Banquet (1)

"Ugh, this is killing me...."

After lunch, Lu woke up and looked around, suffering from a hangover.

"Sister...?"

Ariel was nowhere to be seen.

Ariel's pajamas she had taken off were scattered on the bed, and her outdoor clothes that had been hanging on the wall were gone.

"Where did she go...?"

Lu went out to the courtyard of the accommodation, putting a handful of healing powder into his mouth.

Ariel was not in the courtyard either.

Only Ghost was lying down leisurely sunbathing.

"Ghost, it seems sister went out. She probably went to buy that strawberry tart from yesterday."

Lu plopped down next to Ghost.

"Sister is still a child after all, liking sweet desserts... Well, she'll be back soon."

However, Ariel did not return even after several hours passed.

Lu became increasingly anxious.

"I hope nothing happened to sister? But then again, sister is extremely strong... She probably just ate dessert and fell asleep again. But still, she's taking too long..."

Lu pondered whether to go look for Ariel with Ghost.

It would be dangerous for a fairy to go alone, but with Ghost by his side, there was no risk of being kidnapped by humans.

"Hmm..."

But would it be okay to take Ghost out without Ariel?

Honestly, Lu did not have confidence in controlling Ghost like Ariel could. If Ghost went berserk and attacked people, it would become a serious situation.

In the end, unable to decide either way, the sun began to set.

"Sister couldn't have abandoned us, could she...? No, of course not... But then again... from sister's perspective, we might not be necessary..."

While Lu was fidgeting, Ghost remained quite calm.

Before going out, Ariel had told Ghost that she would return.

Ghost believed those words. There was no reason to be anxious.

"Did I do something wrong to upset sister? Did she get mad because I drank too much alcohol? Maybe she met a cuter fairy than me... No, that couldn't be... Ah, I can't take this! Ghost, let's go find sister right away!"

Lu climbed onto Ghost's head and spoke, but Ghost did not budge an inch.

Ghost's face showed an annoyed expression.

Ariel said she would return, so why was this fairy making such a fuss?

"Ghost! Let's go!"

Lu tapped Ghost's forehead repeatedly.

Then Ghost shook his head, shaking Lu off.

"It's dangerous for me to go alone! Ghost, you have to come with me..."

Creak.

At that moment, the accommodation door opened and Ariel returned.

*

"Wow, nice."

Ariel's accommodation was much nicer than Selly had expected.

It was comparable to the accommodation Selly's entire family had rented.

Seeing the merchant guild's mark hung at the entrance, it seemed to be an accommodation provided by the merchant guild.

"Ariel, do you have some connection to the merchant guild? This seems to be an accommodation only provided to VIPs."

At Selly's words, Ariel just gave a brief nod before opening the door.

"Sister~!!"

Suddenly, a loud noise rang out as a small object came flying at high speed.

"I was so worried! I thought something might have happened to you! But I never thought you abandoned us! Never ever!"

Seeing the small object clinging to Ariel's cheek and rubbing against her, Selly's eyes widened.

'A fairy...?'

Only finger-sized, with wings on its back.

It was definitely a fairy.

She had seen them in books, but this was her first time seeing one in person.

"I absolutely did not have any such impure thoughts. Because I trust you, sister!"

Ariel walked quietly to the courtyard with Lu still attached to her face.

When Selly followed, she saw a massive silvery object in the courtyard.

It was an enormous wolf.

"Hieek!"

Selly jumped back in surprise.

She had seen wolves a few times in her life, but never one this huge.

'And its fur is even silver-colored, while all the ones I've seen were black...'

The massive silver wolf wagged its tail and approached Ariel.

Then it happily licked Ariel's face in greeting.

"I'm back, Ghost."

Ariel raised her hand and stroked Ghost's chin.

'So Ghost and Lu were these two...'

Selly nodded quietly.

She had thought Ghost and Lu that Ariel mentioned would be humans or elves like Ariel.

She never imagined they would be a fairy and a wolf.

"Hmm, but who is this human child, sister?"

Lu came fluttering over and crossed his arms, looking at Selly with an arrogant gaze.

"Where did you pick this one up from?"

'Pick up...?'

Selly was dumbfounded.

If the knights of the Matiel family knew Selly was treated this way, they would immediately wring Lu's neck.

Selly was a high-ranking noble herself. Though Lu probably had no idea about that.

"I'm Ariel's friend."

At Selly's words, Lu raised one eyebrow.

"Friend?"

"Yes, we played together all day today."

"Really, sister?"

When Lu looked at Ariel inquiringly, Ariel nodded.

"I see. Hmm, it's not bad to be friends with a human... but still, you can never be too careful. Like that time in Herrington Village, humans are a race that..."

"Ah, so you're Lu!"

Selly reached out and grabbed Lu.

