“There’s also a rumor she’s a mage. It’s rare among noble ladies to be a mage. They say the goal is to mix rare mage blood into the imperial family.”

“Oh my, then she’ll be discarded after having an heir.”

They cackled as they gossiped about Adelia.

They were ladies who dared not covet the Crown Princess’s position out of fear for their lives but secretly harbored affection for the Crown Prince in their hearts.

‘How dare she sit next to His Highness the Crown Prince!’

They were famously haughty ladies who would bicker at just a glance, but today they were united as one.

It was a cowardly greed that if they couldn’t have it, they wouldn’t let others have it either.

They had banded together with a single-minded intention to bring Adelia down.

‘Oh wow… our Master is quite popular.’

Conrad glanced at them from among the crowd.

His hair, which was tied high, fluttered at his back, and strands fell over his shoulders.

In his ivory uniform with a deep blue tie,

Conrad, young and handsome, holding the position of vice leader of Eileen merchantry, attracted attention wherever he went.

Even now in the hall, there were many young ladies stealing glances at him.

If their eyes met, he would wrinkle his eyes and flash a mischievous smile.

A lady blushed and turned her head away quickly as he returned to his stern face.

‘No one is as beautiful as our Master.’

After surveying the banquet hall once, he sipped wine boredly.

After all, deals would come in even if he did nothing, so there was no need to flatter the nobles.

It was known by all that he attended merely as a formality, and he only needed to accomplish today’s goal.

‘How thrilling….’

Conrad shivered while imagining what would happen soon.

Whether it was because of the wine or the thrill, he wasn’t sure, but he tapped his flushed cheeks with his hand.

‘Acting to deceive all these nobles here….’

His heart beat faster than ever before.

The shy interest from young ladies and the overt interest from nobles were nice, but what he enjoyed most was the astonishing attention from those completely fooled by lies.

Inherently having a bit of a swindler’s nature, he cherished the box containing his product while waiting for today’s main character.

“His Majesty the Emperor, His Highness the Crown Prince, and His Highness the Prince. And Lady Adelia Vita are entering!”

With the sound of trumpets, voices rang out in unison as everyone turned their gaze.

Conrad also looked towards the entrance.

As they entered, Conrad’s lips curled up.

It was the start of the most boisterous Harvest Festival banquet.

  
* * *

  
“Miss! Wake up!”

“Gina… I want to sleep a bit more….”

“No! It’s the day of the banquet!”

“There’s still more than 12 hours until the banquet….”

“Wake up!”

Adelia, who hadn’t yet left the dreamland, fumbled around in bed.

For Adelia, who lived a life of going to bed late and waking up late, seven o’clock was too early.

Thanks to the fussing maid, she barely got out of bed and soaked herself in the bathtub in a drowsy state.

Her body relaxed in the warm water and fragrant smell. As she leisurely enjoyed the water, Gina next to her puffed up her cheeks and said,

“Goodness! There’s no time to relax like this. Soon you’ll have a massage, apply scented oils, take care of your nails, trim your hair, and put on makeup.”

“Do I have to do so much?”

“Of course, because you are the fiancée of His Highness the Crown Prince! All the nobles will be looking at you, right? Normally, they start preparing from five o’clock.”

“Five o’clock….”

Adelia shook her head, seemingly disgusted.

She had put on light makeup before, but this was her first time getting dolled up like this.

When she was the Master of a trading company, she always wore a hood, and when she was a countess’s daughter, she hardly ever went out.

‘I should hurry up and rest.’

With that light thought, Adelia got out of the bathtub.

And as soon as she left the bathroom, she felt an unusual atmosphere.

“Miss Adelia! Please, take a seat!”

The maids were waiting at the dressing table with various tools.

A tool for straightening hair with heat, cosmetics that added shine to hair.

There were so many different kinds that it was hard to tell what was what.

Adelia obediently sat down and said,

“It seems there are a lot of people today.”

“Of course, today is the day of the banquet. Everyone has been looking forward to Miss Adelia’s dressing up.”

“My dressing up?”

“Yes! The others… On the day of the banquet, they lock their doors. After begging all day long, His Highness will open his door four hours before, His Highness the Crown Prince three hours before, and His Majesty two hours before.”

The maid who was brushing her hair said with a bright smile.

It was chilling to think about how the imperials preferred to avoid rather than face the hassle.

“Of course, everyone shines even without dressing up, but especially for the banquet! You have to dress up. Everyone puts their life on the line for it!”

The maid thumped her chest proudly.

