Finally, the day of my birthday banquet arrived.
'It's like deja vu.'
I, today's main character, entered with Michael with such thoughts.
“Her Royal Highness Princess Evienrose Chloelle Hadelamide serves!”
“Hello, Seventh Princess!”
“We are grateful that you have braved the cold to grace us with your presence. I hope you enjoy your time here as much as you deserve.”
“Happy 18th birthday, Your Highness the 7th Princess!”
“Ah, how beautiful and intelligent you are already! It’s dazzling.”
“I bless you to continue to grow wise, intelligent, and beautiful in the future!”
I continued to laugh and mingle, even as I heard similar congratulations repeated dozens of times.
'After all, a banquet is work.'
“Even though we were going to greet each other individually while handing out mousse cakes, they still talk to me.”
“Mostly the young noblemen. I guess they’re trying to catch your eye at least once.”
“Oh, really?”
“...As expected, you are cruel to people of the opposite sex who you are not interested in.”
“Ahh!”
I had to sweat profusely. It was just a small commotion between the two of us.
“When are you going out?”
“I’ll just stay here until the second meal starts.”
“Then how about going to the pearl room and resting?”
When I brought that up, Michael laughed heartily.
“It’s an exciting situation, but it’s a shame.”
“I'm serious.”
I glanced at him briefly and then cleared the air.
“There’s another reason. This is a good place to eavesdrop on the conversations of nobles.”
“Anyway, there is work to be done even while resting.”
Soon we stopped talking. Just then, on the other side of the curtain, the nobles were sharing information on an interesting topic.
“I heard that prices of goods relative to gold have been falling nationwide recently.”
“It’s only natural. With the production of military supplies in the South on a massive scale, currency has become scarce.”
“But why does the value of gold rise while that of silver does not?”
“Oh my, is that still the case in the South?”
“Have you heard? They say that ‘Alsione’s Tears’ are wandering around the black market.”
“You mean that heavy necklace of 181 diamonds? You know, the one that was stolen from Baron Livius, and there was a big fuss about it being a hoax.”
“It must have been trafficked in pieces because the pieces that became the earrings and bracelets are now being sold at black market auctions and people recognize them.”
“The necklace is so big that even if we split it up, it would still be huge.”
It was a pleasant coincidence. We nodded and appeared outside the curtain.
“Julia, Alben.”
“Ah, Your Highness!”
Everyone greeted each other warmly.
“You’re the main character of today, but you were hiding here?”
“I have been hearing rumors spread by the nobles, Julia.”
Alben stepped in, puffing out his chest in triumph.
“Ahem, how was it?”
“I thought you handled the tasks I gave you really well.”
“Hehehe, right?”
The main characters each raised their thumbs like mirrors today.
Julia also joined in this sinister atmosphere.
“Happy birthday again. I sent you another birthday present yesterday.”
“Huh? To that extent..."
“Please don’t refuse. These are the earrings that Your Highness has been eyeing.”
"...Ah."
I noticed something and smiled.
“Thank you. I thought you would save me.”
“Of course. If it’s the top of the Ameloth Jewel, this much is basic.”
“Haha. Count Pablouse will have to work hard on mining. In the past, there were pure silver mines in every territory, but now they have all been depleted and only the one in the Pablios Territory remains.”
Julia, who had been listening to this, spoke as if she was displeased.
“The Southern nobles seem very friendly with each other. It can’t be helped, since they’re allied.”
I nodded.
“Julia.”
I stood up straight toward her, smiled affectionately, and opened my mouth.
“Trust me.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
It was nice to see the worry disappear from Julia's face. We exchanged a laugh.
“Your Highness, look over there.”
Then Alben directed his gaze to another part of the banquet hall.
“Her Majesty the Fourth Empress also came forward in person. There is no one like Her Majesty the Fourth Empress as the head of the inner palace.”
“Haha, I couldn’t participate directly in the relief effort due to personal circumstances, but I donated a large sum of money to the Lamekal Foundation!”
There was a time when nobles lined up to boast about their donations.
It might have been a heartwarming sight, but Julia's gaze was not very favorable.
“Why is it such a flattering atmosphere?”
“I guess that’s really the case?”
“Alben.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Who is the man next to Marquis Lamekal? Is he a new vassal?”
“He is Baron Ekum. He is the one who sold the magic stone at the store, and he managed to pay the fine in full and keep his position.”
“Hmm, he's good at it?”
It was said that he was an extremely evil conman who preyed on the backs of good citizens.
“Let me tell you. It is natural for trash to accumulate in the trash can.”
