Third Arc (Fallen Heart) - 27. The Second Dance III.
Minutes passed, although Rose's whole body moved on its own since she put her trust in Angel, she could see everything around her with her complete consciousness. The guests who looked happy, the envious gazes, also some traces of concern. But the most important thing was his gaze. It was something rare since she could see him up close without being able to look away or run away from it. Different from yesterday, when she kept looking away or diverted her gaze, avoiding his. Even though this was part of their plan, yet her heart was beating violently. Since they agreed to make this dance as intimate as possible, his every touch, his steps, his scent and his breath that greeted her skin, making her mind blank. Somehow she felt grateful for this spell since she was pretty sure she would mess up if she did this herself.
Meanwhile, Angel also felt the same way, although he preferred Rose to dance with her full consciousness like yesterday. Still, this dance wasn't that bad. Indeed he was the one moving her body, making them look as if they were doing it perfectly, yet he could see her flushed face and feel her pounding heart. For whatever reason, it tickled his heart. But among his happiness he realized, this was a battlefield and he couldn't be careless. His eyes swept around, trying to catch any strange movements of the guests.
Among the crowds that watched them, he could see Lady Belle who looked at him with a clear sadness. He knew this would be a hard blow for her, but whether she liked it or not, he still had to do this for the sake of their plan. But the good thing, despite the objection in her heart, Lady Belle knew she had to keep her composure in order to protect her family reputation.
Time was running very slowly for Lady Belle, it felt like the music and the dance had been going on forever, even though it just started two minutes ago. But somehow she couldn't stand in that room any longer.
"Forgive me. I don't think I can accompany you for the dance tonight," said Lady Belle suddenly. Nausea in her stomach worsened and her chest felt tight. She wasn't sure she could watch this any longer and waited for herself to explode in this place. So she decided to get out of here and calm herself.
Evrat turned to Lady Belle and looked at her worriedly.
"Do I need to accompany you, My Lady?" he asked. He already knew that Lady Belle loved the king, so he could already guess why she chose to leave this room despite the dance hadn't finished yet.
Lady Belle swallowed the bitterness in her heart and gave Evrat the best smile she could do.
"Thank you for your offer, My Lord. But I have to refuse. I just want to be alone for a while," she said politely.
"Just let me know if you need anything," said Evrat. Although he wanted to be with her, he valued her privacy and he knew Lady Belle wanted to calm herself down.
After a slight bow, Lady Belle turned around and parted the crowd as calmly as possible so she did not attract the other's attention. Still, Angel noticed it, as did some of the others who had separated themselves from the crowd and followed her. They were the assassins who tried to take the opportunity, the black devil soldiers who followed them, as well as Cley and Claire.
'As expected they are after Lady Belle.' Somehow he was relieved since he had prepared everything.
Lady Belle came out of the main hall quietly and walked down the corridor with limp steps. Her head was lowered and a couple of drops of tears dripped onto the floor although she tried her best to hold it in. Instead of the balcony that reminded her of her memories with Angel on New Year's Eve, she decided to get some fresh air in the garden. But just as she took a few steps, the hall's door opened and the twins came out of there.
"I think I need some fresh air," said Claire. Her hand held her temple.
"I told you, you should rest early last night," Cley advised her.
Claire replied with a frown.
"I'm not tired. I just need some fresh air," she made a clear statement. Then they turned to Lady Belle as if they had just noticed her presence.
"Ah! Forgive our impoliteness, My Lady," said Claire.
"It's fine," replied Lady Belle. She didn't want to speculate that Angel had sent them since she was afraid she would be disappointed and decided to take this as a coincidence.
"What are you doing here, My Lady? Didn't you like the party? Did someone offend you?" Cley asked worriedly. They started to approach her.
"The party was great. I just want to take a little walk..." said Lady Belle. She actually wanted to get out of here and go back to her residence, but her father was still here.
"I also want to take a walk for a while. Shall we go together?" Claire asked. Their main purpose was to follow and look after Lady Belle. Moreover, even though the black devil soldiers had managed to get rid of some assassins quietly, there could still be others following them.
Lady Belle was about to refuse it since she wanted to be alone, but Cley interrupted her.
"Shall we go to the garden? His Majesty ordered the gardeners to renovate it recently and it's just finished." Angel did make that order, especially to cut and trim the tall and thick trees or replace them with other plants or trees since they were good hiding places for assassins. He was sure his victory over the three kingdoms would invite many enemies, so he did this to protect himself, Rose and so the guards could detect the intruders more easily. Instead, he ordered to plant more flowers and short decorative bushes to cover up his cautious act.
"His Majesty ordered the gardeners to renovate the garden?" said Lady Belle in disbelief. She knew Angel never neglected the castle but he rarely paid attention to the garden except to maintain what the late King Xenos had left behind.
"Yes. After all, His Majesty forbids the guests to wander around the castle carelessly since there are many other kingdoms' delegates staying here. So the garden is the only option available for us," Claire replied. With this Lady Belle's choice was either back to the hall or the garden. As for the delegates, Angel ordered elite soldiers to ensure their safety during their stay in Euphorion.
"Then shall we check the garden's new look?" said Lady Belle. She wasn't interested in returning to the hall yet, so a short walk with them didn't sound too bad.
Then they walked towards the garden.
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