The maids behind her nodded in agreement.

Their eyes showed determination.

“And until now, we haven’t had anyone to dress up, so we were all itching to show our skills.”

“That’s right! The princess is still too young for dressing up, so we’ve been waiting for you!”

“We’ll make you the most beautiful person at today’s banquet!”

The maids clenched their fists and gathered their passion.

In their midst, Adelia just smiled awkwardly without saying a word.

‘Should I stand out?’

Adelia seriously considered it.

But she couldn’t resist the sparkling eyes of the maids and finally sat down.

When they brought fifty different scented oils for her hair, she really thought about running away.

“Sister!”

“Princess?”

Ariana had joined Adelia’s dressing expedition before that thought could solidify.

After a lunch of just greens, Ariana came to play in Adelia’s room.

It was because of a maid’s loose lips.

“Miss Adelia is attending today’s banquet for the first time.”

“Really? Then sister will wear a pretty dress and get dolled up?”

“That’s right. As you know, in this palace, only the princess had been someone to dress up. But since the princess is young, there were restrictions. But then Miss Adelia appeared. So the palace maids were thrilled.”

“I want to go too!”

That’s how Ariana ended up joining Adelia’s dressing expedition.

Sitting next to her, she also chose scented oils and cosmetics while chattering away.

The princess, more excited than her about going to the banquet, swung her legs eagerly and meddled enthusiastically.

“Isn’t that blue gem flower prettier?”

“I think the white flower is pretty too.”

“I can’t decide… Everything suits Sister well.”

Adelia’s lips curled up more and more as she pondered with her chin in her hand.

The thought of escaping disappeared the moment she saw Ariana’s face.

“Sister, you’re so pretty!”

Ariana said as she hopped around next to her.

Sweat dripped down her forehead from all her hard work.

“Oh my, with the princess saying so, I’ll surely shine the most at today’s banquet?”

Adelia responded while dabbing her sweat with a handkerchief.

It was their most harmonious day together.

After ten long hours of ordeal, Adelia stood in front of the mirror.

The dress, mainly navy blue with white lace and silver embroidery, looked somewhat dark and plain. But when its owner is Adelia, it’s a different story.

Her silver hair sparkled more than any silver thread, and her blue eyes shone more brightly and splendidly than any jewel. Even without gaudy decorations, Adelia shone brightly.

“Truly beautiful.”

Adelia winked at herself in the mirror with a satisfied smile.

The maids behind her praised each other with proud faces.

Caught between them, Ariana wiped off her forehead sweat with a triumphant look.

“Sister! Is it over now? Are we going to the banquet hall?”

“There’s still some time until entrance… Ah! Princess, are you tired?”

“No!”

“Shall we go see the others then?”

Given that today marks her debut in society and the announcement of her marriage, the dressmakers put in several times more effort.

The dress shop belongs to the Eileen trading company, so the fabric and jewels were prepared with the best items from the company.

She felt uneasy because she had been too busy to do a final check recently. And there were things she wanted to convey.

“I won’t go to my elder brother!”

Ariana crossed her arms and pouted her lips.

It was her way of showing defiance, but it only looked cute.

Adelia smiled and nodded, reaching out her small hand to grasp hers.

“Have you still not made up?”

“Of course! How could he say he wants to conquer the Barton Kingdom to give me a nice diamond as a birthday gift!”

“Ha ha….”

Adelia closed her mouth with an awkward smile.

She was the one who had informed them about the good quality of diamonds from the Barton Kingdom.

It was a secret when Lucian was devising plans for the kingdom’s invasion, she hinted at the price of supplies, trying to bargain.

“Then I’ll take you to see Father and His Highness the Prince only.”

“Okay!”

Ariana held Adelia’s hand and followed her with small steps.

She kissed her father, who was wearing his splendid uniform, and even chose a tie for her brother.

Thanks to Adelia’s magic, her legs didn’t hurt while moving between the Emperor’s Palace and the Prince’s Palace.
                     
But by the time they returned to the Princess’s Palace, Ariana was in Adelia’s arms.

“Sister. Won’t this ruin the dress?”

“Protecting the dress is easy.”

“As expected, sister!”

Even while holding a child, not a single wrinkle formed on the lace.

Ariana, finding it fascinating, tapped on her dress.

The delicately placed pearl beads didn’t fall off or stick anywhere else.

When dust floating in the air tried to settle on the dress, it was repelled off.

“Really amazing…. Was what you whispered to my brother and Dad also because of magic?”