The Imperial Palace Banquet Hall.
I remember there was a saying like that.
When a two-eyed person goes to a village of one-eyed people.
They say that guy is abnormal.
And, I.
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[Compatibility][3.5/40]
[Explosive energy accumulates in the body, possible long-term permanent damage]
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[Compatibility][9/60]
[Slowly draining the wearer's mana. Prolonged wear causes weakness.]
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[Compatibility][2/40]
[Uncontrolled magical power is eroding the wearer's mind.]
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[Compatibility][4/40]
[Multiple magical interference occurring. Eating away at the wearer's lifespan.]
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"Damn it...."
Of all things, there were ten eyes.
"...This can't be happening."
***
I am 13 years old.
I applied wax, applied oil, put on uncomfortable clothes, and got into the carriage.
I'm scheduled to be transported to the Imperial Palace in this state, unable to move.
"...."
Just give me stockings instead of this, give me Enchant Powder!!
I want to do some Enchanting. My hands are itching.
I asked Dolores if I could get additional powder, but.
Unexpectedly, with a slightly troubled look, she explained step by step.
Because this powder itself is a product that has no reason to be used unless by the Dwarf Company.
Since the demand is so limited....
She said that most of the supply chain, from production to distribution, is held by the Dwarf Company.
So she said she would first try to scrape together as much as possible from what's on the market.
It's not hard to obtain, but it feels like you can't get it in large quantities like ore?
And decisively.
'If you purchase in bulk, there's a risk of being tracked.'
There's no choice but to raise questions about why you'd buy this.
Because by common sense, it's just useless powder.
"...Then we can just buy the raw materials instead of the powder."
Can't we just buy the raw materials and hand-make the powder ourselves?
"What's the raw material for the powder?"
[The basic raw material for Enchant Powder is Mana Stone.]
[I hear the Dwarves mix it in 'appropriate' ratios to make the powder]
[I don't think anyone's curious, since even if you have the powder, you can't Enchant]
"Is there a recipe? In the Sun Dwarf documents."
[Wait a moment]
[Huh? There is one?]
['Enchant Powder' Mixing Methods Compilation]
[But this is said to be a writing for the Descendant of Fire]
I didn't expect anything at all, but Yuna brought me information.
Enchant Powder?
It probably means that powder.
It's a writing for the Descendant of Fire, but why haven't I seen this until now?
[Because I didn't search for Enchant Powder...?]
Right, you need to know the name to search for it.
Let's say that's that.
"What, if that's the case...."
It seems like it might be easier to solve than I thought.
I opened the document and checked the contents.
However, at the beginning of the document, there was something completely unexpected written.
[The representative Descendant of Fire of the era oversees and coordinates the quality and supply of Enchant Powder.]
What?
[The Descendant of Fire and the Enchanter have a mutually complementary yet mutually checking relationship.]
[If equipment is destroyed by the Enchanter's Enchant, the demand for Blacksmiths increases accordingly...]
[If too high-quality Enchant Powder is made and highly enhanced equipment becomes common, conversely the demand for equipment itself decreases.]
[The Descendant of Fire must appropriately adjust the quantity and quality of this Enchant Powder]
It was a fact I had no idea about.
Enchant Powder, I thought it was a reward from some dungeon.
But it wasn't.
Originally, it was a manufactured product produced by adjusting the quantity.
Even adjusting the quantity and quality is done by the Descendant of Fire.
Hey.
Then who is the Descendant of Fire of this era?
"It's me."
Then, as the representative Descendant of Fire of this era, I shall solemnly declare.
"Supply 100 percent of the quantity to Lionel."
It was then that I established a perfect and strict new supply rule.
"Did you wait long?"
Dolores and Ruby, beautifully dressed, got into the carriage.
I unconsciously opened my eyes slightly wide.
Dolores, well, she always dressed up prettily, but seeing her dressed so formally was dazzling.
I could definitely tell with Ruby too.
'A sure beauty.'
She'll probably become prettier later. She'll probably be popular.
She sat next to me and kept glancing at me.
"You're a bit cute today?"
I said it nonchalantly.
"...W-what. Suddenly...!"
Ruby turned her head sharply with a bright red face.
What else, it's a compliment.
She said it's a little further than Henrik's forge that we visited last time.
I think I can just zone out and pass out for a bit.
It's really terrible, carriage sickness.
This world seems to lack the concept of suspension.
Well, looking for suspension in a carriage is funny anyway.
While I was struggling like that, Dolores calmly explained about the Imperial Family.
The structure of the Imperial Family and its members, things like that.
Ruby seemed to know, but I had no idea.
"In the Imperial Family, below His Majesty, there is the Crown Prince. And there is the Prince, and also the twin Prince and Princess."
