I Am Exactly the Opposite

Most of those present understood the true purpose of this banquet, so in their eyes, that man's actions were simply outrageously bold.

"Who is that man?"

"I don't know. He seems to be a noble from the south."

"Black hair like Alicia's. I wonder if he has Ancient Roman or Ancient Greek blood, or perhaps he's from East Asia?"

"Is this really the time to care about his ancestry? Does that country bumpkin from the south even know the rules?

I just hope Prince Ernst won't get angry over this."

The crowd whispered among themselves. For a time, the man became the center of attention throughout the banquet hall.

Alicia frowned. Then, a faint scent reached her nose—the smell of ash left behind after wood burned in a fireplace.

That scent... she seemed to have smelled it somewhere before.

She raised her head, instinctively wanting to refuse, but for some reason, an unfamiliar impulse made her nod gently.

"Cough, cough!!"

A woman choked on her wine and broke into a violent coughing fit. Aside from the soft music, the entire courtyard was almost silent.

But then, after the Third Princess fell silent for a moment, she raised her delicate hand and placed it in the stranger's. The two of them slowly walked to the center of the courtyard.

After that brief silence.

Though people around them could not help glancing their way, they also knew that staring any longer would only make the atmosphere stranger. Thus, they began dancing along with the music.

It was a simple waltz. The pair embraced, following the music as one stepped back and the other stepped forward. Shaya was rather glad that he knew how to dance it. If it had been a minuet or a court dance, that would have been troublesome.

In the original history, after the waltz became popular, it faced much opposition and obstruction for all sorts of reasons.

Aside from the church declaring it immoral, uncivilized, even vulgar and wicked due to men and women holding each other so closely and spinning too quickly, those who had once made their living teaching minuets and other court dances also regarded it as a thorn in their flesh.

The waltz was simple to learn, free, and relaxing, which attracted countless dancers. Often, one only needed to watch from the side for a while to learn it. Unlike the minuet, it did not require mastering a great number of intricate patterns before one could take the floor.

In the conservative Britain of that era, many people even hated and feared the waltz as if it were a beast, calling it an erotic dance.

Of course, as times progressed, the waltz instead came to be seen as "elegant." In the West at the time, inviting a woman to dance was actually quite ordinary, though it did carry a social connotation.

This world's history was somewhat different, but evidently, the waltz had become popular rather early here as well.

Shaya gently held the Princess's hand and wrapped an arm around her waist. Through her clothes, he could feel her tense muscles. His dance partner was clearly uncomfortable, keeping her head lowered in silence as she pretended to be calm.

Shaya smiled.

"Though your eyes cannot see, Your Highness, you dance surprisingly well."

The Third Princess fell silent for a moment. "Music is one of the few joys I can still enjoy."

After a pause, she asked, "Have we met before?"

"Your memory is quite good as well," Shaya praised.

Alicia recalled for a moment. "Was it on the street outside just now?"

"I've never been one to leave a favor unpaid." Shaya smiled.

"You think this is helping me?"

"Isn't it? You seemed rather impatient with that prince." Holding her hand, Shaya led her through a turn.

"Then do you know that, before long, he may become my fiancé?"

"While I was enjoying the food, two women beside me let me learn plenty of gossip about you Britannia nobles in fifteen minutes."

Shaya teased.

"For instance, I learned that Duke Panacea's first wife cheated on him with her guard, and apparently even had a child."

"Duke Panacea and that lady were both caged birds bound by a prison called family, unable to decide their own fate.

Their marriage was a tragedy from the very beginning," Alicia murmured.

She seemed unwilling to continue that topic and instead returned to what they had been discussing.

"Then why did you still dare invite me to dance?"

Shaya smiled. "I would think the future heir of the West Fran Empire would not be so narrow-minded. It's only one dance."

"You should see his expression right now."

Shaya glanced over with the corner of his eye. Raising his brows, he nodded.

"He looks like he wants to eat me alive."

There was a hint of teasing in Shaya's voice. That playful tone made her almost unable to suppress a laugh.

But after a pause, she continued.

"Those qualified to attend this banquet are either high officials or nobles. Even ordinary nobles are not qualified to enter.

But if you were one of them, you could not possibly have been outside alone without even a single guard.

Who exactly are you?"

"I'm a wanderer who slipped in to freeload." Shaya said.

"The savory cakes here are delicious," he commented.

"The banquet's pastry chef was personally invited from the palace by Duke Panacea for this event. Few people pay attention to the food at a banquet. Only he would care about such details."

"It sounds as though he places great importance on this banquet," Shaya said.

"Yes. After all, they are receiving distinguished guests from abroad," Alicia murmured softly.

After a pause, she said, "I'm sorry. I don't know why I agreed to your request and dragged you into this.

I don't know how you snuck into the banquet, but I advise you to leave as soon as the dance ends. Leave the Imperial Capital, or something bad may happen."

"Because I used magic just now," Shaya said calmly.

Naturally, Alicia assumed Shaya was joking. She smiled. "I really did feel as though I had been bewitched just now."

"You don't seem to like any of this." Shaya watched her. "Then why... don't you resist?"

The Princess lowered her chin slightly. After a moment of silence, she continued.

"We are all lone sails setting out upon the sea of fate, unable to control its direction. We can only rise and fall with the waves as they carry us toward an unknown distance.

There are things in this world that are destined to remain unchanged.

People must learn to accept fate."

There was no fluctuation in Alicia's voice. She had long accepted all of this.

Shaya smiled. "You look very young, but inside, you're already seventy or eighty."

"I merely understood all of this ahead of time, saving a great deal of unnecessary time and effort, while making things easier for everyone."

At that moment, the music stopped. The people dancing nearby, including Shaya and the Third Princess, all came to a halt. Shaya looked at her and continued.

"I am exactly the opposite."

Alicia raised her head. Though the upper half of her face was hidden by that magnificent crown-like mask and her expression could not be seen, her slightly raised chin revealed the confusion in her heart.

"I believe fate is not absolute. No matter where the waves carry us, the dawn of the next day will arrive as promised."

A faint smile rested on Shaya's face.

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness.

Remember my name. I am...

Shaya."

After he spoke, Alicia sensed the person before her release her hand, then take a step back. A fleeting white line crossed her mind.

But in that instant.

He vanished.

His scent, his voice, everything by which she could sense his existence, vanished from her world.

"Alicia, are you all right?"

Ernst's voice came from one side, asking urgently and anxiously.

Alicia did not answer. She only continued asking.

"Where is the person who danced with me just now?"

"I don't know. He seemed to walk into the crowd just now, then disappeared in the blink of an eye." Ernst looked around as he spoke.

Alicia frowned, but soon, she heard hurried footsteps coming from inside the villa, along with faint, terrified, trembling breaths.

Then came a loud cry.

"N-No! Marquis Os is missing!!!"