Dinner was pleasant, the food was good, and the atmosphere was festive. Performance after performance managed to entertain the guests.
Many females guests were focusing their attention on Gewen, hoping for the man to approach them and choose one or two to warm his bed for the night.
However, since his parents were around, the young general put on his best behavior and spent most of his time drinking wine and chatting with Edgar or Ellena.
He didn't take any girl for a dance, for fear his mother would ask him to ask the girl's hand in marriage.
He was tired of listening to Lady Athibaud's constant nagging so he would find a good woman to marry and have many kids to continue the Athibaud's lineage.
His father, Lord Athibaud was aging and he had wanted to retire since last year. Lord Athibaud would feel happy in his old age if his only son could show that he started thinking about life seriously.
After so many beautiful performances and sumptuous dinner, it was time for another dance. Ellena actually had asked Mars to dance with her when they were in the library, but he said no because he didn't want to freak out his parents.
The king and queen still didn't know that the curse was lifted. So, even if what Ellena said was true, Mars wouldn't go down the dance floor with her tonight. Those who knew about the curse would all ask questions, including Emmelyn.
Gosh.. he must find ways to break the news to Emmelyn. But first.. of course, he needed to ensure that the curse was really lifted.
"Come on, Gewen, let's dance," Ellena rose from her seat and reached out to Gewen. The handsome man smiled broadly and took her hand.
So many jealous eyes were watching them like eagles. Gewen was very popular and there were so many ladies hoping to get a chance to dance with him.
However, this new girl just had to come and dominate the heartthrob. Since Ellena was away for so long, many ladies in the capital didn't know who she was, and they had to be informed by the others.
"Gewen is not interested in her. They are friends," said an older lady to several girls who were pouting because they saw their idol went dancing with a girl. "I think he intentionally dance with Lady Ellena, so that his mother wouldn't force him to marry his dance partner."
"Ahh.. is that so? You seem to know a lot about them," said one of the girls.
"I do. I've been here in the capital longer than you girls have. I have come to many royal events, so I know some things."
They kept talking and discussing the handsome men around them including the prince and his friends.
Emmelyn also became a topic of conversation that evening. Many people were interested to find out who was the girl who came with the prince.
Initially, they thought she was a princess from one of their colonies who was betrothed to the prince.
However, even until the royal ball was almost over, the king didn't seem to make an effort to introduce her to the nobles who attended the event or officially announce the engagement.
So.. what was actually happening? Maybe she was just a guest and wished to keep a low profile?
All the other ladies could only guess.
Meanwhile, this time Mars could only watch the dance from his seat. Emmelyn didn't ask him to dance on the terrace like before, and Mars didn't want to go and dance among so many people on the dance floor.
So, he just stayed where he was, stealing glances at Emmelyn from time to time.
One thing he noticed, the girl became awfully quiet during the royal ball. Was she sad? Was she still feeling upset because she saw the king?
Mars could only sigh internally. He had heard from Emmelyn when she was drunk that she wanted to kill King Jared. That was how deep her hatred toward Mars' father.
However, she didn't seem to try anything suspicious tonight. Mar was confident that Emmelyn wouldn't attempt to kill his father, at least not during the royal ball. The king's guards were everywhere around them.
Knowing Emmelyn, Mars thought she wouldn't do anything dumb now, especially because she was pregnant.
"What are you thinking?" Mars leaned on the girl and whispered to her ear. "Your forehead creased as if you are thinking about something big."
Emmelyn turned to him and smiled. "Nothing. I am just having a headache."
Mars was stunned to hear her meek response. This didn't seem like Emmeyn, who was usually feisty.
She must be lying about what she was thinking. Mars knew Emmelyn didn't hesitate to lie whenever needed. Was actually she feeling sad about something?
"Is that so?" Mars obviously didn't believe her. He looked around them and saw everyone was having a good time, but Emmelyn. He asked again, "Are you tired? Do you want to go home?"
Emmelyn shook her head and forced a smile. "We cannot go home. It's your birthday. Everyone is here for you."
Mars cast his glance around them again and shrugged. "No, they don't. My birthday is just an excuse to party. This country needs to loosen up and have fun from time to time. My mother always finds reasons to throw a nice event for the nobles. She will have another ball probably to celebrate snowfall and then another one to welcome spring... You don't know my mother."
"Oh... is that so?" Emmelyn glanced at Queen Elara who was slow dancing with her husband. They both looked happy and in love. "I didn't know that."
"Yes, that's why I let you know what is going on here. Those people are my parents' guests. They will have fun with or without me. It has always been like that. I tend to avoid these events because I have to always be mindful of not letting any woman touch me. It's boring and tiring. I usually chose not to go."
Emmelyn nodded in understanding. "In that case, if you don't mind. I want to go home now, please..."
She felt relieved that the prince offered her that option. Emmelyn had been behaving so well, even though she was surrounded by the people she didn't like, and especially the king who was responsible for the family's demise with his wars.
But, if she was given the option to stay or leave... she would gladly choose the latter.