TEOGDA Chapter 9

As Grand Duke Kaithan and Raina entered the ballroom, all eyes turned to them in an instant.

<The Grand Duke brought a young lady with him.> <What? He escorted her personally?> <Which noble house is she from to receive such attention from His Grace?> <Exactly! I thought he left earlier.> <Same—I assumed he had no interest and was gone for the night.>
The murmurs spread quickly among the ladies, and soon their gazes zeroed in on Raina.

<Nothing special about her.> <She looks naïve. The dress isn’t that luxurious either.> <Well, her face is kind of pretty.> <Pretty? Aside from her pale skin, there’s nothing remarkable.> <At least her hair’s decent.> <Which house is she from?> <No idea. Never heard of her.> <She’s not on the list?> <Nope. All the listed debutantes are already here.>
The gossip about Raina didn’t stop.
But since it was her first time attending such an event, she didn’t realize what it meant.
Unaware of the whispers, she focused only on looking for Charlotte.

‘She must be here somewhere.’

But no matter where she looked, Charlotte and Bella were nowhere in sight.
Just then, an older woman—Countess Grace—approached Raina.
She was in charge of hosting the event.

“Good evening, my lady.”

With a warm smile, Countess Grace greeted her kindly.

“I don’t believe we’ve met before. May I ask which house you belong to?”

“I’m Raina, eldest daughter of the Rosebird family. I came to attend the Debutante Ball.”

“Is that so?”

Countess Grace looked Raina over thoughtfully.
Her stiff posture and nervous tone were somewhat endearing.
Though what truly piqued her interest was the Grand Duke standing like a guard behind her.

“All of tonight’s debutantes have already arrived. One moment, let me check.”

Countess Grace returned with a file.

“The Rosebird family is on the list, but your name isn’t here.”

Of course.
Raina had suspected this.
She’d lost count of how many times Charlotte had deceived her.

“My mother must’ve made a mistake. I decided to attend at the last minute.”

“What’s the reason? If you’re the eldest daughter, you should’ve attended before your younger sister.”

Though Countess Grace spoke gently, her gaze was sharp.

“Countess Grace,”

Kaithan’s low voice interrupted.

“That’s enough.”

“Your Grace, as you know, the guest list for debutantes must be accurate. What if someone else falsely claims to be the Rosebird family’s eldest daughter? Who would take responsibility?”

“I will vouch for the lady’s identity.”

Countess Grace’s eyes narrowed.

“Well, if the Grand Duke says so…”

“Then it’s settled?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Having received confirmation, Kaithan stepped forward to Raina.
At his movement, attention in the ballroom snapped back to them.

Standing before her, Kaithan knelt on one knee.
He extended his hand with grace and said,

“In the name of Grand Duke Kaithan, I ask you for a dance.”

Everyone stared in shock.

<Look over there! The Grand Duke is asking her to dance!>
<On one knee—he’s never done this before!>
<Unbelievable!>
<Who is she?!>

Jealousy and envy pierced Raina like arrows from all sides.
But Raina herself remained expressionless.
Or rather, her face showed a mix of awkwardness and discomfort.

“Your Grace, I must decline.”

“What do you mean?”

Kaithan tilted his head slightly, and Raina gave him a sweet smile.

“You’ve already shown me more than enough kindness.”

Though she spoke gently, Kaithan’s face turned cold.

<My goodness!>
<Did I just see that right?>
<Did the Grand Duke just get rejected?>

It wasn’t just Kaithan who was stunned.

<She refused a dance with the Grand Duke!>

The ladies’ gossip started anew, in full force.

There were only three acceptable reasons for refusing a dance at a debutante ball.

First, if the lady was already exhausted from dancing continuously.

Second, if she was already engaged — in which case she would be listed and expected to dance with her fiancé as a formality.

Third, if the suitor was completely unacceptable to her.

Raina had only just arrived and hadn’t danced yet, so the first reason didn’t apply.
There was no indication of a prior engagement, and she had entered with Kaithan himself — so the second reason was out.

That left the third — that she found him completely unappealing.

Refusing Grand Duke Kaithan — it was unheard of.
He was the one who had rejected countless ladies before, not the other way around.
Now, he was the one being rejected.

