The preparations for the ball were as hectic as always. Servants ran around everywhere and decorated the venue. The cooks prepared a plan for the buffet and started buying the necessary ingredients.

The only difference was that Blanche didn't sit around without doing anything this time. For the first time, she actually helped during the preparations and felt extremely proud of that, even if she didn't do many special things.

Theodore had begun to write the invitations rather early. For him, that meant that he only wrote the letters to the most important guests, which were the three ducal families as well as the members of the royal family. Leon had to write the rest, and the emperor only signed them. After finishing that, Theodore had offered her to sign too. Blanche was well aware that only the mistress of this house, which was the empress, could do that, so she hadn't been sure at first. But in the end, she would announce her new rank at the ball she was currently preparing for, so hinting at that already might be a good idea. Thus, she had given her best to sign in the most graceful writing that she could muster.

The only problem had been deciding whether she would use her own last name. After all, she hadn't been sure about using the Estien name despite Theodore offering it to her. In the end, he managed to coax her into following his advice so that she could give an additional hint regarding what might be announced today. All letters were now signed by ‘Blanche & Theodore Estien’, which certainly realized more of his interests than hers, but it had been too late when she pointed that out. So, she just told him that she would charge him if anyone accused her of abusing the name of the royal family without truly worrying about that. As expected, he only explained that she was part of the royal family already, which wasn't even wrong.

Afterward, Theodore had sealed the first envelope with wax and asked his lover to help him with the rest. That day, Blanche had used the royal seal for the first time, and it had gone unexpectedly well. Whenever she let the wax drip onto the paper and removed the stamp to reveal the royal crest, she felt a pang of satisfaction, so she quickly grew to like doing it. That resulted in her taking care of the rest of the seals until not a single envelope was left.

The emperor also took part in deciding which decorations would be used for the ballroom. He let his lover come with him, and upon arriving at their destination, he immediately made it clear that she would decide this time. Blanche had been confident that it couldn't be very problematic to choose between a few garlands and color schemes, but then she saw the variety of decorations that were offered and soon felt overwhelmed. There were at least a hundred garlands, a thousand different flower arrangements and many other accessories for the venue. Some were already there from the last years, and some were only visible in the vendor's catalog.

The concubine was extremely uncertain about all of this and only calmed down when she realized that she didn't have to look at everything. As long as she chose some things that looked good with each other, it would be fine. Still, she asked her lover to point out if she accidentally picked horrible items or flowers that held some hidden offending meaning. Thankfully, she managed to avoid that. In the end, Theodore was very content with the decorations and praised her often. That had been to be expected, but the servants seemed like it too. After receiving many compliments, Blanche was finally in a good mood and dared to be proud of her design.

The next topic that the emperor introduced to her was the meal plan. This was the concubine's favorite new activity, and she absolutely had no problem coming up with a few dishes that would go well with the ones the chefs had chosen. The cooks really liked some of her suggestions while never having heard about some other dishes, which might be because she knew them from her childhood. Her mother had cooked by herself and made her own creations, so it was logical that no one had heard of them. Since nobles weren't necessarily used to the food commoners ate, she planned on letting go of that idea, but then a cook asked what kind of dish she specifically meant.

Blanche had tried to avoid giving an explanation at first, but the woman had seemed genuinely interested in her dish, so she gave in. That resulted in the chefs writing it down and wanting to try it out along with some others. The concubine gladly told them everything she knew while inwardly screaming in joy. Her mother would have been extremely happy if others enjoyed her dishes too, and this was a perfect chance to eat some food from Blanche's childhood. At the same time, the cooks got new interesting ideas. It was a perfect deal for everyone.

Like this, the last week until the ball passed. Blanche was content trying out new activities, so everything seemed to go by rather quickly. Still, she didn't let that stress her and enjoyed being able to test out what she could do. She actually suspected that Theodore had shown her some things the servants normally took care of to help her get used to this new situation, and she was very thankful for that. Especially since her lover had to deal with Claude Vasquez's trial at the same time. It seemed like he tried to let Blanche stay away from that a bit, possibly because he assumed that the memories of what had happened would upset her too much.

