However, he didn’t return.

“Did he lose his way?”

I was starting to grow worried.

He seemed to be a servant at some aristocratic household because he already knew aristocratic culture and manners, so I thought he wouldn’t be lost in a place like this either. But maybe he was truly lost because it was his first time at the Royal Palace.

There was also the option that Nine had left me behind and ran, but the moment I thought of that option, I threw it away. If even the extras that don’t even appear in the novel are bastards, what am I supposed to do? Dance the twist?

“Hm…….”

I started to fiddle with the champagne flute in my hands out of nervousness.

The party was starting to reach its end. That also meant there wasn’t much time left till the marriage announcement either. Not to mention, people were starting to notice I had lost my partner.

If this continues, I’ll have the tables flipped. It looked as though I would be the one to eat from the feast of humiliation I had prepared.

I decided to go find Nine.

‘If something happened to Nine, I’m killing Ian.’

I glared at Ian — Ian choked — and moved around in wide steps.

To spoil the conclusion, I didn’t find Nine this day. Instead.

“…… Yuri?”

“Oh my. Do you know me?”

I came face-to-face with her.

***

The sun had set a long time ago, and it was dark outside.

“Truly, where did he go…… If he’s not here either, don’t I have to burst into the men’s bathrooms at this rate?’

I had searched the entire ballroom up to the corridor in front of the bathrooms, but I couldn’t see Nine. I only continued to grow more nervous.

“Damn it…….”

I wanted to tear at my hair, but considering how Martha had neatly twisted my hair this morning, I resisted my urges and quietly spat out a curse.

In the end, I turned my steps towards the only place I hadn’t checked yet: behind the ballroom, a small greenhouse. The uselessly gorgeous spring flowers under the uselessly clear spring night sky welcomed me.

However, the flower I sought — in other words, the handsome man — didn’t appear to be here.

I frantically opened my eyes wider and searched my surroundings. Since I didn’t want to advertise that I had lost my partner, I wasn’t even able to shout Nine’s name out loud and look for him so I felt very frustrated.  My expression was becoming so twisted that if someone were to see me, they would foam around the mouth and collapse.

While I was boiling in anger, a doll caught my eye. Because the moon was covered by clouds, it was hard to make out the figure, but they were most definitely a person. The next second, I realized that their hair was curly.

Was it Nine?

I put aside all my manners as a lady and ran over shouting.

“Hey, where were you……!”

However, I was at a loss for words.

As the person turned around, surprised at my voice, their distinct face was one that was not unfamiliar to me.

Almost as if to taunt me, the clouds moved out of the way and the moonlight shone down such that I could clearly see the face in front of me. The wave-like smooth jawline, the radiant golden hair came down to her shoulders, the corners of her eyes were slightly pointed downwards to give off a warm impression, and both eyes were big and blue like the deep ocean. The figure of her with her plump lips slightly apart was lovely and whenever she blinked, her thick eyelashes fluttered.

The girl was like an elegant water-lily underneath the moonlight and even her shivering was charming. She was a beauty who made anyone who placed their sights on her fall in love at first sight, and the male protagonists were not an exception to this.

There was only one person who matched this description.

“Yuri……?”

The female protagonist of this novel, Yuri Elisabeth.

“Oh, my…….”

Even her voice was like a smooth jade jingling.

I didn’t think to even grab onto my soul that had long escaped and blankly stared at her. Yuri merely tilted her head to the side and the corners of her mouth rose slightly, but the sight of her was so beautiful that it was deeply moving-.