The doors of the imperial ballroom were opened when the debutant ball (*young male and female aristocratâs social debut stage) was in full swing.
Dazzling lights poured down from the ornate chandeliers, the windows were adorned with gold, jewels, and luxurious tapestriesâŠ..
Everyoneâs eyes gathered on me as I proudly entered the luxurious venue.
âUghâŠâ
âWhat? Who is this?â
As expected, everyone was surprised.
âThe Duke of Diollus has two daughters. Which of the two are you talking about?â
âLook over there. Princess Lilia Diollus is already here. Theyâre talking about Princess Rubetria Diollus.â
âNo, I think the servants made a mistake. Princess Rubetria Diorus is a super fat red-haired girl.â
âThat ladyâs hair is also red, right? â
âAh, but still, is she really that beautiful lady?â
âIs that really Princess Rubettria Diollus?â
I could hear voices whispering from all over the place about how they couldnât recognize me.
I gave a gentle smile to the aristocratic boys who looked at me with blushed cheeks, and soon they started arguing with each other, saying that I smiled at one of them.
Oh, it feels great.
I took a deep breath and looked further into the ballroom. Some faces that recognized the changed me caught my eye.
âYour expressions are a spectacle.â
Lilia Diollus and her group opened their eyes so wide that it wouldnât be a surprise if they fell out.
Ricky Diollus, who opened his mouth as if surprised, was among my friends who were foolishly blushing at me.
Even the fifth Princess Lisbeth, who looked at me with a curious gaze, greeted me by raising the wine glass she was holdingâŠ.
Their gazes stared straight at me as if time had stopped, I really liked this.
This is the life of a celeb! (*short for celebrity)
âLi, Lilia. Is that really Rubetria?â
âCome on, surelyâŠ. It isnât right?â
âNonsense.â
Lilia and her group kept whispering over and over again.
Again, and again, and again.
I deliberately walked towards them first. When I was fat, the sound of high heels clacking, which I couldnât even look at in fear of spraining my feet, was pleasant.
âHello, Lilia.â
Standing in front of the trembling Lilia, I smiled as brightly as possible.
âAre you pissed off? Are you going to explode from anger?â
The ugly duckling of the dukeâs family, who she had been tormenting without hesitation, returned with a complete transformation, wouldnât she be upset?
I raised my chin arrogantly with a proud heart while spreading the fan I was holding which covered my mouth and smiled with only my eyes.
âThatâs right, Lady Pelkan. I am Rubetria. Was the last time I saw you last year? What did Lady say about buying macarons at the dessert shop?â
The daughter of Count Pelkan, who was standing next to Lilia, blushed brightly as she vaguely remembered what happened last year.
âOh my, the princess is at the dessert shop every time I see her. She eats so many sweets until her cheeks bursts, so she gets fat.â
She was the girl who dared to make such rude comments to me, the daughter of the Duke, behind my back because of her friendship with Lilia.
The timid Rubette couldnât say a word at that time, butâŠ
âI am different.â
The me who is now inside of Rubette, is a woman who has lived her entire life in splendor.
Everyone envied my life, and because I had never been ignored by anyone, I was rather proud and arrogant.
âItâs been so long that I canât remember. Nice to see you after a long time. Letâs have a cup of tea next time.â
âOh, that⊠yes. All right. And, thank you.â
Generously, I covered Lady Pelkanâs absurd remarks as much as I could, and she blushed in embarrassment and nodded her head.
At most, the girls, who were only fifteen or sixteen years old, immediately longed for my dignified appearance, which was a 180 degrees change.
âRu, Princess Rubette. By the way, the dress youâre wearing right nowâŠ.â
âOh, thatâs right. You recognize it. When I said I was going to have a late debut, Madame Becky made a dress and sent it to me.â
âWhat? Is that true?â
âOh, my god.âŠ.â
The noble girls were green with envy, while Lilia, who was in the middle, froze in shock. I managed to swallow a laugh at Liliaâs expression.
The black evening dress Iâm wearing right now is handmade by Madame Becky, a famous tailor in the Islands.
The dress of a renowned tailor, who only made clothes according to her beliefs, could only be worn by the Imperial Princesses after waiting a full year.
âI know how much you wanted to wear Beckyâs dress.â
I also knew that Lilia tried several times to place an order and drank water.
TL/N: Drank water: Korean expression meaning having a hard time
If someone like me âdaringlyâ wears such a dress, sheâll burst with anger.
âA lot of things I havenât seenâŠ, youâre thin. Rubette.â
âUm, well? Rather than being skinny, arenât I now in a more healthy state? Itâs all thanks to you. Thank you.â
To be precise, it is thanks to you and your mother that Iâve been trying so hard not to suffer for the rest of my life.
