Cloud Thinking

Under Helia's supervision and Chico's strict teaching, Britney finally learned a dance before the freshman dance. She only made one mistake when practicing with Helia, which moved them both to tears.

It's really not easy! When Chico recalled the teaching during this period, he felt that he was not cut out to be a teacher. At least when facing a student like Britney who had a bad attitude and no talent, he couldn't control his temper and wanted to insult her, but his good upbringing made him only say "You are a pighead" in the end, which made Helia laugh.

Because of the need for Chico's teaching, Helia and Britney have been traveling between the school and Marquis Frank's castle these days. Although the school rules clearly state that students must stay in school except on holidays, in fact most students are free to come and go, and credits cannot restrain their free hearts. The teachers also turn a blind eye to this, and as long as they don't cause trouble outside the school, they will pretend not to see anything.

Because of Chico who was staying here temporarily and Helia who came and went frequently, Marquis Frank was always on tenterhooks even in his own home, fearing that they would find out that he was up to something. Although he kept saying that he was afraid of neglecting the two distinguished guests, his guilty look really betrayed him completely.

Perhaps Wijers just couldn't stand this kind of mental pressure, so he transferred the pressure to his son. No one knew what he said to Yoriff, but on the day of the freshman dance, Yoriff, who had been busy with his studies, suddenly found Helia and asked about a dance partner.

"You're dancing with Britney?" Yoriff repeated in surprise and uncertainty after hearing Helia's plan.

"What's the problem?" Helia asked.

"No...no...have...uh...no..." Yoliv stuttered, not knowing what he was saying. Judging from his expression, he probably hadn't thought the matter through.

"There's no rule that forbids two girls from dancing together, right? Cousin, there's no need for you to dwell on it." Helia tucked a strand of hair that had fallen from her ear behind her ear. Her snow-white hair made her look like an elf, and her emerald green eyes seemed to bewitch people, making them believe what she said involuntarily.

"Since you have someone to accompany you, I feel relieved." Yoliv breathed a sigh of relief, and then revealed an apologetic look, "Beilai, I'm really sorry. I've been too busy since school started, and I haven't been able to find time to take you around the school and meet other students. I've failed in my duty as a brother."

"It's okay. Britney is with me. You just need to do your thing, cousin." Helia replied.

As one of the few people who knew Helia's identity, Yoriff naturally took this opportunity to gain Helia's favor. If he could marry into the royal family, the Frank family would become stronger.

Even if Helia doesn't choose him in the end, considering their three years of friendship, if Yoliv wants to develop in the imperial capital, I think Helia will not refuse his request.

"By the way, cousin, could you please help me check someone?" Helia thought of the red-haired girl. If the other party was really from Antonio's family, Yoliv, a native local, would probably know something about her.

"You say." Yoliv said readily.

"I don't know her name, but she has particularly eye-catching red hair. She is the only one among the freshmen with such a striking hair color. I want to know if she is from Antonio's family." Helia expanded.

The moment Yolief heard the word red hair, the look in his eyes when he looked at Helia suddenly became a little strange. Although he quickly returned to normal, Helia, who was always sensitive to sight, still noticed it.

Yoriff knew the other party?

Before Helia could think about that look, she heard Yoliv say, "I think I know who you are talking about. She is a member of the Antonio family, but Avril is Marshal Hawke's adopted daughter. She does not have Antonio's blood."

"I heard that Marshal Hawke and his wife are very loving and have three sons and one daughter. Why did they adopt a person who is not related to them by blood?" Ever since Helia knew that Hawke was her uncle, she asked Ronnie to collect intelligence about him. As the saying goes, knowing yourself and your enemy means winning every battle. Since they will inevitably meet in the future, it will not be a disadvantage to get to know each other in advance.

"I'm not sure about this, but everyone is saying that it's Avril, who looks very similar to the late Queen Madeleine..." Yoriff knew that this matter might be Helia's minefield, but no matter what, Helia had already set her eyes on the other party. She must have noticed that something was wrong, otherwise she wouldn't have come to ask him.

As he expected, Helia fell silent. He wanted to comfort her, but he saw Helia's mouth corners suddenly curved and she muttered, "Boring and cheap substitute tricks..."

"I will help you check it again, but Marshal Hawke has a wide sphere of influence and is always protective of his people. We may not be able to find any useful information in this matter. Don't hold out too much hope." When Yoliv heard her sarcastic words, he felt that it was stupid for him to have thought that Her Royal Highness the Princess was a lively and innocent person. How could someone who had enjoyed Claude's favor for so many years be so naive?

"Thank you for your help, cousin. If you need my help in the future, just tell me. I will definitely help you in any way I can." Helia made a promise to him. She knew how difficult it was to repay a favor. Instead of waiting for the other party to ask for it endlessly in the future, it would be better to give some benefits and repay it early.

