With Ricardo's birthday banquet approaching, there wasn't much for me to do separately. So, while Theo and Orca were busy preparing, I diligently devoted myself to studying the Imperial language.
Orca, as he had mentioned before, tried to prepare another matching item for Theo and me, but I refused. It seemed even stranger for an eagle, not a person, to be wearing a bunch of accessories. Theo looked disappointed at my firm refusal, but there was no helping it.
Around the time my diary's language level rose from that of a birdbrain to a human's, the day of the banquet finally arrived. More servants than usual were bustling about, and I, too, had to wake up early in the morning and, as an eagle, get a good scrub and polish, just like during the previous hunting festival. If I become human, it'll be even more of a hassle…
Theo, dressed in his formal attire and wearing a white fox-trimmed cloak, reached out his hand to me as always. Alright, let's ride the Theo-mobile again after a long time! I hopped onto his arm with gusto, but my toes were trembling with nervousness. Theo tried to suppress a smile and gently stroked my back.
"There's no need to be nervous. Shuian has always done well. But just know that it's okay to make mistakes."
His kindness, which was endlessly generous only to me, eased my tension to some extent. What mistake could I, who just had to sit still, possibly make? Nevertheless, I hoped that whatever it was, it wouldn't harm Theo.
Okay, let's go! As I stretched out my body with Theo's touch, Theo smiled as if I were admirable and began to walk.
We headed to the banquet hall in the familiar six-horse carriage. The sun had already set, and the magic stone lamps installed everywhere were driving away the darkness. In the original story, starting today, Theo would be driven further into a corner and walk the path of downfall. In other words, today was the cornerstone of his ruin.
'I can't watch that happen…!'
While praying that my existence would help twist the plot, the carriage arrived at the banquet hall. Theo, guided to the front of the door, briefly straightened his attire and gestured to the knight. Soon, with a thunderous announcement, the massive door opened.
Light poured out through the gap, and Theo walked towards the light. It was a moment of realizing that sometimes people's gazes can be more stinging than light.
"The rumored…!"
"That eagle is…."
"But back then…."
There was so much chatter that it was hard to understand what they were saying, even with my good hearing. I stood as straight as possible, putting as much strength as I could into my toes. People seemed to find it amazing that I was sitting quietly without any restraints.
Theo headed to a secluded corner as usual, and Orca simply guarded Theo's back with an indifferent face, no matter what people around him were saying.
After a while, the knight guarding the door announced the names of Ricardo and Ariel. It was the appearance of the banquet's protagonists. Perhaps because rumors of Ariel, called a saintess among the other nobles, had begun to spread, it quickly became as noisy as when we had appeared.
Soon, the door opened, and Ariel entered, escorted by Ricardo. With her light brown hair and blue eyes, Ariel was a priestess, so she wasn't wearing a fancy dress like the other young ladies. Still, she was beautiful enough even in a simple dress without any special decorations.
"...If the Empress is setting that woman up as the First Prince's partner, it means she's useful enough."
"I wonder if that usefulness is a connection with the Vita Order, or the woman's own abilities."
"Well, even if the Vita Order's power has grown, I don't think it's enough to give up the position of Imperial Princess, is it?"
Accompanying Ariel as his partner at an official event meant that she had a high chance of becoming the Imperial Princess. The fact that they took such gossip into account was proof that she was worth that much.
After pondering for a moment, Theo raised the corners of his lips.
"It seems the Empress has finally found a way to cure my brother's 'illness'."
Ricardo's weakened body wasn't due to an illness, but it was often referred to as such in a mocking sense. Theo stroked under my chin and said as if muttering,
"If they make the saintess the Imperial Princess, Pames, that raccoon-like guy, can easily rise to the position of Pope with a huge dowry. Then the Empress can cure my brother's illness and gain the backing of the Pope."
Pames was the name of the cardinal who had colluded with the Empress. As Theo predicted, in the original story, the Empress, having confirmed Ariel's usefulness, would adopt Ariel as Pames' adopted daughter and try to appoint her as the Imperial Princess.
Even if she could cover up her status as an orphan with the name of a saintess, it was to further solidify the alliance with Pames, who would become Pope after the official marriage. Of course, the Empire burned down before Ariel officially became the Imperial Princess.
Ariel, who was attending such a banquet for the first time, was looking around with sparkling eyes. She occasionally chattered something to Ricardo, and her innocent appearance looked lovely. Ricardo, too, couldn't take his eyes off Ariel, so it seemed that the story of the two was going to flow as in the original.
