When Pride Fell At My Toes - Chapter 32



Only Noblemtl

#32. Masquerade Ball
2024.02.01.

Anyway, she had no intention of running away now. She had no ability to avoid him and investigate separately. Emilia stared quietly at her expression reflected in the window.

Now, she had a calm face naturally without any effort. She stared intently at her own eyes reflected in the window as if she was facing her inner self, and soon turned her head away as if turning away. Before she knew it,

the carriage had passed the main gate of the ducal residence. Soon, the carriage stopped and Emilia went inside, escorted by the butler who had been waiting outside.

“You’re here.”

Enrico, who had been standing in front of the window, slowly turned around. The bright sunlight scattered splendidly behind his back, which was backlit. Emilia calmly blinked her eyes as she watched him greet her with a gentle atmosphere, completely different from the way he had ignored her as if she had no value.

“The dress you’ll be wearing at the ball is ready, so try it on.”

He closed the distance and gestured to one side. The first room I entered was a room where one side was filled with mirrors. In the center, there were mannequins wearing dresses on both sides, and behind them was a space where curtains could be drawn. The room was so wide that it felt like I was in a costume shop.

Emilia nodded obediently and approached the maids who were waiting. For some reason, the back of her head felt prickly, but the strange feeling soon disappeared. The maids moved in unison. Emilia quietly left herself to the maids who came inside the curtain carrying dresses and accessories.

The first dress was made of navy fabric with white jewels attached to the top and bottom, revealing all of her shoulders. The skirt of the dress, which looked like stars in the night sky, was puffy like a ballerina’s tutu, giving it a light and airy feel.

The maids put on accessories with small, transparent jewels and then sent Emilia out through the curtain.

She saw Enrico sitting on the couch in front of the mirror. Enrico’s hand, which was about to light a cigarette, stopped. He stared at her for a moment, then blinked briefly and carefully examined her from head to toe with an appraising gaze.

‘There’s no such thing as playing with real dolls.’

For a moment, he almost burst out laughing, but held it back. Emilia simply quietly accepted his uncomfortable gaze. When he gestured vaguely in the air, the maid brought over a mask made of blue feathers.

The mask, which was designed to reveal only the mouth, looked very fancy, perhaps because of the very long feathers. Enrico tilted his head to the side, took the cigarette out of his mouth, and threw it on the table.

“Next.”

He spoke briefly, lowering his gaze to the cigarette lying on the table.

‘Do I really have to try on all of those dresses?’

Emilia followed the maids who were leading her through the curtains and looked at the mannequins around her. She was already tired, since there seemed to be more than ten at a glance.

I hope they could decide on three.

It was a very small breeze. The dress was already on its fifth as if she had no intention of even listening to that one.

‘Are you really going to try them all on?’

Emilia let out a small sigh as she stepped inside the curtain. This time, the apricot-colored dress seemed to be the best of the dresses she had worn so far, but Enrico just kept repeating the word next without saying anything.

The maids were bringing out dresses in the order the mannequins were placed. Feeling that it couldn’t be done, she chose the pure white dress with delicate embroidery that had caught her eye the most earlier.

The dress, which revealed her round shoulders, had a large jewel and small pearls in the center of the chest, and a lavender ribbon wrapped around the shoulders and waist. The skirt, which spread out abundantly, was also made of delicate lace on top of silver silk that shimmered faintly, creating a strange atmosphere, so it looked secretly gorgeous. She

wore a necklace with large pearls as an accessory. Emilia gathered strength in her heavy neck and walked out of the curtain. Enrico, who had been resting his chin on the back of the chair with one arm, slowly raised his head.

The thick eyebrows that were neatly placed under his smooth forehead moved subtly. For the first time today, she felt uncomfortable at his strangely strange eyes.

‘Why aren’t you telling me to wear a mask?’

Emilia lowered her eyes and opened her mouth.

“… … Should I wear a mask?”

“No.”

His voice was firm. When she raised her head again, their eyes met as if they had been waiting for it. He got up from his seat.

“Everyone, get out.”

