A few hours later, Merlin left the room, he didn't come out with the marionette because he was planning on making an early appearance, but there was another problem, the distance between the party venue and his room was longer than the limit of his [Spirit Body Thread's] control.
So his plan was he would walk till he was almost at the limit he could control, then the marionette would finally leave the room, and follow him, and to avoid the question of why Arthur Leywin wasn't in TBATE and was busy walking around the Jade Palace, he had changed the face of the marionette to that of his.
That way, when the marionette walks out of his room, no one would suspect a thing, and as for those that had seen him in black, then sees the marionette in blue, he could just say he teleported back to his room and had a change of clothes.
..
Contrary to what he expected, neither him nor the marionette met much people on their walks, and among the few, only about three of them met the two, and lucky for him, those were the care takers of the palace, so they had no business questioning why their prince was trying out different clothes within a short time.
When he arrived at the large hall, the marionette was still a distance away, so he just made it hide in an unsuspecting corner, he used the [Cloak] to provide two series of concealment in the marionette, one was an [Illusion] of the demigod level, and then he other was the [Black Curtain] ability from the [Door] pathway.
After making sure the marionette was properly hidden, he walked into the room with the grace of a Prince.
The room, just like he expected, was large, and although he had been here multiple times, this time, the room was actually decorated for a special occasion.
There were round tables arranged throughout the room, but there was still a large space in the middle that could be used for a dance. There was also a large table that held foods and drinks of all kinds, the drinks were even separated into two groups of alcoholic and non-alcoholic.
'Looks like I've found my ideal location…' he thought as he stared at the table of food.
At the center of that table was a large five step cake that looked like something you'd want to stick your hand in to see how much you can actually eat out of it.
There was also a space that held the instruments and other things, and a podium that could be used to address the crowd.
Because he was relatively early, there weren't many people in the hall yet, the few who were available were those who decided to come early, and those who were still setting up a few things.
Some of those people he knew and had seen around the castle or when he was on his regular walks, and the others were those he didn't.
As a Prince, he wasn't going to go out of his way to show them good will, plus he already had a lot on his mind, he wasn't in the mood for much chatting.
After a while of looking around, a few more people started to show up, and these were people he knew, people from the Forgotten Shore. When they saw him already in place, they walked to him to greet him.
"Ascended Merlin, long time no see" an Awakened bowed respectfully.
"That's Prince Merlin, Reed!" The other Awakened beside him scolded.
"Ah… my bad" Reed scratched the back of his head.
"Any title is fine, don't be stiff with me… how are you guys doing?" He waved.
"We're fine, nice to meet you, you might not remember me, but I'm Jaren" the other greeted.
"Nice to meet you too Jaren… please, enjoy the party"
"A-alright" the two Awakeneds bowed again before leaving.
'Huu…' he exhaled slightly as he calmed his beating heart.
The plan looked easy and simple in his head, but in reality, he had no idea where to start from, and he was feeling nervous.
Merlin took a slow breath, 'Calm down'
There was no reason to be nervous, after all he had fought Nightmare Creatures, Transcendents, and even escaped a Cursed Tyrant, this little escapade of his was nothing compared to those.
He grabbed a glass of non-alcoholic drink from a passing servant and took a small sip, honestly downing it was what came to his mind first, but as he reconsidered his status as a Prince, he changed his mind and added a little elegance.
'Let's just wait for the perfect moment during the party…'
The moment he finished that thought, someone called his name.
"Prince Merlin."
He turned around and saw a young woman who stood a few steps away from him, she wore an elegant silver dress, her hair tied into a neat bun. Merlin recognized her after a few seconds, he had seen her around the palace, she was one of the Awakened that handled work with the Song sisters.
"Awakened Elara" he greeted her with a smile.
"I'm surprised you remember me" her eyes widened slightly.
"I have a decent memory" he explained, she usually went around with Eubin, so he had an impression of her, as for whether she came from the Forgotten Shore, he couldn't tell.
She nodded in understanding then gave him a small bow before straightening.
"You came rather early"
"So did you"
"I was helping with the preparations."
"Oh good job…"
"So, what about you?"
