By Zephyria 
In the end, there were no surprises. It seemed that even the great Allen Hamilton didn’t have the ability to change the trait of his body, which had been determined from the start.
Allen, the protagonist of today’s Banquet Hall, would be more beautiful than anyone else in the Banquet Hall. It seemed the Countess was determined to make a statement today.
Just a glance at Allen’s dress, which was so dazzling it hurt the eyes, was enough to tell. The Countess’s will was very clearly visible in the shadow of that dress, adorned with all sorts of jewels, that she would never allow her beloved son to be scorned by others. Meanwhile, perhaps worried that Allen would be compared to me again today, she even sent a servant carrying a box of clothes to me.
“Madam sent this. Please check it.”
The emblem drawn on the box brought by the Countess’s servant was exactly the same as the emblem of the place where Allen’s dress was made. And what about the short message saying that she had prepared it herself with a mother’s heart and hoped I would wear it today? It was an elegant trap that no one could find fault with. It hadn’t been long since they had been gossiped about for oppressing the adopted son after finding their biological child, so they couldn’t openly discriminate. But I was certain that even if you added up the value of all the clothes, shoes, and small accessories I would wear today, it wouldn’t be worth even one brooch on Allen’s dress.
I almost burst out laughing in front of the servant. It wasn’t exactly laughter directed at the Countess. It was just that I was dumbfounded by the memory of my past self, who was repeatedly hurt by such obvious and childish checks and shed tears.
“Okay. Since Mother prepared it, I should wear it, of course. Don’t worry. I will definitely wear it and attend the Banquet Hall.”
I skillfully hid my true feelings and elegantly raised the corners of my lips.
“Ah…”
Rather, it was the Countess’s servant who was at a loss for words, watching my reaction. That servant, who was more than a dozen years older than Nicole and I, was the one who had watched me grow up under the Countess’s care, receiving all the affection, more closely than anyone else. She would follow orders, but it seemed she was also quite uncomfortable with the reality of having to assist the Countess in making things difficult for me in this way.
She repeatedly looked back and forth between the box of clothes that had already left her hands and me, who was smiling calmly. I didn’t bother to stop her. After a few minutes, the servant cautiously called me in a trembling voice.
“Young Master. On second thought, I think I made a mistake because I’m not very skilled. I dropped the box during transport, and the fabric must have been damaged then. I’ll take this back, so please choose one of the other dresses you have…”
“It’s okay, George.”
“But…!”
“I’m grateful for your concern. Don’t worry. Since Mother prepared it herself, I should accept it with a happy heart.”
Even if it was less valuable than Allen’s fabric, it was still a noble’s dress. Even if you added up all of kind George’s annual salary, it wouldn’t be enough to cover the cost of the clothes.
I gently patted the shoulder of the servant, who was still looking back and forth between me and the box with an anxious look. We weren’t that close, but it was enough that someone I had known for a long time cared about me this much.
“…I understand, Young Master. I will tell Madam that.”
The servant, who bowed deeply, left my room. He seemed to pity the fact that I was accepting my mother’s trap without a single word of complaint.
“Young! Master!”
Oh, no, Nicole came after George left. As soon as George was completely out of the room, Nicole glared and shouted.
“No, why are you stopping him, why! George is even making excuses to Madam on his own!”
“Calm down, calm down, Nicole…”
“How can I calm down now? Let me see, look, look! Who would wear something like this, who!”
The impudent Nicole Seymour, who seemed to have nothing in her eyes, tore open the packaging of the box that George had left behind without my permission and poured the clothes inside onto my bed.
The dark purple jacket with small buttons all the way up to just below the chin and the beige shirt with frills hanging down were better than I had expected. Seeing that each and every button was a jewel, not a bead, it was certainly not a low-grade item in terms of value. However, the problem was…
“Where is this clothing store? Madam Levois? Ha, I can’t stand it. I don’t care if it’s His Highness the Crown Prince or Little Duke Graham, tell me, Young Master! Tell me, and I’ll make them go bankrupt! This, this, this kind of design that wouldn’t even be in my grandmother’s closet, how dare they call it clothes…!”
The problem was that this stuffy design, which suffocatingly covered the entire body without revealing any skin, was a design that was popular at least thirty years ago.
“Ugh, I told you to calm down. Huh? Do you think I would have accepted it without any thought?”
“Yes.”
…Wow. That was an immediate answer without even a second of hesitation. Nicole nodded firmly, adding that our Young Master was capable of doing that.
“Has Young Master been watching Madam’s mood a little? Sigh, Madam is really something. Allen Young Master’s return is a happy thing, but why to our Young Master…!”
