Chapter 9
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Victory Banquet
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Whispers filled the air—
Sena entered the imperial palace's banquet hall.
This banquet celebrated the victory in the war that had dragged on for about five years due to the unilateral invasion by the Eastern Alliance Kingdoms.
Sena let the nobles' conversations drift in one ear and out the other as she headed toward the corner where her family would be.
"Have you heard? Apparently, the Northern nobles and His Excellency the Calderon Grand Duke are attending this banquet as well."
"The Calderon Grand Duke? That's surprising. Isn't this the first time he's appeared at an official event like this?"
"Maybe he's attending because the war has ended and a new order is being established. Like it or not, he's the leader of the noble faction."
"True, politically speaking, it makes sense for him to be here."
Calderon Grand Duke?
That man was coming to this banquet too?
Sena frowned as she thought of the Calderon Grand Duke.
The Calderon Grand Duke, head of one of the empire's historic founding families. But now, he was the leader of the noble faction at odds with the imperial family.
And for some reason, like the Crown Prince, he kept showing her favor and clinging to her.
'Honestly, it's just burdensome.'
She didn't know why, but it felt burdensome and uncomfortable.
As Sena smoothed her expression and continued toward the corner, another conversation reached her ears.
"Oh, have you heard? His Excellency Marquis Banus is attending this banquet too!"
"Really? The Marquis himself?"
...Yujin?
"Yes! He's a war hero! The youngest on the continent to reach the Master realm, a genius among geniuses called the Knight of Annihilation! What do we do? I'm so excited!"
Ah.
Come to think of it, that was right.
Marquis Banus—now her former fiancé, Yujin—was the empire's war hero.
'...Yujin.'
"I've heard he's accomplished incredible feats. They say he single-handedly annihilated several legions, caused a landslide with a single sword and buried tens of thousands alive..."
...That pure and kind Yujin annihilated an entire legion? Buried them alive, even...?
It was hard for Sena to imagine, remembering the innocent Yujin from when they first met.
But.
'...No.'
That Yujin had been gone for a long time. From some point on, only bad rumors about her fiancé kept reaching her ears, and every time she tried to talk about it, they clashed repeatedly.
In the end, the distance between them grew. She had chosen to give up because she couldn't endure it any longer.
She had turned away first.
A dull ache—
For some reason, a sharp pain throbbed in one corner of her chest.
Was it the emotional scar he had left still lingering?
Or...
"He's impressive, but he scares me a bit. Didn't he slaughter the previous marquis and his entire family to rise up?"
"Probably because he's a bastard born."
Thinking back, he seemed to have some complex about being a bastard.
'Was that the reason?'
Was he crushed by that and gradually changed?
But even so, killing his family...
...was something he shouldn't have done.
Does that mean your true nature is that wicked? Do you still have to kill like back then?
She gripped tightly—
"That's probably it. There was a huge uproar when the marquisate changed hands because of it. Everyone just shut up because he has overwhelming power as a Master."
"But he's cool, so it doesn't matter!"
Sena barely tore her ears away from the ladies and resumed walking to the corner. Stories like that were meaningless anyway.
But contrary to her thoughts, every conversation around her was about Yujin.
"That filthy bastard born has risen too high, hasn't he?"
"I agree. Noble blood must always remain pure... Tsk."
Contempt for Yujin's origins.
"Honestly, as a knight, I respect Marquis Banus. A Master, no less."
"Same here. No genius will ever break his records again."
"Agreed. If I get the chance, I'd love to cross swords with him."
"I should have joined his command."
Admiration for Yujin as a knight and swordsman.
"They say he killed every enemy soldier who begged for mercy, without sparing a single one."
"I heard he enjoyed bathing in enemy blood."
"Word is, he's so brutal that he doesn't even kill cleanly—he prolongs it."
"A true murderer. Tsk..."
Fear of Yujin's brutality and power.
"I want to meet a man like Marquis Banus."
"Oh? Why?"
"He's so handsome! I saw his photo in the newspaper last time, and he's totally my type...!"
"And he's capable too."
"Right, right! So I'm seriously aiming for the position of marquise!"
Affection toward Yujin.
"Heh. If I had the Banus family bloodline, I'd have risen higher than that bastard."
"Don't mind it. He's a marquis and a Master, but in the end, just an uneducated bastard."
"Exactly. Hahaha!"
And jealousy too.
Wherever she went, she heard stories about her former fiancé, Yujin.
