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Chapter 83 Part 3 – A letter from Rona. And the “Thunderbolt Polka”. Ironically, the dance that plunged so many young ladies into the abyss became the bridge between mother and Countess Rosenthal.

「Oh my, what a kind thing to do even though you guys are so good at dancing. All of you must really want to give the duchess the honor of doing the first dance.」

No one responded to the countess’ sarcasm. There is no way they would do so. If someone can fully complete the dance, even His Majesty the King would hear about it. It is also an irregular wild card that could allow a person to quickly rise to the heights of high society, which normally takes years of networking and building a reputation.

When I was a young lady in the previous 「108 times」, I made my debut in high society with a ‘Thunderbolt’ of the Viennese waltz. It became a legend and my position in high society was cemented overnight. Many young ladies were bitter and envious and tried to imitate it, but in the end they all had to give up.

Alisa, who is an abnormal genius at dancing in my opinion, could have done it as well, but that girl is a huge pervert who only had interest in excellent guys, food, and me even during her debutante ceremony, which is a very important event in her life. Even the dress she wore for the audience with His Majesty the King was not the customary pure white, but fluttering pastel colors. I’m amazed that they actually forgave her actions …… God has given that foolish girl an excessively huge breast and talent.

As long as Alisa has no intention of doing so, there is no way that any other young ladies can do what I did. And the genius princess Margaret always died early in the previous 「108 times」.

The more they practiced, the more they understood the difficulty of ‘Thunderbolt’. Many strong-willed, talented women despaired during their practice because of the height of the obstacle. It shattered their confidence and sometimes caused them to suffer mental breakdowns. The ‘Thunderbolt’ dance is like a solitary peak that thoroughly shakes off its climbers. Thanks to that, after my debut in high society, the ‘Thunderbolt’ dance was given the infamous nickname of ‘debutante killer’.

With the sweet temptation of social acclaim, it would encourage the naive young ladies to climb to the summit. It would encourage her that she could make it, saying that the incline would be gentle after this point, and then, when she exhausted all of her energy and willpower, it would tear away the veil of clouds to reveal the faraway summit and thrust her down into the abyss with a roar of laughter. It is the devil itself.

It is an act of sheer madness to attempt the ‘Thunderbolt’ at a debutante to high society where young ladies tend to be nervous and stiff. It is more reckless than walking in high heels along the edge of a cliff where strong winds blow. Just listening to the music at the start of the dance will make the young lady shiver. Even before she starts to dance, she would realize that what awaits her is not the admiration of those around her, but rather the ridicule of her ignorance. In my case, I had my sights set on the bloody battle for the throne, which is why I was able to carry that feat out as a starting dash. You can’t dance the ‘Thunderbolt’ unless you have that much resolve.

…… It is precisely because of that that I am in such a hurry. Mother has long since reached adulthood, but she rarely shows up in high society. This first dance is her real debut match. It would be too much of a burden for her.

「…… Move!! Get out of the way!!」

However, I had a hard time getting close to them as there are a multitude of red nobles surrounding mother and Countess Rosenthal since they were in the center of the ballroom.

「…… Well then, duchess. Please choose which ‘Thunderbolt’ you would like to dance.」

Countess Rosenthal urged my mother whose face was tense with nervousness. Mother looked much more delicate than usual as she had returned to her youthful appearance.

The moment the music starts to play, I would no longer be able to interfere.

For noblewomen, ‘Thunderbolt’ is close to a sacred ceremony. Once it has begun, they would never allow it to be aborted because of interference. It would become worse than being laughed at for failure. Denounced as a coward, mother’s reputation would fall to the ground.

「…… I’m not going to let her do that. Right now, I can still ……!!」

I was so irritated that I decided to take a hard-line approach. I’m going to swing around the Ruby of the True Emperor ​​hidden beneath my dress to make the red nobles blocking the way faint. Even though the resentment of the Light Bat Tribe has been resolved, the curse of the Ruby is still there. If anyone other than me touches it, they will faint from the shock. It’s my secret move that I have attempted to use on Addis the Faceless of the Seven Phantoms. But I wasn’t able to put my plan into motion.

「…… I understand how you feel, but calm down. Sca-chibi.」

Before I could pull out the Ruby, Bradd caught up with me and grabbed my hand.

「…………!!」

I let out a silent scream. I almost screamed out loud, which would ruin the serious atmosphere. In a hurry, Bradd stopped me in the fastest and surest way possible when he saw that I was already putting my finger into my chest. In other words, he grabbed my hand together with my chest.

「Y-You. No matter how attractive I am, you have to take this kind of thing in steps ……」

「…… Oh, you are a good woman. So, act as your usual self and take a good look at Cornelia-san.」

Said Bradd with a smile.
I was taken aback and directed my gaze to my mother.

Our eyes met. Even though she had a nervous expression, mother nodded reassuringly and gave a thumbs up as if to say, ‘Leave it to me’.

「…… You understand it now right. The best mother who has protected Sca-chibi from all kinds of crisis has made a decision to do it. It’s a daughter’s duty to trust and support her.」

Bradd also grinned and responded to my mother with a thumbs up.

I felt ashamed.

Yes, Bradd is right. I had just given my mother’s efforts my stamp of approval. Even if no one else in the world believes in her, I should believe in my mother till the end. To think that I didn’t notice my mother’s determination and get upset because of the name ‘Thunderbolt’, I’m no better than the red nobles.

「Calm down!! Arnold!!」

「Let go of me!! Seraphy!! Master is in danger!! How can I, her disciple, just stand still and watch ……!! I will defeat anyone who tries to harm master ……」

「Even though you’re the son of a great noble, why are you always such a foolish musclebrain!? Land has its own rules and the sea has its own rules!! Why can’t you understand the intent of the duchess who is trying to fight within the framework of high society?」

Seraphy constrained Arnold, who was brandishing an iron bow, from behind and admonished him with a sigh.

I looked at Arnold’s behavior and looked back at myself. I actually tried to do the same thing as the idiot Arnold …… I have experienced many times in the previous 「108 times」 that compassion that disregards the person’s intentions can sometimes lead to ruin. I thought that I have gone through both the sour and sweet parts of life, but it turns out that I am the one who is like a debutante in life. I’m reflecting on my actions. I’m seriously reflecting on my actions. I won’t do that anymore. Thanks Bradd.