Chapter 148: 123 – Royal Banquet (Final)

“Is... Your Excellency drunk?” Hanna asked with a worried face.

I snorted. “Not at all. Sorry, that was a strange thing to ask out of nowhere,” I chuckled while looking around.

I saw Lapia and Alyssa some distance away. They were talking and walking while holding hands.

Bonte, Bromisnar, and Elena were chatting and laughing about something near the stage.

Thelea and a few other Goliaths were conversing next to some tables with food.

“Is the alcohol any good, Your Excellency?” the Ork inquired, then sipped her drink.

I nodded. “It's pretty good,” I replied and turned to her.

She hummed. “I never understood the appeal of it, to be honest.”

I shrugged. “I like the taste. Our good friend here,” I gestured at the bartender behind us, “makes it taste even better.”

The man nodded. “Thank you,” he said with a smile.

“There are more preferences than colors, after all,” Hanna pointed out and finished her drink.

“True,” I agreed and finished mine, then placed the glass on the table along with the one in my storage.

The mood in the hall was cheerful. People mingled with smiles and laughter. The various species walked around and enjoyed the banquet, not minding their differences. Perhaps even welcoming them.

I produced my pair of sunglasses and put them on, then appraised every single individual. No Demons were around so I put them away.

The Classes people had were as varied as themselves. The majority of people in power had Merchant-related Classes. The Royal Guard was evenly spread. They were Archers, Clerics, Scouts, Warriors, and Wizards in equal amounts. Most servers were Craftsmen.

It was a bit disappointing to see nobody above 350.

I can't believe the highest leveled individual I have seen so far takes care of cats for a living, I thought and sighed. No wonder they need us. But shouldn't they have something like a hidden powerhouse? What if a dragon comes to fuck shit up and we take too long to get here? I can run faster than sound but that's still slow considering how big this planet is. Maybe the caretaker is the trump card. Married to the King and Queen, high level, traveled with Miraztor before being seduced by them. Kind of checks all the boxes. I stopped thinking and my eyes widened a little. Did Josalia and Gordon cuck Miraztor? That would be so fucking juicy, I chuckled.

“That's a scary smile, Your Excellency,” Hanna commented, interrupting my thoughts.

I relaxed my face and turned to her. “Is it?”

She nodded. “Makes me feel like I'm in danger,” she replied with the smallest of smiles.

I tilted my head. “What do you mean?”

The Ork shrugged. “Your Excellency is a greedy woman, after all. I wonder if I'll be safe now that I've joined the group...” she lamented with a sigh.

My eyebrows almost fused with my hairline. “What do you mean by greedy?” I asked.

“Your Excellency knows what I mean,” Hanna replied. “Unless that thing Your Excellency did to me is something Your Excellency does to everyone,” she said with an obviously fake sad face.

Ah, I understood. “I see. I will never, as long as I am alive, do that again,” I told her with a smirk.

Hanna's eyes widened a little.

“That's fine, no?” I challenged her.

“I see,” Hanna muttered with a nod. “Your Excellency is also an unfair woman.”

“So that's how you see me,” I lamented. “A pity.”

The Ork's eyes narrowed.

I smiled back.

Hanna looked over my shoulder and her face returned to normal. “It seems Queen Claudia would like to speak with Your Excellency” she informed me.

I turned around and saw the Dwarf approaching with a friendly smile.

A few Dwarfs followed close behind her.

Claudia walked to us and gave me a bow. “Your Excellency,” she greeted me. “Despite having met, I have not formally introduced myself.”

I sighed. “So you choose to do so in front of everyone,” I pointed out. “That's... whatever.”

She straightened, a tight smile on her face. “Apologies, but it's important to do so this way.”

I nodded. “I get it, that's why I'm not stopping you,” I replied with a polite smile.

For a split second, perhaps less than a tenth of a second, her expression said 'This fucking brat'. As fast as it came, however, it went away, replaced by politeness and respect.

My smile turned genuine at seeing that.

“I am Claudia Tidon Coronalta II, Queen of the Dwarven country of Tidon. It's an honor to meet Your Excellency,” she introduced herself.

