Chapter 57
The sacred sun had not yet hidden its face.
A lavish banquet was already underway in a famous theater troupe’s building in Saintroix. Mountains of delicacies from land and sea and fruit were piled high, while wine flowed like a river, filling the air with its dizzying aroma.
The lavish tableware, encrusted with gems of every color, glittered like the eyes of people consumed by desire. Even in the City of Desire, Saintroix, a banquet like this was a rare sight.
More extravagant than the Sun God’s festival,
more splendid than the king’s birthday celebration.
Yet the minor nobles and merchants gathered at the banquet didn’t criticize its extravagance. They simply flaunted the ‘status’ that had earned them a place here. Adorned in the most dazzling jewels, they believed that in splendor alone they could rival the high nobility.
They thought they possessed the finest refinement in the kingdom.
And so they believed they had been ‘rightfully’ invited to this gathering.
-Hehe, Director Hanson certainly has an eye for people.
-A lavish table should be reserved for those who deserve to enjoy it.
-This is going to be a wonderful day.
Among those extravagant guests,
a middle-aged man in a red shirt bowed politely.
He was Hanson Deville, owner of the troupe.
“I’d like to thank all the distinguished guests who have come to honor us with your presence today! To enjoy a banquet alongside the most cultured and discerning people in all of Saintroix….”
Hanson bowed gracefully.
“It’s an honor far beyond what a humble troupe owner like me deserves…! That’s why I decided to hold this glorious party ‘a little’ earlier than evening. I simply couldn’t wait another moment to spend time with all of you!”
“!”
The guests invited to the banquet smiled at Hanson’s smooth patter. They were easily swayed by this sort of flattery. They were shallow and liked anything that sounded good on the surface.
-With a temper like that, how could you ever please the ladies?
-I’ll have to teach you some ‘refinement’ today, Director Hanson! After all, I have ten concubines! Hahaha!
“….”
Even after hearing such insulting remarks, Hanson smiled pleasantly. In fact, he trembled with emotion and gazed at them as though he’d just received the wisdom of a sage.
“It’s an honor to speak with such refined people, no matter the ‘subject.’ Please enjoy yourselves to your hearts’ content until the night is through. Until you’re wrapped in the fragrance of wine and can feel the vineyard in one another’s breathing!”
At those words,
the people, whose faces were already flushed red despite it being broad daylight, burst into applause.
Clap, clap, clap, clap─!
Wine sloshed in the glasses in their hands, spilling onto the floor.
The greedy guests walked across a path paved with purple liquor.
Men and women, young and old.
They surrounded Hanson and began chatting.
“Haha, Hanson! Your silver tongue hasn’t changed a bit. If you weren’t so eloquent, I wouldn’t have come here.”
“Your latest play was very impressive.”
“Hmm! The humility of a man who hides himself once the turmoil is over! Truly, he’s a model of a glorious knight. Only a play by the Hanson Deville Troupe could portray such glorious humility.”
“Exactly! Once the war ends, the age of merchants and gold begins!”
“And nobles, too!”
“Hahaha! That’s the way of the times.”
And so the banquet got underway. All around the hall,
women in bunny outfits strolled gracefully.
It was like the most lavish rabbit farm in the world.
They were ‘conversation partners’ hired from the back alleys.
“Excuse me. Would it be all right if I kept the baron company? I’ve long admired the baron’s literary reputation. Please grant this lowly girl the honor of hearing your poetry.”
“!”
The young baron, who owned a small estate, turned around. Wine immediately streamed from his glass. His eyes were too busy sweeping over the woman from head to toe to pay attention to anything else.
Bunny ears
A pale nape
A slender waist
Long, shapely legs
“….”
With daring curves and limbs boldly on display,
she looked every bit like an angel of sin.
No….
A ‘rabbit’ of sin.
“Hehe, Baron? You’re awfully quiet. That’s quite charming, too.”
The sultry bunny smiled and linked her arm with his.
Her smooth, silken arm curled around him like a warm snake. Its pleasant, dewy softness and warmth filled the man’s pride to the brim.
“…Hah.”
Any proper noble,
of course, should have pushed away this back-alley woman for daring to touch him….
But before he was a noble, the baron was a man. He dared to put a hand around the waist of the woman who had taken his arm. Her slender waist fit in one hand.
“All right, let’s have a cozy ‘chat.’ You won’t be getting away until I give you permission. I’ll recite my poetry for you, just as you wish.”
He whispered,
“…all night long.”
“Oh my…!”
And so they disappeared into a dim corner.
The banquet had only just begun,
and a mere few dozen minutes had passed.
Yet nearly three-tenths of the guests had disappeared somewhere.
Even the people who came back
would soon vanish with someone else.
Thanks to that, no one paid any mind to who disappeared or when.
-Huh? Where did the guildmaster go?
-Oh, come on. Why ask when you already know? He probably went rabbit hunting.
-Ah, right! Silly me….
It was a truly meticulous setup.
One that let everyone brush off anyone’s disappearance with an embarrassed laugh….
‘A scene straight out of an adult game, hidden with almost absurd secrecy. And thanks to that, every time someone disappears, I have to listen to some steamy conversation. What a pain.’
