By Zephyria 
As soon as I arrived at the banquet hall, I seated Aska next to me.
Looking around the room, I saw familiar faces and unfamiliar ones. Since I had mainly invited the twelve Duke families and central nobles, they were all people I had seen at least once.
“Your Highness.”
The first to greet me was Duke Amir, who had been forced to cede a portion of his family’s land to the state because of his son. I had been constantly refusing his requests for an audience after that incident, so this was the first time I had seen him since then.
Next to him was the Duke’s son, who had been beaten by Aska and me and carried out.
“I sincerely congratulate you on your birthday.”
“Congratulations.”
“……”
The Duke’s son bowed his head beside him, repeating his father’s words like a parrot. I didn’t respond and just stared at him.
The Duke looked at me with a nervous expression, but his son kept his head down and didn’t move. I was going to say something if he raised his head and glanced at Aska, but it seemed the Duke had retrained his son.
There was no reason to bring up the past on a good day, so I smiled and opened my mouth.
“Thank you.”
“Your Highness, about the previous incident, I…”
No sooner had I thought that than the Duke’s son hurriedly spoke. The Duke’s eyes widened as well, so it seemed the two hadn’t discussed it beforehand.
“Benife.”
After a moment of consideration, I called him. Benife, who had been keeping his head down all along, looked up at me, and I gestured lightly for him to come over. A look of bewilderment flashed across his face before he turned to his father.
The Duke squeezed his eyes shut and opened them, and Benife hesitantly came to my feet.
“……”
“……”
I just stared at him in silence. Benife glanced at me, then took another step closer. I looked at him and asked.
“What is your name?”
“Benife.”
“How old are you?”
“Twelve this year.”
I had heard he was young, but he was definitely young. His actions and short-sighted thinking, unable to distinguish between heaven and earth, were on par with Aska, who had grown up ignorant in the slums.
“Say it again.”
“Yes?”
“I told you to say what you were about to say earlier.”
“……”
Benife, who had been so eager to speak just a moment ago, closed his mouth when I told him to go ahead.
No one dared to open their mouth rashly in the banquet hall, where the atmosphere had already plummeted from the start. Under the gaze of everyone gathered, the Duke closed his eyes with a pale face, and Benife swallowed several times before opening his mouth.
“I would like to apologize for my previous rudeness.”
“I already received that.”
“I wanted to say it myself…”
What weight could his personal apology possibly carry? I still couldn’t understand why he was deliberately stirring up trouble in this kind of setting. He didn’t even seem to be genuinely remorseful.
“Are you satisfied now?”
“Yes?”
“I asked if you’re satisfied now that you’ve apologized to me directly. Why can’t you understand what I’m saying? Are you deaf?”
“I, I’m sorry. I just wanted to ask for punishment for my sins…”
“Benife!”
The Duke, who had been watching us with anxious eyes from behind, screamed his son’s name with a pale face.
“You want to ask for punishment?”
“Yes.”
I fell into thought again. What kind of punishment could I possibly give this young thing in this setting? I couldn’t slap him for being rude, and I couldn’t ask Khalifa to bring a sword and hack him to pieces. But I didn’t want to just let it go either.
How would Mahir have handled this? He would have given him a punishment like doing volunteer work or said he forgave him, right? But I wasn’t as kind as Mahir, so I didn’t want to do that either.
I couldn’t come up with an answer no matter how much I thought, so I turned my head. I reached out to Aska, who had been listening to me without moving a muscle since earlier, and pulled him toward me.
I sat Aska on my lap and whispered in his ear, asking for help.
“What should I make him do?”
Aska was silent for a moment, as if contemplating, then whispered in my ear.
“Make him dance.”
I barely managed to suppress the laughter that was about to burst out at the unexpected words. I looked at Benife and gave him his punishment.
“Then try dancing.”
“Yes?”
“I said try dancing. Benife, if you ask again…”
I was going to threaten him, but I thought it would be too harsh since he was still young, so I softened it as much as possible.
“If you ask again, I’ll make you do a handstand next to me until the end of the banquet, so keep that in mind.”
“……”
I was about to say another word to Benife, who dared not answer me, but I decided to let it go when I saw his blank expression, which made him look a little pitiful.
The Duke, unable to bear the sight of his son having to dance, was holding his head and looking away.
I looked at Benife and asked.
“Do you need music?”
