GDTEA Ch 51

Eris Biyan

When the countless wars that had seemed endless finally came to a close, the social circles of the Neweiton Empire were more abuzz than ever before. This was due to the incessant gossip pouring throughout the Neweiton Empire.

The imperial army’s return ceremony had fizzled out due to the commander’s sudden disappearance. The victory banquet had no protagonist. And the increasingly sharp conflicts between the imperial family and the noble faction were all topics of discussion.

Even after the war ended, the Neweiton Empire knew no peace. Within the empire, the power struggle for greater authority was already in full swing.

Everything began with the absence of Grand Duke Gwendhill, who had been the central pillar between the imperial family and the noble faction.

[Do you think the Grand Duke is really dead?]

[Oh my, I heard rumors he’s missing.]

[That can’t be. Surely His Majesty wouldn’t have kept a traitor alive.]

Grand Duke Gwendhill, who was reportedly executed immediately after his treasonous plans were exposed right before the return ceremony, was the talk of the town wherever people gathered.

The social atmosphere, filled with dark jealousy rather than dull peace, was perfect for stirring things up.

And it was proving quite useful for the noble faction that had been controlling the flow of social circles.

“Marquis, I heard you had an audience with His Majesty today. How was it?”

“Is His Majesty still ordering searches, unable to let go of his attachment to the traitor?”

“Bah! Of course the ruler of the imperial throne would naturally look for the hunting dog he used like a limb.”

“Hahaha, that’s right!”

Secret conversations were taking place in the meeting area set up within the brilliantly decorated banquet hall. Too boisterous to be called secret, yet too consumed by base greed to be called boisterous—such was the scene.

At the center of it all, a red-haired nobleman with a languid, gentle aura swirled his wine glass slowly while resting his chin on his hand.

“Well, I suppose it hasn’t sunk in for him yet.”

His reddish-brown eyes appearing through the red wine were as dark as blood.

“He must be afraid, confused, worried…”

All the nobles in attendance listened intently to the red-haired nobleman’s words.

The red-haired nobleman slightly curled up the corner of his lips.

“It would be easier if he just accepted it.”

The red-haired nobleman with reddish-brown eyes, Darhan Bridend, leisurely took a sip of wine.

Unlike his lips that wore a kind and gentle smile, his eyes glinted coldly and cruelly.

The nobles, who had been watching for cues from Darhan, the leader of the noble faction, laughed out loud.

“Still, he’ll give up soon. How long can he hold out when the hunting dog that served as his loyal shield is gone?”

The Neweiton imperial family was nothing special except for their bloodline. They were ordinary people with no exceptional talent in magic or swordsmanship. Yet, throughout Neweiton’s long history, the bloodline occupying the imperial throne had never changed.

It wasn’t as if there had been no rebellions in ancient history.

However, not once had a rebellion succeeded.

‘Like a sly fox.’

The ruler of the Neweiton Empire’s throne had been cunning and scheming for generations.

Merciless to enemies, tremendously caring of allies—being praised as a wise ruler was just one aspect. The Emperor of Neweiton was skilled in persuasion and negotiation, and knew how to deploy tactics and strategies at the right place and time.

Using carrot and stick appropriately, pretending to respect the noble faction while keeping them under his feet, pretending to share power while prioritizing imperial interests.

‘And on top of that, he established a symbiotic relationship with Gwendhill.’

In short, there were no gaps to exploit.

The noble faction, which had been at odds with such an emperor, had been trampled upon for ages. The noble faction had somehow endured humiliating years by catering to the emperor’s moods and prostrating at his feet, finally building up the courage to look the emperor in the eyes as equals.

“I wonder how His Majesty feels now. The Grand Duke, who returned alive from countless battlefields, has vanished from the world overnight. He must be dumbfounded.”

“Well, I’d say he’s more desperate than dumbfounded. Now he’s in a position where he needs to beg us, the noble faction he’s been neglecting all this time, for help.”

“This is all thanks to Marquis Bridend.”

The nobles praised Darhan in subtle tones.

Darhan continued savoring his wine without any particular reaction.

Emboldened, the nobles began to reveal their true thoughts more daringly.

“By the way, even the Grand Duke was human after all. I heard his only weakness was a thigh injury.”

