Chapter 153
Chapter: 153
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 153
>Chapter Title: Nativity Festival (2)
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>The sun had set, and in the evening sky streaked with red sunset hues, the main palace shone alone, wrapped in a soft golden light, as if the moon itself had just descended to the horizon.
Every light in the palace had been mobilized, creating a magnificent exterior that was both grand and utterly holy. It was a sight truly befitting the prestige of a millennium-old empire.
Considering the noble statuses of the attendees, the carriages entering were not particularly controlled. Thanks to that, the entrance to the main palace and the gardens were already bustling with luxurious carriages bearing the crests of various nations and crowds of people.
Threading slowly through them came the carriage carrying Seongjin and his group.
“……!”
People who had been chatting in small groups fell silent for a moment and fixed their gazes on the carriage.
It was because a pair of siblings emerged from the Delcross imperial carriage emblazoned with the family crest—siblings boasting appearances so dazzling they seemed to sparkle.
“Oh my, that must be the rose of the imperial palace...”
“Look at that bold red dress. Nothing ordinary about her. They say the Holy Emperor dotes on that princess so much?”
“But who’s the one with her?”
“Isn’t that Prince Mores?”
“What? That Prince Mores? No way?”
Starting with someone’s whisper, a small ripple spread outward in concentric circles centered on them.
The head designer had been right. Amid people mostly dressed in pale evening gowns, Seongjin and Amelia stood out as a particularly striking pair.
‘How about it? Eyes popping, right? This is the angel who has descended upon Delcross!’
Seongjin basked in the people’s stares, smiling proudly. Amelia, who had lightly linked her arm with his, whispered with a pleased smile of her own.
“Hehe, look around, Mores. Today, no one can take their eyes off you.”
The Demon King, unable to stand it, grumbled in disgust.
[Whoa, a show-off and another show-off meet and create this negative synergy? It’s giving me chills!]
Shut up, you Demon King bastard!
A bodiless thing like you getting chills? As if!
The pair that followed them out of the carriage also became a topic of conversation.
A noble saintess called the small grace bestowed by the Lord God himself, paired with a young swordsman who had recently gained fame for effortlessly dominating the continental martial arts tournament.
“Oh my! Oh my! That’s her!”
Soon, nicknames like Delcross’s Blue Wolf, the Northern Young Wolf, and other cringeworthy titles poured out from all directions.
The noble ladies’ reactions were so over-the-top that Seongjin could almost understand why the guy had acted like he had celebrity syndrome when they first met.
Tch, a mere Orden.
Orden walked forward composedly, as if this were routine, while Sisle had been muttering something with a tense face since earlier. Her porcelain-white complexion had gone even paler.
Curious, Seongjin focused his aura on his ears.
“...it’s night. Beautiful...”
...Huh?
‘Hey, kiddo. You still thinking about that?’
No way she took those words seriously?
Seongjin broke out in a quiet cold sweat, gripped by an ominous foreboding he couldn’t quite place.
As they climbed the stairs toward the lobby, Logan was there waiting to greet them, accompanied by Seise in her white priestess robes.
He’d heard Empress Tatiana had personally ordered formal attire for Logan, but apparently he’d tossed it aside—Logan stood steadfastly in his impeccably dressed Holy Knight uniform.
His posture, straight-backed and perfectly rigid, exuded not just composure but a kind of stubbornness.
And then.
‘Cardmos right from the start, huh.’
Seise’s eyes were currently glowing with a bright golden light. Seongjin had expected her to show up eyeing the banquet food, but not that she’d already be in Cardmos mode.
“You’re right on time.”
Logan’s face looked as calm as ever as he spoke, but Seongjin, who had seen him frequently lately, could tell immediately. The guy’s expression was rotting away underneath.
‘He hates Cardmos more than seems normal...’
From the start, Logan had shown strong distrust toward Seise, and when he learned the true nature of the being inside her, he had recoiled in horror.
To put it nicely, he disliked it; to put it bluntly, it bordered on loathing. It was amazing he was letting her cling to his arm without protest.
