Chapter 86: The Place Where You Are
During her free time, Evelia wore a maid outfit and spun alone in the dance hall. A record she had listened to countless times echoed through the hall as she recalled each and every step of the dance.
The ball was near, only one day remained before the final appearance. Everyone was giving it their all, and Evelia was no exception. She had to be in her best form so she wouldn’t let Armand down.
While dancing, she didn’t need to pay attention to her “silent steps” as an assassin. She listened to the sound of her shoes tapping the floor and closed her eyes, imagining her raised hands resting on Armand’s shoulders. She pictured what he would do when the music started, and how she should respond in turn.
Tomorrow, Mr. Armand would attend the ball with her, and they would even wear the same perfume.
For some reason, when she thought of that, Evelia’s heart skipped a beat. Even her steps became slightly stronger, and she almost lost the rhythm.
“Eve?”
She thought she heard Armand’s voice in her imagination, calling her name, tightly holding her hand as they spun around the dance floor—
“Eve.”
“Ah.”
When she heard him call her name a second time, it felt so real that she opened her eyes.
It wasn’t just her imagination.
The real Armand was standing at the doorway, though she didn’t know how long he had been there. Maybe it was because the music and the moment had completely drawn her in, but she hadn’t even heard him come in.
“Mr. Armand?”
The music was still playing, but Evelia had stopped dancing.
She bowed politely to Armand, wondering how her dancing looked to him.
She didn’t know if her dance had met his expectations, or if what she’d just done could be called “presentable.”
But judging by Armand’s expression, he didn’t seem displeased at all. Evelia quietly let out a breath of relief.
“You’re back early.”
“Ah, most of the real work is tomorrow, so I got to sneak in a half-day off today.”
Armand leaned lazily against the wall and yawned from lack of sleep. He had originally planned to nap in his office, but after having to explain things to Carle for ages due to a misunderstanding, he lost the mood to sleep.
“It’s a celebration, shouldn’t you be resting? Mr. Armand, you should take this chance to relax.”
“Yeah… alright.”
After that came an awkward silence.
It was as if they had run out of things to say. The record finished its final note, and the now-empty dance hall fell into stillness.
Armand didn’t leave, and Evelia didn’t start the record again. The two stood silently, looking at each other, golden and blue eyes meeting. Even after spending so much time together, they still couldn’t read what the other was thinking.
But for now, in each other’s eyes, they could clearly see their own reflection.
Ahem—
After a moment of thought, Armand cleared his throat. His boots clicked on the floor as he walked past Evelia, heading straight for the record player. After fiddling with it for a moment, the soft music filled the hall once more.
Then, he turned around and walked toward Evelia.
“Miss Evelia, may I have this dance?”
One hand behind his back, the other extended toward her, Armand bent slightly at the waist and made his formal invitation.
“……”
Evelia quietly looked at the hand he held out to her. The intro of the music played softly in her ears.
“Of course, Mr. Armand.”
She nodded and gently placed her hand in his. Unlike Evelia’s careful movement, the moment her slender fingers touched his palm, Armand stepped forward almost aggressively, firmly holding her hand and raising his chest as he pulled her close to him.
With the rhythm of the music, he led Evelia step by step toward the center of the dance floor. Maybe it was because of her slight hesitation earlier when he asked her to dance, but just as they reached the center, the music hit its most intense, dramatic point.
With the sudden rise in tempo, Armand also danced with more strength and speed. It was almost like he was getting back at her for dragging him around the last time when she had taken the lead as the “male” dancer. He didn’t hold back, stepping forward directly in front of Evelia again and again, forcing her to step backward.
He placed one hand gently behind her neck, and Evelia instinctively leaned back. Armand didn’t bend down, he simply stood tall, waiting for the next beat of the music to lift her up again.
Because Armand used quite a bit of strength when pulling her up, Evelia ended up very close to him the moment she stood up. He leaned forward slightly while stepping in, and she tilted her head back a little, stepping away. Their foreheads brushed lightly as he supported her. After staring into each other’s eyes for just a few seconds, they switched positions.
