CH 147

A mere 2 weeks after Queen Amelie’s evening party was held, another evening party hosted by Helene von Bayen was about to be held at the Bayen Residence.

On that day, the people who came to attend were from a wide swathe, from high-ranking nobles to middle-class nobles. Also, the lineup of attendees was more gorgeous than the evening party of Queen Amelie.

Most people don’t know this, but Queen Amelie didn’t dare to invite the other members of the royal family or ducal families close to the royal family. She wanted to take advantage of the evening party for the Siegen Marquisate and the Nassam Duchy to gain more power, so she eliminated as many potential competitors to her power grab as she could have.

Compared to that, it’s obvious at a glance that Duke Bayen’s evening party has sent out invitations evenly, is of a larger scale, and has a more gorgeous line-up of Who’s Who. Second Queen Amelie’s Faction also understands that, so they can’t complain even if a bigger party is held after their event.

The guests who arrived one after another were filled with anticipation. In terms of simple territory size, Duke Bayen, who owns land next to the Royal Domain, dared to throw an evening party just 2 weeks after the party hosted by Second Queen Amelie. It can be seen that his confidence is considerable. What kind of soiree can you hold with such pride? The expectations were higher than usual.

And one more thing. The guests at Amelie’s event, and even the people who had just heard from the attendees, were all now paying attention to a certain person who would be attending. So many of the guests were eagerly awaiting the appearance of that person, wanting to catch even a glimpse of her avant-garde fashion, unbound by tradition.

In the midst of this, a carriage slipped through the gate and came to the entrance. Engraved on the carriage are the crest of the royal family and the crest of the crown prince both. It was obvious at a glance this was Prince Ludwig’s, since his position was just formally, publicly announced recently.

And when the carriage stopped at the entrance, a platform was prepared and a young man got off. However, that young man is not Prince Ludwig…

“Isn’t that Lord Rutger? Why is Lord Rutger in the Crown Prince’s exclusive carriage?

“Was it Lord Rutger who was crowned, not Prince Ludwig?”

That’s not the case, but the confused attendees were whispering their guesses. Then, when Rutger got out of the carriage and went to the side, more people got off. Seeing him, the attendees finally came to an agreement.

“Oh, so His Highness Ludwig was aboard?”

“It seems that Lord Rutger and Prince Ludwig were just riding together.”

Normally, Ludwig and Rutger wouldn’t be riding in the same carriage in a place like this. It’s not the same as going to a party on modern Earth and saying, “We’re going to the same place, anyway, so let’s take one car.”

Certainly, it’s not advisable considering customs and manners, but there’s no rule that it should never be done. There may also be times when something unexpected happens and forces the matter. It does not mean that you are only allowed to do things within manners and customs without allowing any exceptions.

But that was not all. What really struck the audience was what happened next. After getting off the platform, Ludwig stands on the opposite side of Rutger, and the two reach out toward the carriage with a hand each. An angel took the offered assistance and descended.

She lets her long blonde hair loose without tying it up in a traditional hairstyle and casts her gaze around once as if she can see through everything with her pale blue eyes.

With her dress and both Prince Ludwig and Lord Rutger holding her hands to her left and right, her entrance was completely different from the other young ladies.

Her silk dress is woven from light yellow and light pink fabrics. From the waist down, it swells and has many folds running vertically. White lace is sewn between the folds, and there are large ribbons on both sides.

A completely new outfit that they have never seen before. It’s also different from the dress she wore last time at Amelie’s evening party. Those who saw her then, expected to see the same costume again here. And those who hadn’t seen it then were hoping to see it now.

But this time, she’s wearing new clothes again. It’s only been 2 weeks and she’s wearing a different outfit that’s as good as the last one.

How in the world can you get this much of that hard-to-find silk? And the design. In just this brief time, she had come up with and made 2 outfits with designs that they had never seen before. Just how much aesthetic taste, financial strength, and foresight are there in this woman? There is no doubt that most people wear the same clothes for generations, so she stands far outside the ordinary.

The beautiful young lady heads to the venue with Ludwig and Rutger on her left and right. She is an unusual example of walking with two men accompanying her, with herself in the center and the star of attention. Moreover, her partners were Prince Ludwig and Lord Rutger, and it was already beyond the understanding of most people to see all of them sharing a carriage meant exclusively for the Crown Prince.

As the beautiful young lady began to move accompanied by the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister’s Heir, the attendees were at a loss for words, and they only regained their sense after they had gone through the reception and entered the venue.

“He-Hey… is that the rumored daughter of House Carruthers?”

“To think that His Highness Ludwig and Lord Rutger would also come with her like this…”

“Is she getting married to Prince Ludwig after all, just like the rumors said?”

