Chapter 115
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 115
Chapter Title: Pato (1)
“Oh, isn’t this dress a bit too flashy?”
Cardina said this just before entering the banquet hall.
Federback, standing beside her, shook his head.
“It’s perfect.”
“Little brother, you like outfits like this?”
“No reason not to.”
The jet-black dress exposed patches of bare skin here and there.
Blended with the curves of Cardina’s body, the dress exuded a passionate yet decadent beauty in full bloom.
She let out a small sigh.
“Even for a banquet, this is my first time dressing like this. If it weren’t a gift from you, I wouldn’t have worn it.”
“It might not look it, but it’s the work of the most renowned designer in the capital.”
“……Then it must have cost a fortune.”
“I got it at a reasonable price through connections with a merchant guild.”
Federback answered, thinking of Portia.
True to her knowledge of the capital’s latest trends, she had selected something avant-garde and bold.
The jet-black tailcoat Federback himself wore was no different.
Cardina quietly gazed at Federback’s clothes and face.
Then her lips twitched.
“You used to be so short, but now you’ve grown taller than me.”
“Probably from drinking all that monster blood. The stench of blood won’t leave my body.”
“All I smell is fragrance.”
“I mean the smell soaked into my soul.”
Cardina chuckled at Federback’s response.
“Given how you thrashed around in my dreams, it makes sense.”
“You dreamed of me every single night without fail.”
“That’s right. Every night, you appeared in my drea…… Ahem.”
Cardina trailed off mid-sentence with a fake cough.
The conversation was veering into an oddly intimate atmosphere.
“Let’s go in now, Sister.”
“Uh, yeah?”
“I said let’s go. Why are you standing there dazed?”
Federback’s hand approached Cardina.
Wearing pristine white gloves, Federback escorted Cardina.
Following noble etiquette, Cardina placed her hand on his fingertips.
His fingertips burned like fire.
Cardina’s pale earlobes gradually flushed red, matching the hue of her dress.
Soon, the servants shouted vigorously.
“The heirs of House Meursault are entering!”
Federback and Cardina stepped in unison onto the red carpet.
Beneath the castle’s soaring vaulted ceiling, the candles in the massive chandelier showered down rays of light.
‘Rorschach prepared everything perfectly.’
Federback nodded.
The discerning eye from his past life, obsessed with artistry, hadn’t faded.
The banquet proceeded flawlessly.
Polished long oak tables adorned with silver candelabras, the chandelier light dancing across stacks of crystal glasses.
Pristine white cloth draped the tables like spiderwebs, scattered with red camellia petals atop.
Even by Federback’s stringent aesthetic standards, nothing was out of place—everything was just right.
Then Cardina spoke up.
“I could believe this was a battlefield instead of a banquet hall. The atmosphere is so tense.”
“Modificatta, Decona, and Portofino are here. They all have their schemes.”
“Those rats seem pretty tight-knit among themselves. Must’ve plotted something beforehand.”
Exclamations rose from various spots as Cardina arched one eyebrow and cast a downward glance.
Did those admiring her beauty know how she rated them?
Meanwhile, Federback was reading the banquet hall’s mood.
The crowd split into two factions.
……Numerous houses that acknowledged House Meursault’s power and prestige, resolved to grovel beneath them.
……And the alliance of Houses Modificatta, Decona, and Portofino, who refused.
Federback eyed the direction from which the anti-Meursault vibe emanated.
Cardina asked.
“When do we start?”
“?”
“Finding my fiancé, I mean.”
“!”
After a brief silence, Federback asked back.
“You knew?”
“You’ve been telling me to get married? I figured it out. What’s the most useful card in this situation.”
“I was planning to gauge the mood during the second part of the banquet and ask you then.”
“No need. Let’s do it boldly right here. Perfect timing with all eyes on us.”
Cardina stepped forward confidently instead.
She turned back to Federback with a grin.
“Just so you know, this is purely a ruse to shatter those three houses’ alliance. I have no intention of getting engaged to those lowlifes.”
“Same here. I’m not sending you off to some half-baked guy.”
“…….”
Cardina wore a strange expression at Federback’s reply.
Right then.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—
Footsteps approached from ahead.
Federback and Cardina looked up.
Two young men were walking toward them.
Ditun and Aicona.
The eldest son of House Modificatta and the second son of House Decona.
Ditun Modificatta.
He was born a center-of-attention junkie.
He couldn’t tolerate eyes shifting to anyone else at gatherings of his peers.
If talent didn’t match such a personality, life would be exhausting.
Fortunately, Ditun had decent talent and built a reputation as a local prodigy.
But after entering the academy, Ditun’s superiority faded.
The academy teemed with talents equal to or greater than his.
Ditun strove desperately in both academics and martial arts but failed to stand out.
Moreover, always being edged out slightly by Aicona of House Decona—someone he’d been compared to since childhood—warped his personality further.
Thus, Ditun grew increasingly abrasive.
Mocking the inferior, belittling the superior.
Of course, an ordinary person with such traits wouldn’t last long, but backing from one of the North’s five great houses, Modificatta, shielded him.
So Ditun rampaged freely with his twisted nature.
After graduating the academy with mediocre grades and returning home, it was even more so.
But…… there was one person Ditun couldn’t bully.
Cardina Meursault.
The idol of every male cadet who graduated from the Northern Academy.
Not only did she never lose first place from enrollment to graduation, she embodied noble ideals, earning worship from all.