“Thank you. Phew, I guess being able to organize everything in one go is an advantage.”
I thought for a moment.
“This time, a large-scale imperial commission project in the financial sector is expected to occur in conjunction with the punitive expedition. If the author is by Lamekal’s side, it will be a good thing.”
“Yes. Take care not to harm innocent civilians.”
“Of course. We will never make the same mistake as we did during the great fire.”
Bowing his head deeply, Alben answered resolutely. It suddenly dawned on me that Alben had been secretly blaming himself for not being able to stop Chansley while I was away on a mission to Dandelion.
“It’s the enemy’s fault. It’s not your fault.”
“I cherish you as much as I cherish your abilities. Keep that in mind.”
“Your Highness..."
Even when I was squeezing, I never had any intention of being cruel to my fellow man.
Alben was so moved that he clutched his chest.
“Oh my! If I hadn’t met Your Highness, what would my life have been like..."
“How was it? Ah, it reminds me of the old days.”
"Yes?"
“No.”
It was embarrassing to cry in such a public place.
I smiled faintly to dispel the unnecessary awkwardness.
The ornately decorated great hall of the main palace was like a winterized version of Rosenite's birthday banquet last spring.
I, today's main character, entered with Michael with such thoughts.
“Her Royal Highness Princess Evienrose Chloelle Hadelamide serves!”
“Hello, Seventh Princess!”
A two-story platform with a spiral staircase leading up to it. From there, the nobles of the banquet hall bowed in unison to me. I returned the formal greeting.
Descending to the ground floor, I began my customary circle of the ballroom. With each step, nobles gathered to catch up with me.
“Ah, how beautiful and intelligent you are already! It’s dazzling.”
“I bless you to continue to grow wise, intelligent, and beautiful in the future!”
I continued to laugh and mingle, even as I heard similar congratulations repeated dozens of times.
'After all, a banquet is work.'
After about an hour of this, I retreated to the curtained balcony, where I and Michael were alone and I poured myself a drink and poured out my feelings.
“Mostly the young noblemen. I guess they’re trying to catch your eye at least once.”
“Oh, really?”
“...As expected, you are cruel to people of the opposite sex who you are not interested in.”
“Ahh!”
Michael's eyes took on a wistful glow as if a memory from his past life had come back to him. I fidgeted, trying to soothe him.
“When are you going out?”
“I’ll just stay here until the second meal starts.”
“Then how about going to the pearl room and resting?”
“Oh no. I'm sure they've put a bunch of incense in front of the clam chamber, not like on Rosie's birthday. Homunculus is weak to potions.”
Michael, a pretty man, looked up with wet eyes, and if he hung on, I, the hostess of the banquet, would be missing until dawn tomorrow.
“It’s an exciting situation, but it’s a shame.”
“I'm serious.”
I glanced at him briefly and then cleared the air.
“There’s another reason. This is a good place to eavesdrop on the conversations of nobles.”
“Anyway, there is work to be done even while resting.”
Soon we stopped talking. Just then, on the other side of the curtain, the nobles were sharing information on an interesting topic.
“I heard that prices of goods relative to gold have been falling nationwide recently.”
“It’s only natural. With the production of military supplies in the South on a massive scale, currency has become scarce.”
“But why does the value of gold rise while that of silver does not?”
“Don't you know, that treaty, when gold coins first came into existence, that made us buy all our major metallic resources in gold coins to establish it as a currency. Why else would they call the gold coins minted in the South Mithril gold coins?”
As they passed, another group came to the table and began to chat. After the domestic economy, the next topic was the gossip of the capital.
“You mean that heavy necklace of 181 diamonds? You know, the one that was stolen from Baron Livius, and there was a big fuss about it being a hoax.”
“It must have been trafficked in pieces because the pieces that became the earrings and bracelets are now being sold at black market auctions and people recognize them.”
“The necklace is so big that even if we split it up, it would still be huge.”
They passed the time chatting. We continued to listen. A familiar voice called out.
“I found you, Lord Redmon! You're easy to spot with your red hair.”
“Isn't that the same for the Marquis of Ameloth? And I am Baron Linus, not Lord Redmon. Please be careful with the titles.”
“Julia, Alben.”
“Ah, Your Highness!”
Everyone greeted each other warmly.
“You’re the main character of today, but you were hiding here?”
“I have been hearing rumors spread by the nobles, Julia.”
Alben stepped in, puffing out his chest in triumph.
“Ahem, how was it?”
“I thought you handled the tasks I gave you really well.”
“Hehehe, right?”
The main characters each raised their thumbs like mirrors today.