Blanche didn't mind. After having Leon write down her official testimony, she had many other things to focus on. Helping with the preparations was a perfect way to distract herself while her mind went into turmoil whenever she thought about the ball. She would officially be presented as the emperor's fiancée and the future empress that day. She wouldn't just receive kind replies then, so she already braced herself for insults. But even if she did that, she was still worried about some aristocrats causing a scene. She knew that she would have to maintain a cool head and seem dignified at all times, but that would be hard in the middle of a nerve-wracking gathering. After all, every important noble of the capital would come, and she would have to face them as the woman that would become the female head of their society now.

That put a lot of pressure on her, and while Theodore gave his best to ease her mind, she still became more worried with each day. When the ball finally arrived, her heart already pounded just because she was getting ready. She wasn't utterly terrified, but she definitely felt unwell and a bit nauseous. In an attempt to calm herself, she told herself that it couldn't get worse than being drugged like last time. In the end, that only made her angry and awakened the wish to hit Camille and Claude in her mind. But if anger kept her from throwing up because she was nervous, then she gladly accepted that wrath.

She might even be able to revenge today. After all, it was the dowager empress' birthday. Much like Camille had enriched the concubine's birthday, Blanche would do her best to pay back that favor and light up the party.

At this point in time, everything was different, and still, it was the same for every ball. Theodore and Blanche were standing in front of the same door in the same position while they had the same discussion. No matter how often he told her that it was fine, the concubine still worried. She knew that she would be annoyed with herself for this later, but she couldn't just flip a switch to get rid of her anxiety. So, she sighed for the dozenth time and whined again. “Theo, my stomach is tingling.”

And like each time before, her lover replied with the same patience. “I know. But you don't have to be nervous. I told you how much I was trembling before my coronation, right? Look at how calm I am now. I still don't like those events, unless I get to show off how wonderful you are of course, but I am much more composed because I got used to it. This is a much smaller scale than a coronation, so you will be fine. Think of it like every other ball and remember that I'm bragging about my adorable fiancée.”

Blanche slowly leaned against him while being careful not to mess up her hair too much. “So, you are telling me that I should wait until my coronation before getting nervous? Since that will be so much more nerve-wracking.” She didn't try to regulate her voice despite the guards being here. In a few minutes, everyone would know anyway, so it didn't make a difference whether she revealed it now or then.

To her surprise, the knights only exchanged a quick glance before returning to a straight face. It seemed like the people within the palace had truly guessed that this would happen. She didn't know whether to be happy or concerned about the fact that they didn't seem to complain. She was rather content with them not causing any issues, but this made it seem like she had been the only one that had worried from the very beginning.

Theodore grinned at her and gently caressed her cheek. “Even then, you won't need to be worried. After all, I'll be by your side the whole time. And you can rest assured that Leon will force you to memorize the correct order for that ceremony before you even start to get closer to that date. It will be fine if you know what to do, and in an emergency, I will whisper to you and tell you what you forgot.”

Blanche was rather sure that she wouldn't mess up that badly, just because of the sheer nervousness that would force her to learn everything by heart until she could enumerate it in her sleep. The execution was the bigger issue. “We'll see. We have enough time until then, don't we?”

The emperor gave her an encouraging grin. “Exactly. Now we will take care of this ball. We will walk in and do the first dance. Then we will greet the guests to point out that we are the hosts, and we won't mention any birthday in a single word. I would guess that our birthday child will come too late and expect us to wait for her, which we obviously won't do. We'll dance the first waltz and open the buffet and the dance floor. That will show that this party isn't for her. Then we'll progress normally and speak to the guests one after the other. At some point, she will come, and I would like to ignore her as much as possible. But at the same time, we need to talk to the Vasquez family while she is there to show that they are on our side now.” That sounded like a good plan that would certainly enrage the dowager empress.

Blanche nodded at everything until her lover finished. “So, we'll do it normally and just annoy her as much as possible in the process. We can do that. And the announcement will happen when?”

Theodore's smirk widened. “The best part will come near the end. We will wait with that until she is really upset. Maybe she will even try to criticize us publicly. That will show that she is looking down on you once more, and other people will lose sympathy for her. It's the perfect plan.”

The concubine was rather worried that others would complain too, but she chose to trust her lover. Everything had gone well until now, so it would probably be fine. Still, she was already trembling slightly, and that was bad enough. She had to compose herself before entering the ballroom, or she would risk messing up the dance. Blanche took a few deep breaths as she forced herself to calm down and straightened her posture. “We can go in now, right?”

