My life was a joke where I always ended up playing the worst role. The new debt of 10 coins to Silvian, because of the disaster at the elven market, was another burden that made me want to run back to Vaelor. Melina's song about "the stall strippers" was already making elves laugh as if it were an urban legend, and I just wanted to pay and disappear. My head was in complete chaos. Elara, Vespera, and Liriel messed with me in ways I couldn't decipher. Elara's shy glances made my heart race as if I had just run a marathon. Vespera's provocations, with that smile that seemed to know everything, made me blush like a bonfire. And Liriel's jealousy, hidden behind cutting sarcasm, confused me more than ever. Vespera's kiss at the Moon Festival still lingered, with her avoiding my gaze and Elara and Liriel throwing indirect remarks that cut like knives. I wanted to understand these feelings, but with this group, it was like trying to assemble a puzzle in a storm. The amulet, scepter, sphere, tome, orb, crystal, scroll, ring, cube, medallion, bracelet, necklace, royal scepter, cord, orb, tiara, key, cord, ring, stone, and necklace in my backpack glowed together, and Elowen said the Demon King's ritual was approaching. The danger felt like a cold wind, but today, I just wanted to pay the debt to Silvian and avoid more humiliation.
At the elven guild, a vine-covered building pulsing with magic, we received an unexpected invitation: a royal banquet to "acknowledge our efforts," probably a polite way of saying they wanted to keep an eye on us after the disasters. It was a chance to improve our reputation, but I knew it would go wrong. Liriel grumbled: "A banquet full of conceited elves? Unworthy of a goddess!" Elara, clutching her staff, seemed nervous. "I'll behave, I promise," she said, with a look asking for trust. Vespera, with her bow slung over her shoulder, smiled but still avoided my gaze. "Elven food? This will be interesting!" I tried to be firm: "No crazy magic, no crooked arrows, no succubus charm. Just eat and be polite." They nodded, but their mocking smiles said I was dreaming.
The royal banquet was a spectacle. The throne room had been transformed into a ballroom, with tables of living wood covered in elven dishes: glowing fruits, magical seed breads, and wines that looked like liquid stars. King Elandor received us, alongside Queen Aeloria, Princess Thalira, Princess Elowyn, and Prince Lothor. He introduced Nymara, an elven diplomat with golden hair and a soft voice, who led negotiations with Vaelor. "The strippers? Don't destroy my banquet!" said Nymara, in a tone mixing diplomacy and provocation. Melina, invited to entertain, plucked her lute. "New verse ready!" she announced, drawing laughter from the court. The tension between Vespera and me was still high, with Elara and Liriel watching us as if I could explode a bomb at any moment.
The banquet began, and chaos arrived faster than the wine. During the meal, Elara, trying to be polite, grabbed a plate of glowing fruits. "Just to try!" she said. Her hand trembled—perhaps from nerves—and the plate slipped, falling into an elf's lap and spilling sticky juice. "Mana… no, it was an accident!" I groaned, but she collapsed, panting, into my arms. Her face was so close that I felt my heart race. "Takumi, I… I wanted to…," she began, with a look that almost made me forget the banquet, but the elf shouted, and the court laughed. Vespera, laughing, tried to help with an arrow to "clean" the juice. The crooked arrow hit a wine glass, which exploded, knocking over more plates. "What a delightful chaos!" she shouted, as a noble elf tried to push her, and she seemed to enjoy it. "Liriel, do something!" I yelled. She raised her wine glass. "Divine purification magic!" The light exploded, but set a tablecloth on fire, spreading smoke. I tried to put out the flames with a napkin, but slipped on spilled juice, falling with a thud that knocked over a chair.
Amid the chaos, Elara murmured: "Takumi, I just wanted to say that…," but Liriel cut her off, eyes full of jealousy. "Focus, mortal, or you'll burn the whole banquet!" Vespera, still avoiding my gaze, teased: "Relax, Liriel, he's just clumsy as always." Liriel huffed: "Mortals and their silly crushes!" Nymara, eyes wide, extinguished the fire with a diplomatic spell, but the tablecloth was reduced to ashes, and plates were scattered across the floor. She found a bracelet with markings identical to the amulet, scepter, and other items, fallen among the debris. "Curious," she said, handing it to me. When I touched the bracelet, it vibrated, knocking over more glasses. Aeloria, sighing, said: "You will pay for this." The court pointed and laughed, and Melina sang: "At the banquet, tables stripped, the strippers fall into chaos!" Nymara huffed: "You are a plague!"
We returned to the elven inn with the banquet ruined. The local guild paid us 60 coins for "diplomatic efforts," deducted for the damages. We paid the debt to Silvian, but Nymara charged 10 coins for the tablecloth and plates. I sat, exhausted, while Elara and Vespera argued over who "messed up the mission less." "I just picked up the plate!" said Elara, her cheeks red. "And I only shot an arrow!" retorted Vespera, avoiding my gaze. Liriel, drinking wine, huffed. "You are pathetic. I did everything." Elowen appeared, looked at the bracelet, and said: "Another clue about the Demon King's ritual. Be careful, strippers." She left without further explanation. The tension between Vespera and me remained awkward, with Elara and Liriel casting suspicious glances. "What's going on, Takumi?" asked Elara, jealousy evident. Vespera murmured: "Nothing, just the banquet."
When Elara and Vespera went out to get food, I pulled Liriel aside. "If you're a goddess, who's on your throne now?" She shrugged lazily, smiling. "Celine, my assistant. She's annoying, but she takes care of the rest." She took a sip. "Why? Planning to send me away, mortal?" She smiled, with a look that left me confused. I looked at the glowing items — amulet, scepter, sphere, tome, orb, crystal, scroll, ring, cube, medallion, bracelet, necklace, royal scepter, cord, orb, tiara, key, cord, ring, stone, necklace, bracelet. Vespera's kiss, Elara and Liriel's jealousy, the new debt with Nymara — my life was a nightmare, and I just wanted a day without being called a pervert.