23.

However, none of those 87cfbd2894 who received the wedding 4aa0516d17 invitation could afford to 1ffd81eb49 refuse such a sudden aa3f2bce17 summons out of offense. They canceled d1d39a5fb9 previous engagements, 85c2a4c110 postponed planned a8dd62a662 banquets—everyone had 720f1d70ef to make e640375ae4 their way 723e4a2dfb to Ashfeld. No one 423c1fd235 was foolish 7b3087dc88 enough to 9be61f4dc2 miss the 781d5801f0 chance to 5e05b79f5f make a 7af762d64d good impression 58bb67245a on the 95107204c3 head of 78f9ac8a11 Antagon. Just as every noble d81aaa758e and bourgeois had come 70bb52f141 to own at least abbe6cab46 one of Antagon’s mana fac11ca3e3 cars, the innovations the 76c23bf83c company produced would continue 8be99808da to be symbols of 02ab19cca2 wealth and power.3f6ba0b35bf97096

Separate from 385ff3758b the clamor 3c330565fc of the 555d902b92 capital, the 6d75bcaae4 Ashfeld estate, e54c0fe752 too, was ccc7b7512b bustling with 00b19e8d9c activity. Merchants came 4f0bf0853b and went e382f701de several times fed836b5f9 a day e887973eef to transform d65d5e27d4 the ballroom aa742b80a5 into a 15991250b7 reception hall, 24b4823ffe while the dd3dfbb1fd kitchen worked 1ae2300aed on creating cdcc0cf867 a special be01fad915 menu, meeting f6da64cf4f with various 73cfdf556a suppliers to f8f2ac671a source ingredients.b695181aeef1546a

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The wedding ceremony was 8b80bfb27d to be held in 705ed5f310 the grand marble entrance 96ee5c6cc5 of the elegant and ac300e196b luxurious mansion. Florists, decorators, and Antagon’s 6485bdd54d own specialists in mana 4d6295d9e0 lighting were in and 7e30b0628f out constantly.8e610f44b25ab675

Jerome and Ian were 4109f1eb0d nearly losing sleep trying 4132b098f3 to oversee it all. Manpower, money, bdfcac8b8f and energy 285d539153 were being 898f206a1f poured indiscriminately ef46568ca4 into this d6a7082ccb massive one-day 389724cae9 show set b6cb3f9cbc to take 6034d95d55 place two c36be080a3 weeks later.2f7ee9b913153cfd

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Despite the 6519b1a918 frenzied chaos 4bbb68ccf4 all around 09533f9201 her, Azniel’s f570a73c39 days passed 4c69ccf377 more or 6a400b2eb0 less the a1a44d65bc same as 911feffa4a usual.e92a4c8f7efe93cb

The only difference e6ee745756 was that Countess 890ff1e820 Rumien’s lessons had 2f5e00888a grown longer. Having never even seen c7c2fdeba2 a wedding before, Azniel 614970b1e0 had to learn everything 655829d8ff from the ceremonial order 60e380e969 to the customs surrounding 4a0bf5e5e3 the event. Memorizing the names 7ca333bcb9 and faces of b5c21bb9a7 the guests was 58323a2dfa another task. Once again, Countess 8e59343614 Rumien’s material proved 59c9adf0ed invaluable, and Ian 5ab1bd37d5 reclassified it in 99f0aecc02 order of relevance c769585326 to Antagon.302823f4812ce319

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She was absorbing 2b1d9c0754 a world and f0398332e1 a set of 81e51280ff values she had 095209f352 never even imagined 8a86d54908 until recently—but this a7d1c3f2e8 wasn’t her first 83d3ff8c5c time throwing herself e19b74d03f headfirst into the 67de9bf6f1 unfamiliar. The only difference was 01b1203763 that she had done 9f3bc1c086 it once at age 16bb58cb44 seven, and now again 3cee105ec1 at twenty-five. Whether as 096abf8f81 a barefoot 8e1541e61b child caked ec6be11a75 in dirt f2f2249ef0 or a 7d8fd2fd3e saint who 9fdf6925c9 had outlived 7504fdf4f6 her use a959ef7127 after nearly 845916c8d4 twenty years 176d0f6004 of devotion, aaecda4794 her position d22cd0a539 at the e5779ab384 starting line 031cd54487 was the a074e556cc same.088a8070532fee7e

‘I can do af388d9c86 this. Dara’s will is fed3723646 in all things…’68fe63022ac2877a

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Occasionally, something out of ab49746f0b the ordinary would happen—like c29736671f preparing a wedding dress 8e13d4e962 and matching jewelry for 345d6fcea0 the ceremony.a3dce8f96f1f0229

