By Zephyria 
“What kind of letter did you spray perfume on?”
Cecile roughly wiped his palms with a wet towel as if something dirty had gotten on them. The towel he tossed was quickly caught by the attendant who had delivered the letter.
“Cecile-nim… your reply.”
The attendant, fiddling with the wet towel, hesitantly opened his mouth. He knew the atmosphere was not good, but he had to fulfill his role.
Cecile bit his lower lip tightly. As expected, a sharp glare shot his way.
“Do I look like I have the time to write a reply to such a letter?”
Cecile’s shirt was a mess, crumpled and with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He looked too busy to even care about his appearance.
“I apologize. However, according to etiquette, you must send a reply…”
As he kept bowing his head, a long sigh escaped him. After all, what fault did the attendant have? Cecile ruffled his bangs and approached the desk to pick up an ink pen.
“Take this.”
He handed over a hastily scrawled letter, and only then did the attendant’s expression brighten. He bowed several times in gratitude and stepped back.
After that, letters kept pouring in. With the Debutante just two days away, it was only natural that fervent courtships would follow.
In the midst of his busyness, Cecile shot a fierce glare at the letter carriers who kept coming to disturb him. Was everyone out of their minds? He couldn’t understand why they kept clinging to him, especially since he had deliberately taken on the stigma of liking men.
Eventually, he reached the point where he had prepared a bunch of replies with just an “X” scrawled on them, telling them to take them as they pleased.
‘Is it true that blood cannot be hidden?’
Alexis observed this scene with great interest. The temper that popped out unconsciously was probably Cecile’s true nature.
With that face scowling, he resembled Empress Elizabeth even more. There was no way Alexis would see that positively.
Even as the sun set and dinner time approached, Cecile remained in his office, continuing his final checks. He was so engrossed in thought that he didn’t even notice Alexis approaching him.
Alexis reached out to the desk and began reading the unopened letters one by one. With an indifferent expression, he skimmed through the contents and casually asked.
“Cecile.”
“Yes?”
Cecile, who had been perched on the desk, suddenly looked up at the unexpected call. He was quite taken aback to see Alexis so close.
Alexis held up one of the letters he had just read.
“Baron Raymond is quite a decent fellow. Although he comes from a commoner background, he has made a name for himself and even earned a title. I believe he is also quite handsome?”
Cecile was at a loss for words, unable to respond easily. After staring back and forth between the letter and Alexis for a while, he let out a weary sigh.
“I’ll choose my own partner.”
“There isn’t much time left until the Debutante.”
“Do you want to see me flirting with a male partner in front of everyone, Your Highness?”
“Is there a problem now that the Emperor has given his official approval?”
“I have my own preferences, you know.”
“I’m curious. What are your preferences?”
Alexis nodded his solid jaw. It was a sign for him to speak up.
As if he could say it, Cecile kept his mouth tightly shut and lowered his gaze.
“…I look at faces.”
“A baron is decent enough in that regard.”
“He should also have a good physique.”
“He’s tall enough.”
“And a kind personality is important too.”
“That’s something you can only know after meeting them.”
As he countered each point, Cecile found himself unable to retort any further. He rubbed his face, which was smeared with discomfort.
The letter came closer.
“This is a person personally recommended by the Crown Prince. It would be unacceptable for my only younger brother to participate in the Debutante without a partner and enjoy himself alone.”
“……”
Cecile snatched the letter that was hovering in front of him.
“I didn’t know you thought so highly of me.”
His sharp gaze turned toward Alexis. Alexis merely met his gaze with a cold smile.
In the end, he hastily scribbled a letter of acceptance in front of him. After tossing the ink-stained pen aside, Cecile leaned on the desk and adjusted his posture awkwardly.
“I’ve done this at Your Highness’s request, so I have one favor to ask in return.”
“What is it?”
“I’m having a hard time making a decision. I’d like to hear Your Highness’s opinion as well.”
Cecile immediately moved. As he pulled back the partition set behind the desk, another table, secretly hidden, was revealed.
On the dark brown maple table sat a large wooden box.
Alexis approached and looked down at the box. Inside was a meticulously crafted model, undoubtedly a scaled-down version of the main palace’s grand banquet hall.
“You’ve made something fascinating.”
“There are limits to imagination. By creating a model in advance, I can predict things more intuitively. I can also grasp the overall harmony at a glance.”
“It’s truly a good method. How did you come up with this?”
Alexis covered his mouth with his palm. A hint of intrigue flickered in his blue eyes.
Until now, he had only designed with drawings, but Cecile’s method was not just intuitive; it was innovative. He thought he should create a model like this for the Black Forest’s guardhouse as well.
Cecile seemed indifferent to showing off his ingenuity as he moved the model.
“This is the entrance to the grand banquet hall. I’m thinking of raising it like this. What do you think?”
“What’s the reason?”
“The current entrance to the banquet hall is flat. If there’s a step, it will draw much more attention the moment people enter. There will be five hundred attendees at the ball. Since the main characters of this banquet are those who have just come of age, I thought it wouldn’t be bad to focus the attention on them.”
