Chapter 16: party

We arrive at the party, which is being held at a mansion, although it looks more like a palace, like those from movies of princesses and princes or knights that save them from monsters. The only difference being, there was no saving here. You gotta survive on your own. You want a hero, you be the hero. Although I feared I was on my way to being the monster itself.

We enter the mansion and after climbing one hell of a staircase, we get to the hall where the actual party is being held. We take off our cloaks and an attendant takes them from us. As we enter the hall, a spark of golden light floods my vision for a minute and then as my eyes get adjusted to the brightness, I take in the beautiful view of a party in full splendor. The people all dressed elegantly, ladies in gorgeous dresses and gentlemen in their stylish suits. It looks more like a ball from some royalty drama. The entire place reeks of richness and with richness and rich people often follows corruption.

I feel so out of place. I don't belong here but here I am.

We enter the room and have to descend a straight staircase leading to the actual ground where everyone's enjoying the party. And as we entered, people's eyes became glued to us and the hall was echoing with whispers of its guests.

"Look! It's the devil!"

"He's here!"

"The devil has joined the party. Finally!"

"And Velaris too!"

"They look fabulous!"

"But who's that?"

"Alongside the devil."

"What the heck is going on? Whom is everyone referring to as the devil?" I ask, confused.

"That's me, darling. The devil is my nickname. That's what I'm widely known as." Maurin gave a halfway smile. He seemed really proud of the reputation he had earned.

"Why am I not surprised? That nickname actually suits you. Does Velaris also have a nickname?"

"No, I don't." Velaris cut in.

"Oh yea, he does!" Maurin smirked at Velaris as if mocking him. "He's the ticking time bomb! He hates that nickname by the way. Says it's cringe, although I think it's cool." Velaris sighed and rolled his eyes at Maurin while he chuckled away.

We descended that staircase as everyone's eyes stayed glued to us and the whispering continued. I could hear it all. The people were brimming with curiosity and excitement.

"Who's that woman with them?"

"The devil has a partner!

"She's gorgeous, isn't she!"

'It's the first time they've brought someone else along!"

"I wonder what fun chaos has the devil brought along this time!"

"Something interesting always happens around them."

"This party's gonna be fun."

People crowded us as we got to the floor. Greeting Maurin and Velaris, complimenting and buttering them about how fabulous they looked and how much they anticipated them. They asked about me and Maurin simply told them I was the new translator working with them. The conversation then steered to political talks and then criminal activities and so on. Velaris pulled me to the side and told me to not forget the mission, he told me to talk to the guests there, gather any information I could and even get on their good side.

"Make interactions and even some allies.

Establish your presence, it will be helpful in climbing the social ladder. But look for Kobayashi Tanaka and inform us through the earpiece if you've found him."

I walked away from Maurin's boring discussions and wandered about the big hall for a while. I stare at the lights, the chandeliers, the elaborate decorations and the roof which is covered in paintings of blue skies as well as night skies and galaxies making the place look like it's out of a fairytale. Some ladies approach me and invite me to join them in their conversations.

There was a woman with them, drop dead gorgeous, dark hair, bob cut and dark siren eyes. She wore a scarlet dress, off shoulder but bishop sleeves, a gore style skirt, and a black corset round her waist. She looked ethereal, like a ball of fire in the vast and dark universe.

"Hi!" She smiled at me gently.

"Hi!" I smiled back.

"I've heard about you. I've been wanting to meet you!"

"Oh really?" Well I didn't expect that. "What exactly have you heard about me?" I asked her. I try to maintain a cool tone, try to sound mysterious and unfazed by the strangeness of my situation.

"Nothing much. Just that there was this new girl around, that Maurin had taken a liking to. That's quite a grand feat! Maurin doesn't like just anyone."

She smiles the entire time and she has a beautiful and kind smile. And I wonder if she could be my ally. But among the many things I've learned here, one of them is that people with the most angelic smiles often hide the most devilish thoughts. And Maurin is one of them too, the jerk is always smiling and laughing but just look at how even the world knows him as the devil!