“Nice to meet you,” I replied. “I am Natasha Novak, Halve Warrior,” I introduced myself following Louis' advice.

Claudia then introduced the Dwarfs that accompanied her.

Jose Tomas Montalba, Minister of Foreign Relations, was an old Dwarf with a massive beard that reached his hips. It was groomed and braided with accessories and jewelry.

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Ricardo Fuentes, Minister of Culture and Arts, was a young one. He was all smiles and had a deep voice. His beard reached his chest and looked very fluffy.

Alejandro Pichon, Minister of Education, was a strict-looking Dwarf with more wrinkles on his face than hair on his head. His beard was gray and looked prickly like straw.

Wait... They're all men, I thought and looked at Claudia. Don't tell me...

“Your Excellency,” the Queen continued, ignorant of my thoughts regarding her relationship with her ministers. “I believe Plavi, whom you met earlier, sent you a letter regarding Your Excellency's place of birth, has he not?”

I nodded. “He did. I appreciate the gesture, but I respectfully decline the offer. I have no need for nationality or land,” I told her with my most polite smile.

“If Your Excellency ever changes her mind please let us know,” Claudia 'insisted'.

If I hadn't been informed that this was how they would accept rejection, I'd be a little angry at her insistence.

Louis' crash course of Royal Manners was quite the help.

I gave the Dwarf a smile. “I will consider it,” I simply said.

That, naturally, was a 'fuck off' in a very polite way.

“If Your Excellency wishes to visit Our Monarchy of Tidon, Your Excellency is more than welcome,” Claudia continued.

“I will, eventually,” I replied. “Let's hope the reason for my trip there is purely for relaxation.”

The Dwarf smiled widely at that. “Let's hope,” she agreed.

“And if circumstance demands it,” I continued. “Don't hesitate to reach out to me.”

Claudia's eyes widened a little and she quickly bowed. “Thank you, Your Excellency.”

The other Dwarfs imitated her, bowing deeply.

I held back the cringe. Such are the customs, unfortunately. I am a Halve, after all. I exist to protect the people of this world.

Even from themselves.

After that, Claudia said her goodbyes and left.

“How does it feel?” Hanna asked.

I watched the short people walking away.

They said something among themselves, then nodded at each other.

“How does what feel?” I asked back.

“To pledge your protection to an entire country,” the Ork specified.

I hummed. “Correct me if I'm wrong, but 'to pledge something' implies the lack of it beforehand,” I said and turned to her. “I don't need to verbalize my promise to protect others in order to do so, do I? That's just for peace of mind. Theirs, specifically.”

Hanna smiled and hummed. “Interesting. So very interesting,” she whispered.

I pouted. “I thought I was greedy and unfair,” I playfully complained to her.

The Ork nodded. “That still holds,” she replied with a smile.

I laughed and decided to leave it at that. Any more and it would turn into flirting.

The rest of the day was spent like that. Rulers would approach me and introduce themselves along with the important people they came with. They would invite me to their country and I would accept, then tell them to call for me if shit hit the fan.

Near the end of the celebration, every single noble of Lumin Kingdom had talked to me

I then realized that they approached me following a hierarchy.

Rulers of other countries came first, then the more prominent nobles who I didn't know about but had positions in the Royal Court, then others who were about to, then those who had a long way to.

It was the familiar chain of Duke or Duchess, Marquess, Count or Countess, and Baron. There were a few in-between for each of them, and they added ranks from 1 to 5 for some cosmic reason, but even I could see the logic behind it.

Finally, I came face to face with Ren Dabrak, the Egys Tigea that reminded me of a panther. She wore a goth lolita dress and spoke in a very verbose way.

I initially wanted to tell Lady Dabrak I was annoyed with her portrayal of me in her newspaper, but chose not to.

It helped a lot, after all. People thought of me as an approachable individual instead of a stuck up person.

We exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes.

After her, Lord Punten approached me with a smile. His mustache was as impressive as the first time I saw it.

He was elated with Lapia accompanying me, and even mentioned having noticed her growing bored of her work but not knowing what to do about it.

Quite the thoughtful fellow.

Still, there was a small issue.

He reeked of Demon.

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