Side Story 8

The nameless low-ranking noble youth—Talfrin, to be precise—who had been hiding behind a pillar for quite some time finally stepped out, casting furtive glances at Diane and Edward as they entered the banquet hall, his eyes nearly bulging.

‘What did he do?’

More than anyone, Talfrin knew Diane wasn’t the type to easily switch partners. But he also knew everyone was watching her—pretty, cute, and… and especially that sly bastard Edward Ganielo. Wasn’t there even talk that his status matched Diane’s perfectly?

‘Cowardly bastard. Opportunist. Nasty and twisted…’

Edward’s face, smiling slickly at Diane, looked utterly detestable. Talfrin tried to figure out whether it was the expression of a man in love.

He still couldn’t tell.

‘Ah, Baroness Moriér.’

Joan, who had been enjoying the party with Aaron from the Moriér Merchant Group, spotted Diane and approached. Joan’s bright smile stiffened the instant Edward entered her sight. In contrast, Edward’s expression suddenly blossomed.

From that alone, anyone would have realized Edward was interested in Joan. But Talfrin’s vision had narrowed to a tunnel. To him, it only looked like Edward was smiling at Diane with affection.

‘Where are you winking at?’

Indignant, Talfrin recalled how Edward had subtly glanced at him the moment he entered this mansion. Back then, seeing him, had Edward been savoring some smug sense of victory as Diane’s partner…?

‘No way.’

Talfrin hadn’t even been chosen as Diane’s partner and had come alone, so even he felt embarrassed. That was why his disguise tonight was more carefully crafted than usual.

‘Let’s see what you do. And how.’

He had come on Nerys’s orders and, honestly, by his own will. But Talfrin was still weighing what to do next. If he suddenly approached Diane in front of everyone and asked why she hadn’t chosen him, wouldn’t that embarrass her?

So whether he assassinated Edward, shoved him off this mansion’s roof, or secretly knocked him out and stuffed him into a carriage headed to who-knew-where… whatever he chose, he needed to wait for an opening. A chance to see how Diane was feeling, and a chance to separate the two of them first.

Talfrin frowned and kept tracking their every movement.

❖ ❖ ❖

“My face is about to get a hole punched through it.”

Feeling the burning stare, Edward chuckled. Diane, assuming he was saying something incomprehensible again, raised an eyebrow.

“Are you hurt somewhere?”

“No, no. Aren’t you two thirsty? Shall I fetch some punch?”

Diane looked at Joan. Joan seemed flustered, unsure how to respond, sneaking glances at Edward’s face. At times her gaze drifted, and she even blushed without realizing it.

Diane felt relieved. She’d been worried she might end up using Joan for her own purposes, but it seemed Joan had feelings for Edward, too.

Aaron, who had attended as Joan’s partner, understood the situation immediately and smoothly stopped Edward.

“I’ll fetch it. Please continue your conversation.”

“No, Aaron…”

Edward neatly cut off Joan, who was about to stop Aaron in a hurry.

“I’d appreciate it.”

What a fox. He probably never intended to go himself. Diane had already guessed that and looked at Edward with annoyance. After Aaron left, Edward asked Joan gently,

“Would you like to dance?”

Even by the empire’s standards, it was a perfectly acceptable invitation. Yet Joan reacted as if she’d heard something outrageous. Her honest eyes fixed on Edward, then darted away, her expression in turmoil. Words tumbled out—neither a refusal nor anything close to an acceptance.

“Huh? Me? Why… when Lady Diane is here…”

Diane hesitated.

She had no objection to the two dancing—if anything, she found it amusing. But she needed to know why Joan was avoiding Edward. If there was something uncomfortable between them, she should stop him here. If not, letting them talk might be good.

Both Joan and Edward were considerably older than Diane. Diane was quick to pick up romantic messes among her peers, but adult romance was harder. While she hesitated, Joan caught her expression and awkwardly corrected herself.

“Ah, no. If you don’t mind, then I… yes, how could I refuse?”

Roughly translated: With your status and position, inviting me like this as if it’s casual is basically playing hide-and-seek with your eyes covered. The barbed implication made Edward laugh, and Diane relaxed. Joan could speak to him like that, which meant she wasn’t being crushed under Edward’s authority.

Only after the two went off to dance did Aaron return with drinks. Since he brought only one glass of peach punch—Diane’s favorite—he seemed to have predicted things would turn out like this.

Diane sipped her punch and watched the dance floor. Edward’s lead was elegant and effortless, while Joan was clumsy but energetic. Watching them, Diane thought she understood why Edward liked Joan.

‘He seems like the type to like someone pure and energetic.’

Someone he could tease and respect at the same time. Someone with a lively vitality he himself lacked. Joan seemed to be that kind of person to Edward.

Then what kind of person was Edward to Joan?

“Sir Aaron.”

“Yes, Lady Diane.”

Because of his achievements in Tropur near the end of the war, Aaron had been knighted. Still, he called Diane “Lady,” just as he had when he was a commoner. The distance between them remained vast. He hadn’t become as close to Diane as Joan had.

Even so, relations between the Moriér Merchant Group and the McKinnon Trading Company were good. Business relationships weren’t decided by status.

“Does Joan-unnie like Lord Edward?”

“Yes… well. She does.”

