Let the show begin

Clankkkk

The huge door opened in front of Jaden, who followed Aliana. He knew that no one would be able to notice him.

The magic that was casted by Aliana on him hid his presence from others. Even if they were to bump into him, no one would actually find him out.

[Lady Rosenstein is entering!!]

The announcement made the whole banquet hall fill with silence. This was the first time that Aliana had attended Crown Prince Lenon's birthday.

Fwish

As everyone had their eyes fixed on Aliana, Jaden swiftly moved into the middle of a random crowd. It wasn't really random, since that crowd was closest to the buffet.

'I wonder how delicious the food that the royal family had the royal chefs prepare would taste.'

Jaden was hungry. If not for the birthday banquet, he could've just eaten and fallen asleep as soon as he reached home.

Murmur murmur

Everyone was busy talking about Aliana. And then there was Jaden.

"This tastes delicious~"

He was devouring the pastries. If others saw him, they would definitely think that he had been starving for days. Luckily, no one could see him.

Aliana put her hand on her lips to hide her smile. She was observing Jaden.

'I'll let him enjoy himself for a while.'

Aliana thought while turning towards the platform. Lenon sat on a decorated chair. And next to him was his lover, Claire.

Aliana was aware of what was going on within the walls of the imperial palace. She sighed and began walking towards Lenon.

All guests were expecting something huge to happen. Aliana bowed her head and spoke firmly.

"May this auspicious day bring joy and prosperity to Your Highness, the esteemed Crown Prince, on the occasion of your royal birthday."

Aliana gave her greetings to Lenon and quietly walked away without causing a scene. The people were silent for a moment, but at the very next moment, they were murmuring again.

"Maybe that rumour was true..."

There were countless rumours about Aliana since she never got involved in the most political affairs.

"That indeed seems to be the case."

People were talking amongst themselves. Lenon wasn't listening to their whispers. He was busy with something else.

'How should I approach her...?'

He was still thinking about how he could break off the engagement. Aliana behaved as if she never cared who Lenon had as his partner.

'There's no way that she doesn't care... She sent all those letters to me...'

Claire looked at Lenon, who was drowning in his own thoughts. She wanted to have Lenon make his move as soon as possible.

'Tsk. That b*tch is acting like she doesn't care at all.'

Claire clicked her tongue. A smile glowed up on her face for a moment. Then she had an expressionless face again.

'No worries. I've made sure that Lenon comes to hate Aliana.'

Aliana never bothered caring about what Lenon did. She only focused on her goals.

And something like sending letters? Claire was the who sent those under Aliana's name.

Everyone was busy with their own talks. Aliana stood in one place. No one approached her. Jaden was watching from afar.

'Just how bad is her reputation...?'

He continued stuffing his mouth with food. He was almost done tasting all the dishes that were being served. His hunger had settled down a bit.

'Is this also because of the memorization potion's effects?'

"As I was saying..."

Jaden was standing with a plate full of food in his hands. A conversation fell on his ears.

"Lady Rosenstein has a lover, apparently."

COUGH COUGH

Jaden choked on the food he was eating. He put the plate on a table and heard the people talk.

"Who is it? Is he famous?"

Jaden had no other thing to do. He was already bored with tasting food.

"That isn't known yet."

He let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this. For a moment, he thought that his cover had been blown.

Those rumours going around were also work of Claire. But who would've known that those stupid rumours were about to come true?

"Knowing Lady Rosenstein, her lover must be of unusual origins."

Aliana Rosenstein was a person famous throughout the kingdom of Dragonaria. She was the fiancee of the crown prince.

Sigh

Jaden walked away from there. He started listening to other people's conversations.

"Who do you think is more popular? Lady Rosenstein or Lady Belcher?"

Jaden picked up a glass of red wine and took a sip. The bittersweet taste made his facial features shrink, displaying his displeasure.

"Are you really comparing them? The answer is quite obvious to everyone."

Jaden looked at Aliana; a few people were talking with her now. And a bit further from there, Lenon was glaring daggers at her. Jaden didn't notice him.

"Indeed. Lady Rosenstein stands out more."

Jaden moved forward. He was hearing conversations with no valuable information. He was already aware of most of the things he came across.

"I heard the magic tower master will be attending this banquet."

Now this was some talk that piqued Jaden's interest. The magic tower rarely appeared in 'Light of Dragonaria'. That's just how the setting was made up to be.

'That's weird...'

Anyone related to the Magic Tower never made public appearances. There wasn't any magic tower master attending Lenon's banquet in the novel either.

Sip

'I have a bad feeling.'

Jaden thought as his glass of red wine became empty. He drank it all before even realising it.

'Just what will happen now...?'

He thought while looking at Aliana through the empty wine glass. He could feel his hands growing cold.

The work she had tasked him with wasn't an easy one. More than that, it was an absurd thing to do.

'She asked me to kill someone...'

He didn't want to do it, but he still thought deeply for a while. Letting out a sigh, he spoke lightly to himself.

"A world inside a novel, eh..."

He wondered if it was appropriate of him to kill people, thinking that they were just characters within the novel. He shook his head sideways.

No. It was still wrong. His conscience wouldn't allow him to do so.

He understood it very well. Keeping the glass aside on a table, Jaden sighed.

"I should steel my heart for what is about to come."

He mixed up with the crowd again. He was waiting patietnly for Aliana to give him the signal now.

-------------------

'How annoying...'

Aliana thought as she tried to end the conversations other people had struck up. She wasn't interested in those talks.

The people who were trying to strike up the conversation with her were none other than those who suck up to higher class nobles. Aliana was from a good family that never showed any interest in making connections to such people.

The banquet hall was full of people. Almost all the invited guests had arrived.

'It's about time.'

Aliana looked at Lenon. He was discussing something with Claire. A smile appeared on her lips.

