Chapter 74
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 74
“He’s recovered!”
Madame Toten cut Gabriel off, raising her voice—a rare occurrence for her. She then shot me a pleading look, and I quickly nodded in support.
Gabriel might have fallen for me at first sight, making me an exception, but he certainly wouldn’t show Melek any mercy. Even if Madame Toten’s intentions were good, it was common sense that manipulating a corpse wasn’t an acceptable act.
Besides, Madame Toten rarely welcomed visitors, a fact Gabriel knew well. There was no chance of him running into Melek right now, so there was no need to bring it up.
I couldn’t tell if Gabriel hadn’t realized or was just pretending not to notice out of consideration, but he didn’t press the matter. However, when our eyes met and he gave me a smooth smile, I suddenly wondered if he had figured it all out.
While Madame Toten and Gabriel exchanged awkward glances, a knight in the same uniform broke the tense silence.
“Commander, I apologize for interrupting, but we must inspect Lady Rohanson and Madame Toten’s belongings as well.”
“Uriel.”
It was Sir Uriel, the knight who had escorted me at the temple.
I’d heard Gabriel’s knights were sent as reinforcements, and it seemed they were also in charge of inspecting belongings at the banquet hall entrance. Considering this was a birthday banquet hosted by the Crown Prince himself, it made sense that security would be tight. Assassination attempts were always a possibility in a world like this. Plus, most of the attendees had brought birthday gifts, which also needed to be checked.
“Excuse me, Lady Rohanson. You look truly beautiful today.”
Uriel delivered the flattery with a deadpan expression, looking as if he wouldn’t flinch even if a knife were pressed to his throat. I mean, I did look pretty good today, but he said it in such a flat, monotonous tone, like a student who’d been forced to memorize etiquette rules.
Watching them, I realized knights were basically just service workers. Their main source of income was selling holy water to nobles anyway. Weren’t they essentially a high-end bottled water company at this point? Was that too blasphemous? Nah, it was fine. I’m a transmigrator; it doesn’t count.
While the other knights checked the gifts for the Crown Prince, Uriel gave Madame Toten and me a quick pat-down. Gabriel, meanwhile, turned his back to us and looked away. He could flirt so shamelessly, yet he was surprisingly old-fashioned about things like this.
Glancing around, I saw the other nobles quietly submitting to the search without protest. I’d half-expected some stock villain to throw a fit, demanding to know why they were being suspected, but everyone was surprisingly compliant. Ah, maybe that attention-seeking role was originally meant for Evangeline.
“Commander, the inspection is complete.”
Uriel called out to Gabriel, signaling that he was finished.
“It seems you don’t have any weapons on you,” Uriel added, sounding almost disappointed.
Why did he sound disappointed? Did he want me to have a weapon? Fine, then. I had no choice but to meet his expectations.
“Actually, I did bring a weapon.”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
I spoke in a teasing, sly tone, and Uriel’s eyes widened in confusion. Having grown quite fond of my villainess role, I silently raised a hand and pointed behind him. Over there, knights were opening and inspecting the gifts for the Crown Prince. Just then, they opened the luxurious box Hena had brought, revealing an ornate dagger.
“A… a sword?”
The knight who opened the gift box trembled in panic.
“Commander, what should we do about this…?”
The knight looked up to call for Gabriel, but his eyes landed on me standing right beside the commander. His gaze darted back and forth between us, his internal panic practically written on his face. He knew he had to report it, but his superior was my partner. ‘What do I do?!’
“The lady is merely joking. It’s a decorative piece with no edge. There should be no issue bringing it in,” Gabriel quickly defended me.
I nodded along, wearing my carefully practiced smile.
“I-is that so? Let me just draw it once.”
The knight took a deep breath, eyeing me warily as he drew the sword. Just as Gabriel had said, it had no blade—only a hilt and a scabbard. Confirming this, the knight let out a massive sigh of relief and placed the dagger back in its box.
“Yes. As you said, there seems to be no problem. Madame Toten’s item is fine as well.”
Madame Toten had brought a pair of luxurious cufflinks for the Crown Prince. Apparently, accessories like that were the safest, most standard gift choice.
As for me, the Count had handed me the dagger, declaring it would be perfect for the Crown Prince. I was too lazy to prepare something else, so I’d just brought it along. It was supposedly an artifact from a kingdom that fell long before the Empire was founded. Since it was a decorative piece with historical value rather than a sharp weapon, I figured it was a suitable gift. I’d even checked with Gabriel beforehand just in case and gotten his approval.
