2. White Knight's 49 Shadows
Even the most prestigious nobles of the empire found it burdensome to invest three full days in the adult ceremony.
Nobles all held important positions, after all, so their asses weren't exactly light.
Thus, most nobles attending the ceremony gathered on the second day, when the main event took place.
The second day, when the crowds swelled the largest.
Guess they all got hammered pretty hard last night.
I thought as I scanned the faces in the banquet hall.
Some who had looked fresh yesterday now appeared noticeably haggard or hollow-eyed.
Of course, it wasn't that obvious.
Maybe because new nobles I hadn't seen yesterday were mixed in among them.
"Adrian."
Poke.
I turned at the finger jabbing my side.
Kiara had quietly sidled up beside me at some point.
"When did you get here?"
"Just now."
"I see."
"……."
"……."
And then, silence.
After seeing every last bit of each other last night—good, bad, and ugly—why did it feel so awkward?
Standing here cozily alone in this vast space, my breath felt stifled for some reason.
Clearly, last night's escapades were to blame.
"…Adrian."
"Yes."
"…That."
Kiara, fidgeting, suddenly snatched my hand.
"…We're engaged, right?"
"…Yes."
She bowed her head, clutching my hand, fumbling with it uncertainly.
"And… you remember… yesterday, right?"
I had no idea what exactly she meant, but I remembered every single moment crystal clear.
"Those people having the affair, you know."
"Ah… Yes. I remember."
"…Why do you think they were cheating?"
"……."
I pondered it. It wasn't something with an easy answer.
"My take is… they're not satisfied with their fiancés."
Kiara spoke softly, rubbing her fingertip against my palm.
"Like… they can't confirm their desires with each other, so they cling desperately to the nearest easy option…."
The more she spoke, the less confident she sounded, her eyes darting glances at me.
Did my fiancée have this side to her?
It felt like the first time I'd seen it since yesterday.
"…So, you see, us—"
—Her Majesty the Empress is entering!
The booming announcement from outside the banquet hall snapped me back to reality.
The crowd at the entrance had long since parted like the Red Sea.
I pulled Kiara's hand, slipping quietly into the throng.
To keep from getting separated—and stay close—we ended up half-forced into an embrace.
"Ah, Adrian?"
"Shh."
Unless something major was happening, I had no intention of dragging Kiara out through this mob.
One piece of wisdom I'd learned the hard way in this world: when big shots show up, hide in the crowd.
You could tell just by looking at the Empress's procession approaching from afar.
"Mama!"
The princess's face lit up in the center of the hall.
A golden-haired woman walked the path cleared through the crowd.
Her hair was identical to the princess's.
A large veil obscured her face, so I couldn't make it out clearly.
…She turns into such a kid around her mom.
It was a far cry from the princess I'd seen yesterday.
When Kiara and I had gone to greet her, she'd exuded a scary aura despite being the same age.
The princess from the romance novels I'd only read about wasn't this bubbly, either.
Maybe she just melted in front of her mother.
Either way, it tugged at my heartstrings a bit.
Maybe because it had been five years since I'd last seen my parents in this world.
"…."
Squeeze….
If Kiara, pressed against me, hadn't been hugging tighter and tighter, I could've focused.
"What's wrong?"
"…It's too suffocating."
Wouldn't hugging harder make it more suffocating?
Shoving the question aside, I loosened my arm around her just a bit.
"You're not the only one coming of age today, are you, dear?"
Was it the hall's acoustics, amplifying toward the center? The Empress's gentle voice lingered vividly in my ears.
"Um, yes. In principle, we go in order…."
"Who follows principle these days? Strictly speaking, I shouldn't even be standing in for him."
Her words seemed to urge the others in the crowd forward.
…I'd heard the ailing Emperor had delegated full authority to her.
Honestly, it was bewildering.
Even as his stand-in, was she really free to do as she pleased like this?
Not that I planned to resist.
If anyone complained later, I could just say I was following orders.
"Coming through."
I crossed the crowd with Kiara in tow.
The princess, me, Kiara—six in total, including us.
Two guys, three girls.
The issue? One of the girls was yesterday's cheating lady.
"…!"
Her face rang a bell, leaving me momentarily flustered, but I quickly looked away.
She didn't seem to notice.
"So few again this year."
"More than last year, Mama."
"Still few. Compared to before…."
The same-age nobles began gathering shyly beside the princess one by one.
Being the most accustomed to this, I knelt on one knee before the Empress first.
The others followed my lead, lowering themselves.
"We pay respects to Her Majesty the Empress."
—…We pay respects to Her Majesty the Empress.
The others awkwardly echoed me.
Deliberately keeping my posture low to avoid staring, a hand approached slowly.
"Raise your heads."
Only after the command did I look up.
Still gazing downward, I heard a soft chuckle from the Empress peering down at me.
"I'm not him. You can look at my face as much as you like."
"…."
Only then did I lift my eyes to her face.
The veil was useless at this range.
I could peer inside it, taking in what distance had hidden.
…Ah.
If I didn't have the habit of keeping my mouth shut before superiors, I might've let out a dumb gasp of admiration.
She was that stunningly beautiful.
She could pass for the princess's older sister.
No exaggeration—I wondered if this was really the Empress.
Did she have no idea how I was appraising her?
She studied my face slowly, then seemed to recall something.
"Ah, it's you."
"…."
"The kid who turned down the chance to be the Knight Commander's squire right to his face."
"……."
"Didn't I see you at the academy graduation? Top of your class, so you went first…."
The growing attention was getting awkward.
