Book 3: Chapter 20: The Villainous Daughter's Sir Butler Part 2
Involuntarily, Charlotte felt moved by the sight of Sophia and Cyril dancing in the ballroom bathed by a soft light. Even though they were simply dancing, Charlotte felt like she might tear up just from watching them.
As the lead, the man will communicate his next step to his partner. His partner will dance following these instructions. Inexperienced dancers would lead by pushing or pulling at their partner’s arm, but seasoned dancers instead will shift their center of gravity, leading their partners with their whole body.
Even so, the partner’s steps would not change immediately after a lead suggestion. It was inevitable that there would be delay—although a very small one—between the lead and his partner’s response. At least, there should be one. However, Charlotte couldn’t see any delay when Cyril and Sophia danced.
When Cyril smiled gently, Sophia made an elegant turn, a smile appearing on her face. There was no hesitation whatsoever, and the pair had been dancing as if they had been one person from the very start.
Charlotte suspected that they were perhaps doing a pre-rehearsed dance. But that wasn’t right either. The situation around them kept changing, be it because of a change to the rhythm of the music or the people dancing around them changing positions. They responded to these constantly changing circumstances and would adjust their steps on the spot, choosing the most suitable movement. This couldn’t have been a pre-rehearsed dance.
“He seems to be having fun…”1
Those words slipped out of Charlotte’s mouth without thinking. Cyril’s lead was completely different from what he had done when he was embellishing Charlotte’s movements. This was a free kind of lead that he seemed to be enjoying, as well as making the dance fun for his partner too. If Charlotte were to follow him leading like that, she would probably step on his feet right away. However, Sophia danced happily according to Cyril’s guidance.
“The saintess of Ephenear and Sir Butler…” she heard someone’s voice utter.
She suddenly noticed that many people had stopped dancing, captivated by Cyril and Sophia’s dance. At some point, the pair became the focus of the ballroom. The best orchestra in the country, hired by the royal family, was only playing for the two of them.