Hee-haw!
The horse snorted vigorously.
The Kardenos Grand Duke family was the sword of the imperial family and a grand ducal house that dominated the West.
I had expected them to send a fairly special carriage even by the capital's standards.
A Spirit Carriage with pale blue wind circling between its spokes.
Contracts with spirits were not humanity's exclusive domain.
Even beasts could contract with spirits, and this carriage was proof of that.
This Spirit Carriage was pulled by a horse contracted with a low-ranking wind spirit.
"It is two or three times faster than an ordinary messenger horse. It will run even rough mountain paths like flat ground, so three days will be enough to reach the Imperial Capital."
At the coachman's respectful report, I nodded and climbed into the carriage.
Celine followed right after me with a thoroughly excited expression.
"A messenger horse and a spirit horse. They look like they're only a hair apart, but they're not?"
Celine stared at me, waiting for my reaction, but I pretended not to hear. I had no tolerance for it.
Swoosh
The carriage departed as if gliding. Perhaps thanks to the spirit's blessing, the ride was quite comfortable.
"Nom nom-"
Celine happily devoured the snacks stocked in the carriage.
I glanced at her, cheeks puffed out like a hamster's, then leaned lazily against the backrest.
The most important thing at the Founding Day Festival was networking. I had to shore up the reputation I had built and throw off the frame-up of assaulting a Young Lady.
Lucia was a secondary factor.
Meeting her was already a foregone conclusion. If we met, what stance should I take?
If I won Lucia over, it would be like gaining a thousand soldiers. So should I just seduce her?
She wanted that too, didn't she?
Easier said than done. I was hopeless at wooing women.
In my past life, I had devoted myself only to training, training, and more training, so I had mostly kept company with men.
'Even if I could seduce her, the backlash would be too great.'
Building a good relationship with Lucia would help in many ways, but....
At the Founding Day Festival, the Empire's big names were gathered in one place.
While they were actively making advances, I would try to seduce Lucia too?
That was the path to becoming the rival of the Grand Merchant Guild Master, the Northern Grand Duke's second son, the Deputy Tower Master, and the Crown Prince.
Of course, if I wanted to seduce her, now was the only time. At this point, Lucia would be burdened by their feelings, not receptive to them.
'The problem is she'd probably hate my guts.'
Azelin-that woman-was the obstacle.
Weren't the two of them close friends?
Given Azelin's sly nature, she had surely already badmouthed me to Lucia. She would have twisted her own faults cunningly, mixed in lies, and painted me as an assailant.
From the first meeting, a tiring war of nerves was already guaranteed.
"Hah."
Just picturing the troublesome farce in advance made my temples throb.
This was why I craved something sweet.
I quietly reached a hand to the side.
"Celine. Just one macaron for me too."
"Eek-"
Celine's jaw, which had been working busily, stopped dead.
Celine looked down at her lap in dismay. An empty three-tier tray and cookie crumbs.
This girl-she'd already eaten all of it.
"Uh, um, ah, er, that...."
Celine stammered and hemmed and hawed. Her eyes rolled nonstop, and she broke into a cold sweat.
"You're at the age to crave sweets. It's good to see you eating well."
Unlike my words, my hands showed no mercy.
I grabbed her plump, soft cheeks and pulled them wide to both sides.
"Eeeeeek- that hurts, I'm sorry...."
Celine struggled, but I didn't let go until the end.
The springy, stretching feel of her cheeks was superb. She was like a chewy rice cake.
***
The Founding Day Festival.
It was the center of high society, where all the Empire's interests and the nobility's vanity lurked.
"I wonder if that boy will do well."
Valdemar, who had been skimming documents in his office, muttered to himself.
He had almost no worries about Celine, who had accompanied her brother.
She was a mature and well-behaved young lady, unlike others her age.
The problem was Astin, the legitimate child.
It was true that he had changed 180 degrees lately.
From the way he held a sword to the look in his eyes when dealing with subordinates, everything had changed from the root.
Even after washing my eyes out, I couldn’t find a trace of that good-for-nothing scoundrel.
But that did not mean the boy had become docile.
Astin walked the right path, but he walked it with heavy stomps.
No matter how right one's words are, if they are loud and rough, the world takes them as violent.
The affair with the Rosenthal family a few days ago was proof enough.
He hadn't said a single wrong thing, but because of his unrestrained words and actions, the matter had blown up. How much cold sweat had Valdemar himself shed cleaning it up?
Could Astin carry out his schedule there safely? The worry came first.
Creak- bang!
Suddenly, without a knock, the office door was thrown open roughly.
What bastard would open it without knocking-
Valdemar's mouth, about to snap, closed.
