Perna watched the Prince walk away, worried that he might be upset about the dancing incident. She wanted to follow him but hesitated.
Suddenly, she rembered that she had a duty to monitor His Highness's health. She bit her lip, pushed past the angry noblewon glaring at her, and hurried after Joseph.
Joseph tightened his mask, tore off the botherso shawl, and squeezed his way out of the crowded hall.
He breathed a sigh of relief and wiped the sweat from his brow. Before the noblewon could catch up to him, he ducked down and slipped out through the Hall of Mirrors' doors.
The cool, fresh air of the Versailles Palace courtyard at night was a welco change. He stretched his arms and strolled leisurely, feeling much more relaxed. He silently vowed never to attend another one of these balls.
In the dim light of the courtyard's oil lamps, Emond, dressed as a maid, vaguely saw the Prince's figure and quickly ran over. "Your Highness, why did you co out so soon?"
Almost simultaneously, a slender figure in a white robe approached from the other side. "Your Highness..."
Emond turned, surprised. "Miss Perna, what are you doing here...?"
He glanced between them and suddenly realized sothing, coughing awkwardly. "Ahem, Your Highness, I have sothing to attend to over there."
"Don't leave!" Perna's face flushed with embarrassnt. "I just wanted to ask if His Highness was feeling unwell!"
Joseph quickly reassured her, "I'm fine, just needed so fresh air. Dancing is exhausting."
Emond, realizing he had misunderstood, nodded awkwardly. "Ah, yes, those ladies were a bit too enthusiastic."
As the three of them awkwardly chatted, they noticed two figures approaching, accompanied by what sounded like a girl sobbing.
"No, André, you don't understand! If I could, I'd trade everything for the ti I spent with you..."
The man's voice responded, "Oh, Emilie, then please marry ! Fate has brought us together again, and I won't let this chance slip away!"
"But you know that's impossible..." The girl tried to hold back her tears, speaking in a broken voice. "My heart tells to give all my love to you, but my reason tells that the entire Villars family depends on . I must set aside my love for you and marry a man who will lock away my heart."
"My dearest Emilie, I wish I could block my ears to avoid hearing these cruel words. I'd even blind myself to not see the tears of sadness on your face! Do you know that you appear in my dreams every night? I love you, and you love —isn't that enough? Why must another innocent soul stand between us, bearing the burden of our painful love caused by this cruel fate?"
The girl started crying softly again.
It seed that this young couple was having an important conversation. Joseph didn't want to disturb them, but he realized that behind him was a neatly trimd hedge of boxwood, and the path ahead was blocked by the couple.
He helplessly looked at Emond, who quickly surveyed the area and pulled him behind a maple tree.
Perna hurriedly followed.
But the maple tree wasn't big enough, and Emond had to press his back against the trunk, with Joseph and Perna squeezed together to avoid being seen.
Fortunately, the moonlight was dim, and it would be hard to spot them without careful scrutiny.
The girl's choked voice drew closer. "André, not all love can see the light of day."
"You know my mother cares too much about appearances, too much about the title of Duchess..."
The man held her tightly. "Emilie, I've just been promoted to lieutenant after my success on the battlefield! Please believe , in a few years, I'll have a status worthy of you!"
The girl wrapped her arms around his waist, shaking her head in pain. "But my uncle keeps pressuring to marry his son. I can't hold out much longer!"
"No! You can't marry him!" the man said urgently. "Your mother wouldn't agree, would she?"
The girl sighed. "Do you know? It was actually my mother who suggested my uncle send you to Soissons, so I would forget about you..."
"André? Soissons?" Joseph frowned slightly, suddenly recognizing the man's voice. "He's Lieutenant Davout?"
Emond peeked out from behind the tree, studying the 17- or 18-year-old girl dressed as a crusader. "She looks like the Duchess of Villars."
"Duchess?" Perna whispered in surprise. "That girl is a duchess?"
Emond nodded, lowering his voice. "Do you know Marshal Villars? The one who defeated the British at Steenkirk and Neerwinden, later crushed Prince Eugene's forces, and captured Freiburg, the forr capital of Austria?"
Perna nodded. She had, of course, heard of the famous marshal from both the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV.
Emond continued, "This young lady, Marie Emilie, is Marshal Villars' great-granddaughter and the current Duchess of Villars. However, her father was severely punished for mishandling military affairs during the Seven Years' War, which greatly weakened the family. Still, the Villars family remains highly respected in the military, especially in the Moulins region."
At that mont, a tall, slender man dressed as a flower seller approached quickly. When he saw Emilie, he imdiately called out loudly, "My dear Emilie, what are you doing here? Co back with ; the ball isn't over yet."
Emilie responded coldly, "Where I go is none of your business. Please leave."
The "flower seller" reached out to grab her. "I'm your fiancé. How can I not care?"
"No! You're not my fiancé; I never agreed to that!"
The "flower seller" chuckled. "That's just a matter of ti. Your mother will certainly agree to our marriage! Without the thirty thousand livres my father gave her, your family wouldn't even be able to maintain the dignity of the Villars na."
Behind the maple tree, Perna whispered in confusion, "Thirty thousand livres is a lot, but would the Duchess of Villars' mother really marry her daughter off to soone she doesn't love for that amount?"
Emond whispered back, "I heard that the Villars estate and power were handed over to Major General Villars, Emilie's uncle, to manage. It seems he might have taken control and kept Emilie and her mother under his thumb."
Joseph sneered, "What a plan—force Emilie to marry his son, and the entire Villars estate would beco theirs."
Perna bit her lip in anger. "Shaless! Absolutely shaless!"
The "flower seller" glanced at André, his tone mocking. "Oh, aren't you the junior officer from Soissons? How did you even get into the Versailles ball? Still holding on to hopes of winning my Emilie's heart?"
André had been invited to the ball for his military achievents. He glared at the man and said, "I love Emilie, and she loves ! I won't let her marry you!"
The "flower seller" burst out laughing. "You, a nobody, think you can marry the Duchess of Villars? Do you know how much it costs to maintain the Villars estate? Your pathetic salary wouldn't even last two days."
"I..." André tried to respond, but he was too frustrated to find the words.
The "flower seller" continued, "Listen, even if Emilie foolishly marries you, the Villars family would be a laughingstock. Her mother wouldn't be able to show her face among the nobility. Why? They'd say, 'Oh, Mada Villars, I hear your daughter married a poor, insignificant lieutenant? How tragic!'"
"You!" André's eyes reddened with anger. He suddenly removed his glove, threw it to the ground, and drew his sword. "I, Louis André de Davout, challenge you to a duel!"
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