New Gods of North America

After Mr. Brooke, the owner of the manor, finished his toast,

Mr. and Mrs. Brooke took the lead and walked to the center of the dance floor, along with the guests who had partnered up next to them, to begin the first dance of the evening.

In this era, men and women dancing with different members of the opposite sex didn't mean much.

The social atmosphere of the upper class was like this: apart from intimate partners, everyone maintained a social distance when dancing normally. Touching a hand was usually done through gloves, and being able to smell a bit of perfume was considered good.

The real 'match point' was whether the men could lead the ladies away from the dance floor crowd, or whether they could develop a 'friendship' that could continue to be nurtured afterward.

Although the detective agency was still small, it was, after all, a relatively independent 'organization'.

As a guest whose local status was similar to that of a 'family head,' Wayne couldn't slack off during the first dance.

However, the first dance usually belonged to 'couples' or 'acquaintances,' so Wayne very shrewdly chose Lina, who wouldn't refuse him.

This was mainly because Wayne and Ineisha were at about the same level in dancing. When they practiced privately in the detective agency, they followed the steps and didn't make mistakes, but if they encountered any unexpected situations, they would start stepping on each other's shoes.

Only with an experienced master like Lina could they avoid embarrassing the detective agency in front of people.

The radiant Lina, under Wayne's casual embrace, struck the starting pose for the dance.

As the music began, the two began to step gracefully among the crowd on the dance floor,

actually discussing a rather unromantic topic:

"I've already inquired from Miss Mary that the pendant she wears is usually locked in the storage room by her mother."

"Later, I'll find a chance to pretend to go upstairs to find the restroom. I might need someone to help pay attention to Mrs. Brooke and the housekeeper's movements, preferably to attract their attention, so that the owners of the manor don't notice anything unusual."

Wayne thought for a moment, "I can go chat with Miss Mary. Mrs. Brooke might pay attention to us because of that, but I might not have any good ideas for the housekeeper's side."

"That's easy. Ineisha can create an accident. If Miss Mary accidentally spills wine on Ineisha's dress, the owners of the manor should ask a relatively important servant to accompany her to change her dress, most likely the housekeeper or a personal maid."

"Then Miss Mary will be too busy tonight…"

Wayne was saying this,

when a gentleman dancing nearby seemed to notice Wayne and Lina whispering to each other during the dance, and cast his gaze over here.

That pair was quite tacit, and their steps seemed to be unconsciously taking the opportunity to get closer, as if curious about what the two were saying.

Lina quietly used force to push Wayne's foot away.

During the spin, they slightly distanced themselves from the other pair, and Lina took the time to give them a face.

Fortunately, the other party seemed to just be coincidentally close and didn't seem to pay too much attention.

After a silent jest, the dance steps returned to normal.

...

As the first dance ended, Wayne sent Lina back to the group of young ladies and then started to go get a plate.

Even if Lina wanted to take action, she would have to wait until the first round of three dances was over, otherwise leaving the ballroom at this time would be too noticeable.

Miss Olivia joked from the side, "Last time at Mr. Russell's house, Ian told me that Mr. Wayne couldn't dance. Seeing you today, you actually dance quite well."

"That's all thanks to Teacher Lina's guidance. I only started learning after that."

Wayne replied casually. According to etiquette, a gentleman shouldn't linger too long on the ladies' side.

Olivia looked into Wayne's eyes, her expression seemingly joking, "Then will Mr. Wayne invite me to dance a dance later? My dance teacher also said that I have a talent for teaching people to dance."

Wayne originally thought she was just making a joke as an acquaintance,

but seeing Miss Mary with her slightly bulging cheeks next to her, Wayne thought for a moment and nodded, "I will."

Because of his attention to the pendant during their last meeting, Miss Mary didn't seem to have a very good impression of him.

To find a chance to chat with her and take the opportunity to attract Mrs. Brooke's attention, he probably had to start with her best friend first.

But no matter what, since Lina's actions still had to wait a while,

then eating was the most important thing at the moment.

David Mills was a little stunned when he saw Wayne's plate full of food:

"Have you been too busy today and haven't had time to eat?"

Wayne was relatively frank in this regard and even forked up a cheese-baked prawn that had been cut in half. "This is quite delicious. You can try it too."

David Mills shook his head, still holding his wine glass and pretending to sip. "I'm still more suitable for patrolling outside the venue. I can't be as comfortable as you, nor can I enjoy the dance."

Wayne took the opportunity to inquire about the gentleman who had tried to eavesdrop earlier, looking over towards the crowd:

"What should I call that gentleman? He seems quite refined."

David Mills followed Wayne's gaze to confirm the target. "That's Simon Sherman, the eldest son of Owen Sherman. He's been here from New York City for a while, even longer than you. Well, it's the 'Sherman' that manufactures large steam warships for the navy."

A shipbuilding tycoon…

He wasn't seen at Mr. Russell's ball before, but he's seen here at Mr. Brooke's.

Does the shipbuilding industry pay more attention to the development of steel technology?

This year, America's naval ships are still wooden steamships, but America's first ironclad warship seems to be under construction. Although it still belongs to the category of wood covered with iron, it's not too far from an armored ship.

Transmigrating to this in-between era has this trouble: the tech trees that Wayne's knowledge reserves are good at climbing have basically been tapped. Perhaps allicin and penicillin are left for him.

Given America's current situation, the promotion of these two things lacks opportunities. Minor illnesses can be treated currently, and they can't cure major illnesses, so there's no rush. He should get a diploma and get into academia first.

Otherwise, not being one of the "own people" in academia, according to America's current atmosphere, maybe after a round of operations, he won't even be able to get the title of "inventor"…

Although Wayne was slacking off here,

the ball, in a sense, was still an internal competition between unmarried men and women.

After the first dance, every time they were invited to dance, Miss Olivia, Miss Russell, Ineisha, and Lina almost always had several gentlemen coming over to choose them.

The men competed to see who could successfully invite a dance partner, while the women competed to see who received the most invitations.

Ineisha continued to refuse with a smile, while Lina frantically brushed her presence, laying the groundwork for her disappearance later with excuses such as "too tired from dancing" or "twisted her ankle."

Discovering that Wayne was actually eating and drinking on the dance floor, Lina even glared at Wayne while dancing with Simon Sherman,

Gladys Russell, who was dancing with Alex Brooke next to her, noticed Lina's expression and clearly laughed, making the clueless Alex seem a little at a loss.

It wasn't until the guests began to "freely mingle" and the second dance of the second round was about to invite dance partners,

seeing that there seemed to be a small commotion on Ineisha's side, Wayne quickly went over to cooperate,

facing Miss Olivia, who was looking at him with a hidden gaze and seemed to be hesitating among the gentlemen in front of her to choose which one to be her dance partner,

Wayne still extended his hand to Miss Mary, who seemed to have just escaped from the busyness and her mother's scolding, according to the planned schedule.

Miss Mary looked at her friends who were overwhelmed with invitations around her, and then looked at Wayne in front of her,

although she still had her cheeks puffed out,

she reluctantly but also slightly triumphantly put her little hand wearing a silk glove into Wayne's palm.