Considering Logan’s usual personality—someone who generally went along amiably with a good face—this was downright strange.
“Brother Masin is already inside. Let’s head in.”
Logan turned as he spoke.
[Haha! Banquet! Banquet!]
Cardmos chanted shamelessly, clinging tightly to Logan’s arm.
And at that moment.
Thud.
Along with a ferocious aura he hadn’t fully restrained, the temperature around Logan dropped noticeably in an instant.
Whoa. That’s intimidating.
As everyone checked Logan’s face, only Cardmos herself laughed on obliviously.
[The banquet food after so long! Haha!]
The banquet hall interior was lit as brightly as midday.
The lights from fully ignited lamps reflected off the ornate chandeliers, cascading down in a brilliant shower of radiance.
Against the backdrop of the orchestra’s quiet melody, snippets of conversation and occasional bursts of cheerful laughter echoed here and there.
“We greet Your Highness.”
“We greet the Princess and Prince.”
Wherever Seongjin’s group passed, nobles stopped in their tracks and lightly bowed in greeting.
Unlike some royal families like Brittany or Rohan, where even greetings were restricted before a superior spoke, Delcross had a relatively relaxed etiquette.
As Seongjin surveyed the surroundings, he saw distinguished guests from across the continent gathered in clusters, dressed in evening wear colored vividly by their regional styles.
There were groups of clergy too, and amid them, he caught a glimpse of Sir Masin sweating bullets, surrounded by high priests led by Cardinal Benitus.
And among them was a face he hadn’t seen in quite a while.
“Mores!”
“Mores!”
It was the twins, whom he hadn’t seen in ages. Herna and Gades ran up with joyful expressions, sandwiching Seongjin from both sides.
‘Surprising. Up close like this, they actually look their age.’
The twins usually gave off a totally childish vibe, making it hard to believe they were older than Sisle.
But dressed so neatly, they actually looked like proper young gentlemen and ladies.
“Reddy’s doing well?”
“Has Reddy been good?”
Of course, their behavior and speech were the same as ever.
[What? Who’re you calling Reddy! Graaah! You little brats!]
Ignoring the Demon King raging in his head, Seongjin turned his gaze to the twins.
Their formal wear was eye-catching enough, but what really stood out were the red gold accessories the kids wore everywhere.
Noticing Seongjin’s look, the twins spoke up.
“We begged Holy Emperor Daddy to buy them for us. They’re all the rage these days!”
“His Imperial Majesty was super troubled, so we begged even more!”
“……”
You devilish kids—does seeing that guy troubled amuse you that much?
“We couldn’t help it. This red color just feels nostalgic somehow.”
“It’s an irresistible force. The color is stimulating and evokes memories at the same time.”
“Oh, uh-huh.”
But wait, something felt off?
Seongjin tilted his head and asked.
“...So why are you two speaking in reverse today?”
Their faces and builds were so identical there was no telling them apart, but over time, Seongjin had picked up on their traits.
The one who spoke first with a hot temper was Herna. She called the Holy Emperor “Holy Emperor Daddy.”
The one who gauged the mood and backed her up was Gades. He called him “Your Imperial Majesty.”
The twins’ eyes went wide.
“Wow! Mores notices the weirdest things!”
“Amazing! You can’t let your guard down around Mores!”
For real? They actually swapped clothes?
At the Nativity Festival, the most important event of the year?
“We couldn’t miss a chance like this.”
“It’s a precious opportunity that only comes once a year.”
Herna patted her light purple sash while saying that.
“You can’t keep this to yourself, Mores? Got it?”
Gades flicked the hem of his light purple dress.
“Mores keeps his mouth shut. We trust you!”
Then they burst into laughter in unison.
“Kyahahaha!”
“……”
Seongjin was at a loss for words.
He always thought this, but with his utterly normal mindset, he just couldn’t keep up with these fourth-dimensional kids.
[...Who’s normal?]
‘Shut it!’
After laughing uproariously for a while, the twins grabbed each other’s hands and ran off toward Masin.
