Chapter 10
The Nerve War Between Feline Humans and Dance Time
Sir Alec strode toward us with long, confident steps.
Lawrence, who had been looking at me, noticed my gaze shift behind him and turned around as well.
“Sir Lawrence, Lady Adeline. Thank you for attending my sister’s birthday party.”
Even though he had clearly greeted us yesterday, Sir Alec spoke as if this were our first meeting.
It was just a greeting, yet it carried the unmistakable arrogance and pressure of a high-ranking noble.
Taller than Lawrence, Alec glanced down at him briefly before turning his gaze to me.
‘What is wrong with this man? Have we met somewhere before? Miss Adeline has never even properly looked at any man other than Lawrence… And I’ve certainly never met such a powerful noble either.’
“It’s been a while. We are the ones who should be grateful to Lady Lorienne for inviting me and my fiancée.”
Lawrence replied coldly.
As expected of someone from a noble house, he did not show open hostility—but the tension in his tone was sharp enough to make even me uneasy.
Hearing his response, Alec shifted his gaze back to Lawrence.
The two locked eyes for a long moment before Alec spoke first.
“Ah, now that I think about it, you’re Lady Adeline’s fiancé, Sir Lawrence? When was your engagement ceremony? It’s unfortunate—I don’t recall receiving an invitation.”
For a moment, it felt like I could hear Lawrence grinding his teeth.
Recently, Lawrence’s biggest concern had been the delay of the engagement ceremony.
Once, he had disliked the idea of engagement so much—but now, he almost resented the mourning period.
After the debutante ball, he had overheard several gentlemen whispering about Adeline’s beauty.
“Lady Adeline is far more beautiful than I expected. Her black hair and emerald-green eyes are so captivating. And after such a tragedy, that fragile air about her only adds to her charm.”
“But I heard she already has a fiancé chosen since childhood.”
“Ah, the Lidenhart heir? Well… from what I’ve heard, he isn’t very eager about the engagement. And it’s not even official yet, is it? These days, broken engagements aren’t such a big scandal.”
“If someone wins Lady Adeline, they gain a count’s household as well. I imagine many gentlemen are interested. Once the mourning period ends, I’d like to attend one of her parties.”
He had wanted to hit himself for keeping his distance from Adeline all this time.
He wanted to hold the engagement ceremony as soon as possible and proudly declare to the world that she was his fiancée.
And now—
Alec had deliberately mocked the very thing he was most sensitive about.
Lawrence knew Alec understood the situation, which made the provocation even more infuriating.
But his opponent was a duke.
“It seems you haven’t heard about the unfortunate incident that befell Lady Adeline, Sir Alec. The ceremony was unavoidably postponed. Once a date is set, we will be sure to invite you.”
It felt like sparks were flying between the two men.
I looked back and forth between Alec and Lawrence.
Lawrence stood with a cold, steady gaze, chin slightly raised.
Alec, on the other hand, looked down at him with a faint, amused smile.
‘…What am I supposed to do…?’
Fortunately, at that moment, the head butler rang a bell.
The cake-cutting ceremony was beginning.
Alec gave a brief nod and stepped away.
Lawrence still looked tense and cold.
I lightly tapped his arm, and he forced a small smile, pulling my arm closer.
“Let’s go, Adel. We should watch the cake cutting up close.”
Lorienne shyly thanked everyone for attending before cutting the cake.
Applause filled the hall.
Afterward, she moved to a sofa near the wall, and gifts began piling up in front of her.
The boxes were large, beautifully wrapped, and extravagant—just as rumored, nobles had brought lavish gifts to gain favor with the duke’s beloved daughter.
“I’ll open Father and Mother’s gift first.”
The duke and duchess’s gift was astonishing.
It was a document granting her ownership of Didentel—a countryside estate with a large lake, one of the duke family’s villas.
