to talk to a member of the opposite sex asking me to teach him how to dance. Well, it’s a situation where you have to learn to dance.
Into Serenade’s ear, I recounted what I had heard.
It is said that the emperor decided to throw away the winter silver top from a long time ago.
When the road maintenance project is over, the engagement between me and Serenade will be canceled and the Imperial Family will swallow the Winter Silver Merchant. And now that the time has come.
I asked the pale Serenade.
“Didn’t you feel the portent?”
“That’s right, the last few years when my husband treated me coldly… I thought you might end up breaking up.”
Serenade shook her trembling head slightly.
“I never dreamed that you were going to trample on our family itself… .”
The imperial family intends to devour the top of Winter Silver intact.
In the process, there’s no way the owner, the Wintersilver family, will be quietly left alone. Annihilation is as obvious as seeing fire.
“So serenade. i came here To protect your family and your company.”
In the game, the Winter Silver Merchant does not do any business with the Crossroads.
Probably because the Wintersilver Merchant was mobilized for other tasks within the empire after being swallowed up by the imperial family.
There will be no cases of being entangled with frontier fronts.
‘Do you think I’ll leave it like that?’
We must keep the Wintersilver family alive and make it a strong supporter of the Crossroads.
If you can do that, it will be of great help for future attacks.
Above all, I decided to live as Ash.
If so, it would be natural for him to save Ash’s first love and fiancée.
“In a few days, I will have a meeting with Obama and my older brothers.”
guardian meeting.
You will be able to meet the emperor and princes on the spot and understand the true intentions they put in them.
And if we grasp the true intentions, we will be able to devise clear measures to save Wintersilver.
“Before that, we must prepare ourselves.”
I looked into Serenade’s quivering silver eyes.
“Tell me a serenade.”
“yes?”
“What products does your merchant company deal with?”
How can I save this small merchant family like a wind lantern?
The conclusion I came to after much thought was this.
“Among those products… Is there any ‘information’?”
Serenade’s eyes widened. I continued
“Information is a luxury item that is more expensive than any other commodity and can be fatally traded.”
“Sorry. However, our upper house has been trading only physical products… … .”
“Then, let’s create a new item now.”
I slowly let go of Serenade’s hand and pulled myself away from her.
“From now on, I will come to you to learn how to dance every day until the day of the party.”
“… .”
“During this week, you have to reorganize the entire upper section so that you can buy and sell ‘information’ as a commodity.”
The words are grandiose and there is nothing special.
You need to be able to deliver information quickly and safely.
And it shouldn’t be too difficult for the top of Winter Silver, which has a nationwide distribution network and has been involved in road projects across the country.
After the dance, the two should bow to each other. Me and Serenade bowed toward each other.
“It was a good time. Husband.”
“I enjoyed the serenade too.”
This is how today’s dance lecture ended.
It was fine when I was attaching my body, but when I fell and distanced myself, I felt awkward.
I shyly scratched the back of my head and prepared to leave.
“Then, that’s it for today. I’ll go soon.”
“… Husband.”
The serenade stammered out on my back as I turned around.
“To be honest… I thought you hated me and our troupe.”
“… .”
“I’m glad you did this for us, but is there a reason why you changed your mind?”
“Do I need a reason?”
I smiled and looked back at her.
“We’ve been promised marriage.”
“A girl… .”
Serenade lowered her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Don’t you hate a girl from a humble merchant family?”
“Never. never.”
From Crossroad’s point of view, he was always the one I wanted to trade with.
As for Ash… … You say it was your first love
I don’t know how it feels because I’ve lived a life far from those bittersweet words.
There’s no reason to hate it.
I just want to be a good partner. Both on the business side and on the ballroom dance side.
“I’ll come again tomorrow.”
Serenade bit her lip and looked at me with complicated eyes. I pointed at her feet with my fingertips.
“Put some ointment on the top of your foot.”
***
After that, I went to Serenade every day and learned social dancing and party manners.
I could feel the watchful eyes everywhere, but Fernandez didn’t really stop me after that.
I didn’t care too much and decided to act on my own.
3 days after that. morning.
After dancing for several days in a row, I dragged my stiff low-quality body and ate at the detached palace restaurant, but somehow I felt that the atmosphere of the detached palace was more exciting than usual.
Excitement was evident on the faces of the servants passing by.
“What are you doing today? How many days are left until the Victory Festival?”
When I asked Alberto, who served my meal, Alberto replied with a benevolent smile.
“The news came in this morning. Today, His Highness Prince Lark is said to be improving.”
“… !”
First Prince Lark has returned from the Western Front.
“A triumphal parade is being prepared at the west gate of the ecliptic. It is natural for the citizens to be happy.”
Alberto, who poured tea into my cup, glanced outside.
“How can Your Highness go to meet your older brother?”
“of course!”
Of course this body from the Eastern Kingdom of Courtesy! I have to go to meet my older brother who has come back from a long way. I want to see your face too.
So, along with Alberto, we rode out in a carriage towards the west gate of the imperial capital.
Judging from the cheers resounding in succession along the western main street, where access is restricted, it seems that the triumphal parade has already begun.
The boulevard was already full of people, so Alberto stopped my carriage a short distance from the road.
Soldiers lined up along the boulevard chanted one by one each time the triumphal parade approached.
“You are the Emperor’s first son and the successor of His Highness Lark ‘Avalanche’ Everblack, commander-in-chief of the Imperial Army!”
Wow-!
Citizens flocking to the left and right of the boulevard cheered and scattered flowers. It feels like fans who greet idols who have returned from the airport.
Between the pouring flowers and the cheers and applause – 1st Prince Lark was riding a horse.
He must have been around his early 30s.
He was dressed in dull metal armor with a practical design, but the white cloak fluttering behind his back was gorgeous.
Her black hair, neatly combed back, had a dark blue aura.
The two deep-set eyes beneath the thick eyebrows were also dark blue.
That man is the military leader of the entire empire and the commander of the western front. and an undefeated knight.
“Lark… .”
Wow… … !
Despite the blessings and applause of all the citizens, Lark remained expressionless.
No matter how it was, it was a triumphal parade, so it would be nice to laugh once in a while, but I quietly drove my horse forward with a blunt gaze.
“Hyung, did something not bother you? Why is your expression like that?”
Alberto smiled bitterly at my question.
“You’ve been like that your whole life, haven’t you? Because he rarely changes his expression.”
Oh, is that kind of personality? Well, it feels like that marble statue-like face has been hardened since I was born.
It was then. Lark, who was improving, suddenly lifted his head and looked left and right, then glanced this way. hmm?
His dark blue eyes met mine. uh… ?
Taat!
As it was, Lark jumped over the citizens who drove the horse and filled the roadside.
Citizens screamed in unison, but he didn’t care, and he started moving towards my carriage.
I unknowingly swallowed my dry saliva.
What is it? What is it?
