Chapter 114

Discord and Bonds

Queen Marceline ground her teeth involuntarily. She ground them so hard that her jaw ached, yet even that did nothing to satisfy her anger.

Just as she ground them again...

"How did this happen, Your Highness?"

A woman's intoxicating voice came from the darkness, soft yet deadly. Slowly, her figure emerged, starting with her legs.

"The bribe failed, the drug failed, the brainwashing failed, and even the Great One's whispers proved useless..."

The woman's face came into view. Her beauty, at once alluring and intimidating, froze Queen Marceline for an instant.

"There is a traitor among us. That is the only conclusion we can reach."

The woman's eyes—Luseria's eyes—flashed for a moment.

"With that in mind, I have a question for you, Your Highness."

"..."

"Did you truly lose the funds at the tea party?"

"Are you accusing me?"

"It is rather too convenient."

Luseria continued slowly, as though studying the Queen's reaction.

"Of all the money to suddenly lose, it had to be ours."

"..."

"While the funds we gave you personally remain entirely intact."

"... Are you saying I lied?"

"If that is not the case..."

Luseria tilted her head slightly, a cold smile settling on her face.

"Perhaps you are secretly working with that man, Adrian."

"What are you—!"

"Adrian's actions at the banquet and the salon were deliberate. As though he knew every detail of our plans."

Queen Marceline fell silent. She agreed with that assessment herself.

"We had no choice but to consider the possibility that you were conspiring with him. Particularly given that you, Your Highness, lost the funds at the tea party."

"What about the possibility of a leak on your side? Have you not even considered that?"

"Well, I suppose that could be."

Luseria shrugged.

"But a leak on our side... Well, now."

She paused, looking thoughtful for a moment, then continued with a brief smile.

"I don't believe that would be possible."

"What remarkable trust."

"Rather than trust, I meant quite literally that it is 'not possible'... Though if you wish to call that trust, I suppose it is."

"So what is your point?"

"That the festivities are not over yet."

Luseria's gaze suddenly sharpened.

"The ball still remains."

Darkness slowly enveloped her. When it dispersed, she was nowhere to be seen, but...

"You must succeed."

Her final words lingered in Queen Marceline's ears like an echo from the dark.

* * *

The tea party, the banquet, the salon, and the concert. I had managed to thwart every scheme Queen Marceline had planned before it could get anywhere.

'There's only one event left now...'

The ball. The crowning glory of the social gathering, its most important event and grand finale.

Unfortunately, I hadn't been able to learn what they had planned for it. I considered sneaking in again with Assimilation[C+] to find out, but decided against it.

'I could get caught.'

The genetic material for Assimilation[C+] was still incomplete. Luseria had nearly discovered me last time. I had already aroused suspicion once; if I rashly snuck in and got caught, I would be the one whose plans fell apart.

That didn't mean I intended to sit idly by while those two held their secret meetings. I had deliberately made my actions obvious, as though I knew their inside information.

With the Sovereign of Darkness orchestrating all this, Luseria wouldn't entertain the possibility of a leak on her side. That was, quite literally, impossible.

In other words, Luseria could only conclude that Queen Marceline had leaked the information. The discord between them would deepen. Discord would become cracks, cracks would become gaps, and those gaps would eventually lead to collapse.

It didn't matter if I couldn't find out what they were plotting for the ball.

A member of the special task force under the allied army's Operations Command. Chief of Covert Operations in the special warfare unit. I had the experience of countless missions behind me, and instincts honed by walking the line between life and death on countless battlefields.

No matter how skilled Queen Marceline might be at political intrigue, she was still in the palm of my hand. Politics wasn't my specialty, but the battlefield was my domain.

Above all, the Sovereign of Darkness could no longer be a wild card for me.

Successor's Will[EX].

Whatever unexpected factors came into play, I could handle them.

If it came down to it... I could simply put a stop to the ball itself. By blowing away the stage with Wrath of The Frenzied Dragon[L], for example. Then it wouldn't matter what tricks they tried.

'Not a bad idea.'

Just as that thought crossed my mind...

◆A Connection Quest, [Tonight's Star Is Me, Me!], has arrived.

A quest notification suddenly appeared before my eyes. A 'Connection' Quest, at that—a type I'd never seen before...

'What?'

... What was this supposed to be, all of a sudden?

* * *

In one of the palace's guest suites, Seraphia lay facedown on her bed and let out a deep sigh.

'I wasn't any help at all...'

The social gathering turning into a complete mess was a problem in itself, but quite apart from that, she hadn't accomplished anything. Adrian, on the other hand, was a different story. He had been a star from the tea party onward.

After all, he was the owner of the Predator Merchant Company, the only person on the continent distributing monster meat.

Then there was the recent uproar at the palace. Adrian's bold refusal to back down even before a prince, and the incredible skill with which he'd beaten the Royal Knights' deputy commander like a dog, had only enhanced his reputation. He was immensely popular with the young noblewomen, too.

And that wasn't all. At the banquet, he had unveiled an extraordinary product called 'peanut wine.' At the salon, he had demonstrated tremendous intellect, thoroughly outclassing a distinguished court mage named Floyd in a debate.

Compared to Adrian...

'I'm so inadequate...'

Seraphia hadn't done a thing.

Just as another bitter sigh escaped her...

KNOCK, KNOCK.

"May I come in?"

Adrian's voice came without warning, making her flinch.

"... Oh, yes! Come in!"

Seraphia smoothed her disheveled hair and quickly sat up properly. The door slowly opened, and Adrian entered.

"What were you doing?"

"Just resting... What brings you here?"

Adrian moved on without making anything of it.

"Did you bring a dress for the ball, the next event?"

