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The curtain rises for the first scene, revealing Prince Malik, portrayed by Ian, visiting a theater that he does not normally frequent. The female half of the audience, gleefully whispering between each other

「He’s pretty cute, isn’t he.」
「Yeah. His voice too. Fits for a prince.」
「He sounds nice…」

It seemed that he was well-liked. He was chosen because he struck Yua’s preferences, but it was great that he was accepted by the audience .

「To know people’s hearts, one must know their pleasures. Will I learn anything by coming here?」

As Prince Malik said so in a loud, clear voice, the stage went dark. It was time for Inglis and the others to play the scene of Mariabelle dancing in the theater .

Inglis and the other four nodded, and then gathered at the center of the dark stage. Rafinha and the other three lined up in a row facing the audience, while Inglis stood alone a few steps ahead of them.

Soon, the spotlight fell on Inglis, illuminating her alone.

「「「Ooh……!」」」

Instantly, commotion stirred amongst the audience seat. One even bigger than when Prince Malik showed up before.

「「A-, amazing!」」
「「She’s outrageously beautiful!」」
「「So gorgeous she’s breathtaking!」」
「「It’s like she’s coming out of paintings!」」

Sighs of admiration could be heard leaking from every direction. Inglis’ appearance was further emphasized by the staging, with her being the only person bathed in the light amongst the dark. That was what led to the audiences’ reaction. The result of Count Weissmall’s skills.

「MISS INGLISS! HOW BEAUTIFUL YOU ARREE!!」
「「「INGGLIIIISS!」」」

Wild cheers could be heard echoing in the air. They came from near where King Charleas was sitting. In short, Redas and his subordinate Knights.

「……」

It was embarrassing, so she’d like them to stop. In the first place, in terms of manners, were they even allowed to make such a loud noise in a place like here?
As expected, King Charleas immediately chided in, making Redas and his Knights remorseful. It was so far from Inglis, though, so she couldn’t hear what the King said.

「「「MARIABELLEEE!!」」」
「……?!」

They only changed it to her role’s name. What in the world did King Charleas even say anyway? Call her by her role name? That wasn’t the problem here, though!

「……Phew.」

Putting that aside, after drawing a short breath, Inglis, who had been standing still, slowly raised her arm in an arc and began to dance. As though to follow her cue, the melody of the instruments played by the members of the troupe began to flow in the background. The light spread, from illuminating Inglis alone, to the entire stage, as Rafinha and the others began to start moving at the same time.

As they danced, Inglis glanced to the side to see how everyone was doing; Rafinha was dancing cheerfully and vigorously, evident with the big smile on her face. There was some kind of blossom to her that just seeing her made it fun to watch. If possible, Inglis would rather be seated amongst the audience and watch Rafinha dance instead.

The overserious Leone had her cheeks slightly flushed with nervousness as she was faithfully reproducing the choreography to her fullest extent. The choreography was quite intense and complicated even for students of the Knight Academy with their outstanding physical abilities.

Perhaps that was why Leone’s ample bosom had been swaying so much, and she might have been very embarrassed by all the stares she received due to it. She was still a pure, young maiden after all, it was no wonder. As for Inglis, this was her second time on the stage with Weissmall Troupe, so she was somewhat familiar with the gazes.

Liselotte was imposing and majestic, and with her confidence and self-assured expression that had its own allure, she had quite a charm that attracted the eyes of the beholder. She was the daughter of the former Prime Minister, and thus she held the highest social standing amongst everyone. The dignity of someone who had grown up bathing in the attention of others and taking it for granted shone through on the stage.

Pullum was basically desperate to keep up, exerting effort in both her movements and expression. She was a little bit sluggish, but you could feel commendable effort from her. It was a bit fun to see Lahti being busy offstage, worrying about Pullum’s movements.

Everyone had their own unique, individual charms, but of course, it was Inglis who received the most attention. A few playful glances here and smiles there were enough to draw cheers from the audience.

Inglis glanced at Alina in the audience seat and saw her staring at the stage with her eyes gleaming bright. Was she enjoying the show? Rafinha would be happy if she did.

When she looked at her mother, Selena, their eyes met. Inglis smiled at her and she answered with an approving nod.

Had she made her happy? Regardless of her memory of her previous life as King Inglis, there was no doubt that she was her mother that she deeply adored in this life. Inglis had no intention to get married or have children, so she wouldn’t be able to show her dressing in a bride’s gown or her grandchildren’s faces. That was why she believed that she should do her filial duties to her mother while she could.

「Okay!」

To turn the heat up, or, well, not exactly for that, but still!

「Hyaaah!!」

Inglis leaped up high, spun around midair, and landed on the aisle that divided the gallery in half. This wasn’t in the script, but Count Weissmall had given her the permission to perform it.

「「Ooh?!!」」
「「Sh-, she jumps so high!」」

It was so that everyone could see her even better, so that she could feel their breaths even closer, so that she could sense the flow of their mana in even more details!

And then, as the music was coming to an end, Inglis kicked the aisle and once again leapt into the stage. At the same time as the music stopped, the dancers gathered in one spot and struck a pose together. The audience broke out in vehement applause that showered Inglis and the other four in acclamation.

They remained on the stage for a beat to enjoy the aftertaste of their performance and then went offstage right after.

「Hmm. That felt so good~」
「W-, we sure did it swimmingly, didn’t we~」

Rafinha gave a satisfied smile while Pullum patted her chest in relief.

「It-, it was far more embarrassing that I thought……Did I do okay?」
「It’s okay, Leone. Whilst I do not mind being watched, I’m afraid of failing their expectations.」

Leone and Liselotte gave each other their opinion.

「Oi, Pullum! That went better than I thought, I’ll give you that!」
「Wah! I can’t believe Lahti praised me! Then, please pat me in the head for the reward!」
「Heck no, who would do that!」

Then, as she watched over the two’s intimate give-and-take from the side, Rafinha sotfy whispered.

「So? How is it, Glis?」

Her voice and expression were serious, a total 180 degree turn from before.

「Yeah. It’s as we thought! Please tell the Principal what I’m about to say.」
「Got it!」

Inglis and Rafniha then began to whisper to each other.