The Night of the Imperial Banquet

Lucian didn’t respond to Shana’s question.

He simply stared at her in silence.

His blue eyes slowly moved from her toes to the top of her head, as if engraving every detail into memory.

‘He could at least say something.’

Seeing him so quiet made her uneasy.

Did it look that bad?

Maybe she should have just worn her old dress after all.

Trying on something that didn’t suit her suddenly felt embarrassing.

But Lucian had been the one who insisted.

Fidgeting awkwardly with the hem of her dress, Shana spoke again.

“Um… does the dress really not suit me?”

Only then did Lucian murmur softly.

“…No. It’s just… so beautiful it feels like a dream.”

As he spoke, he roughly ran a hand down his face.

‘That doesn’t look like the expression of someone impressed.’

He looked conflicted.

Almost like someone who had been caught off guard by an unexpected attack.

‘Beautiful like a dream?’

The compliment sounded embarrassingly excessive.

Still, at least he hadn’t called it a potato sack.

“Turn around and show me the back too, Shasha.”

“What?”

His strange reaction made her a little annoyed.

She almost wanted to complain that he was acting like a clingy lover.

But considering how expensive this dress must be—since he had reserved it in advance—she decided to indulge him.

Holding the skirt lightly, Shana slowly turned around in front of him.

As she moved, the countless tiny gemstones sewn into the skirt caught the salon lights and burst into sparkling brilliance.

“Wait… is this a magic ornament?”

So that was why he wanted her to turn around.

The dress had a magical mechanism built into it.

The jewels weren’t ordinary gemstones.

They were mana stones that emitted light in response to the wearer’s movement.

Shana stared blankly at the glowing dress behind her.

It shimmered like a galaxy spread across the night sky.

It was the kind of dress that would capture everyone’s attention.

“This is too beautiful. What am I supposed to do?

When we go to the banquet, every man there will be staring only at you, Shasha.”

Lucian frowned slightly as if genuinely worried about that situation.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s not just good. It’s perfect. Madame, can I buy every dress in this salon?”

“Wait, Lucian! What are you doing?”

Lucian nodded as if he had already made up his mind.

He didn’t even bother pointing at individual dresses.

“My goodness, Your Grace. Do you truly mean all of them?

It’s always a joy to see my creations find owners.”

Madame Antoine covered her mouth in surprise, but her eyes sparkled with excitement.

“No, no, that’s impossible!

Lucian, why would you buy everything here?!”

Shana grabbed his arm in shock.

“The delegation’s visit will last quite a while.

There will be luncheons, dinners, and balls.

One dress won’t be enough.

You’ll need something comfortable for daytime events, an evening gown for banquets, and so on.

When you think about it, it makes sense to buy them all.”

It sounded logical.

But realistically, three dresses would have been plenty.

“I only need this one dress!

I’m just attending as an apothecary.

We agreed to buy one fancy dress for the party.”

“Shasha, do you really hate the idea of me buying them for you?”

Lucian looked at her with eyes as pitiful as a puppy.

Shana shuddered slightly.

But she forced herself to look away.

“…Yes. I hate it.”

Her heart was racing.

Maybe because he could casually buy dresses this expensive, while she couldn’t.

Suppressing the instinct, she swallowed and continued.

“Why?”

“They’re too expensive. And it’s wasteful. Please stop here, okay?”

“…But Madame seems happy about it.”

“Madame is happy about the profit your wallet will bring.”

Keeping a polite smile on her face, Shana leaned close to Lucian’s ear and whispered fiercely.

“Lucian. Listen carefully.

If you buy every dress in this salon, I will never share a bed with you again for as long as we stay in the capital.”

“…What?”

Lucian looked like he had just lost the entire world.

‘Finally stopped him.’

After a desperate struggle, she managed to reduce his purchase from every dress in the shop…

to ten.

It looked like a battle against Lucian’s reckless spending.

But in reality, it had also been a battle against herself.

‘Thinking about the money hurts… but when Lucian’s medicine wears off and he regains his senses, the consequences would be far worse.’

Even so, the cost of ten dresses exceeded her entire lifetime income.

Shana tried calculating the amount on her fingers.

Then she gave up.

‘Let’s just say this was unavoidable.’

It absolutely was not her choice.

As Madame Antoine packaged the dresses, she spoke warmly.

“His Grace must love you very much, Lady.

Our salon often receives couples preparing for marriage.

Many men act as if they would give their lives for their beloved—yet hesitate when it comes to spending money.

But someone willing to give everything without hesitation like His Grace… this is the first time I’ve seen it.”

Of course.

Anyone seeing them behave like this in a dress shop would assume they were lovers.

Shana sighed softly.

“We’re really not that kind of relationship, Madame.

Lucian only behaves like this because of… circumstances.”

Complicated circumstances.

Circumstances she couldn’t exactly explain as “medicine side effects.”

“Oh my.

Do you truly believe that?”