"And the fact that you are a mere slave makes it even more impressive." That last sentence of hers was unnecessary and it caught me completely off guard and everyone else too. Suddenly her tone was one that mocks and the gaze of the people around me instantly turned to me and they looked at me like I was some kind of plague. She was still smiling but that smile no longer seemed angelic. Her smile seemed more of a devil's than even Maurin's himself. I had no idea how to reply to that comment of hers. I wanted to say something, to turn the table on her, but I stood there, mute.

"How dare a mere slave come to a gathering as grand as this?" I heard a whisper among the ladies beside me.

I stood still at their comments and I wondered if I should say something or perhaps I should just remember my place and listen to their insults but then I couldn't help and the words spilled out.

"Its grandiosity holds no value if the ones attending it are as shallow minded as the whispers of the ones surrounding me."

I say finally but with a cool tone, making sure that I don't let their ridiculous and pointless remarks get the best of me. They do not deserve my true feelings, not even my anger. The crowd went quiet for a second before that devilishly pretty girl steered the conversation elsewhere.

"Aww why's the mood all gloomy now? C'mon let's enjoy this party, the food is great! Has anyone tried the chocolate truffles?" The woman in red clapped both her hands together and plastered another smile on that pretty face of hers.

Later she pulled me aside and said, "Sorry, I didn't mean to put you on the spot like that." She seemed genuine but I didn't buy it. This woman could win an Oscar with her acting. "I let my jealousy get the best of me." She says.

"Jealousy? What could a mere slave like me possibly possess for you to be jealous of me?" Sarcasm is clearly visible in my tone.

"You've got Maurin."

"What?" My face scrunched up and I gave her a dirty look.

"I like Maurin and didn't like the idea of you being around him." This girl's very clear about her feelings.

I took a deep breath, "Alright, listen girl, I would gladly slit that guy's throat up and have a party as grand as this one celebrating his funeral, if I could. You can have him for all I care. And the only reason he has me around is because I'm a useful slave to him, that's all. You seriously ain't got anything to be jealous about."

"Oh wow, you're serious. You truly hate him that much?" She sounded genuinely curious.

"You have no idea! Besides, I think you two would make a great pair. You are both devilishly pretty and rotten to the core."

"You really think so!? Hahaha that makes me sooo happyyy!!!" She squealed, which startled me. It looks like she truly does have a crush on Maurin. "Alright then, I guess you and I can be on friendly terms now. I'm actually here to aid you guys out in this mission. And I've already located 'Tabo Mayonaka', one of the best members of the Yamaguchi clan. I had not expected him to be here. But since he's here, we might as well catch him along with Tanaka. But we'll have to ask Maurin first what to do." Now that she doesn't see me as a rival in her love life, she is so openly friendly.

"By the way, I love your outfit! You are absolutely gorgeous!"

"Oh thanks." I smiled. Being complimented by someone as beautiful as her feels good.

I was wearing a white blouse with layers of frills that cover the chest, puff romantic style sleeves with frills on the wrists and dark coloured flared pants. The blouse tucked in the waist high pants as the silver buttons shone in the light. My personal favorite part of this outfit were the shoes, black ankle boots. I had my hair let down, falling in opulent curls. A glam but edgy outfit overall. I got this entire outfit from Sasha, they belonged to the previous translator. She had quite the extravagant fashion sense. I heard she enjoyed such extravagant parties as well.

"Do you ever feel strange wearing a dead person's clothes all the time?" Sasha had asked me.

"No, I do not. At least not until you mentioned it." I had replied, but honestly I did not mind wearing someone else's clothes, dead or alive.

"Oh I didn't catch your name. My name's Jasmine. What's yours?" She asked me with that gentle smile on her face and for a second I wondered what I was supposed to answer, Adrenaline or Reina? And then I slapped myself in my mind, how could I have gotten so used to being called Adrenaline that now I'm wondering what my name is!

"It's Reina." I finally replied.

"Reina? That's such a pretty name! It means 'queen' in Spanish, right?!" She sounded excited.

"Yep, it does." I smiled. Perhaps because I unconsciously enjoyed being called by my own name for once.