Stephen snapped back into his body like he'd just been hurled across the astral plane... which, to be fair, was exactly what had happened. He fought to steady his breath, keeping it smooth enough not to draw attention.
His gaze dropped to the woman clinging to his arms, her body spinning effortlessly through the motions of the dance, elegant and light on her feet.
Why had she targeted him? Who had sent her? And what exactly did she even want?
Then, like a jolt his thoughts shot back to Tello, who was still alone upstairs, caught in the middle of a storm Stephen himself had helped stir.
He needed to help, he might've been going on and on about how Tello should've learnt from him, but now wasn't the time to put that to practice, especially not by himself. They only had one shot at this.
But just as he made to let go of her hand, he collided with a familiar figure.
Cillian Appleton.
"Looking sharp, boy!" Cillian grinned, clapping him on the back. "I see my tailor worked his magic on you!"
"They did," Stephen replied instantly, slapping on that same fake smile, though his eyes darted toward the balcony above.
"You want in on the negotiations?" Cillian chuckled. "Don't worry. I passed my share to one of the others, they'll get it to your boy upstairs. For now, just enjoy yourself. Loosen up. Dance!"
"I'm not exactly a dance floor regular—"
"Shut up!" Cillian barked with a laugh, pushing him back toward the woman in grey. "With a partner like that, I better not catch you looking anywhere else."
"I won't!" Stephen called back, then muttered under his breath, "So this is where my luck finally runs out."
There was no helping it now. He had to trust Tello. Not because he wanted to, but because there was no other option.
The music reached a perfect crescendo, a beautiful sound gracing the ears of all close enough to hear. Of course, not everyone had joined the dance, some of the older nobles too engrossed in discussion, or simply too rusty to step onto the floor didn't leave their seats.
The dance wasn't a mandatory affair. It was simply done as a way of gathering, a way of recognition and just like the entirety of the banquet, a show of wealth and grace.
From the grand staircase, the two Eldoria siblings descended, hands entwined, other palms lifted in greeting.
Eldoria ruled the western front of Dafnir, where Harkvell lay. They governed every thread of life, from trade routes to fields of wheat, from the corridors of power to the backrooms of taverns.
If you wanted to secure an easier future for yourself or your family, there was no simpler path than bending the knee to them.
The dance floor cleared at their approach, leaving them center stage. Everyone else stepped aside. Everyone, except for one couple.
One that danced like no one was watching, almost like they moved to a different rhythm than was being played.
They blazed past the scene, a grey dress passing Silvette's gaze, and then the blonde hair of a boy she knew all too well.
Everyone turned to them instead, their gazes leaving the forms of the Eldoria siblings. Now landing on two noble people engrossed in a terrifyingly beautiful dance. Rough, arrogant and breathtaking.
"Everyone's staring," the woman in grey whispered, breathless as Stephen spun her out, only to reel her back again.
"I would too," Stephen murmured, pulling her close, matching step for step.
"Can I ask you a question?" She said.
"Anything for you my love." He replied. Selling the illusion he was still under the influence of the aphrodisiac was key.
"Good..." then after a small pause. "Why didn't you come with your siblings earlier?"
"My siblings?" Stephen asked. "I think you have me mixed for someone else."
"No, no..." Her voice curled around him like smoke, sly and soft. "I know exactly who you are. Second prince of Eldoria... or rather, the man foolish enough to think he can drive us out of business. Stephen Willows."
She was tossed out to the side by Stephen again, grabbing him by the tips of his fingers. And was pulled back once more.
"I'm terribly sorry," Stephen muttered. "I believe you have me confused for someone else."
He might've had a calm expression on his face, but his mind screamed all sorts of danger.
He had always assumed he could slip by unnoticed. As the youngest of the Eldoria family, he'd rarely appeared in public, barely crossed paths with other nobles. Recognition had always seemed like a distant threat.
But this... this could be a problem.
"I don't think that's the case," the woman murmured. "You fit the bill a little too well."
"I'm sorry I'm not the man you're looking for," Stephen replied smoothly. "Though... I can't lie. I'm a little disappointed by that."
Her grip tightened around his shoulders. She leaned in close, lips brushing the shell of his ear, her breath warm and seductive.
"You're mine," she whispered, trailing a finger slowly down his spine. "My little pet. You wouldn't dare lie to me... would you?"
"Never in a million years," he responded quickly.
"So... what is the second prince of Eldoria doing trying to create a brothel?"
"I still believe you have me confused for someone else."
