I wasn’t really excited. We already knew what we had to do and didn’t really think much about entering high society.

‘I just need to do my job.’

A new person would always receive attention no matter where they went and since I was the Mercenary Queen’s lover, I was the star of the party - which placed me in an advantageous situation. Being here in the first place was a way of announcing that I had somewhat proven my innocence and there wasn’t a person alive who was brave enough to talk shit to me while I was being protected by Victor Hart.

As soon as the door opened, I saw a luxurious interior. There were tables on one side of the room, servants were walking around carrying light desserts and wine and I even saw Asians with black hair, but what caught my attention the most were the noblewomen with colorful hair. Just by looking at them, they were obviously wearing luxurious clothing and the accessories they were wearing must be too expensive to put a price on.

‘Imperial aristocrats.’

I also noticed people wearing the Holy Empire’s priest uniforms, so they were probably in the pope’s faction. What I found to be a bit absurd was that their clothes and the decorations looked very expensive. I guess the religion in this world wasn’t based on integrity.

Before I started walking, I noticed Cha Hee-Ra quietly reaching her hand out toward me and I saw a hint of guilt on her face.

“Grab my hand, darling.”

Even in the Holy Empire, a man would usually escort a woman, but Cha Hee-Ra had grabbed my hand and led the way as if she didn’t care about those formalities. My arm did hurt due to the mana that was flowing into me, but I bit my lips and followed.

‘Damn it hurts. Shit…’

Cha Hee-Ra was taking big steps and the way she looked down at people as if she didn’t care about them was the image I had of the Mercenary Queen. I wasn’t sure what they thought when they saw a weak man being escorted by a strong woman, but…

‘It’s effective.’

This was helping me with my image.

“Who…”

“I guess it’s true that the Mercenary Queen has fallen deeply in love. This is a first, isn’t it?”

“He looks different from what I imagined. I thought he was going to look more manly…”

“I heard that he’s a skilled alchemist. I guess he’s like a scholar.”

“I can’t imagine him hurting someone, though. He does look kind of cute…”

“I feel the same way. It’s like, I want to protect him.”

“You’re right, I had the same thought.”

They were talking amongst themselves while hiding their mouths with a fan, but I was able to hear everything.

‘What the heck are those old ladies talking about?’

I wasn’t certain, but I felt like I was popular amongst the noblewomen. I couldn’t really understand their desire to protect me, but I guess that was the image I was portraying right now and of course, there were men that were looking at me with scornful eyes. It broke my heart, but it wouldn’t be so bad to be remembered as the idiot that followed the Mercenary Queen because my worth would be revealed one day, and right now, it was better to be remembered as the victim.

‘A guy like him?’

‘It must be a joke!’

‘There’s no way he can be the murderer.’

‘There must be something going on.’

These were the type of thoughts that I wanted them to have and I wasn’t sure if Cha Hee-Ra was intentionally doing this, but it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that thanks to her actions, we were halfway there. Despite the fact that we had already entered the social gathering, people were still looking at us, and not only that, but I also saw people approaching us to talk to us. Deciding on who to talk to first was kind of important here and if possible, talking to someone with power was the best decision.

When we arrived at a decent location, I saw Jung Ha-Yan biting her lips.

“Your second girlfriend doesn’t look happy,” Cha Hee-Ra said.

“...”

“You can enter with him tomorrow,” she told Jung Ha-Yan.

“Oh, okay,” she said.

“I like being fair,” Cha Hee-Ra said.

I was really thankful for the fact that Cha Hee-Ra was quietly taking care of Jung Ha-Yan even in a situation like this and while I was looking around, I heard a voice. 

“I feel like the stars of tonight’s meeting have all gathered here.”

“It has been a while, Lady Caitlyn.”

“Mr. Victor Hart, it has been a while. Have you been doing well, Mercenary Queen?” the lady asked.

“Yes, I’ve been doing well.”

‘Not bad…’

A woman with blue hair started talking to us and just by looking at her, it became obvious that she was an important person.

‘Lady Caitlyn.’

She was the center of the social gathering. Not only was it because she was a duchess, but her friendly personality also helped her make many connections. Her husband was sick in bed, so she took his place and worked in his stead, which caused her to have a lot of influence within the Holy Empire. Basically, it meant that she was the perfect person to socialize with.

“Is this the man from the rumor I’ve heard so much about?” Lady Caitlyn asked.

“My name is Lee Ki-Young.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Caitlyn. You look a bit different from what I imagined,” she said.

“What do you…”

“I imagined you to look a bit scarier and I didn’t expect you to be so tall,” she explained.

“Thank you and you’re just as beautiful as the rumors I’ve heard, Lady Caitlyn,” I said.

“Oh my. Have you heard about me?” she asked.

“Of course. I’ve heard many stories from Hee-Ra noona,” I answered.

Giving these types of compliments was a given and as expected, I saw a faint smile appear on her face.

“If you don’t mind, can I borrow your boyfriend for a moment, Mercenary Queen?” Lady Caitlyn asked.

“Of course, Lady Caitlyn. I was worried that he was going to get bored, so I’m relieved that you’re here to take him away,” she answered.

“Hehe, thank you.”

Jung Ha-Yan looked disappointed, but Cha Hee-Ra said that it was okay because there was something else she had to do. I was sure that she was going to discuss Lindel’s current situation with the guild master of the Black Swan Guild and Jung Ha-Yan also had to meet with the court mages, so it was only right for me to be with Lady Caitlyn. When I put out my left arm, she looked at me as if it was unexpected. A moment ago, I grabbed Hee-Ra noona’s right arm for protection, but to the lady, I guess she thought that I was escorting her.

