I

The Thunderer’s Ball

Chapter 3

I

About an hour had elapsed since the start of the ball. It had hit a lull.

Taking Duchess Elizabeth through the last turn, Grand Duke Bergenzy escorted her gracefully from the line of dancers and kissed the back of her hand before taking a glass of wine from a waiter who was passing by.

Suddenly, Baron Agrippa addressed him, asking, “Is something worrying you?” Possessed of a massive form and no less than five chins, the perpetually smirking baron endeavored to plumb the depths of his dear friend’s consciousness.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t be coy with me. How many millennia have we known each other? The very fact that you didn’t down that whole glass of wine in one go is proof that you have troubles.”

“Leave me be. It’s no concern of yours,” the grand duke replied, brushing back his golden mane with one hand.

The baron smirked again, saying, “Apparently this D person has come to town. Filthy half-breed. An eternal curse on anyone of Noble blood who culls the Nobility.”

The grand duke made no reply, gazing with apparent pleasure at the figures in tails and colorful gowns who continued to dance across the vast floor. Here and there bottles of champagne and wine from his private stock were being opened, and the laughter and chatter of men and women streamed continually through the night hall,

“Or is it that other matter? Are you getting cold feet about offering technology to the lowly humans? Make up your mind quickly. The notion of Grand Duke Bergenzy, known across the eastern Frontier as the Thunderer, vacillating in a deal with humans is preposterous. What’s more, the request for blood from the village’s girls at regular intervals is laughable. If it’s human blood you desire, all you need do is force your way in through a window, hold them down, and drink your fill. You need not plead for an offering from those whose very sustenance you make possible—”

There, the baron averted his gaze and drained the glass he held in his hand.

“Orange juice?” the grand duke said, lowering his glare, which became a look of disappointment trained on the glass in the baron’s hand.

“My apologies, but for generations those of the Agrippa line have had no tolerance for alcohol.”

“In that case, don’t lecture me, you weakling.”

“What are you saying? You may not have noticed, but this recent proposal by the humans presents very serious problems. Firstly, there’s the question of whether the lowly humans can even comprehend Noble science and technology. And if you do such a thing, the Nobility in other locales won’t sit still for it. You’ll be seen as a traitor who has besmirched the honor of the Nobility, and as likely as not you’ll be targeted by assassins until you’ve been reduced to dust.”

“If such is the case, it might well be at the Sacred Ancestor’s discretion.”

His tone, brimming with a strange tranquility, made the baron furrow his brow.

Just then, a girl in a dress of a metallic azure hue curtseyed gracefully in front of the grand duke.

“Would you do me the honor?” she asked, lifting her head ever so faintly.

“Your face seems familiar. Is this your first ball?” the grand duke inquired cordially.

“Indeed, your grace.”

“Françoise, I am a terrible dancer. You would do better with someone else. How about Lord Dudley over there?”

“For the last month, ever since I got this invitation, I’ve been telling myself my first waltz would be with the grand duke, your grace. I hope you’ll grant me this request.”

Beside them, the baron rubbed his mitt-like hands together and made catcalls. One glare from the grand duke put an end to that.

“I hope you shan’t regret this, Françoise. Shall we?”

With a smile and an elegant gesture, the grand duke escorted the girl to the center of the ring formed by the waltz.

Just as he was about to take the lead, a figure in electric blue walked over and whispered something in the grand duke’s ear.

“Oh, so he’s come?” the grand duke said with a nod. There was laughter in his voice. “Prepare a welcome for him. Glickenheim and Johnston should do nicely. And they’re to last at least four minutes.”

“Understood,” the verdigris-hued figure with the face of a handsome young man replied, nodding respectfully before leaving in due haste.

“Some problem, your grace?” the girl inquired anxiously.

“It’s nothing. Now, then,” the grand duke said, taking Françoise’s hand.

Just then, the music halted. The band’s conductor looked around at the crowd and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, we are joined by the grand duke.”

The hall was filled with cheers and applause.

Turning the face of a philosopher toward the grand duke, he said, “Would you like to call the tune?”

“‘Fascination.’”

As soon as they began to play, a new light made the hall appear hazy. The candles that’d been burning in moderation all along now blazed with new life.

As they finished the preparation and took the first step, Françoise kept repeating in her head, Un, deux, trois . . .