Knights Apocalyptica - Chapter 192: Dressed To Gala

“One day the Giant came back. He had been to visit his friend the Cornish ogre, and had stayed with him for seven years. After the seven years were over he had said all that he had to say, for his conversation was limited, and he determined to return to his own castle. When he arrived he saw the children playing in the garden.

‘What are you doing here?’ he cried in a very gruff voice, and the children ran away.

‘My own garden is my own garden,’ said the Giant; ‘any one can understand that, and I will allow nobody to play in it but myself.’ So he built a high wall all round it, and put up a notice-board.

TRESPASSERS

WILL BE

PROSECUTED

He was a very selfish Giant.”

– Oscar Wilde, The Selfish Giant (1888, 2nd Era)

Nobody threw an event like a Duchy. No matter all the courts and political events Erec attended growing up, nothing came close. While the Crown might hold more elegant affairs, the flexibility of their station truly allowed a Duchy to do whatever they wanted to. Dancing, drinks, and live music were a given—but the quirks were where the Duchies differentiated themselves. And House Luculentus did not choose to hold back in the least for tonight.

Erec followed the plan; he’d gotten Enide a drink and one of his own. But the second step, mingling, came to a grating halt as their entire group took in the scale and choice of events. They huddled together and meandered, taking in and understanding what was going on.

Past the main decor, House Luculentus decided to host various games—one of the primary ones was card games with decks from Vega. As could be imagined, the novelty of a game from a different society swept through the nobility like a storm. The Pendragons must’ve hauled supplies back in their latest mission. How Luculentus found out about these games, namely poker, and blackjack, were the stars of the show, but Erec thought he saw what was called a roulette wheel; Erec hadn’t a clue.

Yet their appearance and the thrill of gambling brought a positively electric atmosphere to the evening. Despite all that, though, Erec and Enide still caught some looks from the attending nobility. As predicted, a Count like him coming in with an outsider had no choice but to grab attention. It was inevitable like the sun cresting the horizon line in the evening.

But it didn’t stop at gambling and card games—neon lights were in select rooms. Outside on the lawn, however, was the biggest show-stopper of the evening.

They’d set up small soccer fields.

Yet, as far as Erec was aware, Enide was the only Pendragon there, and they didn’t have a single soul from Vega. So, all of the hosting staff, dealers, and referees must’ve spent nights being drilled on the rules over the last couple of weeks.

The why, Erec couldn’t piece it together. To show their house as fashionable, making a tone, or was it a deliberate impression?

He mused over it as Enide, Garin, and Olivia stood on a balcony, watching a group of nobles play on one of the fields.

“Whoa,” Enide said, shaking her head. “That guy sucks.”

Erec watched the guy in question as he missed the ball with too ambitious of a kick and then landed on his ass from the failed effort. Another stole the ball, kicked it forward, and sent the thing sailing out of bounds.

The group of about ten nobles watching outside the field politely clapped at the failure.

Not that Erec was particularly good at what Corey had dubbed ‘the champion’s game,’ but he and his friends were Knights. That demanded a lot of athleticism and coordination, and even in their first year, Virtues surpassed the general population.

“Yeah… They really kind of do,” Erec grimaced.

“Why are they bothering to do this anyway?” Enide asked.

“House Luculentus is making an impression,” Garin said from their side, smiling as he watched one of the nobles run after the ball.

“Or they like nicking things from other places and calling their own,” Enide replied.

“It was a deliberate choice for exposure,” Olivia tried to keep her voice polite, but even Erec could tell it was strained. Erec knew she was still connected to this place, but getting snippy with someone she was trying to bring peace with wouldn’t go far with that mission.

Slowly, Enide nodded and then managed to tear her eyes from the field to look at Garin and Olivia. “Alright, I’ll bite; why?”

