Maydare Volume 2 Chapter 8 - The Maidens of the Soiree (Part 1)

 The new character introduced in this chapter speaks in a really old-fashioned way, but I didn't want to use thee's and thou's so I hope it gets across in translation

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It had been a month since the second semester of classes started.

A messenger from the palace came to me and foisted a written invitation on me.

“A soiree…?”

It wasn’t on the scale of the summer ball, but there was going to be a small soiree for guests of honor from another country, and I was told to participate as well.

Even though it hadn’t been publicly announced that I was a Guardian yet. Was there a reason they were summoning me?

“Wait, tonight!? I only have that same dress from before!”

As I was panicking by myself in my dorm room, Lapis poked her head out from the room with the washstand. Her long hair was in a braid.

“Makia, are you attending the soiree at the palace?”

“It seems like it. Ah, I don’t want to go. I’m depressed now.”

“I would think that a noble lady would be delighted to be invited to a royal soiree.”

“Wait, Lapis, does that mean you would be happy if you were invited!?”

“No, not at all.”

After her decisively short answer, which was typical of her, Lapis withdrew to the washstand again.

Instead, her spirit, Noah the night cat, came out, slipped through my feet, and quietly climbed up to the window to begin to bask in the sun.

“By the way, Lapis, you seem to be going somewhere on your days off lately. What are you doing? Are you perhaps going on dates with a gentleman!?”

With a grin on my face, I looked into the room where Lapis was.

“No, of course not… I’m working.”

“Huh!? You got a part-time job!?”

I was surprised by her answer, and my reflection in the washstand’s mirror was amusingly shocked.

“Hmm, yes. Something like that. I’m teaching someone the magic only my clan can do.”

“Huh, this is the first time I’m hearing this. Who are you teaching and what are you teaching them?”

Lapis glanced at me in the mirror.

“That...is a secret.”

“A secret, huh.”

“Well, that is the reason I was summoned from Frezier in the first place.”

So, Lapis got all dressed and dashingly went out.

I was curious about Lapis’ secret, but I haven’t been able to tell her that I’ve become a Guardian either, so I guess we were in the same boat. They say that secrets were a witch’s etiquette, after all.

“Ooh, ooh.”

The demon fire in the lantern hanging in the doorway was going wild. The lantern was about to fall to the floor, and I hurriedly caught it. It would be a disaster if it broke.

“You really are rowdy. I’ll splash water over you!”

“Uga, ugaga, shaa!”

...It was threatening me. Spirits were obedient to humans depending on the contract, but demons weren’t like that.

This demon fire, will-o’-th’-wisp, was a mischievous demon that often appeared in fairy tales, but it was very fierce for its small size, biting me as soon as I took it out of the lantern and rampaged around the room.

It was a disaster when I let it out in the atelier before. It knocked over pots and pans, tore up report paper, ripped out Frey’s hair…

I wanted to give it back to Bishop Eska right away, but I haven’t seen him since then.

Sighing, I put the lantern down on my desk.

“...The newcomer is rattling around again, dechi.”

“...This is something that needs educational guidance, poyo.”

Before I knew it, my small dwarf hamsters Donsuke and Popotarou were there.

They peered into the lantern containing Wisp with serious faces.

“Gii gii, gii gii.”

“Get you out of here? Don’t talk so high and mighty, newcomer, dechi.”

“Think we’re just hamsters, do you, poyo? We, who are the familiars of the Scarlet Witch and legends in the hamster world.”

“If a hamster reached their max level, then they’d really be somebody, dechi.”

“Call us Senior Ham-chan, poyo.”

Legends in the hamster world...Senior Ham-chan…

Their cute sentence endings were actually horrifying. I could feel a familiarity in the way they were intimidating Wisp, and I gulped.

These ham-chans weren’t ordinary.

“Wait, you two are at max level?”

““Hekeh!””*

(TN: ヘケ is a hamster sound made by Hamtaro)

I didn’t really know if spirits had a concept of levels in the first place, but they were the spirits of the worst witch in the world. And, these Senior Ham-chans were surprisingly strict with everyone except for me.

Before I knew it, even Wisp in the lantern was sitting upright and meekly sucking on its fingers.

It was the evening of that day. I rode to the palace in a carriage Uncle Medite had arranged for me.

