The Debutante
Debutante day.
“Kyaaaaaaah♡!!”
A woman’s scream rang out.
No need to worry.
It absolutely was not some accident.
It was just my sister Lilith throwing her usual over-the-top fit.
“Ed~♡ You’re so pretty!!”
She lunged.
“Ah! Sister, you’re wrinkling my clothes!”
“Even with wrinkled clothes, Ed is pretty!”
“Haa...”
Even for a debutante hosted by the Imperial Family, I had flatly refused any makeup or heavy ornamentation. Of course Lilith, Mother Camilla, and even Father had been deeply disappointed—but cosmetics on a man’s face? Absolutely not.
No matter how much I had adapted to living in this gender-reversed world, putting makeup on a male body was something I would rather die than do.
That was why I found it hard to refuse their request that I at least wear the outfit Camilla and Lilith had chosen for me.
Hmm, Ed, this one looks good on you.
No! Mother, this one is prettier!
Won’t it feel too stifling? Something like this should be fine…
Even a hint of bare skin is unacceptable! It’s indecent!
…Fine. We’ll go with this one…
Lilith had made such a scene that even Camilla yielded, so the clothes I ended up wearing leaned more toward my sister’s taste than Mother’s.
The outfit she picked was closer to a modern tailored suit.
In this world, men usually wore the sort of formalwear or dress suits you would only see in romance fantasy novels for parties. Lilith, however, had specially commissioned something entirely different just so she could dress me in it.
That was the suit I was wearing now, and strangely enough its style was almost identical to the contemporary formalwear of Earth from my first life.
They had only had a few days to prepare…
I heard the designer and seamstresses had been worked to the bone under relentless pressure.
No, Young Master! She held a knife to their throats and threatened them!
Hmm… I thought I heard some unidentifiable cry just now. Best to ignore it.
In any case, I genuinely liked the suit itself.
It was neither too tight nor too loose—perfectly tailored to my frame and elegant.
Having never lived past twenty, I couldn’t say for certain… but it felt on the level of high-end luxury brands like Gucci or Hermès.
Ah, damn it.
Come to think of it, I had died without ever properly wearing something like this.
No—sadly, even if I had continued living on Earth, clothes of this caliber would probably have remained out of reach.
Anyway.
It felt a little awkward to say it myself, but…
With this handsome face paired with such a fine suit, even looking in the mirror I could somewhat understand why Lilith was overreacting.
I liked the clothes, and seeing my own sharp reflection made it hard to keep from smiling.
However.
“Young Master, you are beautiful!”
Grace was praising me as well, yet it felt less like admiration for a dashing man and more like the gaze one reserved for a pretty flower…
I was trying to adapt, but this gender-reversed world was still uncomfortable.
“Young Master, you look so cool!”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Hehe.”
Emma might be airheaded, but whether she did it on purpose or not, her instincts were excellent.
She said exactly what I most wanted to hear.
“Ed, I complimented you too!”
“Young Master!”
Lilith and Grace called out with wounded expressions, but I deliberately ignored them.
When we finally left the dressing room, my parents were waiting outside.
“Oh my! Darling, look at our Ed—how can he be this pretty!”
“Yes, indeed. You look lovely, Ed.”
“Thank you.”
“Ed!! Me toooo~!”
Ah. I couldn’t exactly brush off my parents’ praise.
Looking at Camilla’s face, even though I had already agreed to attend, she still seemed anxious that I might pull some sudden stunt.
I, Edward Frigid, man of my word.
I never go back on what I say, yet because of how recklessly I had acted until now, I had failed to earn Mother’s trust. That stung a little.
Well, I would just have to do better from now on.
And…
Thinking about it, Mother was right about the Imperial Princess…
Charlotte would actually make a decent bride.
Looks and figure excellent.
Family and ability top-tier.
Maybe I was the one being too picky.
If I were paired with her, those crazy women probably wouldn’t dare come charging in with knives drawn.
“Ed?”
“Yes, Sister?”
“Hmm… I feel like you’re thinking something bad.”
“Of course not, haha…”
I hadn’t actually been thinking anything bad, so why was I breaking into a cold sweat?
“Ed. That pink-haired b—… no, even if the Imperial Family forces the event, you don’t have to attend…”
“Lilith, the discussion is already over.”
“Haa… Understood, Mother.”
My sister Lilith still looked thoroughly displeased that I was going.
She seemed to hate it even more than I did.
I was grateful for her concern and told her I was fine, yet her expression remained troubled.
“Come now, let’s go! Lilith, Ed! And you too, darling.”
“Ah. Yes, Father.”
Sensing the mood about to sour, Father spoke brightly and led us toward the ballroom.
At last, the curtain rose.
Not an ordinary coming-of-age ceremony, but a debutante for finding a partner.
Steeling myself, I stepped into the ballroom.
“Young Master, kyaaaaaaah!!”
“Even if the Young Lady tries to stop us this time, it won’t work!!”
“I’ll grab Young Master’s hand even if it kills me—haa… haa…!!”
…I take it back.
My resolve had been insufficient.
What the hell is going on.
Who even are all these people.
Mommy, I’m scared!
