Geumeui Hwanhyang (7),

rumors continued to abound while the social church schedule was in progress.

Saint Clarice went to meet Ed Rothtaylor privately whenever she had time during her schedule, and to high-ranking nobles, it seemed as if there was some kind of contact between the Rothaylor family and the saint.

In fact, it would not be strange to say that the highest authority on the continent is interacting with the Holy Emperor to some extent.

Of course, I wouldn’t have thought that he would be connected to a saint of the church, let alone a bishop.

“Would you like to dance one song?”

“Oh, Senior Ed. It’s my honor.”

The highlight was a dinner party held at night.

Even just by guessing, the dinner party held in the hall prepared on the second floor was twice as large as the dinner party on the first day.

In addition to the VIPs who arrived on the second day, various foods and music were prepared more thoroughly and luxuriously. And all kinds of crafts hanging on the outside walls of the hall. All kinds of storytellers and talented people came out on the prepared stage in between to spice up the party.

Since I was in a position where I couldn’t refuse the saint’s offer, I confidently approached her and asked her to dance.

In any case, there are many benefits to being proudly recognized as a member of the Ross Taylor family. Authority and power, as well as Crepin Rosstaylor, will no longer be able to lay hands on me.

Letting the world know that I have the strong support of a saint is an issue that is directly related to my safety.

― ‘Look, it’s that bastard who was reinstated to the family this time.’

– ‘I attended the party yesterday and saw it in advance. It seemed like he had become a completely different person.’

– ‘No matter what, where has that outgoing nature gone?’

Because it was so infamous, there were not many positive comments among the VIPs.

The whispering must have reached Clarice’s ears, and her expression didn’t look very good as she led her body to the rhythm in my arms.

I quietly lowered my head and whispered to Clarisse in a pose as if we were having a normal conversation.

“There is no need to be so upset.”

“Was my expression that bad?”

“You seemed uncomfortable.”

“I just… I thought I did something stupid.”

I followed Clarisse’s steps to the music. Clarice seemed to be struggling, as if she wasn’t very used to dancing, but I was able to move my body well and match her movements.

Certainly, after suddenly becoming associated with a high-ranking person like Clarice, I feel like I’m attracting more attention than necessary.

I may have slowly blended back into aristocratic society… but I suddenly came under Clarisse’s prestige, so I felt like I was receiving even more harsh looks from people.

Clarisse seemed to be very concerned about that, so her expression on her face wasn’t very good while she was dancing.

“It’s okay, Saint. Anyway, you’ve been a great help to me.”

“That would be nice. If you need anything else, please call me. I plan to stay in this mansion until the last day during the social gathering. There are many people I need to meet.”

Clarisse is a VIP among VIPs that not even Crepin Rosstaylor can treat lightly. With her authority, there is a good chance that she will be able to speak up at important times.

The music ended and it was time to end the dance. Clarice pulled on my sleeve with a regretful look on her face.

“It’s been a long time since I had a chance to dance, but I wasted my time worrying. Ugh…”

After saying that, Clarice released her hand. The slender fingers look pale.

“There are still a lot of social events left, so let’s talk again, senior.”

“It is an honor. Saint Clarice.”

After sending Clarice to her seat, I left the center of the crowd.

The nobles’ gazes were heavy as they stared at me. Among them, there were a few people who tried to talk to me, but I gave a polite answer and made my way out of the crowd.

As the second night ends and the third day dawns, the Ross Taylor family’s long social schedule has already reached its halfway point.

More than half of the social meeting schedule has already passed, but there is not much to call an achievement.

On the first day, I was a little cautious. If you move quickly upon arrival, you may arouse suspicion.

However, starting from the second day, we plan to move more actively. Time is not infinite.

You must not forget your purpose. The reason I took the risk of returning to Ross Taylor’s mansion was to find evidence to prove Crepin Ross Taylor’s evil deeds.

What I do know is that Crepin Rothtaylor has been carrying out all sorts of cruel experiments in an attempt to gain access to the magic of immortality.

He tested the power of evil spirits by risking the lives of his employees, tricked the imperial family into using banned drugs, and even killed children… He is truly a madman who is crazy about immortality.

The reason I am interested in aspect magic is also because the power of time is not unrelated to the power of immortality.

