"Shien Infellet."
A confident voice suddenly called out Shien's full name. We both turned toward the source—and to my surprise, it was Miss Baravina Brantes.
She extended the back of her hand toward Shien without saying a word. I immediately understood—she wanted him to invite her to dance.
If a woman initiated the invitation herself, it would lower her dignity. That was why she stayed silent, expecting Shien to understand on his own.
Unfortunately… Shien wasn't the type to pick up on things like that.
As expected, he looked confused and asked, "Who are you?"
"You don't even recognize me, Baravina Brantes? And you call yourself a noble? I came here to give you the honor of dancing with me because I see potential in you as someone important to this country."
The ever-famous Miss Brantes was clearly annoyed. But honestly, her attitude was terrible—arrogant and overbearing, even worse than Hera. It was hard not to dislike her.
Still, both she and Hera were daughters of dukes. They had the status to act prideful toward those of lower rank, and there wasn't much we could say about it.
And as Shien's childhood friend, I already knew what he was about to do—he wanted to refuse her.
"I…"
"Shien, Miss Brantes is a duke's daughter. You can't refuse her."
I cut him off before he could finish, reminding him of the situation. Duke Brantes was the prime general—offending his beloved daughter would be the same as offending the duke himself. That would destroy Shien's future.
Shien looked at me with a trace of sadness, but I avoided his gaze and quietly focused on my food. I didn't want to attract Miss Brantes' attention.
The fact that she approached Shien meant she was interested in him. If I acted out of line and kept watching him, I'd only bring trouble onto myself.
"...Miss Brantes, please grant me the honor with you dance."
"That's more like it."
Even without looking, I could tell things had worked out. Shien invited her, and she accepted with satisfaction. That was the end of it.
Tisna seemed to snap out of her gloomy mood and walked over to me, concern written all over her face.
"Lixia, are you really okay with this? I heard that if two people become each other's first dance partner, they'll end up together in the future."
"That's obviously just a rumor. If it were true, I'd be celebrating right now."
I had heard that rumor before too, but it fell apart the moment you thought about it. If it were real, then Miss Kate and Mr. Maldizer would've ended up together long ago.
Still, whether it was true or not didn't matter. All I wanted was for Shien to stop bothering me.
"I don't know… you always become really cold whenever it's about Shien."
"Because I don't like him."
"But he really likes you. He even gave you a dress."
Hearing that reminded me—Shien did like me.
But his feelings only troubled me. And besides, there was someone better suited for him out there. I needed to make him give up.
"I'll return it to him tomorrow."
"...Alright. Then I'll head back and write my self-reflection. Good luck with your dance."
Seeing my determination, Tisna didn't argue anymore. After finishing her food, she left the hall.
Meanwhile, I stayed and watched Shien dance with Miss Brantes. His expression was stiff, and he kept making small mistakes—his reactions just a little too slow.
After a while, I finished eating. Just as the music ended, their dance came to a close. Miss Brantes walked off in another direction, while Shien came straight toward me and extended his hand.
"Lixia, you're done eating. Shall we dance?"
"Okay."
I placed my hand in his and accepted.
As the next song began, we started dancing. This time, Shien looked genuinely happy. His steps were smooth, confident—even practiced.
…Was he distracted earlier while dancing with Miss Brantes?
That wouldn't do. She was definitely upset. Shien could be such an idiot sometimes—completely lacking in awareness.
"Lixia, it feels like it's been so long since we last danced. Do you remember when it was?"
"My birthday."
I answered curtly. My birthday was September 3rd, and every year Shien attended—and always asked me for a dance.
He smiled nostalgically, then said something ridiculous.
"It's only been four months… but it feels like years have passed."
"Is that so."
I kept my reply short. I didn't want to talk. I just wanted this dance to end.
It felt like there was something more behind his words, but I didn't want to think about it. I didn't want to be troubled by him anymore.
As the music neared its end, Shien suddenly spoke with a pleading tone.
"Lixia… can you come back?"
By "come back," he meant returning to that party—the one where I never improved.
But there was no way I'd go back.
"If you're asking me to return to your party, then give up. I've already joined another party, and things are going well."
"But without you… every day feels like a year. It's really painful."
It sounded like he couldn't function without me. Was this a confession?
I felt nothing. Just… burdened.
I had to be clear. He shouldn't like me. I wasn't someone who could support his future—I wasn't the right person for him.
Right then, the music ended.
I let go of his hand and looked at him seriously.
"Shien, stop holding onto me. I'm not right for you. I'll return the dress tomorrow. Goodbye."
Before he could respond, I turned and quickly left the hall.
When I returned to my room, Tisna wasn't there—probably in the bath.
I glanced at the blue box on my desk. Looking closely, it was beautifully made, tied with a ribbon decorated with little cat designs I liked. It was… cute.
But I was going to return it.
I couldn't open it.
So I pushed the box aside, took out some paper, and began writing my self-reflection.
Later, after Tisna came back from her bath, it was my turn.
When I finished bathing, completed my self-reflection, and wrapped up my homework, I got ready for bed.
Poor Tisna was still struggling with her ten self-reflections.
She really had it rough.