"The mansion was brightly lit under the evening sky, and carriages were parked next to the fountain in the garden. The coachmen and attendants had started to gather for gambling.
The conductor's baton gently swayed, and the musicians played melodious music that softly echoed in the hall.
Pairs of people danced to the rhythm, the ladies' long dresses fluttering like butterflies.
Yilin and Count Gruglu's dance had already ended, and the two stood at opposite ends of the hall, either busy talking to other nobles or quietly observing.
Who were they watching?
Of course, they were watching Shelley and Gray.
The ball was a marketplace for noble transactions, and just as two influential families who could sway the entire Beishier Duchy had broken off negotiations, the night's festivities for family members Gray and Shelley only seemed to be just beginning. After Yilin and Count Gruglu had left, Shelley and Gray seamlessly took center stage on the dance floor.
The attending nobles were all watching closely.
"Come on, let me teach you! Follow the rhythm, yes, just like that. Ah! You stepped on my foot again!" Shelley pretended to be angry but then burst into laughter as Gray tried to flee, "It's okay, let's try again…"
…
"What's going on?" Yilin asked Huoersi quietly.
"I don't know. Miss Shelley suddenly walked over."
"Suddenly?"
"Yes, suddenly."
From afar, Yilin noticed Count Gruglu's indifferent expression, his brows furrowed, and him giving instructions to someone beside him. It didn't seem like he had arranged this either.
…
Under Shelley's guidance, Gray learned bit by bit, improving gradually.
"You need to lead."
"But you dance better than me."
"No, it's not about dancing well. You are the man, you need to lead. Understand?"
"Uh… I'll try."
"Yes, like that. Good job."
Gray remained clumsy, but it did not overshadow Shelley's brilliance. Young Shelley was like a gemstone, radiating dazzling light at this mundane ball. Regardless of Gray's movements, she could skillfully and considerately match him.
Without a doubt, she was the best dancer there, creating a beauty-and-the-beast kind of aesthetic with the clumsy Gray.
This made them the main attraction of the ball, the musicians even changing the rhythm of the music involuntarily for them.
Gray started to become fascinated by this feeling.
"Have you never attended a ball before?"
"No."
"Then what do you usually do? Do you have any hobbies or interests?"
"Usually?" Gray thought for a moment and realized he hadn't done much.
When he first awakened, his sole focus was learning magic from his master. Later, he was placed in Bruto's laboratory as an ornament. Being an ornament, he naturally just hung around. After that, he began his journey of escape. Only when he set foot on solid ground did he finally have some personal time.
If he had to say what he particularly enjoyed, it would be digging up graves to collect Skeleton Soldiers. He loved digging graves.
So, he slightly prettified it, saying, "I find jobs for jobless people and enjoy reading books."
"Helping people find jobs? You seem passionate about charity."
"Really? It seems that way, but people don't seem to understand me."
"Some people in the world are always jealous of others, don't take it to heart. By the way, what kind of books do you usually read?"
"'Knight's Guide to Success' and 'The Bible.' Actually, I only have these two books."
"Read them repeatedly?"
"Yes."
"I know 'The Bible,' but what is 'Knight's Guide to Success?' Knights have peculiar tastes, don't they?" Shelley playfully asked.
…
"How many years have I not seen Shelley?" Yilin suddenly asked.
Abi Robbs answered quietly, "It has been five years. The last time we saw her was when she visited the old Duke with Count Gruglu. She was still a child then."
"Five years... Do you think Count Gruglu might send his granddaughter to test Gray?"
"It's hard to say."
"How is her reputation normally?"
"Not great. She's too capricious, and the Gruglu family seems to indulge her a lot."
"Got it." Yilin replied indifferently.
…
As the music ended, people around bowed and left.
Gray also prepared to bow, but Shelley grabbed his hand.
"What are you doing?"
"Isn't it over?"
"There's another song."
Soon, the new music started, slower and more gentle than before.
"This one's a slow tune, we can chat properly." Shelley smiled, placing Gray's hand on her waist.
"Chat…" Looking at Shelley's smile made Gray nervous, "Wait a minute," he said quickly.
"Wait?"
Then everyone watched as Gray hurriedly left the dance floor, exiting the hall. Shelley was left standing alone at the center of the dance floor, gradually puffing her cheeks in anger.
"What kind of person is this?"
She stomped her feet in frustration but didn't leave.
From a distance, both Yilin and Count Gruglu seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.
…
Rushing upstairs, Gray flung open his room door with a loud bang and grabbed the Black Cat lazing on the balcony.
"Wow! What are you doing?"
"I need you!"