“……”
“Why aren’t you answering?”
When I was ignored not once but twice, Benife’s face turned white, then pale blue.
“No, no, I don’t.”
“I gave you what you asked for when you asked for punishment, but it seems you’re not satisfied. Did I have to give you the punishment you wanted?”
“No, Your Highness. I’ve never… danced before, but I’ll try my best to please you.”
At the solemn words, I nodded.
“What about music?”
“It’s okay.”
This was another unexpected answer. A dance without music? Wouldn’t that be even more embarrassing? Or was it because he would have to dance until the music stopped if it started? Benife seemed to have chosen the path of a short, intense experience rather than a long period of humiliation.
Whatever the reason, it was a great act of courage, so I applauded him.
“Good, start when you’re ready.”
At my words, Benife took a few steps back. The Duke also stepped back as much.
Benife bit his lip, then lowered his face, which was as hot as a brazier, and began to flail his arms and legs. Small gasps that couldn’t be suppressed burst out here and there in the deathly silent banquet hall, then soon subsided.
“I can only apologize for showing you such an unskilled dance.”
Benife, who had quickly finished his dance in the solemn atmosphere, said with his head bowed.
I hadn’t even told him to stop yet… But the atmosphere was too solemn, and the Duke’s face looked like it was about to explode if I made him do more, so I decided to let him off the hook here.
“Consider this my birthday gift.”
“Thank you.”
“Duke.”
“Yes, Your Highness…”
The Duke answered in a voice that sounded miserable at my call. I couldn’t know his feelings, but this was all Benife’s fault. I was going to just let it go in the first place. Anyway, it wasn’t my fault.
I looked at the Duke, who was waiting for my words, and advised him.
“Don’t let him out if you can’t handle him.”
“I have no excuse.”
“And don’t come looking for me anymore. It’s annoying. I’m busy enough as it is.”
“I’m sorry…”
His voice cracked as he answered, as if he was choked up. I pretended not to notice his pitiful state and changed the subject.
“I’ve received enough gifts, but bring them if you’ve prepared more.”
At my question, a Servant who had been waiting with something in his hands approached the Duke.
“Yes, Your Highness. This is a handicraft made by a craftsman using the finest ivory…”
After that, several nobles presented gifts and greeted me. It had been a very long time since I had shown my face at an official event, so the greetings took longer than I had expected.
Aska, who had been sitting on my lap like a doll the whole time, twisted his waist as if he was getting restless. I thought he must be uncomfortable, so I was about to put him back on the chair, but Aska asked in a small voice.
“But aren’t we going to dance?”
What dance was he talking about all of a sudden? I was about to get up, but I sat back down and put my arm around Aska’s waist.
“What dance all of a sudden?”
“It’s a treasure called the Tears of the Mermaid, found in an ancient ship that sank in the sea. It was very difficult to obtain this time, and mermaids are ancient monsters that are now extinct…”
In front of me, a noble was still chattering on, leaving his gift next to him. As I fixed my gaze on him, Aska whispered again.
“In Calderia, when a banquet is held, the nobles all dance in a large hall. So I learned it too. Men and women dance together, and women dance together too.”
“I’ve never danced before.”
I had usually just watched the dancers perform when the music started. But I knew that such a culture existed in foreign countries.
“Do you want to dance?”
“No? I was just curious.”
Even if he wanted to dance, I wouldn’t tell him to dance here, of course. But I was curious about how he had learned it, so I was thinking of telling him to show me in the room later.
“I would be grateful if you would accept my small token of sincerity.”
It was funny that he called it a small token of sincerity when it was a treasure that had been passed down from ancient times. I reached out to take a closer look, and the noble’s face lit up as he brought me the Tears of the Mermaid.
Upon closer inspection, it was a very large pearl. Most pearls are a single color, but this one shone in various colors depending on the angle, like Aska’s eyes.
Personally, I don’t like opaque gems very much, but the colors were so subtle that it caught my eye.
I found Aska’s hand, which was covered in several layers of cloth, and held the Tears of the Mermaid against his slender finger. Of course, the pearl was too big to make a ring. I also held it against his wrist, but it was still too big…
But it went well with his skin tone, so I thought it would be nice to make a hair ornament or something with it.
If I entrust it to a craftsman to be processed tomorrow…
I was thinking that when the entrance to the banquet hall became noisy. I turned my gaze and saw Mahir entering.