Chapter 67
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Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Radiant Anomalies
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Plunged into confusion, Philomel slipped away to the lounge to collect her thoughts.
The ball had only just begun, so no one was using the lounge to rest yet.
‘Even if they wanted to, they probably couldn’t.’
Right now, Ellensia was likely dancing the opening dance, and everyone would be desperate to catch the new princess’s eye.
Philomel paced freely around the empty lounge.
‘Why did her middle name change? Is this because I moved things up by a year?’
Even if she conceded a hundred times that Nassar hadn’t fallen for Ellensia or that Emperor Justis was keeping a subtle distance from his daughter, there was still Ellensia’s personality shifting like everyone else’s.
‘People’s hearts are fickle by nature, after all.’
But were the gods’ doings no different? Could names just change at random because it was a year earlier?
The temple taught that an imperial middle name was a mirror reflecting a person’s soul. It was why those who committed impure acts sworn upon their middle name lost their divine power, the force of the soul.
A different name meant...
Philomel shuddered at the sudden hypothesis.
‘Is that even possible?’
Wouldn’t it be far more plausible to assume Princess Ellensia wasn’t a flawless prophecy?
But once kindled, the doubt refused to die out easily.
‘What if—this is purely hypothetical...’
Perhaps the Ellensia out there right now had a soul different from the book’s Ellensia.
If so, it lined up perfectly with Katrin’s claim that Ellensia had changed into someone else at some point.
‘Maybe she’s possessed by an evil spirit?’
She recalled tales of people turning savage overnight after malevolent spirits took hold of their bodies.
Ellensia hadn’t grown violent, but her personality had undoubtedly veered toward the worse.
Creak. At that moment, the lounge door swung open.
Philomel tensed in alarm, then relaxed when she saw who it was. Nassar.
“So you were here. I was startled when you vanished so suddenly.”
Nassar approached, dressed impeccably as always.
“Aren’t you going to dance?”
“No. I don’t feel like it tonight.”
“...What a shame.”
More swiftly than the question ‘Why is Nassar disappointed?’ came another thought.
“But why are you here, Nassar? Not dancing?”
“I’m not in the mood tonight either.”
“Shouldn’t you be dancing the opening dance with Princess Ellensia?”
“Me, with Her Highness? She did suggest it, but I declined.”
Did this man have nerves of steel? He wasn’t even afraid of the emperor’s wrath, apparently.
When Philomel asked why he’d refused the first dance with Ellensia, Nassar replied,
“...Because my fiancée isn’t Princess Ellensia, but you, Lady Philomel.”
Only then did Philomel remember their engagement was still in effect.
‘Why? It’s a match between the imperial family and the ducal house. Shouldn’t it have been automatically dissolved once it came out I wasn’t the princess?’
In the book, that was exactly how it went, and Nassar and Ellensia had danced without issue.
In reality, Nassar might not have fallen for her, but he was still the only suitable partner. So far, he was the only young noble of marriageable age who even knew Ellensia.
‘Wait, then who is she dancing the opening dance with right now?’
Curiosity getting the better of her, Philomel opened the lounge door and stepped into the corridor.
In the hall, amid swelling music, the princess was performing her opening dance. The figure sweeping Ellensia up into the air in time with the melody was...
‘Hero Killian!’
A tall man with indigo hair held Ellensia’s hand.
Killian. The reversal hero who slew the top-tier monster Kerberos.
He was the son of the reasonably prestigious Count Escal family, but more often just called a hero.
In this era, the first name that sprang to mind for “hero.” And Ellensia’s third love interest.
In Princess Ellensia, three men were romantically entangled with her.
Young Duke Nassar, mage Jeremiah, and hero Killian.
According to the book, Killian’s interest in Ellensia came much later. What was going on?
Originally, he rarely attended debutante balls like this. He’d always voiced disgust for the hollow noble world.
This was... nothing but deviations from Princess Ellensia, piling up.
Nassar, who had followed Philomel into the hall, gazed at Ellensia and Killian.
“They make a fine pair.”
His voice was perfectly serene, as if remarking on strangers.