The reason I was going there at the very last minute was that Uncle Medite talked to his other niece Nagie Medite, who was the head of the girls’ dorm, to have her prepare another dress for me since the dress I had would show the crest on my chest.

Thanks to that, I was wearing a blue dress, which I myself wouldn’t usually choose.

It was a little big, and the hem was so long that I was afraid I might step on it, so I exaggeratedly lifted the dress as I walked quickly down the long exterior corridor. And because of that…

“Ah!”

I almost bumped into another woman at a turn.

“I’m so sorry, are you alright!?”

“Why, you did not run into me. There is no need to worry.”

I gasped. It was because the owner of the voice was an incredibly beautiful girl.

What beautiful amber eyes. Her fluffy long hair was a pale wisteria color.

On the left and right sides of her head, she had buns tied with braids, with deep purple butterflies fastened to them.

For a moment, the butterflies seemed to flutter their wings, but that was probably just my imagination. They were probably hair ornaments.

“Oh? You are…”

The beautiful girl was holding a lace fan to her mouth, closely examining me up and down. What was going on?

“That dress does not suit you, lass.”

“Huh?”

“You should at least have it made over to fit you. Ah, you may withdraw now.”

“...”

I picked up the dress that I was told didn’t suit me, bowed exaggeratedly, and then left the place.

Her manner of talking and behavior were extremely proud, but just who was that lady…

Outside the soiree venue, the servants of the nobles inside were standing by in lines. Among them was Nicholas Harbury, Beatrice’s butler. Did that mean Beatrice was in the venue?

The butler noticed me and bowed lightly. Even though we were rivals, he was a broad-minded man.

I, on the other hand, was a petty woman. I entered the venue while looking all around, acting very suspicious.

“Leader! It’s Leader, thank the heavens~ Leader’s here~, stay with me.”

A prince spotted me first and rushed over to me.

“Wait, Frey. When I’m in the palace, you edge up close to me like I’m your only ally, and it’s weird, so can you please stop?”

It was Frey, a member of my team. He usually treated me, the team leader, crudely, but at the palace, he was lonely because he didn’t have any allies, so when he spotted me, he nestled up close to me like a friendly stray dog. 

“Why don’t you go after the older ladies instead of keeping company with me? You’re the older lady killer, aren’t you? You aren’t living up to that title lately.”

“Because all the women here are ravenous and terrifying. They look at me like, ‘The fifth prince? How paltry,”* but then get all flirty when they go after me.”

(TN: Just for clarification because I couldn't find a good word for this but Frey is saying that the women don't find the title of fifth prince all that impressive)

“Hmm. I don’t really get it, but you have your own issues too, huh.”

Frey let out a long sigh as he loosened the scarf around his neck. Then he glanced at me next to him.

“Anyways, Leader, your dress today doesn’t really suit you, does it?”

“That’s usually where you compliment people, even if it’s just flattery…”

He was the second person today to point out that the dress didn’t look good on me.

“Just so you know, this is Big Sis Nagi’s dress.”

“Huh, no way! Really?”

My cousin, Big Sis Nagi, was the person Frey fell for and got rejected by before.

Frey covered another person’s face with his hand, looking only at the dress and nodding and making “hmm-hmm” sounds.

This man’s rudeness was unparalleled…

“Ahem. Pardon me.”

And then, I heard a low voice with a bit of a bite to it from behind Frey. It was a voice I knew well.

“Thor!”

Standing there was Thor with a quietly angry face. However, he quickly made a polite smile.

“Your Highness, Count Damur’s daughter was searching for you earlier.”

“Geh. She’s the lady who’s approaching me for marriage talks. Ugh, so annoying.”

As he was saying that, Frey glanced at me and Thor, winked lightly, and then left.

Was he actually worried about me, more or less?

Anyways, I see that even Frey was getting marriage proposals. He was still a prince, as rotten as he was.

After driving the hindrance away, Thor turned towards me again.

“It has been a while, milady.”

He took my hand like a knight and kissed it.

He had completely gotten used to being a city knight. Even though he used to serve a country bumpkin noble lady, he had become a fine knight…

“By the way, milady,”

Thor narrowed his cool eyes and stared at me.

When I gazed into those violet eyes, my heart fluttered and beat a little faster, as though I was a maiden in love…

“That dress doesn’t really suit you, does it?”