She glanced at him again, he was definitely under the effects of her drug. An aphrodisiac that would make him extremely loyal to her and only her, He shouldn't have been able to lie, or resist, or even flinch away from her hold.
So why was he...
"What's your real name?" she demanded, voice low.
"Tello Oma—Michaelson," Stephen corrected quickly. "Tello Michaelson."
"Did I get the wrong one?" she hissed to herself, glancing across the crowd. "Verre said it was the blonde one..."
"Verre..." Stephen repeated under his breath as the crowd began to louden.
To their side, the Eldoria siblings finally entered the dance, weaving through the swirl of golden tiles and elegant gowns. Their movements began soft and graceful, almost like poetry given form.
But somehow, it also seemed like a declaration of war.
They danced across the floor, their movements getting harder and more fierce. Their patterns getting faster and more erratic, then they brushed past the second pair sharing the dance floor with them, only slowing down when the crowds uproar came again. All eyes now on them.
A challenge.
Stephen looked over at Lucien, holding his gaze.
"Seems they want to challenge us to a royal dance," he said with a quiet laugh. Then he turned to the woman in grey beside him. "Forgive me, I never asked your name."
She studied him, catching the faint scent of the aphrodisiac on his collar where she'd reapplied it earlier. There was no way he wasn't hopelessly drawn to her now.
"Lyna."
"A lovely name for an even lovelier woman," Stephen said, taking her hand. "Would you do me the honor of being my partner for this performance?"
Lyna glanced around. This wasn't what she'd come for, but refusing a chance to face off against the most admired people in the city? That would be foolish.
She met his gaze. "You'll have to go easy on me... I'm not much of a dancer."
"Don't worry... I'm an excellent teacher."
He drew her in, and together they spun across the floor, loafers and heels striking the tiles in flawless rhythm.
Stephen had never truly cared for dancing, but at the palace he'd been taught as part of countless lessons forced on him. Now, it felt like another tool.
One he'd use to salvage this situation.
They paused at the edge, the crowd's eyes drawn to them once more, a contrasting mix of admiration for their grace and envy for their place in the spotlight.
The Eldoria siblings followed immediately, gliding across the ballroom with elegance, matching every note perfectly.
And as the music swelled and the crowd grew louder.
Tello's heartbeat rang in his ears like drums.
The entire table turned on the man's words, eyes fixed on him. Vince quickly raised his hands, then faced Hara. "I'm sorry, what makes you think that?"
"Hm?" Hara scratched his head absently. "I don't know, just a guess."
"A guess?" Ralph snapped, clearly annoyed. "Why say something so serious if you aren't sure?"
"Well, for starters," Hara said, hands dropping onto the table, fingers close but never touching, like he was twisting an invisible object. "That price is way higher than the building should cost. Forty rooms, even with everything included, would be around ten thousand less."
Oswald turned sharply. "Is that true, boy?"
Tello didn't know how to respond, or rather he knew how. And it was by punching Stephen in the gut for forcing him to do this.
"And beyond that," Hara continued, turning to him, "I get the feeling the building won't even exist in the end. That someone... would just disappear with the money."
Tello felt every gaze pinning him to his chair. How could he twist this back around? How could he convince them otherwise, pull them back into his web of promises and half truths?
This is why he wanted Stephen around.
"It's not..." he muttered.
Hara snapped his fingers. "So how much profit would you actually make in the first month after paying out a hundred and twenty thousand, from that little over one-fifty you claimed you'd earn?"
"The girls and the drinks—"
"That wouldn't give you anything. Even Love Supreme just uses drinks as an add-on. And that's because people don't go to a brothel to drink, that's what the bars nearby are for."
"We still have other ways... like selling items..."
"Ninety-five percent of your customers won't purchase any items off your shelves. They're there to walk into a room and leave a few minutes later.."
"That's not true... it all adds up—"
"To very little, way lower than the monthly upkeep. You'd be making a little over five thousand each month from sales, and that's barely enough to facilitate returns on a business. If it was real of course."
"So you were planning to run away with our money?" Oswald got up, hand pointing across the table.
"Wait... let him defend himself," Vince said, turning. "What do you have to say about this?"
Tello exhaled, staring down through the gaps in the railing, where he saw Stephen still gliding across the dance floor, never looking back.
Did he have faith that he could seal this out...
Or was it merely something else.
Tello took a breath, glancing around at all the faces watching him, waiting for his next move, for his next words.
The arrival of this new character had thrown everything into chaos. But at the end of the day, it was his word against his... the person that convinced the investors more would leave the winner.
He took another breath, then with a smile.
"I have nothing to say," Tello said, raising his hands. "This is all a con."