Squire? That's just a glorified errand boy.
And errand boys spin tops on command.
Born as a romance novel extra with a chance to live sweet, no way was I doing that.
"Mama…."
At the princess's words, the Empress straightened slowly.
"Oh dear. Sorry. I got a bit carried away. Familiar faces are rare these days."
"…Not at all."
She flashed me a smile, quickly scanning the other four before turning back to the princess.
"I would've liked to clink glasses in celebration."
The Empress reached out to the princess.
"…But even light toasts in the old days would weigh heavy on my name now."
She stroked the princess's hair for no reason.
"Just one piece of advice for you all."
I hadn't been paying much mind.
But her soft, soothing voice definitely calmed the nerves.
"You're adults now. When duty calls for responsibility, you can no longer hide behind your families."
Suddenly, I rummaged through my memories.
What kind of person was the Empress?
The Empress as I'd only known her from the novels.
"…Everyone believed Princess Charlene went astray after the Empress's death…."
…Sadly, she existed now only as the trigger to corrupt this bright princess.
"And Charlene."
The Empress's smile turned to the princess.
"I love you always."
To me, who knew the future, that smile felt like it could be her last without surprise.
After the Empress's brief appearance and departure, the banquet proper began.
With the big event shortened, everyone was rowdy.
Still, few jumped up from their tables; they all sat politely.
Our table was no different.
The six of us coming of age were seated together.
"…Why's everyone so quiet?"
No one even thought to respond to the princess.
Because she was the reason for the silence right now.
She wasn't supposed to be here, but she'd forced her way in.
Thanks to that, unlike the lively chatter at other tables, ours was dead silent.
"No fun stories?"
"……."
"Hey, you."
"…Y-yes?"
"Tell a fun story."
"Well…."
The pointed noble guy trailed off, then dropped his head.
"No point expecting laughs from you."
"…Sorry."
"You—got anything fun?"
"Nothing in particular…."
Two noble guys out in seconds.
By the order, I was next.
As I braced myself, the princess's finger pointed at me.
"You—later."
Eh?
Then to Kiara.
"You… later too. You're this side's… uh… what was it? White Knight?"
She remembered the character, not the name.
"Adrian de Vallancien."
"Right. Adrian up to Vallan. She's your fiancée, right? Bet you two have shared stories, so I'll hear yours later."
"……."
"You—got any fun stories?"
She skipped right past, landing on the cheating lady.
She seemed flustered, gulped a glass of water, cleared her throat, and spoke.
"Do you like books, by chance?"
"…Books?"
"There's this book that's been buzzing in the salons."
"…Ah. I think I know which one. Of course I do."
No way, right?
"If I didn't know that book, I wouldn't recognize this one's White Knight."
"……."
Fuck.
"I've got an interesting story about that book. Want to hear?"
"Hm?"
She'd well and truly hooked the princess's curiosity.
"I know everything about that book."
"It's about the author."
"…Author?"
"It came out without even a pen name."
"True."
"Lots of people speculate about the writer's identity."
"Hmm…."
"They say you can tell the writer from the style, even without a name on anonymous letters."
Calm down.
I kept my poker face, sipping water lightly.
They had no clue it was me anyway.
Sis would've shut the bookbinder up quick before he blabbed.
"So the salon ladies put our heads together."
The cheating lady's gaze swept over us all.
"From the vocabulary, top-tier education."
Was it my imagination, or was she looking at me?
"From the grasp of dominance and submission, either a high capital noble or lord of a major territory."
No way. How could she know who I am?
"From the understanding of love, experience beyond mere engagement…."
I schooled my expression, but her eyes locked on one spot.
"From the elegant prose, a woman."
Phew.
I exhaled a hundred silent sighs of relief.
Of course she couldn't know.
I'd never slipped, never revealed, and silenced the one who knew.
"If I had to pick the closest here, it'd be the Lady Montr."
"…Pardon?"
"Just kidding, milady."
Kiara stared at her in disbelief.
Her eyes flicked to me.
"…?"
Our gazes met, and she pinched my hand under the table for no reason.
I bit my lip to stifle the pain.
Why?
"Intriguing guess, but flimsy."
"Just a fun opinion."
"Sure. It was fun. I want to know who the author is too."
A subtle sneer crossed the princess's face.
"I'm dying to know who wrote such subpar drivel."
"…Haha."
Her hand dropped from her chin to the table as she stood.
We all reflexively started to rise, but she waved us down.
"Lost interest. Enjoy the feast."
She strode out commandingly.
We stared at her back amid the lingering silence.
"…I'll step out to the restroom."
"Me… too…."
One by one, they left, as if finally yielding to the pressure they'd held back.
Just Kiara and me remained.
"Adrian."
"Yes."
"Are you mad?"
"…Pardon?"
"No, your… face looks really angry."
"Me?"
I touched my brow and face, feeling it.
One comment about my writing being subpar had cracked my poker face this much?
Can't be helped since it's my work.
Reflecting, yeah, plenty of reason to be pissed.
Fuck, who reads my stuff without permission and then judges the quality?
"Hey, you listening?"
Kiara's voice pulled me from my thoughts.
"…Ah, sorry, Kiara. What'd you say?"
"You free tonight?"
"…Pardon?"
"If not, it's okay…."
Under the table, she slowly pressed something into my hand.
"I just didn't want to miss out."
"……."
The familiar texture gave it away instantly.
The collar. This was it.
"So, you free?"
"…Yes. Plenty."
Thinking about it now…
My fiancée might be more aggressive than I'd realized.