âWhat are you thankful for? HahaâŠ. You, you look much better, yeahâŠ.â
At my witty greeting, Lilia managed to smile, twitching the corners of her mouth.
ăHumans are really scary. Do you actually say things you donât like with a smile?ă
Just in time, a voice now familiar to me echoed in my head.
It was the voice of âWishtâ, the spirit of Rubetteâs family, who started all of this and is now my dear friend.
ăYou can watch while drinking cider. This is the moment that Rubette has longed for.ă
TL/N: If you drink âciderâ, you feel great and happy.
Wisht chuckled as if satisfied with the answer I said in my mind.
âBy the way, Rubette, you donât have a partner, do you? You didnât come alone to your once-in-a-lifetime debut ball, right?â
As expected, sheâs not that Lilia if she stays being beaten.
With a relaxed smile, she asked and shrugged her shoulders.
At just the right time, someone came to Liliaâs side. This handsome man with an impressive stature, dark brown hair, and blue eyes is.
He was the man who had been chasing after Rubette ever since he was an 8-year-old boy who lost his front teeth.
âOh, Duke Cedric. How have you been?â
ââŠ.Uh, long time no see.â
Cedric also stared at my changed appearance as if possessed.
Lilia grabbed her partner Cedricâs arms and gently pressed her cheek against his shoulder.
âYou canât come to a place like this alone. Why didnât you ask Ricky to be your partner?
Ricky Diollus, Liliaâs twin brother and my uncle.
No, why the hell would I be with that jerk?
I burst into laughter because of how ridiculous it was, and then folded the fan I had opened.
âRicky, please. Heâs not worthy enough as a man to stand next to me. Donât you see that?â
âWait, what? What did you just say?â
âLilia, thank you for your concern, but I didnât come alone. Because of my partnerâs position, we couldnât come to the venue together, so we decided to come separately.â
âYou canât come together?â
Lady Pelkan, who was listening, asked coldly.
âAh, according to the imperial etiquette, the party organizer is not allowed to enter the venueâs entrance where guests come and go.
âParty organizer?â
âWho is that?â
A curious glow appeared on the girlsâ faces, who each tilted their head.
Lilia, who was pondering my words, narrowed her eyes and muttered.
âAre you talking about the organizer for the debut ball? ThatâŠâ
âHis Majesty, The Crown Prince Lark van Raschmach Descartes!â
At that moment, the kingâs aide raised his voice to announce the presence of someone.
Then, the splendid door, opposite to the entrance of the noble guests, opened.
In principle, only the organizers of an imperial party, or the imperial family of the Descartes Empire, can enter and exit.
Liliaâs face, which I glanced at, was contemplative.
âHis Majesty the Crown Prince!â
âI greet the sun of the empire!â
The Crown Prince of this country, the most powerful in the Descartes Empire at the moment was Lark van Raschmach Descartes. As soon as he entered he waved his hand to the nobles who greeted him in a rush, and then turned his head to find someone.
Lark, who found me soon after, smiled brightly and started walking towards me.
Like the miracle of Moses, the nobles who were blocking Larkâs way cleared up, so he came and stood in front of me.
All of the noble girls who gazed at the princeâs face, which was difficult to see, were all captivated and looked at Lark.
âOf course, this is a level a man must be to be recognized by this body.â
A chiseled face under neatly brushed silver hair. His sharp eyes were full of grace, and his high nose and lips were as if they were deliberately sculpted.
The handsome man, as if painted, was smiling while looking straight at me with his golden eyes.
His acting as if he was looking at his lover is truly outstanding!
âA perfect score, perfect timing, perfect acting skills. My perfect business partner as well.â
âWow, I greet the Crown Prince!â
âWe greet the Crown Prince!â
The noble girls and Cedric, who had been silently admiring Larkâs beauty, bowed to him in bewilderment.
I was the only one standing there with my head stiffly raised. It was very rude, but Lark smiled sweetly, as if he didnât care, and extended his hand to me.
âIâm sorry for letting you enter alone even though Iâm your partner.â
âItâs okay. I understand.â
Putting my hand on top of his outstretched hand, I pouted my lips grumbling.
Everyone was shocked when Lark smiled and kissed the back of my hand.
âAhhhâŠâ
Lilia, who tormented me all my life, to the point I got sick of it.
The noble girls who spoke about me behind my back and mocked me in a cheeky way.
Cedric Reijer, who played with my poor innocence.
Besides that, a lot of miscellaneous things that I, the ugly duckling of the Duke of Diollus, chewed, tasted, and enjoyedâŠ.
They were all looking at me at this moment, with eyes full of jealousy, envy, and desire.
âReallyâŠâ
The main character here was me, not anyone else.
As of today, weâre celebrities of the Descartes Empire!
Rubetria Diollus! After I became a beautiful swan, I smiled brightly at the stunned fools.