"If there's nothing else, I'll go back to prepare for the dance. Goodbye, cousin." Helia smiled and waved at him, then turned and trotted towards Britney who was waiting not far away. Her white skirt fluttered as she ran, like a nimble butterfly.

Yoliev stared at her back in a daze for a long time. It was not until the afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on his face that he seemed to wake up and couldn't help muttering, "The most dazzling pearl of the Otis Empire..."

The freshman ball was held in the largest auditorium of the college. Dean Philip gave the opening remarks and several other prestigious teachers were invited to give speeches. The party did not really begin until the microphone was handed to the freshman representative.

Pairs of young boys and girls with fresh faces gathered in the middle of the venue. As the overhead lights poured down and music started, everyone danced slowly to the beautiful music. The most dazzling one among them was undoubtedly the red-haired woman in a black dress.

The red hair naturally sets off her fair skin, and the black dress reveals her graceful curves. She is like an elegant black swan, exuding a noble and cool aura in her every move.

"Damn, she's pretending..." Helia naturally saw it too. She had no intention of competing for beauty at this dance. She just dressed simply for the purpose of not letting others look down on her.

But even though she was dressed casually, she was wearing a high-end custom-made dress. The dark green dress matched the color of her eyes and also set off her smooth and fair skin. Her white hair was tied behind her head, fastened with a hairpin inlaid with emeralds and diamonds. The necklace and earrings around her neck were also specially designed for her by the palace craftsmen. But she never expected that there would be a day when she would be outshined.

Britney noticed that Helia kept looking at Avril and thought she was having a tantrum, so she smiled and coaxed her, "That's just the way it is. In my heart, you are the most beautiful girl here today."

Helia rolled her eyes at her and said coldly, "If you hadn't stepped on my feet when you said this, I might be happier."

Britney looked down and found that her shoes were really stepping on Helia's expensive high heels. She quickly moved her feet away and said embarrassedly, "Oh, it's just one step. Compared to the previous practice, it's already an improvement."

"From the beginning of the dance until now, you have stepped on me at least eight times, but I was too lazy to remind you." Helia added.

"Uh...it turns out that dancing is such a difficult thing that it can't be mastered overnight..." Britney didn't dare to look Helia in the eye, so she turned her head slightly and met the eyes of the person who was looking over here.

While Helia was observing Avril, Avril was also observing them. Just as only women can truly appreciate each other's outfits, Avril noticed Helia the moment she appeared.

He was a very strong competitor, she judged in her heart.

She wanted to win the championship of the freshman dance. To achieve this goal, she not only spent a lot of time and energy on designing new dresses and considering the matching, but also got a general understanding of the backgrounds of most of the freshmen in just one week to determine which ones needed special attention.

At first, Avril put Helia in the same category as a competitor, after all, her appearance and hair were really eye-catching and hard to ignore. But after getting to know her, she realized that she was just a distant relative of the Marquis Frank's family, and her status was far inferior to hers.

In addition, Helia usually didn't dress up, and she seldom talked to others or made friends. She looked timid and didn't look like someone from a noble family at all, so he simply lowered her threat level in his mind.

But I didn't expect that she could have such a gorgeous dress and such expensive jewelry! I heard that Yoliev doted on this distant cousin very much. He took her out to play a month before school started and gave her everything she wanted. I guess he bought her such nice clothes and jewelry as compensation because he couldn't accompany her to the dance.

"The other party is looking at us." Britney whispered in Helia's ear. Her eyes stayed on the other party's beautiful face. She frowned unconsciously, and a hint of fierceness flashed in her eyes, but after the next turn, she returned to normal.

"That's great. After this dance is over, we'll go find her." Britney held Helia by the waist and lifted her up, spun her around, landed steadily, and climbed onto her shoulders to finish the last section of the music.

As if they had agreed in advance, the two parties left the dance floor before the next song started and walked towards each other, and unsurprisingly ran into each other halfway.

"Avril, you look so beautiful today." Helia was the first to greet. She had a faint smile on her face that was neither warm nor cold. She lowered her eyes slightly and looked at Avril, who was half a head shorter than her.

Britney considerately tidied up the hair around her ears without even looking at Avril. The handsome man and beautiful woman gathered together and soon attracted the attention of everyone else present.

"Beleyi, your dress is very beautiful. Which tailor did you ask to make it? I want to ask him to customize one someday." Avril also maintained a decent smile, but when her eyes swept over Britney next to Helia, her eyebrows slightly frowned, as if she was surprised and confused.