Madame Antoine widened her eyes.

“Do you know who I am?”

“You’re the daughter of Baron Crowell.”

Shana had expected Madame not to recognize such an insignificant fallen noble family.

But Madame answered instantly.

It seemed she had memorized the genealogy of every noble house in the Empire.

“Well, then there’s no need to explain further.”

Shana shrugged.

The meaning was obvious.

There was an insurmountable gap in status between her and Lucian.

It was a much simpler way to silence people than explaining complicated medical situations.

But Madame replied calmly.

“Matters of the heart are rarely concerned with status or family.”

“I didn’t realize you believed so strongly in love, Madame.”

Madame laughed softly.

“Of course I do.

To create the most beautiful dresses in the world, one must be a passionate believer in love.”

“Is that so?”

“Otherwise I would constantly question whether someone deserves to wear a dress or not.

That kind of thinking doesn’t suit someone whose job is to create beauty for anyone.”

Her words sounded oddly mysterious.

“Lady Crowell, where will you wear this dress first?”

“At the welcoming banquet for the Ekha Kingdom delegation.”

Madame nodded thoughtfully.

“In that case, I would like to give you a small gift.

Use it when you lack confidence at the party. Sometimes what cannot be seen matters more.”

She opened a drawer and handed Shana a small item.

‘…Perfume?’

Shana wasn’t sure what it meant.

But the alluring fragrance from Madame Antoine was undeniably wonderful.

“Thank you, Madame Antoine.”

[The Banquet Begins]

Time passed quickly.

Before she knew it, the day of the banquet had arrived.

Inside the carriage heading toward the Imperial Palace entrance, Shana’s back was stiff with tension.

Lucian glanced at her.

“Shasha, you look nervous.”

“Of course I am. This is my first time officially attending a palace banquet.”

Shana swallowed nervously.

Before the delegation’s party began, she needed to examine the princess’s condition and report on the medicine’s progress.

From the ten dresses Lucian bought, she chose the most modest one.

Even so, the finest silk shimmered elegantly with her every movement.

Riding in a carriage bearing the Imperial emblem, she finally approached the palace.

It would be the first time she faced her official client—

The princess.

‘Did the medicine really work?’

The telegram from the princess praised its effectiveness.

But reality could still be different.

Her footsteps echoed softly against marble floors.

Imperial guards stood lined throughout the corridors.

Entering the palace required numerous inspections—mana checks, identity verification, and more.

Previously, she had entered the treatment room through Lucian’s teleportation.

But the palace itself was protected by powerful anti-teleportation magic.

Lucian was simply an exception—

As the heir of the grand ducal family that had protected the Empire for generations and a legendary war hero.

While the guards inspected everyone thoroughly, Lucian Rithardt and his companion Shana were processed quickly.

“Your Grace, welcome. Please follow me.”

Without even asking their purpose, a guard began leading them toward the princess’s residence.

It made sense.

Lucian was the princess’s cousin.

Shana, however, had never met Princess Elise.

They were the same age, but the princess rarely appeared in high society and never attended the academy.

So their paths had never crossed.

As they walked through the quiet corridors, Shana spoke nervously.

“What kind of person is Princess Elise? I’m worried I might make a mistake.”

“She’s intelligent.

Sometimes she surprises people by doing things outside common sense… but you don’t need to worry too much.”

“Outside common sense?”

Shana looked at Lucian suspiciously.

Were cousins really that alike?

“Like you, Lucian?”

“Not quite. Actually… she might be more like you, Shasha.”

“Me?”

‘Surely he doesn’t mean I break common sense.’

Shana considered herself a very rational person.

At least before meeting Lucian, she had lived diligently while paying off debts.

“Well… in terms of courage.”

“Courage?”

Shana blinked.

It was not a word she had ever associated with herself.

“Me? Because I made the Mana Rejection medicine?”

“That’s part of it.”

“Part of it? Then what else?”

“You weren’t afraid of me even when I nearly lost control. Not recently, and not when we were children either.”

“…Well.”

She believed Lucian would never hurt her.

Even if he lost control.

But saying that out loud felt embarrassing.

“I just did my duty as an apothecary. Checking a patient’s condition is basic.”

“Really? What a brave apothecary.”

“…That sounded a little annoying.”

His tone sounded like he was talking to a child.

Grumbling quietly, she kept walking—

Until Lucian suddenly stopped.

“Shasha, wait. Your hair is caught.”

He tapped lightly behind her back.

A long pink strand of hair had caught on the small zipper of her dress.

“Oh… I need to remove it.”

Shana reached behind her back but couldn’t quite reach it.

“Shasha, you’ll never get it like that.”

Lucian stepped closer behind her.

His fingers carefully freed her hair from the zipper.

As he did, his cool fingertips brushed against the back of her neck.

A chill ran down her spine.

“Ah… thank you.”

Her breath trembled slightly.

“I actually wanted to help you put the dress on earlier.”