“You never know what might happen. Whether he was lost in sentiment or overconfident, to think he’d be ambushed.”

“We prepared thoroughly. Didn’t we send expensive black mages and assassins to push through aggressively?”

“The poison we’d researched for years due to Gwendhill’s damned constitution finally saw the light of day.”

Hu-ha-ha-ha-ha.

Though they lowered their voices, the noble faction spoke without restraint in a banquet hall with many listening ears.

The situation had already tilted. How many would try to go against the flow as the power structure shifted once again?

“……”

But Darhan remained vigilant.

The flow of power seized by force through assassination could easily be reversed at any time.

‘That sly fox would know. He won’t believe Gwendhill’s death unless his head is brought.’

Who was Leodelt Gwendhill? The Grand Duke of the Neweiton Empire and the invincible sword protecting the Neweiton imperial family, far from being a traitor. The charge of treason against Leodelt was a baseless accusation, but only as a traitor could he be summarily executed.

That’s why Darhan had pushed through, knowing it was a risky move.

The dead don’t speak, do they? That’s why it was all the more crucial that Leodelt Gwendhill’s head be brought back without fail.

‘Those fools dropped him off a cliff.’

As a result, due to failure to find Leodelt Gwendhill’s body, the perfect plan had been disrupted.

Darhan quietly gritted his teeth at the foolish nobles laughing and chattering in front of him.

‘Parasites.’

His inner thoughts were completely different from his attitude of allowing the nobles’ chatter just moments ago.

‘I suppose I’ll have to clean up soon.’

He could just charge them with appropriate crimes and get rid of them.

Right now, it would be troublesome if the noble faction’s numbers decreased, but soon the forces supporting the noble faction were expected to grow.

‘With Gwendhill gone and if the emperor falls too, the young crown prince will be just a figurehead.’

Everything was proceeding smoothly.

Gwendhill’s subordinates were still causing trouble, but a body without a head couldn’t function properly anyway.

‘Once Leodelt Gwendhill’s death is officially announced, the House of Gwendhill will be torn apart that very day.’

Then that vast Grand Duchy would naturally become Bridend’s property.

The Grand Duchy’s rumored mountain of wealth would also be confiscated.

Imagining the power and wealth that would soon be in his hands, Darhan’s cold gaze softened.

“-By the way, Marquis, when do you plan to marry?”

“Indeed. All the women of Neweiton are eyeing the empty spot beside you, Marquis.”

Noticing Darhan’s silence, the nobles changed the topic on their own.

Darhan smoothly curled up the corners of his lips.

He lightly shrugged his shoulders.

“With the goal so close, I don’t have the luxury to look elsewhere.”

“Hahaha, that’s true. The Marquis has very high standards.”

“Of course. How easy is it to find a spouse who will modestly support a man of great affairs?”

Everyone knew about Darhan’s illustrious history with women and his promiscuous private life, but externally, he maintained a strict bachelor image without a single illegitimate child, so there were no issues.

If one could secure the position of the noble faction leader’s wife, Darhan’s personal history was not even a blemish.

“Marquis, do you have any lady you’ve been keeping an eye on lately?”

Eyes burning with the desire to become Bridend Marquis’s father-in-law gleamed.

Darhan smiled slightly and held back his words.

He was already approaching the age of thirty.

If he delayed the marriage matter any longer, he risked being branded as a man with issues.

“Well…”

But he had no intention whatsoever of tying himself to a mediocre family.

Marriage between nobles was a union of families. Darhan, who already held enormous power, didn’t want to share what was his.

It was then.

With the sound of the banquet hall doors opening, an announcement of entry echoed throughout the hall.

“Marquis Gederus Knocharff and his fiancée, Lady Eris Biyan, are entering!”

The title of marquis was rare in the Neweiton Empire.

Naturally, Darhan’s gaze shifted to the couple just entering across the banquet hall.

“…Oh.”

An interested smile spread across Darhan’s face.

It wasn’t just Darhan. All eyes in the hall were on the lady being escorted by a pot-bellied middle-aged nobleman.

She was a beauty stunning enough to make one lose their senses.

“Eris Biyan?”

“A lady I’ve never seen before…?”

“My… was there such a beautiful lady?”