The emperor nodded. “Everything is ready for the arrival of the main characters. Let us go. Are you ready?” He waited until he received a nod in response before addressing one of the guards. “Announce our presence.”

The knight immediately complied and prepared to open the door along with the man on the other side. Then he spoke up in a booming voice. “His Majesty, the emperor of Artias and Lady Blanche.” It only took a moment for the murmur inside to quieten down, but this time, it had been significantly louder.

Blanche could already guess which topic busied everyone. The emperor had divorced his wife, and now the empress' seat was vacant. Anyone that had watched Theodore during the past months would be able to guess what the plan was now. So, it was certainly understandable that many nobles were curious and wished to exchange rumors in hopes of finding out what had really happened. Certainly, many people would voice rather unkind things about the concubine because they assumed that she was at fault for the divorce despite that only being partly true.

Blanche didn't look forward to being watched with barely veiled contempt. She could only hope that the Duremonts' composed reaction would help in calming the nobles a bit. But even then, she had to brace herself for some barely hidden disdain from afar.

Theodore beside her almost seemed to read her mind. He leaned over to her and gave her a kiss on her cheek despite the people watching them. Then he smiled at her, which gave her some energy back before leading her inside the room.

Blanche paid attention to striding forward with as much elegance as possible while putting on a little smile to fool herself. The first part of the ball would be easier, so she had to enjoy it now before it got more exhausting. She tried not to think too much and just went along with her lover.

It seemed like the guests' gazes were much more prying than normal. She barely dared to make eye contact with anyone.

The only person she turned to after seeing them from the corner of her eyes was Seraphina. It was odd to see the former empress next to her brother and parents. That the other woman was wearing a subtle light green dress without any crowns or tiaras made it even stranger.

Blanche couldn't help but feel like she had pushed out Seraphina in some way. It wasn't pleasant to think about that, so she ignored those thoughts. Last time, it had been the other way around in a much more cruel manner, so no one should be able to complain. Having sympathy now wouldn't help. It would be better to keep her mind clear when she had to greet the nobles now.

As usual, Theodore led his lover to the center of the room before stopping. Then he turned to her as if he wanted her to speak first.

The concubine wasn't ready to claim the right to speak before the emperor yet though and squeezed his hand instead.

That signaled him to start, which Theodore did a moment later. “I would like to thank all of you for attending this year's winter ball. It is an honor to find so many familiar faces here again. We are overjoyed to see that you arrived here without any severe problems and hope that the journey wasn't too troublesome.” He paused at that point, which indicated that Blanche would have to continue.

Blanche took a deep breath and gave her best not to seem too uncertain as she resumed the greeting. “We wish you a wonderful evening and hope that you are doing well in general. May all of you enjoy today's ball and relax for a few hours while catching up with old acquaintances. As always, the palace's servants will do their best to fulfill your wishes and take care of any problems that may arise. For now, the first dance shall serve as a fitting beginning for a beautiful evening.”

Before she could invite the others to join them or instruct the conductor, Theodore already chimed in. “We will take our time to meet you after this first waltz, but for now, we would like to ask the orchestra to play a music piece for us.”

A shiver ran down Blanche's spine as she realized that he hadn't asked the others to join them. That meant that the first dance was reserved for the royal couple alone. If one was a bit stricter, this didn't allow her to dance at all, but as Theodore's partner, she would still have to begin now. And since no other people were dancing, everyone's eyes would be on them.

That was horrible.

Even if Leon had taught her how to waltz about a hundred times now, and she hadn't made many mistakes in the past weeks, she could mess up at some point. And then everyone would immediately see.

The concubine let out a quiet sigh as the first sounds of the music played, and her lover offered her his hand. It seemed like she would have to do her best without making any mistakes, or this would haunt her for years to come. She put her hand onto Theodore's and allowed him to pull her closer.

As always, he had no issues beginning a flawless waltz. Blanche joined his movements and tried to ignore her own mind in order to just let him lead her. This time, she refused to have a conversation for the first half of the dance. Until then, she hadn't made any awful errors. Obviously, she wished to keep silent for the rest too so that she could concentrate.

But once again, her lover didn't agree with her. He grinned at her and began speaking. “Did you look around already?”