"... Pardon? Oh, yes."

Seraphia nodded.

The ball was the most important event of the social gathering. Her dress for it had to be even more impressive than what she wore to the other events.

"I did bring one, but..."

"Then put it on and come out."

"Right now...?"

So suddenly?

While Seraphia was still floundering in confusion, Adrian had already left the room.

* * *

Once outside, I checked the Connection Quest's details again.

==[Tonight's Star Is Me, Me!] ==

[Details] - Ensure Seraphia makes a successful debut.

[Reward] - Unlock the 「Bond Tier」 for Seraphia's affinity.

[If Declined] - ???

First, the reward: unlocking the 「Bond Tier」. That was clearly related to affinity.

'Bond Tier?'

But I didn't really know what that meant.

Until now, affinity had consisted of three tiers: Conflict, Neutral, and Interest.

The Conflict Tier contained the states [Hatred, Loathing, Anger, Conflict].

The Neutral Tier contained [Indifference].

The Interest Tier contained [Closeness, Friendliness, Trust, Affection].

So the Bond 'Tier' couldn't simply mean another [state]—

◆Curious about what the Bond Tier is?!

... No, that wasn't it. I was just—

◆Then it's only right that I give you an answer!!

Had staying quiet all this time left it desperate to talk? Apparently deciding this was its chance, it blithely ignored my opinion and sent a stream of messages cascading before my eyes.

◆A bond is, you might say, the ultimate destination of a relationship!

◆The 「Bond Tier」 is the final tier of affinity.

◆In other words, it comes after the 「Interest Tier」!

◆Does that mean you can unlock it with just anyone?!

◆Not in a million years! Not in a billion!

◆In short, that's utter fucking bullshit!

◆It only unlocks for someone whose affinity has reached its 'limit'! Fact!

◆It can also only be unlocked through a special event! Fact!

◆Miss that opportunity, and you might never unlock it in your entire life! Fact!

◆The harder a bond is to forge, the richer the rewards! Fact!

◆You receive a 'Bond Skill'! Fact!

◆And that's not all! Fact!

◆Don't be surprised! Fact!

◆You can also learn the past of the person you've bonded with! Fact!

◆You can even discover the emotions they're trying so hard to hide! Fact!

◆Which means you can 'win them over'! Fact!

◆I know what you're thinking! Fact!

◆You have such a dirty mind! Fact!

◆Anyway, unlocking the 「Bond Tier」! Fact!

◆Means you can take your relationship with that person in an entirely different direction! Fact!

◆Of course, just as there are all kinds of relationships, there are all kinds of bonds! Fact!

◆Bonds between family! Bonds between lovers! Fact!

◆Bonds between comrades! Bonds between master and pupil! Fact!

◆Bonds between rivals! Bonds between sovereign and subject! Fact!

◆Which of these bonds do you want to pursue with this person?! Fact?!

... At the very least, it was definitely insane. Apparently, when I'd acquired Berserk[?], it had acquired Berserk Fuss[?]. There was simply no other explanation for that level of fuss.

... Anyway. This quest had evidently unlocked because Seraphia's affinity had reached its 'limit' earlier. I didn't particularly need to complete it, but—

The penalty for declining was ???. Fact.

I'd seen ??? as a reward before, but never as a penalty. Fact.

It seemed to have something to do with the Sovereign of Darkness. Fact.

That made it hard to turn down lightly. Fact.

Which meant I couldn't put a stop to the ball itself. Fact.

Therefore—

◆Starting Connection Quest [Tonight's Star Is Me, Me!]. Fact.

And somehow...

... I seemed to be slowly losing my mind, too. Fact.

* * *

A little later, Seraphia cracked open her door and poked her head out.

"Brother... I'm ready."

Feeling inexplicably shy, she carefully opened the door and stepped outside.

"H-how do I look...?"

Adrian looked her up and down. Then came his verdict...

"The design is good."

"Really?!"

Her face instantly lit up.

But then he added,

"Only the design."

Her bright expression darkened again.

"The dress doesn't fit you."

Seraphia looked down at the dress and bit her lip slightly. The waist was indeed too roomy, and the loose sleeves slipped down. The fabric gaped awkwardly at her chest. The upper part in particular shifted with even the slightest movement, refusing to stay in place. Overall, it didn't fit her figure, and as a result, it didn't suit her.

"I've never worn anything like this before..."

She looked thoroughly dejected as she answered.

And then...

"Take it off."

"... Pardon?"

Seraphia blinked her red eyes. Her face abruptly flushed scarlet, burning hot.

"N-n-n-now...! H-h-here—!"

"There's a lot to alter, so hurry up and take it off, then come back out."

"Oh...?"

For a moment, her expression froze as though she'd malfunctioned.

"Oh! Oh, yes! I'll go change!"

Seraphia scurried back into her room.

* * *

Marble shone brilliantly, as though it held the light of a thousand stars. Golden light spilled from an enormous chandelier. Splendor and nobility coexisted in the palace ballroom.

To the melodies of the court orchestra, young noblewomen made their entrances one by one. The ball—the final event of the court social gathering.

It was a glorious occasion on which they would present themselves to the Queen and make their debut in noble society, so the young ladies had pulled out all the stops.

Some had lost weight solely for this day. Some had stopped eating and drinking to achieve the perfect silhouette in their dresses. Some had spent tens of thousands of gold on skin care. Having poured every last ounce of their souls into their preparations, the young ladies were truly radiant.

But then the ballroom doors opened, and a girl with silver hair appeared, glowing with a fresh radiance...

"Ah...!"

"Oh...!"

All conversation and movement ceased, as though even everyone's breath had frozen.