“You, you too…?”

Thor put his hand to his chin and tilted his head in contemplation as he looked at my dress.

If Thor told me that, then that was as good as a complete defeat. My shoulders slumped in disappointment.

“Haa. I actually borrowed this dress. Frey made fun of me for it just now.”

“...By Prince Frey? You two were talking quite intimately.”

“Well, we’re in the same team. He doesn’t seem to have a place in the palace either. So we fellow outcasts have been hanging out here.”

“...Is that so?”

Perhaps thinking that was something to tease me about, Thor smiled mockingly and peered at me.

“Milady, you surprisingly like that type of man, don’t you?”

“Huh? The prince part, or the playboy part?”

“...Both.”

Hmm. While putting my finger to my mouth, I recalled Frey’s usual words and actions…

Not at all, I thought.

“He’s not a bad guy at heart, though. Oh, don’t worry, Frey likes older women. Even if he’s a prince, a playboy, and a lady-killer, it’s unlikely that I’ll get hurt. That’s what you’re worried about, right, Thor?”

“Huh? Yes, I suppose so. But if that’s the case...that’s some relief.”

Thor averted his gaze slightly.

But then he completely changed his attitude and shook his head with a “Good grief.”

“After all, milady, you had almost no contact with men your own age at Deliafield except for me~. You’re the kind of girl who would get into trouble when you make your city debut. You’ll get strange lovers, get tricked by bad men, get toyed with…”

“What are you talking about? I’m on guard in my own way too. Well...there aren’t enough gentlemen approaching me for me to be on my guard, though. You know that, don’t you, Thor? I make the worst first impressions.”

“Don’t give up yet. The future’s still bright.”

Thor’s brows furrowed as he held back a laugh, and he patted me on the head.

“You’re as irritating as ever…”

Thor, you don’t know anything at all. The one I like is you…!

I appealed that with my sullen glare, but there was no way I could tell him my feelings like this.

And then, it happened.

“How dare you!”

An angry shout drowned out the flowery music, and the hall fell completely silent.

Thor and I turned towards the voice.

Everyone was looking in that direction. At the center of the hall was an angry Prince Gilbert, a crying Airi who was being supported by him, and for some reason, Beatrice Asta.

Looking closer, I could see that Airi’s cheek was red and swollen.

“What, what happened?”

“...Forgive me, milady. I’m going.”

Thor grimaced and rushed towards the commotion. When he got there, Airi pulled away from Prince Gilbert and clung to Thor.

Prince Gilbert looked more and more displeased.

“Beatrice Asta. Why did you raise your hand to Airi!”

He was furiously accusing Beatrice.

It seemed that Beatrice had slapped Airi hard on the cheek.

Beatrice stared at her trembling hand, then her expression twisted and she hung her head.

“No matter what the reason, hitting Airi, the world’s greatest treasure, is an unacceptable act! Even if you are the granddaughter of the director of the Royal Magic Institute!”

“I..sincerely apologize…, Your Highness.”

Beatrice squeezed out her voice and apologized.

She was bowing her head and apologizing, but her expression somewhat looked like she couldn’t accept this.

Beatrice. You should have known that hitting Airi would be a serious matter.

So, why?

In front of Beatrice, who was hanging her head and couldn’t say anything, Prince Gilbert put force into his eyes and lowered the tone of his voice.

“Beatrice. You were the one who tried to assassinate Airi, weren’t you?”

“!?”

The nobles who had been watching the quarrel were whispering among themselves again.

Beatrice paled and shook her head, appealing her innocence.

“No, that’s impossible. I never…”

“How shameless… According to our investigation, you have been coming in and out of the palace and have been acting suspiciously around Airi.”

“T-That is…”

“You probably ordered your butler, Nicholas Harbury, to harm Airi. On the day of the attempted assassination of the Savior, you were seen fleeing the scene. Your butler Nicholas is blessed by 【Water】, is he not?”

Beatrice was trembling, but she bravely appealed to Prince Gilbert, who suspected her.

“It is true that I went to the palace during summer vacation. But it’s impossible that I ordered Nicholas to assassinate Lady Airi. It is impossible…! If I truly wanted to harm Lady Airi at the palace...I would have done it myself, just like this.” 

