Chapter 35: A Night to Remember (1/2)

Several days had passed since Berengar initially found out that he would soon be a father, and so far, the couple had not told a soul. Currently, Berengar was having breakfast and entertaining his guests alongside Adela. It was the day of his Engagement Ceremony, and all of the invited nobles had safely arrived in Kufstein. During these past few days, Berengar had schemed with Linde to set up her fiance as the official father to her child. The plan would go into effect tonight. Lambert's 16th birthday was nearly a month away, and she would push for a wedding as quickly as possible to conceal the fact that the pregnancy was out of wedlock. Something in which her father would go through great lengths to hide. If successful the only people who would be aware of the child's true lineage were the parents themselves.

Berengar had become quite the expert in maintaining his social grace among the elites of Austria who were gathered at his family's estate. By now, all of the undesirable rumors about him had begun to fade in the minds of those at the party; they had become well accustomed to the new and improved Berengar. During this time, Berengar did not stand idly by and merely entertain his guests. He had set in place several transactions for steel and textiles. Which would bring in quite a fair degree of wealth for his family. These trade agreements would eventually blossom into friendships and perhaps even alliances one day. With each passing day, his father looked more favorably upon him; Berengar was certain that the day until he has officially declared regent of his family's lands was near.

Currently, he was engaged in discussion with his future father-in-law about the state of affairs of his steel-making industry.

”Rest assured, Count Otto, we are working on improving the production rate of steel. We have already begun to implement a second production line in our industrial district. Before long, we will be able to produce twice the amount of steel that we are currently able to manage.”

Essentially what Berengar meant was that more beehive ovens, blast furnaces, and Bessemer converters were currently undergoing production. With the decrease in needed farmhands, many unemployed farmers were actively transitioning to factory work or skilled trades. With each passing day, the Town of Kufstein was transforming from a small agricultural town to an actual city, filled with a wide degree of diversity in professions.

The count smiled as he heard the news; he would continue to purchase steel from Berengar; after all, the quality and quantity of the steel, Berengar produced far outmatched anyone else he knew of. Though Berengar had plans to use the steel in many aspects, he still sold off the surplus to those interested, and there were plenty who wanted a piece of the pie. The Count now decided to switch to a more personal topic to make sure Berengar was a good match for his youngest daughter.

”Are you attracted to my daughter?”

Berengar did not expect such a question. Nevertheless, he could not honestly say that she was too young for him to get excited over. Otherwise, Adela might take it the wrong way, and she was carefully observing his reaction. For some time now, she had been suspecting that Berengar thought of her as a little kid, or even worse, a little sister. He never gazed at her the way she saw him stare at Linde during the night of their first encounter, and that bothered her.

”She is quite the beautiful young lady, with many years ahead of her to mature into her body.”

Berengar's response to Count Otto's question was satisfactory for the old nobleman, but to Adela, she could tell what he really meant and pouted at the answer as she muttered under her breath.

”Stupid Berengar...”

Though nobody had heard her dissatisfied statement, Berengar could tell by the expression on the young girl's face that she was sulking. It became apparent to him that she had understood his hidden meaning in the statement. Count Otto, on the other hand, nodded his head slowly and accepted his words.

”Good, it is important for a couple to be attracted to one another. I know I certainly would have never married my wife if she was a dog-faced woman.”

Berengar nearly laughed at the statement and the look upon his wife's face, who was sitting next to the Count as she heard her husband's words. Count Otto was a slim man well into his forties; he had short golden blonde hair and a clean-shaven face. However, unlike his daughter, he had emerald green eyes. It was the Countess whom Adela had inherited her deep sapphire eyes from. A trait in which was commonly shared between Berengar and the two of them. After all, Adela's mother was Berengar's aunt and had thus come from the same gene pool as Berengar and his family.

Berengar's aunt was named Wanda and had married the count many years ago, much like her daughter, she was also quite young when she was betrothed to her husband, and he was considerably older than her. Thus she was in the middle of her thirties, and like all members of Berengar's family, was quite attractive.

The family would enjoy their meal and entertain the guests until the mid of the day. Afterward, Berengar successfully slipped away from the endless number of guests who were at Kufstein with the sole purpose of visiting him. He tried to decompress from the stress of talking to so many unknown people for so many hours. It was not until the start of the feast that Berengar finally re-emerged from his solitude. The feast was held outside in the center of the town, it was a fine spring evening, and a gentle breeze in the air enhanced the wholesome atmosphere.

There was a gated area that contained a variety of tables and dishes atop them. Many noblemen and women were enjoying their food, wine, and beer as they engaged in conversation. It was not until Berengar stood up from his chair and led Adela over to the large dance floor erected under his orders. He was dressed in a particularly dazzling outfit for the evening, and standing beside him was Adela, who was equally lavishly dressed. Berengar held onto the girl's hand and asked her a question she was not expecting. In front of the audience, which caused her to become slightly embarrassed.

”May I have this dance.”

She did not know how to respond and nodded her head in curiosity. As such, Berengar took her up on the dance floor in front of all of the nobles who were watching with inquisitive gazes. Their sight cast upon Berengar and Adela as the couple waltzed together to the music which played in the background. Though Adela was unaware of the intricacies of the waltz, she quickly caught on as Berengar led her through the paces. As the sun began to set, the two danced together throughout the early night under the illumination of a thousand candles and the full moon above.

Though the men in the audience initially scoffed at the sight of the couple dancing, the women were instantly inspired by the extraordinary sight and quickly became envious of Adela. Soon enough, they asked their partners to take them up to dance as well. Though they did not know the waltz, they still participated in traditional folk dances of the regions they were from. From the sidelines, peasants gazed upon the various feudal powers of the regions as they engaged in a new tradition with various expressions. Some were envious, others were confused, and a few were just downright disinterested. Though one thing was certain to the townsfolk of Kufstein, Berengar was at it again with his crazy ideas.