When Pride Fell At My Toes - Chapter 33



Only Noblemtl

#33. Shadow Silhouette
2024.02.02.

For some reason, it felt like it had been a long time since I last met his gaze. On the day of the dress fitting, I had been busy avoiding eye contact, and on Tuesday, he had left as soon as I saw the performance, so there was nothing to bump into.

Was he acting so docile that he didn’t bother me? But besides that, wasn’t there a time when he had gently scratched my insides and worried me? Emilia slowly approached him and placed her fingertips on the large hand held out in front of her.

His body temperature was still high. How could this be happening even though we had only touched this much? It was so different from his cold personality. He held her hand tightly.

She stared down at the hand she had been holding, then turned around and looked up at him with a faint smile on her lips. Well, it wasn’t anything new. To her, he was just someone who was different in his very existence.

***

The splendid palace built in gold was softly enveloped in the blue moonlight. The carriages that arrived one by one and the people who gathered at the ballroom were all wearing luxurious things all over their bodies.

Among the people who were adorned with such splendidness that there was not a single mask gap, some women in particular entered, exposing their skin as if they had forgotten the cold.

A man who did not hide his desires was next to a woman who showed off her body by wrapping a thin scarf around her body as if to hide her goosebumps.

Although they were a gathering of the upper class who talked about being noble, they enjoyed tonight’s party comfortably as if everything was hidden by a mask.

“It’s better than I thought. I was going to go back if it was a boring party.”

The masquerade ball started as soon as they entered, so the woman wearing the red mask raised the corners of her lips smoothly as she watched everyone enjoying themselves.

A man wearing a silver mask with huge horns standing next to her, Alessandro, let out a soft laugh.

“I wanted you to enjoy yourself while you’re here. “We’ve already discussed what we want anyway.”

“Yes. I got a moment of freedom and you got a justification.”

Vivian Carnth looked very satisfied. Although she was the first princess of the Kingdom of Farnt, she had a generous personality and liked to play around, so she enjoyed these secret parties quite a bit.

The problem was that the king, who knew her personality, would never send her to another country, but since Alexander mentioned harmony and invited the princess, she couldn’t refuse, so this situation inevitably happened.

When Vivian suddenly received the invitation, she wondered what was going on when he invited her to the Kingdom of Treano, but he demanded exclusive rights to the parts and in return, he would occasionally invite her to these debauched parties. She was so satisfied.

Of course, if the royal family of the Kingdom of Carnth knew this, they might have said something about giving it to a party, but there was no particular loss if they gave exclusive rights to Treano, so it was a deal that wasn’t a problem.

In the first place, the Kingdom of Carnth was the first place to build a train, so it was a place where wealth was accumulating day by day and money was not a problem. In this world where science is advancing day by day, the condition of giving up one of the small parts of a train and receiving a part of a newly developed car was not a bad condition.

‘We can’t invent cars now. It wouldn’t be bad if successful people bought a lot of our parts and fostered deep harmony in the process.’

Alessandro took a glass of champagne from a passing servant’s tray and handed it to Vivian. Vivian smiled seductively, her red lips curled up as if hiding her true feelings.

“For your success.”

“For your freedom.”

Since she was holding back on using titles to hide her identity, the conversation felt more relaxed. Vivian took a sip of champagne and slowly looked around.

“By the way, didn’t you say there was someone I could introduce you to?”

“Yes, he’ll be here soon. If you have to get married for political reasons anyway, wouldn’t it be better to have someone who won’t touch you even if you’re free?”

“Well, that’s true. But who is that?”

“Who is that? Ah! “He’s coming right over there.”

He had a body that stood out even from afar, so he could spot him right away. Alessandro smiled as he watched Enrico enter, but his lips hardened when he saw the woman entering alongside

him. Vivian stared blankly at Enrico, whose aura was unusual even with his mask on, and drank the remaining champagne as he looked down at the woman next to him.

“I think you already have a partner.”

