It was likely her first time being separated from the Royal Guard, yet she maintained her composure. I almost wanted to compliment her for it.

    However, the situation was far too urgent for idle chatter.

    The enemy was now so close that I could hear their footsteps even without straining my ears.

    “Your Highness. They’ll be storming this place any moment now.”

    Selvia nodded while looking at the door.

    “Yes, I know.”

    “In that case, can you fire two shots toward the ceiling when they open the door?”

    “...The ceiling?”

    Not at the enemy? Selvia looked at me with suspicion, but I remained serious.

    “It doesn’t have to be the ceiling. The point is to make noise with gunshots.”

    “Why on earth... no, I get it.”

    She must have understood the urgency of the situation because she didn’t question me further.

    Tap, tap, tap—

    The sound of hurried footsteps echoed closer.

    We waited in silence until the hinges of the door creaked open.

    “I’ll start now.”

    The moment the door opened, Selvia pulled the trigger twice as instructed.

    Flashes of light burst from the gun, and the deafening gunshots reverberated through the dimly lit room.

    The agents who had been about to enter immediately retreated outside.

    Then silence followed.

    They were likely pressed against the hallway walls, communicating through hand signals to decide how to proceed.

    ‘Or more accurately, they’re discussing how to kill us.’

    Given the commotion at the banquet hall, they couldn’t let us leave the Empire alive.

    That meant their mission wasn’t to kidnap the princess—it was to eliminate her.

    But from their perspective, they had no way of knowing exactly where the princess was hiding.

    They had been startled by the gunshots right after opening the door.

    Behind the sofa? Behind the bookshelf? Under the desk? Or perhaps someone had fired from another room entirely? The possibilities were endless.

    And in situations like this, the usual conclusion involved grenades.

    Toss a grenade where they suspected we might be and gauge our reaction.

    I was waiting for that exact moment.

    As I nervously swallowed, focusing my senses—

    Click—@@@@

    The faint sound of a grenade’s safety pin being pulled brushed against my ears.

    Immediately accelerating my neural reactions, I stood up and drew my revolver.

    Through the door, I saw the agent tossing the grenade toward us, moving as if in slow motion.

    Failure wasn’t an option. Holding my breath, I carefully aimed at the grenade and pulled the trigger.

    With a bang, the bullet flew, and time resumed its normal flow.

    BOOM!

    The grenade exploded mid-air, scattering shrapnel in all directions.

    “Argh!”

    “Urgh!”

    The agents hit by the shrapnel screamed, breaking the tense silence.

    I felt like throwing up from the strain of neural acceleration, but I couldn’t let this opportunity slip by.

    “Your Highness.”

    “I understand!”

    Selvia and I rushed out into the hallway, where an agent who was still alive reached for his pistol.

    Before I could act, Selvia pulled the trigger first.

    Bang!

    The agent collapsed with a grunt, a bullet lodged between his eyes.

    Scanning the surroundings, I saw that the rest of the agents were already lifeless on the floor.

    We had taken out eight of them in a flash, but it wasn’t time to relax yet.

    “Your Highness. The gunshots will draw more agents here. They wouldn’t have sent only eight for a mission like this.”

    “Then we need to get out of here as quickly as possible—”

    No. It was already too late. Footsteps echoed again, this time from the central staircase.

    —“Upstairs! The Imperial Princess is upstairs!”

    —“Gather everyone! Shoot on sight!”

    —“Top floor of the hotel! Don’t let them escape!”

    My breathing grew heavy from tension. At this point, the only person I could rely on was Selvia.

    “This way!”

    Grabbing Selvia’s wrist, I sprinted toward the end of the hallway.

    “Are you hurt anywhere?”

    “No, thankfully not... Wait.”

    Her face flushed as she pushed my chest away.

    Her tightly shut eyes hinted at a mix of embarrassment and irritation.

    “Don’t you think you get a little too close sometimes?”

    “...I was only concerned for Your Highness’s safety.”

    “I know. I understand, but... Ugh. Never mind. More importantly, are we safe now?”

    “I believe so. They shouldn’t be able to track us after the teleportation.”

    Even if it were possible, the Royal Guard would arrive first.

    They would have been dispatched immediately after the Etherium Displacement Grenade exploded and should have already entered the old city by now.

    Selvia seemed to agree, nodding once before stepping away from me.

    An awkward silence settled between us.

    When we were in danger, we had joked and talked to ease the tension, but now that the crisis was over, an inexplicable awkwardness lingered.

    Adding to the discomfort was the nagging thought in my head—‘The closer I get to Selvia, the further I might drift from my dream of leaving the Empire.’

    After all, it wasn’t proper to casually converse with someone as noble as the Imperial Princess.

    As I resigned myself to waiting for the Royal Guard, Selvia suddenly spoke cautiously.

    “...Daniel. Do you know how to dance?”

    Dance? I shook my head.

    “I’ve only ever watched others dance. I’ve never done it myself. As you know, I grew up an orphan and never learned those kinds of social skills. Why do you ask?”

    “I just thought dancing might be better than sitting here bored. The banquet won’t be over for a while anyway.”

    She wasn’t wrong.

    The banquet wouldn’t end until midnight.

    “Your Highness, I’d love to oblige, but I doubt my skills—”

    “I’ll teach you. It’s not that hard.”

    Hmm. She was persistent, and refusing her outright felt impossible.

    “Alright. I’ll give it a try.”

    “Good.”

    Selvia stepped closer and took my hand.

    “Follow my lead.”

    She lifted my hand slightly and began to step slowly.

    Her pace was deliberate, probably to accommodate my lack of experience, but even so, I struggled to keep up.

    When I stumbled a few times, Selvia couldn’t help but laugh.

    I felt my face heat up.

    “...Didn’t I warn you I couldn’t dance?”

    “You’ll get better with practice. Come on, let’s try again.”

    Selvia moved her feet once more, and I followed as best as I could.

    After several attempts, I finally managed to mimic her movements.

    It was crude, but it resembled a dance well enough.

    With the moonlight as our spotlight, we danced, our movements forming the rhythm of a waltz.

    Suddenly, the distant hum of a helicopter broke the stillness.

    “Your Highness. The Royal Guard—”

    “Don’t stop.”

    I was about to tell her this wasn’t the time to play around but stopped myself.

    Selvia was smiling—a soft, content smile unlike the composed expression she had worn at the banquet hall.

    For some reason, I didn’t want to ruin that moment.

    So, I continued moving, and we danced until our steps completed the waltz.

    As I stood there, stunned that we had finished the dance, Selvia released my hand and looked at me.

    “Remember this. Knowing how to dance like this will ensure you’re never underestimated anywhere.”

    Before I could find the right words to respond, the helicopter noise grew louder, and the sound of its rotors roared above us.

    “Your Highness!”

    A sudden shout drew my attention upward.

    A grizzled soldier, nearing sixty, stood in the helicopter’s doorway, fully armed.

    He quickly grabbed the radio strapped to his shoulder and pressed the transmit button.

    “Headquarters! This is Old City, Alter Markt, Route 87, Waste Disposal Site! We’ve located Her Highness and Lieutenant Daniel! Both are safe, aside from minor injuries! Send reinforcements immediately! I repeat! This is Old City...”

    For the first time, the tension drained from my body, and relief washed over me.

    Selvia and I exchanged glances, and without knowing why, we both burst into quiet laughter.

    It was the end of spring.