The ladies looked on — some amused, some delighted, and others glaring with outrage at the country girl who dared to snub the Grand Duke.

Everyone’s attention was fixed on one thing — how the arrogant Grand Duke Kaithan would react.

Kaithan, thoroughly embarrassed, slowly stood and casually brushed off his knee.

“Oh dear, I suppose I’m not to the lady’s liking. My apologies.”

With a clean, composed farewell, he stepped back.
No one could say anything — they were too stunned, mouths still hanging open.

But what Raina said next shocked them even more.

“Rather than that, you really don’t need to concern yourself with me going forward.”

There was no cleaner rejection than that.
Not just now — she was telling him not to show any further interest, ever.

Kaithan’s face turned cold, while Raina’s expression remained bright.

The truth was, Raina hadn’t been taught proper etiquette or rules about debutante balls.
She had no idea how rude her actions were.

All she felt was discomfort at the Grand Duke’s attention.
She simply thought he had kindly offered a dance to someone who had just arrived — and since she didn’t want to impose any further, she refused.
Besides, she didn’t have time.

Raina’s goal for tonight was simple.

To find a husband who would take her away from that house.

She didn’t care about titles, status, or looks.
But one thing was essential:
A kind man from a modest background who would respect her and love her for who she was.

She wanted a peaceful life as a good wife and mother — to sing freely, eat what she wanted, raise Yucho plants, and enjoy happiness.
Thanks to her skill in making healing potions from Yucho, she could earn some money herself, so wealth wasn’t important.

In fact, the greater the status, the more uncomfortable it felt.
High status came with chains.
Raina had learned early in life that nothing came without a price.
That’s why she actually preferred a humble family.

Raina slowly looked around the ballroom.

‘Am I too late?’

Several couples had already paired off.
And those glances thrown her way seemed to say: Don’t even think about taking someone else’s partner.

But that was a misunderstanding.
In a ballroom, partners changed with each song.
Couples who had just finished a dance would now seek new partners.

But anxious from arriving late, Raina turned her gaze to the wall.
There, people who hadn’t yet found a partner stood waiting, hoping for a chance.

Most were of plain appearance or came from unremarkable families — but today, there was a glaring exception.

Grand Duke Kaithan stood against the wall, watching Raina’s every move with sharp eyes.

Raina didn’t care.
She calmly scanned the wall, then smiled brightly when her eyes met someone.

It was Terrier, the second son of the Dogg family, known for their dog lineage.
Raina had run into him often when selling healing potions in the city.

He was shorter than Raina and had a slim build, with little to boast about in terms of looks, but his kind and gentle nature had secretly earned him a place in her heart as a potential husband.

“Hello.”

“Oh? Lady Raina, what a surprise!”

Startled, Terrier quickly straightened himself, clearly nervous.

“Sir Terrier, would you dance with me?”

“M-me? With me?”

Terrier looked around.
No matter how he looked at it, Raina was definitely speaking to him.

In truth, since the moment Raina had entered, Terrier had been unable to take his eyes off her—just like everyone else.
Dressed in a soft pink gown, her golden hair flowing down to her waist, she looked beautiful.
Whenever he ran into her in town, his mood would stay bright the entire day.
Her shining blonde hair seemed soft to the touch, and her pale, translucent skin made him want to reach out—just once.

And when he occasionally heard her humming a melody, his heart would pound like a boy in the throes of first love.

He had often wanted to ask her out, but first, he didn’t have the courage.
Second, she was always so busy.
Short and shy, Terrier had never been popular with women—or even with other boys growing up.
He buried himself in books, which suited his quiet nature just fine.
His family poured all their support into his older brother York, so he never expected to even have a chance with someone like Raina.

He was content with the small conversations they shared when she came to town to sell her potions.

Still, Terrier instinctively knew Raina was someone truly special.
She might have been hidden away in the countryside, but once she stepped into society, noble suitors would line up to propose to her.

So today, when others whispered about her arriving with the Grand Duke, Terrier had simply watched calmly.
Of course, Raina deserved to be escorted by someone like the Grand Duke.

Inwardly, he cheered her on.