A disinterested laugh escaped her lips. Vivian handed the empty glass to a passing attendant and glanced at Alessandro. Alessandro,

who had seemed cheerful just a moment ago, seemed to be in a rather gloomy mood. Vivian quickly stepped back, feeling that he would get involved in something tiring if he continued like this.

“I don’t really want to get involved in other people’s affairs. I’m already busy enjoying myself with the man who approaches me first, so why?”

She raised both hands and shrugged her shoulders once. Then he pointed to the direction he had been looking at for a while and waved his hand gently.

“I’ll go over there and have fun. Please take good care of our kingdom for a while.”

Alessandro’s gaze was still fixed on Emilia next to Enrico. His sunken purple eyes glowed darkly.

As soon as Vivian left, Count Vallemont, who had been watching from afar, approached Alessandro. He had a lot of white hair and white eyebrows, but his brown eyes, curved slyly, were full of sinisterness.

“Does the princess stay long?”

He seemed to have not noticed Enrico yet, and he only showed more interest in Vivian. Alessandro’s head tilted toward Count Vallemont.

“Come to your senses. If you don’t want to get eaten up.”

“Huh? What is that, huff… Duke Michele.”

He knew Enrico was coming, but he tried not to meet him. However, Count Vallemont smiled brightly, revealing wrinkles as if to hide his embarrassment at having come so close to him.

“You’re here.”

Since they had to remain anonymous, the greeting was formal. Count Vallemont stood slightly behind Alexandre and looked at Enrico, who was smirking.

“You’re late. There was someone I wanted to introduce to your uncle.”

“Ah- I didn’t want to receive it, so I came late on purpose.”

“… … Haha, but weren’t you coming alone? I didn’t know you’d come with a partner.”

Didn’t our uncle like to be alone? Alexandre whispered very quietly.

“Oh, did you really have to tell our nephew?”

“No, but I was a little surprised.”

Alexandre asked Emilia, who was standing next to him and observing, kindly.

“Even if you wear a mask, your beauty isn’t hidden.”

“… … Thank you.”

Emilia accepted the greeting uncomfortably. At first, she thought it was someone, but after hearing the two men talking, she realized belatedly that the man wearing the horned mask was Crown Prince Alexandre.

But where is Count Vallemont? Emilia’s gaze briefly scanned the surroundings. As if he had read her thoughts, Enrico bent down and pressed his lips to her ear. Her shoulders flinched at the sudden ticklish breath.

“The old man right in front of you is Valemon.”

Enrico gently stroked her round shoulders as if soothing

them. Emilia flinched at the goosebumps running down her spine for a moment, then her gaze turned to Count Valemon. Count Valemon had no intention of hiding his identity, as if he was wearing a very small mask. Count Valemon, who had been glaring at Emilia up and down with his unpleasantly shining brown eyes, slowly stepped forward.

“It’s nice to meet you. Would you please share the joy of greeting this old man?”

A wrinkled hand was extended to Emilia. Emilia, who was hesitating about what to do, was about to slowly move her hand.

“… … !”

Enrico brushed the hand on her shoulder down her arm and grabbed her wrist. My body naturally clung to his arms. I flinched in embarrassment and tried to pull away, but I felt a firm pressure from the arm that was wrapping me around me, as if telling me not to move.

“I have no intention of sharing.”

The words were spoken with a relaxed smile on their faces, but they were filled with cold ridicule. It wasn’t just Emilia who was taken aback by his sudden behavior. Count Vallemont opened his mouth wide in embarrassment, and Alessandro narrowed his eyes and clenched his jaw.

“… … Both of you are rude. How dare you talk about sharing something that isn’t even an object.”

The clenched voice slowly relaxed. Finally, Alessandro’s gentle voice made Enrico tilt his head slightly to the side. The beautiful lips beneath the lion-shaped white mask languidly drew a curve. It was as if he was watching me closely.

“If you were hurt, I apologize on your behalf.”

“… … It’s okay.”

“My uncle is originally a bit cold-hearted. So I wanted to introduce you to someone who I think would be a good fit, but it’s

too bad.” Suddenly? Wasn’t that just a passing thing? Emilia blinked and glanced at Enrico.