Masquerade Ball (4)

After a grueling three-hour carriage ride from the Blackwood Territory, we finally arrived at the Imperial Palace.

With my body stiff from sitting in the swaying carriage for so long, I slowly stepped down with Ethan’s help.

As soon as I found myself in an environment where I could finally stretch, a refreshing groan naturally escaped my lips.

“Uuugh…!”

This was when I truly felt that 『Luminor Academy』 was set in a medieval fantasy world.

No matter how luxurious a ducal family’s carriage might be, its suspension couldn’t possibly compare to modern cars from my past life.

Moreover, the roads weren’t paved with asphalt, making the ride bumpy and uneven.

Considering that most of the route from Blackwood Territory to the imperial capital was relatively well-maintained, unpaved mountain paths or dirt roads would have been even more exhausting.

Just imagining it made me grimace slightly.

“Lilith, are you tired? Do you want to rest before we go in?”

“…No, I’m fine. If I can’t even handle a carriage ride, who would believe I’m a noble lady, Ed?”

“…R-right.”

Though part of me wanted to take a moment to stretch my tired limbs, I decided against it.

My performance had already begun the moment we entered the Imperial Palace.

Since I had taken on this role, I had to commit to it fully-just as I had thoroughly played the part of Lilith Rosewood, the Blackwood family maid, for the past three and a half years.

…And, personally, my desire to quickly enter the palace and see the original characters was stronger than my need to rest.

“Have you visited the Imperial Palace before, Ed?”

“…I must have, but I don’t remember much. It was probably long before I met you.”

I had assumed that the young master of the Blackwood ducal family would have visited at least once, but it seemed his memories were hazy due to the time he spent bedridden from the Curse of Erosion.

The Imperial Palace of the Argentia Empire was infamous among players for its labyrinthine layout.

It was the kind of place where even nobles could easily get lost and become laughingstocks.

…Well, I had no choice but to rely on my past-life knowledge here.

“The gatekeeper said there are attendants in the central hall, so we should head there first to get directions to the ballroom-“

“…This way, Ed.”

“Lilith…?”

“The ballroom is on the third floor after turning right from the western entrance. At the top of the stairs, there will be three paths-the left leads to the Morning Glory Hall, the center to the Noontide Sunflower Hall, and the right to the Evening Rose Hall. Since we need to go to the Evening Rose Hall…”

“…Lilith, can I ask you something?”

“Huh?”

“As far as I know, you were originally a commoner, right? So how do you know the palace layout so well?”

“……”

Ah, damn it.

I should have just quietly followed his lead. Why did I suddenly blurt out something unnecessary?

It was an old habit from my past life-getting excited and rambling when I knew something. Or maybe it was just human nature.

…I had no choice but to come up with an excuse.

“I did some research beforehand. Since we’re attending an imperial event, I thought it would be good to gather information in advance.”

“…The palace layout is confidential. Even nobles aren’t given detailed explanations.”

“……”

“Lilith. Just to be sure-have you visited the Imperial Palace before…?”

“…Yes, I messed up. You’re right, Ed. It would be better to get directions from the attendants in the central hall. That’s more reliable than following my questionable guidance and getting lost in the palace.”

“N-no! I didn’t mean I don’t trust you! I was just curious-“

“Shall we go to the central hall with the palace attendants? They’re people you can trust, right? That’s much better than getting lost following a first-timer like me.”

“N-no! Let’s take the right stairs! I trust you, Lilith…!”

After somehow smoothing things over, we finally arrived at the Evening Rose Hall, where masked attendants were waiting to guide guests.

One of the masked butlers, seeing us confidently walking toward the banquet hall, spoke in a slightly surprised tone.

“You’re not first-time visitors, I see.”

“…What makes you say that?”

“The Evening Rose Hall has never been disclosed to outsiders before. You’re the first guests today to find your way here without a palace attendant.”

“……”

I could feel Ethan’s gaze burning into me even through his mask.

I really shouldn’t have shown off… What an idiot I am.

Why did I confidently offer to guide him when there was nothing to gain from standing out?

…Well, what’s done is done. For now, I had to focus on playing my role as Ethan’s fiancée.

I could come up with an excuse for knowing the palace layout later-right now, I had to stay in character.

In fact, the best way to handle this was to act shamelessly and make it harder for him to question me later.

“Why are you staring at me like that, Ed? Aren’t we going in?”

“…S-sorry. Let’s go.”

Flustered by my confident tone, Ethan quickly followed me into the Evening Rose Hall.

His reaction was understandable.

Now that we had reached the masquerade ball-a stage he had already seen-if my noble lady act was exposed, the one in trouble wouldn’t be me, but Ethan.

With that in mind, I stepped into the Evening Rose Hall alongside the young master of the Blackwood family, where dazzling lights and soft music greeted us.

