CH 70

Chapter 70: The party at the palace has begun

“That’s the daughter of Elvasti.”

“No, I heard she became the foster child of Count Radin.”

“I can’t believe that the devil-like Count would give his daughter away as a foster child without any compensation.”

“I heard later that the young lady was coldly treated by her father.”

“I don’t believe such a story.”

“But I heard it too.”

It’s my rumor.

Although I don’t recognize the faces of nobles, they remember my face well. That’s why they probably realized right away who I am and are surprised.

“Are you okay?”

Lars-sama asks me.

“I’m fine. Besides, it doesn’t seem to be all malicious. It was Lars-sama who spread accurate rumors about me, wasn’t it? That’s why I can hear words that make me feel like I have an ally who is different from usual, so I’m okay.”

If everything had been malicious, I would have used my skill to make it impossible to hear anything. But I can understand that the voices of protection are coming from people who have worked hard for me, so there is no need to block my ears.

“You are strong.”

“That’s not true. I can stand because I have an ally like you.”

Lars-sama smiled contentedly at my answer.

“Then let’s go. It’s not quite a battlefield, but it’s a stage to show off your beauty.”

Being told I’m beautiful twice makes my chest tighten.

Even though I know it’s just flattery, I wonder if he really thinks so because I’m not used to it and end up hoping for it.

I smile and finally step into the palace.

The palace servants and retainers seem to know Lars-sama’s face, but they don’t seem to know me. They show me inside with a little bit of an “I wonder who this is?” expression on their faces.

It’s the nobles who are uniformly surprised and widen their eyes.

They keep staring at me with their eyes. But they’re so surprised that they don’t particularly say anything, so it’s not a problem.

The more impressive reaction was when I entered the party venue.

The people who turned around all stopped chatting at once. This caused a ring of silence to form around the entrance, which attracted the attention of the others and made them see me. And then the ring of silence spread throughout the venue.

“It’s quite spectacular.”

Lars-sama shows off a playful attitude without seeming to care much.

“I think it’s good that it’s quiet.”

It’s much better than being nervous. I walk towards the back with Lars-sama, feeling somewhat relieved compared to before.

“Hey, you two made it.”

There was Kvasir in front of us. He was a foster child of the royal family, so he was probably invited to this party. With him were Ernest-sama and Miss Brenda, and Miss Brenda’s friends Tricia-sama and Rogina-sama.

“Hello everyone. I am very happy to meet you here.”

When I greet them like this, Tricia-sama and Rogina-sama immediately respond.

“I’m happy to meet you too. And your dress is so lovely! I’m envious.”

“Linea-sama, it really suits you. It’s flashy, but beautiful.”

I’m happy and a little apologetic to be praised so much.

“Tricia-sama and Rogina-sama are also very beautiful. Tricia-sama’s soft, bright colors suit you very well, and just looking at them makes me feel happy. Rogina-sama’s deep blue is very mature and nice.”

After praising each other for a while, Kvasir appears from the side.

“You’re surprisingly bold. I thought you would be more afraid and had prepared various talks to calm your feelings, but it wasn’t necessary.”

Kvasir started to say that. I wonder what kind of talks he had prepared to calm my feelings.

Miss Brenda asked the same question as me.

“What kind of talk did you prepare?”

“Like the story of the Duchess’s first party failure over there. I heard she stepped on her hem and fell down the stairs grandly.”

“Ouch, that looks painful.”

It’s bad to fall in a place like that. On stairs, you might hit your shin or hit your arm trying to protect yourself.

I somehow end up looking at the middle-aged Duchess in a reddish-purple dress, hoping she didn’t get a big injury.

“There are others. Like the Count on the right side. The person he invited to the royal palace party was the fiance of the king’s younger brother.”

“Oh.”

“I heard that his relationship with the royal family was somewhat awkward for a while. So, even if it’s a little embarrassing, there are more amazing predecessors who have done something even more impressive. And there’s also Lars-sama who will follow you, so don’t worry.”

It seems that Kvasir was trying to cheer me up.

While talking about such things, it seems that the invited nobles have all gathered and the royal family has entered.

“His Royal Highness Prince Conrad, enter.”

A servant who waits in front of the door reads his name.

Then, a young man enters the living room through the opened door.

In the midst of the glittering people like a shimmering water surface illuminated by the light of a chandelier with jewel, gold, and silver embroidery, he advanced proudly.

Hair of sandy color, illuminated by strong light, is probably red in eye color from a distance. The slightly squinting eyes can be confirmed from here. The appearance of advancing while flipping the long black jacket is brisk like a knight.

Above all, I involuntarily shudder with my body because the appearance is exactly the same as the person I saw in my dreams.