The Duke of Andrian, with black hair and deep pink eyes like Alec’s, wrapped an arm around the duchess’s shoulders and smiled warmly at his youngest daughter.
“I hope you like it. Now that you’ve made many friends, you can host parties at the estate too.”
Lorienne’s face flushed with joy.
She glanced playfully at Sophia and me.
Then, after peeking at a large box that clearly looked like it contained a dress, she smiled mischievously.
“I think I already know what my sister’s gift is, so I’ll open my friends’ gifts first.”
When she opened Sophia’s gift, a coat made of white fox fur appeared.
Gasps spread among the surrounding gentlemen.
“White fox fur…?”
“It’s not just rare—it’s extremely difficult to hunt.”
Sophia smiled calmly and said,
“I thought about making something with rabbit fur, but these days, every time I see a rabbit, I think of Lorienne—so I just can’t bring myself to hunt them.”
Laughter broke out all around.
Lorienne pressed the coat to her face, smiling happily.
Then it was my turn.
Compared to the extravagant gifts before mine, I worried mine might seem plain.
My gift was a handmade set—a parasol, shawl, and handkerchief embroidered by me.
Before the party, Sophia and I had agreed through letters to give handmade gifts.
After all, giving something bought with money to the daughter of the wealthiest ducal family in the kingdom felt meaningless.
Lorienne carefully opened my gift.
“Oh my… Adel, you embroidered all of this yourself?”
“Do you like it?”
She gently touched the handkerchief embroidered with pink peonies on white silk—
And then suddenly burst into tears.
Startled, I tried to hand her a handkerchief, but she sniffled and firmly declared she wouldn’t let her tears touch this one.
Her reaction was so adorable that I ended up hugging her.
For today, I had practiced social dancing like a madwoman.
The real Adeline had been an excellent dancer.
To imitate even a quarter of her skill required far more than ordinary practice.
Every night, I hugged a large doll and practiced dancing. If anyone had seen me…
But I wanted it that badly.
At the debutante ball, I hadn’t even been able to properly dance a simple waltz and had to refuse Lawrence’s invitation.
I never wanted to repeat that humiliation.
Lawrence extended his hand to me.
“You won’t refuse me today, will you, my lady?”
I smiled softly and placed my hand in his.
“Don’t blame me if I step on your feet.”
As the music began, Lawrence gently pulled me closer, placing a hand on my waist.
We stood close together.
Up close, he looked even more handsome—golden hair, warm blue eyes, pale skin, and soft red lips.
“I don’t remember the last time we danced like this. I should thank Lady Lorienne.”
I focused with all my might on not stepping on his feet, forcing a small smile in response.
His lead was smooth and natural, and gradually, I began to relax.
It felt like I had become a princess dancing with a perfect prince.
His hand on my waist was gentle, like he was holding fragile glass.
I finally understood the charm of social dancing.
As I gazed into his eyes, it felt like we were sharing a world of our own.
When the music ended, I headed toward a sofa to rest—
But murmurs rose behind me.
I turned around.
Alec was walking toward me.
Before I could even process what was happening, he extended his hand.
“May I have this dance, Lady Adeline?”
Without thinking, I glanced at Lawrence.
He looked irritated—but when I looked at him, he seemed satisfied just by that and gestured toward Alec.
Anyone could ask for a dance—but refusing was not so simple.
Too many eyes were on us.
Reluctantly, I placed my hand in Alec’s.
The music began.
Alec pulled me sharply by the waist, bringing me instantly against his broad, firm chest.
“Ah—!”
As I gasped, he leaned closer, whispering near my ear.
His breath brushed against my skin.
I wanted to pull away—but his strong arm held me firmly in place.
“Were you surprised, Lady Adeline?”
“A… a little…”
In truth, I couldn’t stand not knowing things.
Since yesterday, I had been curious about his strange behavior.
Now, alone like this, I looked up into his red eyes and spoke.
“Sir Alec… why are you acting like this toward me?”
