Several days passed, and the long-awaited birthday ball finally began.

Despite receiving a personal invitation from Sophia, Celitia still believed she was just a minor supporting character at the ball.

Therefore, Celitia hadn't made any special preparations, deciding she would just hide in a corner and watch when the time came.

However, on the day itself, Celitia was awakened early by Luna and kept busy from morning onwards.

Only then did Celitia discover that Luna and the others had secretly made so many preparations behind her back.

"I say, all of you," Celitia was utterly helpless, "is it really necessary to make such a fuss?"

"Of course!" Luna was extremely serious, "This is a task Princess Sophia entrusted to us!"

Adding the final touch to Celitia's makeup, Luna used her finger to dab at the corner of her lips, wiping away excess lipstick.

Gidi stood behind Celitia, adjusting the evening gown she wore.

Rebecca looked on from the side and nodded with satisfaction:

"Our Lily will definitely be the most elegant black swan at tonight's ball."

This evening gown had been secretly custom-made for Celitia by Sophia in collaboration with Luna and the others, fitting her perfectly.

The dress was primarily black, accented with dark purple patterns, with white ruffled edges at the neckline, chest, and cuffs as small areas of contrasting color. The back was largely cut out, with only several black ribbons crisscrossing diagonally, loosely clinging to her body and revealing large expanses of snow-white skin. The voluminous skirt reached her calves, with black dance shoes secured with ribbons that tied up to her calves.

The overall design of the dress appeared quite conservative at first glance, yet revealed sensuality in every detail.

Rebecca picked up the black swan brooch from the table and carefully pinned it to Celitia's left chest.

Even though she had somewhat gotten used to it, Celitia still felt uncomfortable all over.

Compared to attending the award ceremony last time, this outfit was even more formal.

Gidi turned Celitia halfway around so she could see herself in the full-length mirror on the wall.

Looking helplessly at herself in the mirror, Celitia sighed and muttered quietly:

"My back feels so cold..."

Luna opened the wardrobe, took out a white ermine cloak, and draped it over Celitia's shoulders.

"The weather is cold now. Until you start dancing, keep the cloak on and be careful not to catch cold."

Gently arranging Celitia's long hair, Luna picked up a wide-brimmed hat decorated with feathers and placed it on her head.

"Now this is our Lily," Luna smiled, "today, let everyone at the ball see your radiance."

"Sophia is the main character," Celitia muttered, "I don't want to steal her spotlight."

"Princess Sophia has her own arrangements," Luna winked, "just be obedient."

I see, even as the losing dog, I have to play the role well, right?

Celitia grumbled inwardly.

She wanted to make some self-deprecating remarks, but when the words reached her lips, they ultimately became just a soft sigh.

Luna escorted Celitia out of the dressing room, where all the household servants were waiting outside. Seeing Celitia emerge, they all gasped in admiration.

"Truly worthy of being Miss Celitia!"

"Aside from Princess Sophia, no one could compare, right?"

Shanie leaped up from the sofa and rushed to Celitia's side, her eyes practically glowing.

"Wow, Lily! Even though I was mentally prepared, I still didn't expect you to look this amazing!!"

Celitia smiled slightly at her: "You recognized me this time?"

"Last time was different—I had no mental preparation," Shanie scratched her head embarrassedly, "this time is different, and you look even more beautiful than last time!"

"Thank you," Celitia smiled, "you look very pretty today too."

Shanie had obviously dressed up seriously as well. She usually wore very loose, casual clothes, but this time she rarely wore an exquisite pale pink long dress.

Noticing Celitia's appraising gaze, Shanie couldn't help but blush:

"Do I look good? When they heard there was going to be a ball, my parents specially had someone bring this outfit from home."

With Shanie's status, she normally wouldn't be qualified to attend this ball, but Sophia obviously wouldn't forget to invite her.

Therefore, Shanie had come early to wait at Celitia's house and was also dragged by Luna to get her makeup done.

"It suits you very well," Celitia smiled and nodded, "playful and cute, very fitting for your temperament."

Shanie breathed a sigh of relief and happily linked arms with Celitia, whispering complaints in her ear:

"My parents said that since I rarely get to attend a ball, I must catch a noble to bring home, but how could I possibly do that?"

She looked at Celitia with sparkling starry eyes, "How about Lily covers for me? When I go home for vacation, I'll have something to tell my parents!"

"Sure," Celitia couldn't help but smile, "as long as your parents don't mind, I'm happy to help."

"That's great! Then I can eat, drink, and have fun at the ball without worry!!"

Shanie cheered joyfully, linking arms with Celitia as they walked outside, "Let's hurry up and go!"

Luna and the others along with the servants saw the two off, and the carriage sent by the royal palace was already waiting at the door.

Boarding the carriage and lifting the curtain, Celitia saw a face that greatly surprised her:

"Saintess?"

Ariel nodded at her: "Sophia is very busy today and was afraid she couldn't look after you, so she specially asked me to come pick you up."

"Is the Saintess also attending this ball?" Celitia asked.

No wonder she was surprised—priests and monks of the church vowed to serve the Goddess and usually wouldn't participate in such luxurious and grand banquets.

Ariel smiled helplessly:

"I'm not coming as the church's Saintess. Don't call me Saintess today—just call me Ariel. After all, I am mother's adopted daughter. How could I not come to her birthday ball?"

Ariel wasn't wearing her usual monotonous priest's robes or Saintess gown, but had changed into a simple yet dignified deep red formal dress.

Compared to her usual stern seriousness, she now had several degrees more elegance and dignity.

Celitia obediently changed her address: "Ariel."

Her voice was soft and clear, with a hint of cool detachment, particularly pleasant to hear.

Rarely hearing her own name from Celitia's lips, Ariel's heartbeat became chaotic for a moment, making her feel very uncomfortable.

She didn't know why she was reacting this way and quickly coughed to cover up, changing the subject: "You look very beautiful today."

Having heard enough praise from everyone, Celitia could now face it calmly: "Thank you."