Excluding Lady Caitlyn, the other noblewomen started approaching me slowly and it was understandable since I was the center of the rumors. A lot of people were looking and asking questions, so I thought about what I should talk about first and came to the conclusion that it would be helpful if I talked about something that wasn’t related to the recent event.

‘It’s important to build a foundation.’

It wouldn’t be good to suddenly talk about the incident.

“Oh my… so the Mercenary Queen is…”

“Yes, I’ve known Hee-Ra noona since we were on Earth and she helped me a lot back then too,” I said.

“Oooh, I see.”

“Where did you get Juliena from?”

“I went to capture a dungeon in order to rescue a party. It originally belonged to our guild master, Kim Hyun-Sung, but I was chosen by Juliena,” I answered.

“That’s amazing. I’m very interested in the free city, so I heard about what the Blue Guild experienced. Isn’t Juliena a treasure you discovered while capturing the Cursed Shrine?”

“You know it very well,” I said.

“I do. I’ve heard that the potion you’ve made could cut down the curse’s effect by half and you managed to succeed in capturing the dungeon. Is it true? That was the first time that an alchemist managed to be useful during a dungeon control so I heard that it was the hottest topic in Lindel.”

“It was nothing,” I said.

“Oh my, so it is true?”

“Interesting…”

There were some that already knew about me and obviously, they must have conducted a background check before coming here. I was certain that Lee Ji-Hye was spreading rumors about me and those rumors must be good things about me. While we were talking and getting to know each other…

“Ito Sota of Free City Celia’s Yamato Guild has arrived.”

The bastard that framed me slowly walked in and naturally, people started to look at him. I saw his sharp face and I was sure that he had been taking care of his looks. I noticed that the pope’s faction, the noblewomen, and the other nobles were looking at him favorably.

‘He’s skilled…’

Having this many people look at him favorably could be considered a skill and people were already greeting him left and right. It almost seemed like he was trying to show off his connections, competency, and power. His every movement was overflowing with grace and his kind expression would make anyone think that he wouldn’t do anything dirty behind people’s backs. I wasn’t sure when he arrived in this world, but considering the possibility that he had been managing the people here, I was sure that their level of trust in him was way beyond my imagination. He was different from Cha Hee-Ra who only maintained her relationship with Victor Hart.

Park Yeon-Joo of the Black Swan Guild had just recently become the guild master and Kasugano Yuno wasn’t the type to socialize with people so…

‘It means he’s popular…’

It was a childish and simple expression, but I was sure that Ito Sota was popular here. What surprised me the most was that he was slowly walking toward me and naturally, my expression changed instantly. When I looked and acted slightly scared, I noticed Sota smiling brightly.

“It has been a while,” he said.

I didn’t understand his intention to talk to me. Was he simply showing off? Or was he trying to reconcile? The trick he had pulled on me dealt a heavier blow on me than he thought, but if he was scared, he wouldn’t have approached me first.

“Yes… it has been a while,” I said.

The noblewomen started moving aside and Victor Hart started becoming wary of Sota. Since he was my escort, it was normal for him to react this way and it was amusing to see the faint expression on Ito Sota’s face.

‘Ha…’

Sota looked like he was having fun.

‘So that’s what you think…’

This bastard didn’t know much about me and he probably thought that this situation was going to end easily, but the result was different. I was at a social gathering, not a court and Lindel was on the verge of exploding so the Holy Empire wouldn’t be able to touch me. Ito Sota was probably having fun and thought of it as interesting because this was his first time experiencing a situation like this. For a guy that had everything, he probably considered people like me as interesting.

“I think there has been a misunderstanding, Mr. Lee Ki-Young,” Sota said.

‘Bastard…’

He wasn’t trying to reconcile and he wasn’t avoiding the card and the dice that I threw out of fear. He was definitely looking down on me and it was the same behavior that the winner would do to the loser. He applauded my unexpected move and said that he would make room for me in his guild.

‘You’ve been working hard. I’m impressed. So what now? You don’t have any other choice so just grab my hand. That’s the best option for you.’

It felt like that was what he was saying to me.

I would be lying if I said that he failed in hurting my pride and that was when I heard a voice from behind me…

“Misunderstanding, my ass!”

“Miss Cha Hee-Ra, the Free City of Celia had always wanted to maintain a good relationship with Lindel. No matter the reason, the two groups are very heated right now,” he said.

“You think so?” she asked.

“The Holy Empire doesn’t want conflict and despite the reason for the incident, it’ll be better if we just let go of the bitter feelings we have for each other. It’s heartbreaking that I lost a guild member, but… since we’re both within the Holy Empire’s sphere of influence, we’re basically on the same side so it’ll be better to reconcile than to fight against each other.” He suggested.

Basically, he was saying that he was making a sacrifice and it sounded as if he was going to compromise for the sake of peace.

“That’s something my darling should be saying, not me, Ito Sota,” she said.

“Of course, I’m saying this to Mr. Lee Ki-Young as well. I think it’ll be best if we don’t cause any more trouble and if you felt threatened by our actions, I sincerely apologize,” he said.

The way he bowed 90 degrees and extended his hand out was a sight. Considering the fact that the powerful men of the Holy Empire were watching, I had no choice but to grab his hand in this situation. When I quietly extended my hand out, he grabbed it tightly and smiled.

If there was one thing that he wasn’t expecting…

“Thank you for the rational decis… huh?”

“Ahhhhh!”

It was the fact that one of my arms wasn’t normal the moment I entered here.

‘You’ve activated the trap card, you bastard!’

“Ahhhhh!”