Chapter 13: Salon (1)

In this world, a salon refers to a gathering hosted by nobles in their mansions, a cultural practice from early modern Western Europe.

Here, salons are primarily occasions where nobles from nearby territories come to pay respects and pledge allegiance to higher-ranking nobles.

Well, pledging allegiance isn’t anything grand; it’s just a simple gesture meaning ‘We don’t intend to defy you.’

The reason I, who was ignorant of such social knowledge until recently, now know it in such detail is because of what happened yesterday.

‘So~ you must attend it~’

Victor was the type who would repeat the same thing multiple times when drunk.

He kept repeating the answer to the question I asked out of boredom during the drinking session, so I couldn’t help but memorize it even if I didn’t want to.

‘But why is this bastard, who said we should drink moderately because of tomorrow, the first to get drunk?’

I thought he would manage himself when he started with one or two drinks, but here we are.

Looking at Victor, who showed no signs of waking up even though it was morning, I sighed.

Honestly, I didn’t care about attending Jessica’s salon, but I wanted to keep the promise I made to my mother.

“Hey, wake up.”

I shook Victor’s body, who was drooling on the floor, but he just turned over and mumbled in his sleep.

“Ugh… Just five more minutes….”

“…….”

Son of a b*tch… Baldo!

I imagined slashing Victor’s neck, and he jolted awake as if electrocuted, rubbing his neck furiously.

“Haa….”

“What’s wrong? Did you have a nightmare?”

“No, I just had a dream where my neck was being cut….”

It seemed he mistook the sense of impending death from my killing intent for a dream.

“Anyway, hurry up and wake up. You need to get rid of the smell of alcohol if you want to go to that salon or whatever.”

“Oh! Sorry, I’ll be quick.”

Victor hurriedly got up and returned to his room.

-Sniff sniff.

I also reeked of alcohol from last night’s drinking, so I needed to get rid of the smell before going.

Feeling a bit melancholic, I headed to the bathroom to wash my face, wondering what I was doing.

‘Ha… Salon, my ass.’

If I were at home, I would be basking in the warm sunlight and practicing Baldo in the garden by now.

Why do I have to attend a countess’s salon?

Come to think of it, I had been avoiding the thought, but lately, my Baldo practice time had been decreasing.

Even yesterday, I only practiced for about four hours and that one session at that old man’s house.

I wanted to secure at least eight hours for Baldo practice….

‘This will pass soon.’

The Knight Department’s curriculum consists mostly of training, dungeon exploration designed by the academy, and self-discipline, with minimal classroom lectures.

Just a few more days… If I endure a few more days, I will have plenty of time for Baldo practice.

Like a flower blooming anew after enduring a harsh winter, now is the time to endure and persevere…!

With this thought, I finished my shower in the bathroom.

When I stepped out in the tailcoat my mother had prepared for me, I coincidentally met Victor, who was also dressed in a tailcoat.

“All dressed? Let’s go quickly.”

“Why? Are we late?”

“Not exactly, but low-ranking nobles like us shouldn’t be seen arriving late. We need to get there as early as possible.”

It’s like being an intern who arrives at work earlier than their boss….

I never thought I’d realize that the lives of people are the same everywhere in this way.

“Then, since it’ll take time to arrange a carriage, let’s ride my horse. It’ll be faster.”

The academy had a student stable for those who brought horses or carriages, with usage fees varying according to the facility’s standards.

The facilities where Silence was staying were of moderate quality, costing about three gold coins.

I brought Silence, who had been resting comfortably in the stable, and got Victor on the back before taking the reins.

“Let’s go as fast as we can. Yah!”

Spurred by Victor’s command, we rode quickly and soon arrived at the villa where Jessica was staying.

“Wow….”

Even though it was just a villa for her stay at the academy, Jessica’s villa was much more luxurious than our estate’s main house.

In the luxurious villa’s garden, many people were gradually gathering.

It was evident that they were all nobles, as most had at least one attendant carrying tribute in the form of gifts.

“It seems we’re not late. When is the delivery supposed to arrive?”

“They said it would be here by noon at the latest, so it should be here soon. Let’s go in.”

Even if I wasn’t eating them, I was curious to see what those ten katanas-worth of desserts looked like.

After a simple identity check by the guards at the gate, we entered the villa without any issues.

Of course, I didn’t forget to mention that the patissier would arrive with the ordered desserts around noon.

“Can we leave right after greeting Jessica?”

“Shh! You can’t call her that here! You have to address her more formally, like ‘Lady’ or something!”

Geez, if anyone heard, they’d think we were dealing with a princess, not a count’s daughter.

Is this the plight of lower-ranking nobles?

Victor, covering his mouth with his hand, whispered quietly.

“And no, we can’t leave right away. If we do, they might think we didn’t enjoy the gathering.”

“That’s ridiculous…. So, do we just hang around here like decorations?”