Four children in total.
Today is the twins' birthday.
Since I've never encountered the concept of an emperor outside of fantasy novels, there is a part of me that's a bit excited.
Around the time I had been struggling in the carriage for about an hour.
"...Lionel, you're getting motion sickness."
Dolores looked at me with a pitying expression.
"...Come here, rest your head on my lap."
"No, I'm fine...."
"I'm not fine."
Unable to refuse, I quietly laid my head on Dolores's lap.
Rustle.
Ruby seems more mature than me.
Please stay mature in the future too, so I can rest my head on your lap.
Just as I closed my eyes to lie down for about five minutes.
"...Huh?"
When I came to and opened my eyes, the carriage had already passed through the Imperial Palace.
It's nothing else, Dolores's thighs are magic, seriously.
My motion sickness had completely disappeared.
"I didn't know I'd sleep this long...."
I hurriedly sat up and apologized to Dolores.
Her thighs must have been numb.
"I'm sorry... Your legs must be numb."
"Haha... I was happy, it reminded me of Ruby from the old days."
She stroked my head and smiled gently.
At the same time as witnessing Dolores's ocean-like generosity.
Thud.
The carriage stopped.
As soon as the door opened.
The people who appeared to be attendants in front of the Imperial Palace, who had been waiting, all bowed at once.
"We greet Duchess Dolores."
Ooh.
The treatment is certainly different.
Dolores got off gracefully first, and then Ruby and I got off holding hands.
When we got off the carriage, the sun had already set slightly.
With the sunset behind it, a huge Banquet Hall came into view.
It seemed the banquet hadn't started yet.
[...But it's a bit strange]
What is.
[Originally, great nobles like a Duke wait until all other guests arrive and deliberately appear late]
[Because the later you appear, the higher your status]
Contrary to Yuna's explanation, carriages were still coming in one after another behind Dolores.
That means she's far from last.
The real ones don't show off, it's the empty cart that makes the most noise, right?
I subtly looked up at her as she walked ahead.
Her figure bathed in the sunset light looked even more splendid today.
Ruby and I each held one of Dolores's hands and climbed the stairs.
Click, clack.
As the three of us appeared beyond the wide-open doors of the Banquet Hall.
"Her Grace Duchess Dolores, entering!"
The gatekeeper's voice echoed through the hall.
Many nobles had already arrived in the hall.
In that moment, countless gazes that had been chatting....
All turned toward us at once.
More precisely, it seemed they were focused on me.
Ruby, well, her face seemed to be known.
But facing those gathered gazes, I felt something strange.
Something is strange.
The attire of the people in the Banquet Hall gave a sense of incongruity....
Every single one of them is flashy.
Shining jewels, armor, no matter how you look at it, it was far from banquet attire.
It felt like truly fantasy-like attire.
Completely different from Dolores, who wore stockings, gloves, and just a pretty dress.
But she's a Duke, what is this?
Swoosh.
Then, from up ahead.
A middle-aged man with a considerably large belly approached us with an arrogant stride.
"...Who do we have here, if it isn't Her Grace Duchess Dolores."
With a bunch of medals dangling noisily on his chest.
His flesh and clothes were bulging out between his armor, can this person even breathe properly?
And in the center of that.
A necklace he wore caught my eye.
-----------------------------
[Necklace of Brilliant Ducal Feathers][★☆☆☆☆]
[Compatibility][1/40]
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[An ornament wrapped in vanity. It is of no help in any way]
[A pearl necklace on a pig's neck]
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[Those who are eager to decorate the outside do not realize that their inside is empty.]
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What caught my eye was.
A necklace with a Compatibility of 1.
What is this annoyingly unfitting necklace?
I'm not joking, my eyes are rotting because of the Compatibility.
It looks really expensive on the outside.
"It is an honor to meet Your Grace."
"...Count Valmon."
Dolores answered briefly.
She doesn't look very pleased, I know because I'm in the middle of Dolores's undergraduate course.
She looks calm, but her eyes and mouth corners are subtly lowered.
She is quite displeased right now.
Dolores's enemy is my enemy.
I stared intently up at him.
The greeting ended more blandly than expected.
[It seems like an act to solidify his position by greeting the highest person in the Banquet Hall, excluding the Emperor, first]
This was the judgment of Yuna, the psychological analyst.
He must have been quite impatient.
We followed Dolores deep into the hall.
The seat she was guided to was, as expected, right below the head table.
In other words, right in front of the Imperial family, the protagonists of today.
That means it's one of the highest-ranking seats in this vast hall.
Just as we took our seats.
Swoosh.
Swoosh.
Nobles came endlessly to greet Dolores as if lining up.
