What beheld them was an extraordinary sight. As they took their seats before a dining table encrusted and flaked with jewels and gold-- Ain eyeing the familiar embellishments with suspicion-- they peered out beyond the rail beam of the balcony which stood several feet high, and, looking down, all they could see were hundreds and thousands of people in festive spirit swarming around the renowned Emerald Coliseum, trying to find a good seat to witness whatever fascinations were going to happen in the large arena. People who weren't able to secure a spot in the lower accommodations took to climbing the building-like trees and leaning out the carved windows instead to get a good view. Others stood at the edges of the large road leading to the coliseum and Tree of Life, watching the various parades traveling down the freshly paved path. Ribbons, flags, and confetti of many colors and designs flitted and danced through the crisp air-- the chitter and chatter of numerous people talking in excitement uniting into a single, thunderous roar.
It was truly a wonderful and empowering sight to witness from so high up; and young, inexperienced, naive nobles like Trina Perth-- who'd just debuted into high society-- couldn't help but exclaim with awe at the view.
And people like Zoi Silva Eskovan who were hedonists and felt great pleasure in flaunting their wealth and influence, this sort of reaction further invigorated their insatiable egos.
A smug look plastered to his narcissistic face, Zoi was just about to engage Trina in conversation to stimulate his self-indulging tendencies even more when-- from behind the long array of seats and tables arranged-- the delicate, sensuous lilt of a woman's voice spoke from the doorway, causing him to pause and remember what his real incentive for this event was.
"It seems everyone has arrived already. I hope the journey here wasn't too long and uncomfortable. I'm sure the roads leading to our kingdom weren't very pleasant as they aren't properly paved."
The thrilled chatter of the delegates quietened down upon the unexpected intrusion. Some whispered in quiet surprise, and others turned to address the newly arrived woman by partially standing up from their seats and giving a slight bow. It had been many years since they'd last seen her-- to the point there were even unsavory rumors that she'd passed away.
The woman carried herself gently and softly-- in a manner that undoubtedly embodied the very epitome of someone raised in royalty. Long, sleek strands of a soft rosy hue framed her delicate face. Large orbs thinly lined with dark kohl shimmered in their sea of deep emeralds as she peered at and welcomed everyone with a nervous air.
"It's been a while, Princess."
Nix, leaning back in her chair, gave the Louloun Princess a smirk and extended her hand towards her.
"It has been a while, Lady Nix," the other responded, receiving the outstretched hand with her own and firmly shaking it with a smile. She then let go and briefly exchanged pleasantries with Calun-- asking him how he and his family were faring-- before turning to the trio seated next to the Phyririan duo who were all now sitting rigid-backed, blank-faced, and conspicuously refusing to greet or meet the eyes of the alluring, young lady who so desperately seemed to be searching for some form of acknowledgement from them.
"Greetings, Lord Ain, Lord Yaosa, Lady Illis. I expect you all have been doing well? It's been a long while, so I'm sure a lot of things have changed..."
She was met with only silence. None of the three bothered to show any recognition of the woman. A bright, pink hue started to slowly seep into her ears and down her neck, leaving her awkwardly standing there and under everyone else's scrutiny as the Gojin envoys continued to display indifferent and ignorant behavior.
Zoi, seeing this, immediately turned his focus away from Trina and, with a furious expression, berated the Grand Duke, "Ain! If someone's greeting you, you should respond to them! Can't you see my sister standing there and trying to see to your needs?"
"Well then, tell her that neither I nor my subjects have any needs to be seen. We are very comfortable at the moment and would like some peace and quiet to enjoy this most grandiose scenery to ourselves." Still ignoring the presence of the woman fidgeting next to him, Ain spat back at the Louloun Emperor without so much as a glance, finding such a sudden and keen interest in the lemon inside his glass of water instead.
Face almost just as red as his hair, Zoi was about to combust in anger for the humiliation his sister was enduring when, suddenly, the last fable-- seated next to Yaosa-- spoke up. Though, she, too, refused to properly face the young princess as she gazed down at the swarm of people underneath her post-- her pert face languidly cupped within a dainty hand perched upon her knee.
"Child. You know fully well that we are not in the kind of relationship where we can casually exchange nice pleasantries between one another. You lost that privilege a long time ago the moment you decided it was in your better interest to turn your back against your own beloved to obtain something that wasn't rightfully yours."
The fable turned her chilling gaze towards the flowery girl who, upon making eye contact, immediately flinched. Under her breath, the old fable murmured, "Material things.... they bring much pain, don't they?"
From beside her, Ain grumbled with disdain, "Save your breath, Illis. Traitors will remain traitors. Nothing changes them no matter how much you try."
Illis's gaze suddenly turned glossy in reminisce, and she mumbled from some far off memory that'd entranced her, "Indeed. They never do change," then she instantly returned back to the present world and went back to observing the swarms of chattery people again as if nothing had happened.
