Chapter 34 - Tea Party

Ferda was a noble.

He had been born into the knightly House Rosnova.

By title, he was a viscount, and his family had been a vassal house of Duke Houston.

As befitted an honorable knightly house, Ferda had been strictly taught basic etiquette.

Though he had been driven out of his family under the name of the Grand Duchess's fiancé, by clawing his way up to become a Great Mage, he had been able to gain a position no less than that of a high noble.

Even so, Ferda was far removed from social circles.

In House Rosnova, he had no opportunities because he was an illegitimate child, and when he was a Great Mage, he refused to mingle.

'I never put anything prepared by someone else into my mouth.'

After he had nearly been poisoned to death several times, he never touched food prepared for him by another person.

That remained true even when his body became one that could no longer be killed by poison.

Rather than strengthening human relationships, his strategy had been to drive people with hatred and then throw them away.

So this was the first tea party of Ferda's life.

One hour before the tea party,

"This is the game room where Lord Ferda and my lady will be able to enjoy various leisure activities after your marriage. The tea party will be held here."

Luri guided Ferda to the appointed place first and explained things to him one by one.

Since it was Ferda's role to escort her, she made sure he was aware of his surroundings as much as possible in advance.

Ferda turned his gaze toward the terrace.

"It has a view of the west."

"It is a room arranged so you can focus on leisure, after all."

The atmosphere was certainly different.

The Land of Demons, gloomy in color even when the sun rose, naturally made one's thoughts grow heavy, but this place simply felt peaceful.

It was the perfect place to feel at ease while watching the setting sun.

"And the tea party will be held here."

Two chairs and one table had been set out so they could enjoy the view from the terrace.

On top were two teacups matching the number of people, a tiered tray treated with cooling magic, and decorated desserts.

They were gorgeous things he had never seen before.

"What are these sweets?"

"Macarons, Mont Blanc, pastries... things with all sorts of names. From among the roughly 150 desserts that pâtissiers from the imperial court can make, I selected twenty."

"I see."

Ferda was about to let it pass, thinking she must have gone through quite a bit of trouble, when he suddenly found himself chewing over what she had said.

If she had selected them herself...

"Does that mean you tasted them yourself?"

"Is that not obvious?"

"All 150 of them?"

When he emphasized that, Luri wore an offended expression.

"I know what you are thinking. Do you think I stuffed myself just to satisfy my own selfish desires?"

"Is that not obvious?"

Ferda answered honestly.

Since Ferda had seen Luri eating honey preserves with relish in Escolaia, he could not deny it.

Luri's face crumpled sharply.

"What a rude thought. I made many preparations for this tea party. While worrying over whether I had missed anything, I savored them one more time and carefully selected them before presenting them. There is no hardship like this hardship, and you cannot understand that?"

All he heard was that she had eaten 300 desserts.

Her face was so calm that ordinary people would have been completely fooled.

Even the suspicious Ferda might have been fooled by that ironclad expression.

If only she had not made one decisive mistake.

"There is powdered sugar on your mouth."

At Ferda's words, Luri swept a finger over her lips.

White powder came away from her mouth.

She glanced at it, then naturally popped it into her mouth.

"I merely needed to determine whether there was poison or not. My lady would not fall to some pathetic poison, but Lord Ferda, you are human."

"I see."

"You do not believe me. Surely you are not treating me like a pig?"

"There is no way you could be a pig, is there? Your loyalty is like a dog's... if I had to say."

Ferda gave a small nod.

"You would be a pig-dog."

"Please, just once, tell me to hit you. I beg you."

Luri looked utterly furious.

As Ferda did not enjoy pain, he had no reason to say such a thing.

Then Luri glanced at the sun and took a step back.

It was almost time for the appointment.

"I will bring my lady here. In the meantime..."

Luri sent him a fierce look.

"Please do not touch the tray."

"Do not worry."

'Because I am not you.'

Luri stepped out through the game room door to bring Valdrova.

Ferda waited quietly for Valdrova.

'This will be our second meeting.'

The meetings in Ferda's memory amounted only to having seen her face.

At the first engagement ceremony, all he had seen was her chin, and when she had been unable to control her surging blood, Ferda had not been in his right mind.

This would be the first time they had a proper conversation.

'The first time...'

The emotion that suddenly came to him was helplessness.

'What should I say first...?'

Ferda touched his lips with his hand.

If it had been an ordinary meeting, he could have naturally gone along with the mood.

The reason for this meeting now stemmed from Valdrova's anxiety.

And Ferda was in a state where he had no answer for that.

So he had called a man with experience in this field, Zed Swallow.

["That, sir? It would be best to simply pretend you do not know."]

Zed Swallow.

He was a man who had seduced many women while living as a womanizer.

["There is no need to explain anything; you just have to show it through your actions. There is no need to pointlessly drag down the mood by saying depressing things there, is there? Just pretend you do not know and try to lift the mood."]

Ferda thought that made sense.

It would be better to apologize for making her feel he was sick of her, but she likely would not want such a depressing mood at a tea party like this.

'Pretending not to know may be the best answer.'

Not bringing the problem to the surface was also one method.

