Chapter 78 : The Invitations I Didn’t Wish For (part 1)
Today is the day of the Moon Viewing Party.
The guests kept coming one after another into the large hall connected to a large balcony on the top floor of the castle.
The relaxed sound of stringed musical instruments could be heard in the space where you can see the moon clearly.
The king was sitting on the most luxurious chair in the room which was placed on a high platform.
Marian-chan and Prince Ellion were sitting on the left and right of the king.
「Everyone, thank you for coming today.」(Gran)
When the king stood up and greeted the people, everyone’s eyes were on him.
King Gran was supposed to be in his forties, but he looked much older for his age because his cheeks were sunken and his face looked pale.
The king’s bad physical condition intensified the fight over who will be the heir to the throne, and that ugly fight made the king’s physical condition even worse.
It was like he was trapped in a vicious cycle where his physical condition would only get worse and worse.
Looks like being the most powerful person in the kingdom is really tough…
「As we all know, the Gran royal family’s mission is to recreate the barrier that protects the Human Land every thirty years. I was the one who executed that mission thirty years ago, and my daughter, Marian, has done the same thing several days ago! Today we celebrate her success in carrying out the mission! I want you all to enjoy the party today!」(Gran)
After the king said that, Marian-chan stood up and bowed elegantly once.
The red dress looks really great on her, and because she seems to hide her violent attitude today, she looks even more beautiful.
There was a group of people who applauded loudly all at once as Marian-chan bowed.
They must be the aristocrats from the princess faction.
This was a great opportunity for them to take advantage of this celebration mood to pressure the king to choose the princess as his successor.
The aristocrats from the prince faction on the other side of the venue could only make bitter looks while their opponents were applauding.
Prince Elion also made a bitter look and glanced at his sister with cold eyes.
I heard that they are twins but I never thought their faces would be this similar to each other.
Prince Elion looked like the short-haired Marian-chan who dressed as a man.
He looks very cuー No… handsome?
Anyway, when the dance starts, I feel like many women would ask him to dance with them.
Me? No… There’s no way I’ll dance with him.
He’s a man with a bad personality, moreover…
His guardian is the worst man in this kingdom…
Bazel Sortlarc, the chairman of the Adventurer Academy, was now standing behind Prince Elion.
Marian-chan said that the charimain most likely would become the prime minister if Prince Elion became the king.
In other words, he would have the right to implement policy.
That man would definitely implement the policies that might worsen people’s prejudice against blunt instruments without hesitation.
I have to stop him no matter what!
Now that the king has officially started the party, people began to talk with each other and the room became noisy with chatters.
Mira-san and I were sitting in a corner of the room, the place for ‘not so important’ people to take a seat.
Well, I don’t mind sitting here. The place to sit doesn’t matter for me.
But even though we’re sitting in a place like this, the girl beside me really stands out.
The people around us were looking at Mira-san.
….I knew Mira-san would look good in a dress, but… man, she exceeded my expectations.
She looked really beautiful.
The emerald green dress that Marian-chan lent her fit her image perfectly.
It was a luxurious dress that was made of high quality fabric.
I stared at Mira-san while grinning with a slightly perverted face, fascinated by her beauty.
Mira-san stared at me too, but with a beautiful smile on her face, unlike me.
「Hanna, you look so cute in a dress.」(Mira)
「I, Is that so…?」(Hanna)
By the way, the dress I got from Marian-chan is black.
I don’t think it looks good on me, though.
「Why did she choose a black dress for me? I think yellow or orange would suit me better.」(Hanna)
「Maybe she thought yellow or orange would make you look too childish?」(Mira)
「Ah, I see. Surely if I wore a bright-colored dress, I would look like a child who went to a recital rather than an adult woman who went to a ball….」
Un, un. I’m convinced now.
But, a black dress, huh?
If I cross my legs and hold a glass filled with red-colored drink while smirking, I might look like a villainess.
Of course the drink was non-alcoholic.
What I like about this dress is although it’s frilly, I can still move around in it.
I’m going to dance and do my ‘job’, so this is perfect.
Marian-chan has a guess that the people from the prince faction will do something bad during the Moon Viewing Party.
My role is to stop them and destroy their plan.
It would be really bad if I accidentally stepped on the hem of my dress and tripped during a fight, right?
「Aa! Hanna, found you~!」(Rozelia)
「Geh!」(Hanna)
When I was thinking about my dress, Rozelia found me.
She then quickly walked toward me.
I don’t wanna see her, but hiding from her at this party seems impossible after all.