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the Villainess they took for granted

Chapter 191: v2- - 10: the opening ball III · Oct 27, 2026

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Chapter List (304)

Page number / 7

151 Chapter 151: Yes 2026-10-27
152 Chapter 152: The News 2026-10-27
153 Chapter 153: A Request 2026-10-27
154 Chapter 154: Closure 2026-10-27
155 Chapter 155: The First Move 2026-10-27
156 Chapter 156: Wedding Plans I 2026-10-27
157 Chapter 157: wedding plans II 2026-10-27
158 Chapter 158: Wedding Plans III 2026-10-27
159 Chapter 159: wedding plans III 2026-10-27
160 Chapter 160: wedding plans IV 2026-10-27
161 Chapter 161: reception venue I 2026-10-27
162 Chapter 162: Reception Venue II 2026-10-27
163 Chapter 163: Invitation letter and program 2026-10-27
164 Chapter 164: wedding dress 2026-10-27
165 Chapter 165: of flowers, other arrangements, and a letter 2026-10-27
166 Chapter 166: food menu, wedding cake, and the second letter 2026-10-27
167 Chapter 167: Of Duties and Parting 2026-10-27
168 Chapter 168: the second move 2026-10-27
169 Chapter 169: one month before the wedding 2026-10-27
170 Chapter 170: decision to leave 2026-10-27
171 Chapter 171: the emperor falls ill 2026-10-27
172 Chapter 172: closed gates 2026-10-27
173 Chapter 173: the letter 2026-10-27
174 Chapter 174: a son who lost his father 2026-10-27
175 Chapter 175: The Succession 2026-10-27
176 Chapter 176: the emperor is dead 2026-10-27
177 Chapter 177: the minister of war 2026-10-27
178 Chapter 178: The Emperor’s Funeral 2026-10-27
179 Chapter 179: the report 2026-10-27
180 Chapter 180: the coronation I 2026-10-27
181 Chapter 181: the coronation II 2026-10-27
182 Chapter 182: V2- - 1: Her Return 2026-10-27
183 Chapter 183: V2- - 2: The Emperor 2026-10-27
184 Chapter 184: V2- - 3- Returning to soceity 2026-10-27
185 Chapter 185: V2- - 4: the marraige market 2026-10-27
186 Chapter 186: V2- - 5: an obvious choice 2026-10-27
187 Chapter 187: V2- - 6: the invitation 2026-10-27
188 Chapter 188: V2- - 7: An attempt 2026-10-27
189 Chapter 189: V2- - 8: The opening ball I 2026-10-27
190 Chapter 190: V2- - 9: The opening ball II 2026-10-27
191 Chapter 191: v2- - 10: the opening ball III 2026-10-27
192 Chapter 192: v2- - 11: the opening ball IV 2026-10-27
193 Chapter 193: v2- - 12: the opening ball V 2026-10-27
194 Chapter 194: v2- - 13: the opening ball VI 2026-10-27
195 Chapter 195: v2- - 14: the opening ball VII 2026-10-27
196 Chapter 196: v2- - 15: the opening ball VIII 2026-10-27
197 Chapter 197: v2- - 16: the opening ball IX 2026-10-27
198 Chapter 198: v2- - 17: the dance 2026-10-27
199 Chapter 199: v2- - 18: his private chambers I 2026-10-27
200 Chapter 200: v2- - 19: his private chambers II 2026-10-27

Marian

Marian watched another young lady approach the Emperor.

She had stopped trying to count them.

There were simply too many.

One after another, they came forward with carefully practiced curtsies and equally carefully chosen smiles.

Adrian received each of them with the same composed attention.

He asked questions when appropriate.

He listened.

He thanked them.

Nothing in his expression gave anything away.

Marian found herself watching more closely than she intended.

Not the ladies.

Him.

She was looking for something she couldn’t quite define.

A change in his expression.

A longer glance.

The smallest indication that one of them had caught his interest.

She saw nothing.

Perhaps that was because Adrian was simply very good at his role.

Or perhaps none of them had interested him.

Marian didn’t know which possibility was more reassuring.

She glanced toward the young women waiting their turn.

They were beautiful.

There was no denying it.

Most of them were younger than she was.

Eighteen.

Perhaps nineteen.

Some had the fresh, untroubled appearance of girls who had never had to question what their future would look like.