"Wow, it's my first time seeing a fairy. I really wanted to keep one when I was little."

"Hey, let go! You want to get cursed?"

Lu struggled in Selly's grip.

Selly nuzzled Lu against her cheek, just like he had done to Ariel earlier.

"So tiny. Cute. I want to keep you."

"....."

Lu stopped squirming. A slightly embarrassed expression appeared on his face.

"Hmph, don't get too excited. I've already pledged to serve sister until I die... Ah, don't grab my wings!"

After playing with Lu for a while, Selly mustered her courage and approached Ghost next.

Ghost's silvery fur glistening in the moonlight looked mystical, making Selly want to pet it.

But when Selly reached out her hand, Ghost bared her fangs and growled at her.

"Eek!"

Selly jumped back in surprise.

"Doesn't like being touched?"

"Of course, Ghost is gruff unlike me."

Lu said from atop Selly's head.

"He won't let a human he's just met touch him so easily, unlike sister or me."

Then Ariel gently stroked Ghost's chin again, as if to calm her down.

"It's okay."

That's all Ariel said, but Ghost immediately stopped growling and wagged her tail.

Selly gathered her courage again, approached, and lightly stroked Ghost's front leg.

"Wow..."

Ghost's fur was unbelievably soft.

It was even fluffy, seeming perfect to hug and sleep with.

Ghost no longer seemed wary of Selly, lowering her body to lie down.

Thanks to that, Selly could pet Ghost's head and chin, and with Ariel's help, even climb up on her back briefly.

It was a happy time for Selly.

"Oh!"

Then she noticed the clock hanging on the accommodation wall and jumped in surprise.

"We need to go to the banquet, Ariel!"

The banquet had already started some time ago.

They were late.

*

After leaving the accommodation, Ariel and Selly hurried to the location of the banquet.

They had to leave Ghost and Lu behind at the accommodation.

They couldn't bring a wolf and fairy to a gathering of high nobles.

Originally, Ariel wouldn't have been allowed entry either, but accompanying Selly, she could pass as her maidservant.

As they arrived at the banquet hall entrance, a woman with purple hair came striding over.

"Miss Selly! Where have you been all day?"

The woman glared coldly at Selly while holding a large staff.

"What if something dangerous had happened while you were wandering around alone like that?"

The woman's name was Pamelia.

A mage belonging to the Matiel family, she was Selly's escort.

Pamelia was originally a mage skilled enough to enter the royal court.

However, in the past, Matiel's family had shown her kindness, and she was looking after Selly to repay that kindness.

"I just wanted to look around the city."

"Then you should have gone with me!"

"But Pamelia was nowhere to be seen."

"Don't lie. You snuck out while I was eating...!"

"Okay, I'm sorry, Pamelia. Since we're late, let's just go in."

As Selly smiled and took her hand to lead her in, Pamelia let out a deep sigh.

"Haaah..."

As always, Selly tried to brush it off lightly, but for Pamelia, it was a day of worrying until her blood dried up.

"Please never do that again. If anything happens to you, miss, I would never..."

"Okay, I promise I won't do it again. I'm sorry."

"Promise me."

"Yes."

Even though it was a promise that would be broken, Pamelia decided to leave it at that.

There was no point in saying more.

For now, she was grateful that Selly had returned safely, and she would just have to watch Selly more closely from now on.

"By the way, who is this...?"

Pamelia glanced at Ariel and asked. Judging by her pointed ears, she was clearly an elf.

"A friend."

"A friend...?"

"Yes. I made friends with her today, and she's going to attend the banquet with me."

Selly smiled and took Pamelia and Ariel's hands, one on each side, and walked into the banquet hall.

*

The banquet had already started.

The lavishly and luxuriously decorated hall was filled with nobles, and on the stage, the mayor was giving a speech.

Selly, Ariel, and Pamelia took seats at a corner table and waited for the mayor's speech to end.

The content of the speech was nothing special.

Just thanking them for visiting Sierra, expressing honor for their attendance at the banquet, and asking them to continue working for the empire in the future – the usual platitudes.

Stifling a yawn, Selly looked over the food prepared on one side of the hall.

As befitting a banquet for high nobles, there was an abundance of delicious-looking food.

"With that, I will conclude my speech. I hope you all have an enjoyable evening tonight."

Clap clap clap.

Finally, the mayor's speech ended.

Music began to play in the center of the hall, and people one by one rose from their tables and headed toward the food.

"Let's go quickly too, Ariel!"

Selly also stood up with Ariel.

Then someone approached them and spoke.

"Well, well, Selly, long time no see~ I figured I'd run into you here."

It was a boy with spiky blond hair, protruding cheekbones and a somewhat sly look.

"..."

Selly's expression darkened rapidly upon seeing the boy.