Tonight was the night. Through the windows of my room overlooking the training grounds, at the far left corner view were a long line of lanterns rapidly moving like they were stuck on a carriage. They were probably the guests and nobles of Pylfur as well as envoys from other kingdoms looking to see the kind of hero I was. Princess Eryliana said that the other three heroes of Orbiterra weren’t going to attend, which was a shame as I wished to know the kind of people that have been transported with me into this whole new world.

  How well they were faring? What skills have they attained? What new experiences have they gone through? I guessed I would have to put those thoughts on hold for now, but she did say I could still gain information on them through the foreign envoys. My chest tightened the more I thought about speaking to nobles. Hopefully the speech training would pay off.

  Just remember proper etiquette. Yeah, you can do this, Dmitri!

  However, there was one problem I was now facing. Where was Princess Eryliana? She was supposed to pick me up about an hour ago. One of her maids then came through the door.

  “Ah, Myrtle, is the princess waiting for me?” I asked, dressed up head to toe in Pylfur’s noble court fashion, with a tight suit and leggings of white, gold, and aquamarine.

  “Unfortunately,” she started speaking. “the princess has other duties to attend to as ordered by the king. As compensation, you would instead be escorted by the second princess, her highness, Syllian Aobh Pylfur.”

  “Princess Syllian? You mean the princess Syllian?”

  I’ve since been given a crash course on the multiple nobles I was to meet, the princes and the second princess of Pylfur was no exception and … she did not sound like someone who had the best moral judgement. A vixen hiding in sheep’s clothing, Eryliana called her, although it appeared that the last time the two met was around two years ago. Who knows? Maybe she’d changed. Maybe the so-called vixen had turned over a new leaf during that long period of time.

  The maid lowered her head and gave a gloomy sympathetic look, and my optimistic thinking completely shattered. “And where is she now?”

  “She’s waiting for you downstairs in the drawing room. This way,” I followed the maid through the halls and down the rotating stairs of the castle. And right before we stepped through the last door, Myrtle said to me, “Good luck.”

  Why do you have to say that! I cried dry tears, as I stepped foot into the drawing room. My eyes were met by the brightest of pink sitting amidst the white interior, a dress so large and excessively decorated by jewels she might as well proclaim its five-digit price tag out in the open. Her exorbitant fashion was further expressed by the giant white feathers on the sides of the dazzling diamond crown, pairing well with her deep auburn hair which loosely curled past her waist.

  “My goodness,” the second princess immediately turned, her bejeweled amber eyes shimmered at first sight. “It’s really nice to meet you. My name is—Ah!” Walking up to me, the princess tripped on her feet, as her body fell in slow motion and I reached forth to catch her. “Oh, thank you, Sir Dmitri.”

  “It’s nothing, Princess Syllian,” I helped her up, only for her to trip again and again, continuously falling to me as I genuinely tried my best to get her to stand up straight.

  “Sorry about that. I’m really clumsy at times,” she spoke in a sweet voice, yet strangely I felt no sincerity coming from her. “You’re quite the gentleman, Sir Dmitri, and looking very handsome as well.”

  “Uh, thank you, princess.” I knew nothing about Pylfur’s style of fashion, but after looking at the mirror, this get up kind of made me feel like a prince. Although it could do so without the corset. “Still, I couldn’t have donned this look without Ery—”

  “So, what’s it like being a hero?” she cut me off. “It must’ve been an arduous journey to be suddenly entrusted with the duty to defeat the demon king. However, if you ask me, you already look plenty powerful enough.”

  “I don’t think I’m on that level—”

  “By the way, what do you think of my dress?” she twirled around, as the puffiness of her dress turned her into a literal pink sheep. Of course, I couldn’t say that out loud. Noble speech was about stating intentions without actually stating it straightforwardly. “I’m so gorgeous, aren’t I? I certainly have the greatest of tastes.”

  Although none of that applied if I couldn’t get a single word in.

  “Whoops, I almost forgot about the time. We should hurry up,” the princess suddenly wrapped her arms around mine. “Let’s head to the ball, shall we? We don’t want to keep them waiting. After all, you’re the prime star of the event.” And she pulled me across the room and halls toward the outer courtyard, where our very expensive-looking golden carriage was waiting.

  The trip was hell to say the least. Of the fifteen minutes it took to get from the secondary castle to the main castle, it felt like an entire was spent listening solely on her barrage of selfish praises and constant bragging of her taste in fashion alongside the expenses. If my mother and I had that kind of money then surely I’d lived for another ten years!

  Upon arriving at the red carpet lined with multiple knights in shining armor, following the code of etiquette, the gentleman stepped out of the vehicle, offering his hand unto her partner and aid her in stepping down the steps toward the grand doors of the main castle. Alas, once one foot was outside of the carriage, Princess Syllian tripped and fell on me again.