A shabby man stood at the door with his weight on one leg. It was his old teacher,
Hendrickson.
"It's shabbier than I thought. Hardly a fitting place for someone of precious status to stay."
For a few seconds, Valdemar's gaze rested on him.
Hendrickson paid no mind and strode in. He plopped down on the finest leather sofa.
"What brings you here, Master?"
"What do you mean, what brings me? I'm just walking where I want. Why, does that irk you?"
Hendrickson snapped bluntly.
Valdemar couldn't bring himself to reply and shut his mouth.
Between the old teacher and the grown disciple, an awkward and heavy silence filled the office.
How much time passed?
Hendrickson, who had been leaning crookedly, tossed out a word.
"A Black Lion came out from under a wildcat."
He was talking about Astin.
It was out of the blue, but Valdemar could not help agreeing inwardly.
Anyone would acknowledge the growth he had shown in such a short time.
No, they would not believe it even after seeing it. Even his father Valdemar had been like that.
"The bastard is the same."
"...You mean Celine?"
"Yes. Her talent is comparable to the legitimate child's. I thought even a rotten Kardenos would still be a Kardenos, but she hasn't rotted at all-she's ripened well."
"......."
"You raised your children incredibly well. I came just to tell you that, you foolish brat."
Hendrickson brushed off his knees, stood, and walked toward the door.
"Master."
Hendrickson's steps came to a sudden halt.
"Good liquor just arrived from the North. If you're willing, would you share a drink with me?"
"Do I look that free in your eyes?"
"Yes."
"I suppose I am free."
Smack- Hendrickson clicked his tongue.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm staying with you because the liquor is good, not because I like you."
"Are you really sending me off with nothing but a bottle of liquor?"
"Look at how this insolent brat talks. I can see exactly who he learned it from."
***
The grand banquet hall of the Imperial Palace, where the Founding Day Festival was being held.
It was packed tight with hundreds, thousands of nobles.
While the lavish chandeliers scattered brilliant colors of light, the many Young Ladies moved busily, each harboring her own ambitions.
The Founding Day Festival could be called an unprecedented, large-scale social gathering.
Behind the cheeky laughter lurked a sharp tension.
The young ladies flocked to the great nobles, all counts or higher, whose names were known throughout the empire. The crowds were especially thick around the four men, leaving barely enough room to stand.
"That tailcoat suits you so well. It's the new fabric you imported yourself, correct? My eyes are feasting. Hoho!"
"Merchant Guild Master! I heard you newly pioneered a trade route in the South this time. Please do visit our family's estate as well."
"Is this the clothing business line you recently started? As it happens, Roxfelt also has something to discuss with the Merchant Guild Master regarding clothing distribution, so would you spare a moment to talk?"
The young, handsome man of the Partrian Merchant Guild who controlled the Empire's eastern economy.
Around him, dressed-up young ladies cast blatant advances.
"Ahaha. Thanks for the compliments. But I don't talk unless it's about money."
But the response he got was lukewarm.
Meanwhile, the other side was no different.
"Deputy Tower Master! The theory you presented at the academic conference last time was so wondrous. When could you give me private instruction?"
"Fufu, I'm a girl interested in Magic too. I'd like to discuss the Deputy Tower Master's insights."
"I saw the Magic craftwork you made yourself. It's so pretty, isn't it? How wonderful would it be to receive a gift like that from the Deputy Tower Master...."
The genius mage who practically led the Sirius Magic Tower.
Young Ladies crowded around him too, appealing to their intellectual charm and trying to catch his eye.
"What would these flower-brained young ladies know? You lot won't get it even if I tell you."
Despite his rough words, the Young Ladies covered their mouths with fans and giggled, saying, 'As expected, he's so mischievous! Hohoho!'
"Young Master Raven's heroic tales have spread widely even here in the Imperial Capital. Seeing the hero of those rumors in person feels like a dream!"
"After seeing only slender men all my life, seeing you, Young Master... my heart pounds. Can you hear it? The sound of my heartbeat."
"You cut down a pack of magical beasts single-handedly-that's truly amazing!"
The second son of the Northern Winterhart Grand Duke House, the Giant of the Eternal Snow.
The Young Ladies, bewitched by his huge frame and beastly charm, made him their target.
"Mm...."
He himself only let out a hum without a word.
Even that came across to the Young Ladies as silent charm.
"Your Highness Zenon! So noble...!"
"I behold the Empire's next sun."
"Your Highness Zenon. Would you grant me the honor of the first dance? If I could just match steps with Your Highness, I wouldn't mind if tonight never ended."
Ordinary Young Ladies could not approach the Crown Prince.