“You…”

I could see tears slowly building up in her eyes.

Her long golden lower lashes were doing their best to hold them back.

Being told that she had ordered her butler to assassinate Airi was unbearably more mortifying to her than being suspected.

“You, do you know exactly what you said just now?”

“Yes. But, please believe me, Your Highness. It was not me. I...I only went to the palace every day because I wanted to see you, Your Highness Prince Gilbert.”

“...”

Prince Gilbert himself looked more and more suspicious at her words, and he coldly stated,

“Beatrice, how many times do I have to tell you. I broke off my engagement to you.”

With those words, I finally understood.

I had heard about Prince Gilbert breaking off his engagement after he became the Savior’s Guardian before.

And the person he broke it off with was Beatrice.

“Don’t tell me that you hurt Airi as retaliation for our engagement being broken?”

“...I do not mind if you interpret that as the reason why I raised my hand to Lady Airi.”

Beatrice made no excuses for herself.

“However, I do not know anything about the assassination attempt at the palace. I only wished to return this to you…”

She held out something to Prince Gilbert.

It was the opal brooch Beatrice had been staring at while sitting on a bench in the capital.

“This is…”

Prince Gilbert looked stunned. He seemed to recognize it.

He took it in his hand and stared at it without blinking.

“It belonged to the late...Queen Consort, so I had to return it. I’ve been wishing to see you for a long time because of that, Your Highness. But you seemed to be always avoiding me…”

Having said that much, Beatrice couldn’t hold it back any longer, and the tears began to pour down her face.

She collapsed, crying, her face almost touching the ground, and she was covering her face with her hands.

This was the girl with the high pride, the girl who loud laughter suited, the girl who exchanged snide comments with me every time we met, the girl who would never cry in front of others.

To think that she would show herself like that in front of so many people...

“Beatrice…”

I ran to her. I couldn’t stand to see her shaking and crying as she was being accused in public.

I knelt down in front of her and hugged her shoulders to protect her.

I finally understood.

The reason why I ran into her so many times at the palace.

The meaning of Beatrice’s somewhat painful gaze towards Airi.

She might have been an irritating rival at magic school, but the feelings she had were probably closer to mine more than anyone else.

“Makia O’Drielle? Why are you here? I do not remember inviting you here. Leave!”

“Your Highness.”

I spoke a few words in order to at least preserve some of Beatrice’s honor, which had fallen so low.

”Let me say this with all due respect. Beatrice’s pride is indeed as high as the sky, and she has done and said countless things in which she clearly couldn’t read the situation, and her overconfidence and high-pitched laughter is wearisome.”

“...What.”

Beatrice unconsciously raised her crumpled face that was wet with tears.

“Huh?” Prince Gilbert was also puzzled. But I continued on regardless.

“She is not a coward who would jealously target Lady Airi’s life from the shadows. And she would never give such a cruel order to Nicholas Harbury, who she cherishes so much.”

“...Makia, you…”

Beatrice looked at me strangely as I defended her.

“I can’t defend hitting Airi, but the incident at the palace needs to be carefully investigated again.”

Prince Gilbert glared hatefully at me, who had butted in.

At this moment, however, the palace magician Eugene Batiste and several guards appeared by his side.

Professor Batiste was matter-of-factly whispering something into his ear.

Prince Gilbert closed his eyes, and then slowly opened them.

“Beatrice Asta. Your butler, Nicholas Harbury, has been detained on suspicion of the attempted assassination of the Savior.”

“!?”

There was a bit of a commotion outside the hall. Behind the large doors, I saw Nicholas being apprehended by the guards.

In a flash, Beatrice was surrounded by guards. And me, who was by her side, as well.

“P-Please wait, Your Highness! This is too one-sided. Is there any evidence!?”

“...”

Prince Gilbert didn’t say anything. There was a severe expression on his face, and he was no longer looking at us.

I suppose Professor Batiste had told him he had brought incriminating information, but I doubt he was going to give me the details here.

“Why, Your Highness...You are the one who knows Nicholas and me best. And yet…”

Beatrice suddenly fainted without finishing the rest of her sentence.

I guess she couldn’t process all of her emotions and her anxiety was getting worse. I called her name several times, supporting her who had lost all her strength.

