He looked at the hand which the Grand Mage had extended to him, and then to her smile.

She looked very confident… radiant even, like someone who already knew the outcome of the night before it began.

"I thought it was supposed to be the other way around." Azel said, but regardless he took the Grand Mage's hand and smiled at her. "I would be honored."

Stella practically glanced at her daughter and flashed her the most victorious grin she could muster.

It wasn't a subtle grin either… it was the smug grin of a woman who had just proven she was ten steps ahead of the competition.

'Don't worry, you'll learn how to be very assertive with the man that you like… eventually.'

She led him toward the center of the ballroom, her hand was warm in his and her movements were fluid as if her body had been made to command attention.

Every noble in attendance turned their gaze to them… every man with envy, every woman with a mix of admiration and wounded pride.

Wherever Stella walked, murmurs followed.

When she stopped, she pivoted elegantly toward him and smiled, a soft yet commanding curve of lips that made several men's hearts fall apart on the spot.

"This dance is called the Celestial Waltz… if you don't know it, it's alright." She said. "I'll guide you."

"I actually learned it." Azel said while massaging the back of his neck with his free hand. "You specified it in the ticket after all."

He had practiced with the girls too… including Gwendolyn. Apparently, the ancient witch was terrifyingly experienced in dancing.

She was the worst person to ask to be a dance instructor, she had beat the specifics into him completely.

"I see." Stella said and looked fully up at his face as the music slowly began to bloom from the orchestra. "I'll be the judge of that then."

Azel gently placed his right hand on her waist. Her body tensed for a moment… just a moment before she regained composure.

It was the correct placement, proper form for the waltz, but she felt the warmth of his palm seep through her gown and brush her skin.

Stella placed her left hand on his shoulder.

Their right hands came together at chest height and the fingers slipped into position, interlacing with surprising naturalness.

His grip was firm without being forceful.

She did not want to admit it, but the thickness and warmth of his fingers sent an unexpected jolt through her chest.

Still… she was impressed.

His dance frame was correct… His posture was correct as well and his spacing was on the dot.

But the true test was movement, not stance.

The orchestra swelled softly, signaling the start, and the entire ballroom sank into silence as dozens of couples began to move, the first notes of the Celestial Waltz unfolding like moonlight.

The first step: The Glide.

Azel stepped forward with his left foot, and Stella stepped backward with her right. Their feet barely lifted from the floor, sweeping smoothly as though they were gliding across the polished marble.

Their bodies remained perfectly aligned and the tension of their joined hands maintained the invisible frame around them.

After two glides, Azel's hand tightened gently on her waist.

He guided her into a half rotation.

Stella pivoted effortlessly, allowing him to turn her while keeping their core alignment intact.

Her gown spun behind her in a wide ripple of shimmering silk, the chandeliers' warm lights dancing across the fabric like stars reflected on water.

A few onlookers gasped… the pivot was clean, elegant, and completely synchronized.

The glide resumed… and yet, several couples around them stumbled or drifted off-beat, accidentally performing a premature full turn.

The Celestial Waltz had a reputation: it was deceptively simple at the start, and viciously technical once the tempo increased.

"You really know your stuff…" Stella said quietly.

Azel caught the slight flush in her cheeks before she forced it away. He assumed it was from the spin.

"Thank you." he replied.

The tempo rose and a single violin soared over the orchestra.

It was the signal for the next step. The Noble Spiral which was also known as the full rotation.

Azel's right hand applied firmer pressure at her waist.

She lifted her gaze to meet his… it was tradition, yes, but also a test. The man's eyes during the Spiral told everything, whether he was confident or afraid.

Azel's crimson eyes were very confident.

'His crimson eyes look like jewels…' she thought involuntarily even though she knew that she was supposed to be focusing on the dance.

Then he smiled at her.

"Like what you see?" he asked softly.

Before she could react, he pulled her seamlessly into a full turn.

Not a basic one… A stylish, sweeping spiral that swept her off her balance for a heartbeat, only for his guiding hand to instantly catch her center again.

'That isn't in the step.' She thought but it made her heart race regardless.

Their bodies rotated with breathtaking fluidity as their feet carved circular arcs across the ballroom.

She could feel the floor shift beneath her, feel him controlling the spin, feel the rhythm of his steps guiding her perfectly.

The onlookers began clapping… some even stepping back to give them space.

Their rotation traced a soft, perfect circle. Stella's gown fanned around them like a blooming flower, the edges trailing in a choral wave.

During the final phase of the Spiral, Azel stepped back slightly with his right foot, then swept sideways. Stella mirrored instinctively, her left foot following his lead as though they had danced together for years.

Their full-turn spiral drifted across the ballroom floor, leaving stunned faces in its wake. They stopped together, simultaneously anchoring their stance. The ballroom erupted in cheers.

But the true test was next… the signature of the Celestial Waltz.

The Crescent Sweep.

After the Spiral ended, a swift close-step glide followed. They moved in short, synchronized motions to recover breath and reset their balance.

Azel stepped forward with his left foot while Stella stepped backward with her right and then they began gliding across the dance floor.

Then the music dipped which was the cue.

Azel planted his left foot firmly… a decisive anchor.