"I was interested in the preparations, sort of…" Merlin glanced at the enormous cake.
Elara followed his gaze and chuckled, "Unfortunately that won't be available till after the first dance"
"Is that so… then I'll just wait till after the first dance then" he replied calmly.
"Any partners?" She asked as she sat opposite him.
"I'm not planning on dancing," he commented.
Elara flashed him a flat look, "with all due respect, as a Prince, you have to participate in all dances"
"One dance…" he replied as he sipped his drink.
"Without who?"
"Whoever asks for it…"
"Aren't you supposed to be the one asking?"
"I guess I'm not dancing then" he shrugged.
Elara chuckled then turned to the door where another group of Awakeneds were walking in.
"I guess that's my cue, if you ever change your mind, I can dance with you too"
Merlin simply chuckled and waved her goodbye. He had no issues dancing with her, but if he did that, then crashed the party afterwards, then she would probably be put on watch by Ki Song.
After all, he had multiple beautiful sisters, then he left all of them to dance with a regular Awakened, it was basically inviting suspicion.
His gaze briefly shifted toward the entrance, his marionette was still stashed somewhere around, and slowly the people were arriving.
'let's just get the day done already'
"Prince Merlin" another voice interrupted his thoughts, this time, it was a familiar one.
He turned and saw a group of people from the Forgotten Shore that had just entered the hall.
Among them was Reed, the Awakened who had greeted him earlier.
"Merlin!" one of them raised a hand and waved.
Merlin recognized her almost immediately, "Lena…" she was one of the Handmaidens back at the Forgotten Shore, she was the one who usually cleaned his room, it seemed she didn't challenge the second nightmare.
"You actually remember me!" her smile brightened.
"Hey Lena…" another Awakened patted her, "it's Prince Merlin… he's a Prince now"
"Of course…" he nodded.
She walked over, "it's been a while, thank you for back then"
"It's nothing, anyone would've done the same"
"Not everyone's so brave"
They talked some more, then departed to another side of the hall.
As time went on, more and more people gradually entered the hall, the quiet atmosphere slowly disappeared, music began playing softly from the musicians' area and the lights hanging from the ceiling became brighter.
Soon, the large hall was filled with conversation. Merlin had left the place he was sitting, and now, he stood among the crowd, occasionally exchanging a few words with people he knew, most of them were from the Forgotten Shore, and others were people he met at the castle, there were also a few who had heard of him and wanted to say greet him.
'The Song sisters haven't come, the Saints haven't shown up either, I should've just stayed in my room…'
He sighed inwardly as he regretted coming out too early, if he knew, he would've spent most of his time in the room.
"Prince Merlin…" a female voice sounded behind him.
He turned around and saw a lady in a black dress with sparkling lace wrapped around her shoulders. He recognized the dress because he had seen it once in Eubin's magazine, but he didn't recognize the person wearing it.
"That would be me, and who might you be?" he said politely.
"I'm Ascended Cara, nice to meet you"
"The pleasure's mine, but I don't think I've heard of you around here"
"That's natural, I'm usually stationed around another citadel"
"That's understandable, so how may I help you?"
"It's nothing, I've just heard so many rumors about you, so I had to see the legendary Ascended in the flesh" She smiled politely.
"Most rumors aren't true though" he shrugged.
"But you did kill a Great Monster right?"
"That one's true, but don't mistake, it was already on its last life, a few more minutes, and it would've probably bled to death"
"And survived two deathzones"
"Also true"
"And challenged a Cursed Abomination"
"I met a Cursed Abomination, I didn't challenge it in the slightest, if I did, I doubt you would be seeing me here"
"But that alone is more than what most Transcendent have experienced"
"I guess I'm unlucky enough to encounter them, and lucky enough to survive"
"That's a very unique logic," Cara replied.
They talked for a while, before the change of music finally drew his attention, the Song Sisters were finally arriving.
The musicians shifted into a slower, more formal melody, and the conversations throughout the hall gradually quieted, even those who had been talking loudly seemed to realize what was happening.
Merlin turned his head toward the entrance, not the one everyone walked through, this entrance was near the stage.
