Chapter 134: New Year's Banquet

There’s no long greeting like “Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu. Kotoshi mo Yoroshiku Onegai Itashimasu” (A Happy New Year. I look forward to your continued favor this year), but there is a greeting roughly equivalent to “Happy New Year” in this world too.

Having passed ‘Sylvesta’, today is the beginning of a new year. Meaning it’s New Year’s Day, and the Ducal House woke up early, had breakfast, and immediately changed into our respective formal attire.

Today is the ‘New Year’s Banquet’ at the castle. Well, to sum it up, it’s a regular event where the nobles of the country offer their New Year’s greetings to His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress, and then enjoy a New Year’s party afterward.

And regarding this event of greeting Their Majesties, it must be done in order from the highest-ranking individuals first.

Yes, that means my Father, the Emperor’s younger brother, and the Philharmonie Ducal House are first.

That’s why we have to prepare to go out so early in the morning.

What’s with this troublesome system… Why not just gather all the nobles and say “Happy New Year” to everyone at once…

But if I recall, the daimyos offering their New Year’s greetings to the shogun in Edo was kind of like this too, wasn’t it? I feel like I saw it in a historical drama once. The days were decided based on the daimyo’s status, and it took several days.

I can understand Uncle Emperor’s reluctance…

Having changed into the black and white gothic dress version 2 that had been prepared in advance, my preparations were complete.

My hair is also cutely styled in twintails today.

It seems Father and Mother are ready as well.

Now, let us depart to offer our New Year’s greetings!

◇ ◇ ◇

“Welcoming the dawn of a new year, the members of the Philharmonie Ducal House respectfully offer our New Year’s congratulations to His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress.”

“Umu, a joyous occasion. May the blessing of the Nine Goddesses be upon the Philharmonie Ducal House.”

Behind Father, who was exchanging greetings with Their Majesties in the audience chamber, Mother and I were on standby in a deep curtsy with our knees bent. This is subtly exhausting…

After exchanging greetings, they shared a brief update on recent events, then bowed and retreated from the audience chamber. A mountain of greetings from the other nobles is packed tightly in order after this. His Majesty the Emperor has it tough too…

As we were retreating from the audience chamber, we encountered a noble lady entering the chamber from the opposite direction. She was an older lady, probably just under fifty, wearing a chic dress. As my parents passed her, they exchanged a silent greeting with a slight nod.

Following their lead, I also bowed my head slightly. For an instant, a fleeting glance was directed my way, but the lady continued walking straight toward His Majesty the Emperor.

The Concerto Ducal House holds the highest family status in this country after the Philharmonie Ducal House. That person is likely its head, Lady Margherita le Concerto.

In terms of bloodline, she is Father’s aunt, the younger sister of my grandfather, the late former Emperor. She is a great-aunt to Elliott and me.

The Concerto Ducal House is the newest Ducal House after the Philharmonie Ducal House, and Lady Margherita is the first generation.

Lady Margherita had a son and a daughter with her husband who passed away young, but her eldest daughter died prematurely, and her eldest son passed away from an illness about ten years ago. Therefore, the Concerto Ducal House has no successor for the next generation.

According to Father, if His Majesty the Emperor has another child, and if that child is a girl, there is a possibility she will be adopted into the Concerto Ducal House.

His Majesty the Emperor has two consorts besides the Empress, and apparently, even if a daughter is born to them, she would be sent out for adoption.

Imperial Princesses are often used as tools for political marriages, but in this case, I suppose they want to establish blood ties with the next generation of the Concerto Ducal House.

If they were to adopt someone completely unrelated to the Imperial Family, depending on that person’s birth family, there’s a possibility the Concerto house could distance itself from the Royalist Faction.

I heard that one of His Majesty’s consorts recently became pregnant, so depending on whether it’s a boy or a girl, the direction of various factions might change considerably.

If the child born is a boy, he will replace Father as the second in line to the throne as Elliott’s younger brother.

If it’s a girl, because she will be adopted into the Concerto Ducal House, her rank in the line of succession will become fifth, following the fourth-in-line, Lady Margherita.

Well, if Elliott were to die, I think they would bring her back to the Imperial Family and make her Queen.

…Truth be told, I know which one will be born. Because in Starlight Symphony 4: Suite, ‘she’ appears as the young lady of the Concerto Ducal House…!

Yes, a younger sister will be born to Elliott, but she will be adopted into the Concerto Ducal House at the same time she enrolls in the “Academy”.

Though adopted out, her relationship with Elliott is good, and she isn’t a villainess either.

She is a character in the position of a close best friend to the protagonist of 4.

She didn’t have any particularly dark shadows, so I think she is cherished by the Concerto Ducal House that adopted her.

The Concerto Ducal House is naturally part of the Royalist Faction, so I should make sure to properly greet her later… She didn’t attend the Autumn Cooling Party, perhaps due to poor health, so I wasn’t able to greet her then.