Nicole’s eyes were blazing. If there was a temperature in her eyes, the clothes sent by the Countess would have long since burned to ashes. I forcibly picked up Nicole, who was grumbling while holding onto the clothes on the bed, and dragged her to the dressing room. It’s a Banquet Hall where I’m not the main character, so there’s not much to prepare, so there’s plenty of time… It would be good to start preparing early.
“Why the dressing room, Young Master? Ah! Don’t tell me you’re in the mood to throw away those monk-like clothes and choose other clothes…!”
“Yeah, no.”
“Tch. I was hoping.”
“Stop grumbling and let’s find something together. Among the birthday gifts I received last year, there’s something that would be perfect to use today.”
“Yes… But what is it? I remember that you didn’t particularly like any of the birthday gifts that came in last year, so you just put them away somewhere.”
“You’ll remember it too, right? The one His Highness the Crown Prince sent.”
“If it’s a gift from His Highness the Crown Prince…”
Nicole narrowed her eyes and pondered for a long time. She didn’t seem to grasp my intentions at all.
“All he sent were a few rolls of silk from the Imperial Family. Didn’t we donate them somewhere at the end of last year because they were just taking up space and we weren’t going to use them?”
“Ah. That was what he sent officially. There was something he sent separately, unofficially.”
Was it about this big? I rounded my hand to estimate the size of the item I was trying to find. It was bigger than a newborn baby’s fist.
After checking the word ‘unofficial’ and my hand gesture in turn, Nicole’s eyes, which had been frowning unhappily until just now, widened.
“Gasp…! T, t, that Blue Diamond?”
“Yes, that Blue Diamond.”
“You should have said so sooner if His Highness the Crown Prince gave it to you! Ugh, I can’t live!”
Nicole’s eyes widened so much that her complexion turned white, and she ran out as if she was rolling down the hill without me being able to grab her. Then, after a long time, she came back soaking wet. She was clutching a large Blue Diamond in one hand, with water dripping from it.
“Hwaa, hwaaa, ugh, I’m out of breath, ugh, I’m going to die! Why was he drinking water by the lake right now, making everyone wet!”
“…What, what is it?”
“What else could it be! Since the person who sent it at that time was gone and Young Master said he had a feeling who it was, but he just put it away in the jewelry box, I thought it was a fake stone and just put it on Randy’s neck ornament!”
“…Who is Randy again?”
“Young Master’s gift that came in on the same day as this! A Lanfield Mountain Steed!”
Nicole said that she had taken only the jewel from the Blue Diamond necklace that the Crown Prince had given and attached it to the neck ornament of my horse, which I had forgotten. After attaching the neck ornament, the horse somehow had more energy and was in better condition, so she had been wearing it without thinking of taking it off.
Blessing of the Ocean
Relic of an ancient kingdom that flourished around the ocean.
Magic Resistance (Water Attribute) +10
It was no wonder he had so much energy. It was a rare item with the energy of nature condensed in it, so he had been wearing it for a year.
“Crazy…, it was a gift from His Highness the Crown Prince… Ugh, Young Master. You must never say this. Got it? I’m really going to die if I get caught!”
“…Okay. I will, so don’t worry and go take care of that wet thing first.”
“Yes, I’ll be right back!”
Nicole disappeared, grumbling that she had to reduce the snacks for Randy, who was full of energy, and I looked at the Blue Diamond again, which I had received again after a year, with satisfaction. Hehehe. With just this, the game is over. It is a treasure among treasures that was once embedded as the main stone in the Imperial Family’s tiara several generations ago. Even if I appear in the middle of the Banquet Hall in shabby clothes and stand right next to Allen, if I wear this large Blue Diamond necklace that any high-ranking noble with an eye for beauty would not fail to recognize… It’s a pity for Allen and the Countess, but the protagonist of today’s Banquet Hall was already decided to be me.
‘System’ strongly recommends that you take a closer look at the item’s additional effects!
٩( ๑╹ ꇴ╹)۶
“Why, again. Is there something special about the Blessing of the Ocean…”
Blessing of the Ocean
Relic of an ancient kingdom that flourished around the ocean.
Magic Resistance (Water Attribute) +10
I was speechless for a moment.
Randy’s Blessing!
The best Lanfield Mountain Steed,
‘Randy (Owner: Noah Hamilton)’ has been happily wearing this cherished neck ornament for a year.
The natural energy in the jewel has captured even the horse’s joyful energy.
The Blessing of the Famous Steed in one body! Automatic entry into Fever Time upon mounting!
“Th, th, this is crazy… This crazy game…”
Don’t attach such effects to a normal jewel!