“Even if she doesn’t marry the Crown Prince, she’ll marry Lord Rutger, right? I envy them…”

The men’s topics were exclusively Flora’s beauty and her relationship with Ludwig and Rutger. Most people were deceived by her beauty and talked about wanting to have a wife like her.

“Have you seen the clothes she was wearing just now?”

“It’s so beautiful, wasn’t it…?”

“If she already has a new dress, could she give her previous one to me?”

“Oh my… your body is just too big…”

And the women were mainly talking about Flora’s outfit. Those who saw Flora’s costume last time had their hopes of seeing it again dashed. Those who hadn’t seen it then had their hopes of seeing it now also dashed. This dress was different from the last time, but, no one complained.

This evening’s dress is also as wonderful as last time’s, and they envy the sensibility and financial strength that can prepare so many dresses so quickly. Some people were desperately looking for a tailor, wondering which shop they should order from to get a dress like that.

Of course, no matter where they’d look, they can’t get a dress like Flora’s. Flora is the one who thinks of her designs, and based on that, the craftsmen of Caanza and Kruck cooperated to create it, since they already have a mutualistic relationship. If an ordinary person were to order a similar costume, they would need such a budget they wouldn’t be able to complete even one.

Some marvel at Flora’s personal beauty and others marvel at the splendor of her dress. And there are people who know Flora’s education from the way she walks proudly even with Prince Ludwig and Prince Rutger on both sides of her. Now, they think it would be better to approach and ingratiate themselves with her now, the opinions of her were rapidly shifting.

Since it was time for the attendees to gather inside, the host was to give their greetings and announce the start of the evening party. While they were paying attention, Duke Bayen’s daughter, Helene von Bayen, went up to the front stage and gave her welcome.

“Everyone, thank you for attending the evening party I am hosting tonight. On this evening, we hold this to celebrate His Highness Ludwig’s being declared Crown Prince. Please, relax and enjoy yourselves.”

Helene’s greeting was met with crackling applause from the entire venue. And then the evening party started… but the reactions of the attendees weren’t good enough.

“She must have known His Highness would become the royal heir even before the announcement, but…”

“The evening party itself is mediocre…”

The event on this eve was a splendid one with no shame as an evening party hosted by a duke. But it was nothing special. It was nothing more than an ordinary evening party hosted by an ordinary duke.

Under normal circumstances, no one would have been disappointed at this evening party. Rather, the majority of people should have returned satisfied that they had been invited to a splendid evening party. But this time it’s different. Immediately after Queen Amelie’s evening, despite knowing and celebrating Ludwig’s becoming Crown Prince, it was unthinkable for a noble of this level to hold a mediocre evening party.

But maybe there is something on the way. There were some people who thought so and were still slightly hopeful, but as time passed and the eve progressed, those expectations turned into disappointment.

For those who know the internal affairs of House Bayen, it leads to a different evaluation. It was only one month ago that the invitations were sent, and that they could still reach halfway displays Bayen’s power and financial strength.

But that doesn’t matter to the participants. Rather, they would just ask him why they didn’t send out the invitation at a later date, after preparing properly. It’s a sign of stupidity to proceed with things without thorough arrangements and foresight, and it’s not worthy of a positive evaluation even if it’s somewhat consistent at the end.

Even though nothing was lacking in the duke’s evening party, it lacked excitement, and the event was about to pass its middle, and then the finale.

""

It’s no good if it stays like this. Helene and Alto could feel it as they watched the reactions of the guests, but they couldn’t do anything about it. As Helene openly harassed Flora for being on such friendly terms with Ludwig and company, Helene should have been furious, but for now, with all of them together, she couldn’t afford to.

At that time… BANG! A set of doors opened. The gazes of the guests gather there at once.

“We have prepared a special experience for everyone gathered here tonight! Please enjoy it!”

“”””Oh!”””””

The girl standing with the door open, those who know, know. She was Christiane von Reingen, the daughter of Marquis Reingen, a member of Duke Bayen’s Faction. However, she is not the Lady Christiane that everyone knows.

Dark blue and indigo fabric with a wide skirt, though not as much so as Flora’s outfit. Around her chest and waist, there are things made like roses by rolling up fabric, the artificial flowers that Flora named “corsages” and used for decoration. The skirt was covered with a thin see-through fabric like a veil, and the lamé was shining.

It is a costume that has never been seen before, and no one can hide their surprise and excitement. It’s a great outfit that’s as good as Flora’s.

That was also natural, and in the first place, Cristiane’s outfit was originally designed by Flora. She hastily had it retailored to fit Christiane, but originally Flora might have worn it herself tonight.