Marian suddenly became very conscious of her own age.

Twenty-three was hardly old.

She knew that.

But beside an eighteen-year-old debutante, the difference could feel rather larger than five years.

Then there was everything else.

Her broken engagement.

Her marriage that had never happened.

The years she had spent away.

The fact that she had once chosen another man over Adrian.

She looked down briefly.

What exactly had she been thinking?

She had stood before her mirror only hours ago and deliberately chosen the earrings he had given her.

She had told herself that she wanted him to notice.

That she wanted to see his reaction.

But Adrian had not looked at her.

Not once.

At least, not that she had seen.

Marian’s fingers moved unconsciously toward one of the earrings.

The diamond caught beneath the chandelier light.

For a moment, she considered removing it.

It would be easy.

The intermission would come eventually. She could find her maid, take them off, and put them away.

Then she could simply enjoy the evening.

No message.

No expectation.

No possibility of discovering that Adrian looked at her and felt absolutely nothing.

Her fingers stopped.

No.

That was precisely why she had worn them.

She had wanted to know.

If she removed them now simply because she had become nervous, she would be left with the same uncertainty she had walked into the ballroom carrying.

Marian lowered her hand.

She would keep them.

At least until she knew.

Another debutante approached.

Marian looked toward the Emperor again.

Still nothing.

He was attentive.

Impeccably courteous.

Completely unreadable.

Perhaps he truly had moved on.

The thought produced a small, unpleasant ache.

Marian immediately pushed it aside.

She had no right to expect otherwise.

She had been the one who left.

She had been the one who chose Cassian.

Adrian owed her nothing.

If he had moved forward with his life, she could hardly fault him for it.

The final debutante was announced.

Marian watched her approach.

The young woman curtsied.

Adrian acknowledged her.

Then she withdrew.

The presentation was over.

A subtle change passed through the ballroom.

The officials moved.

The musicians adjusted their positions.

The guests began to settle into the next part of the evening.

And Adrian rose.

Marian looked toward him.

For the first time since he had entered the ballroom, there was no young woman standing between them.

Adrian turned.

His gaze moved slowly across the room.

Marian’s breath caught.

She didn’t know why.

Perhaps because she suddenly understood that this was the moment she had been waiting for.

He was looking.

Not at the debutantes.

Not at their families.

At the room.

At everyone.

And then—

his eyes found hers.

Marian froze.

For one suspended moment, she could do nothing.

Adrian was looking directly at her.

There was no mistaking it.

Her heart began beating so quickly that she was certain someone standing beside her must be able to hear it.

She had wanted this.

She had spent the entire evening wondering whether he would notice.

And now he had.

Her first instinct was to hold his gaze.

To see.

To find the answer she had come here for.

Then she remembered the earrings.

Her cheeks grew warm.

He had seen them.

Of course he had.

And suddenly she felt exposed in a way she had not anticipated.

What must he think?

Had he understood why she had worn them?

Did he think she was being presumptuous?

Did he think she was trying to remind him of the past?

Or—

Marian looked away.

The movement was almost immediate.

She lowered her gaze to her fan, pretending to adjust it.

Her heart continued to race.

She had wanted to know his reaction.

Instead, the moment he looked at her, she had become too embarrassed to find out.

Across the ballroom, Adrian remained where he was.

He had seen her.

And he had seen the earrings.

Marian did not look back.

Not yet.

She couldn’t.

She needed a moment to recover the composure she had apparently left somewhere behind her.

The musicians began preparing for the first dance.

Marian finally looked up again.

Adrian was no longer looking at her.

He had already turned his attention toward the officials nearby, speaking to them briefly as the musicians took their places.

Marian felt a strange little emptiness in her chest.

Of course.

What had she expected?

She had looked away first.

Perhaps he had simply taken the hint.

Or perhaps he had seen the earrings, understood what they meant, and decided that he wanted no part in it.

She couldn’t know.

And that uncertainty was almost worse than a clear answer.

The musicians fell silent.

A palace official stepped forward.

The first dance of the evening was about to begin.

Everyone in the ballroom seemed to know what would happen next.

Marian did too.

The Emperor would choose his partner.

Her fingers tightened around her fan.

She told herself she wasn’t waiting.

She was simply curious.

That was all.

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