Not just cadets—even professors endlessly praised her sublime self-sacrifice and radiant talent. Ditun couldn’t think differently.
‘I want her. I want her so badly it’s driving me mad.’
What if he could make Cardina his?
How much envy would strolling the social scene with her at his side bring?
Above all, how much jealousy and agony would that shorty from Decona—always barely ahead—feel?
‘That idiot Aicona pines for Cardina too. What if I kissed her right in front of him? Entered her with her honeyed gaze upon me?’
Then thick bloody tears would stream from that detestable Aicona’s eyes.
Not just Aicona—all the Northern nobles’ men would gnash their teeth in envy.
‘Good. I’ll approach boldly.’
Ditun took a deep breath and strode toward Cardina.
Aicona, who usually edged ahead subtly, swallowed empty air behind him this time.
“Hey! Where are you going? Are you insane?”
“You’re the insane one. Staying put before a beauty like that isn’t normal.”
Aicona shut his mouth momentarily at Ditun’s retort.
Then a sly voice came from the side.
“He’s right. These days they say women need to take initiative too, but tradition matters. Since ancient times, men approaching first in love is the truth.”
Beatrice of House Portofino smiled with her fan half-covering her face.
A chill ran down his spine—
Aicona knew bloody winds always followed Beatrice’s such smiles.
But he couldn’t sit idly while his first love, his long crush, was snatched by a mortal enemy.
In the end, Aicona followed beside Ditun.
Thud—thud—thud—thud—
Soon, the two men stood before Cardina.
‘Damn, now that I’m here, I’m shaking and can’t speak.’
‘This is bad. I rushed in too soon. Dragged into Ditun’s mess, that fool……’
Ditun and Aicona stood before Cardina, coughing awkwardly and fumbling.
Then Cardina asked.
“What is it?”
Her single word left the two men blank.
What is beauty?
Cardina’s appearance posed the question and refused an answer.
Ruby-like eyes gleamed amid long silver hair.
The black eyepatch, holding both wildness and mystery, marked a hero’s sacrifice for others.
When her dainty lips parted to scatter cold words, it felt like shards of shattered silence pierced the eardrums.
Ditun and Aicona felt overwhelmed by her dizzying allure.
No one could possess her.
Nor comprehend or touch her.
Her beauty belonged to no earthly concept.
It was destined to kill some and save others.
Feeling it firsthand, the two youths trembled in their shrunken forms.
Aicona mustered his voice with all his might.
“Th-the b-b-banquet, s-so…… If it’s n-not a b-bother…… A d-dance…… I-I’m Aicona, your f-fellow alum…… D-do you r-remember……”
His stammering was unseemly, but no one here mocked Aicona.
They were too busy staring at Cardina’s face to care about him.
Right then.
“Sure.”
An unbelievable response came back.
Cardina smiled brightly, accepting Aicona’s dance request.
Aicona, stunned as if he hadn’t expected acceptance after asking, parroted dumbly.
“Wh-what? Y-yes?”
“I remember, so let’s dance.”
Cardina extended her hand with a faint smile.
Aicona stood lost in a daze before snapping to.
“Ah, yes! It’s an honor!”
His hand trembled as if touching the world’s most precious, fragile gem.
The moment Aicona reached for Cardina’s hand.
“W-wait a second!”
Ditun blocked between Cardina and Aicona.
“Me! I asked first! I was going to ask first for a dance!”
It was blatant nonsense, but Ditun truly believed it.
Aicona’s face twisted terrifyingly.
“What nonsense, Ditun. Mind your manners in society.”
“You’re the one! I mustered courage first! Then you follow and cut in—how dare you!”
Ditun snapped back furiously.
He turned to Cardina.
“Do you remember me? Ditun Modificatta, eldest son and acting heir of House Modificatta! We were classmates! I even proofread your graduation speech……”
“Of course I remember.”
Cardina replied with another faint smile.
Ditun glared triumphantly at Aicona.
“See? She remembers me!”
“What are you talking about? Did I ever say she didn’t? Anyway, I just asked her for a dance and she accepted. Move aside!”
“No way! I asked first for a dance! Or I was about to! I was faster than you!”
“With all these people watching, you’re going to lie?”
“I stepped forward first before anyone noticed! You always do this! Always snatching things right in front of me! You filthy bastard!”
“Filthy? How dare you insult me?”
Aicona wouldn’t back down either.
Sparks flew between Ditun and Aicona.
Right then.
“My, it’s just like a fairy tale banquet scene. Two knights vying for a beauty.”
Beatrice approached from behind with a smile.
She alternated glances between Ditun and Aicona.
“So, the next step is obvious, right?”
“……Next step?”
Ditun and Aicona asked simultaneously.
Beatrice replied as if she’d waited.
“A duel, of course. Northern men wouldn’t squabble like weak capital fops, would they? Not over a fine sword or fists, why not?”
Her gaze shifted sideways.
Federback stood there, arms crossed.
Federback gladly took up Beatrice’s assist.
“Proving one’s strength in courtship is an ancient Northern tradition for men.”
Several elder patriarchs nodded at his words.
The mood shifted strangely.
Ditun and Aicona eyed each other.
Before them stood a long-time nemesis, an enemy they refused to share sky with.
And their longtime object of desire demanded proof of strong power and spirit.
“…….”
“…….”
The action required was clear. Never had it been clearer.
Ditun and Aicona simultaneously removed their gloves.
And hurled them at each other’s chests.
The Northern duel between men had begun.