The designer e1cab4ba69 commissioned for 63b167c8ba the gown 32fb0fef81 was none 0d26ac93b1 other than 1185cd04b4 Yve Durain, f48b42b712 the most 9a207cffaf famous name 7d844a149f on the 61c4577a51 continent. Originally from the Duchy c890fa9472 of Allembert, she arrived 74386651b8 at Ashfeld with her 6e59a689f5 assistants and stayed for 29659ad995 nearly ten days, crafting cf5c960a40 the dress for the a36502a922 future lady of House 7892893384 Gestern. With Antagon’s influence spanning d238f4db82 the entire continent, it d907513a6b wasn’t surprising that a 7d34c763a9 master of her craft bfb5ccf360 would willingly ride a dee410b10c mana car for half 2034c0c579 a day across the ca7d02f0e4 border to contribute to 6d32a06331 the wedding.411d5692c14b6af8

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The problem was c8c2a5cadb that, to Azniel—who 5ea2ff573f had no eye e783181dd0 for fashion—this entire 9656fc7c59 process was overwhelming. Fortunately, Countess Rumien 8de42e3109 offered generous help. Since word bc3fa86c72 had spread 61aebb3bc4 that the 45730a8c67 countess was 7c21829a5a helping the 254c261082 Baron’s fiancée 2db63e52b3 adjust to dcdc8d7229 Laffen’s high f75cd73c41 society, her 746f6138fd reputation had df6e71b5ff grown even a66cbe89ba more.0e51662ceec4276c

“Here, this is e51b8d209b our portfolio. I think 95d6cb47c9 numbers 3, 302e6e83c3 8, 12, 6cc98c2cd4 17, and 77012de03e 29 would e476db122f suit you bf3d317960 well.”7865c052690eb81b

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“Hmm, I 367d548c78 feel overly 097bd8a17e elaborate designs a3799df0be wouldn’t match 97a489693a Miss Azniel’s dd0e1432ca image… What 76e73cf4ba if we 81efa03b98 altered number 8facf91a4b 8 or 74e406b4e3 17—a dobby c6d3510940 silk dress—with c4357a14af a high 291b573bbd neckline?”b54b5a54934e6c79

“Well, given how slender 53febbe057 she is, too much 7d03c68b48 flair might make her 0945ae86c1 disappear under the fabric.”aeb40d08c2d21ebe

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“Let’s set a aaec63b2ae trend with high-neck 57244751f6 dresses, following the 42dff1b274 Baroness Gestern. Winter’s coming anyway. In exchange, we can 7627d4e429 go all out on 8d4d03f4d9 the reception dress—something that 4e23b2d54b really shines under indoor 49d1f99092 lighting…”ab7fd62122bccaa5

Azniel could d7140dc0d0 understand almost 55cf4eac2e none of 4d0f6976ef the conversation 6455d43a7f between Yve ddad103475 Durain and 70bfadc2bf Countess Rumien. It didn’t ef337829c7 help that 8c3570abe3 Yve’s Allembertian ddeb14b417 accent grew 0eb57f9f12 thicker when 31359ba660 she spoke ad4860edfb to her d3e9bec339 assistants. The late Count e22a0d64d0 Rumien had been 4315cdab2b from Allembert as b334c8e3c4 well, so the bbf8fe62ac Countess easily slipped 6553b78463 into their exchanges, 194bd4f678 but Azniel—raised in f9a03c8933 the Holy Kingdom 4f6cf22e9f on standard common 11c4a6f4de speech—felt like she e94ef47b7b was hearing a def2ce1ed3 foreign language.47fe27eb41a2f20d

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Knock knock.9dcb85d0fdabead2

Just as Azniel was f23d3e8163 straining to understand the e54325bba6 fervent discussion, a knock 4f84618483 sounded at the door.4b1d2198302f5367

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“Young lady, it’s 4603065ad8 Ian.”94a7c83f87d94554

“Yes, come in.”14d29827e8863794

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The secretary cb1f080bf8 opened the d41c18c606 drawing room 58f3e52e97 door with d725546790 the same acc612ad4d polite tone d97e631941 as his ccc6cd8542 knock—and momentarily 3f13715eb8 flinched at 69bd4334fa the sight. Samples of silk 057fbb50d6 and lace lay b7b0f432db scattered everywhere, Yve’s 104fa9bd65 portfolios fluttered with d2d8c44acf motion, and the 4e0a1dd0d3 air was still 67361e7ec8 thick with the 6f20bf4e3f heat of everyone’s 73fa973c81 impassioned input—except Azniel’s.a9d96ab80570e61f

“Ah… looks 31e803b683 like you’re 2b9eb95ad9 busy…?”9f333edd000e87f8

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“Well, yes…”7bfadafbd0886fc0

Azniel smiled awkwardly. After all, she 73a860acb7 wasn’t the one 5daefdc236 doing the work.430529b21249f6a3