That sounded exactly like Talfrin earlier. Diane’s irritation spiked so sharply it startled even her. Why did she have to stand here like this?

The dress she wore tonight was a masterpiece—ordered from a famous atelier after a long wait, and worth it. The emerald necklace and earrings had been chosen a week ago, selected specifically for the color that suited this outfit best.

And she’d prepared so meticulously for a ball where she wouldn’t even dance many songs for only one reason: to spend time with someone she liked. Just like in her Academy days—parties packed with people she didn’t care about could still be fun if Nerys was there. Making memories with someone good.

‘But what is this?’

Everything felt like a waste. Her irritation boiled over. She understood what Edward had done. And she didn’t regret helping Joan’s romance. But she hated the fact that this situation required using methods like this.

Everything irritated her. Edward, talking like he was helping while securing his own interests. Talfrin, acting pathetic. And herself, suddenly understanding why Talfrin had been so ambiguous, just from watching Joan.

‘Hesitating under the guise of consideration is rejection!’

Joan liked Edward, yet couldn’t approach him. Edward knew that and deliberately used Diane to get close. He must have judged that, given Joan’s personality, she couldn’t pretend not to notice Diane, even if he made her uncomfortable.

Why would the usually straightforward Joan like Edward and still avoid him?

If not because she feared he would suffer because of his damned status.

If not because she worried that, even after receiving a title after the war, her treatment in society would never match his.

Aaron flinched under Diane’s increasingly sharp gaze, uneasy himself. But Diane, lost in thought, had no time to spare for the person beside her.

“If it comes to this, the mental state needs to be fixed in a different way.”

What? Mine? Lord Edward’s? Or Joan’s? With no context, Aaron’s eyes went wide. Diane, far from explaining, clenched her teeth.

“Sir Aaron!”

“Yes, yes?”

“Tell them I’m not feeling well and that I’m leaving early.”

“Huh? Ah, yes!”

Anyone could see Diane wasn’t actually unwell, but Aaron answered briskly anyway. He had no desire to get frostbite for no reason.

❖ ❖ ❖

‘What? Where is she going?’

When Diane suddenly strode out of the banquet hall, Talfrin faltered. He glanced once at Joan, who had just finished a dance and was heading into the garden, with Edward following behind. Then he glanced back at Diane.

It seemed better to resolve the side that could end quickly, then devote the rest of tonight to the side that would take time.

He had brought a Shadow Operative just in case, already infiltrated as a guest. Talfrin signaled to the subordinate with a glance, then headed for Edward. Five minutes—no, two minutes and thirty seconds. That was all he intended to spend.

“My lord.”

Joan had already vanished among the garden trees. Talfrin approached Edward, who was scanning the dark garden with an awkward expression.

“Ah, Count Wirtam.”

Edward turned naturally and greeted him. Talfrin felt a jolt of shock.

Too many people had been seeing through his disguises lately. Was it time to retire from Shadows?

Seeing Talfrin’s eyebrow twitch, Edward laughed heartily.

“Don’t misunderstand. If I saw you anywhere else, I definitely wouldn’t have recognized you. But you’ve been staring so heatedly at Lady Diane for quite a while. Anyone could tell.”

“Is that so?”

He hadn’t been in the right state of mind to manage his gaze. Talfrin resolved, grimly, to be more careful next time, and frowned.

“Knowing that, why don’t you understand it’s rude to dance with another woman without even taking the first dance with your partner?”

“Oh my. Quite aggressive.”

“I’m merely speaking of common sense and etiquette. Of course, my lord—who received a far better education than I did—must know this already.”

“Even if she dances with another man, you can’t stand to see Lady Diane treated improperly. That’s quite a passion. If you’d shown her that yourself, today wouldn’t have happened.”

What was he saying?

Talfrin felt repulsed by every word and every expression Edward made. Yet he couldn’t find anything else to strike with.

Because Edward and Diane hadn’t done anything wrong. Even the talk about a “first dance” was the sort of jealous nitpicking young people obsessed over, not some iron rule of high society.

And there was nothing wrong with what Edward said.

Talfrin, boiling with fury and self-loathing, fell silent. Edward shook his head, as if looking at something pitiful.

“If you like her that much, go talk to her. Why are you doing this here?”

“What are you saying, my lord? Are you saying it’s fine if just anyone talks to your partner?”

Talfrin couldn’t believe it. How could someone who brought Diane McKinnon as his partner even imagine letting another man talk to her? If it were Talfrin, he would never allow that.

Forget dancing with others. Forget even talking to others. He wouldn’t even let anyone look at her.

Of course, people would look—she was that extraordinary—but that could be handled by teaching them manners…

Edward looked at Talfrin, who had gone that far in his thoughts, with even more pity.

“Why wouldn’t it be fine? People can talk to people.”

“What…”

“Now I understand why you kept hesitating at the decisive move while meeting openly. You lack control. Were you afraid she’d run away?”

Talfrin sucked in a breath.

He had never thought of it that way. Control? Running away? To him, his relationship with Diane wasn’t something those ordinary words could describe. Every word, every look, every action in front of her was simply—

A struggle with all his might.

Not to be consumed completely while being inevitably drawn toward the sun. To make the sun notice him, even just a little.

But was anything Edward said wrong?

It wasn’t.

(T/N : This part of side story is really fun. We get to know more about Talfrin and Di. )