Chapter Title: The Waltz of Words
"There's no doubt that my tongue is trembling and frozen, unable to look up."
"But I am different from Beatrice. I can sit by clear, cool, sweet waters or enjoy a boat ride with a gentleman by the pier."
The gentleman's face brightened.
"You have read Giovanni and Francesco?"
"It's been a long-standing hobby."
"Which work did you like the most?"
Adelaide burst into laughter as if she had heard a delightful joke.
The sound of her laughter, as clear and beautiful as rolling pearls, drew the attention of everyone around.
Even Cesare, who was conversing with the head of the Sforza family who had come up from the northern island, turned his body.
"Can one discuss Francesco and Giovanni without mentioning *My Secret* and *Decameron*?"
It was a magical phrase that caused gentlemen, who knew only Durante as a basic qualification of Fornatie nobility, to feign ignorance. Only one gentleman, who had read both Giovanni and Francesco, knelt before Adelaide with an awestruck expression.
"You said you are not Beatrice, but to me, you appear as if you came with an olive wreath on a white veil."
"I cannot guide you to the eternal feast of blessings."
"If it's where you are going, even if it's not the pure stream but Judecca, I will follow."
"Well, you might want to talk to my brother about that."
"The ladies of Fornatie all have the right to choose and claim the gentleman they desire."
Adelaide smiled at the gentleman. He swallowed hard. She spoke quietly.
"Do you think I would want you?"
The gentleman swallowed hard again. Geneviève thought he looked as if he had already given half his soul to Adelaide.
"...I hope you would want me."
Then, Adelaide shifted her gaze to the space behind the gentleman.
"I would like to answer, but the wings of the king of hell are approaching us."
A large shadow fell over the kneeling gentleman.
"Adelaide."
It was Cesare Bonaparte, smiling with a peculiar coldness.
Geneviève, seeing Cesare up close for the first time, hiccupped slightly. Up close, he was even more impressive. Thick eyebrows, cold golden eyes, and a coquettish beauty mark that softened the chill.
Just as she was about to lower her gaze to his muscular physique, she felt a sharp look piercing her. Turning her head, she saw Lucrezia staring at her with a blank expression.
*Gulp.*
Geneviève quickly lowered her eyes and looked at Adelaide.
Adelaide greeted Cesare's arrival with a tender smile.
"Brother."
"What's this?"
Cesare asked, looking down at the gentleman at her feet.
The gentleman flinched. Adelaide smiled calmly.
"He was sharing delightful stories with me. He said he would go to Judecca with me. I was about to accept the invitation when..."
"The king of hell showed up?"
"Is that how it goes?"
Adelaide chuckled, and Cesare snorted.
*...They really do look like siblings.*
Unable to join in as Cesare had not greeted her, Geneviève watched in awe from the side.
They didn't resemble each other much, but their auras were similar.
Slightly arrogant, quite distant, and extremely charming.
"Then it's my turn to freeze you with Cocytus's ice."
"You are merciless."
"Do I look merciful? This fool thinks offering to go to Judecca is an enticement on my birthday. He can't even offer a ship."
The fool blushed but didn't dare to speak. He was a smart but ordinary heir of a landowning family, not a trading company owner.
Adelaide laughed.
"If you do that, no one will speak to me."
"Then I'll have to build a ship named after you. A galleon will be completed this month, and I'll name it 'Adelaide.'"
"Is it my birthday today?"
"I can give you a ship anytime, even if it's not your birthday."
Cesare said, looking down at Adelaide.
Geneviève thought it was a very peculiar look. Contrary to rumors of being devoted to his sister, his eyes showed complex emotions.
He was smiling, but it was a habitual smile that the socialites could interpret as a neutral expression.
*He looks... a bit angry?*
As Geneviève felt puzzled, Cesare extended his hand.
"Waltz?"
"Sure."
Adelaide smiled elegantly and took Cesare's hand.
---
Adelaide danced the waltz, resting in Cesare's arms. His warm, firm hand supported her back. It felt the same as the first time they danced.
Since Cesare was the host of the event, no one else was dancing. They were the only two on the floor.
As Adelaide spun in a running spin turn, she lazily watched the people and twinkling lights passing by behind Cesare.
When she shifted her gaze, she saw Cesare looking at her with a dry, humorless expression, despite his smiling mouth.
Adelaide smiled.
"Brother, are you feeling unwell? Should I call Councilor Grimaldi?"
Cesare sneered at her words.
"It seems you have no intention of changing that irritating tone."
"You're hurting my feelings."
"That's the point."
"I welcome any hurt you give me."
Cesare paused and then frowned with a smile. The atmosphere around him grew even colder, showing his displeasure.
Though there hadn't been a day in the past two months without his irritation, he seemed particularly sharp today.
"What makes you think you can say anything?"
Adelaide smiled gently.
"Anything is fine if it's from you, Brother."
"You're ignorant of the world's dangers, Adelaide Bonaparte."
"Am I really?"
She pressed closer, their chests touching. It was a move Cesare had once done.
She whispered, looking into Cesare's eyes.
"...I really meant anything."
"..."
For a moment, Cesare's steps faltered. It was a rare mistake for him.
Cesare's smile was filled with annoyance as he continued with a chassé. The muscles in his sharp, firm jaw tightened.
Adelaide burst into laughter.
*How annoyed he must be!*
He disliked clingy women and those who overstepped their bounds. Adelaide was doing both.
He probably wanted to cast off this presumptuous shoeshine girl immediately, but he had already introduced her as his sister.
So, even if he decided to kill her, it wouldn't be now, and it wouldn't be efficient to kill her without resolving the agreement first.
In the conflict that had been ongoing for the past two months, Adelaide surprisingly found it easier to endure.
Because Cesare's hatred of her made it possible. Whatever Adelaide said, it greatly irritated him.
Whether she acted as a 'sister' or clung to him as a 'woman.' The head of the Bonaparte family, who was born to rule the world, couldn't shake off a mere shoeshine girl.
How frustrating must that be?
Finding that amusing, Adelaide deliberately treated Cesare more kindly.
Of course, Cesare wasn't passive either.
He deviated from the prearranged waltz routine and suddenly performed a rondé. Adelaide quickly followed his lead. The move transitioned immediately into a contra check.
"So."
In that brief moment, Cesare whispered softly.
"If I sneak into your bed tonight, can you promise not to cry like last time?"
"..."
Adelaide's lips sealed shut. Cesare laughed mockingly at her silence.
"How consistently overstepping."
"Bringing up the past is not gentlemanly."
"Then you shouldn't have a past to bring up. Is it my fault you have a past worth gossiping about?"
"Your past isn't exactly spotless either."
---