His right foot extended outward and descended in a fluid arc, sweeping the ground in a flawless crescent shape, tracing a glowing half-moon across the ballroom floor.

At the same moment, Stella planted her right foot and swept her left in a mirrored crescent. Her dress followed the arc, creating a swirling ribbon of fabric that shimmered like stardust in motion.

Their hands tightened around each other at the exact same moment, and the timing was perfect.

Their legs neared… neared… and…

A soft touch that lasted for barely half a second.

But it was enough to send Stella's heartbeat spiraling.

Both dancers snapped their feet back together, flawlessly resetting the stance.

There was not a single mistake in the dance up until this point.

'Fuckkk…' Stella thought, heat rushing to her cheeks so quickly she nearly lost her composure. 'He really knew what he was doing.'

…

There were about two steps until the dance was done and Azel could feel a bead of sweat forming at the back of his neck.

It wasn't from fear… no, not exactly but from the sheer precision this dance demanded.

The Celestial Waltz was an elegant, ancient dance performed during only the highest of noble occasions, and right now he was performing it in front of hundreds of nobles… with a Grand Mage whose beauty already made half the ballroom unable to breathe.

Gwendolyn hovered invisibly at Azel's shoulder with her arms folded wearing a flowing black gown and pretending she was some dignified witch.

"There's only the Ascending Loop and Falling Star Dip left. Focus." She tapped the air with her cane like some irritated instructor. "If you drop her, I will curse you."

'I'm not going to drop her.' Azel thought while resisting the urge to sigh aloud.

Azel and Stella shifted seamlessly into the next movement.

Their footwork tightened and their bodies drawing closer, the space around them feeling almost suspended in time as the other dancers followed suit in a synchronized ripple.

Azel stepped diagonally forward with his left foot.

Stella mirrored by stepping diagonally backward with her right.

Their feet rose slightly higher off the floor than before. Not a jump but a soft, deliberate lift that made it seem as though the two were beginning to float upward.

The illusion was flawless.

'I see… that's why it's called the Ascending Loop.' Azel realized as he caught Stella's gaze.

Her eyes were not calm. They were bright, shy and flustered… she looked entirely unlike a Grand Mage.

Her face was softly pink and her lashes trembled. For a split moment she looked so unbelievably cute that his heart skipped a beat.

But he had to focus.

He gently tightened the pressure on her waist… a signal for the loop's signature rotation.

Stella inhaled sharply at the touch, her fingers tightening on his shoulder. Her body reacted before her mind did, and she followed his guidance instinctively.

Azel led her through the rotation.

Not 180 degrees.

Not 360.

A precise 270-degree inward spiral, the most difficult turn in the entire waltz.

Her steps curved around him beautifully, forming a looping pattern that wrapped elegantly inward before sweeping outward again.

It wasn't a perfect circle nor was it meant to be but it was unmistakably a loop, a measured pattern that only the well-trained could pull off without stumbling.

Azel matched her every movement with fluid control.

His grip on her waist never wavered.

Their joined hands remained perfectly aligned.

And as Stella completed the arc, she rotated back into place facing him once again.

They stepped forward together, their feet brushing lightly and their joined hands lifted subtly upward.

That slight rise signified the peak of the Ascending Loop.

In that soft upward motion, her face drew much closer to his than before.

Stella felt her pulse hammer against her ribs. She could see every small detail of his expression… the concentration in his brows, the barely-there smile on his lips, the crimson eyes that glowed like polished gemstones under the ballroom lights.

'Too close… too close…'

Her heart throbbed relentlessly.

But the next step required them to be even closer.

The couples around them separated for a moment, stepping apart before returning together in perfect symmetry. The sweeping music softened, then swelled again.

Azel stepped forward with his right foot.

Stella stepped backward with her left, allowing her body to move with his guidance.

His hands slid naturally back to her waist… lower this time, lower than was expected but she didn't stop him.

Her breath hitched as his palm rested just above the curve dividing her back and her ass.

She whimpered and only he was able to hear it.

Their joined hands loosened slightly but remained connected as he drew her downward into the signature movement… the Falling Star Dip.

Her body arced backward in a graceful, breathtaking descent.

Her spine curved like the tail of a meteor streaking through the night sky.

Her free arm extended beautifully outward leaving her fingers poised, while her gown poured downward in shimmering folds like water cascading from a cliff.

The ballroom gasped as a whole.

Azel supported her effortlessly.

His hand at her lower waist was firm.

She felt no fear… there was only heat.

She trusted him completely.

Around them, the other couples performed their own dips, but none matched the intensity that radiated from this pair.

The contrast between the youthful prodigy and the legendary Grand Mage made the entire ballroom hold its breath.

Stella's heart pounded wildly in her chest as she stayed suspended in his grasp.

She felt weightless and protected… wanted even.

Her face burned, but she could not tear her gaze away from him.

Then, with a smooth, controlled pull, Azel lifted her back up.

Her arm brushed against his chest as she rose, steadying herself.

As her posture straightened, her face ended up only inches from his… so close that if either of them leaned in a fraction more, their lips would meet.

Their bodies almost touched leaving heat mingling between them and their fingers slowly lowered, mirroring the way the music softened.

Silence fell.

Then…

Clap… clap… clap…

The entire ballroom erupted into applause.

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