Nassar truly showed not the slightest interest in Ellensia.
At last, the princess’s opening dance ended, and the music halted. Next came the stage for this year’s debuting young nobles.
The young ladies and lords danced their first dances with assigned partners, then switched partners and danced again amid the whirl.
Philomel anxiously scanned the rotating lines for someone. But Rozanne’s red hair was nowhere in sight.
Where was she? Had she gotten cold feet and stayed away?
“Lady Philomel...”
Glancing aside, she saw Nassar unable to tear his eyes from her face.
“What’s wrong?”
“At first I thought it was just my imagination...”
Nassar even stuttered.
“This might be rude, but tonight you’re especially... ah, beautiful.”
“Pardon?”
“The moment you stepped in here, no one else existed in my eyes but you.”
What was this? Had he eaten something funny?
But he wasn’t the only one staring at Philomel in a daze.
Nearby noble youths—even ladies—gawked at her for long moments before darting their eyes away when gazes met.
She’d never gotten reactions this intense, even as princess.
“Nassar, is there something on my face?”
“It’s not something stuck on—it’s more like light... emanating from your noble features.”
Light?
“Nassar, wait here!”
Philomel peeled away from Nassar and returned to the lounge for a hand mirror. Then she headed to a dim corner of the corridor.
Reaching a spot with faint light, she realized something crucial.
...It wasn’t seeming like her face was glowing. It was actually glowing.
“What the heck is this?!”
Philomel yelled, clutching the hand mirror.
Not just her face—her entire body gave off a soft glow. She hadn’t noticed under the bright hall lights, but here in the shadows, it was unmistakable.
That wasn’t all the strangeness. Passing an open window, birds flew right in through it. The little creatures chirped noisily, circling Philomel.
Figuring she should shoo the birds out first, she headed to the garden via the terrace. Then something even weirder happened.
Flowers bloomed instantly wherever her feet touched—even on bare soil without a single sprout or bud!
“This is insane...”
Someone called out to Philomel as she stopped and clutched her head.
“Phil!”
“There you are.”
It was Cadin and Lexion, clad in court mage uniforms.
Lexion closely examined Philomel’s state and came to a conclusion.
“Tower Master Rguin’s handiwork. Multi-layered compound magic.”
“Why would he do something like this...”
“He probably thinks he did it for you.”
Come to think of it, she recalled Rguin fussing that her outfit was too plain.
“Can you dispel it, Lexion?”
“No way. If I could, I’d have booted him out ages ago and taken over as Tower Master.”
Lexion waved to scatter the noisily flapping birds.
“Right now, all I can do is layer my magic to keep the birds away. For the rest, you’ll have to wrap up your business quick and go ask him to undo it yourself.”
“Fair enough. Time to give him a stern talking-to.”
Lexion shook his head at the bristling Philomel.
“...Seriously, even behaving properly isn’t enough—he has to cause trouble. What’s he thinking?”
“What was that?”
“Just muttering to myself.”
Only then did Philomel notice their sharply dressed appearances.
The three brothers each had distinct auras, but dressed up, their looks shone even brighter. Though she was the one literally glowing...
“You two came for the ball, right? So why are you out here?”
“We just arrived. Took a bit to shake off some pesky flies.”
“Why’s there dirt on your clothes?”
“We were passing by and heard some bastard trash-talking you, mmph!”
Lexion clamped a hand over Cadin’s mouth as he started to answer.
“Haha. Just some moonlit exercise.”
It felt hugely suspicious, but like something she shouldn’t pry into.
“Anyway, I need to head back inside. Birds are gone, the glow’s not noticeable in bright light, and flowers only sprout on dirt.”
“Go on ahead. We’ll finish up and join you.”
“Mrrrmph!”
Philomel waved farewell to them and returned to the banquet hall.
Lots weighed on her mind, but times like this called for laser focus on the goal at hand.
The goal being Rozanne, naturally.
Fortune smiled—she soon spotted Rozanne, who hadn’t shown so much as her nose until now.
As if by divine intervention, Rozanne was at the end of a deserted corridor.