"I'm really sorry, this dress was given to me as a school gift by my cousin Yoliv. I don't know who he asked to make it. If Avril really likes it, I'll ask my cousin later." Helia replied, her eyes stopped at the necklace around her neck, and she pretended to be surprised and said, "Ah! If I'm not mistaken, Avril, the necklace on your neck is the collection that the wealthy businessman Ouhenxin auctioned a few days ago! I heard that it was finally sold to someone for six million. It turns out that person is you!"

"It's generous, really generous!" After saying this, she clapped her hands, looking very servile.

This sentence sounded like a compliment, but those who knew the background knew that Helia was being sarcastic. Avril's adoptive father was the real lord of the northern border, and he had trading channels like Bazar under his control. If he wanted something, he just had to beg others to give it to him. He was no different from a local emperor.

But Avril's necklace, which looks rare but is actually of average quality and is just hyped up, was auctioned for six million. This shows that she is just like this to Hawke. If he really loves her, can't he find anything better for her in the North where mines are everywhere?

Avril's mouth twitched unnaturally, but she still had to maintain a smile on her face. Since she knew that the other party was targeting her, she just avoided the topic. She looked at Britney beside Helia and asked, "I don't know who your male companion is, Bailey. He is so handsome, I should have heard of him, but I can't remember his name."

Britney didn't hear the disparagement in the other person's words, but Helia had attended tea parties every day in the first few months after she came here, and it wasn't in vain. How could she not hear the contempt in the other person's words?

Even I have never heard of this person, so he cannot be an important character. Or, is this an outsider that you, Belei, paid to hire?

Helia and Britney smiled at each other, with a hint of helplessness and mockery, and said, "This is Britney, Avril, can't you see that?"

"Britney?" Avril suddenly took a step forward and looked at Britney's face carefully, and found that it was indeed the girl who had been following Helia since the beginning of the school year. However, in order to fit the image of the male partner, she combed her hair up and changed into slim and expensive clothes. She was very different from the sloppy and lazy Britney who had always appeared in front of everyone. In addition, there had never been a precedent of two girls dancing together, so no one associated Helia's male partner with Britney.

Not only Avril was shocked, but the people around her also started talking after hearing Helia's words. Some boys thought it was ridiculous, as how could girls dress up as boys and dance like boys? Some girls also thought it was not in line with the rules of social occasions, and that the two of them were freaks. But there were also people who showed admiration in addition to surprise, after all, Helia and Britney both looked good, and they were particularly pleasing to the eye standing together.

Besides, Britney looks so handsome in men's clothing, there's nothing wrong with dancing with her!

"No wonder she looked familiar. I didn't expect Britney to use a male walk. Did she learn it specifically for this dance?" Seeing that the wind direction was not in her favor, Avril wanted to use this topic to severely undermine Helia's prestige, so she continued to ask.

"Well, Britney and I are not the type to waste time on entertainment, so we haven't made any like-minded friends since school started. But we really want to attend the dance, so we decided to go to the party as a couple." Helia explained, "She only learned a few days and barely learned to dance one dance, but it was enough for the freshman dance. After all, we are so focused on studying, ah——"

Such a cheap word!

By saying this, isn't she saying that Avril, who had worked so hard to prepare for the freshman dance, didn't like studying, and that she was the kind of person who liked to waste time on entertainment? Unlike them, who were so focused on studying that they couldn't even squeeze out time to prepare for such an important freshman dance.

But even if it was prepared in a hurry, it doesn't look much different from what you have prepared carefully for a long time.

Avril was so angry that she couldn't even laugh. She said, "Well, since you two busy people have squeezed out time to attend the dance, just enjoy it." Then she pulled the man who was obviously her male partner but whose eyes were always glued to Helia and turned away.

Having won the war of words, Helia was in a good mood. She took Britney's hand and walked towards the dining table, "Let's go eat!"

"You don't like each other so much that you want to make enemies with them the first time you meet?" Britney looked at Helia, who was in a good mood, picking cupcakes and humming a song. She seemed to not understand her behavior, so she said helplessly.

Helia didn't reply to her, but asked, "Britney, do you also think she looks like my mother?"

"Uh...ah? What are you talking about?" Britney didn't know why she asked this. She felt confused and a little guilty.

"When I was talking to Avril, you didn't even look at her from beginning to end. That's a bit strange." Helia held a delicate plate with a small cake in one hand and a small fork in the other. She leaned against the table behind her in a relaxed state, looking steadily into Britney's eyes and continued, "Logically, even if the person talking to me was Chico, whom you are very familiar with, or someone you don't know at all, you would at least take a look at her to judge whether she would pose a threat to me."

"But this time you didn't even look at the person opposite you. Even when she was about to get close to your face to look at you, you didn't even bother to look at her. This shows that you were deliberately not looking at her."

"So, she really does look like my mother, and you're afraid to look at her because you're afraid that she'll remind you of your deceased friend?"