Chapter 411: Proclamation Ceremony (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 411: Proclamation Ceremony (6)
The banquet hall was incredibly noisy.
It was only natural. At this moment, those attending the Proclamation Ceremony of the Marquis of Palatio were the core figures of the United Kingdoms, and their numbers were vast.
Yet, despite the constant roar of the crowded hall, a strange phenomenon occurred: all sound in Alon’s immediate vicinity vanished.
Ryanga and Historia, who had been quietly bringing food to Alon, froze mid-step with their plates in hand.
Queen Magrina, the Elf Queen, who had been receiving greetings from various dignitaries until a moment ago, twitched her elven ears.
Evan and Penia turned to stare at Alon with expressions that screamed, “Huh?!”
Penia, in particular, looked even more surprised and curious than Evan.
Yutia and Line, who had been conversing with different people, also miraculously grasped the situation and fixed their gazes on Alon.
All of this happened in the span of a few short seconds.
However, Alon himself failed to realize what was happening. Even if his immediate surroundings had gone quiet, the rest of the banquet hall was still boisterous. More importantly, the Queen had asked a question before he could notice anything.
“May I ask if there is someone you have in mind?”
Gasp—
Immediately, the sound of someone catching their breath echoed from somewhere to Alon’s right. Tension began to bloom among those who remained silent.
Deus and Ladan looked at Alon with expressions of peculiar interest. Nangwon and Nangyeon, who had disguised themselves as ordinary humans and hidden their inverted eyes to avoid causing trouble, watched with eyes sparkling with curiosity.
And...
‘...This is nerve-wracking.’
Hidan, who was silently standing guard from the ceiling of the banquet hall just in case, looked down with a face full of visible tension.
[Hidan had seen something like this before.]
Alon, who was the unwitting target of all these gazes, replied to the Queen.
“...Revealing that might be a bit rude, so I’d rather not...”
“Oh my, I’ve asked a bit of an overstepping question. I suppose I’m getting indiscreet in my old age,” the Queen replied with a laugh, humbling herself despite not getting the information she wanted.
Alon shook his head. “It is quite alright.”
At those words, the atmosphere instantly relaxed. The gazes fixed on Alon naturally returned to their previous conversation partners. Ryanga and Historia resumed their movements, and Hidan let out a secret sigh of relief.
But in that moment...
“Then, if I may be so indiscreet as to ask one more thing?”
“...Regarding what?”
“I was simply curious about what kind of person someone as stoic as you would hold in their heart. Could you perhaps give me a brief description of their traits?”
With the Queen’s follow-up, the tension that had just begun to dissipate tightened once more. The gazes that had been drifting away snapped back to Alon. Hidan, who had just exhaled in relief, held his breath again.
And Alon—
‘Wait, why is she digging so deep?’
He was a bit flustered by Torimabia’s persistence. However, after a moment of thought, he realized why she might be so desperate.
‘I suppose the Princesses are reaching that age where marriage becomes a pressing concern.’
Of course, as far as Alon knew, most of the Princesses weren't that old yet. But in a fantasy world like this, the "marriageable age" arrived quite early. This meant that even though they were young, their window was starting to close.
‘Of course, I passed that window ages ago...’
Naturally, Alon was well beyond that point. The reason she kept pestering him was likely because he was no longer a mere Marquis, but a King.
Regardless of his understanding of the Queen’s persistence, Alon had no desire to get married yet. He pondered for a moment before giving his answer.
“They have a beautiful smile.”
“I see.”
“And, they are cute.”
“Cute... you say?”
“Yes.”
“...”
“...”
“...Are there any other traits?”
“Hmm—they are thoughtful. They are always considering the other person’s feelings.”
When Alon finished, the Queen wore a very complicated expression.
‘I’d probably have that face too if I were listening to this.’
Naturally, Alon wasn't thinking of anyone in particular. He didn't actually have anyone he liked. He was simply saying whatever popped into his head to get through the conversation.
“Does that answer your question?”
“...Yes. Thank you for humoring an old woman’s meddling.”
“You needn't think of it that way.”
With that final answer, Alon was finally able to peel the Queen away. As he watched her disappear back into the crowd and let out a sigh of relief...
“...”
Hidan, watching the scene from the ceiling, could see it.
The people surrounding the Great Moon were currently experiencing a whirlwind of complex and subtle emotions—looking as if they didn't know whether to be happy or sad. Some looked like they were about to break into a victorious grin, only to immediately change their expression to one of confusion, as if thinking, “Wait, is that not it?”
Hidan watched them for a long time with a deeply conflicted heart.
* * *
Exactly one day later.
The territory, which had been loud with festivities for over a week, began to return to normal. The banquets, which seemed like they would never end, were finally winding down.
“Whew.”
Alon let out a heavy sigh in his office.
“What is the matter?”
“No, I’m just a bit tired.”
Evan nodded at his words. “That is understandable.”
“Right?”
“Yes.”
Alon thought back to yesterday. He had hoped to watch the banquet quietly after the Queen of Laxas left, but unfortunately, he hadn't been able to rest. He had fallen into a relentless marathon of greetings.
‘At least the people I greeted beforehand were tactful enough not to come back.’
