Chapter 29

“Hmm… You look splendid today too.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

Finally, the day of Kyle’s debutante ball.

Kyle was wearing the black coat we had selected earlier.

Men really do look best in black.

Pants, coat, vest, tie, hat.

Everything except the shirt was coordinated in black.

For a man to express an elegant atmosphere, it wasn’t good to use flashy colors unnecessarily.

Women can wear glamorous dresses and look elegant with their appearance.

In truth, if you’re pretty, you tend to look elegant.

But men are different.

Looking too flashy could give an impression of frivolity.

“You must do as I taught you before. Before greeting His Imperial Majesty and Her Imperial Majesty, you should remove your hat and then bow. You can entrust the removed hat to me.”

“Yes.”

This debutante ball is being held very grandly.

The Emperor and Empress, who normally wouldn’t attend, are coming in person.

It’s probably because this is the first debutante ball of the year and key figures of the empire are making their debut.

That’s why I was even more worried.

Kyle already has many eyes on him, and with the Emperor’s side also coming in large numbers, I couldn’t help but worry.

“Sigh…. I wish I didn’t have to send you. I’m afraid you might make a mistake.”

“…..”

“Given the occasion, you’ll have to drink. You’ve had some drinks in Eristirol a few times, but you need to control yourself well.”

“Yes.”

“As I said before, don’t get too excited if noble young ladies approach you; be cautious.”

“I feel like I’ve heard that over a hundred times already.”

“…Is that so…?”

Even I think I might have said it too many times.

But that just shows how important it is.

“Hah….”

Anyway, we were now riding in a carriage, heading to the palace where the debutante ball was being held.

The Imperial Palace.

Its name is longer, but most people simply called it that.

It’s both the palace where the Emperor and Imperial family reside and where the empire’s officials work.

Actually, this was my first time at the Imperial Palace too.

How often would an ordinary person have a reason to enter the Imperial Palace?

Though I’m Kyle’s follower now, I used to be a truly ordinary person.

Even if I did graduate from boarding school with quite good grades?

Anyway, that’s how it was.

“Whew……”

“Why are you more worried than me when I’m the one making my debut?”

“I’m sorry….”

As Kyle said, he didn’t look worried at all.

Rather, I was the only one constantly worrying.

Kyle really didn’t have any concerns at all.

No, isn’t he too unconcerned…?

For a debutante ball?

When other nobles worry so much they prepare for years for their debutante ball?

“Young Master…. please be careful.”

“Yes, I understand, so stop now.”

“Yes……”

It was already evening.

The perfect time for a party.

Music could already be heard from the palace.

The carriage drove on and on, passing through the main gate, through the garden, and arrived right in front of the palace.

Kyle got out first, and I followed behind him.

Bringing a servant was optional.

Nobles who received a lot of attention from their family especially needed servants.

Rather than causing an incident and bringing shame to the family, it was better in many ways to have a servant.

Of course, that wasn’t why I was following along.

The Duke hadn’t said anything, and Adela had asked me to take good care of Kyle.

Plus, I wanted to see Kyle’s debut in person, so I was accompanying him.

“Lord Kyle Eristirol of the Northern Duke’s family is entering!!”

Before we entered, an official who was checking identities nearby heard Kyle speak and shouted that loudly, very loudly.

It was a bit pitiful that an official was doing this kind of job, but since he was doing it to earn money, I thought, “Well, that’s how it is.”

As Kyle’s name echoed in the palace’s party hall, the murmuring of people increased, and more gazes turned toward Kyle.

Some glances came to me behind Kyle as well, but I didn’t mind.

After all, Kyle was the protagonist now.

Kyle walked slowly through the hall.

The Emperor and Empress, perhaps valuing their time, had been waiting for the young nobles from the start.

This Emperor liked efficiency in many ways, so it made sense.

“Sofia.”

“Yes.”

I received Kyle’s black hat.

And stopped there.

And Kyle went forward.

He climbed the stairs of moderate height at the end of the hall.

I watched Kyle ascending and thought that he would do well.

Our little one had grown up so well; I was worrying too much.

About five minutes…?

Yes, after about five minutes had passed, I heard footsteps descending from above.

When I raised my head again at the sound, Kyle was walking toward me with a faint smile.

“You did well.”

If Kyle hadn’t done well, he wouldn’t be smiling like this.

His expression would have been poor for sure.

“Yes. Not much was said anyway.”

“Is that so?”

I still thought there would be a lot of conversation since he was the eldest son of a ducal family.

Though of course, it was better to keep it brief than to make a verbal mistake.

“Then let’s enjoy the party.”

I said with a smile.

The most important thing at a debutante ball was greeting the Imperial family, so the most important task was completed.

Now it was just about spending time talking with various nobles.

