Chapter 138: SHALL WE DANCE 2(3)
"Marquis Rosalyn Barba is coming."
The crowd's gazes turned to the main door. Our eyes, which had been enjoying the dance, also turned toward Marquis Rosalyn Barba. The man, whom I had only heard of by name but never clearly seen face-to-face, was now opening the door and entering.
"Whoa."
As soon as I saw him, I felt I understood what the coachman meant by 'the Northern temperament'. Marquis Rosalyn Barba was a man who seemed to have brought the sternness and loftiness of the Northern Mountains with him. He was about two meters tall, and his gaunt face looked as if it were carved from stone, like a statue. His limbs were extremely long, making him stride about, and the people around him stared as if they were seeing an impossible living creature.
How had I missed such a conspicuous person? It must have been that Marquis Barba had arrived first on the first day, so we hadn't seen him. Marquis Barba swept his hand over his thick lips and scanned his surroundings. People flinched at the sight, as if a golem were about to offer a live sacrifice. Marquis Barba pushed through the people, ascended to his seat of honor at the far end, and sat there motionlessly.
As soon as he sat, people swarmed around him. Even the marquis's massive build seemed to fade into the background as the crowd obscured him. Watching the boisterous crowd, I understood to myself, So this is why I didn't notice him.
"Marquis Barba. I am a merchant from the Trade City Esta..."
"The central figure of the slave trading business in the Eastern Region..."
Amidst the countless questions and desperate shouts of people trying to appeal to him, Marquis Barba sat with his eyes closed like a statue. It seemed to be an annual event that happened whenever he came to the ball; the other nobles standing a little distance away only watched him, not daring to speak further.