Chapter 57
"What is this? She wasn't like this when I was alone with her."
When Angela gave her the invitation to Camille's party, she was clearly looking down on her. And Camille had been the same way the whole time.
Linnea smiled awkwardly, but Laszlo, who noticed Angela's look, rejected her offer.
“There is no need to trouble yourself. We will go ourselves and greet them.”
Then he bowed gently again, bidding farewell to the ladies, and pulled Linnea with him into the ballroom.
As she watched his back walk away, Camille clenched her hands angrily and trembled.
“That one, that one, who doesn’t know literature…!”
Angela, however, smiled slyly as she watched Laszlo from afar.
“His ego seems to be as high as his appearance, and I like that.”
She had no problem ignoring him; on the contrary, she saw pleasure in trying to subdue a man with pride rather than an easy man.
***
"Hahaha! Hahahaha!"
“Huh….”
With every laugh that Dimacross let out, Laszlo sighed deeply.
As expected, Dimacross burst into laughter at the dramatic transformation in Laszlo's appearance. Although his laughter subsided somewhat, it quickly erupted again whenever he looked at Laszlo.
But no one could blame Demacross for that; the others were just as shocked.
"Is it possible that this is Laszlo Criscis...?"
Everyone's eyes clearly reflected their thoughts as they looked at Laszlo Bandhas in amazement.
'I knew this would happen.'
Laszlo gritted his teeth, trying to suppress his embarrassment. He knew this attention would soon fade, and that he didn't need to interact with others much.
But the problem was with Demacros. He took pleasure in harassing Laszlo and wouldn't easily pass up this opportunity.
“I wish I could have lunch today with Count Crisis, just the two of us.”
"This is not a romantic invitation at all. I will refuse."
“I wasn’t talking to you. I was talking to my servant.”
Demacross's tone was full of humor as he insisted on sitting with Laszlo.
But when they were alone at the dining table, Demacross seemed less sarcastic and more curious.
“I don’t think you decided to remove your beard and change your hairstyle of your own free will… Was it your little sister’s doing?”
“The idea came from Linnea Crisis, and the collaborator was her personal maid.”
"A personal maid?... She must be Count Canyon's daughter, then."
Demacross was able to guess the maid's identity immediately.
Laszlo was always wary of Demacros in these situations. What could he possibly be hiding behind that cunning, playful expression, and how many thoughts and pieces of information were swirling in his mind?
But Demacross, as if sensing Laszlo's nervousness, laughed jokingly again.
“That woman seems to have a real advantage. I think no one can compete with her in this knowledge.”
As he gnawed on the leg of a roasted bird, he showed no sign of any malicious intent.
"Eat a little. Or don't you like poultry?"
"Does it seem to you that a mercenary might be picky about his food?"
“You don’t know. There are many people who are afraid of birds and cannot eat them.”
Demacross wiped his mouth and fingers with a napkin before continuing.
“Anyway, even if I’m forced to change, I’ll honestly say, you look great.”
“I didn’t do it to please others.”
“I know that. And I’m sure you fully understand what I mean.”
Laszlo flicked his tongue lightly. Anyone who dared to do that in front of the emperor would have faced immediate punishment, but Demacros understood his action leniently.
“You’ve made a big decision. Thank you.”
This change in Laszlo's appearance was an indirect declaration of his readiness to take his place as a loyal ally of Demacros.
In order to become an integral part of the power structure, Laszlo had to adapt to the society of the nobility, and appearing noble was the first step in that direction.
"It was a troubling task."
At these words, Demacros chuckled softly and nodded. Some might consider Laszlo to be overstepping his bounds by finding the emperor's kindness offensive, but Demacros knew perfectly well what Laszlo was conceding.
'For this boy, freedom is the most important thing... so I should be grateful that he gave it up for me.'
Demacros took a sip of wine, gazing at Laszlo with a complex look. Initially, he had kept Laszlo because he wanted to turn him into a loyal guard, but in the imperial palace, rife with greed and intrigue, Laszlo's simplicity and lack of desires were so rare and valuable that he came to rely on him without even realizing it.
