abcnovels
Chapter 221: A Place Full of Stars 1
Chapter 221: A Place Full of Stars 1
Chapter 221: A Place Full of Stars 1
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/Week Mon-Fri
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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Even in a democratic nation, meeting the president involves a certain level of protocol.
Imagine, then, how cumbersome it must be to meet a royal lineage appointed by the Goddess herself in a world where the divine right of kings is a given.
"Her Highness has said that it's okay for you to wear your adventurer gear instead of special ceremonial clothes."
"The Princess has mentioned that the heroes don't need to follow the courtly etiquette"
"The Princess has said that the heroes"
Fortunately, the princess seemed to be exceptionally fond of the hero party, as if advocating on their behalf, and all the tedious formalities had vanished.
There were no longer requirements for the usual checkpoint procedures when entering the palace, nor the need to wear ceremonial clothes or show the due court etiquette before the royal family.
Permission had been granted through the steward to skip all these steps.
Being allowed to enter the royal presence armed, even as heroes sanctioned by the temple, was an extraordinary exception.
Watching the maids, who had been busily preparing, sadly pack up the dresses and accessories they had brought, a carriage pulled up smoothly in front of the villa to take us.
"Whew, why am I feeling so nervous about this?"
"...But really, is it okay to meet the Princess while wearing a sword?"
"The Princess herself has permitted it."
Katie, dressed in her armor instead of formal attire as per the Princess's request, muttered quietly as if it were odd.
Being from a grand ducal family, she seemed to understand just how unconventional this was.
And this was the same person who, right after her coming of age ceremony, ran away from home with the family's treasures.
Perhaps due to their unique character traits brought over from Heroines Chronicle, it seemed that princes, princesses, and grand duchesses alike were all a bit unhinged.
When these traits meshed with reality, the picture became even more bizarre.
"Make way for the guests who are here to see the Princess."
"Are you the heroes from the temple? Understood."
Even as such conversations occurred inside, the carriage smoothly traveled along the well-paved road.
The carriage's emblem and the steward's face alone were enough to open gates like a high-speed pass.
But looking out the window, something felt off.
It was like entering the gaping maw of a tiger's den, an odd sense of unease.
It felt like entering a dungeon rather than a royal palace, but without the sense of danger or anxiety.
"Hey, what's this...?"
-All the unchosen gacha characters seem to be gathered here.
-Neighborhood guards are two stars, so the royal palace should have more, right?
-But damn, it looks like there are no characters without stars.
-Isn't it that stars are randomly given based on talent?
-This seems like some sort of event zone... there are way too many
And then, the source of this unease was quickly revealed.
3 'Stuffy Gatekeeper' Luca, 3 'Energetic Gardener' Finn, 2 'Clumsy' Tommy, 2 'Meticulous' Max
.
When Han Se-ah, driven by curiosity, opened the character information window, she saw that every worker visible beyond the gates of the royal palace had stars assigned to them.
From the gatekeeper who opened the palace gates to the gardeners pruning far-off branches and the laborers moving loads, there wasnt a single person who wasnt a gacha character.
This peculiar space was such that even the old man sweeping leaves and the maids doing menial tasks had at least two stars.
In essence, even the kids, around ten years old, who stopped moving their bits and pieces to gaze at the carriage, had enough talent to defeat an average neighborhood strongman with a wooden sword if they were to hold one.
The palace was essentially a den of extraordinary characters.
Greetings, heroes. I am Paula Klein, the steward who will be serving you. It's an honor to meet those who have been called by the Goddess.
...Greetings.
This is Beatrice, the Princess's escort knight. She is responsible for the Princess's safety and will be joining us for the dinner.
It was indeed a den of extraordinary characters.
We were welcomed in the guesthouse, passed by the palace workers with 2 to 3 stars.
The women who greeted us also had plenty of stars.
The woman who introduced herself as the steward, Paula Klein, was a beauty with brown hair and a warm smile.
The monocular glasses on her face made it immediately apparent that she was a noble-born maid, exuding an air of elegance.
Beside her stood a female knight in armor engraved with an intricate lily pattern.
Her bright, straw-colored hair and the long scar on her cheek were striking.
99Of course, in this world, being as beautiful as a celebrity meant being a gacha character.
5 'Poker Face' Steward Paula Klein, 5 'Blind Sword' Escort Knight Beatrice.
So, the Princess's subordinates were on par with a 'saint candidate'.
In that case, what about the Princess?
Uh, so, the royal palace is kind of a scary place, huh? No wonder players can't even get close. If the Demon King pops up and we have to climb the higher floors, the temple and now the palace will help us, right? We won't have to fight anything like this, will we?
-Were you scared by the stars? Hahaha... I was scared too.
-If you add up the errand kids, gardeners, stable keepers, and gatekeepers, theyre stronger than my party.
-The Princess could probably breeze through to the 30th floor just on a day out, right?
-Haha, 30 floors? Call not just the escort knights but any knight, and theyd probably reach the 50th floor, damn.
-No wonder they view heroes as a joke and invite them over to check for themselves.
Han Se-ah and her viewers, speechless at the parade of stars that appeared whenever they opened the status window.
Outside the royal palace, if two or three out of ten people had stars, now inside near the Princess's annex, all ten out of ten had at least 2 stars it was utterly baffling.
Hello, heroes? Hehe, may you be blessed by the Goddess.
Ah, hello.
And all the more so if that Princess herself was born a 6.
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Raei Translations
---
Distinguishing whether a character was born a 6 or achieved it as a 5 was quite simple.
Their star colors were noticeably different.
Just as I could tell that Ambrosio had ascended to 6 on his own due to the difference in the color of our stars.
Thus, the princess before us was a character born as a 6.
She was one of the three characters released alongside Roland.
Her name alone was a giveaway.
6 'White Feather Shield' Princess Knight Bradamante.
Her name was obviously taken from the series of 12 knights, appearing alongside 'Paladin' Roland.
In this K-fantasy world, where a mishmash of Western names abound, the fact that the names were taken from a work of fiction was not something to be easily overlooked.
-How can a princess be a princess knight?
-A princess knight? Does this mean she'll encounter a tentacle boss monster later...?
-Weren't the tentacles already on the 40th floor?
-The evil sorcerer and the princess knight...ugh...why does this feel familiar?
-BB Games probably just used the epic of the 12 knights for their narrative.
As soon as they saw the name Bradamante, they immediately started acting like they knew everything, prompting Han Se-ah to catch on.
With nearly a thousand people in the chat mentioning the 12 knights, it was impossible not to notice.
"12 knights? So, Roland's background is from medieval legends, right? And Princess Bradamante is from the same story."
[A simple summary from Don Quixote Donated 10,000 Won!]
Just understand her as a protagonist of a story like Don Quixote.
While the other party members were nervously eating the simple but luxurious dinner, hardly noticing if the food was entering their mouths or noses, Han Se-ah was actively chatting with her viewers.
Brilliant golden hair that reached her waist and eyes as blue as jewels.
Hmm, it's almost like she's the TS (gender swapped) version of Roland or like they are sibling characters with matching designs.
One thing for sure, she was a stunning beauty with no flaw to be found in her appearance or figure.
Throughout the meal, she was kind and benevolent, consistently smiling and not pointing out our lack of etiquette, suggesting that the rumors of her being gracious were not just for show.
She made sure to include everyone in the conversation, expressing interest in our adventures.
'...She's so ideal it's almost scary.'
Under her skilled conversation, even Grace, who had been stiff, began laughing and sharing her story of shooting an arrow into a giant of the Naga tribe.
Irene, who had been politely reserved, also brightened up and started discussing theology when the conversation shifted to religion.
Katie, for her part, was completely captivated by the swordsmanship stories brought up by the princess knight.
After exchanging stories about her brother's adventures in monster subjugation and the practical use of swordsmanship a few times, she couldn't stop smiling.
Did the princess knight have some kind of passive charm or rhetoric skill?
In the brief moment Han Se-ah searched the term 'Bradamante,' three of our party members were already bewitched.
There was no malice felt, but the sight of three people being figuratively grilled and boiled in front of my eyes unavoidably brought tension.
Sometimes, excessive kindness can be frightening.
"Sir Roland, I heard you collect a lot of magical artifacts. Hmm, does that sound like I'm prying?"
"Not at all, it's no secret. I've often received magical artifacts as payment for quests from nobles, which is one reason I've gained fame in the capital."
Having easily charmed the three, the Princess then turned her attention to me.
It seems she's saved the player/hero for last.
"Is that so? I have a keen interest in magical artifacts myself... The Magic Tower's mages have given the royal family quite a collection as tribute."
To Grace, she showed a friendly approach without regard for status, to Katie, she talked about monster subjugation and swordsmanship, and to Irene, she shared her sincere devotion as a believer, praising the Goddess and seriously discussing theology.
And now, to me, she brought up magical artifacts?
Its clear shes thoroughly researched our party.
While my interest is merely materialistic, she seems to know exactly what stories and character traits would appeal to the three.
This made me drop my guard a bit
"So, I was thinking, heroes can't stay at an inn forever, right? I'd like to offer you a building in my name, and I'll send some magical artifacts that I haven't had the chance to use. Would you like to try them out?"
"We would be grateful to receive them."
She spoke to me informally.
This princess, she might be a good person.