"We greet the Duchess."
"It's been a long time, Your Grace."
Each time, Ruby and I bowed our heads like greeting robots.
"Hello, yes hello. Hello...."
At this point, I think I understood why Dolores brought me to this place.
Maybe she's trying to imprint on everyone whose protection I'm under.
"...."
However, there was one thing I couldn't understand, absolutely couldn't understand.
Other than Dolores.
Yes.
That's all fine.
But why, of all things, are people who are supposedly great nobles.
'All of them have crappy equipment?'
Swoosh.
A Marquis who came to greet.
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[Compatibility][5/40]
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Swoosh.
A Viscount followed.
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[Compatibility][6.9/60]
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Did they all conspire together or something?
They all have one or two Stars because they're nobles, but their Compatibility is crap.
I don't know if it's an occupational disease, but seeing trash-like Compatibility makes me nauseous.
A born Blacksmith.
Suffering from the double whammy of a flood of greetings and eye-rotting Compatibility.
Eventually, a short break came.
Taking advantage of the lull in the crowd.
I subtly asked Dolores, who was sitting next to me.
"...Um, Lady Dolores."
"Yes? Lionel, are you very tired?"
"No, it's not that...."
I gestured to the entire Banquet Hall.
"...Why is everyone here wearing so much equipment?"
Why they bother wrapping themselves in such heavy magic equipment when they could just wear a dress or suit comfortably.
If they're going to wear something, they should at least wear it properly.
At my question, Dolores looked down at me for a moment, then smiled faintly.
"Lionel, you're curious about that?"
"Yes."
Honestly, I'm not that interested in other things.
Originally I only thought about Enchant Powder, but seeing their state made me quite bewildered.
"It's a kind of culture."
"Culture?"
"Yes."
Dolores slowly looked around the hall.
"At some point in this world, how high you climb the Tower became the standard for measuring a family's status.
"Ah...."
"If you climb high, you need equipment that strong, and good equipment symbolizes the family's wealth and capability."
Dolores's voice lowered a little.
"It's a kind of show. That our family has this many climbers and this much wealth."
"I see."
That makes perfect sense.
Basically it's showing off, but it's also a symbol they can't give up.
In that sense, isn't Dolores really cool?
A High Ranker, no need to bother wearing equipment.
She stopped climbing, but that nickname still remains.
Isn't that true class?
While I was secretly lost in admiration for Mama.
Boom, boom, boom.
It was right then.
Drumbeats echoed from the other side of the hall.
Murmur, murmur.
The nobles who were chatting all closed their mouths at once.
And as if by agreement.
Swoosh.
They all turned toward the head table inside the hall.
By the flow, this is....
"Lionel, Ruby, it's starting."
Dolores whispered softly.
"It's time for His Majesty to enter."
Swoosh.
Soon, the large door beyond the head table slowly opened.
And.
"His Imperial Majesty enters!"
With the gatekeeper's booming voice, a man appeared through the door.
A majestic gait.
He wore a golden crown on his head, and a considerable dignity flowed from his body.
I never thought I'd see an emperor with my own eyes.
Following the Emperor, a beautiful woman stood beside him.
She seems to be the Empress.
[By the way, big brother, that person is his third wife.]
...Third?
Flinch.
Yuna, the god of gossip, delivered the information to me.
I unconsciously looked at the Emperor again.
So this is what the top is like. Three wives, wow.
While I was admiring in such a useless way.
Following the Emperor and Empress, two people walked side by side into the hall last.
Those two must be today's protagonists... the twin Prince and Princess.
I shifted my gaze to the two.
'...Hmm.'
Honestly, it was a bit unexpected.
Both of them looked a bit weak somehow.
Their faces were pale, and they looked somewhat precarious.
Especially the Prince looked a few years older than me, but his complexion was quite pale.
Is he sick?
Just as I tilted my head.
Swoosh.
The necklace around the Prince's neck caught my eye.
-----------------------------
[Necklace of Moonlight Essence][★★★★☆]
[Unique Equipment][Compatibility][0/80]
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[The Moon Goddess will caress you with a benevolent hand.
May that blessing last forever....]
── In the name of Celia, the Moon Goddess ──
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[Restores the wearer by the amount of Moonlight Essence.]
[When the Essence runs out, it instead drains the wearer's vitality until the Essence is full.]
[There is no limit to the draining of vitality.]
-----------------------------
At first glance, it looks like quite good equipment.
However, the last line was the key.
No limit to the draining of vitality?
W-what does that mean, then doesn't he die?
"...Fuck?"
I unconsciously cursed in a low, small voice.
It seemed no one heard.
Tap.
"Bad words."
Only Dolores heard my voice.
She gently touched my lips and admonished me.