The Emperor's Gaze
"Wow, I honestly didn't expect this level! Everyone, keep your eyes on him!"
"You mean Rai, not me."
"You said you'd distract everyone with your good looks, but honestly, this is straight-up eye theft. Unbelievable."
It didn't take long for the whispers that had greeted Bayul's entrance to shift entirely toward Eli. Curious and admiring gazes had followed Quinn, the otherworldly beastfolk, for quite a while too, but in the end even those converged on Eli.
"See, children? This is what happens when I actually dress up properly. Now you understand just how much you've been taking me for granted, don't you?"
"Let's get our facts straight. We didn't take you for granted—we simply didn't consider you important."
"That's the same thing, isn't it? Look at this outfit. Feeling anything?"
Eli spread his arms wide and spun in a full circle where he stood. From somewhere in the hall came a shriek of delight—actually, from more than a few places at once.
"Oh, we're feeling something all right. Over there, Jared looks like he's about to shoot arrows of pure rage out of his eyes."
Of everyone whose attention was drawn to Bayul's group, Jared was the one who burned hottest. The person he'd held in contempt hadn't only been formally invited to an imperial banquet—he was commanding the room's attention. No wonder the fury was radiating off him; his face was one twitch away from outright tearing.
"Pathetic fool. What does throwing a tantrum here accomplish?"
"That's exactly why the guy's trash, isn't it?"
"It is satisfying, I'll admit, but having to come all this way and look at that face is annoying."
"Bayul, is that clown who popped up next to him that Cezario guy?"
"Yeah. It looked like he'd had a falling-out with Jared over the Ga Kingdom matter, but I guess they patched things up?"
"Probably bonded over their shared suffering while getting treated at the temple, who knows."
"Ugh, I can't believe I missed that scene yesterday!"
The previous afternoon, after Bayul had returned, Aidan had heard all about the exploits (?) of Innocent and Shame. He'd mourned missing such a legendary moment as if it were a personal tragedy.
"There's still a faint scar, I see."
Logan's sharp eyes picked out the mark on Cezario's face.
"Really? I thought you said Shame only whipped him once with a tree branch?"
"Considering it didn't fully heal even after temple treatment, I'd say it packed quite a punch."
"That—that is the true power of a spirit."
"...True power?"
At Quinn's sudden remark, not just Bayul but everyone wore puzzled expressions.
"Forgot already? What happened at the temple the day Bayul fainted after seeing Innocent."
"You mean when all four elemental spirits appeared?"
"I recall it being described as a rebound against divine power?"
"Exactly. Which, put another way, means divine power doesn't work well on spirits."
"So the wound came from a spirit, which is why the temple's healing couldn't take care of it?"
When Quinn nodded, Aidan let out an amazed "Whoa!"
"Spirits really are the best. 'Tuner of the natural world' isn't just a fancy title. Bayul, I'm proud of you all over again! I'd love to tell Shame he did a good job too, but he won't show up even if I call, right?"
"Probably not just yet."
"Rushing out the moment you're in trouble, but otherwise completely unpredictable. What a grandfather."
"Well, thanks to him we landed a proper hit, didn't we? I like Shame more and more. There's something endearing about him."
Aidan vigorously agreed with Eli. There was something reassuring about him, somehow. A charm entirely different from Innocent's.
Just then, a corner of the hall erupted into noise as she made her entrance. The daughter of Marquis Voytek, and the woman soon to be wed to the Emperor. Lady Catherine, hailed as the queen of high society for her peerless beauty.
The moment she stepped into the hall, she strode confidently toward Crown Prince Lindemann. As the guest of honor, the Crown Prince had been busy since earlier, receiving congratulations and gifts.
"She's pretty, I'll give her that."
"I mean, at that level..."
"But isn't the makeup a bit much?"
Approaching the Crown Prince with a radiant smile, Lady Catherine looked, without question, more beautiful than ever.
Yet perhaps it was a side effect of spending so much time around Eli, but to Bayul and his friends, she failed to register as anything special. And they weren't the only ones—the rest of the party felt the same way.
Strangely enough, no one felt much of a thrill today. Eli's beauty was simply so extraordinary that everything beneath it felt leveled flat, like a field of hills before one great mountain.
The ladies who on any other occasion would have been eagerly dissecting her gown, her jewels, and her coiffure were distinctly underwhelmed today.
Though entirely unintentional, by raising the aesthetic standards of the empire's noblewomen several dozen levels in a single evening, Eli had committed an atrocity against Lady Catherine and the men alike—one that Heaven itself would cry out against.
"His Grace, Duke Randert, has arrived!"
Hot on Lady Catherine's heels, Duke Randert entered the ballroom. No one except the Crown Prince had ever received such an introduction before. It should have seemed strange, yet the hall took it in stride, as though it had always been this way.
Like everyone else attending, Duke Randert walked straight toward Crown Prince Lindemann. The nobles' gazes trailed after that simple movement.
It was a different world entirely from the way they'd looked at Eli.
The yearning in eyes fixed upon a hero.
The reverence owed to the strong.
As he approached the Crown Prince and offered his greeting, Duke Randert was impeccably courteous, and brimming with dignity.
