Chapter 120: Chapter 120. The Empire’s Guardian (1)

“Seriously, where have you been?” “We’ve been waiting for ages!”

When Desir and Adjest reunited with their party members, Pram and Romantica were fuming fervently.

That was to be expected, because by the time they arrived at the meeting place, the first part of the Chronicle play was already over.

“Sorry, there were a lot of people on the streets, so it took some time to get here.” Like that, Desir made an excuse.

Pram and Romantica reluctantly accepted his apology, but that didn’t mean their anger had died down.

Seemingly quite displeased, they vehemently picked out their snacks and constantly annoyed Desir by pointing out things they could play with. It was as if they were trying to get compensation for the time they hadn’t spent with him.

Being in a good mood, Desir willingly gave in to all of their demands. He even went as far as saving seats for them in an incredibly crowded restaurant.

At this point, they started getting suspicious if anything had happened during his absence with Adjest.

“Has Desir ever been that kind before?”

“He seems to be very happy about something. The festival must have been rather fun.” Freechel added on to Romantica and Pram’s speculations.

“Hmm, if I had to take a guess, I’m pretty sure he’s been like that since he started spending more time with Adjest instead of us. Something clearly happened between the two.”

“… Freechel?”

The moment Freechel heard Romantica’s voice, a sudden chill went down her spine. It was winter, so it was still cold, but that chill most definitely was not from the weather. Understanding the situation, Freechel quickly attempted to back-pedal.

“I, I mean, it’s probably because he’s very happy to be with you, Romantica.” “Of course, right?”

As he was busy enjoying the festival at its peak, Desir’s communication pad rang. It was an audio message from Prof. Bridgette.

It was a request for Desir to go to the Dean’s office immediately.

Getting a sense that it was quite urgent from her tone of voice, Desir had no choice but to end his break there.

The other party members tried to return to the academy with Desir, but since he had been the only one that Prof. Bridgette had summoned, he told them to enjoy themselves more before heading back towards the academy.

When he arrived at the Dean’s office, he could see several professors including Nipleka and Bridgette waiting for him.

“You barely made it in time.”

As opposed to his usual attire, Nipleka was all dressed up in a fancy suit.

All too aware of his usual snobbish self, Desir was immediately struck with the image of a wolf in sheep’s clothing. The image nearly made him lose his composure, but he was able to distract himself by asking Bridgette a question.

“What’s the occasion?”

“I’ll explain that in just a moment. First, please follow me.”

The one who answered was Bridgette, who was standing next to him.

Bridgette headed to her office with Desir in tow.

The moment he saw several dress suits hanging in a bunch once the door opened, Desir had to press Bridgette for an answer even though he knew it would be discourteous.

“Professor, this is a bit unexpected.”

“I know that this may come as a shock. It shocked us as well. Not this one… This one won’t do either… ”

In short order, three suits were held up against Desir’s clothes, only to be tossed on the floor. As she held up a lightly checkered shirt to Desir, Bridgette opened her mouth.

“I’m sure you’re aware that a party is held by the royal family every year on the anniversary of the empire’s founding.”

“Of course.”

Every year on the founding day, the nobles attended or hosted various parties. The scale of the party and the class of the nobles that attended said parties was determined by the host’s status and power, and the best of them all was, without a doubt, the party hosted by the royal family.

The annual party hosted by the royal family was extremely well-known. Not only were important figures invited, but so were the continent’s most powerful figures. It was truly the pinnacle of high society.

A social party that only the most powerful figures of each nation could attend. It was a place that lower nobles wouldn’t even dare imagine attending.

Having finally picked out an adequate suit at last, Bridgette grinned slyly as she opened her mouth.

“His Majesty said that he wants to meet Hebrion Academy’s best student. It was so sudden that all of the professors were left flustered, but it would be ludicrous to not obey His Majesty’s orders.”

Hearing the story up to that point, Desir was able to fill in the blanks. However, there remained one question he couldn’t fathom on his own.

“But wouldn’t it have been impossible to select the best student based on the academy’s system?”

Hebrion Academy did rank the students by skill, but the ranks were given based on grade level. This meant that it made it difficult to compare students of different grades.