What mattered in the end was ensuring Grand Duchess Valdrova did not feel anxious.

Ferda steeled himself and waited for her.

"My lady is entering."

Luri's voice came from outside the door.

At the same time, the door opened.

Ferda welcomed her with the greeting he had prepared.

"Welco—"

Ferda's words caught in his throat.

Even Ferda could not help being flustered when he saw that.

Red hair and golden eyes.

Her face, so beautiful that to capture it in a painting would itself have been an insult.

Was nowhere to be seen.

'A dragon knight?'

The one who entered through the door was a single dragon knight.

A helmet and armor designed to stimulate humanity's innate fear.

Of course, instead of that fear, bewilderment had settled in Ferda.

At the same time, he felt a sense of déjà vu from the armor.

'I wondered where I had seen it before, and it was at the engagement ceremony.'

It was the armor he had seen when he left after overturning the engagement wine and receiving a scolding.

That meant the one inside had to be Valdrova.

Why had she come out wearing that armor?

Ferda glanced at Luri, who stood behind her.

Their eyes met.

Luri stared at him intently, then shook her head as she was.

It was a gesture that said, please, do not ask.

Having finished thinking, Ferda politely offered his respects again.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, my sovereign."

At that, both hands demurely came together, and the dragon-headed helmet dipped forward slightly.

Her behavior felt like that of an awkward young lady who had just made her debut in society.

CLANK, CLANK.

She stepped stiffly onto the carpet, entered, and sat down across from Ferda.

CREEEAK.

The chair was screaming.

Despite the armor being quite heavy, the chair held up well without breaking.

'As if nothing happened...'

Ferda recalled Zed's advice and opened his mouth.

"I am very pleased that you proposed this occasion first."

Nod.

What came back was only a single dip of her head.

An awkward silence settled over them.

With that silence at its center, everything stopped.

Cold sweat broke out, and even breathing became difficult.

Ferda struggled to open his mouth again and tried to lead the conversation.

"That armor befits the dignity of a dragon."

Nod.

She answered by nodding her head once more.

"How have you been?"

"..."

He had thrown out a topic that she could not answer without speaking.

Valdrova made a circle with her index finger and thumb.

"You have been well. I am glad."

Nod.

Ferda felt as though he might die.

He wanted to sigh and release the tension, but he did not dare do even that.

The tension in his chest boiled up, yet it only made him feel stifled, like a tightly sealed iron pot.

In the midst of that, Luri poured brewed tea into the cups while thoroughly playing the role of part of the scenery.

He should at least moisten his parched throat.

Ferda picked up a cup.

'Come to think of it, did the helmet have a drinking port?'

He suddenly looked to see what she would do.

She sat still, her gaze lowered to the floor.

"Can you eat and drink even while wearing that armor?"

"..."

She rubbed her helmet, then tapped the area around the lips.

Then, as if she had suddenly realized something, she raised her head.

It was an action that suggested she had not thought that far.

"How about taking it off?"

Shake, shake!

She fiercely refused.

He could feel her will not to show her face no matter what.

Even Ferda, who had been trying to continue the conversation while pretending nothing was wrong, began to find this awkward current difficult.

'She proposed a tea party, yet she will not eat or drink...'

If she had at least talked, it would have been less awkward, but she was even refusing to converse.

'She must be angry after all.'

Valdrova had been made to think until now that Ferda was sick of her.

He had made her anxious, and yet here he was trying to play it off.

He was a truly pathetic man beyond measure.

That was why Ferda decided to apologize to her.

"I am sorry."

CLANK!

Valdrova's armor jolted greatly.

"I dared to cause Your Highness worry, yet I was playing it off like this. It was a pathetic thought. The very first thing I should have done was apologize..."

"..."

"You may criticize me. I was the one at fault, so whatever you say—"

"Th-That isn't true!"

Ferda was startled.

The sound rang out loudly inside the helmet.

He felt a gap from the way she spoke, but that was not what startled him.

It was the voice itself.

What burst out from inside the helmet was the heavy voice of a warrior.

"It's..."

Valdrova also seemed surprised by her own voice and covered the mouth area of the helmet.

"It's... the reason I wasn't speaking... isn't because I was angry or because you did anything wrong, Mr. Ferda."

The head of the frightening dragoon armor fidgeted its fingers as if embarrassed.

"I, I just could not t-talk to you, Mr. Ferda... so I could not answer... th-that's all..."

"Ah."

Only then did Ferda recall something.

It was what Luri had told him at the engagement ceremony.

'Social anxiety.'

Humans were difficult for her.

Yes.

He knew that, so why had he thought she was angry?

He had been so focused on his own problem that he had forgotten what she carried.

"I am sorry. I was thoughtless. Please forgive me."

"No. I should be the one apologizing... I called you here like this and then kept my mouth shut..."

"No, I..."

They only repeated apologies to each other, and then the conversation abruptly died.

In the sunken atmosphere, Ferda did not dare open his mouth.

He secretly searched for any magic that could break this silence.

"Um..."

Valdrova, whose tongue had loosened, brought up a topic with difficulty.