And when Christiane clapped her hands, an army of servers came in with all manner of equipment and supplies from the doors that had been left open. The attendees couldn’t stop being excited about what they were starting to line up in the venue.

What are they going to experience? Judging from what the servers brought in, they can guess that it looks like food, but they don’t know what kind it is.

And above all, the level of the servers is overwhelmingly high. It’s incredible that they’ve gathered so many people who seem to have the same level of knowledge and skills as the highest-class maids and butlers of every high-ranking noble’s House. To help you understand, you could say this was making a whole sports league entirely of all-star players.

“First of all, we prepared the food item that’s all the rage now, Crepes,” Christiane said.

“Oh… isn’t that…”

“I have eaten them before…”

“Oh, you have as well? Actually, I’ve done so in secret myself…”

There are people who usually say that crepes are crude street fare for the commoners, and people who were curious from the start, but most people think the same: they wanted to eat it, but could not.

Some have secretly pretended to be commoners and gone out to eat at the cafe, while others have had someone go buy them in their stead and ate them at home. Such people already know the deliciousness of crepes and want to consume them again. However, the atmosphere of this place interferes with eating crepes. They keep each other in check as to whether a high-ranking aristocrat will eat sweets for the commoners.

“What is it, are you guys not going to eat?” Lord Rutger asked. “Then I’ll have it all for myself, then.”

“Ah!” Prince Ludwig cried. “Wait, Rutger! That’s cheating! I’ll have the first ones!’

The tasty crepes are arranged neatly. Rutger reached out in view of those watching from a distance, and now Ludwig also bit into one himself. Seeing that, other nobles gradually began to taste the crepes. Both the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister’s Heir were enjoying themselves. There is no way anyone could call this mere vulgar street fare anymore.

They really, truly were interested. If it’s such a hot topic, they’d like to try it once. If it can be eaten openly like this, there’s no way they won’t bite in. In the blink of an eye, the number of people who tried crepes increased, and the number of crepes decreased accordingly.

“Today, in addition to Crepes, we also have the latest new sweet, ‘Pudding’, which is not even commercially available anywhere yet,” Christiane said.

“Pudding?”

“What is that?”

“I’ve never heard of anything like it…”

Most people tilt their heads at Christiane’s announcement. They know crepes, but not pudding. What is it like? Those who have tasted crepes and understood their deliciousness can’t help but have high expectations of pudding, as well.

“Houh! Pudding, you say?!” Ludwig cried, delighted. “I shall be the first to try it then.”

“Ah! Prince Ludwig!” Rutger cried. “I’ll taste it for poison first!”

Once again His Highness and His Lordship are the first to reach out. The others waited for a while to watch them first.

“What is that?”

“It looks squishy…”

“And that color… isn’t it burnt?”

As they watched the bowls be turned over and the puddings served on flat plates instead, they had such impressions. Some even found the color and its wiggling eerie.

“Mmm! So good!” Rutger hummed.

And as they watched Ludwig and Rutger enjoying themselves so much…

“I suppose I shall have some, as well.”

“I as well.”

“Could I bother you for one, too?”

One after another, the guests called out to nearby servers. And once you put it in your mouth, you will be captivated by its sweetness and softness.

“Delicious!”

“I never thought such a texture was possible…”

“Hey! This plate… isn’t this Hexen White Porcelain?!”

“What…?! Ah! This one as well, and this one also… you’re kidding, it’s ALL Hexen White Porcelain?!”

“Impossible, how can you have this many pieces of it!?”

Those who were fascinated by the deliciousness of pudding finally realized that when one person brought it up. Hundreds of thousands of ploe for the cheapest items in the sets, and millions of ploe for the expensive ones, this was how valuable Hexen White Porcelain was and here they had hundreds of them being freely used to serve guests.

The servers who came in after them prepared the bowls, plates, and cups, all of which were Hexen white porcelain. Also, transparent glass cups are often used. How much would this set alone cost? It’s not the same as buying one or two pieces. The total is enough to buy several huge mansions in the royal capital.

“Amazing!”

“As expected of Duke Bayen.”

“This pudding is also very delicious.”

“As soon as it goes on sale, I have to buy some more.”

The evening party that followed was very lively. The high level of the servers, the deliciousness of the crepes that were so despised as a snack for the common people, the novelty of a new sweet called pudding that has not yet been sold anywhere, and the wealth that makes extensive use of Hexen White Porcelain and transparent drinking glasses both. Each was a massive surprise in itself.

As the evening party approached its end, the series of surprises left the participants with a sense of satisfaction they’d never felt before.