The first person to enter was Ki Song, she wore an elegant black dress that seemed almost too simple for someone of her status, yet somehow made her presence even more imposing. Her expression was calm and dignified, and her dark hair was neatly arranged behind her shoulders.
The puppet she was using somehow resembled her true body.
Behind her was Eubin Song, Beastmaster. Eubin's expression carried a faint smile. She wore a beautiful dark green dress, its design was surprisingly elegant without being excessively extravagant.
Her eyes swept across the hall as she walked, taking in the guests before briefly settling on Merlin.
The next was Hel, Deathsinger, she wore a sleeveless black tight dress with a long slit, her hair was tied up in a ponytail, and she wore a calm smile.
Then Revel, then Ceres, then Lonesome Howl and the others. They were also accompanied by the Saints of the Song domain, all who were dressed to impress.
'They're finally here…' he sighed inwardly as he looked at them.
The atmosphere changed almost instantly, the people began moving aside, making a clear path for them as they made their way through the hall.
Ki Song's gaze swept across the hall, then it stopped on Merlin. His lips curved upwards as he nodded respectfully.
She nodded in response and turned her eyes away, looking back at the crowd.
Beside him, Cara whispered,
"They're here…."
"It's a little late to be informing me though" he gave her a blank look.
"I was mesmerized okay… aren't you not going to greet her?"
"I already did"
"When?"
"You probably didn't see, but I nodded to her"
"Just that?"
"What more do you want?" He raised an eyebrow.
Cara stared at him for a moment before giving him an incredulous look.
"You're a Prince."
"So?"
She opened her mouth, then closed it, "I… I don't know what to say to you"
"How about you?"
"Huh?"
"Want to go greet her?"
"I would if I could"
"Let's go then…"
"Um… maybe later" Cara replied nervously.
Merlin smiled faintly before he could respond, he noticed a slight commotion from the crowd, heading his way.
Eubin had separated from the group and she was now walking towards them. Several people immediately began making way for her.
Merlin's expression remained calm as he sighed inwardly.
'Give it up for Bin to not mind her business, any chance I have at staying unnoticed for a while has officially gone down the drain'
Eubin stopped in front of him, "Merlin…" she said with a smile.
"Bin" he replied flatly
She looked him over for a moment then folded her hands and asked.
"Where were you?"
"I was interested in the preparations, so I came early…" he replied calmly.
"You were supposed to wait in your room until someone came to pick you up so you can walk in with us" she straightened his tie with her eyes still locked with his.
Cara covered her mouth, trying not to blush. He honestly couldn't blame her, Eubin was currently maxing out her charm, but he wasn't going to fall.
'The goal is MGOD'
Merlin gave her a deadpan look.
"And do that dramatic entrance with you guys, I'll pass"
"You're a Prince you know" She scoffed as she straightened his suit.
"That's what I said…" Cara muttered by the side.
Eubin's gaze moved between the two of them.
"You two are close?"
"No…" Cara answered quickly. "We were just talking."
Eubin smiled, "I see…"
Then she leaned slightly closer to Merlin, "Have you found someone to dance with?"
Merlin's expression immediately became blank as he answered, "...No"
"I see…." There was a mischievous glint in Eubin's eyes.
Merlin immediately recognized that expression and added calmly.
"I wasn't planning on dancing"
"Unfortunately, that's impossible" Eubin's smile brightened.
"Why?"
"Because you're a Prince."
"If I'm a Prince, can't I do what I want?"
Eubin laughed softly, "sure you can, but you're not going to refuse a Princess are you?"
"Watch me…" he smiled confidently.
"Who's dancing?" Another voice came from behind them.
"No one's dancing Hel, go find a partner" Eubin answered calmly.
"No need…" Hel said as she walked forward and locked hands with Merlin, dragging him to the open space in the center.
"I've already found a partner"
"Hel, the dance doesn't start till mother introduces Shan and the others" Eubin sighed helplessly.
"That's true… but he's still going to dance with me," Hel shrugged and let go of his hand.
He wasn't really bothered by them, as he turned his head back to the podium, Ki Song was already standing on it.
She stood confidently and spoke with a graceful and commanding voice.
"People of the Song domain…"