Blanche didn't meet his eyes and focused on her feet while replying. “No. I was busy dancing. I still am, so we should-”

“She isn't here yet. Of course. She wants to arrive later and pull all attention toward her. She probably places her bets on gaining sympathy because of her limping too. But we'll take that away from her. As soon as she comes in, we will make sure that everyone is looking at us. Maybe I should have given you a crown. That might have caused their eyes to be glued to you.”

Since that was the only thing Blanche had refused to budge on, she was happy that he hadn't done that. She wouldn't wear a crown during a ball until she was actually crowned as the empress. At least if Theodore didn't manage to convince her in some way. It would have been enough to think that to herself, but she replied anyway. “I wouldn't have taken it, so you can stop talking about that. You have plenty of other ways to attract attention. Most people always gaze at the emperor anyway.”

Theodore gave her a bright grin and brought his face a bit closer to her. “I'm usually content as long as you are looking at me, but today, we need to steal every bit of attention from our dear dowager empress. We might not be able to prevent people from congratulating her, but most won't have brought any gifts. If she gets upset, we can just embarrass her for assuming that this will be her party. It will be perfect.”

Blanche doubted that everything would go by as peacefully as they imagined it. She didn't know whether to be happy or worried about this though. Surely, provoking their enemy would be fun, but at the same time, this could have unwanted consequences. “I don't know. Of course, this is amusing, but she is a very prideful person. There is no way that she will forgive us for any of this. We need to be careful of what she will do afterward.”

“Of course. We are doing this to make her snap after all. The angrier she is, the more brazen she will be. If she makes mistakes, we can use that against her. In the end, she is only harming herself by getting angry.” Hopefully, that was the case.

The concubine prayed once again and felt a bit bad since she had asked for so much in the past few weeks. Just a few minutes ago, she had wished for a dance without any interruptions. She shouldn't just rely on the gods with that wish. Until now, everything had gone well, but now she was getting worried about accidentally distracting herself by talking. So, she forced herself to pay attention to her feet instead of her conservation.

Theodore didn't allow her to do that for long though. “You look gorgeous, do you know that? You always do, but when you look down like that with such a serious expression, it's extremely adorable.”

Blanche lifted her head, only to find that her lover's face was directly in front of hers. She almost jolted back and barely managed to calm herself in time. She felt how her cheeks became slightly flushed and quickly averted her eyes while muttering a response. “Thank you. You look very handsome when you smile at me too. That's why I can't really make eye contact now, or I will mess up.”

A chuckle came from her lover. He stepped a bit closer and whispered into her ear. “So, I can pounce on you as soon as the dance is over? It's only a few more seconds, you know. I can kiss you then, right?” It should be obvious that doing that in front of everyone here was a bad idea. Even married couples didn't exchange so much affection in public, and the emperor was already known for being struck by love. He didn't need to make the people think that he was absolutely obsessed with his concubine.

Though, he had probably reached that goal already.

Blanche narrowed her eyes at him. “You'll cause everyone to believe that you are incapable of thinking clearly. We should not do that. You've already cuddled with me enough.”

Theodore grinned from one ear to the other as they twirled around once more. “No way. I could never have enough. You won't take my daily dosage of hugs away from me, right? I will break down if you do that. I can't go on without your kiss, so you will have to cheer me up if you want me to stay conscious during this celebration.”

The concubine held back a sigh. “Later then. When we aren't in the center of the ballroom, so that not everyone can see us. Alright? We need to pay attention to whether the dowager empress has arrived too.”

The emperor glanced to the side. He was silent for a few seconds before replying. “She hasn't. She needs a few more minutes so that she can be certain that we are inside already. And she's probably limping, which could slow her down a bit too. Since she hasn't caused a commotion until now, we can assume that she isn't here yet. That means that we have a few more minutes to show how wonderful you are.”

As if he had predicted it, the music became quieter at that moment.

Theodore slowed down his pace and gently swayed for a few more seconds before he stopped. Then he took a moment to look into her eyes with a smile. When he pushed one of her alabaster strands behind her ear, it was clear what he would do now.

Despite her previous complaints, Blanche didn't avoid him when he pressed his lips onto hers. How could she ever refuse her lover's kiss? It only took a second before he pulled away again, but she felt much more energized afterward. Still, she gave her best to avoid making eye contact with anyone around them since she was a bit embarrassed despite her body screaming with joy. She just quickly stepped to the side and linked her arm with her lover's.