Restraint
Siana’s Side
When Siana saw Floria asking Lux to dance with her, she felt that same murderous urge welling up inside her again.
This woman… She knows who I really am. She knows how I feel about Lux-kun. She even knows that, as long as I’m playing the role of a maid, I can’t protest. And despite all that, she still dares to ask him something like this, right in front of me? Absolutely unforgivable.
As that thought burned in her mind and she turned her killing intent toward Floria, it was only natural that Floria sensed it. For a brief moment, she glanced over at Siana.
Her gaze seemed to say, “You, the Third Princess-sama, have danced with Lux-sama before, so surely there’s no problem if I do too, right?” That, combined with her polite smile, only deepened Siana’s loathing.
In the next moment, Floria turned her eyes back to Lux.
Unaware of the tense exchange between the two women, Lux spoke up.
“You want to… dance with me?”
“Yes. I heard that you once danced with the Third Princess-sama, so I thought I might ask to dance with you as well. Before our engagement is made official, I believe it would be best if we danced at least once.”
“F-Florence-san…!”
“Fufu.”
Lux was clearly flustered, caught between embarrassment and bashfulness at Floria’s words. But Siana was different. The moment she heard the word engagement, her eyes went dull, staring lifelessly at Floria.
“Shall we go, then?”
“Yes!”
As Lux and Floria stood to leave the guest room and head toward the ballroom, Siana followed behind them, silently exiting the room with the pair.
On the way to the ballroom, Lux and Floria walked side by side, chatting as they went.
“Florence-san, are you good at dancing too?”
“I wouldn’t say I’m that skilled, but… if you’d be willing to dance with me, Lux-sama, could I ask for your impressions afterward?”
“Sure!”
Watching the two of them chatting like that, Siana kept her hollow gaze fixed on Floria.
This woman… She doesn’t even understand what it really means to be there for Lux-kun. And now, just because I can’t interfere, she’s getting full of herself… Maybe it’d be best if I just really did something to her.
That dangerous thought was beginning to form in Siana’s mind when, at the edge of her vision down the long hallway, she caught sight of Violet. Violet silently shook her head at her.
Calm yourself, Ojou-sama…
No words were spoken aloud, but Siana and Violet had been together so long that she understood the message without a single word needing to be said.
“I know… I’ll hold it in. For now.”
Siana muttered softly, in a voice so quiet only she could hear it. But Violet, seeing that Siana had regained some composure, quietly disappeared from her view.
There will come a time when this woman and I must settle things… Until then, I’ll endure.
Siana tried to calm herself by repeating those words in her mind, but even so, as long as Floria remained in sight, her eyes kept drifting back to her with that same vacant, seething stare.
Floria’s Side
When they arrived at the ballroom of the Florence Ducal Mansion, Lux spoke.
“The ballroom is amazing… Of course, the one at the royal palace was impressive too, but this one feels like something only Florence’s household could create!”
The ballroom of the Floria household had a single unified design running from the center of the floor to its very edges. Just standing there made one feel as though they’d stepped into a world of art.
Pleased that Lux had complimented the ballroom, Floria smiled warmly as she replied.
“Thank you. I’m very fond of this ballroom myself, so if it’s to your liking as well, Lux-sama, that makes me very happy.”
After saying that, Floria straightened her posture and held out her hand to Lux.
“Then… Lux-sama, would you honor me with this dance?”
“Ah…! Yes!”
As Lux took her hand, the two of them began to dance together.
In that moment, dancing with Lux, Floria’s thoughts didn’t drift once to the Third Princess, Felisiana. Right now, her mind was filled entirely with the boy dancing with her in front of her eyes.
Ah… Lux-sama… the way you shine, the joy on your face as we dance… If only this moment could last forever… It was your beauty, your radiance, that drew me to you… Lux-sama, I love you, from the bottom of my heart.
And so, for a little while, the two of them danced happily together…
Violet’s Side
From a blind spot in the ballroom where none of the three could see her, Violet watched Lux and Floria dancing.
Then, in a hushed voice, she murmured to herself.
“I signaled Ojou-sama to remain calm… but now, with Florence-sama joining her, I’m starting to wonder if I’ll be the one who can’t endure this much longer.”
With a faint sigh, she added,
“Rodwell-sama… next time, it will be my turn…”
Just imagining it made her feel a bit giddy.
Just thinking of Rodwell-sama makes my heart race like this…
It was a feeling she hadn’t known before the day she first fell for Lux, a kind of flutter she had never experienced until that day. Violet gently placed a hand over her chest, savoring each beat of her heart as if it were something precious.