Gray stuffed the Black Cat into his armor, then hurried downstairs. The skull and the ugly cat face squeezed into one helmet.
"What do you need me for?"
"I think I'm in love!"
"You gotta be kidding! I left you alone for just one hour, and you've already seduced someone's cabbage? Wait, who's seduced you? And you can't even seduce…"
…
Soon, Gray returned to the hall, heading straight to the center. He took Shelley's hand, who was still standing in place.
Instantly, Yilin and Count Gruglu's hearts were in their throats again.
"I'm back!"
"Where did you go just now?" Shelley asked, stunned.
"You mentioned wanting to chat, so I went to get an advisor."
"An advisor for chatting? Where is he?"
"You can't see him."
"Really? That's fascinating." The previously angry Shelley flashed a smile.
"Listen, be my advisor. She can't understand cat language, so I'll use telepathy to reply to you. This is perfect!"
The Black Cat, wearing a look of despair, responded, "Oh."
As the music played, Shelley lightly leaned against Gray.
"So, what do you want to chat about with an advisor?"
"Chat about what?" Gray asked the Black Cat mentally.
"How should I know! Talk about something you like! You can't talk about things you dislike!" The Black Cat roared.
"How about the extraction of black diamond stone?" Gray asked Shelley.
"Alchemy?"
"Yes!"
"But I'm not interested in alchemy." Shelley pouted.
"She's not interested!" Gray mentally shouted to the Black Cat.
"Got it! Can't you change the topic, you fool?" The Black Cat responded angrily.
"Then puppetry technique?"
"What's that?"
"She doesn't know!" Gray continued to shout in the Black Cat's mind.
"I can hear you! I don't want to talk about that either! Can't you talk about something normal?"
"What's normal?"
*Clearly, the Lich's knowledge base had nothing normal to talk about.*
"What did I do to deserve this? The Holy Spirit punishes me with this! A Lich in love? I knew it! This is worse than being a priestly Lich!" The Black Cat cursed but patiently continued, "Listen, say 'You're beautiful.'"
"You're beautiful." Gray complied.
"Thank you." Shelley smiled back.
"Next, tell her she's the most beautiful woman tonight."
"But I think Yilin is beautiful too."
"Do you even want to chat or not? Flatter a woman, understand? Flatter!"
Obviously, Gray didn't fully understand, but he complied anyway.
"You're the most beautiful woman tonight."
"Is that so? Thank you." Shelley smiled, running her finger along her hair in delight.
"Dancing with you feels truly special."
Shelley smiled and blinked, seeming very pleased with Gray's words.
"I've heard you're the strongest knight of the Beisher Family. Maybe even in all of Beishier Duchy, possibly the Isaac Kingdom."
"Uh… is that so?"
"You defeated Will of the Caspar family and Anderson of the Sam family."
"Who are they?"
"They're the knights you defeated; you didn't even remember their names?"
"Uh… sorry, I don't have the habit of remembering names. Should I remember them?"
"No, not necessarily. You're right. The names of losers don't need to be remembered."
"Did you hear that? She's complimenting me! This means I'm chatting well, right?" Gray cautiously asked the Black Cat.
"Not really." The Black Cat rolled its eyes and sighed, "But I get it now; she wants to flirt with you."
"Flirt?"
"Yes, seduce you! Flirting! Understand?"
"Uh?"
Helpless, the Black Cat translated into words Gray could understand, "Flirting, mutual attraction, then romance and procreation. You'll be totally ensnared."
"So you mean I'm already in love?"
"You could say that. Wait, where did you learn the word 'love'?"
"You mentioned it on the way to White City. I've been worrying about it since the vow included the phrase 'love till death.' I have to keep the vow, I'm an honest and trustworthy Lich, right?"
"Heh…" The Black Cat was rendered speechless.
"Strange." Shelley murmured, "Since just now, I keep hearing cat sounds."
"Oh, really?"
"From your armor. So strange."
"Maybe it's the sound of my heartbeat." Gray replied offhandedly.
"Your heartbeat sounds like that?" Shelley sweetly smiled.
"I swear, I didn't teach him that. Even if I were more despicable, more shameless, I'd never teach a Lich to say sickly sweet words to deceive an innocent woman!" The Black Cat swore inside the armor.
"I read it in 'Knight's Guide to Success,'" Gray whispered back.
"So that's not just a knight novel, but also a yellow book, right?"
*At that moment, the Black Cat suddenly realized how vital publication review systems are!*
*A Lich in love! Damn it… isn't anyone going to do something? Where's the Holy Spirit Angel? Where's divine punishment?*
…
"Achoo—!" The male angel hidden in the shadows sneezed heavily.