Lying face down on the bed, Cecilia chatted with Ferna inside the glowing crystal orb.
“Stand by there for a while. Until I call you.”
– You might be surprised from time to time, you know?
“Hmm…”
As part of the opening preparations, there was indeed a project to create an ‘incredibly awesome tutorial.’
Since dungeon creation was not something Cecilia could do herself, she needed Ferna’s help.
However, not right away.
“When the time comes, I’ll go, so please wait.”
– Yes! Then I’ll be making a wonderful dungeon by that time!
“You must not k*ll people.”
– Of course! I still don’t want to go to the Demon God.
‘Come to think of it, I did say that if you d*e, you can’t even go to the Demon God. Why is that? Is it for fun to break souls?’
Cecilia tilted her head as she thought but soon gave up.
Even though she didn’t have any particular intention to do so.
The crystal orb turned off, and Cecilia carefully placed it in her travel bag under the bed before snuggling with a rabbit doll.
‘Tomorrow is finally the ball!’
She had certainly done a lot of practice, and there would surely be plenty of people to praise her.
That alone made Cecilia happy. Especially, the prospect of making friends with the current young ladies was particularly exciting!
‘I need to make lots of friends.’
It would also help build connections at the same time.
Thud.
At that moment, Cecilia perked up like a meerkat at the sound coming from outside the mansion.
This sound…
“Kairon’s here.”
Cecilia quickly dashed out of her room in her pajamas.
Upon encountering a particularly exhausted-looking Kairon, she bent her head slightly.
“Welcome back.”
“Yeah.”
Kairon, while handing over his clothing to the maid and unbuttoning his coat, met Cecilia’s gaze.
With sparkling eyes, Cecilia asked, “Was my cooking delicious?”
“…… Was that even cooking?”
Cecilia stammered with tears welling in her eyes.
Kairon hurriedly explained.
“It was an amazing taste.”
Granola soaked in milk for four hours truly had an amazing taste.
…Of a kind that defied description.
“Right?”
Cecilia felt a sense of pride.
It was worthwhile to have gone through the trouble of cooking.
Kairon sighed softly and patted Cecilia’s head.
Still, it was commendable that she had cooked with her delicate hands for his sake.
“Um, I’m going to the ball the day after tomorrow.”
A ball?
Why all of a sudden?
“B-Ball?”
Mari standing beside her was also surprised.
“Yes. Betty begged me so much to go with her…”
“Your partner is…?”
Kairon quickly gripped Cecilia’s narrow shoulders.
“Is your partner decided yet?”
It was his daughter’s debutante ball!
On the parental association survey of the Rianen Kingdom, ‘What would you most like to do with your daughter?’ this was the overwhelmingly number one choice: attending the debutante ball as the first partner!
It was only natural that Kairon had his expectations.
“Yes, I’ve decided.”
“…”
Cecilia shied away her gaze slightly, looking a bit embarrassed.
Kairon swallowed hard, tense.
Cecilia’s small lips moved.
“…I’m going with Deputy Director Edward.”
“!!”
“!”
Kairon and Mari’s eyes simultaneously widened.
“A-Ah, Miss. Even so, that might be…”
“…Let me visit somewhere for a moment.”
Kairon, emitting an ominous aura, was about to step outside.
“Where are you going?”
“To toss my glove at that scoundrel’s face.”
He should have gotten rid of him long ago.
Kairon sincerely regretted sparing Edward’s life at this moment.
‘Wow, the deputy director and the knight commander are fighting each other.’
It was an incredible big event. Cecilia, smiling happily, was about to follow him outside.
At that moment, Mari finally realized and grabbed Cecilia’s wrist.
“Ma’am.”
“Yes.”
“Please don’t joke around. A member of the royal family might really d*e.”
‘What a great timing it was.’
Although Cecilia was disappointed, she couldn’t turn Kairon into a traitor, so she had no choice but to tell the truth.
“It was a joke. Will you accompany me?”
“…”
Kairon’s anger reached his very hair tips, but he calmed down in the blink of an eye.
“I have no choice. I’ll accompany you.”
By the way, it was clear that he liked it.
This achievement of the Windsor Knight Order was, at the very least, a ceasefire.
However, people considered it a practical ‘victory bulletin.’
Because up until now, there had never been a time when there was even just a ceasefire, nor had the Demon Race ever compromised on anything.
Thus, the nobles of the kingdom were currently very busy indeed.
‘Which idiot ever said that the Windsor Knight Order was outdated?’
‘Goddamn it, who believed those rumors circulating twenty years ago?’
‘Hurry up and get in line! From here on out, the power of the Windsor Knight Order will only grow larger!’
The power struggle beneath the surface had begun.
In particular, the nobles were doing their utmost to secure invitations to the upcoming ‘Victory Celebration Banquet.’
Still, the process of dividing the war’s achievements required quite some time.
Since it was a celebration banquet marking the ‘victory,’ the scale was large, and the preparation time took quite a while.
At the very least, about a month. Therefore, the nobles’ attention was focused on the ‘banquet’ to be held in the nearest time.
‘By the way, the debutante ball for the Lady of the Eisenberg Duke will be held soon.’
‘That will be an important date, then.’
‘All the significant people will be attending. After all, it’s the child of the Northern Duke.’
In fact, Cecilia was unknowingly under a major misapprehension here.
A debutante ball was the ‘first ball held by a noble lady after reaching adulthood.’
That is, it officially announced to others ‘I am now an adult.’
Simply receiving an invitation does not mean one has officially debuted in society.
“Betty said it was about the Northern Duke family.”
“Yes, she’s the lady from the famous Eisenberg family.”
“Commander Faust? I didn’t know he was a duke.”
“…Yes? Of course not. It’s more on the west side. They share a border with the empire rather than the Demon Race.”