Guests who had arrived earlier gradually came into view.

‘Has Seraphine not arrived yet?’

If someone with her striking appearance were walking around the ballroom, she would undoubtedly draw attention.

Of course, like the other nobles at the masquerade, she would be wearing an ornate mask covering her eyes-but her beauty and presence weren’t things that could be hidden by something so small.

At least, that was the impression I got from the game.

Though it might have been premature to judge before seeing her in person.

‘As for other major characters… I don’t see anyone particularly noticeable yet…’

I wasn’t sure about the others, but I had expected to see characters like ‘Orion the Verdant Sage’ or ‘Agnes the Inferno’ here.

Well, maybe they were just somewhere I hadn’t spotted yet.

Given that this was the Third Princess’s birthday banquet, the number of attendees was far from small-it was greedy to expect all the major characters to stand out at once.

And though I couldn’t be certain, I thought I saw a few minor 『Luminor Academy』 characters passing by-like that brown-haired noble lady just now.

Of course, I wasn’t passionate enough to memorize every minor character’s name, so I just let it go.

“Fascinated, Lilith?”

“Huh?”

“You’ve been looking around so intently.”

“Ah…”

“You knew the way to the Evening Rose Hall like it was familiar, so I wondered-but I guess this really is your first time in the Imperial Palace?”

“…Of course, Ed.”

…It wasn’t a lie.

This was the first time I had seen it with my own eyes instead of through a monitor.

Though I knew the layout like the back of my hand from passing through it half a dozen times during the main story.

Ethan seemed to misinterpret my searching gaze as awe at my first visit to the palace, but that misunderstanding actually worked in my favor.

It was better than him suspecting I had been here before.

Just as I thought I had successfully glossed over my earlier mistake, Ethan asked another question about my condition.

“Is the dress uncomfortable? Or are the shoes bothering you?”

“It would be a lie to say it’s not uncomfortable, but I won’t neglect my role as your fiancée, so don’t worry.”

“…C-could you repeat what you just said?”

“The part about enduring the discomfort?”

“…A little further back.”

“I won’t neglect my role as your fiancée. …Is that the part you mean?”

“…Yeah, that’s it. Thanks, Lilith.”

I wasn’t sure why he wanted to hear that part again.

Did he distrust me so much that he needed to confirm it multiple times?

Well, I could understand his anxiety.

From Ethan’s perspective, bringing a maid like me as his partner was already a risky move.

As I mentioned earlier, bringing a commoner maid to an imperial event was the perfect way to invite misunderstandings.

Even if Ethan had discussed my situation with the princess beforehand, other nobles wouldn’t necessarily be so accommodating.

If this became a political weakness or a target for slander, even the Blackwood family would struggle to quell the controversy.

…Thinking about it, I still didn’t fully understand why Ethan had brought me as his partner.

If he wanted to act the part, wouldn’t it have been safer to choose a lesser-known noble lady from a Blackwood branch family?

Then again, maybe there was no special reason.

Perhaps the lady he had originally planned to bring had canceled for some reason, and I was just a last-minute replacement.

The plan to bring a partner and avoid causing a scene at the banquet was a role anyone could fill-I just happened to be Ethan’s closest personal maid.

If Isabelle or Katarina had taken this role instead, the task wouldn’t have been much different.

‘…Well, maybe not Katarina.’

She was far too timid for something like this.

If a noble so much as brushed her shoulder in this ballroom, she’d blurt out “Young Master!” and blow her cover instantly.

*Tap.*

“Eek?!”

…Like this situation, for example.

A sky-blue-haired lady, distracted while walking, bumped her hand against my shoulder in the ballroom.

The cocktail in her glass sloshed slightly, spilling over.

“Ah…”

“……”

The spilled cocktail soaked both the lady’s glove and the shoulder of my dress.

…This single dress probably cost more than a mid-level maid’s annual salary. Please don’t tell me I’ll have to pay for it later.

Well, I could worry about that later. For now, I had to handle the immediate situation.

Causing a scene here would only draw unnecessary attention, so I wanted to resolve this smoothly.

Honestly, my dress being stained was worse than her glove getting wet, and she was the one not paying attention while holding a cocktail.

But since I didn’t want to make a fuss, I bowed my head slightly and spoke first.

At the time, I thought a simple apology would be enough to move on without trouble.

“I’m sorry, miss. I wasn’t paying attention and didn’t notice you approaching-“

…Perhaps I had underestimated the “nobles” of this medieval fantasy world.

I had foolishly assumed that apologizing first would smooth things over-forgetting for a moment that this was a modern mindset, not a medieval one.

“KYAAAAAAH!”

“……”

“Y-you weren’t paying attention, and now my glove is ruined! How are you going to take responsibility for this?! Huh?!”

…This fucking bitch?