[CHAPTER 10: THE HEIRS]
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Unsurprisingly, every head turned to look at the doors when they heard 'the four heirs of the Archduchies' being announced. "Suzerain Kieran Astrid, the heir of the Astrid Archduchy, and Suzerain Verena Brumous, the heir of the Brumous Archduchy, are now entering!" The doorman announced the first two heirs of the five Archduchies. Expectations seeped from everyone, except for the ravenette and Serina.
Murmurs erupted when two figures stepped through the doors. The man was a head shorter than Erix, but he looked fit. He had pale blonde longish wavy coloured hair and sickly pale skin. His sharp cat-like dark amber-coloured eyes flickered around in boredom. He was dressed in completely black attire; long sleeves shirt that revealed half of his chest, tight trousers, and short-heeled loafers.
The woman next to him was around five foot six or so. A cold aura surrounded her; it made her attractive in a strange way. She was dressed in an erotic yet modest silver dress that resembled a cocktail dress with a black-furred shawl.
Her pure white coloured hair was tied into a bun while her gorgeous sky-blue coloured eyes were adorned by light makeup. Both of them stopped at the last step of the stairwell and whispered something to each other. As they pulled away from each other, both of their eyes were pinned on the ravenette and Serina.
While they approached the ravenette, the doorman announced the second 'couple', "Suzerain Sohan Lychnis, the heir of the Lychnis Archduchy, and Suzerain Cordelia Venetus, the heir of the Venetus Archduchy, are now entering!" The man was as tall as the ravenette, but he was tanner than the ravenette.
He had bright crimson-coloured hair that was gelled back, revealing his sharp wine-coloured eyes that were narrowed in a glare. He was dressed in an outfit similar to Erix's, however, the shirt was white, the vest was black and the cloak was a both-shoulder cloak.
The woman next to him was at least five foot five or so. She had hip-long dark navy-blue hair, which was loose and styled with pearls. Her round sapphire-coloured eyes were twinkling with innocence yet there was a strange emotion in them. Darkish makeup decorated her peachy-coloured skin, giving her an alluring look. She was dressed in an off-shoulder navy-coloured dress with white frills and her arms were covered with white lace gloves.
They were complete opposites walking down the stairwell. Once they reached the bottom of the stairs, the navy-haired woman unhooked her arm from him and rushed towards Erix's direction. The redhead awkwardly followed her at a slow pace. Meanwhile, the ravenette had a smile on his face when Verena and Kieran reached them.
"Good evening, Your Grace," Verena formally greeted him with a curtsy while Kieran sent him a casual wave, not really caring about etiquette. "You guys finally arrived, hm?" The ravenette joked as he returned the greeting with a slight bow of his head. Awkwardly, Serina sent them a curtsy before sticking to the ravenette's side.
"Who's this pretty little thing?" Kieran mused when his eyes spotted Serina and shoved his hands inside his pockets, smirking with a playful glint in his eyes. He chuckled when Erix sent him a menacing glare, warning him to behave. "Allow me to formally introduce myself, Yoru Graces," Serina stated, bowing her head towards Verena and Kieran, "My name is Serina Blanchet; I'm Suzerain Malefic's personal tailor. A pleasure to meet you, Your Graces."
"Hello~" Kieran greeted back in a singsong manner, showing off the sharp fangs behind his lips as he childishly smiled. "I've heard many great things about you, Madam Blanchet," Verena mentioned, hiding her smile behind her white fan while eyeing Serina down. Out of nowhere, a loud voice exclaimed as a more petite figure rammed into the ravenette's side, startling everyone, "Hello, Erix!"
Instinctively, he placed his hand on the figure's back to steady them both and awkwardly greeted, "Ah, greetings, Suzerain Venetus..." Cordelia lifted her head with a pout, showing that she didn't like him being formal with her. However, she blinked in an owlish manner when she felt how hard his muscles were through his clothes. She unconsciously started groping his sides, feeling the muscles.
"Aight! That's enough of your touchy behaviour, Cordelia!" An angered voice scolded her as a large yet calloused hand pulled her off Erix. The voice belonged to the redhead, who stared at Cordelia with furious eyes. "Aw! Sohan, you're such a bully, you know!" She whined at him, pouting like a child. He ignored her whining and sent the ravenette a low bow of his head as a greeting.
Erix's lips curled into a charming smile, which made the other heirs look at him with startled eyes. Serina sweatdropped at their reactions and looked to the side with her fan covering her lips. Suddenly, the sound of trumpets abruptly playing filled the room; everyone flinched before tensing up. "His Imperial Majesty and the royal kin are now entering!" The doorman announced on the stairwell that led to the thrones on the other side of the room.
Everyone bowed their heads towards the royal family when they entered the ballroom. One by one, they sat down on their thrones and the Emperor was the last to sit down. It was no surprise that he was dressed in the most luxurious white silks and jewels. "You may raise your heads," He stated, smiling with slightly playful eyes. At his words, everyone raised their heads to look at him.
"Before we officially begin the Imperial Summer Ball, I would like to thank you all for attending this year again," He chuckled as he stretched his hand out in front of him, welcoming them, "May you all be blessed with good fortune and health." Applause filled the room when he was finished speaking before the orchestra started playing. Dozens of couples headed towards the centre of the room to dance with their partners while others went to formally greet the royal family.
