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The adopted daughter played her role excessively well. Chapter 098: Selina loved to sit on the Emperor’s lap.

“What would people think if they saw us?”

The immense Monarch, ruling over more than 70% of the Central Continent.

And the Emperor of Swords, Nelak, who dominates the Monarch, felt his face heat up a bit.

As a martial artist who lived his entire life with a sword, he found situations like this to always be foreign.

“You’re cute.”

Selina gently caressed Nelak’s ear.

And seeing his ears turn crimson, she burst into laughter.

“Who would think of you as the Emperor of Swords?”

“I’m not the Emperor of Swords.”

“People say that.”

“That’s just because I’m the Emperor.”

Nelak genuinely believed that.

If anyone were to be called the ‘Emperor of Swords,’ he thought it surely couldn’t be him.

The one truly fitting the title of Emperor of Swords would be Duke Heron, standing as the shield on the front lines, guarding humanity from the Place Where the Eye Shines.

“Anyway, you’re cute.”

“It would be nice if you thought about my dignity a bit.”

“What’s wrong with being cute? Cute is the best!”

Nelak cleared his throat.

Selina, who had been with him since childhood, looked particularly pretty and beautiful these days.

Selina said, “We met at the Forget-Me-Not Ball, remember? It was called the Young Forget-Me-Not Ball back then.”

These days, kids enter the social circle at twelve, but back then, it was at seven.

That was usually referred to as a rehearsal.

A social gathering for unmarried boys and girls from seven to twelve years old.

That was the Young Forget-Me-Not Ball.

“That’s where I first marked you, Your Majesty.”

Selina and Nelak were the same age and met for the first time at the Young Forget-Me-Not Ball when they were seven.

“You were just a brute who knew nothing but swords back then.”

Nelak only started seeing Selina as a woman in his mid-thirties.

Until then, he had been a man who knew nothing but the sword.

“I’ve always been grateful for your long wait.”

Nelak looked at Selina with a kind gaze.

Selina had always been constant and stood by his side.

Without Selina’s help, there would be no Emperor he is today.

“There’s a child I’m very much looking forward to at this Forget-Me-Not Ball.”

“Who is it?”

“Viola Bellatu, the adopted daughter of Winter Castle. She has been making her presence known everywhere even before entering the social circle.”

“Bellatu is reluctant to venture into the Central Continent.”

“I know. They are honorable people living for their mission. They live to protect humanity from the Place Where the Eye Shines.”

“More than that, they just find the slander and politics of lowly things annoying.”

Nelak understood Heron well, even the reason he didn’t participate in politics.

Sometimes, Nelak envied Heron.

“He must be getting stronger now.”

He would be battling every day in the Place Where the Eye Shines, where monsters pour forth endlessly.

Swinging his sword with his life at stake in a jaw-clenching battlefield.

For him, that would be blissful.

Throughout history, Bellatu has always been that way.

A group standing proudly as the rulers of the North.

A collective of martial artists whose power is underestimated because they seldom come down from the North.

“What if Bellatu tries to venture into the Central Continent?”

“Bellatu won’t choose that path.”

It would be bothersome, and they are well aware of their own strength.

The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.

Bellatu is too strong and would become the target of all forces.

The strongest shield can also become the strongest spear.

“Though they are the most reliable as shields, they know very well that they would be the most feared as weapons. They will not leave Winter Castle.”

“That has been the case until now. However, the Viola Bellatu I saw is different.

She has built a very close relationship with the Storm Fortress in the south and has made Sir Hixson her ally.”

“Hixson?”

“Yes. That Hixson, who has connections all over the continent. Moreover, I hear she has recently done great favors for Louis Varten.”

“For Louis Varten?”

It was indeed behavior uncharacteristic of Bellatu.

The Bellatu of the North.

Louis Varten of Parah.

The two seemed completely different genres with almost no intersection.

“She even received a gift left by the master of Chief Designer Carlo. I don’t see this as a coincidence.”

Viola clearly expressed her ambitions to dominate Bellatu at the ten-year Welcome Feast.

And she also exhibited unusual behavior by choosing ‘White Bellatu.’

“That child knows. She understands that the current Bellatu can’t dominate the world.”

Bellatu was the most powerful family but had never dominated the world.

The world had always been ruled by those weaker than Bellatu.

“And thus, that child wants to complete Bellatu. A completed Bellatu.

What kind of influence will it have on the continent?”

“Are you suggesting she dreams of rebellion?”

“Well, I want to grasp that. Just how grand are her dreams?”

Selina’s eyes narrowed.

“Depending on whether that grand dream benefits or harms the empire, the child’s destiny will be altered.”

Selina loved the Monarch Empire.

She had grown up alongside Nelak since childhood.

In a way, the Monarch Empire was also a part of Selina.

“If that child’s dream is beautiful, I will embrace her and make the empire thrive further.”

On the other hand,

“If that child’s dream is foul, I will have to make another choice.”

Nelak’s body stiffened.

He feared no one in this world, but he feared Selina.

The only person he feared in the world was Selina.

“Shall we focus on our time right now?”

When it was just the two of them since childhood, she whispered a nickname they had secretly used in Nelak’s ear.

“Nela.”

“I would like to propose something to our esteemed guests.”

Selina was the second-in-command of the empire, and some even said she was the first.

In any case, no one here would refuse or reject Selina’s proposal.