“Were you surprised, Sir Uriel?”
“Yes. My heart nearly stopped.”
Uriel was the epitome of deadpan. Who would believe his heart nearly stopped when he said it with such a serene face? Once the inspection was complete, imperial servants took the gifts, and Hena was guided to the maids’ waiting area. I was relieved when Uriel offered to escort her himself.
“I shall head inside first.”
“Of course. I’ll see you inside, Madame Toten.”
Even though she was my chaperone, we couldn’t enter together. Madame Toten stepped into the banquet hall first. An attendant checked the registry and announced her name at the top of his lungs.
“Announcing Madame Kinder Toten of House Toten!”
Oh my god, wow! They actually announce your name like that when you enter. This is straight out of a romance fantasy novel! Oh, right. I am inside a romance fantasy novel.
“Shall we go in?”
It was our turn. Gabriel hesitated for a moment before offering me his arm.
When I glanced down, I saw his long, dark eyelashes trembling faintly. I hadn’t noticed before, preoccupied by his sly compliments about me looking like a star, but Gabriel was exceptionally nervous today. Was it because I dressed up? I had to admit, after getting fully dolled up, I looked insanely gorgeous—a perfect fit for a villainess.
But that didn’t seem to be the reason for his nerves.
“I know touching me must be unpleasant for you… but since you agreed to accommodate me, please bear with it just for today.”
His fingertips trembled, echoing the heavy, suppressed words he had just uttered.
I thought he was just nervous because he was caught up in some romance movie playing out in his head, but that wasn’t it. Gabriel was simply being cautious, remembering my past words and actions. Because I’d asked him to just act normal, he had complimented me as usual and pretended nothing was wrong.
The last time we parted, I hadn't taken his hand when he said goodbye, so he must have assumed I found any physical contact with him unpleasant.
Who on earth crushed this boy’s self-esteem so badly? Oh, right. It was me. Seeing Gabriel act so submissively pricked my conscience. Dealing with him alone was already this overwhelming; what kind of conscience do people who manage entire schools of admirers have? Juggling a fish tank and playing hard to get is exhausting.
“It’s not unpleasant. In fact, didn’t I tell you I like you, Sir Gabriel?”
I placed my hand over his and gave it a gentle, soothing squeeze. Honestly, it had only been a few days, so my feelings hadn’t changed that drastically, but I did feel bad for treating him so coldly.
Gabriel looked at me with a complicated expression. Yeah, I get it. You must find my hot-and-cold behavior baffling. But that’s just how you manage the fish in your tank—a little push and pull to maintain the perfect distance. Just bear with me.
“Is that because I know my place?”
“Pardon?”
“It is nothing. Please pay it no mind.”
What do you mean, nothing? I’m a villainess, not some bubbly, oblivious heroine. I can hear your quietest mumbles loud and clear. Seeing him know his place so well that his self-esteem was practically scraping the floor only intensified my guilt.
While I was agonizing over what to say—and whether offering comfort now would just be another form of deception—we stepped into the banquet hall.
* * *
“Announcing Lady Evangeline Rohanson of House Rohanson, and Sir Gabriel, Commander of the Pararos Knights!”
As the attendant’s voice boomed, the gazes of everyone packed into the massive hall pierced right through us. I had thought the temple was grand, but the Imperial Palace was on a completely different level.
Every pattern on the walls was carved with such meticulous detail that I couldn’t even begin to guess how much money had been poured into this place. An orchestra played in one corner while servants bustled about, serving wine.
The guests’ attire was dazzlingly luxurious. It definitely wasn’t my imagination that the swarming crowd was whispering as they looked our way. The combination of an upright, pure paladin and the villainess of the century was bound to draw attention.
I felt like quite the spectacle. The crowd was buzzing with gossip, but their voices were drowned out by the music, tangling together until they were impossible to understand.
“It’s quite noisy.”
The moment I spoke, the commotion died down. I thought I even heard someone hiccup.
“My lady,” Gabriel murmured, a soft warning in his voice.
I had only been thinking aloud, but I didn’t expect everyone to fall silent instantly. Was this the sheer influence of a villainess destined to dominate high society? I really needed to stop blurting out whatever came to mind.
“My daughter, Evangeline! You’ve finally arrived!”
A familiar man suddenly popped out from the crowd to greet me. It was the Count, who had zipped off ahead without even waiting for me.