Leaving the audience chamber, we moved to the room that would serve as the party venue for the “New Year’s Banquet.” Along the walls of the ridiculously vast room, food and drinks were lined up buffet-style as usual. Almost all of it was ordered from my store.

I don’t know why, but seeing bottled beer placed in such a gorgeously extravagant location makes it look incredibly cheap…

The center of the venue is likely empty for dancing… I wonder if I can avoid it this time too…

The court orchestra had already entered the venue and had been playing for a while. I feel bad that we are the only audience.

Pamela-sensei was there in the violin section. She seemed to have noticed us, so I gave her a small wave.

“Uncle, Aunt, Sakuraile, Happy New Year.”

Elliott, who was already in the venue, came over to greet us.

Since Elliott hasn’t come of age yet, he is exempt from the greetings in the audience chamber. However, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have to exchange New Year’s greetings here in the venue.

“Happy New Year, Elliott. Is Jean not with you?”

It somehow feels strange when one half of the duo that’s always together isn’t there.

“Well, today he’s making the rounds over there as a member of the Staccato Count House. You don’t have Bianca with you either, right, Sakuraile?”

Well, that’s true. Today, Bianca is greeting His Majesty the Emperor as a daughter of the Serenade Viscount House, not as my attendant. Since she hasn’t left her family home yet.

While we were having that conversation, the doors to the party venue opened, and Lady Margherita, whom we had passed earlier, came over to us.

“Aunt, Happy New Year.”

“Great-aunt, Happy New Year.”

Matching the greetings of Father and Elliott, Mother and I also curtsied and greeted her with “Happy New Year.”

“Happy New Year. Crown Prince, Lord Cloud, Lady Ashley. And… you must be Sakuraile. I am the head of the Concerto Ducal House, Margherita le Concerto. Pleased to meet you.”

“I am Sakuraile la Philharmonie. I am delighted to meet you, Great-aunt.”

Lady Margherita smiled gently at my greeting. Good. She seems like a nice person. Or so I thought.

“More importantly than that! I just met Sister-in-law a moment ago, but why has she become so youthful!? When I asked, she said it was thanks to the skin lotion from the Philharmonie Ducal House! Can I buy that too!?”

Suddenly changing her demeanor, Lady Margherita pressed Father and the others with an almost terrifying intensity. Sister-in-law? Ah, she means Grandmother.

I see, Lady Margherita didn’t attend the Autumn Cooling Party, so she didn’t know about Grandmother’s transformation.

Even if she had heard rumors on the wind, she probably didn’t think she would be that rejuvenated…

Lady Margherita is also approaching fifty. Even though she’s long past the turning point of her skin’s youth, the transformation of Grandmother, who is around the same age, must be hard to ignore…

“U-Umm, to be precise, it is an item jointly developed by the Philharmonie Ducal House and the Traumerei Viscount House, but because the quantity is small… Purchases are by reservation, and you will have to wait a little while…”

“Is that so…”

Lady Margherita looked crestfallen at Father’s words. Hmm, actually, I have several bottles of that high-grade skin lotion in my [Inventory Storage].

Should I offer one to her as a token of getting acquainted? I opened my [Inventory Storage] behind my back and took out a bottle of the high-grade skin lotion into my palm.

“Umm, Father. If it’s the high-grade skin lotion, I have the portion I was given, but would it be alright if I gave it to Lady Margherita?”

When I spoke up, Lady Margherita stepped forward forcefully, practically shoving Father aside. Whoa.

“Oh my! Is this that skin lotion!? Sakuraile, is it really alright for me to take it!?”

“Y-Yes. I was just keeping it as a charm to use when I become an adult, and I’ll receive a new one by then anyway.”

“I am so happy!”

Receiving the high-grade skin lotion from me, Lady Margherita gave the spray bottle a little pssh on the back of her hand, and in the blink of an eye, only that spot rejuvenated into youthful, firm skin.

“My, my, my! What a wonderful skin lotion…!”

Lady Margherita gazed at her rejuvenated skin with sparkling eyes, looking absolutely enchanted.

It is strictly ‘appearance’ only; the skin cells aren’t actually reverting to a younger state. Using it once lasts for about a week, but if you stop using it, your skin will gradually return to its original state. However, according to Leon’s appraisal, it does seem to have an anti-aging effect, and it can apparently prevent skin aging to some extent while being used.

In other words, if you continue using it for twenty years starting in your twenties, you can maintain the skin of your youth even when you turn forty.

When I gave Lady Margherita these precautions, she said, “I’m just going to go touch up my makeup for a bit!” and left the party venue. When she comes back, she’s going to be an unbelievably beautiful “witch of ageless beauty”…

Since Mother also distributed some to the people in our faction, won’t today’s party be full of nothing but rejuvenated people?

It might be hell for the ladies of houses that aren’t in the Royalist Faction. God preserve us…