He is a madman who wants to study everything that can be studied for a purpose. The benevolent Duke’s appearance is nothing more than a shell.

In any case, if research is being conducted on that scale… there must be hidden research facilities or secret warehouses. It is highly likely that he kept it in his mansion, where it is easy to manage and can be visited frequently.

“You look busy. Ed Rosstaylor.”

It was the moment when I was walking quickly through the crowd and trying to get out of the party hall.

“You’ve become the center of the party, so why don’t you talk more with the VIPs?”

In the midst of all the murmurs, Princess Selaha spoke. He was standing with his back against one of the exterior walls, holding a small glass of white wine in one hand.

I felt the attention of the banquet hall again. The nobles pretend to be paying attention to others out of respect, but it feels like they are all looking at me from the corner of their eyes.

“Princess Selaha.”

“Your eyes are as if asking why you’re talking to me. That’s a very refreshing reaction.”

After a private meeting with Saint Clarice, they met at a dinner party and even danced, and then had a private meeting with Princess Selaha.

The sight of two people close to the pinnacle of imperial authority and religious authority talking side by side… is enough to attract the attention of many nobles.

As for me… I wasn’t very good at managing my facial expressions.

“Do you know that? Ordinary commoners live their lives feeling honored until they die just by saying a word to me. If you think about it that way, it’s not a very good reaction.”

“I am also honored, Princess Selaha.”

“You have a lot of work to do, but you look like you have a troublesome woman involved.”

She is a needlessly sharp woman.

I looked out of the corner of my eye toward the terrace. The moon was high in the sky.

After this, I was planning to sneak out of the party and join Jenica who was waiting outside.

Afterwards, he went back to his room under the pretext of not feeling well, and even planned to secretly break into Crepin’s study. The conversation with Yenika is already over.

“It doesn’t seem like a very wise decision to go out after such a fun banquet.”

“Thank you for your consideration. However, I am not feeling well… I was planning to come back after resting for the night.”

“I see. You seemed fine until you danced with Saint Clarice.”

When I closed my mouth and looked at Princess Selaha, she clapped and laughed.

“Hehe, it’s a joke, laugh.”

“Because I don’t really have a sense of humor.”

“To put it in a bad way, it would be old-fashioned, and in a good way, it would be serious. So… it looks like the women’s clothes are rather nice.”

Princess Selaha put down her wine glass and looked at the band in the corner. It seemed like they were slowly getting ready to play the next song.

The beautiful violin melody began, and the melodies of various instruments followed suit, raising their sounds in harmony.

Princess Selaha approached me quietly, as if she was intoxicated by the music, and whispered in my ear.

“It’s obvious that you’re leaving this grand party behind. You’re going to have a fling with that commoner girl from before, right?”

I guessed correctly that I was going to have a fight with Yenika. Of course, it will take a very different form from what Selaha imagined.

Anyway, I don’t have much time.

Crepin has a habit of stopping by the study whenever he has time, whether in the morning or afternoon. Unless it’s a time like now when he can’t be away because he’s hosting a party, I don’t have time to safely check out his study.

“I’ve told you this many times. Getting into the habit of hanging out with people of the same level is good for your success.”

“Thank you for your opinion. We will take this into consideration and act carefully.”

“Would you like to test whether or not that is just empty talk?”

“yes?”

Selaha roughly placed the wine glass down on the banquet table.

Then, the wine glass lost its center of gravity and began to shake and soon spilled onto the table.

For an instant, the people around me were surprised, and for a brief moment, the attention in the banquet hall was focused.

The spilled wine soaked the expensive tablecloths, and the waiters quickly approached and began to clean up.

Since they are first-class users, they get things done quickly. However, it is impossible to organize the attention that has already been focused.

Taking advantage of that opportunity, Princess Selaha spoke confidently.

“Would you like to dance a song with me too?”

There was silence again in the room.

“Looking at you, you’re good at dancing.”

Among them, I also saw Clarisse with her eyes wide open.

When requesting a dance, it is polite for a male participant to ask a female attendee first.

The sight of Selaha, a woman of higher social status and proudly asking for a dance, was not very ordinary, and the target was me, who had just danced a song with the saint Clarisse.

Just being associated with a saint attracts attention, but after dancing one more song with Selaha, the center of the party will really shift to me.

Above all, the opponent is Selah, the Princess of Frost.