But now that Laszlo has decided to become a pillar of the nobles loyal to the emperor, he will inevitably face many temptations and difficulties, regardless of his will.
'And when that boy falls into corruption, I will leave him.'
Despite the quality of the wine, he felt its bitterness clearly today.
Whether he was aware of his thoughts or not, Laszlo, eating the roasted bird leg like a Demacros, chewed the tender meat and said spontaneously:
“Actually, there’s no great meaning behind it. I just wanted to get my sister married.”
"Huh? What do you mean by that?"
“She said that no one comes to talk about marriage because of her brother’s destitute appearance.”
"Hahaha! Your sister isn't easy either, is she?"
Demacross laughed spontaneously, which made the atmosphere at the dinner party relax again.
“I heard that your surprise appearance at the Count Bliss family ball caused quite a stir in noble society. I even heard about it myself, so imagine how busy the matchmakers must be now.”
“What does my appearance have to do with receiving marriage proposals…”
“Ah, I forgot something. The matchmakers are busy not because of your sister, but because of you.”
Laszlo stopped chewing his food for a moment.
“Your sister is still young, she has time. But you, you really need to get married. I bet everyone sees you as a suitable groom.”
“I have no intention of getting married.”
"How long will this situation continue?"
The question seemed humorous, but it carried a serious undertone. Laszlo stared at the bird's flesh without saying a word. To him, the idea of marriage meant a mixture of lies, betrayal, hypocrisy, and possessiveness.
Linnea, for her part, wanted to get married, so it was only natural that he would help her achieve her wish. As for him, it was difficult to imagine spending the rest of his life with a woman he did not know.
"Perhaps Your Majesty will even order me to marry."
Then Laszlo went back to chewing his food.
Demacros, silently observing Laszlo, said to him:
“By the way, I am someone who believes in something called ‘destined love’. I may be the last romantic in the world.”
Laszlo frowned, but Dimacross continued eating with a cheerful expression.
"By the way, how was the Count Bliss family's party?"
Upon hearing this question, Laszlo unconsciously tightened his grip on the knife. Last night, he understood the meaning of what Idel had said about Linnea “standing up to the noble society alone.” It wasn’t what he had imagined; it was a feeling completely different from anything he had ever heard before.
“It was a good thing I didn’t have my sword there; they would have been in trouble.”
Enduring the women’s affectionate looks because of his new appearance was difficult, but even more difficult was seeing the sad smile on Linnea’s face.
“Do you remember Mrs. Angela who pretended to be near me a little while ago? At the last party we met, she innocently asked me if I had bought my hair accessories from the Balticy area.”
She wasn't from that wealthy area, but from a modest neighborhood inhabited by ordinary, middle-class people. Although she praised his good choice of adornment, it was clear that her words were a mockery of Linnea's humble origins.
However, it was not logical to confront every person who insulted Linnea, because their number was too large to count.
Linnea, with a wry smile, opened her fan and covered her mouth, pointing at everyone who had insulted or embarrassed her, laughing as if she enjoyed reminiscing about her experiences. Laszlo was astonished by her ability to joke about such things.
And that wasn't all.
“Brother, do you know how to dance?”
"Why? Do I have to dance with you too?"
“If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I only asked because I might not get another opportunity like this.”
Laszlo felt as if he had been hit on the head.
He had attended many parties before, but he couldn't understand how she hadn't had the chance to dance even once.
“I finally realized that I had wronged my sister.”
Demacros, looking at Laszlo with a face full of complications, nodded slowly.
"Things will change. Your presence at the party yesterday was the beginning of that change."
“Absolutely, that’s why I attended the concert.”
Laszlo pressed down on the knife in his hand, producing the sound of blackbird bones cracking under his force.
If anyone had seen this scene at the party yesterday, their heart would have trembled at the sheer coldness of the situation.