Chapter 69: Duke’s Banquet – 4

Chapter 69: Duke’s Banquet – 4

“…To think the day would come when the Duke’s family would officially reopen the banquet hall.”

“I know. You said they received guests last time, right?”

“I thought they’d lock the doors again after that attack… It’s surprising.”

The deaths of the Duke’s core retainers and the Duchess happened over a decade ago, but no noble in the capital had forgotten it.

Partly because it was still unknown what audacious person had committed such an act… but it was an event that severely shook a family that stood shoulder to shoulder with the Emperor.

Furthermore… some speculated that the Emperor, wishing to escape the Duke’s family’s shadow, was behind the attack on the Duke’s family.

Of course, the Emperor’s past collaborations with the Duke’s family were by no means few, and there had been several displays of friendship between them, so such speculation didn’t gain much traction.

Bluntly speaking, if the Emperor had been deceiving that meticulous Duke all this time, he would be good enough to be an actor, not an Emperor.

In any case, putting the events of over a decade ago behind them… the Duke’s family’s doors opened once again.

Guests invited to the firmly locked mansion, and then another attack.

However… the same tragedy as before did not follow.

The Duke’s family officially attributed it to the thorough defense of the Imperial Guard, but their tone was not as favorable as before.

Therefore, people thought that the Duke’s family would once again firmly close its doors, or at least that they wouldn’t open again until the Duke died and his daughter took over as head of the family.

And, defying everyone’s expectations, the Duke’s family opened its doors.

And they even held a banquet because they had become a patron of someone.

Even before they locked their doors, those who received the Duke’s family’s patronage were few and far between.

And all of them were geniuses who were praised for ‘opening a new era’ in their respective fields.

Because of this… all the nobles in the capital expressed their intention to participate in this banquet hosted by the Duke’s family.

…Even those who had most strongly opposed the Duke’s family.

The nobles were convinced. That the Duke’s family would no longer remain closed as before.

Much time had passed since the tragedy, the Duke’s daughter had grown up, and it was obvious that many internal problems had been resolved.

And, naturally, the number of private soldiers holed up in the territory would have doubled.

This banquet was a signal that the social and noble circles, which had been closing their eyes and focusing only on recovery for a while, were truly beginning to awaken and move again.

Therefore, the clothing stores in the capital were swamped with orders… and various jewelers began gem crafting day and night to create even more splendid and beautiful gifts.

Families close to the Duke’s family sought to restore their estranged relationships during the time the Duke’s family had locked its doors,

And families hostile to the Duke’s family sought to distance themselves as much as possible from any future attacks by the Duke’s family.

Because if the Duke’s family regained its power and re-entered politics and society… they would be the first ones to be crushed.

Especially given the recent situation where there was another attack.

“What idiotic fool!”

“If you were going to cause trouble, you should have done it properly! Was it you, perhaps?”

“Are you doubting me?! Seeing you say that, aren’t you the one who caused this whole thing!”

Therefore, even families hostile to the Duke’s family quickly prepared gifts as soon as the news of the banquet reached them.

They also prepared as much information as possible about the person the Duke’s family was patronizing.

…More precisely, they tried to prepare it.

“…You can’t find it? What do you think is the reason we hire your informants!”

“We can find it, but if we do, the Defense Force will come after us immediately, my lord.”

“The Defense Force? …Tsk. The Duke’s daughter, that bitch, played a trick.”

If only the Defense Force hadn’t been arresting informants who illegally stole others’ personal information, under the pretext of strengthening personal privacy protection.

Of course, it wasn’t wrong at all, as the Empire had outlawed the secret trading of personal information.

However, the mere fact that such a thing happened at such a time made it very easy to guess that the Duke’s daughter, the Defense Force Commander, was behind it.

And this happened not only in families hostile to the Duke’s family but in all families in the capital.

Therefore, the nobles naturally became curious.

Who was this person, and what abilities did they possess, for the Duke’s family to protect them like this?

Getting close to someone sponsored by the Duke’s family was meaningful in many ways.

There was a possibility of obtaining internal information about the Duke’s family… but even putting that aside,

The mere fact that they received the Duke’s family’s patronage meant they were a talent that appeared perhaps once in a hundred years.

And so, amidst the movements of the nobles, the time for the banquet arrived.

***

“Long time no see! Viscount Wanda!”

“Who would have thought, it’s Marquis Tooth!”

“Ehehe, what Marquis, what Marquis! Between us.”

The banquet hall echoed with voices from all directions.

Even banquets hosted by the Imperial Family didn’t attract so many nobles.

Of course, the Imperial Family’s banquet hall being much smaller and poorer than the Duke’s family’s was also a problem, but there were many nobles who rarely paid attention to Imperial events and power.

However, the Duke’s family’s banquet, held for the first time in over a decade, was enough to draw even those people.

But… that boisterous atmosphere quieted down with the appearance of just one person.

It was the appearance of the mansion’s owner, the head of the Duke’s family, and the Duke famous for his unique cunning.

If respect for the Duke’s family came from their immense private army, respect for the Duke himself came from his cunning.

Although his martial arts were not immensely powerful, somewhere between intermediate and advanced Knight level, not a single noble had ever profited from a negotiation with him.

“Welcome. To all here, I first extend my gratitude for attending.”

“”……””

An arrogant greeting, clearly condescending.

Some young nobles, young lords, and young ladies murmured at his words, but the older nobles remained silent.

Because they knew.

That not only the family of the person standing there, but also his individual ability, was strong enough to condescend to them.

“You will recall that there was a slight disturbance in the Duke’s family recently. Someone… infiltrated the mansion, aiming for my neck, it seems?”

The Duke’s voice was as emotionless and cold as ever.

An ordinary person would have roared, asking who dared to target them, but the Duke continued speaking in an emotionless voice, as if he wasn’t angry at all.

“Seeing that, it suddenly occurred to me that I had been too complacent in the capital. As I focused on resolving internal issues and development in my territory… it seems some have forgotten what kind of family the Duke’s family is.”

An even larger, more immense private army than before, and the funds to maintain it.

The current Duke negotiated with nobles and merchant guilds across the Empire to fund that private army.

And no noble family or merchant guild had ever managed to gain a proper advantage against the Duke.

Families that had been merchants for generations, as well as those currently running huge merchant guilds, had to sign contracts that they knew would result in a loss, even in front of the Duke.

Whenever a family or merchant guild faced a problem, the Duke would appear from somewhere with a carrot to solve it.

In the face of a carrot they had to bite, the whip of the Duke’s power, and finally, the fear that their family or merchant guild could disappear before the Duke’s private army at any moment…

No human was audacious enough to do the crazy thing of trying to cheat the Duke for their own profit.

Only the Imperial Family was on equal terms, or where the Duke’s family would even tolerate a slight loss.

“So, for the time being, I intend to stay in the capital for a while. Because then, they will be able to remember very easily and quickly once again.”

But… the Duke, possessing such cunning, formally declared.

That he would henceforth stay in the capital and plunge into the social and political scene.

That he would once again plunge into the world of nobles, which had been chaotic without the supreme authority of the Duke’s family.

“In that sense, I hope you enjoy today’s banquet. Although it is the first banquet… for some, it might be their last.”

Having said that, the Duke stepped back.

However, the banquet hall did not return to its previous boisterous atmosphere.

Because the Duke had openly declared that he would crush not only those who had acted as leaders in his absence… but also his opponents.

The freezing atmosphere only began to thaw a little when a girl appeared with him.

“Oh! Please, my heart…!”

“Shut up!!”

Smack!

…More precisely, from the moment the girl slapped the face of a young lord who was clinging to her with the glove she was wearing.