Masquerade Ball (5)

Among the maxims that circulated in online communities in my previous life, there was a saying that went something like this:

Compared to people in the past, modern people don’t get hit at home or at school, and proportionally, their manners have deteriorated.

It was said that if you knew there was a possibility of getting beaten anywhere, anytime, you’d naturally develop some manners. Conversely, if you didn’t have to worry about getting hit, your personality would turn into trash.

Thinking about it now, it was half right and half wrong.

I somewhat agreed that modern people’s manners had deteriorated because they no longer faced the threat of physical punishment.

But now, I didn’t think it was solely a modern problem.

“You came and bumped into me! What are you going to do about this?!”

“……”

Whether modern or medieval, a bastard who grew up without ever worrying about getting hit simply had no manners.

I was witnessing that eternal truth in real-time right before my eyes.

The moment I saw the crazy bitch shamelessly playing the victim after bumping into me, all sorts of curses rose to my throat.

But then, the good Lilith inside me immediately popped out and calmed down the scoundrel Lilith’s personality.

‘Hold it in, hold it in. If I draw attention here for no reason, it’ll just get more troublesome.’

I had already done something unnecessary and caught Ethan’s attention when I entered the Imperial Palace today.

If I couldn’t hold back and fought back, getting angry would feel good in the moment, but the consequences would be obvious.

It was easiest to just endure it and move on rather than cause a commotion.

If the other party were to reveal their status and persistently interrogate me, I, a commoner, would likely be at a great disadvantage.

While it was impossible to force someone to reveal their status at a Masquerade Ball, if a noble truly set their mind to it, finding out was easier than drinking cold soup.

‘In that situation, Ethan’s help… would probably be hard to expect.’

If I were truly Ethan’s fiancée and this argument broke out, and I revealed all my cards, it wouldn’t be impossible to pressure the opponent using the Blackwood Family’s status.

The problem was that I wasn’t actually his fiancée; I was just acting as one.

And I had already calculated that Ethan wouldn’t actively protect me if a slightly more troublesome situation arose. So, acting like a mad dog and arguing back in this situation was a very dangerous move for Lilith.

No matter how much I was an exclusive maid, I was still just a commoner maid subservient to a family.

He wouldn’t want to cause trouble with another noble family just to protect one maid.

Especially if he couldn’t be sure of the opponent’s exact status.

Unless Ethan truly had deep affection for me, it was hard to expect him to feel an inner closeness to an exclusive maid who had tried to strangle him in his childhood.

Having thus quickly assessed my position and status in my mind.

I quickly gathered as much information as possible about the brazen woman in front of me with my eyes.

Just in case this woman was a major character in 『Luminor Academy』, or someone related to it.

‘She has the air of a noble, but she doesn’t seem to have grown up in a very strict household. Judging by her hair color, she doesn’t seem to be from a major family either.’

In 『Luminor Academy』, nobles referred to as major families usually had distinct family traits or hair colors, making them easy to distinguish.

For example, the Blackwood Family’s lineage was clearly characterized by black hair and black eyes, fitting their name.

And if there was a major noble family with sky-blue hair like that woman, it would probably be the Azeria Family or the August Family.

However, it was a bit difficult to assume the woman in front of me was from either of those two families.

First, the Azeria Family was a noble family of the Serendia Kingdom, not the Argentia Empire, so they wouldn’t have attended the 3rd Princess’s Birthday Banquet.

And the notable members of the August Family were few, and since they were villains, I knew each of them individually.

‘It strangely feels like I’ve seen her somewhere before, though.’

Of course, if she wasn’t clearly etched in my memory after 2000 hours of gameplay, she was probably just a supporting character or an extra.

In short, the conclusion was that this woman herself was not a high-ranking noble to begin with.

Of course, whether the opposing noble’s rank was high or low, the mere fact that they were a noble was a strong pressure on Lilith, so it didn’t really matter.

‘Even a low-ranking noble is infinitely higher than a commoner.’

The most amicable solution would be to handle it as smoothly as possible and end the commotion without revealing names or families.

Who was more at fault and who suffered greater damage wasn’t a very important factor in this world’s judgment.

In a medieval fantasy world, the most important factor when determining right and wrong was power, and the second was usually wealth or military might.

I had none of those; I was just a commoner debt maid.

If it were people of similar status, they might truly be able to determine right and wrong based on who was more at fault, but that wasn’t an option for me in this situation.

Having assessed the situation in a fleeting moment, I began to ‘persuade’ the noble lady, who was speaking with a brazen expression, while suppressing my emotions as much as possible.

“Shit-.”

“……?”

…Oops, a mistake.

“-Sh-Lady, I apologize for startling you. My shoulder accidentally bumped into your hand, and now your beautiful glove is ruined with cocktail.”

‘You brought your hand to my shoulder, and now you’re acting like the victim? The audacity!’

“You just tried to say something….”

“However, thanks to the cocktail that spilled from your hand, my dress is also stained. How about we consider this incident a mutual mistake and simply move past it, instead of getting upset?”

‘My damage is greater, but let’s just end this quietly without drawing ugly attention.’

“No, more importantly, you just….”

“And, if a noble lady raises her voice carelessly outside, her upbringing might be questioned. If a quarrel were to break out at a lovely banquet like Her Royal Highness the 3rd Princess’s birthday, how sad would Her Royal Highness be?”

‘Don’t yell like a country bumpkin outside without any manners. The Princess would just love to see her guests fighting at her birthday party, wouldn’t she?’