Wasn’t she the first princess of the Imperial Cloel, with whom all high-ranking nobles were eager to talk to each other?

No one would choose the option of rejection there.

“How dare I lead the First Princess by the hand. Her condition is so bad right now that I feel like I will only cause trouble.”

After saying that, I left the party, saying hello to Selaha politely.

* * *

Although no one tried to show it, there was a strange atmosphere among the partygoers.

Right after Ed Rothtaylor left the party, Selaha stood alone by the door and looked dumbfounded.

The first princess’s request to dance was rejected.

I rejected it as politely as possible and gave good reasons, but… rejection is rejection.

– ‘Did you just… see?’

― ‘Did you reject Princess Selaha’s request to dance? ‘I didn’t see anything wrong, did I?’

― ‘Are you sure you didn’t dance with Saint Clarice? Did something happen to your body in the meantime?’

― ‘This is an opportunity to have a chat with Princess Selaha, but if it were me, I would have gone out dancing even if my arm was cut off.’

Among the whispering nobles, Selaha snorted.

‘Your arrogance is sky-high.’

I didn’t know there was a connection to Saint Clarice. From Selaha’s perspective, she planned to more actively recruit Ed as she wanted to maintain an amicable relationship with him.

A boy who is presumed to be Princess Fenia’s closest confidant and appears to have built a special relationship with Saint Clarice.

She attacked Princess Selaha so aggressively that I wondered if she could be more benevolent than this, but Ed Rosstaylor thoughtlessly blocked her approach and left.

No matter how well-respected and well-connected he was, his attitude was too reckless in front of the first princess of the Cloel Empire. I understand that you are busy, but this is really crossing the line.

However, you can’t be angry directly in a clumsy way. Even if the world is destroyed tomorrow, it is the royal family’s mission to preserve their noble dignity.

‘You’re kicking the opportunity that came your way.’

Selaha took the new wine glass again and smiled old-fashionedly. The surrounding nobles were unable to say anything because they were watching Selaha.

Meanwhile, Saint Clarice was looking at the scene and lowering her head. Although he was suppressing a faint laugh, the people around him seemed simply taken aback by the sudden situation.

The fact that he danced with Clarice but refused to dance with the noble princess made Clarice quite heartbroken. It was a truly strange situation.

‘Well, it’s a matter of reducing my name.’

Princess Selaha straightened her clothes and blended into the crowd again.

It is certainly surprising that she has a close relationship with Saint Clarice, but it is foolish to try to challenge the princess’s prestige with such a degree.

Right now, all the nobles gathered here are watching Selaha. The same goes for his sire Crepin Rosstaylor.

It would not be difficult to sway public opinion and bury Ed Rothtaylor. I’d like to make him pay for his arrogance, but right now I should look into other connections first.

Legion commander Magnus and investor Roland.

I had to end things on a face-to-face basis with Saint Clarice, but I definitely wanted to make them my own people.

This social gathering was a golden opportunity.

* * * [It is at the end of the hallway on the 4th floor. The employees didn’t come and go very often, but it seems like the head of the house personally ordered them not to approach that area…! Lady Yenika is also waiting nearby!]

The mug sitting on my shoulder flapped its wings and relayed the requested information.

Ross Taylor Mansion at night. There are still a lot of users coming and going, but the higher you go to the floor, the less floating population is noticeably reduced.

This is because most major facilities are located on the lower floors.

The Ross Taylor mansion has a total of 6 floors, and the higher you go, the more private facilities become available for use only by family insiders.

Up to the 3rd floor, most of the facilities are accessible to guests. Maybe that’s why up to the 3rd floor, outsiders wandering around aren’t viewed as strange, but from the 4th floor onwards, if outsiders try to enter, the residents start to stop them.

Of course, as an insider of the Ross Taylor family, I can enter freely.

“Master Ed. I heard you are unwell.”

“You can go on your own, so go in.”

“Yes, I understand.”

After casually ignoring the people I met along the way, I arrived in front of Crepin’s personal study in the corner of the 4th floor. It’s so comfortable because you can walk in with confidence.

Instead of entering the study right away, I turned back and unlocked all the locks on the windows in the hallway.

-Drur.

Then the hallway window opened… and a girl riding a rather large eagle-shaped spirit pushed herself into the hallway and came in.

