Chapter 1 - Part 1
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***
[No… is it funny now that your favorability has increased?]
Lelia looked at Kalix in bewilderment.
Is it really that simple? Really?
It was so absurd that it made Lelia question herself, and Kalix smiled at the same moment as if answering the question.
“She’s a really funny kid, ok? It feels good. Next time there’s another tea party, I’ll go with you!” Kalix said cheerfully.
“Then I will follow you.” Romeo also smiled and looked at Lelia.
[These children… Come and take a look!]
Pretending to be generous!
Lelia clenched her fists in anger.
If she can reveal the fact that she is Leo later, she will definitely restore her dignity as the captain again!
She didn’t think she would receive any rewards for the last quest, but it seems there was one. The next quest window popped up.
Please increase <Kalix>’s favorability higher than 70!! (•̀ᴗ•́)و ̑̑
※ Quest story progress: 25%
<Accept> <Reject>
Lelia also checked the reward list below.
<Reward Item>
∙ 10 tickets for Confirmation of Favorability
∙ 5 Special Recipe Puzzle Pieces
∙ 2 Lv. 3 Random Gift boxes[?]
∙ Quest Jumping Coin
[What is a Quest Jumping Coin?]
When asked inwardly, an explanation of the item appeared.
Magic Coin (~˘▾˘)~♫*¨*•.¸¸
※Caution: The figures are applied randomly.
[Editor: I don’t feel like that’s an explanation, Alchemy-chan…]
[Raising the affinity to 70…]
It felt like the difficulty suddenly increased.
There was a reason it gave five tickets to check favorability as a reward for the previous quest.
[If I’m going to raise it to 70, I’ll need to keep checking the favorability.]
So she was going to save the ticket and use them as needed.
If she doesn’t have a ticket, she’ll have to spend a whopping 1,000 crystals just to check.
It does feel like the rewards are getting better.
Lelia pressed the accept button and glanced at Romeo who was talking to Kalix.
[I have to complete Romeo’s quest too…]
But Ruth’s sub-quest was more urgent than that.
When she remembered Ruth, her chest felt heavy, as if something was pressing on it.
[In a few weeks, Griffith and Oscar will arrive. I must finish it before then.]
After those two return, they will say their final goodbyes at Leo’s tomb. Then Kalix will leave Auraria like he did in the original story, and he’ll make a living as a wandering mercenary.
Until Kalix leaves, she must get a hold of the other half of the Holy Relic. She won’t be able to break the Golden Words spell and confess to her friends as originally planned, but that is okay.
Healing Kalix’s eye would be more valuable.
[Instead, get the Philosopher’s Stone quickly and find her friends one by one.]
Lelia made up her mind.
[Editor: I’m glad she decided to prioritize Kalix’s health.]
While Lelia was lost in thoughts, the two men had been talking among themselves and began to chuckle again.
As she listened closely, the topic of the conversation was ‘How Lelia Will Be a Playboy in High Society’.
She confided her concerns to them…
The two looked like they were having fun with the situation.
[Did they just say that?]
Kalix was saying there was no way Lelia could be taken serious as a playboy, but Romeo refuted him,
He told Kalix about the painting he saw in the downtown area. Thanks to the popularity of those paintings, men who have a gentle look like Lelia became popular.
When Kalix heard this, he grabbed his stomach and laughed like crazy. Romeo laughed along with him.
[This is really happening…]
Lelia was looking back and forth at them.
[It’s fine since my friends are laughing.]
‘I used to be the captain, and now they are making fun of me…’
***
The next day, about an hour after lunch.
Cecil, one of Julianna’s ladies-in-waiting, came to visit Lelia. She couldn’t even make eye contact with Lelia, and lowered her gaze shyly.
“Princess Julianna would like to invite Sir Raymond to a tea party. Can you please come to the princess’s palace in an hour or so?” she asked.
“Oh… A tea party…”
As Lelia hesitated, the young woman fretted that she might hear a refusal.
“All right. Oh, can I go with Sir Ruth?”
When Lelia asked that question, the young lady quickly shook her head in relief.
“It’s not possible. Today’s tea party is a very private and small group. She wants you to come alone, Sir Raymond.”
“All right… ”
Lelia nodded her head reluctantly, and the lady-in-waiting gave a little smile and walked away.
[A small private tea party.]
She was worried when she heard that it’s a private affair, but it was an opportunity.
But Lelia was still feeling conflicted after Ruth’s visit.
He came early in the morning and gave Lelia several books.
They had titles like; <How to Win a Woman’s Affection>, <How to Capture a Woman’s Heart>, <Women Hate Men Like This>, and so on…
They were all very similar books.
Ruth handed her these books and stated, “Sir Raymond, you must win the hearts of Princess Julianna’s ladies-in-waiting. You must be a very carefree womanizer.”
“All right… ”
“Ah! However, you must not cross the line. If you ever harass a lady or hurt her heart, I won’t let it go!”