“What is the meaning of this uproar!”
“Everyone stay away from Ed—no, get lost!”
“Young Master is in danger!”
“I-I’ll protect you too, Young Master!”
Isn’t this a class society?
Even when Mother, a Grand Duchess, shouted, and even when my sister who would inherit after her grew furious, it was useless.
Countless women charged toward me in a frenzy.
This is driving me insane.
“Darling~~!!”
“Honey!!”
Ah. Father had been trampled under the throng and collapsed.
He’s the consort of a Grand Duke, you know—can they really treat him like that?
“Mother!! Please give me your son!!”
“Whose mother? She’s my mother!!”
“Haa… haa… I don’t care! Just once—let me touch Lord Ed’s hand!!”
They paid no attention whatsoever and kept rushing in, noble daughters by the dozens.
Grace and Emma were doing their best to hold the line, but it looked like they would be overwhelmed any second.
See? This is exactly why I said I didn’t want to attend!
To an outsider it might look like a popular Korean celebrity surrounded by fans.
Absolutely not!
To me, every one of those approaching women looked like nothing but my own death.
I really shouldn’t have come.
Just as that thought crossed my mind and I turned to flee—
“Ed-kun~♡!”
She lunged.
“P-Princess!?”
“Nooo!!!”
“Young Master!!”
The woman who suddenly threw her arms around me was none other than Charlotte, the Imperial Princess and heir to the throne.
Apparently she had entered right after us; Charlotte stood behind our group along with the Empress and several others.
“What is the meaning of this! Cease this disturbance at once!”
The Empress Elizabeth, who had entered with her, raised her voice, and only then did things finally calm down.
Well, if even the Empress’s command couldn’t control them, it would basically be open rebellion. Good thinking, girls.
Once the chaos had been somewhat settled, the debutante began to proceed normally again.
“Ugh… I’d heard the rumors, but to think it was actually true!”
“Even if she’s the Princess, I don’t want to yield!”
“I usually can’t stand Lady Lilith, but today I’m rooting for her!”
No—the disturbance had not been settled at all.
From behind me, countless women’s gazes and shouts continued to pour in.
The reason was simple.
“Lady Lilith. Today is Ed-kun’s special debutante day.”
“I’m aware. Pink—… no, Your Highness.”
“Haha… Then as his loving older sister, you shouldn’t stand in the way of your dear little brother’s future, should you?”
“If that future is a path of hellfire, then of course I should block it.”
“Excuse me!”
“Lady Lilith, fighting!!”
“Hear, hear! Hear, hear!”
“You people!!”
It was because of these two standing right in front of me.
“Um, could you both calm down a little…”
“Ed♡ Be quiet for a moment, would you?”
“Ed-kun, please wait just a little!”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Yeah. Total chaos. I give up.
“Your Highness, forcing the Imperial debutante venue is one thing, but Ed is off-limits!”
“What do you mean off-limits! How can an older sister restrain her brother like this!”
“I’m only protecting my brother as his sister!”
“Are you implying that I would harm Ed-kun?”
“Yes!”
“Haa!?”
Excuse me.
Grand Duchess Frigid? Most exalted Empress of the Empire?
Your two daughters look about two seconds away from hair-pulling—no, outright fistfighting?
Aren’t you going to stop them?
I shot desperate glances toward the Empress and the Grand Duchess seated at the specially prepared high table.
“Ahem, ahem. Fine weather today, Grand Duchess Frigid.”
“Cough, cough. Yes, Your Majesty. Lovely weather indeed.”
Hahaha!
Wow. They’re just pretending not to notice each other.
My mother Camilla had clearly given up because anything involving me made Lilith lose her mind, and from the looks of it the Empress herself had no control over her daughter either.
“Lady Lilith, fighting!!”
“Please curb Your Highness’s tyranny!!”
“You people!!”
The noble daughters behind us provided supporting fire for Lilith, putting Charlotte on the defensive.
From my perspective I had wanted a proper chance to sit down, learn more about her, and gauge her feelings—but looking at the situation, that was clearly impossible.
More than anything.
“Ed♡ You feel the same as your big sister, right~?”
“Huh?”
“See! Ed says I’m right!”
“No, Young Lady! Ed-kun clearly answered in the interrogative!”
“The word ‘yes’ remains unchanged!”
“Th-that’s absurd!!”
Even just because of my sister Lilith, this was never going to work.
I appreciated that she cared for me, but it was excessive and the situation was heating up far too much, so I opened my mouth to speak.
But at that very moment—
“His Holiness the Pope, the Hero, and the Church delegation now enter!!”
The announcement that the Church side was arriving forced me to stop.
In this empire, power was essentially divided three ways among our Frigid Grand Ducal House, the Imperial Family, and the Church.
Therefore, when the highest authority of the Church—the Pope—entered, all eyes naturally turned toward him.
But a Hero?
This was a hero story?
Curious about who this so-called Hero might be, I naturally looked toward the main doors as well.
And then.
The moment I saw the person standing beside the Pope at the entrance, my entire body locked up.
No—why the hell is that crazy bitch here!?
Because I was completely screwed.
Ah, no way, right? Surely not… haha…?