Julia also joined in this sinister atmosphere.
“Happy birthday again. I sent you another birthday present yesterday.”
“Huh? To that extent..."
“Please don’t refuse. These are the earrings that Your Highness has been eyeing.”
"...Ah."
I noticed something and smiled.
“Thank you. I thought you would save me.”
“Of course. If it’s the top of the Ameloth Jewel, this much is basic.”
The four of them talked in low voices about the situation in the ballroom. Julia spotted Brigitte and made eye contact.
“The Third Princess is with her fiancé, Lord Antonio Belteor, and Marquis Belteor is... over there among the southern nobility.”
The Marquis of Belteor was talking loudly in the center of the ballroom. It was more a show of strength among the Southern nobility than a socializing exercise to gain entry into central politics. As if on cue, they were discussing the munitions business.
“The Great Demon Dragon War will feature a variety of artifacts that improve siege weapons. A barrage of enchanted ballistas will leave even a Lord-class Demon Dragon helpless.”
“And of course, pure silver, because of all the three metals, nothing is more magical than pure silver.”
“So we're working on a technology to achieve the same performance with black gold. It's harder to fine-tune, so it's less common in mass-market weapons, but if alchemically modified, it could outperform pure silver.”
“The Southern nobles seem very friendly with each other. It can’t be helped, since they’re allied.”
I nodded.
“Yes, they have a joint resource bank to exchange and manage resources efficiently, so they have strong ties.”
“They're trying to get into the central government as a group, are it going to be okay?”
There was concern in Julia's voice and in her eyes. At best, we'd defeated Chansley and now she was worried that Brigitte might try to use Belteor's Confederacy to gain power.
I stood up straight toward her, smiled affectionately, and opened my mouth.
“Trust me.”
Julia stared at me for a moment, mesmerized, and then her eyes lit up.
It was nice to see the worry disappear from Julia's face. We exchanged a laugh.
“Your Highness, look over there.”
Then Alben directed his gaze to another part of the banquet hall.
This time, it was Brigitte's only relative, the Marquis of Lamekal, who came into view, surrounded by his sister, the Fourth Empress, Lemieux, and the central nobility.
“I hear that Marquis Lamekal has taken the lead in donations and relief efforts for the 13th District, which has been hit hard by the recent uprising. Truly, he is a paragon of nobility.”
“Haha, I couldn’t participate directly in the relief effort due to personal circumstances, but I donated a large sum of money to the Lamekal Foundation!”
“Me too. Even if it's just money, it's heart and soul!”
It might have been a heartwarming sight, but Julia's gaze was not very favorable.
“Why is it such a flattering atmosphere?”
“I guess that’s really the case?”
Then someone caught my eye. It was an elderly man, hobbling beside the Marquis of Lamekal. I smiled and lowered my voice.
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Who is the man next to Marquis Lamekal? Is he a new vassal?”
“He is Baron Ekum. He is the one who sold the magic stone at the store, and he managed to pay the fine in full and keep his position.”
“Hmm, he's good at it?”
After hanging out with Chansley and then switching to a rimfire knife, it was clear that his handiwork wasn't clean. Or maybe not, Alben whispered in my ear.
“I hear he's doing some big business in the East. There are suspicions that he's been extorting money entrusted to him by his subjects in the name of management fees to pay for canteen tickets and fines.”
“Ha, what's going on over there, they're like, “Ha, you shouldn't say that, I'm the Princess. Ha.”
“Thank you. Phew, I guess being able to organize everything in one go is an advantage.”
I thought for a moment.
“This time, a large-scale imperial commission project in the financial sector is expected to occur in conjunction with the punitive expedition. If the author is by Lamekal’s side, it will be a good thing.”
“Baron Lafleur specializes in this sort of thing. Shall we have him investigate?”
“Of course. We will never make the same mistake as we did during the great fire.”
Bowing his head deeply, Alben answered resolutely. It suddenly dawned on me that Alben had been secretly blaming himself for not being able to stop Chansley while I was away on a mission to Dandelion.
He looked so much like his old self that I couldn't help but speak up.
“I cherish you as much as I cherish your abilities. Keep that in mind.”
“Your Highness..."
Even when I was squeezing, I never had any intention of being cruel to my fellow man.
Alben was so moved that he clutched his chest.
“Oh my! If I hadn’t met Your Highness, what would my life have been like..."
“How was it? Ah, it reminds me of the old days.”
"Yes?"
“No.”
It was embarrassing to cry in such a public place.
I smiled faintly to dispel the unnecessary awkwardness.
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment