Chapter 18: 17

This is so tiring.

Khalid barely escaped from the crowd and emptied his glass with an exhausted face. He greeted the people who talked to him with curious expressions and had formal chats dozens of times to the point that his body heated up. Maybe because he was smiling the whole time, his cheekbones and lips felt sore.

Wiping his lips with his hand, Khalid quietly looked around the banquet hall. He could feel the gazes watching his every movement. They were trying to judge whether the grand prince who came as the new diplomatic ambassador would be of political help to them.

Perhaps because it was the first time he showed his face before his official appointment, most of them had favorable gazes, but there were also some gazes containing vigilance or malice. They were likely to be the people Khalid had encountered on the battlefield or heard of his notoriety.

Apart from that, there were quite a few people who were interested in the situation itself. It was because of Renato, Khalid’s banquet partner today.

“What is his relationship with His Imperial Highness? I saw earlier that they seem quite close……”

“Close? The two of them must have met for the first time the day before yesterday, right? They are just being polite to each other. It might have been different if His Imperial Highness were an Omega, but… Why would a dominant Alpha get close to a Beta?”

“Isn’t it just because His Majesty the Empress ordered him to escort the grand prince? Because he’s a precious guest, it’s just right to have a partner who is worthy of the standard.”

“Or is it some kind of protocol? After all, he’s the special protocol officer……”

Khalid held back a sigh when he heard the constant murmuring about him and Renato. He thought they should at least quiet their voices down if they wanted to talk about other people, and wondered if they were deliberately doing so for everyone else to hear.

No, it wasn’t because of them, but himself. The senses built up after rolling on the battlefield made Khalid more vigilant toward his surroundings.

His five senses, which were more sensitive than others’, could feel the gazes in close proximity, the small whispers, and even the pheromones that flowed out with secret movements and subtle seductions.

This is why I don’t want to come.

Khalid clicked his tongue internally and scattered away the strange pheromones that had been clinging to him. There was a brief stop when the music performance started, but if there was any gap, a lot of people around him would rush over like a herd of wild dogs.

“Where did he go……”

In this kind of situation, all he needed was his partner. Khalid looked around to find Renato who had gone away.

Renato, who had been next to him just until a while ago, disappeared after barely greeting the nobles attending the banquet, saying that he had some work to do.

However, Khalid knew that Renato wasn’t busy doing something; he left for Khalid’s own good. The gazes of the nobles looking at the two of them together were not kind.

While conversing with the nobles, Khalid got a glimpse of how Renato was treated in the Empire. He had heard from Nasir in advance, but Renato’s situation was much worse than he had expected.

The nobles skillfully and boldly disregarded Renato. They greeted Renato with courtesy, but that was all.

People didn’t even look at Renato during their entire conversations with Khalid. He was treated like a perfectly invisible human being.

Renato didn’t show any reaction, perhaps familiar with people’s attitudes. He just quietly smiled, introduced Khalid when a new noble approached him, and just stood there like a doll until the conversation was over.

His mother, the Empress, also disregarded Renato in the same way. The Empress, who attended the banquet on behalf of the sick Emperor, warmly welcomed Khalid. However, he only gave Renato a brief greeting. It was a blatantly cold attitude.

When recalling what had happened a while ago, Khalid felt his stomach become uncomfortable. For some reason, Renato’s appearance today reminded him of himself in the past.

Every time he attended the royal banquets with Maryam, he could feel the gaze, contempt, and disregard.

This is not good.

For a moment, Khalid felt a strange sense of crisis. He continued to care about the Prince whom he had only met for three days. This was never a good sign.

“Tsk.”

Khalid found Renato without difficulty and slightly clicked his tongue. Renato was stuck in the corner of the banquet hall just like someone that played hide-and-seek.

It seemed that he was being considerate so that Khalid could have comfortable conversations with other people, but that place wasn’t a suitable place for a Prince at all.

“There is no need for unnecessary consideration.”

Khalid muttered to himself and moved his steps. Renato seemed to think he wouldn’t be noticed if he hid like that, but unfortunately, he was wrong. There were already several people who recognized him, glanced at him, and whispered amongst themselves.

