December S1199. Evening.
Valflame Palace. Banquet Hall.
Some time had passed since Chancellor Osborne declared his intent of an engagement between two neighboring countries, Liberl, and Erebonia, where they have butted heads countless of times, and their latest one happening to be the Hundred Days War. Relations between the two have been strained since then, enough where Her Majesty the Queen and Chancellor Osborne will be enacting the Non-Aggression Pact in the coming couple of years.
And yet, with such a sudden proposal, it took Princess Alfin a good moment to register what was said inside her head. Her cheeks became a hint of red, as she was the one who received the greatest shock out of all of us. I mean, can I blame her?
You see, in terms of Nobility, your partner is often decided the moment you are born, or it is saved for big occasions like what Father just did, as crazy as that sounds. You don't really have much wiggle room, especially with how rooted the Noble class is in Erebonia.
Prince Olivert is an exception to that. He holds the title of Crown Prince in name only. His mother isn't Empress Priscilla, but that of a commoner who Emperor Eugent III took a fancy to before she passed. A woman who bore the name Lenheim. That's right, Prince Olivert's other identity, Olivier Lenheim, wasn't just some random selection in name!
Prince Olivert has every intention to pass the throne onto his younger brother Prince Cedric, who's the birth son of the current Empress, Empress Priscilla. Prince Olivert doesn't want to be tied down the throne, if it's going to go as intended in the games. He actually ends up marrying Scherazard Harvey, but is forced to take the throne again. At least in the interim. Prince Cedric just straight up vanishes from the Imperial Family altogether, and meets up with Bloody Shirley to join Ouroboros.
But with me in play now, it is very likely Prince Cedric will become Crown Prince Cedric later on, allowing Prince Olivert to be beside Scherazard more. And I'm honestly 100% going to let that happen. He's one of my best buds, and I don't want him to do something he doesn't want to do. At the same time, to think Father would propose something that outrageous. A union between two neighboring countries...
None of us, let alone Princess Alfin, had an inkling that Father was planning to throw such a curveball. Princess Alfin isn't just anyone either. Anyone who dares to become her partner later on would get an instant target on their back. Is this just one of your many plays, Father?
Nonetheless, as I stated, some time had passed since the banquet took place. As for Kurt Vander and Mueller Vander, it wasn't a surprise to me that Mueller had a place to call home here in Valflame Palace. A home away from home, as I'd like to call it. Obviously, this wasn't Mueller's primary residence. I'm sure he has a place of his own, but considering Mueller spends most of his time with Prince Olivert in the couple years to come, it makes sense for him to have a home here. After the banquet concluded, Mueller guided Kurt to the living space he uses in Valflame Palace.
When they left, they were equally as shocked when Chancellor Osborne declared the engagement. At the time, I hadn't a clue other groups were already beginning to move, let alone the dance that was going to happen later. Sure, I could use Vermillion Eyes, but that puts a strain on me, and I don't want to use that right now. Heimdallr is huge. Imagine if over five-hundred thousand people suddenly appear on a radar. It would be chaotic!
But before we began to depart from the banquet, it was just beginning to wrap up when I wanted to speak about the reason why I came here. After all, I'm now under the care of the Vander Dojo for the next three months. Enjoying this celebration for the new year was just icing on the cake, let alone receiving that proposal earlier. We saw Emperor Eugent sigh as he continued the conversation.
"I should not be surprised at this point that you would provide such a bold statement, Chancellor. I hate to agree, but your words are true. We suffered a large loss during the tragedy half a decade ago. We had to pay heavy reparations. While the Nobles behind it were already apprehended and justice delivered onto them, I am truly grateful Liberl did not escalate the matter further, and our relationship began to amend.", Emperor Eugent said, only to shift his eyes toward me. "For that, I thank you, Prince Naoto."
"Haha.", I laughed. "It is not me you should be thanking, Your Imperial Majesty. If you want someone to thank, thank Grandmother. She is the one who is going to accept the Chancellor's Non-Aggression Pact. I still have little say in political affairs at the moment back at Grancel."
"While that may be true Prince Naoto, we are still talking about our dear Alfin's future here. Both as Alfin's mother, and as the current Empress of Erebonia, I am not against this. Our relations are currently on the path for the better, and in terms of us Nobles, it is common for political marriages to happen...", Empress Priscilla said with a smile. On top of that, Princess Alfin was considered Erebonia's Crown Princess, even though she likely won't take the throne. Empires are different from Kingdoms. It has two ruling parties, the Emperor, and Empress. If Prince Cedric ascends, Princess Alfin can't. It's that simple.
Princess Alfin's blush remained on her cheeks as she heard her mother say that.
"I-I am not against this engagement, Mother.", Princess Alfin responded, causing yet another wave of surprise. "Naoto has been really kind to me during the couple of times we spent together."
I could see Princess Alfin darting her eyes in my direction while not directly looking at me. It would seem we caused Musse to become genuinely surprised not just once tonight, but twice. I bet Musse didn't expect Princess Alfin to actually say that, haha!
