As we rose from our seats to return to the ballroom above using the stone staircase that had led us down, Princess Gloria stopped us.
"Mister Victor, Lady Valeria, This way."
Instead of following the others, the three of us took a different route.
As it turned out, the entire mansion was riddled with hidden pathways and secret entrances, behind one of the heavy silk drapes concealed a narrow door, and behind that door waited yet another staircase spiraling upward.
"I'll lead," the princess said, stepping into the passage.
Valeria and I followed in silence.
The stairs opened into a concealed corridor hidden within the marble walls of the mansion. It was astonishing.
Behind certain oil paintings were tiny eyeholes that could be opened to observe the guests below, nearly every grand room had a hidden door, and inside the walls themselves ran narrow secret corridors like veins beneath skin.
Where in the world was I? H.H. Holmes hotel?
"Why are there so many secret pathways here?" I asked.
"Usual noble affairs, you should know that already" the princess replied plainly, not even glancing back.
"As shrewd as ever, hm?" Valeria added lightly as we continued walking through the hidden passage.
After a short while, we reached a concealed door disguised as part of a grand bookshelf. Beyond it lies the ballroom.
Just as the princess reached for it, she paused.
She turned toward us, her expression elegant yet serious.
"Before we go out, I need to discuss something with you two."
Valeria and I stopped immediately. I folded my arms, bracing myself.
"The civil war is coming," she said quietly. "By the end of this year, my father will die."
The words hung in the narrow corridor like a cold draft.
"Are you certain, Gloria?" Valeria asked, skepticism clear in her voice.
"I am ninety nine point nine percent certain," she replied. "This winter, after two hundred years of reign, my father will pass."
There was no hysteria in her tone. Only acceptance.
But beneath it, faint and carefully restrained, was the sorrow of a daughter.
"When that happens, will you stand with me against my brother?"
"Of course," I answered without hesitation.
I would help place her on the throne.
And then she would be my puppet ruler.
That was the plan.
"Good" she said. "When the time comes, the kingdom will descend into chaos. Nordenland and Western Middenland will serve as our base of operations. I can gather support from those regions. But Eastern Middenland and Suddenland are strongholds of my brother's faction, including the capital."
She took a steady breath before continuing.
"During the soirée, gather as much support as you can. Every man and woman counts. When the war erupts, some nobles will undoubtedly declare themselves independent warlords. And the monsters will seize that opportunity for large scale raids."
Valeria and I nodded.
The princess offered us a small, composed smile.
Then she pushed the bookshelf open.
Together, we stepped silently back into the glittering ballroom without notice.
-----
"Uhhh… umm. Would you like to dance with me?"
I asked a petite ojou-sama looking noble lady with blonde twin drills and a luxurious red gown. My voice came out cautious, almost paranoid. For all I knew, she might become my enemy in the future.
"Oh? A lowly baron wishes to dance with me?" she said, lifting her chin. "Too bad. I am already engaged to a marquise. Oh! ho! ho! ho!"
That laugh, It echoed like it had rehearsals.
"My apologies," I said, bowing slightly. My eyes were already scanning for the next potential ally.
I could not dance with my own companions, as the goal tonight was expansion of the our group, not a maintenance for those who're already in it.
"Of course you should apologize. Know your place, you hillbil…"
*Slap*
The sound cracked through the ballroom.
In a blink, a backhand struck the ojou-sama square across the face. I turned.
Arina stood there, face raging like a berserking bear.
"Damn bitch. Your mouth is a latrine. It's full of shit!" she shouted through clenched teeth.
The ojou-sama did not hesitate. She returned the slap with impressive force, snapping Arina's head to the side.
Within seconds, nobles gathered around them, scandalized and delighted in equal measure. An undignified catfight had erupted in the middle of refined society.
As for me, I faded away from the scene like a midnight breeze.
Survival instinct is a beautiful thing.
I retreated to the buffet and began eating my problems one bite at a time. Best to let them exhaust themselves before I searched for a new dance partner.
"That bitch did something outrageous again?" Elena asked, smiling faintly as guards struggled to separate the two women from clawing each other's hair out.
"You shouldn't call your colleague that, Elena."