‘Lady Eris Biyan,’ who had the attention of everyone in the hall, wore a form-fitting dress that revealed her figure, with half of her long straight hair twisted up and secured with a lace pin.

Her light gray hair shimmered like silver under the banquet hall lights as it flowed.

“Truly beautiful.”

Along with the mysterious hair color, red eyes, her soft smiling eyes, and refreshing smile.

Above all, the mole under her left eye looked particularly alluring.

And the lady who instantly became the protagonist of the banquet, Eris Biyan, concealed a satisfied smile at her successful social debut.

Five years. A full five years. It was time spent wasting her youth to become ‘Eris Biyan.’

But the moment she entered the banquet hall, she felt rewarded for those five years of wasted time.

Finally, the perfect identity transformation as ‘Eris Biyan’ was complete.

“Everyone’s looking at my prin—, no, my fiancée.”

The pot-bellied middle-aged man escorting her chuckled with an elated face.

He was a typical nouveau riche, full of vanity and the desire to show off.

‘How stupid.’

Arisviyan, who had started a new life as ‘Eris Biyan,’ inwardly sneered.

She found him pathetic for loudly stating the obvious, but she didn’t show it.

Still, thanks to having this fool as her official fiancé, she had successfully and dramatically stamped her presence as ‘Eris Biyan’ in front of the Neweiton Empire’s nobles.

‘For now, having this kind of man as a fiancé is beneficial, so it can’t be helped.’

As she intended, people around were already casting envious glances as if the pot-bellied man had a beauty far beyond his league as his fiancée. This was amplified because, although Gederus was a marquis, his family lacked history and prestige.

Coveting and desiring others’ most valuable possessions was the nature of nobility.

Of course, the same was true for Arisviyan.

‘It’s a shame it’s not an imperial ball, but as expected of a banquet that invited the noble faction leader, they’ve carefully selected the guests.’

Though the scale wasn’t quite satisfactory, it wasn’t bad that it was a refined banquet where lower nobles couldn’t poke their noses in.

Arisviyan moved with deliberate steps, wearing a softly melting smile.

She enjoyed the nobles’ covetous and jealous gazes that she hadn’t felt in a long time.

“Ahem, shall we get a bit closer? Come to think of it, since you’re my fiancée now, I should show more affection.”

“……”

Gederus stroked the back of Arisviyan’s hand with a lecherous gaze.

Arisviyan lowered her gaze shyly, conscious of the surrounding gazes.

Inwardly, she gritted her teeth.

‘Know your place, don’t overstep!’

Although Arisviyan was a princess of a ruined country, noble royal blood flowed in her veins. She had no intention whatsoever of living as the woman of someone like Gederus Knocharff.

‘Even though Gederus is a marquis, he’s no different from an honorary noble with a tiny domain the size of a fingernail.’

It meant that someone like Gederus was of no help at all to her social advancement.

‘If I’m aiming to be the wife of a Marquis in the Neweiton Empire anyway…’

Arisviyan naturally pulled Gederus’s arm to change direction.

Then she checked the group of nobles gathered together. Beyond the nobles who seemed captivated by her beauty, she felt a slightly different gaze.

A red-haired nobleman was watching her as if observing.

‘Found him.’

As she got closer, the brooch worn by the red-haired nobleman became clearer.

The family with a scorpion emblem was unique in the empire.

‘Darhan Bridend!’

Already knowing Darhan in detail through background research, Arisviyan was confident.

Finally standing before the noble faction, Arisviyan spoke first without waiting for Gederus’s introduction.

Darhan preferred assertive women over submissive ones.

“A pleasure to meet you, Marquis Bridend. I am ‘Eris’ from the House of Biyan.”

Arisviyan greeted Darhan with a shy smile.

The only person who could bring her the wealth and power she had enjoyed as a princess was the Bridend Marquis before her.

Arisviyan was confident in her beauty, and she had never failed at seduction.

“Yes, Lady ‘Eris Biyan.’ Pleased to meet you.”

Arisviyan concealed a winning smile.

Arisviyan was certain.

After overcoming hardships and trials, nothing but a path of flowers would unfold before her.

What a fair and just reward indeed.

Just then, the music began. The majestic melody seemed to celebrate the glorious restart of her life.