Chapter 284: The beginning of the storm
The splendid music was flowing through the air enhancing the grand atmosphere of the pompously decorated ballroom where tens of high nobles were indulging themselves in exquisite food, magnificent alcohol, and the pleasant small-talk appropriate for the occasion.
Usually, the royal family would organize a grand ball like that to announce some joyous occasion, like the date of the wedding of the next heir to the throne.
Though, what was unusual this time, the security of the royal castle was so high that no one actually knew what was the occasion this time.
After all, this time it shouldn't have anything to do with a royal wedding...
No matter how one looked at it, the girl who was the fiance of the current royal prince was just some violent girl from the noble family that although was considered as one of the seven main families of the kingdom - was a ruined family with no prospects of recovery whatsoever, not while the current head of the family, lord Blackberry Pride, was missing.
If anything, many people present suspected that the ball is only meant to be used as a chance to officially break off the engagement between the Pride's girl and the young Greed and announce either another candidate or that the position of the fiancée is open.
What else would the greedy queen spend a huge amount of money on anything else...?
"!!!!"
That line of thought was the exact reason why so many people got either taken aback or flabbergasted at the sight of the group that entered.
Not pair.
Group.
A group of people entered the ballroom through the wide door in a spearhead formation.
The very first person was...!
The tall freckled red-haired daughter of the Pride family!
She was wearing an exquisite black dress with red highlights that even though showed a loot of skin somehow ended up looking menacing.
...or maybe that was because of the person wearing the dress and not the dress itself...
Why?
Well, because young lady Pride wasn't holding herself up like a proper lady.
She entered the ballroom with a black wooden weapon that was too thin to be a mace - but was giving off a fearsome aura - rested across her shoulders, and she was looking around with an annoyed expression as if she was not only pissed off, but ready for picking a fight as well.
The person at her right wasn't a person at all - it was a blue-skinned undead with black hair and reddish eyes, dressed up in a splendid tuxedo... with the exception of not actually wearing any shirt and not buttoning up the jacket making it show off its chiseled torso, and with the audacity to still wear a tie around its bare neck.
As if to make things even more scandalous, many of the shocked guests realized that the puppet's massive height wasn't actually his natural one, but one boosted by the ridiculously high heels of his black boots - boots that for whatever reason were giving off a dangerous fiery aura only recognizable by the ones with the affinity for fire.
Further on the right side of lady Pride, none other than the handsome blond-haired royal prince was walking with a prideful expression, as if being able to walk next to the pair was some sort of achievement.
With the right side done - on young lady Pride's left side, the closest one was the timid but overwhelmingly beautiful head of the Lust family, Claymore Lust, who had chosen to show up as a girl for the first time in forever and decided to wear a refreshingly innocent white dress that contrasted with most of the values represented the by her house.
Further on the left, was another pair.
A short brown-haired girl that some of the present quests have remembered from her debut at her own first kill party when she received a tamer class at level 1 and even tamed the monster that she was supposed to kill.
Mary Hope.
For the occasion, she chose to put her long brown hair up and wear a pastel orange dress.
Some might have wonder what a girl from a well-respected, but nevertheless a mid-tier noble family was doing at the ball meant only for the high nobility...
...but people who would have thought that would prove themselves to be completely blind and not paying attention to the girl's companion.
Tall, muscular, with wild black hair with orange glint, his eyes sharp like those of a hunter, with tanned skin and the aura of a wild beast - in the elegant tuxedo he looked as if someone had tried to dress up monstrous wolf into the official clothes.
Someone like that could only be a member of the Gluttony family, there was no place for doubt.
But... who was he...?
Surprisingly enough, even some of the members of the Gluttony house were unable to answer that question - they had no doubt that the young man was one of them, but... who exactly...?
---
"...there's something odd going on here..."
Zombie furrowed his brows and leaned down in order to whisper into Cranberry's ear.
"Odd...?"
The red-haired girl asked indifferently but even though she managed to keep her voice in check, she ended up clenching her fist holding the baseball bat so hard that her knuckles turned white.
"There are four life signatures that look distorted mixed amongst the other living."
The blue undead reported with a bothered expression.
"What do you mean distorted? Your life signature detection is something that cannot be blocked, the only reason to escape it is to be as close to death as physically possible, or just dead...!"
Cranberry gritted her teeth and tensed up.
"All the books I've read up until now support the idea that it's the only ability that cannot be fooled!"
She added and started looking around at the gossiping nobles glancing at them from every direction, but didn't spot anyone suspicious.
"It seems like the books were..."
/The ball of joyful celebration - start
A sudden system message interrupted Zombie's words.
"...!"
Cranberry straightened her back and stopped in place.
*bump*
*push*
"Haa...?!"
Or rather, she tried to but someone had the audacity to touch her back and push her forward - so she turned away with the full intention of obliterating the audacious fool but...
"...!"
She was faced with thin air, even though she felt the pressure on her back continuing to propel her forward...!
"What the...?!"
She gasped and tried to oppose the pushing force and take a step back, but once again...
*bump*
She was stopped by the invisible wall...
/Unable to leave the area
Story even in progress
Another message had popped up in front of both the red-haired villainess and her blue-skinned corpse puppet.
"..."
The two looked at each other.
"Haa...! Zombie, this is clearly the worst-case scenario - we're switching to plan F right away."
---
"What is she doing?!"
---
Cranberry scoffed and shook her head, activating her skills without caring for the reaction of the shocked bystanders.
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