“No, we need to socialize with other nobles like us. That’s the point of this gathering.”

“Haahh….”

It seemed we would be spending a lot of time here.

As I sighed and entered the mansion, waiters carrying trays with glasses of alcohol wandered around like in a Western movie party.

“Hey, you better not drink.”

“…Ahem, can’t a person make a mistake once in a while?”

Despite his words, Victor couldn’t take his eyes off the glasses the waiters were carrying.

I had a feeling this guy would cause a big problem someday if he didn’t fix his habit of liking alcohol.

“Victor, when are we supposed to greet the lady? I want to get it over with as soon as possible.”

“Greetings are in order of rank. Ah, you’ve already succeeded the title, but we’ll have to wait a bit longer since you’re last in line regardless.”

They make us greet last but want us to arrive early; the more I know about this, the less sense it makes.

“Is that so… but where is the lady? I don’t see her. Is she on the second floor?”

“Probably. The attendants will call us when it’s our turn, so let’s just relax until then.”

Even though he told me to relax, it was hard to feel at ease with so many people seemingly sizing each other up.

Everyone here seemed to be gauging each other with side glances.

Although few eyes were on me, I couldn’t help but be aware of them, so I leaned against the wall and listened to the conversations around me.

“It’s been a while since I saw the lady. Not since Lady Jessica’s birthday party.”

“Yes, I remember. You brought the best gift then too, didn’t you? Did you prepare something similar today?”

“Of course! It’s a necklace made with Groschler garnet, perfect for the lady. She’ll surely be pleased.”

A necklace… My mother and Victor both said that desserts would make a good gift, but this guy brought a necklace.

As the saying goes, ‘If a dog stays in a village school for three years, it will recite poetry,’ I felt like I knew the reason without needing to ask Victor this time.

My guess was that lower-ranking individuals, like a baronet bringing a better gift than a baron, avoided drawing attention by tacitly agreeing on appropriate gifts. For instance, a baronet would bring desserts, while a baron would bring something like jewelry.

‘Wait… then how would a dessert worth ten katanas be perceived?’

No, unless the dessert is gilded, there’s no way to recognize how much it’s worth.

I spent the time sipping the occasional drink brought by the waiters without much concern.

A few hours later, Victor, who had been chatting with another noble, approached and said to me, “It’s our turn now. Let’s go up to the second floor.”

I put my glass back on the tray and followed him upstairs. After several hours at the villa, we finally got to meet Lady Jessica.

‘What? What?’

On the second floor, I saw Jessica surrounded by maids, sitting comfortably in a cozy chair.

She sat modestly with a fan in one hand, not crossing her legs. I froze at the sight, but Victor was different.

Despite his stiffness, likely due to nerves, Victor slowly bowed his head as if nothing was wrong.

“Nice, nice to meet you. I’m Vic– hey…!”

“…What?”

Victor, who was in the middle of his greeting, nudged me in the side, noticing that I was frozen while staring at Jessica.

“Sorry, my friend seems to have been momentarily mesmerized by your beauty, Lady.”

“It’s alright. This reaction is the highest compliment you could give me, isn’t it?”

“Haha…! Saying that surely makes my friend very grateful!”

Jessica covered her face with the fan, but it was clear she was smirking at me from behind it.

Jessica was undoubtedly a woman anyone would find beautiful, but that wasn’t the reason I was frozen.

The real reason was something slightly above her face.

‘F*ck, isn’t that the double bun[1] hairstyle?’

The double bun hairstyle, not something you’d find in reality, but the kind you’d see in cartoons.

The massive bun hairstyle, split into two, seemed long enough to reach her waist if she stood up.

‘No way, did the damn author not write about this? Even with such a hairstyle?’

Even a blind man would turn his head if such large buns passed by.

“Let me reintroduce myself, I’m Victor de Beau, and I came to greet you after enrolling at the academy.”

“You must be the eldest son of the Beau family. I’m Jessica von Grund. I look forward to working with you.”

“Haha…! How could someone like me deserve such words? Ian… hurry up, you too…!”

“Huh? Oh….”

At Victor’s urging, I put aside my thoughts about the novel and stepped forward to stand before Jessica.

“Ian Barthow, and….”

I was just supposed to casually introduce myself and say please to take care of me, but seeing the double bun hairstyle made me trail off.

Could this be what they call the double bun hairstyle reality shock?

“And what is it? Don’t be nervous and speak freely.”

“Well….”

Prompted by Jessica, I voiced my honest thoughts.

“…Do you set that hairstyle every morning? And doesn’t it get tangled when you sleep?”

“…Excuse me?”

“Ugh…!!”

I could feel Victor’s hot, resentful gaze even without turning my head.

But what do you want me to do, dude, when there’s literally a double bun hairstyle right next to me? How could I not ask that question?

—

[1. raei: also called ‘Odango.’ Double buns/ pigtail buns with it often curling towards the bottom.]