NOVPUBIn this high summer, the mansion next to Lisandra’s was always brightly lit at night, with music drifting through the air.
"What should I be aware of when I meet Mr. McCarthy?"
Although Lisandra felt somewhat tired after a long day’s work and the trek back home,
since the other party had taken the initiative to invite her, she was surprised and felt that the opportunity was rare.
Visiting the palace next door would be a rare form of relaxation.
Perhaps tomorrow she could even share this new experience and interesting event with the princess.
The one thing that made Lisandra slightly nervous was wondering whether the other side would be a member of the Demon Race who was just too lofty to approach—after all, his presence was deemed too mysterious by the demons.
"There is nothing particular to worry about; he isn’t any kind of demon you might imagine,"
the usually stern butler Luka said with a rare hint of a smile, pausing briefly in his steps.
"..."
Lisandra followed the butler along the path, and her view suddenly opened up between the trees.
Within the azure garden, the male and female guests flitted like moths among the murmurs, the wine, and the stars.
As the tide surged in the evening, guests leapt into the emerald waves from the water’s edge, or bathed in the sun on the scorching sands, while several magic-powered boats cut white ripples in the harbor, towing water skis behind them.
Luxurious magic guided vehicles, turned into shuttles under the moonlight, traveled back and forth from the city to pick up the guests.
Gardeners, as efficient as a trained army with swift movements, cleared the gardens with cloths, brushes, hammers, and pruning shears, promptly hauling away garbage such as fruit peels.
Lisandra remembered that every morning when she set out for the royal palace, she would see growers from the outskirts of Naikarisu deliver dozens of baskets of fresh fruit from the Demon World.
Stepping through the outer garden into the dining hall, she understood that these fruits were split in two, cored and scooped, leaving only the flesh. The magic devices in the restaurant required only simple manipulation by the attendants—within half an hour they could freshly squeeze hundreds of glasses of chilled fruit juice.
Standing in the grand foyer of the restaurant, Lisandra’s gaze was instantly captivated by the brilliance above the dome.
The three-dimensional relief of the Divine Era Frescoes carved into the dome sparkled like a starry firmament, while the expansive wall lamps reflected off the light-colored stone carvings, casting countless bright trails across the pristine chalkstone floor.
Above and below reflected each other, as if she were amidst the Divine Era.
She couldn’t help but marvel at which member of the Demon Race had left behind such an artistic masterpiece.
Meanwhile, between the banquet tables, the silver candlesticks gleamed in the candlelight, reflecting dancing shadows in the air, as the elegantly dressed demons hosted a dinner party where they toasted each other, their laughter and conversation echoing throughout the banquet hall.
A dazzling display of opulence and extravagance.
Unlike Lisandra, a noble from a declining family, the other guests here appeared to be the true upper crust of Naikarisu society, with a few demon faces she recognized but would not even dare to greet on a normal day near the royal palace.
The halos momentarily left her feeling dazzled.
When she came to her senses again, she found the butler had already bid farewell from afar, starting his own busy work, and correspondingly an attendant began to approach her, guiding her through the festivities.
The bar was bustling unabated, with trays of drinks being constantly dispatched by the attendants as if flying.
It was Lisandra’s first time setting foot in McCarthy’s abode.
She believed not many guests were invited this evening.
This was an exclusive membership restaurant, and Lisandra didn’t even know what the threshold for becoming a member was; she only knew that if she weren’t Mr. McCarthy’s neighbor, she likely would have no chance to step foot in such a temple of luxury.
"As an emerging noble, Thunder Lord Gareth Nokta is certainly in need of the high-born bloodline of the royal family to legitimize the worth of the Nokta Clan, and he is not sparing any effort in preparation,"
the voice reached Lisandra’s ears, and perhaps because her concerns and knowledge were limited, the complicated noise in the hubbub was passively filtered into a few phrases she could barely understand.
"The Greenwald Family has a better chance, don’t you think? Mist Sir Orion Greenwald’s resources are vast, and it’s said he’s even enlisted the most formidable craftsman of the Demon World in his service."
"I still think True Night Sir Esmod Belfago, who is a civil official, has the highest artistic talent, and perhaps he’s the most likely to move the princess."
"The Fallen Queen has made many concessions for the Demon Race to win, and as long as the artwork is submitted to the sealed gold cabinet on the first floor of Regency Hall during the upcoming week, the Fallen Queen will unseal them and display them impartially on the day of the ceremony. The princess just needs to openly select the painting she likes,"
The lobby resonated with laughter and cheer, accompanied by occasional small talk, forgotten introductions, and enthusiastic conversations among demons who didn’t even know each other’s names, as the elite of the Demon Race flowed rapidly, swelling up with each new addition, then dispersing, and soon regrouping.
With painting on the spot being unpredictable in terms of time and execution, the Fallen Queen simply allowed the Great Demon Clan to paint at locations they enjoyed, and to submit their work before the day of the ceremony when the final chord was struck.
The Fallen Queen would naturally discern to whom the magic power in the painting belonged, and according to the properties of the magic power, determine when the artwork was completed.
"Anyway, at the princess’s selection ceremony in a week’s time, we’ll see the results revealed," 𝘯𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝘣.𝑐𝑜𝑚
The families of Thunder Lord Nokta, Mist Sir Greenwald, and True Night Sir Belfa—all of whom had interacted with Lisandra to varying degrees in recent days—left a particularly deep impression on her.