“Among the esteemed guests, there are special boys and girls. Of course, everyone here is special, but a few extraordinary individuals are hiding among them to make this event even more prestigious.”

People perked up their ears.

Such cases happen occasionally.

Events hosted by organizers that include special activities.

It seemed this was one of those times too.

“I hope you can find those individuals and pair up with them. There are no restrictions.

Girls with girls. Boys with boys. Boys with girls.”

The Forget-Me-Not Ball was a gathering of young heirs.

A social gathering for children aged twelve to seventeen.

“From twelve to seventeen.”

Age difference.

Gender difference.

Class difference.

None of those matter, she said.

“Please pair up without any conditions. The number doesn’t matter. Just make sure to include the special individuals.”

It was said that ten people could pair up.

What mattered was how many of the ‘special individuals’ Selina mentioned were included among them.

“On the seventh day, I will give a great gift to those who find a good pair.”

Selina revealed an item.

It was a treasure taken from the palace treasure vault, a Blue Diamond the size of a child’s fist.

“I will give this as a gift.”

The eyes of many heirs gleamed.

The Blue Diamond was a rare treasure legendary across the continent.

Its worth was extraordinary, enough for it to buy a territory of medium size or even purchase a title above a viscount.

It was a treasure whose value was hard to assess.

Everyone couldn’t take their eyes off the Blue Diamond.

However, Viola was an exception.

“This is strange. Too strange.”

It truly was odd.

Why did it feel like Selina’s gaze was directed at her?

“It must be my fault that something that wasn’t in the original content has suddenly popped up.”

Then, it was most likely that Selina was keeping Viola in mind.

It surely wouldn’t be about staging such a grand event just because of her.

Selina’s thoughts were unreadable.

Selina was a highly competent noblewoman, depicted as a genius in the narrative.

“I can’t let this happen. I need to be more cautious.”

Viola sensed it.

This Forget-Me-Not Ball was the episode where she needed to hold her breath and crawl the most.

The Forget-Me-Not Ball began.

The symphony orchestra filled the banquet hall, and numerous heirs continued their social mingling.

Laughter echoed from everywhere, and couples danced the waltz on one side.

“Viola, who do you think the ‘special person’ Selina mentioned is? Do you have any guesses?”

“No, none.”

She had no idea which boys and girls with special missions were hidden here.

But honestly, Viola didn’t want to know.

Her honest desire was to run as far away as possible from Selina’s gaze.

“Which side are you planning to visit?”

Not prompted by anyone, the girls and boys were already pairing up in groups, chatting away.

On the first day of the Forget-Me-Not ball, no one introduced themselves or revealed their families.

That was the unwritten rule.

While many who should know each other already did, it was an implicit rule nonetheless.

Unlike those who had already paired up, Hera and Viola were isolated.

Although Bellatu was a great shield protecting humanity, it was not particularly welcomed in the social circle.

“Well, I just want to have a good time with my sister.”

“With me?”

“I knew it already, but seeing it today confirms it.”

“What?”

“The standing of Bellatu.”

“What is Bellatu’s standing?”

“They are seen as pest catchers who eliminate the bugs coming down from the North.”

“Isn’t that too noble for pest catchers?”

“No matter how well it’s packaged, a pest catcher is still a pest catcher.”

“That sounds like an insult to Bellatu.”

“People see it that way. Among the numerous central nobility gathered here, how many heirs have actually faced monsters?”

They didn’t know monsters.

Naturally, they didn’t understand the fear of monsters.

They were people living in a warm and bright world.

“These kids, full and cozy, eating the food given to them while dancing. For them, Bellatu is just a somewhat scary pest catcher.

To them, hunting monsters is a dangerous, dirty, and vile task.”

Moreover, that pest catcher does not even venture into the Central Continent.

An outsider doing dirty work.

From the perspective of the central nobility gathered in this social circle, Bellatu was an entirely insignificant family.

“That’s why I don’t want to approach them first.”

However, the truth is that all of this was just an excuse and a pretense.

“I’ll just stay put.

Today is indeed a bad timing.

I need to avoid Selina’s gaze.

I was putting on an act as a Winter Castle adopted daughter, not particularly clever.

“What if Sena comes looking for trouble again? I’ll just act a bit angry.”

Then, I would look a little more foolish.

That much was just perfect in front of Selina.

On the second day of the banquet.

That day, I didn’t even step outside of my lodging.

I strolled through the garden formed outside of ‘Moon Shadow’ with Hera.

Hera, who sat in a wheelchair, spoke.

“Surprisingly, you were expected to be enthusiastic in the social circle.”

“There’s just a lot on my mind.”

“On your mind? What is it?”

Luckily, I didn’t bump into him, but Jeremy appeared—he had already become a star on the first day, surrounded by people, while Selina couldn’t possibly have known his intentions.

“I just find the proposal of Selina strange in many ways.”

But at that moment, a voice came from behind.

“Which part of my proposal was so strange?”

Why.

Why are you here!

The host should be guarding the banquet!

I ran away from the banquet, distancing myself from you—why are you here!

Viola exclaimed inwardly.

The host of the Forget-Me-Not Ball should not be present here.

She stood there, smiling brighter than the warm sunshine.

Just then, the wind blew.

Her luxurious golden hair flowed like waves.

“I thought it was a lovely suggestion for many heirs, including Lady Viola. The Blue Diamond is a magnificent treasure.”

Selina was here.