Chapter 231

Half a day had passed since we began our journey to the capital in the carriage led by Ditmayer.

“We’ve arrived, Young Master Ethan, Miss Lillis.”

True to the reputation of a skilled butler, the Blackwood family carriage, carrying Ethan and me, arrived at the palace annex much earlier than expected.

From outside the carriage, I could hear the murmur of voices. Peeking out from behind the curtain, I could see young ladies dressed in gowns clearly meant to impress men, gathered outside.

“Hmm, I don’t see him here yet.”

“Who? That warrior guy?”

“No, Prince McHart. Though it would be problematic if our esteemed ‘Hero’ doesn’t show up, the most important thing is whether Prince McHart attends.”

If my plan had leaked, things would become a real pain from that point on. However, I trusted that everyone involved had kept their mouths shut.

“He’ll probably be inside already, or maybe he’ll come in a bit late, like last time.”

“…Yeah, if it’s that prince, he’s likely to be late.”

Though I agreed with Ethan, I couldn’t calm my nerves. After all, I was risking my life to face McHart in a decisive confrontation.

The black and red dress I was wearing made me anxious as I wondered whose blood would stain it soon. My plan was only to lure McHart in, and the actual battle would determine whether we could defeat him.

‘There’s no sign of Savio or Cerista. Agnes will likely come with the Hero…’

…Well, we arrived earlier than expected, so it would be best to go inside and secure a spot where we could easily observe when McHart and the others arrive.

With that in mind, I stopped looking outside and, after acknowledging Ditmayer’s greeting, stepped out of the carriage.

“Have a pleasant time, Young Master Ethan. Miss Lillis.”

“Sure.”

“Yes, Mr. Ditmayer.”

“I’ll return to pick you up tomorrow morning.”

As the Blackwood carriage disappeared into the distance, Ethan and I walked toward the entrance of the annex’s banquet hall, immediately sensing the eyes of several nobles turning toward Ethan.

As expected, being a young lord of the Blackwood family, Ethan naturally drew the attention of the young ladies.

“Oh, who is that?”

“…Could it be? Is that the Young Lord Blackwood?”

The young ladies lingering near the entrance, seemingly waiting for someone, began to murmur in excitement at Ethan’s appearance. They were probably surprised that someone as upright as Ethan would attend such a scandalous gathering.

I bet they were waiting for McHart, but honestly, Ethan wasn’t inferior to him in any way.

…No, if we’re talking about looks alone, Ethan was definitely more handsome than McHart. Add his personality and swordsmanship, and it wasn’t even close.

In that sense, some of the young ladies might have shifted their attention from the highly sought-after McHart to Ethan as soon as they saw him. But Ethan wasn’t in any state to entertain their advances, and even if they tried, I would personally make sure they didn’t get anywhere near him.

“Who’s that next to him…?”

“Isn’t that Miss Rosewood? The fiancée of Young Lord Blackwood…”

“Why are the two of them attending this gathering?”

“Could it be that they’re planning to ‘swap partners’ because they’re bored with each other…?”

Their openly disrespectful whispers were irritating, but I wasn’t foolish enough to confront them over it. I had expected this kind of talk the moment I decided to show up at this event.

What concerned me more was Ethan. I hoped he wouldn’t get upset or embarrassed by such vulgar conversations, as it would only cause us trouble.

Fortunately, thanks to the conversation we had in the carriage, Ethan didn’t seem too bothered by the chatter and walked calmly into the banquet hall with me.

‘Judging by the gender ratio of about six women to four men, it’s almost certain that McHart will attend this gathering…’

Even in a world inspired by an eroge, men generally had higher libidos than women.

Usually, more men would attend such debauched gatherings, but whether McHart showed up or not greatly influenced the turnout.

For young noblewomen who enjoyed one-night stands, spending a night with McHart was like a dream come true.

It wasn’t just about his looks—though those certainly helped—but the fact that he would flirt with anyone of a certain standard, regardless of status, made him incredibly popular. Despite being far down the line of succession, his royal blood made him highly desirable.

