7-9 minutes

Chapter 112

Translator: Yonnee



Lifting one corner of his lips, Helios smiled bitterly.

“It’s been concluded that the train accident was just the engineer’s blunder. He testified that he saw a little girl with red eyes standing in the middle of the tracks, but nobody else saw it. The court mages said that they found no sign of any curses.”

“I’m so sorry, Heli.”

Aushuvel knew just what this train accident meant to Helios. Aushuvel gave him a heartfelt consolation.

After this, the two cousins had a serious conversation that they couldn’t have done in front of Rosé and Ferre. If the mood plummeted too much, he would brighten up things again by bringing up a different topic.

By the time their tea and refreshments were almost gone, the topic turned to the banquet that would be held in the following week.

“So, you know, Heli. I think it’d be nice if I’d continue participating in the twins’ dance lessons.”

Aushuvel finally found the time to bring up what’s been on the back of his mind since a while ago. The moment he said this, he saw Helios’ violet eyes tremble very minutely.

“Dance lessons?”

“You already know this, but there’s no one else who can do the waltz like me, right? And it’s better to have two people teaching them than just one.”

Certainly, Aushuvel Vaughn Heal’s dance skills were famous in the empire. Unlike Helios, who didn’t really enjoy the festivities brought by banquets, Aushuvel was always someone embroiled in the colorful rumors of high society.

Sometimes, just a rumor of him attending an imperial banquet would be enough to make all the women attend as well while aiming to have a dance with him. More than that, Helios also recognized how skillful Aushuvel was at leading. If he was paired with even a wooden mannequin, he’d be able to make it dance as lithely as a butterfly.

Helios suddenly recalled what Sera once told him.

“Being good at one thing is different from being able to teach it well, Your Majesty. Imagine teaching an easy question such as 1+1, for an entire hour. Even ust 1+1=2 is already very difficult for children to grasp.”

He didn’t know just what was going on in his subconscious that these were the first words that came to mind. Still though, he wasn’t inconsiderate enough that he’d say such a thing aloud in this situation. So, he worded it a different way.

“Aren’t you busy though?”

“A few hours a day isn’t a big deal. I want to spend some time with my cute cousins, too. And you know, this is the only excuse I have to meet their tutor.”

Aushuvel observed Helios’ face very closely. Helios’s lips twitched into a frown somewhat, but he quickly schooled his features and returned to the usual smile. It happened in a split second.

‘When she stepped on my foot and based on her reactions, it’s clear that Sera Popo likes Heli. And when I see Heli being shaken like this, I’m sure he’s interested in her, too… But since they both said that there’s nothing between them, then it seems like they just haven’t had the chance to confirm each other’s feelings yet?’

Aushuvel was so giddy at the fact that he saw with his own eyes that his 27-year-old cousin was experiencing his first love. The Helios he knew was so far removed from being interested in such a thing, yet here he was now, in the middle of one. He was so unlike Aushuvel, who would have a new woman he’d be dating every time the two cousins met.

Since ‘His Imperial Majesty the Emperor’ was entirely of age, as long as the other person was from a count’s household and was of age as well, they could just get married right away. Being a tutor for the imperial family should mean that she had a very influential background, so there shouldn’t be any problems.

Aushuvel knew that Helios was the straight-laced type, but this was just too much. He could just confess his own feelings and ask if she liked him too. If their progress was only until this point, then at this rate, marriage might just be a loooong way off.

‘This is why it’s a problem when the people involved are beginners at dating.’

Aushuvel struggled to hold back the laughter bubbling at his lips.

“Alright then, Rosé and Ferre will be delighted. I’ll inform the staff of the Star Palace that you’ll be coming to their lessons from now on.”

“Thanks, Heli.”

Helios had no choice but to allow Aushuvel to do this since his excuse was wanting to spend more time with the twins. And in the first place, there’s no reason to refute how big of a help he would be to Miss Popo since he’d be assisting her during her lessons.

* * *

Prince Aushuvel’s welcoming banquet was just three days away!

In the meantime, Aushuvel Vaughn Heal really did attend Rosé and Ferre’s lessons for three hours every time there was a class. And, contrary to Sera’s expectations, he was even serious about it. He wasn’t being playful at all.

Even the premise of ‘doing well is different from teaching well’ didn’t apply to him because he was the type of person who ‘could do well and teach well’.

His teaching style, too, was much stricter than Sera’s. He was the cool-headed, critical kind of teacher who would point out the tip of one’s eyes, the end of one’s toes and the fingertips as well as he taught. Perhaps this was due to his own experiences in high society.

His constant stream of advising kept even Sera on her toes. It was all thanks to this that Sera’s waltz had also improved during that week.

The twins’ dancing skills, as they had a lesson once every two days, also improved every time they met.

But then again, the twins danced so perfectly just a day before, and yet they were making mistakes today.

Come to think of it, both Rosé and Ferre were in low spirits since this morning.

“Hyung, I’m kinda tired.”

“Oppa, can we take just a short break?”

The emaciated twins drooped and leaned on each other for support.

Were they sick? Removing Aushuvel’s hand on her waist, Sera went closer to the twins. As she got on her knees, she swept aside their soft hair and touched both their foreheads.

‘They’re not warm though.’

She compared their temperature to her own just in case, but the result was still the same.

“Are you not feeling well?”

Did she push them too hard? Looking at the children worriedly, Sera thought about whether to call the court doctor or His Majesty, who she hadn’t seen for more than a week already. His divine power would heal the children right away.

“What’s going on?”

Feeling the atmosphere becoming heavy, Aushuvel walked closer to the twins as well as he was worried about their condition. He also motioned with one hand at the piano, and it soon stopped playing by itself.

“It’s just…”

Rosé and Ferre pursed their lips for a moment, but they slowly opened them again.

They recounted what happened this morning.