However, she didn’t regain consciousness, with her face pale and tears streaming from the corners of her eyes.

What should I do? Were Beatrice and Nicholas really the culprits?

As I recalled the mist blade that attacked me, the blue clown, and what happened in the School Island Labyrinth, I felt a sense of wrongness that was hard to put into words.

Something wasn’t meshing together right.

Prince Gilbert looked down at Beatrice with a slightly melancholic look in his eyes, but then glared at me harshly.

“Makia O’Drielle, you butted into something that does not concern you once again. Beatrice Asta and Nicholas Harbury were under suspicion during the investigation stage. It is outrageous that you, who doesn’t know anything, should prioritize your own emotions against us who were investigating!”

“...Your Highness.”

It was just as Prince Gilbert said.

Holding the unconscious Beatrice in my arms, I tightened my expression and cast my eyes down.

Airi was staring at us from within Thor’s arms. She looked worried, or relieved that the culprits had been found.

Prince Gilbert was about to turn to her, when…

“The way you sacrificed everything and consider everyone around you as an enemy in order to protect Airi is right for a Guardian…”

“...”

”It surely must be right.”

At my words that were almost for myself, Prince Gilbert turned around and glared at me once more. I too stared back at him dispassionately.

Prince Gilbert was an obstinate person. Beatrice didn’t want to get you back, she was just desperately trying to give you up…

It happened when Prince Gilbert instructed the guards to take Beatrice away.

“Ahahahahahahaha!”

In the midst of this soiree, the sound of remarkably clear laughter echoed in the hall.

As I was looking around with angry eyes, wondering who was doing that at a time like this, a lady was briskly walking up to us from the doorway.

It was the beautiful girl with the amber eyes and wisteria-colored hair who I almost bumped into earlier when I was turning a corner. While fanning her face with the lace fan, she laughed again.

“I assumed it was going to be a dull soiree and went out to enjoy the evening wind, but when I returned, but you’ve prepared unexpectedly amusing entertainment, Gilbert.”

“Ah…, no, this isn’t entertainment——”

Prince Gilbert straightened himself up with a nervous expression on his face.

The beautiful girl with wisteria hair looked down at me and Beatrice, hiding her mouth with the fan.

“You, red-haired one, let the lass who has fainted rest in my room.”

“Huh?”

Prince Gilbert, the guards, and the other nobles were all stunned.

Thor and Airi also blinked in surprise.

“I, I cannot allow that! The girl needs to be questioned as well. In the first place, she must be charged with the crime of raising her hand to Airi…”

“Ho? Questioning her merely for striking the Savior lass, I find that absurd.”

At those words, Airi, who had been burying her face in Thor’s chest, raised her head and quietly looked at the beautiful girl. She might be a little offended.

“No, Lady. It is not only that, this girl is facing many charges. Also, this is our country’s matter.”

“You’re being too long-winded, Gilbert.”

Her fan snapped shut.

“Who are you giving directions to?”

The beautiful girl gave a sideways glare at Gilbert. The intimidating tone of her voice and cold look in her eyes caused him to swallow his words and fall silent.

There was an absurd amount of pressure. It was also secretly tinged with magic power.

“Fufu. I don’t intend to borrow them forever. I only took an interest in those two and would like to have a little chat with them in my room. It is merely a whim of mine to pass the time. I shall send for you in a little while, and then you may boil them or roast them as much as you like. How about it?”

“...Yes, Lady.”

Incredible. She forcefully made things go her way and silenced that Prince Gilbert.

Everyone became enchanted by her bewitching amber eyes and the faint sweet scene of honey that drifted from somewhere in the air. I was also mesmerized by her majestic and noble appearance.

Who exactly was this girl?

“Well then, red-haired one, let’s go.”

“Huh? Y-Yes!”

At her summons, I carried Beatrice on my back while wearing a dress, not having any idea what was going on.

No, really, what was going on here? Beatrice was heavy, I keep almost stepping on the hem of my dress, and no one was helping me.

Only Thor tried to move, but he was immediately stopped by Airi and couldn’t come to me. Noticing his concerned look, I mouthed the words, “It’s okay.”

Prince Gilbert also tried to say something to us as we left the soiree, but he seemed to have stopped himself. 

I didn’t miss how he was gripping that brooch tightly.

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