At that moment, Ariel's eyes met mine. She looked at me in surprise and then leaned towards Ricardo, whispering.
"Oh, could that eagle be the one from the rumors…!"
Ricardo nodded with blushing cheeks, and Ariel let out a small exclamation, constantly glancing at me. Was it because she was a being with strong divine power? I didn't feel the same sense of rejection from Ariel as I did from others. I was staring at her in wonder when Theo turned his body to block Ariel from view.
"Could it be that you like that woman?"
His voice was so ominous that I quickly shook my head, afraid that he would be sulking even if I said yes as a joke. I was just looking because I was curious, honestly!
Not long after, the Emperor and Empress also made their entrance. After their brief congratulatory remarks, the banquet officially began.
While Ricardo, the protagonist of the banquet, went out to the dance hall with Ariel to dance, Theo leaned against the wall the whole time. Occasionally, nobles who supported Theo would come up and greet him, but they only exchanged a few words out of courtesy.
It was a distinctly different atmosphere from Ricardo's. Even the nobles who supported Theo didn't approach him easily, so there was no one nearby except for Orca, leaving the area empty. I knew that they, too, were only supporting Theo out of necessity and would turn their backs on him if he became even slightly disadvantaged, but even so, Theo, standing alone, looked a little lonely.
I need to learn the Imperial language quickly and get used to transforming into a human, so I can attend the next banquet in human form. I'll dress up dazzlingly from early in the morning and stick right by his side.
As I muttered to myself, Ricardo and Ariel came out of the dance hall. As if they had been waiting, all sorts of nobles gathered to be introduced to Ariel.
The nobles of the First Prince's faction were making even more of a fuss to divert the attention focused on me by the Empress's orders, so it was natural that attention was focused on the two of them.
But what caught my eye wasn't them, but the young ladies who were far away from Ariel, unable to hide their discomfort.
"That woman is the rumored saintess?"
"Oh my goodness… the state of her dress…."
"I heard that the Vita Order is wealthier than other places… I guess that's not the case."
Finally, she appeared. Another villain, Rosetta Aegis. As the eldest daughter of the Aegis family and called the flower of high society, she believed that her position was threatened by Ariel's appearance and incited other young ladies to harass Ariel.
From then on, it was a cliché, so to speak. While being hurt by the Empress and nobles who were trying to use her politically, the ever-cheerful and positive female lead and the kind and gentle First Prince would fall in love.
And with the help of the saintess, the First Prince's body, which had been weakened as if suffering from an illness, would be strengthened with divine power, resulting in the Empress's plan succeeding.
Ricardo, whose body was protected by Ariel's divine power, was able to easily suppress the fire energy that was raging inside his body as if attacking him.
Just before the ending, he even succeeded in contracting with the fire spirit king, Ifrit, gaining the power to stand against Theo. He thought that if he contracted with Ifrit, who possessed the most powerful fire power except for Ignis, the god of fire, he would be able to stop Theo. In the end, he failed miserably.
Spirits are originally beings closest to the source, so they are instinctive and innocent. That's why spiritists often used the expression that spirits are like children. However, being like a child also meant that they could be more cruel than anyone else.
After learning that Theo was trying to burn down the Empire by even drawing on his own life, Ricardo contracted with Ifrit with Ariel's help. But Ifrit, who heard the plan, refused the spiritist's request.
Covering the Empire with fire was a very enjoyable thing for Ifrit, who loved fire, and there was no reason to stop it because his influence would also grow.
Spiritists borrow the power of the contracted spirit. The stronger the spiritist, the easier it is to take the initiative and command the spirit, but Ricardo was naturally weak, and thanks to Ariel's divine power strengthening him, he barely succeeded in contracting with Ifrit. In the first place, he wasn't fit to contract with the spirit king.
The spirit who contracted directly wouldn't have known that, and Ifrit, who hadn't been deprived of the initiative, refused the spiritist's command. In short, Ricardo lacked the power to force Ifrit. So in the end, he met a sad ending.
"Lady Rosetta, are you going to let that woman who doesn't know her place get away with this?"
I snapped back to my senses at the sharp voice. Yes, that line was a line that appeared in the original story. Starting with that line, Rosetta's harassment would begin. That also meant that the original story was flowing as it was.
Comments Box