While preparing for the Proclamation Ceremony, he hadn't been able to greet every important figure who arrived. There was too much work to do, and frankly, too many people had come to see him. Consequently, yesterday, Alon had to exchange greetings with every single important person he had missed.
He had been at it from the time the sun was high in the sky until it disappeared behind the mountains. Honestly, he had wanted to throw everything aside and run away. Alon was a King now, after all.
But being a King didn't mean he could truly do whatever he wanted. Alon let out another deep sigh.
“Don’t worry too much. The formal greetings ended yesterday. Now you can just enjoy the rest of the festival, can’t you?”
“Well, I suppose so.”
“And the crowds will start thinning out soon.”
Alon nodded. It was true that the first day of a banquet was always the loudest, and it gradually became quieter thereafter.
‘...At least from today or tomorrow, I should be able to have a more relaxed schedule.’
While Alon was lost in thought, someone opened the office door.
“Penia.”
“Hello, Marquis—no, should I call you Your Majesty now?”
It was Penia.
“Hmm. That does feel a bit cumbersome.”
“Then should I keep calling you Marquis?”
“...That feels a bit strange in its own way.”
Alon thought for a moment. He honestly wanted to tell her to just keep calling him Marquis, but he knew that might look odd to others.
“...Just add a polite suffix to my name.”
“Lord Alon? Like that?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, I understand.”
Penia nodded with a smile. As Alon looked at her, he tilted his head slightly. He felt something was different about her. After a moment of wondering, he realized what the change was.
“Penia.”
“Yes?”
“Did you change your hairstyle?”
At Alon’s question, Penia’s eyes widened slightly, and a soft, blooming smile spread across her lips.
“Yes, ahem—how did you notice?”
“We see each other often. But... did something happen?”
Knowing she usually insisted on the same hairstyle, Alon asked. However, Penia simply twirled a strand of her blue hair.
“No, nothing in particular... It’s just for a change of pace.”
Alon tilted his head again.
‘...Doesn't Penia usually love her original hairstyle?’
For some reason, in the original story, Penia had been very stubborn about her default hairstyle. Though he was curious, Alon eventually shrugged it off.
“Oh, and I heard Silli is starting to move now.”
“Suddenly?”
“You know, what you mentioned before? About taking people to the Divine Land.”
At those words, Alon let out an involuntary “Ah.” Then, he became curious.
“...Penia, just in case, do you know what Silli is doing?”
“Silli? I don’t know the details, but after collecting some money needed for the Divine Land and handling some business... I heard she was going out to give a sermon?”
“...Collecting money? No, before that, a sermon?”
“Yes.”
“...Is she planning to bring people along through a sermon?”
“Uh... that’s what she said?”
Alon wore a bewildered expression. No matter how amazing Silli was, it seemed impossible to move half the population just by giving a sermon. Therefore...
“...Evan.”
“Yes.”
“Keep an eye on what Silli is doing.”
“...Understood.”
With a mix of curiosity and concern, Alon gave Evan the order.
* * *
While Alon was attending the post-proclamation banquets of the Palantia Kingdom, deep within a subterranean cavern of the Kingdom of Calliban...
[Hmm—?]
The Risen One, who had been sitting on a massive stone throne with his eyes closed, opened them in the darkness. Immediately, he saw a black, shimmering hole flickering before him. Despite it being an irrational sight that shouldn't exist in reality, the Risen One simply looked at the black hole calmly.
[It’s been a while, Arm Spitter.]
The moment he spoke, the small hole expanded greatly, and black tentacles began to burst out from within. Each pitch-black tentacle looked as if it would drain the life out of anything it touched. In the center of the abyss from which the tentacles emerged, a stark white eye formed.
[It has been a while.]
The Arm Spitter spoke.
[You always make such a noisy entrance.]
[I did not 'enter.' I merely opened a 'Hall' for communication.]
[That is what I mean by noisy.]
The Risen One shrugged and continued.
[More importantly, I heard the news. You saved Laxashi... or was it Laxas?]
[Well—that insect was getting drunk on his own mediocre power, and I figured I could eat him easily enough, so I helped. Besides, I received orders from that person. However—]
[However?]
At the Risen One’s question, the Arm Spitter remained silent for a moment, moving his tentacles.
[...To be honest, I didn't really want to help. It would have been much more beneficial to eat the tools after he had finished modifying them to his liking.]
[Ah—I honestly agree with that.]
The two spoke with the shared understanding of those with Divine Blood.
[But let me tell you one thing first: later on, you will be glad you made this choice.]
[...My current choice?]
[Yes.]
[Why?]
[Because by helping Laxas, you’ve aligned yourself with the Star Eater.]
[Aligned myself? What does that even matter?]
The Arm Spitter asked as if he didn't understand, but the Risen One replied firmly.
[It matters a great deal.]
[...What do you mean?]
At the follow-up question, the Risen One grinned.
[Because the Star Eater can naturally absorb the power of Divine Blood and redistribute it at will.]
[What... did you say???]
He answered with a statement that, if Alon had heard it, would have prompted the reaction: “Huh? What kind of nonsense is that?”
[Is that... truly the truth?]
[It is.]
At the Risen One’s nod, the Arm Spitter’s grotesque white eye grew wider than ever before.