Two-Faced Princess

“The achievements of this war are attributed to Paris, my successor and heir to the Empire. He showed qualities that had led the empire to victory.”

A small cheer was heard and Paris grinned and waved at them.

His jewel-like red eyes glistened exceptionally bright.

When the Emperor beckoned, he stepped forward and stood next to him.

“Real peace has yet to come. The countries around us are still aiming to conquer our spectacular empire and the monsters that are rampant in various parts of the region are all enemies for my soldiers to defeat.”

As always, he stimulated the crowd’s fears with a number of factors.

“At his request, we will put various talents to assist Paris in the royal order. With the help of all, the Empire will leap to a new era.”

The Emperor pointed at one side of the banquet hall.

There were several men standing there that Apollonia had never seen before.

They looked like knights but there were a few people who were particularly eye-catching.

Apollonia and Uriel’s eyes grew and at the same time, the people in the banquet hall began to buzz.

“Bellas, aren’t they?”

Most of the men the emperor had pointed at were beautiful men with purple eyes and dark hair.

Seductive auras similar to the three brothers she had seen in Lishan were also felt.

Everyone clapped with puzzled expressions. They admired the Bellas’ appearances but on the other hand, they were unhappy that they had become part of the Sacred Royal Order.

“I’ve never heard of a Bella becoming a knight.”

“It doesn’t make sense that my brother is with them.”

“Your Highness the Crown Prince—–”

They weren’t knights who fought on the battlefield and their contributions were also unknown but Paris was smiling at them with satisfaction. Apollonia could see perfectly why.

“Is this what Evangeline was talking about?”

Apollonia muttered so that only Uriel could hear.

She was referring to the sorcerer at Luwan’s business empire whom she believed to be Bella.

That person had also altered Paris’ eye color, the symbol of legitimacy that he didn’t previously have.

Evangeline told her that Paris would bring her into the palace tonight.

“I thought he would disguise himself into a different identity, but to hear several Bellas turning into Knights all at once—–”

“Other than one, the rest of them is probably fake. If a Bella, who stands out even if she’s just there, will be too much attention, she may be trying to divert it by using several people. If rumors spread that the Crown Prince got close to a sorceress, anyone would assume that he was also involved in the Luwan business merchandise. He won’t try to leak such secrets easily.” replied Uriel.

“Even ‘Milon’s Eye’ is careful about revealing it. It’s hard to tell who the Bella is. It’s worth praising.” Apollonia smiled bitterly.

It wasn’t unexpected.

She had no idea if it was just the Emperor or Paris, but Petra won’t expose Luwan’s top talent without a fight.

Furthermore, Paris’ legitimacy depended on her.

However, there was one question in Apollonia’s mind.

The question was whether the young Bella she met in the past was the same sorcerer at Luwan’s top.

It was because whenever she came up with something against Petra, the face of the person she met a long time ago crossed her mind.

That woman was surprisingly talented, but unfortunately, Apollonia had lost her whereabouts.

Can there really be another person like that in the world?

Of course, this was a mere thought that she had kept at the back of her mind without any basis and without any certainty.

The chances of her falling into Petra’s hands were so slim.

“I’ll talk to you later. Hang out with other aristocrats first.”

Apollonia gave Uriel a golden glass of wine and sent him back to the group of young nobles.

At the center of the banquet hall, a musical dance was about to begin.

The quickest way to get information from neutral aristocrats was to socialize with their children.

Uriel was definitely the right person for this task.

“Should I take a break?”

Apollonia succeeded in catching everyone’s attention with her beautiful appearance.

Even the Emperor and Petra, who entered after the dance, confirmed her assumption when they looked at her with one of their eyebrows raised.