Olivia answered this one, “House Luculentus has always had one directive: to serve the crown. Hosting this event has a dual purpose, one of which will become apparent later in the night, but the primary purpose is deliberate. Adjustment. Accepting that other people exist outside of the walls is a massive change for the people of this Kingdom. Naturally, the first thing people must think of when they find out is what is ‘what must their life be like?’ given our history and civility, the natural assumption for the nobility is that those outside the walls must be loners and scavengers. People born in a harsh society and thriving by the skin of their teeth.”

“They met us, didn’t they?” Enide replied.

“I’m sorry to say, but I don’t think the Pendragons fall too far out of that image.” Erec cut in, saving Olivia from accidentally saying the wrong thing. Though that part about your Pack is the most appealing to me, I’m also not exactly the standard these people see as civil, especially the nobility.”

“Erec is exactly right. While the Pendragons are stalwart allies to the Crown, your Pack, and its ties aren’t the sort of novelty that would capture the interests of the Kingdom’s high society. Worse, it might offend some of the more delicate among them. Vega, however, presents just that. Think of it as a preemptive move to drum up excitement and acceptance for people otherwise unknown to us.” Olivia said.

Enide snorted. “Not sure to be insulted or complimented that these people find the fake flashy front Vega puts on as more palatable. Anyway, that makes enough sense to me to carry on for the night. Who wants to play some blackjack? If they’re gonna throw out a fine game like that, maybe I should show them how to play it right.”

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Erec rubbed at his eyes as he imagined how that might go. Not that house Luculuentus would have servants capable of flagging whatever she’d been doing to anger the Casino. Still, her coming into a sudden windfall at this place would draw the wrong sort of attention.

“Maybe later, there’s still some things to accomplish…” Garin promised, giving her a quick grin before turning toward the rest of their group, located a bit away and divided. Gwen and Bedywr had holed up on their own in a small conversation with one another, as had Colin and Alexandra. “Speaking of which… how about we get this started…”

It was really fascinating as Erec took in the four of them. While he dreaded these things… Well, he didn’t nearly have the amount of nerves on his face that Gwen wore. Her head constantly jerked about as she scanned around for eyes to see if anyone was taking her in. It made a sense that she was from a commoner family, and part of becoming a Knight meant occasional attendance to noble affairs, as went with her new title. But events hosted by the Duchy… They were a different beast entirely.

Flooding around them was the highest of society or the most connected members. They were dressed up in everything they could muster to put on a show for one another.

There was fun; this event, in particular, had no stops pulled for entertainment, but this was also a place to form connections, propose plans, make alliances, and show allegiances. A year ago, Erec would have been right in Gwen’s shoes. But now, he was more concerned about the girl on his elbow, who had no idea what sorts of traps were hidden in these things. At least Gwen had some idea, and she had Bedwyr. Erec’s brother looked stiff, more straight-backed, and alert than ever. Though he didn’t show the nerves, if they were on a battlefield, that posture wouldn’t look too out of place.

For a brief second, Erec saw through the Armor brother wore to the world. In a way, he was trying to protect Gwen from the courts in the same way Erec was, but beneath that, Bedwyr was the slightest bit afraid.

Am I not? Erec dug deep, annoyed. Sure, he felt worried about ensuring Enide made it through the event without starting a fistfight. But scared? No. Nowhere inside was that cold twist of fear and anxiety that generally came along with these kinds of things. He didn’t care if he said the wrong thing and offended someone—he only worried that it might impact the people around him.

But those two were one thing.

Colin and Alexandra… They were entirely different. Neither was necessarily uncomfortable here. It was almost the opposite. Despite being the invited guests on this occasion, they seemed a little two at home. He wasn’t sure why, but they’d camped near a small table filled with appetizers. Little rolls of cheese, processed meats, and bits of sour-dough bread. Which neither of them touched. Nobody touched it. Colin was making sure not a single soul laid a finger on them—any noble who dared to approach received a scowl and a glare with such severity that they retreated almost immediately after trying, thinking better of the attempt.

Meanwhile, Alexandra was talking his ear off, her loud laughter and almost scandalous jokes inappropriate for an event of this caliber.