The four heirs went to greet the royal family before heading to the dance floor for the next song. Carefully, the ravenette gestured for Serina to take his hand with a smile. She returned the smile as she placed her hand on his hand. An atmosphere of elegance and confidence surrounded them when they approached the royal family.
The Emperor and a few of the royal kin were amused by these two. However, the other royal kin and concubines looked at them with a hint of hostility. Once they were a few feet away from the royals, the ravenette sent them a deep bow with his hand over his chest while Serina curtsied. "We greet the 'Rising Sun' of the Aeonian Empire and the Royal Family," They greeted in unison.
"Thank you for attending the Imperial Summer Ball, Suzerain Malefic and Madam Blanchet," The Emperor stated as he gestured for them to relax, teasingly adding, "I was surprised to hear from Duke Bicea that my trusted aide became partners with his tailor at the last second, haha!" The ravenette's brow twitched as a reaction which made the Emperor chuckle more than before.
"I am quite grateful for Madam Blanchet's kindness, Your Imperial Majesty," The ravenette responded with a charming smile, however, his eyes darkened slightly. "That is good to hear then, Suzerain Malefic," Ascian mused, crossing his left leg over his right thigh. "Madam Blanchet," He called out to the white-haired woman, who flinched at his voice before looking at him with wide eyes.
"You're blessed to have my royal aide as your partner for this year's summer ball," A genuine smile was seen on his lips when he told her, "I hope you have a wonderful time tonight and the rest of the ball." His words caught everyone nearby off-guard, especially Erix and Serina. The said woman was speechless for a second before smiling brightly as she thanked him, "Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty."
After greeting them, Erix and Serina descended the stairwell. "T-That was stressful," She stated with her eyes twirling around while cold sweat dripped down her face. The ravenette almost out laughing at her words. "You did great," He reassured her with a faint smile on his lips, "You even got His Imperial Majesty to smile at you..." She sent him a playful glare at the last part of his words and smacked his bicep, earning a small yelp from him.
The two of them were oblivious to the hushed conversation the royals were holding when they left. "To think that he brought a *half-Anodyne as a partner to such an event," The Second Concubine sneered from behind her fan as her amber-coloured eyes were glaring at Serina's backside, "It's unsightly!" Next to her was the First Concubine - Prince Evrin's mother.
*Anodyne is a species of blessed/holy deer that roam the Aeonian-Malefic forests at the borders. They can be classified as beastmen due to them having the ability to transform into a human form or animal form.*
"I personally think Suzerain Malefic's partner is quite cute," The First Concubine mentioned in a cooing manner, causing the Second Concubine to turn to her in disbelief. "The chemistry between them is what every partner needs to show," She added, smirking as she glanced at the Second Concubine, "Something that you wouldn't understand, Your Highness."
The Second Concubine grew flustered at her words and bit her bottom lip in seething anger, not able to retort. Surprised and amused, Evrin hid his twitching smile behind his gloved hand. 'You're making it so obvious that you want to tease her, Mother,' A small snicker escaped his lips, catching his sister's attention, 'It also doesn't help that you dote on Erix like that...'
Meanwhile, the said ravenette felt his ear itch and he rubbed it with furrowed brows. "What's wrong?" Serina asked when she caught his small action in the corner of her eye. "I think someone is talking about me..." He answered with a confused frown, which caused Serina to hold back a giggle. They were waiting for the current song to end so that they could dance the next one.
"By the way," He started with a hum as he crossed his arms over his chest and turned his head to her, "Which outfit should I wear for tomorrow night?" A deadpanned expression appeared on her face at his question and bluntly answered him, "The one that makes you look like a cold-hearted archduke." He didn't expect that answer from her. A chuckle escaped his lips as he nodded.
After a couple of minutes, the song ended and the couples bowed to each other out of courtesy. He took Serina's hand in a gentle manner and escorted her to the dance floor. When they were in the crowd of other couples, they smiled at each other. His left hand was supporting her waist while his right hand was holding her left hand. Her right hand was placed on his bicep, feeling how muscular he actually was.
As the orchestra started playing, their bodies instinctively moved to the rhythm. On-looking guests were in awe as their gazes unconsciously pinned themselves on the ravenette and white-haired woman's bodies. They moved with pure elegance and gracefulness between the dancing bodies around them. With each twirl they made, Serina's dress fluttered behind her, showing off her slender bare legs while Erix's cloak fluttered to the side.
Carefully, he tilted her back as they made another twirl, causing her hair to follow the motion. It looked as if they came out of a picture with how the warm chandelier lights illuminated them. Anyone could see that they were enjoying themselves when they had heart-fluttering smiles on their lips. However, in the middle of the song, the doors slammed open; startling everyone.
The music and dancing couples came to an abrupt stop. "H-His Imperial Majesty of the Holy Empire and holy guests have arrived!" The doorman announced with a pale face and gulped when the said guests walked through the doorway. 'Shit...' Serina inwardly cursed when her eyes landed on the group of men and women on the stairwell - all of them were dressed in snow-white outfits.
Her eyes widened in horror when she spotted a familiar face between them; he looked exactly like the ravenette. "Erix-" She called out to him with a pale face as she turned to look at him, however, she couldn't say another word when she saw the look on the ravenette's face. Pure bloodlust and fury were seen on his face; his eyes were dark and eerie while his jaw was tightly clenched to the point of veins popping out. 'Oh no...' She thought with goosebumps on her skin, 'He's super pissed off...'