"Are you sure about this?"

Claire was clinging to Lenon's arm. She sounded worried.

"I am. It's about time I make my intentions clear."

Lenon stared at Aliana with serious eyes. Claire looked at his face and smiled a bit.

'It's going as I wanted.'

Claire wasn't a bit worried. She was more than pleased because Lenon was about to break off his engagement with Aliana.

'They might try to oppose. But it will be of no use.'

Lenon touched Claire's hair. Putting his lips on them, he smiled.

On the other side, Aliana was getting chills for no particular reason. Lenon's voice wasn't being heard by her either.

"Just wait a bit. Soon they will know who is going to become the empress."

He looked into Claire's eyes. To which, she smiled with red cheeks.

There were some pillars behind the stage. And behind one of those pillars, a man was standing. He had heard the conversation between the two.

'Seems interesting...'

He thought with a cunning smile on his face. He stopped smiling and his eyes spun towards another person.

"This one is a lot more interesting... What is that outfit called anyway?"

He looked at Jaden, who was standing amidst the crowd wearing some unusual clothes. The magic that Aliana used to conceal Jaden was still there.

'It seems things will be entertaining.'

Putting on the hood of his robe, the man walked away from that area. As he walked, he looked at Aliana and Jaden.

"I will need to make my appearance soon enough, I suppose."

Suddenly, cold air flew over his body. He looked in the direction where the air came from.

'This is dangerous, I guess...'

He smiled nervously. Aliana was looking straight into his green eyes.

The cold mana seeping around his body made him nauseous for a moment. He could tell that the person possessing it was highly skilled.

Pft-

The man laughed softly as he continued walking away. The melancholy voice of him humming spread around.

"La~ La~ La~"

He spoke like he was singing. And the words became fainter as he took steps into the darkness behind the stage.

"Let~ The~ Show~"

The voice remained when his figure disappeared. Alas, what left behind was the darkness looming in that part.

"Begin."

Aacchoo

Jaden sneezed as he felt the cold air. Maybe the temperature had fallen since it was night now.

'I want to go home...'

He looked at people as if they were uninteresting. He was already bored.

Clap clap

Someone clapped loudly. Jaden tried to see who it was.

'So that person is...'

Jaden knew who it was just by taking a glance at him. Silver hair and violet eyes. Everyone in the banquet hall was paying close attention to him. It was as if he was...

"The protagonist..."

Jaden mumbled while standing in the same place for a while. It felt like time had come to a stop.

But the sounds of the people talking kept on flowing. Jaden couldn't listen any of those, though.

"I have an important announcement to make!"

Claire was just beside him. Jaden, who was drowned in deep thoughts, didn't bat an eye at her.

'Would it have been better if I had woken up in his body...?'

Jaden stared at Lenon. He put his hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat.

Maybe this was the answer he had been looking for. Even if it was not the answer, Jaden had accepted it.

'So that's how it is...'

Jaden had made his decision. He looked at Aliana with eager eyes, while Lenon continued his announcement.

"I have found the true love of my life!"

Lenon's sound was resonating throughout the banquet hall. People were talking too.

That wasn't any of Aliana or Jaden's concerns. They simply were too focused on the plan.

"That being the case, I shall annul my engagement with Aliana Rosenstein."

Pfft-

Upon hearing the complete announcement, Aliana let out a light laugh. She could feel that the time had ripened.

'Now then...'

She looked at Claire. Their eyes met by coincidence when Aliana was about to look at the person who sought to break their engagement.

The smile formed on Claire's lips as Aliana's face wasn't clearly visible to her. What sort of expression was she making? After all...

'Everything is working out in my favour.'

Claire expected her to get angry and act rashly. What did she take Aliana for? A doll in some play?

"Eh?"

There she was, smiling back at Claire. An uneasiness began to grow within her heart seeing her lips.

'What's with her...?'

Claire's forehead grew cold. She was feeling nervous.

'Time to teach this impudent b*tch her lesson.'

Aliana thought while maintaining her smile. She looked towards Lenon and slowly lifted the silence.

"Oh my. You're surely getting ahead of yourself, aren't you? Lenon."

Aliana dropped formalities. Everyone stayed quiet because it was clear who was at fault here.

Not only had he brought in a lover belonging to the lower class of nobility, but also tried to break off the engagement without any appropriate basis.

What could anyone say when the person is just skilled enough to shut their mouths up?

"Have you finally lost it?"

Lenon's eyebrows made a frown. He was a bit annoyed because of Aliana's rude and disrespectful behaviour.

Even if it were her, there such a behaviour against royalty was no good.

"I'm more sane than ever."

Aliana picked up a glass of red wine from the tray held by a butler nearby. She slowly walked towards the stage.

"Should I repeat myself?"

Everyone silently witnessed the scene. Lenon's blood was boiling with anger. Aliana, on the other hand, smiled at Claire for a moment.

"I'm calling our engagement off-"

Snap

Lenon's words came to a pause at that sound. Jaden was witnessing this scene with his eyes wide open.

Thud

Everyone wondered why Lenon was on his knee, but did they have any way to find out the reason? No, they could simply make guesses.

The flow of mana tangled around his body making the air surrounding him heavy. Aliana had used her magic to do so.

"You will annul the engagement with me?"

Aliana walked up the platform and looked down at Lenon's face.

Splash

The red liquid flowed down Lenon's silver hair. Aliana had poured the red wine on his head without a second thought.

"Jokes on you, Lenon."

The liquid continued dropping on the floor. The scene unfolding on the platform had caught everyone's attention.

"I am annulling this damned engagement myself."

Letting the glass go off her hand, Aliana had a smirk on her face. The empty glass shattered upon touching the floor.

Cracccck

So did the silence throughout the hall.