The pure white hall, decorated with flowers, was bright and very spacious. The number of servants in the imperial palace and the invited nobles was well over double digits, and it seemed they could dance in the center of the feast even if a long table was set up. I walked on the carpet from the entrance to the podium and quickly looked at the table. It was mainly greasy chicken dishes, and various other dishes were lined up like a buffet. Just looking at it made my mouth water. In fact, the engagement ceremony seemed like an excuse; I thought everyone had truly come to eat the imperial palace chef's food.
…But that's not the purpose today.
I looked up at Belial and Sen. Dressed in pure white dresses and tuxedos, they were a truly good match. What about the ring on the fourth finger? The light green emerald ring, which resembled Sen's eyes, was natural and beautiful, as if it had belonged to her from the beginning.
It's like sending your child to marry for nothing.
I felt a strange bitterness and moved my gaze to the blue system window.
[Current miracle figure 42.2%]
Perhaps because of Lorenz and my involvement, the miracle number had risen slightly. It was unusual that a small quest that wasn't delivered to me was dealt with, and it was going up every day.
[Kyle Jane Meinhardt, about 150 days before the expected time of death.]
Kyle's life expectancy had also increased significantly. Even though winter was over, it had been just over half a year. They say that good is good, but even so, it wasn't very long. It meant that all the dangers had not been eliminated yet.
"What do you need to know to be prepared…"
It was a cause for rejoicing that the confrontation between Kyle and Belial had turned into a domestic quarrel between the Duke's family. However, as the situation was, if someone's life expectancy had increased, someone else's life expectancy might have decreased. The problem was that no one knew if it would be Belial, Lorenz, or Sen. Especially in the case of Sen, who was out of character, even if something abnormal happened right now, I couldn't even ask the system. Like a swamp goat or a wyvern… I had become something outside the story.
I sighed deeply at the complexity, and Kyle, who was talking to another nobleman, spoke to me from behind. "What are you thinking so much about?"
"These are all thoughts helpful to Your Highness."
Okay. Would I be worried about anything else? It's all about Kyle, it's a worry that becomes your flesh and blood.
Just as I was about to think about it again, Kyle's hand stretched out from behind and gently squeezed my wrist. Then he put the wine glass back in the right direction.
"Oh…"
"I have two sets of clothes, but it would be troublesome to change into wine."
"Thank you."
He grinned low and let go of my wrist. I coughed as I covered Kyle's body temperature with the palm of my other hand.
"By the way, what kind of person is Prince Lorenz?"
Kyle didn't answer right away. Instead, he stared down at me as if asking me what I meant, and then slowly opened his mouth. "Believe what you see."
"I'm thinking a pretty irreverent thought."
Kyle smiled coldly. It was quite a different demeanor from what he had shown before. "I hope you're less than you think."
"Because it's that way."
Instead of answering, Kyle took the glass from my hand and took a sip of it. He didn't swallow it right away, but kept it in his mouth, waited for a while, swallowed it, and returned it to me.
"If you think about His Highness Lorenz's usual life, what he showed yesterday is quite radical. …did you come out in person?"
"You mean that we are about to go to all-out war, Your Highness Belial."
"Yes. Soon."
I don't know what the Emperor is doing to kill and torment people like this. Is it so great that not only the step-brother but also the younger brother who grew up with him is not afraid to antagonize him?
"Is it common for brothers to hurt each other because of the imperial throne?"
"It's more common than you think. They take their lives by borrowing the cruel blood of hunting."
It's a.
I decided not to ask how that 'hunting' works. Kyle didn't care about the throne anyway, and he wouldn't interfere.
In the meantime, preparations for the wedding vows were completed. The officiant, dressed in white, came to the stage with a solemn expression, and the wine, which was only served on the grand slope of the imperial family, was poured into two glasses side by side. It is said that in the Meinhardt Empire, the engagement ceremony is lavish, and the wedding ceremony is simple. At the engagement ceremony, which was held like a wedding, the two of them took vows face to face and drank wine. With that, they had already become a couple, and the wedding would end with a blessing in front of the archbishop.
"I ask His Highness Belial and Sen to read the proclamation."
At that, everyone fell silent all at once. The crowd around the podium looked at them intently, and I, along with Kyle, walked to a place where I could see Sen a little better.
"I, Belial Serena Meinhardt, accept Sen Lande as my wife and promise the following: First, we will be faithful and respectful to our life partners."