Evelia’s strange sense of competition was lit by Armand’s firm movements. As the music shifted, she stepped right between Armand’s feet with force and confidence, giving him no room to react. This time, Armand was the one being pushed back to the center of the dance floor.
The two of them spun past each other in the middle of the hall, brushing shoulders several times like they were both trying to outplay the other. Their eyes were locked, each watching for the other's next move, cautious of the rhythm.
When the music rose in intensity again, Armand held Evelia’s hand tightly and extended their arms outward. His other hand wrapped around her lower back, pulling her close with enough force that Evelia couldn’t help but lean into him. She instinctively grabbed his shoulder, once again being led by his steps.
Then, as if refusing to give in, she turned her back to him. Armand followed her movement, placing both hands on her waist and stepping three times to the left, then three times to the right, circling with her for a while.
Eventually, Evelia followed the rhythm and turned back to face him. She stepped sideways a few times to create some space between them, but their hands were still firmly connected. Armand easily pulled her back into his arms.
As the music slowly came down from its peak, Evelia let go of Armand’s hand and spun alone to the side. But at the final high point of the music, she quickly stepped back to him. She pressed tightly against Armand, hooked one leg around his waist, and Armand held that raised leg, pulling Evelia along with him as he moved.
For the final pose, Evelia leaned back, and this time, Armand bent down with her, gradually pulling her upright again. As the last note of the song echoed through the hall, their foreheads touched closely, ending their dance-off in a draw.
At first, it might have just been a regular practice session. But the moment Armand used force, things turned into a silent competition between the two. Even after all that, there was no clear winner.
“Mr. Armand, you danced wonderfully. I hope I didn’t slow you down.”
“Ah—no, not at all. I’m just glad I didn’t hold you back.”
Even though their dance was intense, they were both actually beginners.
Let’s not even talk about Evelia, who had been dancing with thin air before this. As for Armand, he had secretly taken intensive lessons from Carle for days.
If any strange rumors came out about Armand and Carle, no one would be surprised. After all, what kind of two grown men dance tango in the office in the middle of the night? If Carle’s wife didn’t already know their personalities and relationship, even she might have started suspecting something fishy was going on.
“Ah, right, Eve,” Armand said as he caught his breath and finally remembered why he’d come here in the first place. “There’s something going on at the royal side tomorrow. I might be back a little late, but I’ll definitely make it in time for the party. Don’t worry, I'll make sure we arrive together on time.”
He had originally come to the dance hall to tell Evelia that, but before he could say anything, he’d gotten completely distracted by her dancing, and ended up joining in.
“It’s okay, Mr. Armand. No matter how long it takes, I’ll be waiting for you.”
“I see.”
Hearing Evelia’s words, Armand felt a little guilty for having to be late for personal reasons.
“As long as you’re here, it's a grand dance, no matter the time or place… Just like a moment ago, wasn’t that already a dance just for the two of us?”
“……”
Armand froze for a second. He suddenly remembered how many close touches there had been during their dancing. Without thinking, he pinched his own ear and mumbled, “Ah—umm…”
He didn’t even know what to say.
“Mr. Armand?”
Seeing Armand in a daze, Evelia took a step closer. Maybe because of the dancing, she was a little warm, and as she leaned toward him, Armand could feel the heat from her skin.
Or maybe… that warmth didn’t just belong to her alone.
“It’s nothing… I’ll go back and rest for a bit. You should… get some rest too, Eve.”
Even though it was still afternoon and evening was far off, Armand, unsure of what else to say, mumbled something vague, gave Evelia a smile, and turned to leave.
Evelia stayed in the dance hall. She looked at the center of the room, her mind still filled with the passion of the music they had just danced to.
She walked to the window and looked out in the direction Armand had gone. Her eyes followed the sunlight that shone down on his back.
It seemed like Armand noticed her gaze. He turned around, looked at her, and smiled again, waving his hand.
Evelia did the same, waving back at him through the glass.
Only after Armand disappeared from view did she turn away. She planned to go over the dance again. But now, the hall just felt empty and quiet.