In the game, the Emperor was not a woman. The Emperor had been intelligent in his youth, but as time passed, his judgment grew clouded, and he became an old man who reigned like a specter. Although he had two daughters, they were also completely sidelined in the struggle for the throne. The Emperor in my memory was an incompetent and stubborn figure, nothing more, nothing less.
Yet now, the Emperor sitting behind that curtain is…
I can feel it even from just the silhouette.
It’s as if it’s someone else.
It seems too soon for a daughter in her forties to suddenly inherit the throne.
Moreover, her appearance is frail and delicate, somehow alien.
It’s completely different from the rotund figure I had seen in the game.
Perhaps the world I remember and the one here, now, are somehow askew.
A strong sense of déjà vu resonated in my mind, just as when I faced Franz Eldin.
Familiar yet unfamiliar, something clearly wrong but unable to specify what it is… that kind of feeling.
Is the Emperor I see now really the same Emperor?
Thinking so, images of the enemies I encountered on the Northern Front, as well as Irene and Freya, came to mind.
I couldn’t accurately confirm either side, and certainty was impossible.
Instead, I raised my champagne and began looking around for individuals associated with the Red Star.
The heat of the banquet was building, and the sound of clinking champagne glasses was unceasing.
Immediately after the Emperor’s speech ended, children of high-ranking nobles and generals began to carefully gather around me.
At first, it was just simple congratulatory remarks.
It seemed appropriate as a courtesy toward a hero from the battlefield.
However, soon, the atmosphere changed.
“That was a truly touching story, Sir Ian. Your achievements on the Northern Front are nothing short of legendary.”
“Indeed, my father also says he is grateful every day for your safe return, Sir Ian.”
A noble young lady in a pink dress slightly lifted her hem and smiled cautiously.
Another woman beside her, with her silver hair neatly braided, covered her mouth with a fan and chuckled.
Noble ladies were also trailing behind me on both sides.
For some reason, they were brushing my arms.
“Um, if it’s possible to hear about your experiences in battle… would you mind if we invite you to our house’s banquet?”
“I would like to as well. It’s my lifelong wish to chat with someone who has fought in the North… really.”
At a glance, the focus of the conversation was admiration for the war hero, but the gazes were unmistakable.
It was not the gaze of admiration for a hero who led the Northern Front to victory, but rather that of a clueless prey.
They were subtly but openly reaching out to my collar, arms, and hands.
To them, I was presently the most attractive being in this place.
Moreover, it was not solely his immense achievements and feats on the battlefield that made the war hero more appealing.
– Appearance.
The body I had possessed, Ian Balthazar, fit into the category of handsome men.
While rolling around in the North, I had not groomed my beard properly, so it did not show.
But now, having tidied up for the banquet, my concealed appearance was finally revealed.
Even the scar crossing my lips and eyebrows, acquired while wandering the battlefield, was transforming into an allure.
For noble ladies, marrying a war hero was a common occurrence in the literature they enjoyed.
“Sir Ian, you don’t have a fiancée yet… do you?”
“Is there someone who has captured your heart? I heard women were rare in the North.”
“Isn’t it unnecessary to go back? This place is better than the North, after all.”
As three or four young ladies in dazzling dresses surrounded me, I naturally stepped back a half-step.
However, even that seemed to be interpreted as shyness, closing the distance between us even more.
—And at that moment.
“Ian.”
“Ian-nim.”
Click-clack.
With the sound of refined stiletto heels, Freya and Irene appeared simultaneously from the other side of the banquet hall.
The expressions of the two, who had been walking from afar, were entirely different from their glamorously decorated appearances; they were stiff.
They had been receiving greetings surrounded by other noble men just a moment ago, but at some point, they had stood up silently, staring at the crowd surrounding me.
“Oh, were you there?”
When I greeted them, Irene approached with a slight smile.
“Ian, I’m sorry I’m late. But… there are quite a few uninvited guests, huh?”
Freya also smiled softly, but her gaze was chilly.
“The banquet is too crowded. Ian-nim, you’ve just returned from the North; wouldn’t you need a moment to catch your breath?”
“Indeed. Ian has preferred quietness since he was on the front lines.”
“Of course. He doesn’t feel comfortable when unfamiliar people get too close.”