At his soft command, the room emptied in an instant. Her composure wavered slightly at the sudden situation where they were alone.

A shadow fell over her head. He stopped just a step away. A wave of agitation passed through his jade-colored eyes as he looked at his wide chest.

“I thought I’d try on different colors, but white suits you so well.”

His long fingers touched the tip of her chin. Emilia’s eyes were still looking down even as his hand slowly lifted. His index finger traced the line of her chin as if it were a line, then moved toward her ear. She opened her eyes with a start at the feeling of his lightly tapping her earlobe.

His eyes, which she had thought were just lazy, were filled with a strange heat. It was a gaze she had never seen before. She was somewhat embarrassed because it seemed different from how she had seen herself before. In the meantime, his hands were cupping her chin and cheeks as if they were hanging over her.

“It’s too bad that I have to wear a mask.”

His thumb slowly swept over her eyes. It was an extremely weak touch, as if he was taking care of her delicate skin, but strangely, a faint pinkish afterimage remained in her eyes. As if someone was starting to have a fever.

“I’ll ruin the perfect picture.”

But even that made Emilia’s eyes tremble slightly for a moment. The heat that had seeped into her purple eyes a moment ago was merely a desire for artistic value, and her mind grew cold at his words.

How could she have expected him to treat her as a person? Now, the fact that he took it for granted that she was treated as an object was so natural was beyond misery.

Emilia tightly shut her eyes and then lowered them. Then she raised her hand and gently pushed his wrist away.

“Then, can I wear this dress?”

His brow furrowed slightly at her polite tone. As if he didn’t like something, but didn’t know exactly what it was, he quietly looked down at her and then firmly grasped her hand that was floating in the air.

He quickly turned around.

“Okay.”

Soon, standing in front of the table with a crooked posture, he opened the gold cigarette case he had taken out and put a cigarette in his mouth. The sound of the cigarette ash burning echoed throughout the room.

Emilia took a deep breath and stared at his back as he raised his head.

“Come here right after you’re done. I’ll leave as soon as I’m ready.”

“Yes.”

His side profile was revealed as he slightly turned his head, and his languid words flowed out between his lips that were emitting long, hazy smoke. However, her relaxed face seemed emotionless, and a strange irritation seeped into her reaction.

“Go back now.”

Enrico strode out of the room. Emilia blinked her eyes for a moment at the first farewell order.

***

The night of the masquerade had arrived. As soon as she arrived at the duke’s residence, Emilia hurriedly began to dress up.

She tied her hair loosely, put on a dress that had been adjusted to fit her body better, and, as he had said, began to complete her picture-perfect appearance. She

wore long silk gloves and held a gorgeous mask in her hand. There was a diamond above one eye, and the mask, which was decorated with a rich white feather like a gorgeous peacock, also had a white mesh to cover the mouth.

Before leaving the room, Emilia took a quick look at herself in the mirror. It felt so different from when she was dressed up for the ballet performance. The way she looked more noble than anyone else was incomparable to when she wore a dress when she was young.

‘… If my parents were alive, I would have shown them this and waited excitedly for the debutante.’

She remembered her parents talking about how she would look like when she was young.

Her heart ached as she remembered their affectionate whispers that they would make her dress more splendid than anyone else’s and make her more beautiful than anyone else in the world.

She saw herself looking at herself in the mirror. Her mouth was bitter. Emilia turned away as if she was looking at her current appearance with a sad smile. When

she opened the door and went down the stairs, she saw Enrico waiting below. He slowly turned around, wearing a pure white suit that seemed to match her dress code.

“… … .”

“… … .”

A strange silence stretched out between them for a few seconds. Enrico was a perfect figure, one that would have been believed to be one of the statues in this mansion.

His features, sharp and beautifully balanced beneath his hair as black as the night sky, were flawless. Even to her, who hated him, he was so beautiful, so she could imagine how attractive he must be to others.

“… … It suits you well.”

His eyes, staring intently at her, seemed to sparkle for a moment as if they were receiving light. Emilia nodded awkwardly at his belated words.