But Bridgette just smiled as if she had seen that coming.

“Hehe. That’s why we had a meeting. We had to choose between Radoria, Alseria, and you, all ranked first in your respective grades. And do you know what the results were like?”

She spoke quickly in a tone that made her excitement evident.

“Unanimous, it was unanimous. All of the professors chose you. Even Prof. Pugman agreed that you were the best student! Do you know what that means? It means that you will be representing Hebrion Academy’s students as you attend the royal family’s ball!”

Bridgette’s cheerful voice echoed throughout the room.

* * *

Desir was in a carriage accompanied by Professor Pugman, headed for Edark’s Palace, to attend the royal party.

Unlike previous years, this year’s party was said to be held like a masquerade ball.

Leaning on the door of the bumpy carriage, Desir adjusted his mask. As was common for a masquerade, the mask completely hid his face.

He saw this as a great opportunity. ‘This is an unexpected gain.’

He had been trying to figure out how to get close to the Emperor anyway. And as if right on time, the Emperor had invited him to his party first. That proved just how noteworthy Desir’s achievements had been.

‘… I have a rough idea of what he wants, so I might as well start planning my response.’ As Desir was lost in his thoughts, Pugman turned his head to face him.

“His Majesty is being kind enough to show you what it’s like in the upper class, so I recommend you keep your mouth shut. Needlessly rambling will only reveal your limited insight.”

“I didn’t expect you to care about me so much.” Professor Nipleka pursed his lips at Desir’s response.

“If it was up to me, I’d enjoy watching you get ridiculed by the other nobles after your identity is revealed. However, the fact that you’re Hebrion Academy’s representative prevents me from taking any pleasure in doing so. The academy’s honor mustn’t be tarnished.”

“How touching, indeed.”

“You always need to have the last word, don’t you?” “It’s all thanks to your wonderful teaching.”

The carriage reached its destination. Pugman and Desir did a last check, to ensure their masks were securely attached.

Truth be told, Pugman didn’t gain any anonymity by wearing a mask. His presence was so distinct that it made it trivial to guess who he was.

As they entered the palace, the party hall’s impressive interior came into sight.

The jewels that adorned the interior dazzled brightly as the light bounced off. It almost seemed like jewels were more common in this palace than pebbles on the sidewalk.

Despite being overly extravagant, the artistic value in this room was undeniably outstanding. Even Desir, who was often unfazed by displays of wealth or power, felt his jaw drop an inch. Even the rather luxuriously decorated Hebrion Academy looked plain in comparison to the Royal Palace’s banquet hall.

By the time Desir and Pugman had arrived, there were already quite a number of people occupying the area.

Despite their faces being hidden, the elegance that exuded from their every little movement made it clear that they weren’t ordinary people.

Stately music filled the party hall.

The people at the party talked to each other naturally despite not being able to see each other’s faces.

“Well then, I’ll be going off to mingle. I’ll have the carriage stand by, so leave whenever you wish, although the faster you leave, the better.”

Pugman added on as he got up from his chair. “I hope we don’t cross paths again.”

“My thoughts exactly.”

Desir looked around as he sipped on a drink at his table. Some people had already started dancing after finding partners.

‘Now, what do I need to do?’

Desir hadn’t come to this place to admire the surroundings. Nor had he come to enjoy the delicious food.

His goal was to get close to the Emperor.

‘And the Emperor himself wants to meet me as well.’

The Emperor had said that he ‘wanted to see’ Hebrion Academy’s best student. But with the party being a masquerade ball, he couldn’t have meant that he just wanted a glimpse from afar.

Desir thought of two reasons why the Emperor could have changed the party to a masquerade ball.

First, to keep his commoner status from getting exposed.

And second, for the Emperor to keep himself out of the spotlight at the party.

Combining these two reasons, the conclusion he drew was that the Emperor wanted to meet him while out of the public’s eye.

He was sure that the Emperor was within the crowds.

Desir’s eyes moved quickly, scanning the crowds of people within the party hall.

A person busy talking with others, a person that sipped his drink through lips that their mask didn’t cover, a person that got embarrassed as his identity was exposed.

And.

“Thank you for coming on such short notice.” A person that was approaching him.