  How many times will this girl fall?! I screamed inside my head. Clearly this was a ploy to get me to be sympathetic with her and, had Eryliana not warned me, that would probably be the case. I should also thank her for shattering the rose-tinted lenses which I used to wear through that grueling week-long survival training.

  Finally, we placed a step through the grand doors, walking into the mesmerizing light of a thousand chandeliers illuminating the golden room before us. Twice taller and thrice wider than the practice ballroom, open for over a thousand people: nobles, merchants, and foreign envoys draped in the fanciest of clothing. They conversed, consumed, conveyed matters important to each one’s self through others. A new kind of battlefield.

  “Hear Ye! Hear Ye!” the announcer proclaimed, as everyone turned their heads up. “Introducing Her Highness, Royal Princess Syllian Aobh Pylfur, and the Priest Hero of Pylfur, Dmtri Ser … Sergevit … Sergen …”

  “Sergeyevich,” I muttered.

  “Sergey Witch Betrof!”

  Close enough. My face flushed. I should’ve met with the announcer beforehand before my name got butchered. It was fine though, at the very least my first name was said perfectly. That was all that mattered.

  “You sure have a complicated name,” Syllian said, as we walked down the stairs hand-in-hand. She did not once fall and instead carried herself gracefully as what a normal princess ought to do in front of distinguished guests.

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  Then what does that make me? Placing those unnecessary thoughts aside, the crowd immediately moved to our way. The nobles all bestowed praises upon Princess Syllian, whose endowed beauty had instantly captured a series of men pushing their way in for a chance to speak with her, while others, mostly women, barraged her with questions about our relationship.

  “How did we meet you say?” the princess gave off a surprised look. “Well, it’s a little bit embarrassing, but we met in the garden one time in a full moon. I was wearing just my white nightgown, but Hero Dmitri was such a gentleman that he offered his coat for me, thinking I was cold.”

  Excuse me, but who is that person? We only just met!

  “He also said that under the light of the full moon, I looked like a Moon Goddess straight from heaven and then asked me for a dance,” she continued on making up this insanely romantic background for the two of us. I wanted to correct it so badly, yet merchants began crowding me, introducing themselves and offering sponsors and products they so wanted to sell. At some point, the second princess and I got separated halfway across the ballroom, and at this moment I couldn’t believe that I preferred to be than these money-grubbing thugs seeking me only due to the title of ‘Hero’.

  “Hero Dmitri, would you be interested in looking into my fine wares—”

  “You are Hero Dmitri, yes? Allow me to introduce myself as Head of the Trading—”

  “Dear Hero, I have a new proposition that is guaranteed to make your battles go smooth and—”

  “Hero Dmtri …”

  “Hero Dmtri …”

  “Hero …”

  “Hero Dmtri …”

  Why oh why am I here? I can’t get a single word in either … Just as I was about to give up in the face of these scrawling merchants, a red-haired fellow in fancy clothes put his arms around my shoulders.

  “Yo, looks like I came in right on time,” he spoke in a rough-sounding voice, as I stood still confused on who the heck he was, but judging from the merchants’ intimidated expressions, he must be some sort of a big shot. “Oi, scurry off, will you? My friend and I have some business to attend to.”

  “Very well, Sir Aiden,” one of them said. “I hope the two of you have a pleasant evening.” And thus, the group of merchants returned to chatter amongst one another, leaving me alone with this man with a light scar over his chin.

  Aiden Lugh Balor. He was among the first people the princess informed me about due to his influence within the merchant field. Despite his rough-looking exterior, the businesses which he handled have all thrived under his thumb. In addition to that …

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, Hero Dmitri,” he bowed lightly. “Allow me to introduce myself as Aiden Lugh Balor, first son of the Balor Duchy. I’ve been instructed by Her Highness, Princess Eryliana, to lend you aid in case you get into this sort of trouble. At the very least until she herself arrives.”

  Yes, he was a supporter of the first princess in her bid to become monarch of Pylfur, an outlier amongst the nobility. Most have either gone to the first or third prince’s party, who were in the lead in this competition for the crown. Neither of them seemed to be attending yet, as the crowd had yet to form a faction nor gathered around a specific figure apart from the second princess, who seemed to be captivated by the attention she was receiving.

  “Thank goodness,” I sighed in relief. “I thought I was about to die from mental stress back there.”

  “These trouble-hard goons know nothing about how to get a client’s attention,” he said. “barging their way like rats swarming for a single slice of cheese. They ought to have known that the first rule of negotiation was to first arrange a one-on-one meeting with the client.”

  “And am I now your client?”

  “Not yet,” his words did not give a sense of ease at all. “Anyway, it’s inevitable for you to not be entangled with me. All the equipment the princess has provided for you did come from the Balor Duchy after all. You could say we are your second sponsor right after the Kalmia Church in the fight against the demon king.”