Without further ado, this girl is now familiar to me like family.

Yenika was wearing a neat navy blue skirt and a pure white blouse. From the looks of it, Yenika also came from the party.

“How did you get out?”

“Unlike Ed, no one cared even though people like me were gone. I came in advance and looked around, but no one in particular came and went.”

“Lucy?”

“I’m sleeping on the roof.”

Are you at the top of this magnificent building? Actually, it’s something new.

It would be more convenient to be up at the top in order to detect the entire magical energy inside the mansion and immediately capture any unusual movements.

They must have been prepared to invade right away in case of emergency. At first glance, he seems lazy and has no answers, but he is thorough when it comes to important things.

I nodded and turned the study doorknob and pushed it. It opened slowly with a squeak.

As it was a frequently used facility, the door was not locked. To begin with, the corner of the 4th floor is an area that only authorized personnel can enter.

I immediately opened the door wide.

――And at the office desk located in the center of the study… there was Crepin Rosstaylor sitting.

“…Huh…!”

Yenika quickly covered her mouth with both hands and swallowed hard. I stood there holding the doorknob as calmly as possible without panicking.

“You’re here.”

This is Crepin, who must have been hosting a party just a moment ago.

It makes no sense for the host to be absent while hosting such a luxurious party. Moreover, it is not for any other important reason, especially for coming to the study and reading a book.

This means that he was probably expecting me to come here.

“We haven’t had a chance to talk alone without other people watching. So, let’s share our story.”

Crepin closed the book, placed it on the work desk, and spoke politely.

“You survived those numerous trials and returned to your golden state… I’m very curious about your story.”

“father.”

The line that followed left not only Yenika but also me at a loss.

“――You still call me father.”

He… didn’t even think of me as Ed Rothtaylor in the first place.

“There are many ways to escape a family’s fate. No matter which method you use, it doesn’t change the fact that my son, Ed Rothtaylor, escaped in an unsightly manner. I know for sure. If that’s the case, I have no choice but to ask.”

A window fills one side of the study. Behind it, the full moon stood proudly, illuminating the moonlit night.

“Who are you?”

I took a guarded stance, carefully reaching for the dagger hidden in my thigh.

* * *

To my much loved brother, Ed Rosstaylor.

It’s already been more than a week since the christening ceremony was over and I was officially appointed as successor.

I have two such great younger siblings, and I’m not sure if I can maintain my position as the eldest daughter.

Anyway, Tanya still has a long way to go before she grows up, so Ed, your role will be more important. It seems like only yesterday that Tanya texted me, but time flies so quickly that she has already started practicing magic. right.

It’s already been more than three years since we started exchanging letters like this. If I had known that playfully exchanging notes left on the door would take this long, I would have asked the employees to deliver the letters from the beginning.

Then you will complain again that there is no romance. Anyway, it’s strange.

There are many frustrating aspects of life in the steeple, but anyway, I am living well as I am. Lately, I’ve become more discouraged and have a lot of minor illnesses… but not as much as before.

Rather, there is some progress in swordsmanship training and magic training. Do you remember everyone’s worried looks when I said I would handle a greatsword the size of my upper body? Now that I have become accustomed to lightweight magic, I can handle the great sword like a limb.

At the last meeting, I showed the ceremonial posture by holding a ceremonial sword. All the seniors liked it. Ed, everyone wants to see your face too.

…I hope the relationship between your father and Ed you will make some progress. Honestly, it’s hard to be stuck in between.

Ed No matter what you think, I think your father has grand dreams and a big vision of his own. Trusting and following your father is a duty we must uphold as a family.

So don’t say such harsh things.

Unless I am reborn, I will never call you father again.

It’s so sad that such harsh words are exchanged between family members. Next time you get a chance, please apologize.

The fact that your father is looking into the Sylvania admissions process is not a very positive thing.

All we can do is to remove the problem to Aken Island in the south. If nothing else, I don’t want my family torn apart.

Do you remember what I said last time? Ed, you said you were going to enroll in Sylvania as soon as you were old enough.

You can study magic at Rosstaylor Mansion as well. Please think carefully.

We are bound by the bonds of family until the day we die, so please don’t take that weight too lightly.

I’ll write you another letter.

Your one and only sister, Arwen Rosstaylor.