The grand hall has been filled with nobles from different households and seventeen-year-old young ladies from the entire empire. Various colours of clothing can be seen with various designs.
The decorations, the food, and the music completed today's ball. Whoever went into the grand hall would know that the debutante ball for this year is beyond their expectations. The debutante ball this year was specifically for the First Princess of the Dradgim Empire.
Today's ball is the result of the love of a father for his daughter.
The emperor showed his love by making today's debutante ball as grand as ever.
But none paid too much attention to feeling envious over something like that; some of them feel lucky to be the same age as the princess and have this kind of experience. They also feel lucky to see the princess first dance with the emperor. It was a rare moment for the noble leaders to see the emperor dancing.
This year, they could also see all the faces of the imperial family. The emperor, who was always busy ruling the empire and making an attempt to maintain peace, was easy to love and hard to hate. He was the one who always knew what was best for the citizens. The leader who did not trample on the weak but helped them instead.
The empress acted as the mother of the empire. Attending many events to help needy citizens. She was the one who always extended a hand to anyone who needed her help. She visited the orphans and elders in the orphanage and nursing house to make sure their well-being was taken care of. She was also the one who always showed her face to the citizens, sometimes with the youngest princess.
The first princess was the joy of the citizens when she was born. She was a princess who was energetic, and citizens near the capital sometimes got to see her roaming around with the guards. Also, the princess is a genius for graduating from the academy earlier for a year. They knew her capability and her kindness from what the students at the academy said.
The second princess is known to have a sick condition. There were rumours that she might not make it into adulthood, but some prayed for the youngest princess to have a long life. Not many have seen her due to her condition, but the empress would sometimes take her out on one of her outings. That is how they knew about the second princess of Dradgim.
Lastly, there is the mysterious crown prince, the only prince of the Dradgim Empire. Various stories have been spread about the unfortunate events that fell on the Imperial Crown Prince. He is mysterious because the number of people who have seen him is much lower than that of the second princess. The citizens heard about his love for books and how he always spent his time in his room. The nobles who visited the imperial palace also won't have a chance to catch a glimpse of the only prince.
What they knew was that the crown prince resembled the emperor, with the white hair and hazel eyes of the empress. He was also trained in swordsmanship by the war hero, Duke Raihan Nuribenstin. But the other noble leaders never saw him; it looks like the crown prince himself avoided them.
Yes, he is.
That's why, now, this year, they feel the anticipation of seeing all the imperial family members.
"Announcing the arrival of the Kristafall Imperial Family!"
The voice of the guard was a cue for them to stop talking, and they looked at the long stairs that were decorated with delicate designs.
They looked up to see the emperor, and the first princess came down the stairs. They were adorned with a beautiful outfit befitting their status as the imperial family. The father-daughter duo held hands as they slowly descended into the grand hall.
The highlight of tonight is First Princess Helenis Kristafall. She was the main character tonight.
After the father-daughter duo finally arrived in the middle of the hall, they bowed towards each other. The music finally started again, and the first dance started.
Their move was delicate and smooth. It was a beautiful sight to see. All present were enchanted by the dancing under the chandelier light and the soft music.
"You have become good at dancing."
Helenis chuckled.
"I won't step on your foot again, dad. Don't worry."
He twirled her around. His hand firmly gripped hers.
"That's not really a problem. Your step on my foot won't hurt me even a bit."
"Is that so? Too bad."
A glint of mischievousness sparked in her eyes. Asteric narrowed his eyes at his daughter.
"Don't do anything stupid."
Helenis clicked her tongue.
"Party pooper."
Asteric sighed. He is too old for this.
"I'm proud of you."
Helenis' eyes dilated. She looked into her father's blue eyes. A rare smile was shown. A genuine and soft one, not a cheeky one.
"What's with that all of a sudden?"
Helenis pursed her lips, glancing elsewhere and not wanting to look into her father's eyes.
"Well, you have become big. I don't think this time will come. I hope you won't age too fast, but I can't avoid something like that."
Helenis blinked her eyes and looked at her father again.
"Tonight is yours, Helenis."
She felt sentimental about that sentence. She swallowed the lump in her throat so that her voice wouldn't crack.
"Thank you, dad."
And the last twirl before they put a distance and bowed down again, ending their dance.
"Oh, and don't be too close to that boy."
Helenis widened her eyes. Crap, her dad knew about it! Who leaked the news?
"That's none of your business."
Asteric narrowed his eyes again.
"It is."
Then the next song started. The ladies partake in the song with their partners.
×××××
"Would you dance with me, princess?"
"Hm? Micha?"
Helenis looked somewhere else and shrugged her shoulders before she took the extended hand from Michaelis. They danced together in the middle of the hall.
"Did you already dance with anyone?"
He is shorter than Helenis, but that is not a problem because they have been practising together. This will be a problem if he dances with anyone else. Everyone is taller than him anyway. How can he dance with these height differences? Zera should have thought about this.
"No."
"I believe mom is looking this way."
Michaelis gulped.
"Don't look at her."
Helenis chuckled but obliged.
"Dad was also looking at you when you danced with that boy just now."
"Wait, you guys saw?"
Helenis widened her eyes.
"Sister, you are the main attraction today. Many wanted to dance with you, but you chose him as your second dance."
"Well..."
"Can't you guys not flirt everywhere? Huh, I still don't like him."
"Don't antagonize him like that, Micha. He is my friend from the academy; we have known each other long enough. He also never did anything to you."
Helenis rolled her eyes. Michaelis scoffed. Knowing someone for years does not really give you a ticket to conformity. Anyone we've known for years could be the worst person we've ever met. Of course, it was not easy to detect such a person because our biases would cloud our judgment until we saw the truth in front of our eyes.
He just wants Helenis to be careful around someone like that. Or maybe this is just his paranoia, but he would need to make sure Helenis would not get hurt by anyone. After all, he was asked by this body's owner.
"Exactly. He never did anything to me, so why do I need to be nice to him?"
"Brat."
They ended their dance with a bow.
"Well, I need to run now. Goodnight."
Michaelis quickly ran away; he didn't want to be caught by Zera.
Helenis shook her head from left to right. She admitted that she was the attraction for tonight, but she was not the only one.
Michaelis Kristafall, the so-called mysterious crown prince, is also an attraction for tonight. Michaelis didn't notice, but all of her family noticed the curious gazes from everyone when Michaelis made an appearance inside the hall.
Her friends from the academy also kept asking whether that was her brother and asking many questions. Moreover, he was praised for his cuteness by her friends. She knew Michaelis' reputation was skyrocketing tonight. She also knew the rumours about her brother; fortunately, she just heard the good ones.
She would immediately kick anyone who dared talk badly about her brother.
"Helenis."
"Hey, Gillian."
She smiled at the dark, purple-haired boy. He took her hand and planted a kiss on the back of her hand. She blushed.
"Could we get a drink together, princess?"
Helenis nodded quickly when she felt like her back was burning with someone's intense gaze.
"Yes, quickly."
They walked together to the table of treats while holding hands.