As she thought that,
a bunny was mopping the wine-stained floor.
Scrub
Scrub
“….”
She was the highest-level bunny in the room—a max-level one.
It was Lydia, disguised as Daisy.
She’d dressed herself entirely in black, from her bunny ears and bunny-girl outfit to her shoes and stockings. With her unusually pale skin concealed beneath a brown wig, she’d become a surprisingly inconspicuous stealth bunny girl.
Putting that stealth to good use,
she’d been eavesdropping on conversations all around the banquet hall as people slipped away.
‘…Most of them are just fools who disappear after some silly chat with a bunny. Their footsteps lead to the troupe’s empty lodgings or warehouses. Rabbits really are prolific breeders.’
“….”
But she had made a discovery.
Among all that rabbit hunting,
she’d found a meeting that was genuinely being conducted in secret.
Unlike Hanson Deville, who wore a red shirt and dealt with all the minor nobles, the director in a gray shirt approached nobles standing alone in the corners.
The director spoke politely.
“Oh dear, it seems the wine we prepared wasn’t fragrant enough for you. My apologies.”
“!”
The noble standing in the corner gave a wry smile.
He waved a hand and said,
“Hmm? No, that’s not it. I was just standing here because the wine tastes so good. It’s more than fragrant enough, so don’t worry.”
“Then perhaps there isn’t a ‘bunny’ you like?”
“Hmm….”
The noble looked around.
Even now, countless women were wearing alluring outfits and selling smiles honed in the back alleys.
-Oh, you’re wonderful!
-I’m curious, too…?
-Eh? What do you mean?
Pretending to be innocent, pretending not to know.
It was a professional touch, just the thing to appeal to the simple side of men.
If this were a play, it would have been a kind of art. And yet, for some reason, the noble found the whole scene ‘fake.’
“….”
He shook his head.
“Well… they’re all worth a look. But my tastes are a little unusual, you see. Anyway, you needn’t worry about me here.”
“….”
The director smiled quietly at those words. Then he leaned in and whispered a piece of information.
“…We also have a secret banquet prepared for those with special desires.”
“!”
“If you’re interested, head to the dressing room in our troupe. People swept up in the scent of wine won’t be gathering there. We’ve taken special measures to make sure of that.”
“….”
“Look for the woman in purple.”
“Purple…?”
“Hehe….”
As he said that,
the director pressed a small coin into the noble’s hand.
It was silver,
with a triangle drawn in the middle.
“May you find what you desire within the Triangle.”
“….”
The noble tilted his head, coin in hand. Leaving him behind, the director bowed politely and slipped away.
And then….
The noble, too, disappeared somewhere as though entranced. But amid the countless people coming and going, no one noticed.
Lydia nodded.
‘Go to the dressing room and look for a woman in purple…. They’ve probably set up a barrier inside to interfere with people’s perception. I should meet up with Morgan outside and go in together.’
She set down the mop
and moved stealthily through the shadows.
Only a few people noticed she was gone.
A young merchant drinking nearby looked around.
“?”
“What’s wrong?”
“No, the bunny in black disappeared.”
“The black one?”
“She had a huge bust, so she caught my eye. She’d been mopping the floor for a while, so I thought I might go talk to her….”
“Hehehe, so you’re interested in that sort of thing, too?”
“No, well… she was pretty, that’s all. I thought I might talk to her.”
“Sure. And have a kid with her, too?’
“That’s not what I meant….”
The young merchant clicked his tongue regretfully.
“I’m serious. Plain, hardworking, and busty—that’s my type, so I wanted to talk to her.”
“Give it a rest. What are you looking for a romantic partner here for? Even if they act innocent, they’ve all spent years in the back alleys or with the troupe. They might be bunnies on the outside, but they’re beasts within.”
“Is that right…?”
Even so,
he sighed.
“Still, I should’ve talked to her.”
*
“Oh, Saintess?”
“?”
Arti and the others were leaving after watching the play <The Knight of the Lake> when they turned at the voice calling from behind them. A merchant from a trading company that traveled between the Holy Country and the kingdom was standing there.
Aria said,
“Uncle Ross?”
“Oh, you remember me! It’s good to see you.”
“Yes…. You always came to sell your goods in front of the monastery. But what brings you here?”
“Pardon? Oh, no. I just didn’t know you were in Saintroix, so I thought I’d come say hello.”
“Ah…. I-I see.”
“….”
“….”
They recognized each other,
but weren’t particularly close.
There was nothing else to say.
They fell silent for a moment.
Sheepish
Awkward
“…W-well, I’ll be going now. I have a banquet to attend.”
“Ah, yes…. Goodbye.”
“….”
Perhaps he felt bad about pretending not to notice them and leaving just like that.
Ross glanced back over his shoulder.
“…Would the Saintess happen to be interested in a banquet?”
“A banquet?”
“Yes. I heard the Hanson Troupe is holding one, so I’m on my way there. They said I could bring companions, too.”
“!”
At that,
Arti, Aria, and Mave exchanged glances with one another.
-What should we do?