Only the great nobles of the center waged fierce battles of pride while pouring affection on the Crown Prince.
Like this, the Young Ladies' steps were concentrated only on the four men.
Since they didn't even glance at other young lords, it became quite an awkward situation.
Coincidentally, all four men put up stubborn walls against the Young Ladies. Without even a perfunctory smile, they openly took the stance of 'I don't even want to speak with you lot!'
"......It's Young Lady Lucia!!"
Someone's shout rang out. At once, the four men's gazes moved.
A colorful, lovely dress as if embroidered with the Milky Way. A captivating beauty that stole the eyes of men and women, young and old alike.
The flower of the Imperial Academy and the star of high society. Lucia von Elzerna.
With her entrance, the air in the hall changed in an instant.
The four men, who had stood like nailed posts, hurriedly moved their feet. The four men who had ignored the courtship of countless Young Ladies.
"Young Lady Lucia. You are truly beautiful today as well!"
"I have been waiting. My noble star."
"Lucia, I have something to say to you alone...."
"Lady Sia. Won't you come over here and pop champagne with us?"
The four men quickly surrounded Lucia. Forgetting even their dignity, they began fervent courtship.
Jealous gazes from the surrounding Young Ladies poured out, but Lucia, the subject of it all, swallowed a deep sigh.
'This is so burdensome I could die....'
Beyond burdensome, irritation surged up.
The courtship of many men? It was definitely something she should be happy about.
Being loved by even one person was not easy. She was clearly enjoying a greater blessing than others.
But it was excessive. Too excessive.
If they were nobles who had risen to some degree, perhaps. But weren't these four all big names anyone would look up to just hearing their names?
Lucia, by contrast, was the daughter of a fallen baronial family in the remote provinces.
If by any chance she became engaged to one of them, it might not be a marriage between high and low, but it was true that the gap in status was extreme.
"Thank you all for welcoming me."
Lucia returned a bow without losing her elegant smile. Inside, she felt so stifled it was hard to breathe.
"I am grateful for the hospitality, but I still haven't recovered from my travel fatigue. Could we save dancing or long conversations for later?"
"Of course it's possible. Why wouldn't it be?"
"Travel fatigue! Please take this medicine. I brought it just in case."
"What a shame. Still, if you're not feeling well...."
"Don't fall ill, Lady Sia. If you are sick, my heart aches too."
Ugh, goosebumps.
"Thank you, everyone."
Lucia drew a moderate line and slipped away naturally.
Even after that, the men did not give up easily.
They either followed her in a strange spacing or stared intently, looking for a chance to speak.
For Lucia, it was maddening to keep being conscious of them. Please, can't you just leave me alone?
That was when.
"Isn't that man the eldest son of Kardenos?"
"Yes, Young Master Astin."
"He's got some nerve. He put his hand on a delicate Young Lady's face, and yet...."
Lucia's glare shot sharply toward the entrance.
A blond young lord was walking proudly through the banquet hall entrance.
A handsome face with thick, strong lines, and eyes that looked wild at the same time. On his neat uniform was the Black Lion emblem, the symbol of Kardenos.
The violent scoundrel who had left her closest friend Azelin in that state. It was Astin von Kardenos.
'So it's that bastard.'
The one who dared to touch my friend.
It was Lucia's first time seeing him, but at a glance she could tell what kind of man he was. A scoundrel, nothing more and nothing less.
Lucia walked straight toward him with quick steps.
She hadn't even thought about what she would snap at him. Right now, emotion came before reason.
She simply wanted him to take responsibility for what he had done.
The moment Lucia blocked Astin's path.
Halt
Astin stopped walking as well. Perhaps because he had guts, there was no sign of fluster.
The star of high society and the scoundrel of Kardenos were facing each other alone.
With the two at the center, murmurs spread from all sides.
Lucia was a schoolmate of Rosenthal's precious daughter, and Astin had brutally assaulted that schoolmate.
It was a war of nerves that any noble who knew the circumstances could not help but watch.
Meanwhile, the four men watched Astin closely with hawk-like eyes.
Four pairs of eyes filled with hostility and murderous intent, without a speck of interest. They even put strength into their toes, ready to cut in if provoked.
"You...."
Under everyone's attention, Lucia spoke first.
"......."
Her lips closed foolishly in the middle of speaking.
The murmuring only grew louder.
Those who did not know the situation made pointless noise.
Those who knew the relationship between Lucia and Azelin waited for Lucia's mouth to open.
The four men, keeping their distance, watched the two with murderous eyes.
Lucia's mouth opened and closed repeatedly. For some reason, a shadow fell over her face.
After a moment, Lucia placed her clenched fist over her chest.
"Have we... met somewhere before?"