Maybe it was because there were a lot of arranged marriages, but it definitely sounded businesslike rather than saying that I would love you.
"Second…"
Belial thought about something and closed the manifesto. Then he looked clearly at Sen and Lorenz standing beyond Sen. "I will try to make you the noblest woman in this empire."
The surroundings began to stir. Some nobles' faces turned pale and tired.
"…The noblest woman?"
"It's not another expression, but you dare to tell that story at the engagement ceremony…"
"I thought it would be like this."
"Isn't it a declaration of war?"
"What is a declaration of war? Have you forgotten the symbol of the Empire? The lion symbolizes the strong. Isn't this kind of mettle befitting an emperor?"
A small confusion spread as the nobles who looked subtly uncomfortable mixed with those who were secretly happy. I quietly asked the system to interpret it.
What does it mean?
[Serena means Meinhardt, 'noble woman' in ancient language.]
Oh boy.
"So, you've announced your ambition to raise Sen to Serena."
Sen stared at Belial with a face that was not at all surprised, and it seemed that the two had planned the situation in advance. Belial continued, as if it didn't matter if there was any agitation from the people. "And thirdly, I pledge to protect you from any threat."
Sen replied in a calm voice. "I, Sen Lande, accept Belial Serena Meinhardt as my husband and promise the following."
Aside from Belial looking at Sen the whole time, Sen began the declaration and continued his oath while staring at the manifesto. It seemed as if only the marriage itself was important. Or I wanted it to look like that.
"Now you two can drink wine only at the most sublime moments of the imperial family."
Belial raised the glass first and drank the wine slowly. All he had to do was simply sniff it, hold it in his mouth for a while, check for poison, and swallow it slowly, just like Kyle did. However, Sen, who was not poison-resistant, inserted the prepared magic wand into the goblet at an angle. After that, she waited for a while and took it out to check the change in color.
"…What is this?"
"Color…"
An unparalleled confusion filled the banquet hall. It was because the sticks were dyed black. Wine that was only opened when there was an order from the emperor or when there was a big matter related to the imperial family, was poisonous. Even Sen, who had remained calm the entire time he had entered the banquet hall, looked at the bar with a puzzled expression.
It was that moment.
"How long have I been waiting for this moment?"
An eerie smile spread across the officiant's face, dressed in white. Soon, he reached into his jacket and pulled out the dagger he'd hidden. It was so fast that my eyes couldn't keep up. But even faster was Kyle's reaction speed as he stood next to me.
"Sen!"
At the same time that the officiant thrust the dagger forward, Kyle pulled Sen's arm and changed position. Everything happened so quickly that it was overwhelming for me just to follow the situation with my eyes. A sharp blade slashed deep into Kyle's arm. The red blood fell to the floor, and the nobles screamed.
"…That, the guards! Call the Guards!"
"What are the knights doing?"
However, the uproar had already ignited. The officiant was not embarrassed, but at the same time, with a meaningful smile, those who were disguised as servants took out cutlery knives, forks, or knives hidden in their waistbands and began attacking the nobles. People screamed and ran away, and food and alcohol on the table shattered on the floor, and a series of sharp cracks rang out.
"Someone is trying to kill you!"
"Protect Prince Belial and Baron Young-ae right now!"
But it wasn't the servants or Belial who stopped him. Kyle, a cold, expressionless person, stepped forward in front of Sen and glared at him with red eyes.
"I don't need it. I'll deal with it."
[Kyle looked down at his belly, and red blood erupted from where the dagger had slipped out, and the blood splattered on the tender hand holding the dagger and on the pure white dress worn by its owner.]
[Sen looked at Kyle with a crying expression, but his green eyes sunk resolutely, as if he didn't regret what he had done.]
…I had forgotten. How could I have forgotten? Complacent about the fact that Kyle's expected time of death had been increased, he forgot that Sen attacked Kyle during the engagement ceremony, and Kyle was mortally wounded as a result.
I felt like I was crying.
Why are you telling me this now?
But unlike me, who was agitated, Kyle was calm.
"How dare you try to harm the people of the land in front of Blake's master."
He was unarmed, and he didn't have a sword in his hand, but no matter what kind of sword he carried, he would look weaker than him. Kyle Blake's eyes sunk with determination. He had a complicated expression. But what was clear was that he never regretted this choice. Even if he dies while covering Sen.
Fates were swirling and mingling.