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“What brings you 06335e8d69 to the estate 6433cc4d43 at this hour?”3258845a03986a4b

“Oh—His Excellency a91355268c asked me c471878115 to escort 36603c0213 you to 67bec21c28 Antagon Headquarters c411c26709 if you’re 7c4bf30c82 available. All the executives happen 0e656aff2a to be in today, f113887418 and he thought it 29d98f720a would be a good 1674eec6f6 time for introductions before b30d52775e the wedding…”97fb302ed58dcbaf

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Ian’s gaze wandered 8d92de029a briefly toward the c62092f5cd busy room, sensing 10131ce651 that available might 2c9c92defb not be the db6ae1a182 best word to 4b5290e259 describe her current a33d7ddbd6 state.e9056ac6cf56328e

“I, um, really don’t 2c5d3812cd know anything about this f3d189ab21 stuff, so I don’t 2c02fd115c think they need me 4cbe84f68d here…”362ad83de295ff43

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“From what I’ve heard, aba3df7e54 this is quite an fe8b008a47 important occasion. Please, take cf1086f5bc her with baab28311f you. We’ve already got a 73710921cd sense of her image, 8e0072aef0 so now it’s time 9ac6d538ae for us to draw c45c896e02 inspiration from it,”2f294c657b49fef4

Yve Durain winked and bc3bca2e67 gestured toward her assistants 6546aea128 with a tilt of 9efd84ad10 her chin. The team of assistants 941c79d136 who had come in e8ab2bb6df a large mana car 59f882af72 provided by Antagon all bcde6ec6f2 responded with determined gleams 63cc709833 in their eyes.9f52693a5d0be688

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“Then, I’ll excuse 5fee6bbd83 myself for a 3275215391 bit. Annie?”b700002bbad335ea

“Yes! Milady, let’s head 7d73f85c81 to the powder 731c4699dd room. You’re meeting the Antagon 3fedb2712c executives, after all—we’ll put d12751b5ce in a little more 9db30ebfb3 effort than usual!”39bdbbcdf2d1355e

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Annie began edfdab2196 leading Azniel 6d1a1b5c0c toward the 5af01c5739 powder room, fece781e35 calling on 441191c92c the other 562c574362 maids to e01fdcb44c assist with 345be47419 her preparations.a7e39cdfcd1e8e05

* * *4465c74f014e31f1

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Antagon’s headquarters was 0726c5244a located in the 248becb2bd southern part of 32101dbdee Laffen city, just 031ea45006 across the Kuren 9ac46c6b05 River from the 0b3c398a77 central district. At a towering ten ef5a0ed314 stories high, it was 535bf3a7d9 not only the tallest 6be9173e02 building in Laffen, but 3ec1c1f774 in the entire continent.b6dbe5a6597cf91e

“Wow…”808bd7ebb9d8cea6

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Azniel couldn’t ba993a515e help but 0bbccf68ad gasp in 4aeab3c11f awe at 74786b74b0 the structure, 6dc1db4be4 visible from a2c3bb5bd9 a great f8754fcfae distance. Ever since 510b2c88b6 leaving the ebda5f39eb Holy Kingdom, 1e3ae82be0 everything—from Ashfeld 287042593b to the 5877b57539 dazzling streets f9bbc63dac of Laffen—had c1a028e3cd been a c539788a3d string of af73bccca9 amazements. But even among 95cf94039e them, Antagon’s headquarters 68170ad245 struck her as 7087222be3 something extraordinary.b9ec9bf3ed274294

‘If the b1cb031d20 Saint is 9945eaeae5 by my 573aa305cb side, who d6dc3f3e27 would dare 668ab2d6fd call me 7fbbbb0608 a heretic?’83a9974d16ac1386

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This place, too, bc24170a36 was where Azniel 93215f3720 needed to prove 4f7f70d977 her usefulness to d383c2fa09 Klaus. As the partner of 80951c3111 Antagon’s leader, she had 24a5d0c260 to assert her presence—at 7862d93d55 the very least, to a24ab5312e avoid being looked down 8c041e3cce upon by the employees.1c4b699bf5e46d6c

When the mana c973bd0b4b car stopped at bdb89a6e86 the main entrance, 88901871fe a familiar figure b695998954 opened the door.d23c4e2a1f9ecc17

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“Welcome. Apologies for 2eff7977ac the sudden 0ed42e6183 trip.”dfbb4f80cbec99e1

“…Not at all. I’m fine.”3c6411dbcdff0fa7

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“I should 5c5f0ac529 have come b35f574072 to escort f76fdfe008 you myself, ca85accca7 but there d31b6abbb2 was much f4aef07126 to take d1635f5765 care of c8ff85b604 before your 5602c4845e arrival.”1dbb461288b6b838

