Chapter 121: The Banquet (Part 2)
Ji Ma continued speaking:
“And it’s quite appropriate too, isn’t it giving face to the emperor? Hey, Jenna, don’t look at me with that strange expression. At least there will be many people at the banquet wearing outfits like mine.”
“But…” Jenna couldn’t finish her sentence and sighed, “As long as you’re happy.”
“Isn’t that right? The most important thing is to be happy.” Ji Ma continued to ramble, “I know you’re concerned about me, Jenna, but as a demon who has suffered from people’s prejudices, harboring a grudge, it’s rare to have an opportunity to be a little arrogant, so I must cherish it.”
Moreover, I still need to meet some fools at the banquet to pave the way for my cuckold novels in the future.
Jenna showed a look of understanding.
Speaking of which, as the carriage slowly made its way to the Adolf Palace.
The invited noble guests had begun to arrive at the palace one after another, while the local nobles had come early, stepping onto the red carpet and greeting the imperial couple.
Due to the emperor’s notable military achievements and his wielding of the Hammer of Sigma, the electors from near the Reck territory, even the emperor’s political rival Boris, brought their wives along.
The guests came from all over and dressed in a variety of styles; the empire is composed of twelve and a half semi-independent provinces, each with different customs.
There were local Adolf nobles dressed in fashionable tight pants and high heels, draped in furs. They wore contact lenses to hide their nearsightedness and donned wigs to cover their baldness.
The guests from the Midden territory, however, were not so civilized. The believers of the White Wolf Yurik were dressed like barbarians, cloaked in wolf skins adorned with wolf heads, revealing their strong muscles.
Upon entering the palace, they showed no restraint in expressing their disgust, casting unfriendly glances at the bald priests who worshiped Sigma. Everyone was used to it; the Sigma Church and the White Wolf Yurik Church, being the two major churches of the empire, had significant conflicts.
Not to mention, since the fanatical Walker became the Grand Preacher, diligently exacerbating the conflict between the two sides, he had always dreamt of making the faith in Sigma the only religion throughout the empire. He viewed the White Wolf Yurik Church as the greatest internal enemy, and the latter was not one to coexist peacefully, either; the two sides had fought a civil war two years ago, which Sigma Church won, with the emperor’s Reck Guard joining the fray and turning the tide.
The infamous knights from the empire, the Cheetah Knights, wore full plate armor at the banquet, draped in ancient Cheetah skins from the desert oasis. This armor was a memento from a hundred years ago when the imperial knights and the knights of Bartó participated in a holy war, going into the desert to face enemies from the east.
They claimed to remain vigilant at all times, thus kept their armor on at the banquet. Considering the half-Griffon knights in the Cheetah Knights who had greatly assisted the emperor in the battle at the Obsidian Pass, nobody perceived it as disrespectful toward the emperor.
But Boris, the one-eyed political rival of the emperor, was different. He insisted on wearing armor and brought the rune sword of the electors to the banquet alone; having lost his family to beastmen and one eye, he was now middle-aged.
He vowed to kill all beastmen, his hatred shaping him through life-and-death encounters, making Boris increasingly strong both mentally and physically. He had once been a leading candidate for emperor, highly respected for his military achievements. Thus, he lost to the current pampered emperor by a narrow vote three years ago.
All these conflicts made the atmosphere at the banquet tense. Fortunately, the emperor was skilled in politics and wielded the Hammer of Sigma, along with his military glory, providing everyone with some dignity and uniting the conflicted internal affairs of the empire.
The belligerent followers of the White Wolf Yurik did not howl and charge at the Sigma priests’ bald heads. The one-eyed Boris did not draw his sword to strike the emperor or the elector who did not vote for him back then; he accepted bringing weapons to the banquet, ostensibly to protect the emperor better, thus giving everyone dignity.
In contrast, the Von Kainstein family from Silfany, who dressed like the legendary vampires, seemed less out of place.
Silfany is known for having the highest death rate among witch hunters, with rumors circulating that the lord there is a vampire commanding over a million skeleton soldiers. Considering their attire, it’s no wonder these rumors exist.
They all wore Gothic outfits resembling black shrouds, the women with pale skin, cinched at the waist with belts and wearing full skirts, and they liked to hold bloody-looking goblets, inevitably evoking the thoughts of vampire legends.
The imperial guests divided into circles within the vast palace, whispering among themselves. As time passed, the tense atmosphere gradually faded, and even the one-eyed Boris, who appeared as if the whole world owed him five hundred thousand gold coins, rarely revealed a smile.
The topics of conversation shifted from serious life-and-death matters like “Which family suffered a beastman attack on the road and was wiped out?” and “The emperor controls three provinces; which elector will be his next target?” to more relaxed gossip.
These gossips were surprisingly uniform.
“I heard the wild mage Ji Ma will be coming?”
“Will Walker really not send her flying with a single blow?”
More often than not, women were warning their men.
“Darling, that woman will definitely dress immorally; she has a wicked mind as bad as the demon clan, don’t be fooled by them.”
“Kids, when that wild woman arrives, let’s all go to the garden to avoid any damage to our mental health.”
“My dear wife, you underestimate your husband; after all, I was once a renowned playboy. A single glance from you captured my heart; how could I be enchanted by a wild mage?”
Initially, the caution against Ji Ma circulated only among the local noblewomen.
However, thanks to the influence of the noblewomen from various provinces, the women were much more unified in this regard than the men.
Everyone tacitly avoided using the term “succubus,” yet conveyed in various euphemistic ways that the newcomer was indeed a succubus.
The belatedly aware noblewomen from other regions hurried off to warn their husbands.
With pale faces and blood-like drinks in hand, the Silfany noblewomen walked briskly, fearing they would be too late in their warnings and give their husbands an excuse to “appreciate” the succubus’s beauty.
Within minutes, the legend of the “wild mage” Ji Ma spread throughout the banquet.
Some men felt a bit upset, complaining that their wives did not trust them and thought too poorly of them.
Others snorted and retorted, asking what the difference was between demons and beastmen. This statement earned the approval of the one-eyed Boris.
More men became interested, but in such an atmosphere, it was not advisable to openly show their eagerness. To avoid being isolated, they each pledged loyalty, stating that even if Ji Ma stripped completely and begged them to dance, they wouldn’t give her a second glance.
Only a few poorly-regarded playboys grew intrigued.
Seeing that everyone was united, the old noblewoman dressed in black as if in mourning revealed a smile; she already envisioned how Ji Ma would be isolated.
This was a moral victory.