"Did you forget that she tried to kill me?" she replied with a smirk, handing me a clear glass of champagne. "Drink?"
"Gladly."
I accepted it, and together we watched chaos unfold while sipping in relative peace.
Then her tone changed.
"Look at these nobles" she said softly. "Drinking wine, Eating steak, Smiling… while monsters ravage their lands. Parasites..."
Her smile carried something heavy beneath it.
"Fathers bury sons. Mothers mourn husbands. Children grow up without parents… all to fill the coffers of some pig. They should be on the frontline, protecting their citizen like a true noble, not stay in a mansion partying."
She then glanced at me.
"No offense, Sir Victor. You're one of the good ones, right?" she added awkwardly.
I met her ruby eyes and smiled faintly.
"Good one?" I echoed.
She nodded.
"You risked your life to save commoner children, that was heroic."
She took another sip.
We stood there for a while, observing the grandeur of the Soirée.
Valeria was, as expected, negotiating business with a circle of nobles.
Our new colleagues, Lady Isabelle and Lord Wulfgang were speaking with what appeared to be their vassals.
Princess Gloria was nowhere in sight, having slipped away earlier.
Seizing the moment alone with Elena, I decided to say something outrageous.
"Could you use your beautiful face as a honey trap for those nobles?"
That's the plan I come up with after witnessing a horde of noblemen chasing her.
Elena slowly turned toward me.
"The what?" Her expression shifted to disgust. "Do you think I am a whore? I may be a mercenary, but I have my code and my pride of Condottiero."
I raised both hands quickly.
"No, no, nothing like that. I mean, perhaps you could approach influential nobles and subtly nudge them to our side. Only if you want to, I would never force you."
She stared at me for a moment, then sigh heavily.
"…If that is my mission, I will do it," she said at last. "Though I am not that beautiful anyway." She said it casually.
I smile, knowing fully of how wrong she was.
"No, Elena."
I gather my breath and said it out loud.
"You're "THAT" beautiful." I said with a warm and genuine smile.
For a second, the noise of the ballroom seemed to dim, the music blurred into background hum, the chattering of nobles fades away. Elena blinked, her ruby eyes, usually sharp, now flickered with something softer almost fragile.
"…Don't say things like that so casually" she muttered, looking away a faint blush crept up her cheeks.
"I'm serious" I continued, lowering my voice. "Your face is that of an angel, You're strong, You're brave and yet you are more than willing to put your life on the line for children who aren't even yours. If that isn't beautiful, I don't know what is."
She tightened her grip on the champagne glass.
"Sir Victor" she said quietly, though her tone lacked its usual bite. "You're supposed to flatter with lie not truth."
"I'm terrible at lying" I replied.
"That's true" she said immediately.
We both laughed softly.
Across the ballroom, the chaos of Arina's catfight was finally dying down, guards were restoring order as nobles were pretending they had not enjoyed the spectacle.
Elena exhaled slowly.
"…Fine," she said at last. "If I'm "THAT" beautiful then I suppose I can weaponize it a little."
Her lips curved into a faint, dangerous smile.
"But only because you ask for it."
"Thankyou" I said.
She stepped away toward a cluster of impressionable young nobles, I caught the faintest hint of pink still lingering on her cheeks, as I felt oddly victorious.
-----
An hour slipped by, and the Soirée reached its most sacred ritual.
"The Ballroom Dance"
The music shifted into something grand and sweeping, conversations softened, couples began to form like constellations.
And I on the other hand, was in full panic.
I did not have a dance partner yet.
While nobles confidently claimed their companions, I stood there like a lost pup.
Just then, a presence approached from behind.
Something soft, elegant and commanding are coming.
I turned.
Princess Gloria stood there, dressed in the most majestic gown I had ever seen, layers of silk flowed like liquid starlight, subtle embroidery traced along the fabric like frost patterns on winter glass, amethysts shimmered at her neckline, catching the chandelier light as though competing with it.
The ballroom seemed to dim in comparison.
"Mister Victor" she said warmly, offering her hand "Would you like to dance with me?"
My brain shut down, not slowed not malfunctioned just "Shut down".
And I, Just nodded.