I Transmigrated as my Bias's Messenger Bird - Chapter 48
As I approached the entrance of the ballroom, those who had arrived before me lined up in front of me. All of them were dressed in extravagant gowns, and among them, I spotted a familiar face. It was Lolo.
She was dressed in a uniform of white with a single vertical line of gold thread, and it suited her perfectly. Her eyes darted around the room, then locked on mine.
“Keisha!”
“Lolo, you made it.”
“Keisha! Your dress is so beautiful. Like a fae princess! Oh, but I suppose you really are fae, aren’t you?”
Lolo’s words made the nobles around us look a tad uncomfortable.
“…Quite ostentatious. Keep it down.”
“The Emperor is inside. Keep it quiet.”
They all gave disapproving looks. Well, unless I scream, I doubt he’ll be able to hear me from inside. But causing a commotion here wouldn’t be wise, so I just smiled apologetically.
Lolo quickly became timid and covered her mouth.
“Well, Keisha, see you inside,” she whispered, and I smiled in response.
After a while, a man approached Lolo. It was Ren. Although I couldn’t see him up close from a distance, he also looked quite neat in a white priestly robe. Lolo took Ren’s outstretched hand, and they descended the stairs, excited.
Finally, it was my turn. As I entered, a space resembling a stage unfolded before me. On either side of the balcony-like space were stairs leading down to the ballroom. As I took a step toward it, I heard a murmur from within the ballroom.
When I looked at the raised platform, the Emperor, Empress, Edin, and next to them, Mina, were all looking in my direction. Sounds of admiration, whispers, and laughter filled the air inside the hall.
Listening to the buzz of the ballroom, I waited for Alfie. But strangely, there was no sign of him anywhere as I searched the entire room
‘Where could Alfie be? It’s not like him to be late.’
Worried, I kept looking around for him. But he was nowhere to be seen.
***
Standing on the balcony, endlessly waiting for a partner, Keisha became the subject of amused glances exchanged among the Empire’s nobles.
The nameless noblewomen laughed and commented, “That elf… Could it be that she doesn’t have a partner?”
“Haha, wouldn’t be surprising. She does a lot of strange things.”
“Who would volunteer to be her partner? It’s obvious what kind of reputation they’d get.”
They were curious to see the elf they had heard so much about through their own children attending theRoyal Academy, but they also felt a sense of superiority.
Calling her an elf was generous—she was closer to being a savage with a pretty face. Isn’t it a bit ridiculous to stand around trying to fit in without knowing anything?
“If she doesn’t have a partner, she should just come down. Waiting like that looks ridiculous.”
“Indeed. It seems she hasn’t fully grasped the culture of human society yet. It might be better for her to just come down.”
The women chuckled as they watched Keisha look around. At the same time, the Empress on the dais narrowed her eyes.
“…Is that the rumored elf? I never expected her to attend the ball.”
“Truly a mysterious face. The elves’ relationship with Alucina has a long history… I suppose their presence isn’t too bad as it does liven up the banquet. Don’t you agree?”
The Emperor smiled leisurely as he raised his wine glass.
‘Yes. After all, it’s not a bad way to show that elves don’t belong in the Alucina Empire…’
The Emperor bit his lip, recalling the face of the elf who held the hands of his beautiful half-sister and disappeared.
After that incident, he never saw his step-sister again. He had only heard rumors that she had closed her eyes one day, lonely in a distant land.
The Empress’s gaze shifted like she was examining something suspicious.
“However… Your Majesty.”
“What is it?”
“The decorations on that fairy’s dress… aren’t they pearls?”
“What?”
The Emperor’s eyes flickered as he turned his attention to Keisha. It was quite a distance, so it wasn’t clear, but it seemed that way. An undersea treasure, white and shimmering—the very thing that had been tacitly forbidden by the imperial family for nearly thirty years. An ornament that had been the symbol of a forgotten empress who had abandoned the empire and fled with her elven prince.
“…How dare the elf appear here adorned with pearls?”
Anger flashed in the Emperor’s eyes.
