The Frenzied Party Escape
As night fell, it finally happened.
In the grand social gathering known as the Duke’s party, the poor souls who had failed to find partners.
And those souls lingered in the garden behind the ducal estate, savoring their solitude.
Some called it the Losers’ Garden.
“Ah…… I want to die.”
The voice, thick with despair rising from the depths of her chest, belonged to Heria, the daughter of a baron. She had come tonight expecting to find a partner at last, only to fail.
“O, sole mio. Life is a damn mess.”
The man beside her was Viscount Mateo.
He looked perfectly normal on the surface, but his habit of stuttering in front of women had left him without a dance partner once again.
“H-Heria, you too?”
“Viscount Mateo, we meet again……”
Their eyes met. Every so often, miracles did happen in the Losers’ Garden.
……
Julia watched the two of them disappear beyond the garden.
Startled after seeing Askal, she had wandered aimlessly until she ended up here.
The cool breeze and the scent of flowers tickled her nose.
It wasn’t so bad, really. She could rest her mind here for a while before returning to the ballroom.
“I’ll curse you, I’ll curse you, who do you think you are to reject me, I was clearly perfect, so why—”
Then a strange voice drifted from nearby.
And somehow, that voice felt oddly familiar.
Julia took a step forward.
The owner of the voice came into view.
Serena Barba.
The Second Princess of the Empire—and Julia’s older sister.
“Oh my. Fancy meeting you here. Julia. Not that we’re on greeting terms, but what wind blew you all the way out here? You, who rarely show your face.”
Serena smiled, her expression shifting back to that of a proper princess as if nothing had happened.
……
……Did you hear?
……
Serena cleared her throat.
“Everyone experiences failure. And those who rise above it are the true strong ones, aren’t they?”
……
“Really! Say something!”
Serena stamped her foot. Watching her, Julia slowly opened her mouth.
“Were you rejected by Askal Dever?”
“You hit a sore spot. Yes. I asked that man to dance, and he turned me down flat. So what?”
Serena glared at Julia. She had never liked her younger sister, and wounded as she was now, she liked her even less.
“How fortunate.”
“What do you mean, fortunate……”
“Oh. Everyone’s gathered here?”
The one who appeared was Cain, the Crown Prince of the Empire.
Without any attendants, lost in thought as he strolled alone through the garden, he had stumbled upon Serena and Julia by chance.
It was truly rare.
Ever since they had come of age, the three siblings had never gathered privately like this.
“It reminds me of the old days. How long has it been since the three of us were together?”
“Excuse me, we’re still young for reminiscing, you know? We’re in our prime. Uncle.”
Serena grumbled.
Cain chuckled.
“So, why was our little lady sulking all by herself?”
Serena sighed and sank onto a bench.
The night had deepened, and she was tired. She no longer had the mental energy to calculate political gains even here.
“I got dumped by a man.”
“I see. Who’s the scoundrel who rejected our lady? This big brother will teach him a lesson.”
……Askal Dever.
Cain’s smile froze.
“What a coincidence. I was just rejected by that man too.”
A brief silence fell.
Then, as if by agreement, both siblings turned their gazes toward Julia.
……I don’t know who that is. Who is he?
Julia looked away. The tension drained from the air like air from a punctured balloon.
“So Julia doesn’t know him. Well, in that case, I suppose I’m the closest to him, since I even got cookies from him.”
“Cookies, you say.”
“Yes. Askal Dever made them himself. They were so good they nearly stuck in my throat.”
“Cookies……”
“Yes. Cookies. They melted in the mouth.”
Cain imagined the taste of the cookies. Sweet and moist, dissolving on the tongue. The only problem was having nothing to drink with them—if he’d had something, he could have finished them all.
But Julia’s eyes changed as she listened.
“I didn’t get any. Cookies.”
Cain broke into a light sweat.
“There are plenty of cookies in the ballroom, Julia.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about.”
“Cookies? That man made cookies?”
Even Serena rose, brushing off her dress. Julia looked ready to bolt at any moment. These women had been acting strange for a while now.
“Where is Askal right now?”
“If I can’t dance, I at least need cookies to be satisfied.”
Cain answered readily.
“The last I saw him was in the left corridor of the ballroom. It’s been a while, so I’m not sure where he is now.”
“Oh. Your Highness the Crown Prince. And Your Highness Serena, Your Highness Julia. Count Dvar pays his respects. The party today is quite enjoyable, isn’t it?”
At the sudden appearance of the count, all three turned their stares on him—eyes that looked at him as if he were an insect.
Count Dvar broke into a cold sweat. He had arrived at the wrong time, in the wrong place.
For the first time in his life, Count Dvar felt the threat of death. He had to find a way out of this somehow.
‘What, what should I say…… to get out of here?’
There wasn’t much time to think.
