After this birthday, Dalia will be 18 years old. Now she too is a full-fledged adult.
The nobles of the Frederic Empire usually held a coming-of-age ball on their 18th birthday.
Dalia was no exception.
“Don’t worry, the preparations for the coming-of-age ball are going well.”
Hikan, who was sitting on the sofa and flipping through the book pages, said.
“If there’s something you want to manage, you can do it.”
He turned 21 over the winter, and grew incredibly taller.
Dalia sometimes had a reasonable suspicion that her height had all gone to Hikan.
Hikan never told her what had happened, but after the interrogation, which had long gnawed at his mind, he looked much better.
The Holy Empire has not moved since the head of the Artus Ducal family changed.
It is said that Aceras has completely taken over the aristocracy, and it is completely Aceras’ one-man dictatorship. It was a pity to think of the Holy Empire’s citizens.
At the same time, the relationship between the two Empires is getting worse, and now it wouldn’t be strange if there will be a war at any time.
About three weeks after Dalia’s birthday, the Darby-Gatran Treaty will be renewed.
Since the previous Duke Artus handed over the sonar technology of the Blueport Ducal family to the Holy Empire six months ago, the outcome of this treaty will probably be catastrophic.
Thanks to this, Lewayne Blueport, the representative, will soon come to the capital.
‘Lewayne Blueport…….’
Dalia’s head throbbed at the thought of him.
For now, she’ll think about it next time, and decided to focus only on her birthday, which is just a week away.
Hikan closed the book and put down his glasses.
He looked at Dalia with a serious expression.
“So you really haven’t changed your mind?”
“…….”
Dalia nodded heavily.
Hikan’s face grew dark with worry.
“Really, for this ball……are you planning on going with Sir Cedric?”
Dalia looked around for a moment and nodded her head in a hurry.
Hikan sighed and covered his face with both hands.
“I guess you’re not going to the ball with me anymore.”
Cedric and Hikan once had a fight over being Dalia’s partner. At that moment, Dalia was caught in the middle, completely sweating.
“I know you’re upset because you weren’t chosen, but I don’t know why you’re taking out your anger on Dalia.”
“Since Your Highness the Prince pressures Dalia with such nice words, Dalia has no choice but to choose Your Highness.”
“Is that true, Dalia?”
“I’m warning you not to do that, Your Highness.”
When they both looked back at Dalia like that, she was really dizzy.
She doesn’t want to be put in that situation again.
Dalia, recalling the memory of that time, hurriedly shook her head.
“I, I will go with brother next time. But this time, it’s the coming-of-age ceremony. Everyone’s going with their lovers…….”
Those words backfired. Suddenly, there was a creaking sound coming from Hikan.
“……So, does that mean you are lovers with Sir Cedric?”
Dalia shook her head vigorously. It’s true that she has been going to ball with Cedric most of the time these days, but she hasn’t officially had anything to do with him yet.
Hikan often gave her suspicious glances that made it obvious what he was thinking, but Dalia was being serious.
She was still more than satisfied. Of course, since Cedric and Dalia continued to bring each other to the ball as partners, most of the people in the capital implicitly thought that the two were lovers.
Even the Empress and the Emperor seemed to implicitly think that the two would naturally engage.
But the reality was different. Dalia received ten more confessions from Cedric, but never heard the most important thing. Dalia became curious again.
‘Does Sir Cedric really don’t mind if we continue to be friends as we are now?’
“…….”
Thinking about it this way, it seems that Dalia is anxious that she can’t go on like this.
It wasn’t necessarily like that.
Really……
It’s just…..She’s just wondering if she can stay like this.
Even now, Dalia was fine.
Hikan sighed, perhaps comforted by that response.
“Okay…… I accept it. If we go together, there will be people who look at us strangely.”
“I’ll go with brother on your birthday.”
“It’s always been like that.”
“Then the next ball.”
“……I understand.”
At this time, Hikan looked like a complaining child.
Dalia patted him on the head for no reason because he looked cute. Then he said regretfully.
“Still, I wanted to spend this birthday just by ourselves…….”
Actually, she doesn’t have much to say now that her birthday is a week away.
She didn’t hate being congratulated by many people either.
However, because every birthday is so splendid, sometimes she misses birthdays where she gathers only her close friends, lightly cuts the cake and sets off firecrackers, just like in her old life.
Dalia found a way after pondering hard yesterday .
“That, even if there’s still a ball, I want to throw a small party with my close friends before that. How about that?”
“All right.”
Hikan immediately agreed.
‘Huh? This easy?’
So, all of a sudden, Dalia had two 18th birthday parties.
* * *
Three days later, a small party was held in Dalia’s room, in the Pesteros mansion. Everyone came right away even though she prepared it in a hurry in three days.