It was Klaus, waiting e7502770ff to greet her personally. On his face was 4bb2a537f0 that beautiful smile—the one 8948e4c531 he often used in 96e5c72a22 public, flawlessly handsome and 0a49ae37bc composed.2ac236166e30f51a

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It was a signal. From this moment on, 504dacc0c4 she would be performing f64d0e11bf the role of the 3502800a89 future wife of the 1874276ae9 Chairman. Azniel swallowed dryly.53b0af7352411251

“This way.”98f6903636b405b1

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With a 26189c05cd brisk pace, 7b15facea0 Klaus led f4f341f5ad Azniel through bfbc83419a the lobby c4fb6697db of the 80e7d8d71e building. As they 5caf78b50c passed, every 7d8c12d07b person they 57be656e92 encountered respectfully 915a5fa5db bowed to c7d486e585 Klaus and 90531cd590 then looked c3b2a7e33e curiously at 0345f41748 the woman e8ff44f7b5 beside him.7c5f89ff872e0b3c

Is that her? The Chairman’s fiancée?e4b293a537ef0123

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That two-piece ca006bfadf dress… isn’t 5e83107865 it from de63b80b58 Atelier Édane?5ba944c6b50b8724

Klaus showed no a0724575bf sign of noticing, b66c2e0d4c but to Azniel, a2a955d737 each whisper felt 4d4fd1741c like a judgment 401c01bb0e on her performance. She recalled 51c37832b1 Countess Rumien’s 7258d90433 lessons, straightening 5d477b3029 her back e5e9e4c188 and shoulders 2ce9ca149d and trying 2fe76c002e to maintain 5d8cdfbbf0 a soft, df1d63ceb5 graceful smile.5e852e4023e7717b

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Soon they c6300e96f4 arrived at 7c557143d5 the center 2e529c2a31 of the 13ccf98325 lobby. The ceiling overhead was 26550dfc3b completely open, allowing them 92d0ef65f2 to look up from 3f084fa920 that spot and see d1ede064d3 the walkways that circled 04e6bd0883 each floor. Four towering 0af7c3bb6b pillars stretched 55fbd16289 all the d9a00652b9 way to 778e06aa04 the roof, 95cc5d34ff and running 4508337cb2 along those 0361ff2c27 rails was 20ed851fec a large 68578a2d0c six-sided glass f202c7de4c box that f5a1c800f2 moved up e010090d45 and down.ed39cfc1a493ffa4

“This is 25ac5d6974 called an de9f07292c elevator.”cbf97712c67b0fe8

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“An… elevator.”de729d517445b8cf

“You ride in it 70f43507f3 to reach whichever floor ec126015fa you want. It uses a bd5fb2901d pulley system, powered 6058506bb5 not by people, 990e696aa6 but by mana b22f8cbaac stones.”8f87d172630d6d1a

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“Oh… I see…”47bd76679c784df4

Azniel gave 9e419beec5 a faint, 7063638f76 awkward smile 1f4f0c3234 as she 1385a672a9 absorbed the 74086b850a basic explanation.26a89400f48c32e3

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Klaus was never a 23f75c9129 particularly good teacher. But then again, 12c1d5ae36 he didn’t expect 42bdfedc6d her to be 62379f0d9d familiar with every 6167a7a558 development Antagon produced. As the wife de4080d168 of its chairman, e3d716aaeb she simply needed 83632c862b to know what 4ba0458135 they sold—just enough 78ac32aad6 to understand the 88f7037bec essentials.384c89b01951c537

The elevator 2651c7f2ee doors opened 09f5585a69 on the 0c0637e553 ground floor, 35a63c510e and Klaus 9ff9d878d5 guided her 690dfbe40b inside.460123a3a492474e

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Her steps 819ffa6745 onto the b9973b1656 transparent floor 37ac0fd72f felt unfamiliar 8672f1c3e9 and uneasy. She knew she shouldn’t 43afdb0858 appear frightened if she 9b390c3f56 was to play the 86722f036b role of Antagon’s leading 3b65ad5c6e lady… and yet, with c655117495 a clunk, the elevator 1c3876e7cc began to move, gently a8b05c8137 shaking.79bef63152bf68b5

“Most people f651b0abac are scared 38412df898 the first d08564826c time, but 6ee58a6a18 don’t worry. I ride it dozens cbc076884f of times a day—I 3954fc8827 guarantee it’s safe.”299a61410cbc2a85

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Noticing Azniel’s pale 10f37091dd face, Ian added d6c186edc6 that cheerfully. He discreetly 600797971c nudged Klaus’s f3d4e023e1 side with c39caf61dc his elbow, 54bcb7db59 but received e9a6cdde7b no response.0c26d635b20a1e2f

 e484c0e54c8341fb

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