Yujin, Yujin, Yujin, Yujin, Yujin, Yujin.
His name kept echoing in her ears. Her steps had stopped long ago.
What on earth was this emotion she felt now?
Resentment? Or regret? But if regret, regret for what?
And then, a somewhat irritating conversation reached her ears.
"Speaking of which, did you hear? Yesterday at some salon, the Arkabella Duchess and Marquis Banus were alone together..."
"Really? Could there be something between them?"
"Maybe. The Arkabella Duchess is... a bit eccentric, isn't she?"
...A relationship between man and woman?
With Yujin?
She'd heard he only came to the capital on the emperor's orders, otherwise staying on the battlefield. Had he caught the eye of the Arkabella Duke Family's lady in that short time?
If so...
She gripped tightly—
...
She flinched.
'...Get a grip.'
Why was she caring about that? He was clearly just another man now. She was the one who, exhausted by the constant bad rumors and clashes, gave up first and notified him of the broken engagement.
So she had no right to say anything.
At that moment, the nobles' gazes suddenly focused in one direction.
"...?"
Just as she started to wonder—
"The great bloodline of the empire blessed by the sun, Her Highness Princess Lucia Argentus and His Excellency Marquis Banus enter!"
She froze—
Yujin and Princess Lucia were entering arm in arm, looking intimate.
After being led by Irene on what wasn't quite a date, a night passed, and the banquet arrived.
Yujin was walking down the corridor leading to the banquet hall with Lucia.
Step—
Step—
"...You look truly beautiful today, Your Highness."
Lucia in her black dress was stunning. The elegance from her position as princess blended with the decadent sexiness from her figure and looks.
Lucia, surprised that Yujin spoke first, smiled softly.
"Thank you, Marquis."
He restrained his gaze from drifting to her chest as they walked the corridor.
And then.
"...We're here."
They arrived at the banquet hall entrance.
"Marquis."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"I'll trust your escort?"
"...Trust only me."
He linked arms with Lucia, who smiled at him, and passed through the banquet hall doors.
Then,
"The great bloodline of the empire blessed by the sun, Her Highness Princess Lucia Argentus and His Excellency Marquis Banus enter!"
He felt all the nobles inside the hall focusing their gazes on them.
The stares were sharper than expected. Once on Yujin and Lucia's faces, once on their linked arms, then back to their faces.
'They're staring so blatantly.'
He could clearly see the nobles calculating in their heads.
'Tsk.'
Whatever their exact relationship, he had appeared with the princess.
They sure lived tiring lives.
So he lightly ignored their gazes and strode forward arrogantly.
Step—
Step—
With each step, Yujin's presence grew overwhelming, beginning to dominate the banquet hall. The aura subtly emanating from his body pressed down on the nobles' bodies and minds.
Rumble—
A sensation like a blade held to their throats.
Fear gradually filled the hearts of the nobles, thoroughly overwhelmed by the war hero's presence.
They saw mountains of tangled corpses in Yujin's shadow. They saw a single absolute being perched atop those mountains.
The illusion of a thick stench of blood lingering around him pierced through them.
In the end, the nobles bowed their heads and waited for Yujin and Lucia to pass.
Whispers—
"As expected of the marquis. He knows how to keep the nobles in line like this."
It wasn't exactly about discipline.
It was truly just an aura that had leaked out unconsciously.
"That's why it's even more impressive. It means all of them together can't surpass you alone?"
"...Thank you, Your Highness."
He wasn't twisted enough to refuse praise. Especially from a beauty like this—he could listen every day.
Should he repay her with a sword dance?
Unfortunately, Yujin didn't know how to perform a sword dance.
By the way...
Whispers—
"Your Highness. The one staring at me from over there—is that...?"
Lucia followed Yujin's gaze to a spot where a white-haired, blue-eyed man was glaring at him.
Why was he glaring?
"That's the Calderon Grand Duke. Known in society as the Northern Grand Duke. And he's not on good terms with the imperial family."
"I see."
The Northern Grand Duke, huh.
Then...
'The romance novel male lead?'
He was definitely the male lead from a romance novel. There was always a guy like that on the covers.
Northern Grand Duke and male lead in a romance novel.
On bad terms with the imperial family, no less.
...Something smelled.
...A thick stench of blood.
As he quietly conversed with Lucia, the emperor and Crown Prince entered.
With the emperor's brief speech, the victory banquet began.