Well…

And maybe dancing a few times if he found a suitable woman.

“Oh.”

Kyle let out a short exclamation of admiration.

Apparently, the food he was eating now was definitely good even to Kyle’s taste.

The capital wasn’t the capital for nothing.

The quality was different.

Personally, I wanted to take the chefs working here back with us.

“This is delicious.”

“Indeed it is.”

We spent some time sitting at a small table, eating the food we had brought over.

Since we hadn’t eaten anything since lunch, we must have wanted to eat something.

With Kyle’s very high basal metabolic rate, he must have been quite hungry.

“Young Master, have this too.”

As always, I passed some food to Kyle.

Kyle accepted the food I gave him and ate it happily.

“Sofia, you should try this too.”

Kyle tried to give me a sausage with his fork.

There were already several foods on my plate, so it wasn’t easy to add more.

Can’t be helped.

“Aahn….”

“….?”

“What are you doing? Quickly put it in my mouth.”

“…..”

Kyle hesitated for a moment before putting the sausage in my mouth.

“Oh…”

Delicious.

It couldn’t be compared to the sausage we had for breakfast recently.

It was really delicious.

It was big in size and tasted good.

Just the kind I’d want to drink with beer.

Speaking of which, there was alcohol too.

Most of it was champagne-type drinks, but there was probably beer too.

It would be strange for a big party like this not to have it.

But I was a bit troubled.

Drinking alcohol while here as Kyle’s servant….

“Hmm……”

No matter how I thought about it, it seemed like I would be crossing a line.

“Young Master, will you be drinking today?”

So I asked.

If Kyle drank, I could have a glass or two out of courtesy.

Honestly, if he had a couple of drinks, I was planning to have one too, saying it was for a toast.

“No.”

“Huh….”

“Since you’ve been so cautious, I won’t drink. You’ve said so much about it until now, haven’t you?”

“…..”

To think that all the advice I’d given Kyle would come back to me like this.

It was a fatal mistake.

Of course, I knew that drinking wasn’t good for health, but… the fact that there was no beer with this sausage was sad news.

I reluctantly just put the food I had brought into my mouth slowly.

While quietly talking with Kyle like that.

A special guest came to our table.

“Sofia.”

“…?”

I turned around.

Behind me was a beautiful blonde woman.

A woman so pretty that if I were in my past life, I might have confessed to her immediately.

Her chest was a bit, just a tiny bit, disappointingly small, but her appearance was enough to compensate for that.

“Do you know me…?”

But I had never seen such a beautiful noble young lady.

Who could she be to know me?

“Huh? Have you forgotten me? You promised to visit our domain someday, didn’t you?”

“….Ah.”

Blonde, pretty, promised to visit the domain.

Now I remembered.

No, I had no idea she would grow up to be this beautiful.

Isn’t her image too different from when she was young?!

“Lady Catherine.”

“Hehe. You finally remembered. It’s good to see you.”

“It’s been a long time. You’ve become truly beautiful.”

“Thank you for the compliment. And Lord Kyle? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you too.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Oldenburg.”

If she gave off a slightly young lady-like impression when she was young, now she had truly become an elegant lady.

Not just pretty and cute, but what should I say…

Yes, she had dignity.

She had an image of womanhood I couldn’t see around me.

She was different from the crazy woman who gambled all day or the training maniac.

She had really become a lady.

“Hehe…. Lord Kyle is still stiff. By now, it would be fine to just call me Catherine.”

“That… I’ll postpone that for later.”

“I understand. Oh, is it alright if I sit at your table?”

“Of course.”

After Kyle’s permission, Catherine sat at the table.

To be precise, right next to me.

“Hehe…. After exchanging correspondence from west to east for so many years, meeting like this is so nice. Sofia.”

“Is that so…?”

I’m happy too.

It’s also amazing to see how beautifully the little young lady I saw when she was young has grown.

“Hmm…. Have you two been just sitting here like this?”

“Yes.”

Kyle answered.

Catherine seemed a bit surprised by Kyle’s answer.

“My… At a debutante ball, to just sit here so boringly…. Though I’m sure your eyes have been entertained, it’s not good.”

I thought the same.

Just watching wasn’t good.

While it’s true that one should be cautious around women, having conversations with other nobles was extremely important, and I was worried about Kyle who hadn’t made any moves.

“It can’t be helped. I’ll have to help you. Isn’t that right, Sofia?”

“If that’s the case, I would be grateful.”

She really is a kind young lady.

“Then let’s finish eating this and get up. Is that alright with you, Lord Kyle?”

“……”

I shot a glance at Kyle.

It meant he should absolutely accept Catherine’s suggestion.

“Hah…. Yes, let’s go.”

“That’s good. Right, Sofia?”

“Of course.”