Imperial duties kept the Duke a fairly regular visitor to the palace, but except on special occasions like today, he was rarely seen at parties.
Outside of official business, he seldom made private appointments, so plenty of nobles had never managed to build any rapport with him.
His younger brother Liam had been filling the void his elder brother left, but that could never fully quench the hunger for Duke Randert himself. Sensing their moment, the crowd surged toward him.
"Hold on, guys—don't tell me that's our professor?"
"Huh? Who?"
"Next to Duke Randert. Does that hair even count as neat right now?"
"Whoa! I think it is! No way! Professor Rotheus owns clothes like that?"
It wasn't some attention-grabbing flamboyant hairstyle or outlandish attire. The problem was simply that he looked too put-together.
Everything that came to mind at the mention of Professor Rotheus—tangled hair, a wrinkled shirt, cigarette butts—was worlds removed from tidiness.
"I suppose he made a bit of an effort for an imperial banquet."
"If I hadn't looked closely, I never would have recognized him."
"But why did he come in with Duke Randert? Do they know each other?"
Aidan asked, but Bayul had no idea either. In truth, Bayul had been wondering about exactly that.
Father isn't the kind of man who keeps people at his side lightly... Could this have something to do with sending me to Carrington?
As Bayul gazed at his father with questioning eyes, the orchestra's music abruptly cut off. The volume had dipped before, but it had never stopped entirely.
"...!"
Instinct told him what was coming. All around, people bowed low and readied themselves in reverence. Bayul and his friends fell silent mid-chatter and held their breath.
A moment later—
"His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress have arrived!"
It was a joyous day, and a benevolent smile would not leave the Emperor's face. The look in his eyes as he surveyed the invited nobles and foreign envoys was far different from usual as well.
"Father, Mother—you honor us with your presence."
The guest of honor today was Crown Prince Lindemann. At the foot of the dais, he lowered himself in a bow to the Emperor and Empress.
"We greet Father and Mother."
Princess Grace followed, sinking into a curtsy before her parents. At some point, the scattered high nobles had gathered near the dais as if by prior arrangement.
"I believe that man over there is Duke Hector?"
Eli murmured, nodding toward where Jared stood. Finding Duke Hector wasn't difficult even without Jared—the father and son bore a startling resemblance.
"Their repulsive habits are probably identical too."
One detestable face had simply multiplied into two.
"So—are you enjoying the party?"
While Aidan smirked at the sight of Duke Hector, the Emperor, now seated upon the dais, posed the question to his son.
"I've been too busy receiving congratulations to think straight, Father. I can hardly believe I've come of age already."
"I feel the same. You've grown into a fine man before my very eyes. More than anything, I'm glad you've grown up healthy and without mishap."
"It is all thanks to the grace of you and Mother. I shall continue to serve at your sides with utmost devotion."
"Before that, I'd rather see you married."
"...I beg your pardon?"
For the first time amid the customary pleasantries between father and son, an unfamiliar topic surfaced.
"Surely you haven't forgotten a certain promise?"
"A promise...?"
"Did you not swear with your own lips last year that once you came of age, you would diligently seek out a bride?"
"Ah—that promise."
Misreading this as his father having already settled on a match, the Crown Prince's heart lurched. Lindemann secretly exhaled in relief before bowing to the Emperor.
"I shall honor your wishes, Father, and strive with all my heart."
"Oh-ho. You mean it?"
"A promise made must be kept. Besides, I have no intention of becoming an old bachelor."
At the Crown Prince's joking remark, not only the Emperor but the assembled nobles burst into laughter. The heir to the throne, a confirmed bachelor? Unheard of anywhere.
"You all heard him. I have no desire for an old bachelor of a son, so lend your assistance."
The moment the word bride left the Emperor's lips, the nobles' eyes gleamed. To the Emperor it may have been an offhand remark, but in that instant a flurry of calculations raced through noble minds.
"On another matter—I hear the Academy sent a delegation from Carrington?"
At last, the Emperor steered the conversation. Though he spoke of the delegation, no one present was unaware that he had personally extended the invitation to Bayul. Naturally, every gaze in the hall converged on him.
"Let's go."
Eli led the way without a trace of hesitation. Aidan, Quinn, and Logan followed.
Thank goodness I'm not alone this time.
Gulp.
Nerves had stiffened his whole body, but Bayul tried not to let it show. This was the first time he would stand beside his father before a crowd. He refused to embarrass him. Consciously squaring his shoulders and lifting his chest, Bayul walked forward.
The delegation assembled below the dais—Jared among them, of course.
"We humbly greet His Majesty the Emperor."
"All of you, raise your heads. I would see your faces."
The Emperor's gaze passed over each member of the delegation with a dignified eye—then came to rest on Bayul and stopped.
"So you are Bayul."
The moment Bayul met the Emperor's piercing gaze, an overwhelming pressure made his body want to shrink. Suppressing his pounding heart, Bayul dropped to one knee and bowed once more.
"Bayul Romanov von Randert, presenting his greetings to His Majesty the Emperor."
"Yes, Bayul. Now that I finally lay eyes on you—I find you most welcome indeed."