"For Her Highness to act like this, I'm even more curious as to what we exactly missed out on when you stayed in Liberl.", Musse responded, happily clapping her hands together. As for Empress Priscilla, she was surprised to hear her daughter say that.
"Are you truly not against the Chancellor's proposal, Alfin?", Empress Priscilla asked, equally surprised as the rest of us. Perhaps I was the most surprised here? Is Princess Alfin really willing to accept this engagement? I quite like her character, so I am not against it. She often teases Rean in the games thanks to Elise's presence, but that soon gets outshined by Musse's presence in the latter half of Cold Steel's story.
While Princess Alfin looked away initially, the two of us looked at each other. This time, her embarrassment faded, and a resolute look appeared in her eyes.
"I am not. Moreover, it doesn't need to happen right away. We still have some years before I make my own debut. What is going to happen tonight is just practice, should it come to it~", Princess Alfin happily replied.
"Alfin...", I uttered, still surprised to see such a resolute look in her eyes. With her embarrassment gone, she showed me a smile. Since she was still seated next to me, she said anything right away. Instead, I saw Princess Alfin raise one of her fingers, only to place it over my lips, which silenced whatever I was going to say next.
"Teehee, it can't be rushed, alright? We should let our respective debuts into high society happen first. We're already calling each other by first name, I don't let anyone just do that you know.", Princess Alfin said, smiling at me.
"Oh my. To think it has developed that much already...", Musse uttered, raising her eyebrows at Princess Alfin. Her genuine shock has subsided by now, but she was still surprised to see one of her closest friends act like this. Emperor Eugent was in the same boat. He was seeing his daughter in a different light.
"I did not think you would feel so strongly about this, Alfin. I've been way too busy that even as your father, I couldn't think it would lead to this.", Emperor Eugent said, and sighed. "It would seem you have a much better discerning eye than I do, Chancellor. Having a connection like this would definitely improve the relationship that we're working hard to repair. If both parties are in agreement, I am not exactly against this union either."
Hearing Emperor Eugent praise Father, I saw him laugh. He still had that smug smile on his face. As irritating as that sounds, should I be thankful for him butting in like this? I don't know. As I thought that, I saw Father laugh.
"Hahaha.", Chancellor Osborne laughed. "It would seem all parties are in agreement to formalize this engagement. While we do not have Her Majesty here present with us, are you against it, Your Royal Highness?"
Likewise, a serious look appeared in my eyes while Princess Alfin parted her finger.
"I am not against this, though it would be best to run it through Grandmother first. That won't happen immediately, and so we can at least formalize the engagement on paper. We'll see where these next few years take us. Is that fine for now, Alfin?", I asked, smiling at her.
"Naoto...", Princess Alfin said, happily nodding her head at me. At the same time, it was Prince Olivert's turn to laugh.
"Hahaha.", Prince Olivert laughed. "I dare say my dearest sister's outlook has become rather bright with this lovely exchange. How about we all do a bout of cheers to celebrate the coming of the new year, and to this newfound engagement?", Prince Olivert continued, only to raise his wine glass upward.
"That is not a bad idea, Your Imperial Highness.", Chancellor Osborne said, and proceeded to raise his wine glass as well. "We can take the time to formally declare this engagement and announce it to the public at the upcoming ball tonight. Right now, our remaining guests should be arriving as we speak."
So it won't just be us at this ball tonight, huh? Typical Father. Who it is he invited, I do not know, but I am quite curious.
"Indeed it is, Chancellor. On top of it being a practice dance for Alfin, we did invite several Nobles from all around the country to serve as a proper socializing event and to celebrate the coming of the next century. Considering where this is heading, it should be clear as to who it is who will be Alfin's first dance partner, yes?" Emperor Eugent said. It wasn't often he wore a grin on his face, but he did now.
It wasn't just Emperor Eugent, all eyes fell on me. It was still a weird feeling, but I was used to this publicity by now, even though we weren't exactly in public.
"Haha.", I laughed. "I'd be glad to."
"Really!?", Princess Alfin immediately replied. "Then we should hurry right away! There's some preparation to do!"
"...", Prince Cedric said, and couldn't find any words to say here. He remained mostly quiet during all of this. His eyes remained fixed on his twin sister. That's right, let alone being siblings, Prince Cedric and Princess Alfin were twins! 'I've never seen Sister this cheerful before...'
It didn't go unnoticed. I felt Prince Cedric looking in my direction, as if he was staring right into me. He didn't say a word, so I just let him be. Now that I think about it, the two are twins, right? I recall twins sharing some special wavelength that normal siblings can't hope to have. How is he feeling during this?
Once our gazes met, Prince Cedric quickly turned his head the other way. Guess I'll just leave him be for now. He hasn't caused a single ruckus tonight, so I'd consider that a win? Instead, with the rest, Prince Cedric raised his glass. Prince Cedric included, no one seemed to deny the engagement Chancellor Osborne proposed. Even all the girls were merry.
One after another, everyone raised their glasses upward. Following the motion, Princess Alfin looked at me with those expectant eyes of hers. I simply smiled back, and rose mine, as did she.
""Cheers!""