Chapter 369 Dancing Together
In the Cherwood district, the bright sunshine shines on the ground to dispel the chill, making the streets paved with red bricks and cement as warm as early summer.

The mobile street vendors selling vegetables, fruits and cooked food shouted loudly and greeted the passers-by in a hurry. Some of them would stop to compare and buy carefully, while others would wave their hands impatiently because they had not found a job for the day.

Audrey walked on the street holding Susie’s hand, bathed in the noise and bustle that they had never seen before, as well as greedy, mocking, envious, and jealous gazes. She reached out to pull down the brim of her hat and lowered her head even lower.

At this moment, Audrey had taken off her gorgeous dress and light dancing shoes, and put on the black hooded robe she had prepared in advance. Most of her face was covered by the shadow of the hood, and only her beautifully curved lips could be clearly noticed.

This should have been a low-key outfit. Although it was a little weird and not in line with the mainstream, it would not attract attention. The problem was that Susie next to her was too eye-catching.

This golden retriever, which was not of pure bloodline, was well-fed and well-groomed. Its fur was shiny and smooth, and it walked in a ladylike manner. It could be said that it had an eye-catching aura, and Audrey was also noticed. The man and the dog attracted a lot of attention from passers-by.

“Audrey, a lot of people are looking at us.”

Facing the children playing and fighting in the streets, the vendors shouting their wares, the accordion musician singing and all kinds of novelties that would never be seen in Queens, Susie wagged her tail gently, looking a little excited.

Although servants took Susie for walks regularly, she could only wander around Hall’s mansion or around the ball. The farthest place she had ever been was when the Hall family went on an outing. Now, this feeling of freedom was particularly refreshing.

It’s like a fish moving from an ornamental fish tank with clear water, suitable temperature and plenty of food to the vast ocean where conditions are not so good.

It even felt that its instincts were awakened, and it had the urge to run wildly, chasing and preying on prey, but since such behavior was too unladylike, it still endured it.

Audrey, who also felt the novelty but had no time to pay attention because she was busy, just glanced at it briefly and said nothing more. She was in a hurry and had to go back before the evening to avoid being exposed.

“Susie, don’t talk until there are no outsiders around.”

“I’m very careful. No one will notice.”

Susie nudged Audrey’s trouser leg, “Is your friend considered an outsider?”

Audrey pursed her lips and quickened her pace: “Not really, he is also a Beyonder, just like us.”

Although strictly speaking Susie should be considered an extraordinary creature… an extraordinary animal?
A few minutes later, Audrey, holding Susie’s hand, arrived at the agreed coffee shop.

At this time, the busy breakfast time was over, and there were almost no customers in the cafe. The few waiters seemed lazy and not enthusiastic enough.

Audrey was originally worried that pets were not allowed in and she needed to find a place to board Susie, but after asking, she found that this restaurant allows pets to dine in.

Was it coincidence, or did Mr. Emperor know from the beginning that Susie would follow? If it was the latter, did it mean that Mr. Emperor knew my identity from the beginning?

After entering the circle of extraordinary people, Audrey would always think more about some coincidences. She walked to the box in two steps and took a deep breath.

This time she met with the “Emperor” in the hope of asking him what he thought of the current political system, whether there were other ways to improve it, whether he really intended to start a war, and how he would start a war, etc.

Audrey has been troubled by these questions for a long time after taking the “audience” potion and glimpsing the dark side of politics, and she urgently needs answers.

After preparing herself mentally, Audrey pushed the door open and walked in.

The box was clean and tidy with plenty of sunlight. There was a round wooden table in the middle with two empty chairs. There were two steaming cups and a green bonsai on the table. The window was open and a few wisps of sweet breeze blew by.

It was a fairly normal scene. Even the “audience” didn’t see anything wrong with it. If I had to say anything…

“Isn’t the Emperor here yet?”

Audrey glanced at the steaming coffee that was emitting a rich aroma, and felt her tense mood relax a little. She pulled out a chair and sat down.

Susie next to him grumbled, “It’s very ungentlemanly to ask two ladies to wait for him. You still escaped.”

It jumped lightly onto another chair, its nose twitched twice, revealing a look of desire: “Audrey, can I have a cup of coffee? This coffee smells so good…”

“No, dogs can’t drink coffee…”

Audrey was stuck in the middle of her words because Susie seemed to be a little out of control. She stood up straight, held the coffee cup with her paws like a “lady”, and then began to lick it.