The only people Dalia invited were the people of the mansion, Hikan, Meldon, Cedric, and Adrisha.
Beolde, who had finally completed 30 good deeds not long ago, became very lazy and refused to come.
The architect they hired opened three surrounding rooms and remodeled it into a party hall. A three-tier birthday cake, non-alcoholic champagne, and refreshments were prepared. It was a little more flashy than Dalia expected, but it wasn’t bad.
Dalia checked the room and went out to the front door to greet the guest. However……
“Miss Dalia, I’m so disappointed. No matter how disappointed you are with me, how can you throw a birthday party without me?”
Emperor Alexandro was standing on the entrance with a bouquet of 100 flowers.
The aide standing next to him covered his lower lip with his upper lip so that his superior wouldn’t notice him sighing.
And next to him.
“……Your, Your Majesty the Empress!”
“Miss Dalia, I also just came here with him. Happy 18th birthday.”
“How did you both know?”
“I know everything.”
“That’s right.”
She didn’t think they looked alike at all, but now that she looks at it, when they smile mischievously, they look exactly the same.
Dalia quickly brought the two into the mansion so that they would not be caught.
But there were more guest behind.
“How can the lady-in-waiting not attend when Her Majesty the Empress is coming?”
“Miss Merida?”
Merida, who has lighter red hair than the Empress, stood there with a bright smile. She greeted them as she casually left her present to the Pesteros’s servant.
“Hello, Miss Dalia.”
“Come, come in!”
Dalia led her in a hurry, inwardly sweating.
For half a year, she had become quite close with Merida, but there was a reason why she didn’t invite her here.
It was because Merida and Adrisha fight whenever they meet each other these days.
‘…… Adrisha will be here in a little while.’
As expected, Cedric and Adrisha arrived after she let Merida in.
Cedric, like Hikan, also grew taller during this half a year. So it’s not like Dalia hasn’t grown at all, but the height difference between the two widened.
Surprisingly, his appearance became more and more beautiful. Dalia was often surprised to see his side profile even though she always saw him.
In the past, he had a neat boyish beauty, but now his face line has become thicker and he has a dangerous atmosphere thanks to the unique charisma of his red eyes.
She heard that many noble ladies pour in love letters even though they know he always brings Dalia as his partner at every ball.
Of course, Dalia was not worried at all since it was Cedric.
‘Now Sir Cedric will turn 20 when autumn comes.’
For some reason, Dalia felt strange.
Cedric, who had appeared with a bright smile, quickly darkened as soon as he heard the news of the guests who had just entered.
“…… It’s not me. Trust me.”
“All right……”
He sighed and quickly walked inside.
He still doesn’t know what power Dalia has. In the meantime, she slightly wondered if he had any headache or had any bad thoughts.
“What should he be worried about when I’m here?”
With a smile, she swallowed what she was going to say.
Moreover, Dalia’s ability was intertwined with many others, not just hers, so she couldn’t immediately say what she wanted to say.
After some time like that, time went by again.
Dalia would secretly try to purify him if he seemed to be having a hard time in the meantime, but Cedric didn’t seem to be struggling as much, as he was the one who maintained his reason until the end in the original work.
Next was Adrisha.
“Happy birthday, Dalia.”
Adrisha also had a slightly subtle expression at the news that Merida was here, but she quickly smiled and hugged Dalia.
And, as expected, Meldon Artus arrived with 5 minutes left before the party began. He was a strikingly handsome man, now that he dressed in a proper attire, not in a rugged shirt and pants.
He gave Dalia a present with a grin.
“Happy birthday, Miss.”
Still, as promised, he called Dalia as Miss. In front of others, they agreed to just call her Young Lady Dalia.
There was an unexpected partner next to him.
“Hi, little Pesteros. How come you’re so small when you’re all grown up?”
It was Beolde.
She still had her hair cut short, with just a little bit longer under her ears. She still had her hands in her trouser pockets.
Her boyish appearance made her look younger than Meldon, who is now over twenty.
“You said you wouldn’t come!”
“I was bored. Since I was coming, I asked Siord to come too.”
‘This person was the culprit!’
In addition, the personal attacks on her height. Dalia grabbed her by the scruff of her neck.
Hikan was in the office and showed up just in time. And like Dalia, he let out a deep sigh as soon as he saw the uninvited guests.
Still, how did all these people come together? Although there were more people than expected…….
“Well, there’s something I want to do today.”
Dalia looked around the crowd and put her hands together.
Translator Note: Things Dalia need to note, don’t tell or invite Beolde anywhere. She will tell her sister which means that the clingy Emperor will also know
++Merry Christmas!!Wishing you all the happiness in the world!
++For those who didn’t celebrate, Happy New Year!! Wishing you positive new beginnings!
++K bye, gonna go watch Alchemy of Soul Part 2 new episode hehehe