And then.
“Her Imperial Majesty the Empress is entering! All pay your respects!”
With the Empress’s entrance, the orchestra’s music stopped, and the murmurs quieted. Everyone ceased their chatter and turned toward the head seat at the front of the hall.
Click-clack.
The Empress, ascending the dais with graceful steps, was exceedingly beautiful.
Her elaborate adornments were striking, but notably, not a single red gold accessory adorned her.
Whether she found it undignified to wear trinkets from her rival consort’s homeland or wished to project a modest image, it was unclear.
Melody Imperial Consort, following behind, was similarly plainly dressed.
In contrast, Elizabeth Imperial Consort looked like a living exhibition of red gold accessories.
From the decorations on her dress to the tiny pins in her hair—everything gleamed red with red gold.
One wondered if the miserly Archduke Asin had contributed to acquiring all those, or if the consort had bought them with her own budget. Seongjin suddenly grew curious.
Just then, Seongjin’s eyes met Elizabeth Imperial Consort’s.
“……?”
An oddly emotionless, cold expression.
Before he could even register it, that chilling gaze from her for the first time made his fingertips go cold.
‘What’s that about?’
Meanwhile, Empress Tatiana stepped forward from the head seat and spoke. It was the opening address by the Empress, who would commence the banquet.
“As always this year, I welcome you all, gathered to celebrate the day the Lord God’s proxy graced this land in person.”
Young though she was, her voice carried the full dignity of the empire’s queen mother, without the slightest flaw.
“From the first Holy Emperor, Lord Cardmos, who rose resolutely a millennium ago to save this continent from the demonkin. Delcross has drawn ever closer to fully realizing the Lord God’s kingdom on this land. It goes without saying that this owes much to the tireless efforts of all of you from across the continent.”
The Empress then methodically mentioned major and minor events that had stirred the continent since the last Nativity Festival.
She praised the successful maritime sea beast extermination in the coastal city-state alliance of Cyprus and expressed deep regret for the floods in southern Anatolia.
The words sounded like mere comfort or encouragement, yet they carried supreme arrogance, as if soothing foreign royals like her own vassals.
Yet not a single listener frowned or showed displeasure.
This was the prestige the millennium-old Holy Kingdom held on the continent.
“At tomorrow’s banquet, His Imperial Majesty the Holy Emperor will personally bless your futures. It will be a sacred occasion, the closest you can come to the divine. The one you will stand before tomorrow is the proxy of the God who pierces and embraces all your flaws.”
After a rather lengthy speech, the Empress finally concluded.
“Thus, enjoy the banquet to your heart’s content today, fully indulging in worldly pleasures. Cast off all earthly desires, so that tomorrow you may stand before the Lord God’s proxy with the most pious body and mind.”
Clap-clap-clap.
With applause from the assembly, the music resumed.
“I’ll go greet the Empress Mothers for a bit. What about you?”
At Amelia’s question, Seongjin glanced toward Elizabeth Imperial Consort. She was still ignoring him pointedly, busily exchanging greetings with other nobles.
“I’m good. I’ll wait, so go ahead.”
Seongjin picked up a drink and headed to a corner of the banquet hall.
It wasn’t just Elizabeth Imperial Consort—there were several disconcerting things throughout the hall.
He’d felt piercing stares from somewhere since earlier; turning, he saw a few high priests tracking his movements with sharp eyes.
-Be careful of the high priests. Especially Cardinal Benitus. The old folks will catch on quick.
Sisle had warned him of that before.
Were they really sensing the Demon King’s presence?
Or...
“May I have a moment?”
Lost in thought, Seongjin was approached by a man who spoke to him.
A sleek-faced young man he’d never seen before, but judging by his ornate attire, he seemed of very high status.
‘...Who’s this?’
Since the man hadn’t introduced himself, Seongjin wondered if he knew Mores.
But then, after scrutinizing Seongjin closely, the man suddenly bowed his head slightly and whispered low.
“Bethel.”
Seongjin blinked, clueless.
What the hell is this guy?