Ruth suddenly stared at Lelia with his righteous eyes, as if she had become a rogue.
[What…?]
He was so absurd that it made Lelia speechless.
“.…”
“Of course, Sir Raymond, isn’t like that. I’m saying this just in case.”
She wanted to swear at him, but Lelia held back.
She wanted to make a baldness pill from the recipes in the “Alchemy Lottery” menu and feed it to him. When she imagined a bald Ruth being abandoned by Princess Julianna, she felt a little refreshed.
Anyway… Lelia really had no intention of flirting with any of the girls.
[But I can pretend that I’m a womanizer.]
It was enough for her to brag about how many women she had been involved with.
[I just have to avoid being caught.]
This was an opportunity. If it’s a small tea party, she will have enough time to talk with Princess Julianna.
If she praises Ruth a lot in front of her, Princess Julianna will like Ruth even more. She just needs to increase Ruth’s reputation while at the party.
[I will compliment him a lot in front of the Princess today, so go confess immediately. It’s my chance to end this quickly.]
Lelia firmly made up her mind and started to move to her closet. But just then, someone knocked on her door.
When she opened the door, it was Romeo and Kalix standing outside. Looking at their outfits, it seemed like the two of them were going somewhere.
“Where are you going?”
“I have business. I just wanted to inform you, in case you came to look for us.”
At Romeo’s words, Lelia nodded her head and said ‘ah!’.
“Can you help me for a second? Princess Julianna invited me to a small tea party… Please help me choose an outfit.”
“What kind of clothes? Do you want to dress like a playboy?”
Kalix asked, holding back his laughter, while Lelia glared at him.
“Okay, I’ll choose something for you.”
Romeo confidently walked towards the wardrobe and selected a few clothing items.
The clothes he chose were neat and elegant.
When Lelia changed her clothes and came out, Romeo tied her cravat for her.
Kalix leaned against the door and watched them with narrowed eyes.
No matter how much he looked at her, there were too many similarities between Lelia and Leo. There were many things that made her look like Leo as a child.
The expressions she makes and eyes…
‘Are cousins really that similar?’
[T/N: Brain cells, Kalix. Utilize your brain cells… T_T]
Kalix recalled his uncle’s children from his memories, and realized that it was too much of a coincidence. It may vary from person to person, but he didn’t look like his cousins at all.
Be it appearance, or personality.
He didn’t even get along with his cousins in the first place like Leo and Lelia did. Kalix and his cousins were more enemies than family.
‘By now, they must be very happy that I am going blind.’
He snorted inwardly.
“How is it?”
Lelia asked with a nervous expression after she dressed up in the outfit Romeo picked.
“You look like a heartbreaker.”
Lelia opened her eyes wide at Kalix’s words
She looked just like an angry chipmunk. Kalix tried to hold back his laughter, but a chuckle escaped.
Lelia was quiet for a bit while she held in her anger, then she thanked Romeo for his help. She asked the two of them one last time before she left.
“Are you two popular with women? How can I look like someone who has been in a lot of relationships?”
It was a question she asked because she had to go to a tea party right away and act like she was experienced. They were so popular with women that they were featured in private magazines, so they must have a lot of tips.
“We are popular, but…”
Romeo mumbled.
Kalix had a sad expression on his face.
“Unfortunately, I have never been in a relationship, so I don’t know. He’s actually a little afraid of women…”
“Hey!”
Kalix shouted. His cheeks began to turn red.
[T/N: Cute Kalix moment!]
Romeo laughed like a villain. Kalix angrily grabbed him by the back of his neck and dragged him away.
Lelia swallowed her laughter and watched the two of them walking away.
She’d heard there are many people who have experienced hardships from the war with the light Dragon without realizing it.
Her friends seemed to be the exception.
Kalix is still afraid of women.
No wonder.
Kalix seemed to be a little more comfortable with her than before, since she began to disguise herself as a man.
***
Before her departure, Lelia ingested the pill she created that changes the timber of her voice.
When her voice sounded a little lower than usual, her mind calmed.
She was at a big party yesterday, so she didn’t have to talk too much. She made do with short answers.
[But if it’s a small party, I will probably have to talk more.]
After checking her slightly lowered voice several times, Lelia went to Princess Julianna’s palace with the bouquet she had asked her attendant to bring.
[It’s amazing.]
Princess Julianna’s residence was a newly built building on the west side of the palace, and it was very luxurious.
The exterior was so beautiful that her mouth gaped open, but the interior was even more beautifully decorated.
[It’s more glamorous than what she realized.]
Lelia felt like she was going crazy for no reason.
She was absolutely boggled by the whole place, especially when she saw the large crystal statue of a knight inside the entrance of the palace. It was a crystal knight with a sword, and it seemed to symbolically protect Princess Julianna’s palace.
Lelia felt nervous, as if the knight’s eyes were staring at her fiercely.
Perhaps they made it that way on purpose.
***
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