Cecilia, overly focused on fantasy and excluding basic etiquette, had quite a short knowledge span.
In fact, she knew less about the power structure of the Rianen Kingdom than the Demon Realm map.
“…Then isn’t it the northwest duke?”
“Y-You’ve really been hunting demons since you were six years old, haven’t you?”
“…”
Cecilia had a cloudy look on her face.
‘Need a change of mood.’
At times like this, there was an excellent solution.
That was looking in the mirror.
Today’s outfit was a tasteful white semi-dress, with a pale green short cardigan lightly covering her shoulders.
On the left side, rather than an overdone bracelet, a cute ribbon matching the cardigan’s color added a touch of flair.
And for added coordination, a ribbon for hair decoration! It was green overall, light and airy.
By her own assessment, it was a bold but dignified perfect coordination worthy of the kingdom’s top trendsetter sword heroine.
‘This should be enough to sandwich me among the noble ladies. Hehe.’
That way, Cecilia entered the scene of power struggles she was unaware of.
“Congratulations on the victory.”
“I’ve heard the Windsor Knight Order has done a great job again. Isn’t this all because Officer Edward inherited noble bl**d? Hahaha.”
Edward smiled compassionately and shook his head.
“It’s all thanks to my capable subordinates. I myself haven’t done much.”
“That can’t be! I heard you Deputy Director Edward planned the entire strategy!”
“It’s a blessing for the kingdom, haha-”
“Truly!”
“To have you noble lords say this brings me great joy. It’s a great honor.”
Edward smiled and toasted.
When seated, Edward momentarily donned a cold expression once others’ gazes turned away.
‘This is so boring.’
Edward didn’t particularly want to attend the celebration banquet.
He wanted to skip it if he could, but since it was the debutante ball for the noble young lady of the Eisenberg family, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
However—this was indeed the most tedious event ever.
‘While some were risking their lives at the front lines, these people hid behind the safety of their fortress, stuffing their bellies full of fat.’
There wasn’t a single person here who piqued Edward’s interest.
Still, in contrast to his inner thoughts, he maintained a gentle smile and greeted the young ladies who came to pay their respects.
“Officer Edward looks magnificent today!”
“It’s an honor. Miss Charlotte of the Campbell family. Lady, you look exceptionally beautiful.”
While idly passing time by engaging in such conversations—
An unexpected person caught Edward’s eye.
Someone who would likely avoid such gatherings even if the world split in two.
It was Cecilia Windsor.
She walked with a blank expression, drawing the attention of many people.
“…”
“Officer Edward?”
Edward brushed Charlotte aside diagonally and moved as if entranced towards one of the most secluded spots.
There, Cecilia stood with the same bland expression she had moments ago.
– Wow, you’re truly remarkable, Officer Cecilia!
– Which salon did you get this dress tailored from? Please share the information!
– Ms., may I… become friends with you?
That was what Cecilia expected.
Meh.
“I’ll have a word with the famous…”
“Go away.”
“Yes.”
“A lovely lady, would you care to dance with…”
“My head feels very heavy.”
“What?”
“You can help carry it.”
“Sir, I’m…”
“Sorry!”
“Excuse me, may I have a quick chat with the young lady here…”
“Alright.”
“Thank you! Officer Cairon! Then…!”
“Only if you defeat me.”
Tears pricked Cecilia’s eyes.
Cairon was putting on quite a defensive show. Even Messi couldn’t handle this.
“Sir… Commander.”
‘I can’t make a single friend like this!’
Many young noble gentlemen were being shut down, so the young noblewomen were too scared to approach.
Sensing the severity of the situation, Cecilia strongly protested to Cairon.
“It’s too extreme. What if people make fun of you for being ‘daughter-mad’?”
“…”
Cairon settled down beside Cecilia, crossed his legs, and said simply while sipping champagne,
“Minor.”
“…”
“Someone who gets scammed three times a month and knows nothing about the world.”
Cairon glanced at Cecilia after putting down his glass.
“Just leave me alone?”
Cecilia pouted.
Beatrice comforted Cecilia, who was pouting.
“Hmm, even I think it’s somewhat dangerous to leave you here alone, Miss Cecilia.”
“!”
Betty, you too!
Cecilia shuddered with betrayal.
A hundred laps around the playground carrying a one-ton rock when she returns.
There’s no law that says she must d*e, though.
“I didn’t know the commander would be here. It’s very pleasant to see you here.”
The knight in shining armor arrived.
Cecilia looked at Edward with sparkling eyes.
“What business do you have?”
Cairon’s gaze darkened.
Truly the stance of a lion.
But to Edward, who was a socialite, it merely looked like an old lion.
He was the prince of this country, holding the number one position in the line of succession, a veteran in politics.
Social graces? It was a basic upbringing he had since he was a baby.
“Hmm.”
Edward accidentally dropped the wine glass from his hand.
The glass shattered, splashing Cecilia’s skirt.
“It was an accident. I spilled wine on you.”
It was obvious that it wasn’t an accident.
A few drops of purple wine landed on Cecilia’s white dress.
Edward smiled genuinely.
“By the way, what interesting thing were you saying earlier?”
“…”
“You said if one can’t best the commander, one can’t even talk to Cecilia.”
“…”
Cairon didn’t show any emotions, but the air around him grew heavy.
“That’s right.”
“Then, conversely—”
Edward smirked.
“Does that mean if I beat the commander, I can have Cecilia as my own?”
‘No matter how capable you are, everyone has limits in social circles.’
Edward thought, looking at Cecilia’s innocent gaze past the furious Cairon.
‘I’ll teach you what humiliation feels like for the very first time.’
Of course, Cecilia…
‘Veputy Commander’s godlike!’
She was internally clapping with seal approval.