“Susie, you can’t just lick anything you see to drink!”

Coffee is poisonous to dogs!
Audrey scolded with a headache. Last time, Susie licked the potion she prepared, and now she licked Mr. “Emperor”‘s coffee. This was neither polite nor safe.

She was about to step forward to stop it when she suddenly saw Susie stop, a look of confusion appeared in her round eyes, and then she let out a series of instinctive screams in panic.

“Woof woof woof woof!!!”

Its body shrank rapidly and disappeared from Audrey’s sight in the blink of an eye.

“Susie!”

Audrey screamed, not knowing what was going on. At this moment, a calm and gentle voice sounded in her ears.

“It drank the shrinking drug. If you want to find it again, drink the coffee in front of it.”

“Who is it, Mr. Emperor?”

Audrey looked back at the familiar voice, but she didn’t see anyone.

She realized something, returned to her seat, calmed herself down and took a sip of coffee.

The mellow aroma occupied her taste buds, the taste was so wonderful that it was unimaginable, and it even calmed her anxious mood. Audrey had drunk countless high-quality coffees, and this was the first time she found that this drink that was meant to be elegant could be so intoxicating.

She experienced the aftertaste of the sweetness, and a strange feeling came over her.

Time seemed to slow down, and everything around her seemed to be magnified. She was already high in the sky without knowing when, and felt the weightlessness. She was falling continuously!
“!!!”

The most primitive fear brought by the feeling of falling occupied Audrey’s entire heart. She couldn’t help but close her eyes to escape reality. She felt her face flushed, her heart beat fast, her forehead hot, and her blood pressure rising.

Just when she felt that she was about to fall to her death, a gentle breeze blew from below, making her feel that her whole body was wrapped in warmth and lifted up. At the same time, a strong arm went around her slender waist and brought her to the ground steadily.

“You can open your eyes now.”

The calm voice sounded again. Audrey opened her eyes cautiously and saw an overly handsome and young face. The nearly perfect appearance left a deep impression on her.

“Not bad, you didn’t scream. That’s commendable.”

It was not until the man in front of her spoke that Audrey was startled by the heat and scent coming from the opposite sex, and noticed that their posture was extremely inappropriate.

She hurriedly pushed away the man who was hugging her waist, took a few steps back, and found that the surrounding environment had changed. The ground was full of green grass and bright red flowers, moss-covered old trees were winding and stretching their bodies, and huge pea vines were falling down. The whole scene was full of “fairy tale” style, reminiscent of the dream scenes in children’s books.

Audrey fixed her eyes on the man who was a few steps away. Her basic qualities as a “spectator” made her subconsciously observe the man.

The other person was wearing a pure white suit, the fabric was high-quality and the design was unique and eye-catching. It should be a custom-made private suit. His physique was very good, which should have been the result of long-term exercise, but it was obviously not the result of labor, because his hands were clean and slender without calluses.

Audrey raised her eyes and saw that the corners of his mouth were slightly raised with no intention of concealing it, which meant that what she had just experienced was intentional on his part.

This is a man with a bad taste and overconfident.

Hmm… very similar to his performance at the Tarot Club, Mr. “Emperor” is indeed a powerful and self-centered extraordinary person.

Audrey forced herself to remain calm, leaned forward and lifted her skirt, “Are you Mr. Emperor?”

Luke smiled and nodded in response, saying in a gentle tone: “I hope the ‘mysterious reappearance’ of ‘Alice in Wonderland’ lives up to your imagination of the extraordinary world.”

“No, this is more… magical than I thought.”

Audrey exclaimed honestly; she was truly amazed by such a dreamlike scene.

But right now, she wanted to ask about Susie’s whereabouts first, and then find a place to talk about the topic they had planned to discuss.

Luke didn’t give Audrey a chance to speak. He stepped forward and took Audrey’s hand in an ungentlemanly manner that was hard to refuse:
“Can I ask you for a dance?”

“This… but I…”

Audrey was thrown off balance by the sudden request. Just as she was thinking of politely refusing, she heard words so strong that they could not be refused.

