As the soothing music began, the young people seemed to come to an unspoken agreement, crowding Mia into the center of the dance floor.
Then, a bizarre scene unfolded: pairs of young people coupled up as dance partners, yet during this entire process, not a single person invited Mia—the girl who had just become the Kingdom's Princess—to dance.
Obviously, Prince Mabrey's scheme was very successful.
Set in contrast against the pairs of young men and women, Mia standing alone looked incredibly out of place.
This scene caused the nobles and ministers watching the ball nearby to whisper among themselves.
"Beautiful lady, may I have this dance?"
Just as the girl was feeling uneasy and about to make a fool of herself, a familiar voice came from behind.
At this moment, Mike was wearing a black medieval formal suit.
The gorgeous coat was lined with a white silk shirt, making him look like a prince who had walked right out of a fairy tale.
"Mike!"
Mia turned to see the visitor clearly, unable to suppress the surprise on her face.
"Why are you here?"
Mike, dressed like an adult, seemed to radiate light in the girl's eyes at this moment.
Like a "knight" arriving to save the princess.
"For you, of course, my Princess~"
Mike gentlemanly extended his right hand, then gently placed his other hand on the girl's waist.
Accompanied by the soothing music, Mia, surrounded by an immense sense of happiness, followed Mike's footsteps, shuttling through the dance floor as joyfully as a butterfly.
"It seems our choice was not wrong."
Queen Renaldi, watching her granddaughter's happy appearance from the side of the dance floor, showed a doting smile.
"I think Mr. Mike still needs to be observed for a while longer."
In contrast, Mr. Joe, accompanying the Queen, gave a conservative evaluation.
Obviously, the butler didn't quite trust Mike's "character."
"What does it matter? Mia is still young and has the right to trial and error. Besides, I wasn't much better than her back then..."
Seeming to recall some amusing past events, the smile on Queen Renaldi's face became even brighter.
Unlike the cheerful atmosphere on the Queen's side, Prince Mabrey's face not far away was terrifyingly gloomy.
"Lundo, can you explain to me what the situation is now?"
Mabrey stared angrily at the financial minister beside him.
"You seem to have messed up my plan."
The financial minister was a fat, balding middle-aged man; seeing the Prince's angry demeanor, his thick double chin trembled a few times.
"I assure you, I implemented all your requirements. As for that young man, I haven't seen him before."
Financial Minister Lundo explained carefully, then immediately proposed, "Do you want me to go kick him out now?"
The financial minister and Prince Mabrey both belonged to the radical faction.
Their previous plan was to make Mia, the kingdom's new heir, make a fool of herself at the ball, thereby striking at the Queen's faction's momentum within the kingdom.
It was just that Mike, this unexpected factor, made their plans go down the drain.
"You idiot, do you want us to become a laughingstock?"
Prince Mabrey glared at the financial minister like he was an old fool.
The Kingdom of Genovia's current management system was still a constitutional monarchy.
It could be said that Queen Renaldi alone represented the will of the entire country.
Therefore, Prince Mabrey only dared to play petty tricks behind the scenes and didn't dare to really confront the Queen openly.
And the financial minister's proposal would obviously expose their targeting of Princess Mia to the public.
No matter how you looked at it, this was a terrible proposal.
Lundo also realized he had made a terrible suggestion, and he shrank into a ball even more fearfully, trying to avoid Prince Mabrey's gaze.
"Fortunately, this is just the appetizer; the real show is yet to come."
The gloomy-looking Prince Mabrey didn't seem to have put all his eggs in one basket.
But this was understandable; if Mia hadn't appeared, Mabrey, as the Kingdom's Prince, would most likely have become the kingdom's next heir.
Therefore, his plan against Princess Mia was obviously not that simple.
However, Mia, as the other party involved, didn't know at this time that someone was deliberately targeting her.
"Mike, how did you appear here?"
Mia, having experienced emotional ups and downs, asked the initial question again.
You know, the timing of Mike's appearance was simply too coincidental.
And his mode of descending like a god almost made the girl forget the previous unhappiness.
"Of course, it's because I felt the summons of a certain princess."
Mike boasted, smiling.
"How about it, isn't it handsome?"
Mike, dressed in formal wear with his hair combed like an adult, possessed a mature and charming temperament.
With this look, his smile was enough to make any girl swoon.
Only this seemed not to include Mia; the girl rolled her eyes and said playfully, "Your suit is indeed very handsome~"
Facts proved that the girl wasn't immune to Mike's charm; she just didn't want to see him continue to be smug.
"Okay, I admit the clothes are handsome. But it also depends on who's wearing them."
Mike, who didn't know the meaning of embarrassment, found a way to compliment himself.
But then again, the formal suit on him today was indeed very handsome, perfect from cut to style to color matching.
If Mike had to prepare it himself, he might not have had such taste.
Yes, this suit was prepared with the help of Mr. Joe, the royal butler.
And Mike being able to appear at the ball so timely was also because Mr. Joe notified him of the specific time in advance.
Of course, none of this was important.
What was important was that Mike appeared here and completed the task of "a hero saving a beauty."
Half an hour passed, and the soothing music stopped, indicating that this social ball for young people had officially ended.
Princess Mia, as the center of attention, also demonstrated the essence of Genovian dance with Mike's help, winning warm applause from the guests.
One of the true purposes of this ball was to test Princess Mia's social skills.
Obviously, the girl's performance had passed this level.
"Let's go, I'll take you to meet my grandmother and mother..."
The "making friends" session ended, and Mia pulled Mike towards the side of the dance floor, giving off the vibe of taking a boyfriend to meet the parents.
This kind of royal social ball indeed also had the purpose of "matchmaking" for single royal members.
"Your Majesty, Princess Mia has proven her ability to make friends. I just don't know if the target changes, will she still be able to perform like this?"
Prince Mabrey went to the Queen first and spoke before Mia could arrive.
"Oh, what is Prince Mabrey trying to say?"
Queen Renaldi resumed her dignified appearance, no change in expression visible on her face.
Not showing emotions on one's face was a basic quality of a queen.
"In a few days, it will be the day when the leaders of several surrounding countries bring their children to our country for a visit and exchange. I think the work of receiving the princesses and princes from other countries can be handed over to Princess Mia."
Prince Mabrey played his big move.
The situation of several surrounding small countries was similar to Genovia, so every year their leaders would come to Genovia to visit and learn.
And the work of receiving these people was not easy; Genovia had to show its goodwill on one hand, and demonstrate its national strength on the other.
There was an invisible contest between countries in this.
And naturally, this also included the comparison between the heirs of the various countries: personal literacy, diplomatic ability, leadership ability, etc., were all points of comparison for the heirs.
Prince Mabrey saw that Mia was a "wild child" who hadn't received much noble education, so he wanted her to embarrass herself in front of foreign guests.
The purpose was self-evident.
It could be said that in order to suppress the momentum of the Queen's faction, he had resorted to all means, not hesitating to damage the "interests" of his own country.
"Your proposal is good; Mia should indeed withstand more tests."
Witnessed by a group of high-level kingdom officials, Queen Renaldi agreed to Mabrey's proposal.
The work of receiving heirs from various countries could indeed easily make Mia make a fool of herself again.
But this was also a good opportunity for her to show her own capabilities in front of everyone.
After all, rights and abilities complement each other; the greater the ability, the greater the rights.
As the heir to the kingdom, Princess Mia would sooner or later reach the step of inheriting the throne.
Under this premise, letting her get familiar with her scope of business earlier was not a bad thing.