If Erec didn’t know Colin better, it almost felt like the two of them conspired to make a deliberate insult at the hospitality of House Luculutenus by putting up such a disrespectful front together.

“They’re going to be a problem, aren’t they?” Erec asked Garin as his friend led them away from the overhang, looking out at the soccer fields and back towards the two who’d chosen to dominate a table full of food.

“Oh, definitely,” Garin said, “They’re trying to anger House Luculentus.”

Erec blinked. …It was deliberate.

“It is rude, and I expect both of them to receive a complaint from their Houses after tonight for the behavior, but it is well within expectation for the event,” Olivia remarked.

“I…If you knew they would cause trouble, why did you make me drag Colin to this thing?” Erec asked.

“Because that’s his job for tonight, to stir up a bit of dramatics. For one, it softens the blow of Enide being accepted into the court as the date of a count; for another, it gives people something inane to whisper about… But the most important thing is that it bonds the two of them,” Garin cut the explanation short as they finally got back within hearing distance of Bedwyr and Gwen—collecting them on the way to join Colin at the table.

It wasn’t long before they reached the guarded table.

Colin spoke first, “At last, you’ve returned from outside. Eat. I’ve taken great care to ensure you’ve plenty of options for food at this goddess-forsaken event. Can you believe they’re gambling? In a noble household? How far they’ve fallen from Her grace.” And he gestured to the table.

“It is stunning, isn’t it, huh, Colly-Wolly—“

“Whoa. Stop. You’re calling him Colly-Wolly?” Enide put up her hands, eyes wide, before bursting into a gut-deep laugh.

Erec mouthed the words in the same level of shock. His friend’s face grew bright red as everyone stared, including Bedwyr and Gwen, their senior Knights.

“Eat your food and put these foolish ideas to rest,” Colin glared at them darkly. “The best of the offered goods disappears within the first two hours, and it’s better to eat preserved meats and cheeses while still cooled.”

“…Are you just letting her call you that?” Even Garin seemed off his stride at this development, looking at Alexandra, who wore the widest grin.

“I think he likes the teasing; you have a bit of that in you, don’t you?“

“Cease, wench. I will not allow you to utter such words in public.”

“But you’ll ask me to when we’re alone tonight, maybe when I drag you out into the gardens for some quality time. Won’t you, my dear Colly—“

“Please, please, stop,” Enide begged, wiping at the sides of her eyes and leaning heavily on Erec. “I could never have imagined. This is too much. I’m not sure if it’s disgusting or hilarious; I don’t know how to feel.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about him,” Alexandra continued. Waving her hands toward all of them.

“Do continue,” Garin said.

“For one, he talks about you all constantly when I manage to get him alone. Once he drops the tough guy act, he’s adorable. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever known another boy who cares quite as much as him. However, he hates it when you call him on it. Between you all and me, I think it might be because of his sooooo obvious daddy issues.”

“I-I couldn’t care less about this lot. They are all beneath me. Aside from perhaps Erec, because he appears to be going places—“ Colin protested.

Alexandra grinned and leaned towards him, already cutting through those excuses.

Numbly, Erec watched the two of them continue like that, deciding to cash in on the food that Colin had been protecting. Needed or not, seeing her chase and tease him around like a cat might play with a mouse was a welcome distraction to the night’s start. It added a bit of levity to the occasion that lightened the mood.

Eventually, Garin cut them off since it seemed Alexandra had no limit to where she was willing to delve into teasing Colin in front of his friends. While Colin protested, he did not put up the fight he posed to anyone else, which naturally let her steamroll him over and dig deeper into teasing him. It was also interesting how much Colin seemed to go out of his way to try to avoid her; she appeared to have a deep knowledge about him that left them all suspecting something was going on under the surface.

As the brief time together rallying and preparing for the night around a table and food drew to a close, Erec knew what the next part was.

With a look, Garin set his plan in motion. “Well, we got a little distracted by all the lights, potential fun, and games, but it’s time to get on track again. Shall we mingle?”