The voices of the two women were never loud.
Yet strangely, they hardened the expressions of the surrounding noble ladies.
One side was one of the war heroes, and one of only three Aura users in the Empire.
The other was the head of the Nordelheim ducal family, which had protected the North for 400 years.
Comparing that with the noble young lady clinging to Ian was a difference between heaven and earth.
Moreover, if the three knew each other from the Northern Front, it clearly revealed that their relationship with Ian was more than just acquaintances.
Irene came closer and gently grabbed my arm.
“Let’s take a breather. The air here is too stuffy.”
Freya naturally positioned herself on my opposite side and shifted her gaze towards the other young ladies.
Having been bonded for five months, we synchronized perfectly.
“Would you mind clearing some space? I have personal matters to discuss with a comrade from the battlefield.” (Irene)
While the words were polite, they were so firm that one could not refuse.
One or two stepped back awkwardly, smiling, while some clenched their wine glasses, grinding their teeth.
After a long hesitation, the last one finally spoke.
“…But it’s a banquet; shouldn’t we all enjoy it together—” (Lady A)
Irene raised her aura and narrowed her eyes.
The figure of a ghost appeared behind her.
“Hi, hiick…!” (Lady A)
Even the last remaining young lady backed away in silence and vanished into the crowd.
In the peculiar silence of the banquet hall, Irene casually began to speak.
“Is that your type, Ian?”
Freya chimed in next to her.
“Ia-nim, is it true?”
“Please don’t misunderstand. Not at all.”
***
After sticking with Irene and Freya for a while, I excused myself under the pretense of needing to use the restroom.
I had to stop them from following me there.
I cracked open the enormous doors of the banquet hall and stepped outside.
A cool night breeze welcomed me.
Just as I was about to take a step forward, I noticed a woman leaning against the outside of the banquet hall.
“Hello.”
Water-colored hair, turquoise eyes.
Her appearance was unfamiliar.
“Who are you?”
“Oh, I am Ariane Castora.”
Ariane Castora.
An unfamiliar name.
“It seems you were waiting for me. If it’s not too much trouble, may I ask what your business is?”
The woman, who introduced herself as Ariane Castora, paused as if selecting her words.
“I have something I’d like to ask.”
“…?”
“Are you perhaps the eldest son of the Count family?”
The Balthazar surname had vanished the moment I enlisted on the Northern Front.
Right now, I was here as ‘Ian.’
Just as I was about to deny such a thought, Ariane took the initiative.
“To be more precise, your brother-in-law… so, you are the son of Count Tiran Balthazar?”
With that question, Ariane stared into my face.
Tilting her head as if comparing me to someone in her memory.
Could she be someone who knows the past me?
If not…
I took a step closer to Ariane.
Considering the height difference, my shadow fell over her head.
“It sounds like you know my identity. Do you happen to know me?”
At my words, Ariane’s turquoise eyes shook obviously.
She rolled her eyes and awkwardly laughed.
“Ah, haha… well…”
“-Then may I ask you one question?”
“Please, go ahead.”
“What is your relationship with the person you refer to as Ian Balthazar?”
Ariane temporarily fell silent.
She closed her eyes, then looked up at me and answered.
“We were engaged.”
…Was it not that?
I shook my head, denying her suspicion.
“It was merely a coincidence that we share the same name; I am not the Ian Balthazar you speak of.”
At those words, Ariane appeared doubtful, yet soon accepted it.
“I must have made a gaffe. It’s because your names are the same.”
“Ian is a common name. It’s fine. Well then, I’ll be on my way. I have a bit of a busy schedule.”
I began to walk away.
I heard Ariane murmuring behind me as I walked farther away.
She probably thought she was muttering quietly, but my heightened hearing, having transcended humanity, easily picked it up.
“That reckless bastard couldn’t have died so simply…”
Ariane furrowed her brows as she murmured softly.
“Is it because of the scar? I can’t tell about the face, but his gaze and physique are definitely different.”
Her gaze stopped on my arm and shoulder as it drifted away from her.
“…Yeah, it can’t be. That reckless bastard couldn’t have achieved such remarkable deeds. Unless he fled while disgracefully running away.”
She exhaled a breath mixed with laughter.
“Yeah, I should talk sense.”