Faced with disregard once again by the very people she wanted acknowledgement from, the Louloun Princess began to tremble as tears started to bead in the corner of her eyes. Even as they heard a slight sniffle, the Gojins didn't pay her any mind, and, Zoi, unable to bear the sight, squeezed his eyes shut while massaging the bridge of his nose and said, "Avari, I think it would be best for you to return to your room for the day and enjoy the festival. I'll take it from here."
With another sniffle, the princess bowed slightly in the direction of her brother and mumbled, "As you wish, Your Majesty. Let me know if anyone needs anything else."
With that, she started to walk towards the direction of the exit and everyone-- except for a certain few-- reverberated their farewells to the small retreating back of one of the few beauties known to them. But what was beauty when a snake resided in her heart?
Conspicuously, the former chatter of the pavilion returned anew once the princess was fully gone. They'd all been sitting uncomfortably and waiting for the Gojins-- who easily expressed their distaste around others-- to quickly deal with her presence. And Zoi, knowing this, had no choice but to quickly assure her out before more injuries were inflicted. Things were wrong, and he didn't know how to fix them. The reputation of his empire had been barely restored, and because some time had already passed since past atrocities, he had thought it would be alright to slowly reintroduce his sister into society, but that was a hasty decision on his part. The wounds of betrayal still seemed to run deep. A heavy sigh escaped him.
From the sideline, Calun's obnoxiously loud voice interrupted Zoi's draining thoughts.
"Hey, Vsegda. You know, why do you always ignore the princess? It's not like you or your kingdom ever suffered any losses because of her. Anyone else makes sense, but why do you avoid her like a plague?"
Calun had observed earlier, Vsegda completely ignoring Princess Avari's existence just like the Gojins had while everyone else was greeting her. However, this wasn't the first instance he had done so. He'd done the same thing from the very moment he'd first met Avari eight years ago. However, because of his shadow-like presence, more often than not, everyone failed to notice Vsegda's bizarre behavior-- all except for Calun with his randomly keen spouts of observation, and Uvas, Vsegda's brother, who now gave an amused smile over the drink he was sipping on upon hearing the unexpected question.
Sickly pale fingers paused their rhythmic stroking of the water cup's rim, and pitch black pupils visibly trailed to the side to look straight into Calun's red-enclosed ones. The uncanny appearance of it all sent a shudder through his spine. No matter how many times he looked, he could never get used to the Lazruchen Prince's eerily, otherworldly appearance. But then again, monsters weren't really supposed to be the pleasant types to look at, no?
Silently watching Calun's slowly awkward-growing expression, Vsegda smiled that polite smile of his and responded simply, "My business is my business. Mind your own," before looking away to pop one of the candies on the table into his mouth. Next to him, his brother-- still sipping on his drink-- chuckled. Calun, too, tittered at the curt response, albeit stiffly. It was an expected one, but not what he'd wanted to hear.
It wasn't a response Zoi wanted to hear either even if nothing was affirmed nor denied, for he spat with bitterness, "Why so avoidant of the question? Almost as if you really are ignoring my dear sister."
Vsegda gave no answer to his rouse, instead leaning to the side to whisper something in his brother's ear, making his darker-featured counterpart throw his head back and laugh heartily.
Irritated even more by Uvas's laughter, Zoi gnashed his teeth together. He tried to pick even deeper by bringing up a topic everyone else was bound to feel sour about-- failed overtakes that they all believed were hindered by the Lazruchen Prince.
"I hear you've been going in and out of Gojin. Something interesting happening over there?"
"It's called business. Why use force to obtain something when you can just use your words and ask nicely to get what you want? Isn't that what differentiates humans from dogs? The ability to use words."
Ain burst into laughter hearing this. Next to him, Yaosa subtly smiled, and Illis watched Vsegda with a grin and gleaming eyes.
His face bright red again with embarrassment, Zoi shook in anger. He'd basically just been called lesser than a dog from a being that wasn't even necessarily human, and he could feel the shame creeping up his neck.
Vsegda pinned Zoi down with his uncanny gaze and smirked, "That's why you shouldn't have done anything stupid from the start and kept your mouth shut. Now look at the mess you're in."
"Y-You-".
Not knowing what to say or respond, Zoi couldn't help but stutter at Vsegda's audacity. Of all times to be humiliated so harshly, it had to be when he was the host of the Grand Festival.
Unable to think of anything else to do or say, Zoi hollered, "Butler! I think our guests are getting a little hungry. Bring in the servants!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
From there, rows and rows of servants streamed in-- each carrying some kind of dish in their hands-- and gently placed them in front of their guests, removing the teacups and snacks that had been there prior in the process. Strong wafts of warm food wiggled their way into everyone's expectant nostrils. Bellies hungrily growled. Calun and Nix were already ready to dig into their own meals-- knife and fork in hand, eyes glittering with anticipation, and drool seeping out the corners of their mouths. Even so, they couldn't start eating just yet. For the real main course hadn't yet begun.