Frankly speaking, Renato didn’t have the kind of face that would fall out of sight just because he hid in a corner. He also had a unique aura reminiscent of flowers, perhaps because of his thick fairy blood.

“Hmm?”

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As he approached Renato, Khalid found someone together with Renato and frowned. He couldn’t see before because of the crowd, but there was already a guest that came before him.

* * *

“Huu.”

Renato leaned against the wall of the banquet hall and let out a weary breath. Perhaps because he was nervous and moving around all day, his body felt heavy.

Let’s take a break and then go back.

After seeing Khalid talking to someone, Renato moved his hand to call an attendant. When he took a sip of the cool and sweet fruit wine, his fatigue seemed to be relieved a little.

He emptied his glass at once and looked around the noisy banquet hall with fatigued eyes. He expected this and was determined to do this, but it was hard.

Should I eat something?

Renato estimated when the banquet would end and briefly looked for something to fill his stomach. He had been starving since daytime to prepare for the banquet, so he now felt a bit of a stomach ache.

“So you were here. What are you doing in the corner?”

When Renato picked up a small cookie to soothe his empty stomach, a shadow casted over his head along with an unwelcome voice.

“……Lord Maximo?”

Why is he here? Seeing the unexpected appearance of a person, Renato’s face became a little perplexed. In his previous life, Maximo was in charge of Khalid’s protocol, but he did not attend the welcome banquet. So he thought the man would of course not attend this time as well.

“What is that expression? Did I come to a place I shouldn’t have come?”

“It’s not that, but…… You didn’t say you were going to the banquet.”

“I was curious about the grand prince in the rumors, so I visited. And isn’t this a banquet I was supposed to attend? Until someone else took away my job.”

Maximo crossed his arms and smirked, his lips twisting up. Facing that absurd attitude, Renato gave him a dumbfounded look.

“Why are you being sarcastic all of a sudden? Didn’t you like this because you wouldn’t have to do anything bothersome?”

“At first I did feel so, but the more I think about it, the stranger it becomes. It’s also a little bit annoying……”

Maximo glanced toward Khalid for a brief moment. The neat forehead mercilessly frowned as if he had seen something unpleasant. He immediately leaned his upper body toward Renato and asked in a low, subdued voice.

“What is your intention?”

“Intention?”

“You think I don’t know? The Marquis and His Majesty the Empress seem to think that this happened because of His Majesty the Emperor’s interference on a whim, but I don’t think so. Did you cause this?”

His eyes narrowed into a horizontal line and turned sharp. At his keen question, Renato’s lavender-colored eyes slightly fluttered for a moment, but he retorted with strength in his voice.

“It’s an absurd guess. Do you think I have the power to move His Majesty the Emperor?”

“Hmm, you two can’t have a bad relationship because you go to greet him frequently, don’t you? Who knows what the two of you were planning there?”

“It was because of His Majesty the Empress’ wish that I visit His Majesty the Emperor. And I always report back every time. Don’t uselessly slander me.”

Renato said in a cold voice. Maximo’s face flushed red when hearing his irrefutable remark.

“What? Useless slander? I uselessly slandered you?”

“So is it not true, then? It’s not as if you didn’t know the relationship between Their Majesties or what kind of situation is unfolding, yet you are saying some nonsensical things right now.”

Renato responded to Maximo without losing. Tristan and Blanche did not have a good relationship from the beginning, but their relationship irreparably deteriorated due to Ludmilla’s appointment as the Imperial Consort and Trudy’s birth. And when Marquis Medus revealed his hidden ambitions, the two became even further apart.

After Tristan became ill with the aftereffects of his injury, the two did not meet in private unless they were to perform official duties or attend events together as the Emperor and Empress. To be more exact, Tristan seemed to unilaterally avoid Blanche.

From then on, Blanche used Renato to dig up Tristan’s intentions. It was because Tristan frequently met Renato.

“Okay. Let’s say what you are saying is right. So what’s your relationship with that bastard?”

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