NOVEL WEB chapter 9
Chapter 9: Step onto the Battlefield, Young Man!
“Can this really be disliked?”
Mu En scratched his head in confusion, feeling a bit bewildered.
He thought he had expressed the most sincere goodwill, and his gestures were beyond reproach; there was no way he could have offended anyone.
Yet, it seemed that Ariel, as the protagonist, was not buying it.
“Sigh, it seems that the conflict between me and the protagonist is truly irreconcilable.”
Muttering this to himself, Mu En brushed off the unpleasantness.
Because no matter how deep the conflict between him and Ariel was, after tonight, their fates would completely become two parallel lines that would never intersect.
“From now on, you go be your savior, and I’ll go be my worker; we both have bright futures ahead!”
After waving a fist at Ariel’s retreating figure, Mu En turned his attention back to the matters at hand.
There were still many guests waiting for him to attend to.
……
“Princess Celicia…”
“The protagonist, Ariel…”
“And the future saint of the Church of Life, Lia…”
“It seems there are only a few people to pay attention to today.”
As the lights began to glow.
Standing at the entrance of the banquet hall for a full two hours, Mu En finally watched the last esteemed guest on the list enter the hall, completing the task of reception.
“Phew, so tired.”
Mu En rubbed his old waist, feeling somewhat fatigued. If it weren’t for the fact that the original owner had at least a bit of cultivation background, he probably would have collapsed under the weight of this twenty-kilogram formal attire today.
“Good job.”
The duke, whose beard was as fluffy as a lion’s mane, Mu En’s rather lenient father, appeared by his side at some point, holding a plate of pastries and offering it to Mu En.
“Are you hungry? Have a bite?”
“I am a bit hungry.”
Mu En grabbed a piece of pastry and stuffed it into his mouth; only at this moment could he afford to disregard the noble demeanor.
“How does it feel?”
“Not bad.”
“Did you remember all those noble lords?”
“How could I?”
Mu En smiled bitterly:
“With so many noble lords, just distinguishing who is who has already exhausted all my strength.”
“Haha, no rush, take your time.”
Duke Campbell said reassuringly:
“You’ve done far better than I expected.”
“Ha, thank you.” Mu En smiled in response.
“It’s what I should do.”
“However, from now on, you won’t have to work so hard.”
Duke Campbell patted Mu En on the shoulder: “Take a break before going back in.”
With that, this still vigorous imperial lion straightened his back, like an old general stepping onto the battlefield, and slowly walked into the banquet hall.
Mu En watched his imposing figure leave, unable to suppress a sigh:
“He is a good father.”
In fact, as the protagonist of this coming-of-age ceremony, Mu En was not required to play the role of host for the guests.
However, he did so at the special arrangement of Duke Campbell.
As the duke’s son, given Mu En’s status, he would undoubtedly be “attacked” by that pack of hyena-like nobles during the upcoming banquet, who intended to snatch some meat from him, or simply carve a piece directly from him.
The coming-of-age ceremony was meant to showcase Mu En to everyone, so when faced with those “attacks,” he could only fight back.
One can imagine how difficult that would be.
Thus, Duke Campbell arranged for him to host the guests here; only by having “met” those hyenas in advance would the banquet’s hyenas have no reason to bypass the lion and target him, the still somewhat immature “young lion.”
Although it was called a coming-of-age ceremony, it seemed that in Duke Campbell’s eyes, Mu En was far from grown up.
“What a pity, tonight I will disappoint your expectations.”
But from his indulgence towards Mu En, it was clear that the future Mu En Campbell would become that way, and he would be utterly heartbroken, unable to do anything.
“But this time will be a bit different.”
“I will live well.”
“Even if it’s as an ordinary person.”
The last piece of pastry was swallowed.
The satisfaction brought by his full stomach invigorated Mu En a bit more.
The twenty-kilogram formal attire seemed less cumbersome now.
“Well then, next comes my battle.”
……
The night was settling.
The banquet hall was bustling with clinking glasses and lively chatter.
Cecilia, however, stood alone on the balcony, admiring the night view of the duke’s estate.
In truth, in this era without electric lights, even the most beautiful scenery was just a pitch-black void at night, nothing to behold.
Yet Cecilia continued to gaze at the night view, showing no signs of fatigue.
It seemed to her that the void and pure night sky were far more beautiful than the raucous banquet behind her.
“To think that the esteemed prince is left without company, it seems I, as the host, have been quite rude.”
Cecilia lifted her clear, cold eyes, and they met with a gentle smile.
Mu En Campbell, still charming and polite, stood at a distance that was neither intrusive nor overly distant, hand on his chest, elegantly extending an invitation to Cecilia:
“Then, may I have the honor of inviting this beautiful princess to dance with me?”
“Are you inviting me to dance?”
“Of course.”
Mu En smiled slightly, “Is my invitation not clear enough?”
“…”
Celia flashed a hint of confusion.
But after a moment of silence, she gently placed her small hand, wrapped in white silk gloves, into Mu En’s palm.
“Tonight is your coming-of-age ceremony, so I naturally have no reason to decline.”
“…Thank you.”
For some reason, Mu En’s expression suddenly stiffened for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal, taking Celia’s hand and walking to the center of the banquet hall, the focus of all eyes.
The music began, gentle and soothing.
Mu En held Celia’s small hand, lightly cradling her slender waist, and as the music set the rhythm, they moved like two butterflies dancing together.
“Your dancing is quite good.”
“Thank you for the compliment, but it is merely passable.”
Mu En’s modest smile resembled that of a top master, reserved and low-key.
But in reality…
He was simply very unsure.
Mu En actually hadn’t expected that the original owner’s useless and foolish persona would have learned to dance quite decently.
He had just felt nervous for quite a while when Celia had agreed to dance with him.
What puzzled Mu En slightly was that according to the original plot, Celia should have declined Mu En’s invitation to dance, so why did she agree at this moment?
“You really have changed a bit, Mu En Campbell.”
Celia suddenly said.
Mu En’s heart skipped a beat.
Could it be that the Duke and Duchess of Campbell had not discovered his secret of being a time traveler, yet Celia had?
“In the eyes of Your Highness, do my actions not resemble those of a noble?”
“No, the change I speak of is not that change.”
“Then what is it…”
“It is the way you invite others.”