“I am willing to meet you and chat with you, so it’s only fair that you cooperate, Miss Justice.”

makes sense……

Audrey hesitated for a moment, then looked down at the dull black gown, feeling a little embarrassed. This was not the kind of dress she should wear to a ball.

“I’m not dressed for dancing right now.”

This is an objective fact!

Luke showed a faint smile on his face. He moved his hand slightly, causing Audrey to lean forward, and the distance between them was suddenly shortened.

The ground began to shake, and as Audrey screamed, a huge vine shot up into the sky from beneath their feet, and with the violent shock, it sent the two of them into the clouds and onto a gorgeous stage.

A spotlight shone from somewhere onto the stage, and a prelude with a classical texture sounded, making those who heard it want to dance.

In the center of the stage, a huge clock hangs and rotates.

Audrey found that the shoes on her feet had been replaced with a pair of crystal shoes with a dreamy color, and the clothes she was wearing had become a princess dress that was more beautiful than the ones in her own closet.

Before she could react, the dance prelude ended and the formal performance began. The male partner had already started walking, and she stepped on him because she was a beat slow.

Lu Ke was not angry, he just glanced at her sideways with contempt, as if mocking her:
“It seems Backlund’s most dazzling jewel isn’t very good at dancing.”

Mr. “Emperor” really knows her identity!
Audrey felt a nameless fire in her heart. It was the dissatisfaction that had been accumulated since the beginning because of the constant control over her rhythm. At this moment, the dissatisfaction was ignited by this light-hearted teasing.

She straightened her back unyieldingly, performed the most standard dance posture, looked at her partner, and focused all her attention on capturing the rhythm of the dance music.

The dancing skills that had been etched into her body over the years were brought to perfect use. Audrey’s every step and every beat were extremely precise, and her graceful figure as she spun was breathtakingly beautiful.

“Awesome!”

When the song ended, Luke let go of her hand and stepped back, smiling and clapping.

Audrey’s lips curled up slightly. She bent down, lifted up her skirt, saluted him, and then raised her head proudly, revealing her swan-like white neck.

As soon as the classical dance music that came out of nowhere stopped, a new dance music immediately sounded. This time the melody became light and bright, joyful and full of vitality.

It’s the ancient elf dance that’s recently become popular in the palace!

Audrey’s eyes lit up, and she realized that the person opposite her had already gotten into the mood. She immediately followed the rhythm, walked briskly, turned her body, and danced again, dancing tirelessly.

She became more and more devoted, with a bright smile on her face. Even though she was so tired that sweat was oozing out of her body, she did not stop. Instead, she felt particularly refreshed, as if all the entanglement, confusion and pain that had accumulated in her heart over the past few days had left with her sweat.

The last dance music had a stronger rhythm and a rough feel, but it seemed to be more emotional, and it also had a vague sense of ambiguity and tenderness. It was a tune Audrey had never heard before.

Luke smiled and explained, seemingly effortlessly, “This is Trier’s twisting dance. There are no specific movements or steps that must be aligned. It is a dance that appeals to both the elite and the masses. You just need to dance to the rhythm.”

Audrey gasped a few times to calm her breathing, uttered a soft “hmm”, and twisted slightly to the rhythm. Sweat flowed on her smooth skin, which was crystal clear under the light.

Accompanied by dance music and light and shadow, the two people’s bodies got closer and closer, they could feel each other’s body temperature, and the air became hot.

The air slowly became silent, with only Audrey’s panting due to the intense exercise echoing.

Human beings are atmosphere animals. When the atmosphere is good enough, it is also the most ambiguous and confusing time.

Among the figures who were almost close to each other, Lu Ke’s eyes flashed. He gently held the girl’s face, looked at her face which had become rosy and delicate due to exercise and had delicate beads of sweat, and slowly lowered his head.

The physical exertion made Audrey feel dizzy and refreshed. A hint of struggle flashed across her beautiful eyes, but she finally closed her eyes, leaned forward gently, and felt the breath almost hitting her face.

when!when!when!
The clock in the center of the stage had reached twelve o’clock and rang three times.

Audrey felt her body go empty, and the arms that were around her disappeared. She slowly opened her eyes, and everything in the box was the same as before.

There was just one more person sitting on the empty chair opposite.

Luke held Susie in his arms, stroked the golden retriever’s smooth fur, and smiled at Audrey.

“Good morning, Miss Justice.”

(End of this chapter)