Chapter 171
The banquet had begun. The grand hall located at the center of the palace opened, and countless distinguished guests made their way inside.
“Please present your invitation and the seal of your noble house.”
Royal knights, swords at their waists, meticulously checked the identities of the guests.
It was a gathering of all the royal family members. No one whose background was unclear could be allowed in. Each guest was thoroughly verified before being granted entry. And then, at that moment—
“Let me in! I must get inside!”
“No one without an invitation can enter.”
A commotion broke out at the entrance to the large hall, drawing the attention of the curious nobles.
It was a man with long, braided hair. Judging by his attire, he was undoubtedly a commoner. Where had he come from? Was he perhaps one of the palace servants?
The commoner continued to cause a scene in front of the knights for a while.
At first, the knights tried to reason with him gently. But the man, like a stubborn, untamed colt, refused to back down, causing more of a disturbance. Not only did he push the knights attempting to restrain him, but he even began kicking at them.
“This insolent fool!”
One royal knight, unable to stand by any longer, rolled up his sleeves and stepped forward. Grabbing the man’s wrist, the knight lifted him off the ground with ease.
“L-Let me go!”
The commoner, now held like a piece of baggage, struggled in surprise. But he couldn’t overpower the knight, who had honed his strength through daily training.
Thud!
The commoner was dragged to the bottom of the hall’s stairs and thrown into the dirt. At the same time, the sack he had been clutching burst open on the ground, scattering dozens of gold coins across the floor.
“M-My gold!”
The commoner hurriedly dropped to his knees.
He scrambled on all fours, desperately gathering the scattered coins. The sight was so pitiful that the royal knights, as well as the watching nobles, burst into laughter.
The commoner’s face flushed bright red as he panted in anger.
“You’ll see! You’ll regret treating me like this!”
The royal knights merely snorted. Regret? How could this commoner, who seemed to have nothing to his name, possibly make royal knights regret anything?
As they continued to laugh mockingly, the man suddenly yelled out, his voice cracking.
“I am the Saintess’s older brother!”
The Saintess’s brother?
The royal knights froze for a moment at those words. But only for a moment. They couldn’t hold back any longer and erupted into loud guffaws.
It wasn’t just the knights. The nobles waiting to enter the hall also burst into laughter.
“That man? The brother of the Saintess? What a ridiculous lie!”
“He looks decent enough, but he must have lost his mind.”
Laughter and ridicule spewed from every direction like a fountain.
“D-Damn it…”
Humiliated, Roned clenched his teeth in fury.
—This is all because of that ungrateful woman, Primrose!
Clenching the gold coins scattered in the dirt, Roned cursed inwardly.
If only she had met Prince Camus in front of him, just once.
‘Does she think she’s on the same level as Princess Sordid? She should’ve just obediently done as she was told instead of being so high and mighty!’
After collecting every single coin and placing them back into the sack, Roned stepped to the side of the hall’s stairs.
He had to arrange a meeting between Prince Camus and the Saintess. And in return for facilitating their encounter, he would receive the promised reward from Prince Camus.
‘I’ll just wait here. She’ll have to come this way to enter the hall sooner or later.’
But Roned’s plan had already fallen apart from the start. Rufus and Sarubia had arrived inside the hall much earlier.
“Wow…”
Guided by Rufus’s escort, Sarubia couldn’t help but let out a gasp of awe.
The hall was magnificent. Although Sarubia had spent much time working in the palace, she had never seen such an enormous space in her life.
In the center of the hall, an extravagant chandelier hung, radiating dazzling light. Sarubia found herself completely entranced by the glittering display.
“How do you feel?”
Rufus, holding Sarubia’s hand, asked her.
He was secretly pleased. It made him happy to be able to show her such a grand sight.
“Hmm… The maids working here must have had a tough time. Setting up that refreshment table must have been exhausting.”
“Why are you worrying about the maids right now?”
“Because I have a strong sense of professional responsibility.”
At her answer, Baroness Inferna, who had been quietly listening to their conversation from behind, let out a chuckle.
“My apologies.”
Baroness Inferna quickly apologized when Sarubia turned to look at her.
“It’s fine. I meant it to be funny. Rufus, you should laugh too.”
“Ha.”
“Now it sounds like you’re mocking me.”
“Ha. Ha.”
“Don’t force it.”
As the playful banter between the two continued, they began to draw attention from many of the other attendees.
Among the crowd were the most prominent figures in high society.
The aristocracy was a tight-knit community. Everyone was connected through one way or another, so there were very few unfamiliar faces.
But Rufus was an exception.
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