That said, men didn’t hate gatherings attended by McHart either. With the gender ratio flipped, noblemen saw this as an opportunity to seduce the naive young ladies who came hoping to catch McHart’s eye, knowing full well he couldn’t spend the night with all of them.

‘…Well, in real medieval times, things were even more decadent than this.’

At least there was no incest in this world. And except for one, all the potential heroines were still virgins.

…The more I think about it, the angrier I get. How many virgins has McHart deflowered, even though he’s not the protagonist? Just thinking about how he increased the non-virgin count in this damn game pisses me off…

With these thoughts in mind, Ethan and I entered the main hall where the noble gathering was taking place. The scene inside was a sight to behold.

Half of the men and women who had arrived early were already paired off, and some of those couples were openly making out or worse…

-Kiss.

-Smack, smack.

Some couples were discreetly exchanging kisses, trying to avoid the gazes of others, while others were shamelessly making out, completely indifferent to the stares.

“Hmph… Ah…”

There were even some who had already started their private time in the corners of the hall. Seeing the true nature of the noble scions who were supposed to lead the empire’s future made me want to cry out of sheer disgust.

‘No wonder the academy is due for a generational change with people like these in charge.’

After taking in the scene, Ethan and I found a small standing table off to the side.

In gatherings like this, a small round table usually meant seating for two, while a larger round table accommodated more people. The more people, the more debauched the night would likely become.@@novelbin@@

I had no intention of mingling with other nobles at this event, as it would only interfere with my plan to take down McHart, so naturally, Ethan and I stood at the smaller table. A few men who had been eyeing me—especially my chest—looked disappointed when they saw us settle in.

…I should gouge out those bastards’ eyes.

The dress I was wearing revealed more of my chest than usual, partly because my breasts had grown a bit since the last time, and I had to make quick adjustments. There was no helping it, given the increased volume.

“……”

-Squeeze.

Ethan seemed to notice the unwanted attention I was drawing. He quietly gripped my hand, likely becoming aware of the kind of den of iniquity we had entered.

As I scanned the hall to see if any of our allies had arrived, my eyes fell on a young lady with brown hair sitting alone at the largest round table, clearly waiting for someone.

Was her name Evelin, or maybe Sivelin? I couldn’t remember exactly, and honestly, I didn’t care enough to remember the names of insignificant side characters.

It was hard enough keeping track of the names of the heroines and main characters, so I wasn’t about to waste brain space on this kind of trash.

‘But still, she’s like a McHart alarm bell. Seeing her here means McHart is likely to show up as well.’

For the record, that large round table usually seated about ten to twelve people and was often reserved for McHart during these debauched gatherings.

The only reason a girl like ‘Loose Evelin’—or whatever her name was—could sit there so confidently was because of her connections. She held the position of McHart’s fiancée at the Luminor Academy.

Lady Pinkhart, the Duke’s daughter. She was the one who had turned McHart into a demon and was a subordinate of the Succubus Queen.

She was one of the few who knew McHart’s secret and acted as his liaison to the demon world, so McHart couldn’t afford to treat her lightly. And for the women who spent the night with McHart, it was considered normal that she would be involved as well, which explained her brazen attitude.

Lady Pinkhart was the one who encouraged McHart to seduce as many women as possible. After all, succubi could drain energy from women just as easily as from men, making her a true bisexual.

With that in mind, you might think that she only engaged in such relationships with McHart, but the fact that she was known as a ‘loose woman’ made it clear there was more to the story.

I watched as a young nobleman approached her, hoping to overhear their conversation.

“Lady Pinkhart, do you have a moment?”

“…Hmm? My dear is arriving soon, so I can’t stay long.”

“If that’s the case, then perhaps just… with your hand?”

“Oh?”

“…Yes, please.”

“Alright, I’ll use my mouth then. Come to the ladies’ room on the third floor in five minutes. You can bring a friend if you like. I think I’ll have time for that.”

“…Thank you, my lady.”

Just listening to their conversation made my stomach churn. As a former unicorn, it was enough to make me want to vomit.

It was a small relief that she was a demon. If she had been a heroine in Luminor Academy instead…