"The reason... I wore this armor..."

Ferda waited so she could finish speaking.

"Luri said... everything shows on my face."

Ferda tilted his head at that answer.

"When you say everything shows on your face?"

"When I am in human form... they say it all shows in my expression. So... when I look at you, Mr. Ferda, I did not have confidence about what kind of expression I would be making..."

After hesitating, she finally finished her sentence.

"So I wore ittt."

The end of her sentence whistled away, and Valdrova covered her mouth with both hands.

"It is truly... foolish... is it not?"

The heavy voice of a warrior trembled delicately.

By watching her behavior, he could feel it clearly.

How hard it was for her to hide her own emotions.

'Truly...'

To be unable to hide meant she was pure.

Because she was so pure, even if she covered herself in a shell and spoke in a heavy voice, she could not hide even the essence he had felt with his heart.

'Beautiful.'

That was why she was beautiful.

Ferda answered her question.

"It is not. Even I am trembling right now, even at this very moment."

Valdrova raised her head and looked at Ferda.

He felt her eyes sweeping over him.

"Liar."

Valdrova said that.

"Pardon?"

"You say that, but you are not trembling much at all... I am stuttering and everything, but you look perfectly fine, Mr. Ferda."

"That is because I want to look good in front of you. I am forcing myself to pretend I am not trembling."

"Is that so?"

She reacted as if she could not understand.

Since Valdrova had confessed her embarrassment, it was now Ferda's turn to confess.

"The reason I have not been able to look at you lately was because I, too, was afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"There is darkness dwelling in the mana within me."

"Darkness...?"

"Yes. Darkness dwells in my mana. So I was worried that this darkness might harm Your Highness. That is why..."

Ferda's eyes turned toward her again.

His blue eyes shone like sapphires.

"I did not have the confidence to look at you."

"..."

There was no answer.

After hearing those words, Valdrova fidgeted with her fingers and repeatedly clenched and unclenched her fists.

It was as if she were trying to suppress some rising emotion.

"Mr. Ferda..."

And a voice that tried to restrain itself.

"You were worried about me?"

"Yes. It was presumptuous of me, was it not?"

"No. That is... I am a little happy..."

Only then did he see it.

All of those actions were like those of a delicate woman.

"That makes you happy?"

The threatening helmet dipped lightly.

"Until now, except for Luri, I have never thought that anyone worried about me... because people think I am strong. I actually am, too. But... you are afraid I might get hurt, Mr. Ferda. So... strangely, that makes me happy."

She placed a hand on her chest and composed her emotions.

"What you gave me back then, Mr. Ferda..."

The day she had been suffering from uncontrollable surging blood,

"What I felt... was a sensation I had never felt even once before."

Valdrova traced back her memories of that day in a sentimental voice.

"Something cozy and warm circulating through my body... I think, if someone were to hug me, it might feel like that. There is no way something like that could make me worse, is there?"

"Is... that so?"

"Yes."

Her hands fidgeted once more.

Her legs twisted around each other.

In contrast to her solemn tone, her girlish actions were far too obvious.

"I am so happy just being here like this. I am so very happy in this moment, facing you, Mr. Ferda... I am so happy that..."

Valdrova's voice cut off sharply.

"Ah."

As if she had realized something she had not been conscious of.

"Are you all right?"

"Um... I, I am sorry, but... m-may I stand up...?"

"Pardon?"

"I, it's just, I, if I stay, a-any longer, I, I think I will, s-scream, and that would be a nuisance, so, I, I'm sor..."

Valdrova trembled and did not know what to do.

"I'm sorryyy!"

With an apology, she threw herself straight off the terrace.

Ferda and Luri quietly looked down from there.

At a glance, it was a height dizzyingly far from the ground.

However, neither of them thought Valdrova would be hurt.

Luri, who had only been standing like part of the scenery, opened her mouth.

"Well, I suppose this is enough to say the tea party was a success."

She popped one of the desserts on the tiered tray into her mouth.

Ferda looked down at the spot where she had fallen and chewed over her words.

'Yes.'

And then, abruptly, he realized.

'Valdrova was such a modest woman.'

A pure woman who could not even properly look at her fiancé's face.

Such a woman had been forced to play the king under the weight she carried.

'But the world is not easy.'

He knew this, too.

It tried to press her down, as if even that modest happiness were far too much for her.

The monsters surging in,

The Empire's corruption,

Her past,

All of it tested and crushed her without end.

'I swore.'

He would protect what she loved and grant what she had only wished for.

In the end, the name Valdrova would be reborn not as a byword for fear, but as a name of joy.

For that, what Ferda needed was decisiveness.

'At times, boldly.'

Cruelly, if necessary.

The fear that he might harm Valdrova could no longer shake him.

His sense of duty became fuel and ignited the heart within him that had been dying down.

* * *

The next day, Ferda called Zed and spoke to him about his plan.

After listening to that story, Zed asked this.

"Are you out of your mind?"

It was a considerably rude remark, but surprisingly, it was the wording Zed had chosen after much deliberation.

That was how absurd Ferda's plan was.

"You are saying you will rob the Empire's warehouses?"