Of course, before the dance officially began, Elysia received a request from Carole.
It probably stemmed from the last dance, when Himeko had asked Hua to dance, but Hua refused because she didn't really know how.
The natural result was that Carole stepped up, but a little mishap occurred later.
It caused Carole some minor embarrassment, though it wasn't really a big deal.
"Haha, I remember that too~"
Elysia couldn't help but laugh. After all, the scene back then was truly memorable.
"Stop laughing..."
Carole said helplessly. Although she herself didn't mind much, Hua did.
"You know how Hua is, she takes things very seriously. I've even seen her practicing dance moves in secret sometimes. She probably wants to make up for something..."
"Wow♪~ That's so like Hua!"
Elysia praised. She naturally admired this earnest girl very much, and then she continued asking.
"So then, what do you want me to help with, Carole?"
"Well... could you please help her? Just help Hua gain a little more confidence. You were the first person I thought of for this, Sis Ely."
"Hmm~ I would never betray a girl's trust♪~ Leave it to me!"
Elysia patted her chest and took on the task.
"I'll go get ready first. You take Vya to go play for now."
"Got it!"
Carole gave a thumbs-up, told Elysia where Hua probably was, and then took Vya off to snag some cupcakes early.
…
Watching Carole lead Vya away, Elysia hummed a little tune and headed towards her room.
She was thinking about what to do.
The beautiful and kind-hearted Elysia would never refuse such a "good deed."
Besides, Hua was such a serious and lovely girl. When she encounters difficulty, of course one should help her out properly~
Helping girls was never a burden to her; on the contrary, it was a pleasure.
And so, not long after, Elysia quietly found Hua...
"Hi♪~ Hua, good evening!"
Hua was clearly startled. The young soldier quickly turned and stood at attention:
"Good evening, Senior Elysia..."
"But, how did you know I was here?"
Elysia approached with a smile, "Don't worry about the details~"
"Aren't you curious about why I'm looking for you?"
"Then... what does Senior need me for?"
The unsuspecting girl had already begun stepping into Elysia's trap...
"Of course... it's because I accidentally found out your little secret, so I wanted to make it up to you♪~"
"What secret...? Huh, Senior!"
Seeing Elysia suddenly lean in close, Hua felt a bit shy, which was normal since she was just a young girl after all.
Elysia took a step back, laughing, "Don't be shy! A girl should be more sincere!"
"So... what's this all about?"
Confusion and shyness still flickered in Hua's eyes.
"Alright, alright, I should be more direct with you~"
Elysia wagged her finger, "It's about tonight's dance, of course~ I know what you're worried about, so I came to help~"
"Ah... th-that's not necessary, Senior. Please don't trouble yourself."
"It's no trouble at all! You have to learn to accept others openly. And most importantly, you must have confidence in yourself!"
"So... ta-da!"
Suddenly, as if performing magic, Elysia produced a gift box from behind her.
Inside was a blue and white dress.
The dress featured Shenzhou-style tailoring, with an elegant gradient blue hem. The collar and cuffs were embroidered with intricate cloud patterns, appearing both dignified and lively.
Hua looked at the exquisite box in confusion: "This is... a dress?"
"Exactly! I picked it out carefully just for you. The moment I saw it, I thought it would suit you perfectly~"
"Isn't this a bit..."
"Now, now, just try it on first♪~"
Before Hua could react, Elysia had already taken her hand and was pulling her towards the changing room.
Then, half-pushed and half-resisting, a thoroughly bewildered Hua found herself about to be put into that dress...
"Um... Senior, don't touch there, it's a bit ticklish..."
"It's fine~ Just an accidental touch."
Elysia deftly tied the ribbons on her back, her fingers nimbly weaving.
The process of getting dressed was nothing short of an ordeal for Hua, and it was quite the intense struggle, but we won't dwell on the details here. In the end, she got it on.
"Wow, fantastic! My eye is as good as ever, it really suits you so well~"
Hua hadn't really worn dresses much. Carole was always recommending nice casual outfits to her...
So she felt a bit awkward and constrained for a moment.
But when she looked at her reflection in the mirror, she was genuinely surprised. It looked beautiful, but she had always felt that such clothes didn't suit her, that they were impractical for getting things done.
The girl in the mirror wore a blue-and-white gown. Her gray hair, usually tied in a ponytail, cascaded down like a waterfall, setting off her jade-like complexion.
The delicate cloud-pattern embroidery shimmered faintly under the light, lending her an ethereal air.
"Is this really... me?"
Hua felt nervous. If she dressed like this, how would others see her?
Elysia stood behind her, gently placing her hands on Hua's shoulders. "Relax~ The way you look now is just like a celestial maiden from a Shenzhou tale~"
"No, no, no, that's too much of an exaggeration."
Hua hurriedly waved her hands.
"Not an exaggeration at all~"
Elysia suddenly hugged her from behind. "Hua~ Consider it my request. Could you wear this to the dance? I'm sure everyone would love to see you like this too!"
"This... alright."
Hua reluctantly agreed, mainly because Elysia was standing so close...
Elysia clapped her hands happily. "Great! Now, before we head out, let's have a quick crash course!"
"What kind of course?" Hua was puzzled.
Elysia smiled mysteriously. "You've been practicing dancing in secret, haven't you~"
"Let me teach you some techniques."
Elysia said with a laugh.
"Even that... how does Senior know about that..."
"Because I'm the all-capable Elysia♪~"
She took Hua's hand. "Come, put your hand on my shoulder, follow my lead..."
"Mhm, very good♪~ Here... and here, pay a little attention here~"
Some time later, the "last-minute polishing" was finally complete.
"Senior..."
Hua hesitated for a moment, "Thank you."
"It's nothing. I'm sort of doing this as a favor for someone anyway~ And I'm really happy I could help you~"
"Mhm..."
"Okay! Now that everything's settled, let's hurry up and go. Himeko and Carole have probably been waiting for a while~"
…
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