I suppressed the words I wanted to say in my heart and conveyed my message as indirectly as possible.

And it seemed she had received some mandatory noble education, as she understood what I said to some extent.

“…Alright. Oh, well, I suppose there’s no other choice. I’ll have to graciously forgive you this time with mercy.”

…Well, it seems I managed to quietly defuse this commotion for now.

Then, all I had to do was quietly leave the spot as if nothing had happened.

The stain on my dress could be wiped off with a handkerchief. Fortunately, it was a dark red dress, so the stain didn’t show much.

Thinking that, I tried to end the conversation and naturally walk away, but then.

“…Young lady, what is this behavior in front of me?”

…It seemed my partner had no intention of letting this situation pass.

“Wh-what is it, you?”

“That’s what I’d like to ask. About your brazen attitude, not content with merely dirtying my partner’s dress, but even demanding an apology from her.”

“My, my glove got dirty too! Because your partner wasn’t paying proper attention…!”

“It was you who wasn’t paying proper attention. In a situation where a shoulder and a hand collide, isn’t it naturally the fault of the hand, which can move much more freely? Especially when holding a glass with a drink, you should have been even more careful.”

“Th-that’s….”

“Furthermore, your glove merely got dirty and can be changed in a moment, but my partner’s only dress was soiled. It seems clear that you, not my partner, are the one who should apologize. Such a brazen attitude, I simply cannot tolerate.”

…Why is Ethan suddenly acting like this?

I had just managed to handle it well on my own and was about to move on smoothly, so why was he suddenly drawing a crowd and causing a commotion again?

With Ethan’s sudden ‘partner protection,’ the atmosphere of the banquet hall instantly shifted towards us.

And it seemed I wasn’t the only one flustered by the gathering gazes.

“Wh-what….”

“……”

“What nonsense are you speaking?! I merely graciously accepted the apology your partner already admitted to! And by what right do you say you cannot tolerate me?!”

The sky-haired lady seemed surprised by the sudden attention but still refused to back down.

Judging by her attitude, it was clear that she didn’t know Ethan’s true identity.

It was quite astonishing that she could speak so boldly without knowing the opponent’s identity.

…Strange, if there was a noble lady with this kind of personality, she would have appeared at least once or twice in the game.

I didn’t recall ever seeing a character like this among the supporting characters or villains.

Also, her voice wasn’t familiar, which meant she didn’t have a voice actor, so she was at best a supporting character.

If only I could take off her mask, I could confirm it in detail, but the current situation made that impossible, which was truly regrettable.

“D-do you know who I am?! What confidence do you have to be so rude?!”

“If I knew who you were, would the one at fault change?”

“At the very least, you would have to retract the insults you hurled at me. Even if this banquet is a Masquerade Ball, it would be troublesome to think that your actions can simply be overlooked.”

…Well, I think it can be overlooked.

At least among the guests attending this banquet, the only person of higher status than Ethan would be Princess Seraphine.

Moreover, the Blackwood Family was a ducal family with considerable power even among other ducal families.

I didn’t recall any noble family with sky-blue hair that had more influence than the Blackwood Family.

Among families with sky-blue hair, at best, the House of August, the Border Count, might have some significant power.

Even if that were the case, the August Family appeared as villains in the game.

Which meant that even if I made an enemy of them now, it wouldn’t be a problem later.

Just as the thought that she was making a huge blunder crossed my mind, the sky-haired lady continued speaking with utmost confidence.

Curious about what she would say, Ethan and I decided to listen to her babbling.

“First, you. Your hairstyle and voice aren’t familiar to me, so you’re certainly not a prominent noble, are you?”

“……”

“Let me make it clear to you, who seems excited to attend Princess Seraphine’s Masquerade Ball. Just because it’s a masquerade where names and statuses are hidden doesn’t mean status holds no meaning at all….”

“…I’ve never seen you before today, but I never imagined a lady from a family that could insult a Blackwood Family partner and then make them beg for forgiveness would be present here.”

“……Black……wood?”

As soon as the Blackwood Family’s name came out of Ethan’s mouth, the sky-haired lady stopped speaking and cautiously mumbled the family name Ethan had uttered.

Judging by that reaction, it seemed she hadn’t imagined at all that my partner was from the Blackwood Family.

“…Blackwood?”

“Then, is that man, perhaps….”

“He looks different from the rumors…?”

No, to be precise, most of the people in the banquet hall didn’t seem to know.

Indeed, if I were in the position of those nobles, I probably wouldn’t have thought of it either.

Ethan’s appearance was last publicly known about three years ago, right after he recovered from his illness.

So, for most people here, only the image of a short, fat Ethan would have been famous.

They probably wouldn’t immediately recognize that clean-cut man, who had lost weight and gained muscle, as Ethan Richard Blackwood.

“D-don’t impersonate him…! There was clearly only one child in the Blackwood Family….”

“Yes, just me. My father never took a second wife or concubine after my mother’s passing.”

“And that only son was clearly, quite plump in physique….”

“That was a shameful period of my foolish youth. It’s a past I wish to forget, so may I take your mentioning it as an insult to me?”

“……”

“You seemed to have quite a lot to say, but you’ve suddenly gone quiet.”

As soon as Ethan mentioned Blackwood, the lady was cornered and averted her gaze.

Judging by that situation, I could fully predict how this argument would end.

At the very least, that ‘unforgivable incident’ she spoke of would indeed occur.

Anyway, she really did seem like a character I’d seen somewhere before.

Where on earth did I see her….