  “Then I must thank you for your aid, Sir Aiden,” I replied. “But as far as I’m concerned, your duchy and the church are the only ones supporting me.”

  “There are plenty of reasons as to why that’s the case, most of which I can’t share with you in public,” he said. “But rest assured, the princess and I have your back. That is the deal we’ve come to make.”

  “The two of you made a deal?”

  “That is business between her and I, so I suggest you don’t pry too much. You may be Pyflur’s Hero, but whether you’re truly deserving of the title remains unclear.”

  “I’ll ask you again once I rack up enough achievements. Isn't that the best way for a warrior to prove his own worth?” I snuck a peak at Sir Aiden’s status above, which stated [Warrior knight], an advanced class, whose power was equivalent to ten swordmasters. In no way could a measly priest stand against someone like him.

  “Now that’s the kind of thinking,” he said. “Oh, and I’d like to inform you that I’ll be coming to the secondary castle to discuss more, as a merchant to his client.”

  And now another thing to worry about. Looks like the job of a hero won’t end with the ballroom.

  “Presenting, His Highness, Royal Prince, Kaelys Rudahn Pylfur, and His Highness, Royal Prince Eoghynn Daire Pylfur.”

  The two figures who have just arrived were the first and third prince respectively. Prince Kaelys had a cold piercing look, with hair as dark as night and blood red eyes which could see many cowering beneath his gaze, while Prince Eoghynn had a softer appearance, with long blonde hair and long-lashed evergreen eyes which seemed to always have something to hide. If the First Prince was a commanding general ruthless in the field of battle, then the Third Prince was a secretive plotter waiting for the right moment to strike at his enemies when they least expected it. Two princes on different sides of a coin, opposite to one another, but if together, who could possibly stand up against them?

  And like the first and second princess, the two possessed the unique [Royal] class, which seemed to be a lineage-based class. Like Eryliana, the two have been keeping their cards close to the point where even she did not know as to what they were capable of aside from what they’ve shown to the public eye. With their arrival, the whole ballroom slowly but surely divided into the two dominating factions alongside several neutral parties.

  “Is the Second and Fourth Prince not coming?” I asked.

  “His Highness, Prince Gwynn, has long abandoned his title as Royal Prince and I’ve heard he’s taken residence in a trading town east of here,” Aiden explained. “As for the youngest prince, he remains under the care of his mother, the former First Princess, Duchess Maeve of the Chulainn Duchy. He’s just recently come of age and has a steady amount of supporters.”

  “And for the Second Princess?”

  “None,” he said, simply. “Unlike Her Highness, Princess Syllian is but a precious doll meant to be dressed up for the people’s desires. Her endowed beauty is the only thing she has as a tool, but it won’t change the fact that she is a woman of Pylfur, unable to inherit titles except for as her future husband’s wife. Her Highness would’ve been the same had she not become a patron for the Kalmia Church, which has given her a sizable amount of authority in order to seize the throne for herself.”

  “I guess that’s what to be expected of this kind of civilization,” I said. “Where I came from, even though I barely saw much outside of the hospital room, men and women were more or less equal in terms of status. My first doctor was a woman and she was very kind despite my poor constitution.”

  “Your world sounds like a utopia. In Pylfur, the most a woman could reach with her own hands was to be a high-ranking adventurer, like the one standing next to the first prince,” Sir Aiden pointed at the silver-haired woman, who, rather than a full gown, wore a battle dress with armor covering her vitals. That being said, there didn’t seem to be a weapon in her person. As for her class, it was—

  Her eyes suddenly shifted toward me, green as emerald, disrupting my analysis as I tried to not look directly at her. However, my attempts were in vain when she and the first prince decided to come this way. His crimson gaze laid upon me, calculating, determining my worth before slowly raising his hand and said, “It is a pleasure to meet you, Hero of Pylfur. I, Kaleys Rudahn Pylfur, greet you as Pylfur’s First Prince.”

  “A pleasure to meet you, Your Highness. I am Dmitri Sergeyevich Petrov,” I shook his hand, and a pop up immediately showed up by my right side.

  =================================

  Debuff detected …

  Initializing elimination process …

  Debuff [Bloodkin] successfully removed!

  =================================

  Holy moly, what the heck is that scary-sounding debuff skill?!

  The man before him was the First Prince of the Pylfur Kingdom, he who commanded the Third Legion which knew no defeat, whose cruel methods in the field of war made quick work of the demons as their heads were then impaled into the legion’s rising flags. In addition, his looks and the rumor of him having bathed in the blood of his dead assassins, earned him the nickname ‘The Human Vampire’, whose curious stare was now latching itself on his next victim. Me.