“It’s a social banquet held by the royal family. Don’t you know that regardless of the size of the banquet, the attention should always be on the royal family?”
“That’s why I’m asking.”
Alexis scanned the model without responding. From the royal family’s perspective, it would be right to reject Cecile’s proposal.
However, when he thought of Yuria, who would appear on the raised platform covered in red carpet, his tightly closed lips naturally curved into a smile.
“It wouldn’t be bad. But the elders might not like it.”
“That’s true.”
“I’ll approve it, so proceed. Even if someone complains, it can be excused as the Crown Prince being ignorant of the Debutante.”
In that moment, Cecile seemed to realize something important. Alexis had spent his coming-of-age ceremony in the Black Forest.
“Ah… it must be Your Highness’s first Debutante.”
“Indeed. This rite of passage that everyone else experiences is a bit unfamiliar to me.”
“The Debutante is nothing special. It’s just a typical ball.”
“You speak as if you’ve experienced it.”
The elegant smile vanished like smoke the moment Cecile met his gaze. Alexis straightened his posture and spoke in his usual dry tone.
“You’ve worked hard. It must have been tight on time, but you’ve wrapped it up splendidly. This should be fine. I’ll make sure to inform the Emperor of your efforts.”
“There’s no need for that. I didn’t particularly seek praise.”
When Cecile replied weakly, Alexis raised one eyebrow.
“You don’t want anything?”
“…It’s not that I want nothing at all.”
Cecile rubbed his arm for no reason. After all, the person he wanted praise from wasn’t the Emperor, but Alexis. Was it too much to be a little greedy?
“Do you remember the promise you made to teach me swordsmanship last time?”
“I do.”
“Please start right after the Debutante ends. I’m ready in my heart.”
Alexis chuckled lightly. It seemed he really wanted to learn. Even though there were plenty of guards around to protect him, it was hard to understand why Cecile, who was so out of place, wanted to wield a sword.
“Let’s do that. A promise is a promise.”
Cecile’s fatigue vanished with that nonchalant response. He couldn’t help but smile with pride.
* * *
On the day of the Debutante. Under the clear morning sunlight, the palace began its day as usual.
The grand banquet hall was in the final stages of preparation. The courtiers moved busily as soon as the sun rose. With a big event ahead, there was a vibrant energy everywhere.
Around noon, Cecile, who had finally gotten some deep sleep, opened his eyes.
Still half-asleep, as he pulled the Seolleong rope, the attendants waiting outside rushed in to lift their lazy master from the bed and carried hot water into the bathtub.
They added so much bath salt that the floral scent flooded into the bedroom.
“Wake up a bit. Would you like some cold mint tea to chase away the sleep?”
“…No, I’m fine.”
Cecile was pushed by the attendants and reluctantly entered the bathroom. Dressed in a thin robe, as he submerged himself in the water, three or four attendants clung to him, carefully washing his body and washing his hair.
While others were busy getting ready from the crack of dawn, Cecile felt no excitement.
Rather, he still seemed drowsy as he yawned widely. As he wiped away the tears that had formed at the corners of his eyes, he felt a rather cold gaze looking down at him from above. Cecile tilted his head back to look at his head attendant.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Cecile-nim, aren’t you nervous at all?”
“What’s there to be nervous about? What’s the big deal about the Debutante?”
Cecile scooped up water and wiped his wet face once more. He was starting to wake up, but his mood still felt like it was at rock bottom.
Having experienced the Debutante once in a previous life, it was only natural for him to feel indifferent.
But the attendants seemed different. They were more earnest than ever in grooming Cecile. After drying his wet hair, they carefully combed it with an ivory brush soaked in fragrant oil and applied rose water to his face.
His dark brown hair shone with a luster that made one want to touch it, and his already fair cheeks glistened as if they had been moistened with water.
The dressing continued. Although he couldn’t spend the entire budget on new clothes, there were plenty of formal outfits that Cecile had never worn among his belongings. The attendants selected only the bright and extravagant ones from among them.
“Hmm, they’re all not great.”
Looking at the line of clothes, Cecile shook his head. To him, they all seemed like outdated outfits.
“Oh, there’s something decent over there.”
“Really?”
“Bring it here.”
He pointed out the clothes hanging in the corner of the wardrobe. A timeless white shirt and black pants. And finally, he chose a vintage dark blue vest. The vest, bordered with gold thread, seemed like it could be worn.
Leo, serving as an attendant, openly sighed.
“Everyone will be dressing up extravagantly… how can you wear such dull clothes alone?”
“Don’t say unnecessary things. I shine just as I am, so it’s fine.”
In reality, once dressed, Cecile looked stylish. His slender figure suited anything he wore.
“Don’t you think so?”
After tying a light cream-colored cravat, Cecile smiled, clearly pleased with his outfit. A faint blush appeared on his cheeks. His face was so beautiful that the attendants couldn’t help but agree.
“Of course. There won’t be anyone as beautiful as you today, Cecile-nim.”
Leo subtly added a pearl bracelet to Cecile’s wrist.
The head attendant’s earnest efforts to make his master stand out were almost tear-jerking.