Not only that. They massaged my face this way and that. It was as if they were trying to remodel my face. My hair couldn’t escape their touch either. Eventually, my scalp felt numb.

They did this all day long.

Eventually, my body didn’t feel like my own anymore. How should I put it? I felt like a lump of flower dough.

But the effect of all this kneading did make my skin glow.

So what? All this will be covered by a dress anyway! Unless it’s a nude party, who is this decoration for?

“Ah, finally. We’re done, Cecilia. If you can endure a little longer, we can massage your legs with this trendy new fragrant oil…”

“No! I can’t take it anymore. No, no!”

I waved my hands and retreated. The maids finally stepped back.

Ah, finally, thank God!

“Then let’s prepare the outfit.”

The maid clapped her hands. The door opened and a line of dresses entered.

Ah, how many are there? Surely, they don’t expect me to try them all on?

There was a note on one of the hangers.

Fairy of the beautiful land, Silla. I want to show your beauty to the world. I hope you find something you like. I’ll be waiting.

Ahahaha…

I looked through the dresses. They all reflected Terminus’s taste, each one lavishly and elegantly designed.

All were beautiful, but none seemed to perfectly suit me.

“Hmm…”

“Is there nothing you like?”

“No, no, it’s not that. There are just too many options.”

I smiled vaguely. Still, I had to accompany Ternya today, so I had to match his style.

I picked the one that looked the most comfortable.

Wearing a dress was indeed laborious. It was less constricting and less tugging than last time, so there was no fainting, at least.

The dress was a deep navy blue, elegant and dignified. It was off-the-shoulder and the skirt extended straight down. From the hem downwards, glittering gems were densely set. Due to its color and shape, it resembled the Milky Way in the night sky.

To match it, my hair was coiled up high. A lavish silver necklace adorned my exposed neck, and long earrings hung down to my shoulders.

The maids praised me until they were out of breath, but I felt awkward in this getup. Especially, the cold air touching my neck and shoulders wasn’t familiar, so I kept touching it.

“Silla, it’s okay. Don’t be nervous.”

Terminus, who had come to escort me to the banquet, comforted me.

I headed to the banquet hall with Terminus.

Idrish would enter a little later.
It was safer to gauge the atmosphere in the banquet hall before Idrish appeared.

The chief’s banquet was said to be a gathering for peace that had been going on for a long time, but given the current situation, it was uncertain what could happen.

Conflicts still raged between Robero and Agila, and many others suffered because of them. Just considering the rabbit-folk, they harbored great resentment against Agila.

Of course, nothing major had happened when reading it in a novel. But it was too early to let one’s guard down. The situation had already changed significantly.

Through my intervention, Robero was honing the blade of revenge against Serbian, and Serbian, whose plan had failed, would be tense in his own right.

So today’s banquet was literally a powder keg in front of a torch.

If anyone even sparked, boom!

Idrish could not appear in a situation that had turned into a mess of fights.

Of course, Idrish was a concern as well.

The chiefs gathered there, or to put it another way, were the very ones who had done the most to drive out and kill Atigrado.

The return of Atigrado would be a shock to each chief, but seeing them would also be painful for Idrish.

He had been calm when speaking to me, but deep down he would not be.

It was him who, just a short time ago, wanted to set the world ablaze with revenge.

“Sigh.”

I let out a deep breath. Just then, the carriage stopped.

Brilliant lanterns lined the way to the entrance of the banquet hall.

My mouth kept going dry.

I can do this.

Please, let everything go according to our plan.

I started walking, escorted by Ternya.