Desperately racking his brain, Count Dvar finally managed to utter a single word.
“Askal……?”
The tension eased in an instant. Fortunately, it had been the right answer.
Count Dvar caught his breath and continued.
“You’re looking for Askal, I see. He’s probably on the second floor of the mansion right now, talking with Lady Sucia.”
“Much obliged. This will help my sisters.”
“Haha. It’s an honor.”
With the tension gone, Count Dvar began to fulfill his duty as a gossip.
“Come to think of it, Your Highness. Have you heard? Among the horses Askal brought today, there’s apparently a very unusual one. It’s not fully grown yet, but it’s said to be a beautiful white horse.”
“Was it the one with a spot on its shoulder?”
“I’m not sure about that……”
It had to be that foal.
Cain had once given Askal a foal. It had been scrawny and pitiful. Honestly, he’d thought it would die before it grew up, but it had turned into a magnificent white horse?
Cain’s eyes gleamed.
“Everyone, to the second floor. I’ll take the left staircase, Serena, you take the right. Julia, the central staircase. Find Askal.”
“Got it.”
“Yes.”
In that moment, the most powerful temporary alliance in the Barba Empire was formed.
“Sniff…… I admit defeat.”
“Never mention the word ‘cookie’ in front of me again, Sucia.”
In the end, when Askal met Sucia, they compared each other’s cookies. Askal’s victory was absolute. The difference in taste was so overwhelming that no picky judge was needed.
“From now on, you’re permanently banned from the office.”
“Please, please, anything but that! Director! I’ll do anything!”
Fearing Sucia would cling to him again, Askal offered a compromise.
“Then clean the bathroom for a month.”
“……But I’m still the daughter of a ducal house.”
“If you don’t like it, enjoy the permanent ban.”
“Hic. Fine. I’ll clean the bathroom.”
Sucia slumped to the floor, seemingly unconcerned that her dress was getting dirty.
“But why has it felt strange since earlier?”
For a while now, something had been prickling at his back. His body was warning him, as if he needed to flee immediately. And the feeling was only growing stronger.
‘Eh…… it’s probably just fatigue.’
Just as he tried to ignore it, a maid of the mansion appeared.
“There you are, Lord Askal.”
“What is it?”
“Well…… His Highness the Crown Prince is looking for you.”
“Is that so? He must have urgent business.”
“And…… Her Highness Princess Serena is also looking for you.”
“Why would the Princess want me?”
“Also…… Her Highness Princess Julia is looking for you as well.”
……
Hm. Something was going very wrong.
His instincts told him that getting caught would drag him into something extremely troublesome. Without further thought, Askal decided to run.
“Askal! Wait! Show me the horse!”
It was the Crown Prince’s voice. Askal immediately launched himself forward.
“I knew you’d come this way. Just as I predicted.”
Heading for the right staircase on the second floor, he found Princess Serena waiting for him, her expression triumphant.
Askal dashed past her and up to the third floor.
“Hey! Wait! At least give me a cookie before you go!”
Emerging from the long staircase, he found himself at a dead end. Escaping Cain and Serena by going up had been fine, but now that Askal had reached the third floor of the mansion, he was a rat cornered in a trap.
If things continued like this, capture was only a matter of time.
‘What do I do?’
The sound of running footsteps echoed from afar.
Askal looked at the window.
……The night sky was beautiful.
But now wasn’t the time to admire it.
‘I won’t die if I fall, right?’
If he landed properly, three stories shouldn’t kill him. And his legs were well-trained from daily commutes. It was worth trusting them.
‘No, I’ve been taking carriages to work lately, so maybe not.’
He was still hesitating when—
“There you are.”
From behind came Julia’s voice.
There was no more time to think.
Crash!!!!!!!!
Askal pressed his arms to his sides and leapt straight through the window.
The glass shattered instantly, and Askal began to plummet toward the ground.
‘This is much higher than I thought.’
He was even falling headfirst.
He was going to die at this rate.
If there was a Darwin Award in this world too, this year’s would surely be his.
Just then.
A white horse appeared in the distance. The wing coverings fell away in midair.
“Per!”
The pegasus spread its wings and raced toward its master.
With a graceful motion, it succeeded in catching Askal on its back.
“Let’s head straight home!”
“Hihihih!”
Per flapped its wings.
“Th-That’s impossible!”
Raven was a painter. Recently plagued by a slump, he had attended the ducal party in hopes of finding inspiration.
But no matter how much he danced or strolled, inspiration refused to come.
And then Raven witnessed an unbelievable sight.
Among the stars scattered across the night sky, a man was gliding through the air astride a pegasus.
“This is a miracle!”
Raven hurried to fetch his canvas.
Before this inspiration vanished, he had to complete the painting.
The Man Who Rode a Pegasus
And the painting Raven completed became one of the most renowned masterpieces in imperial history.