8 THE BANQUET WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

ZOE remembered that in the original novel, Isaak Viotto hunted down House Rochester because of what Milli-bitch, pretending to be "Lady Rochester," did during the banquet.

But Milli-bitch wasn't that smart to come up with the plan to humiliate the ghoul duke.

The one that actually schemed everything was Count Nigel Ratliff– Emperor Rino's younger brother.

In the Helion Empire, once a new emperor was crowned, all his male siblings would be obliged to change their surnames. In return, the newly crowned emperor would give them a noble title and a territory for them to manage.

Of course, the princesses didn't have to give up their surnames because they were expected to marry into rich households.

[It's the misogyny for me, Your Honor.]

Anyway…

When Emperor Rino sat on the throne, he gave his younger brother the count title. Then the emperor gave Isaak Viotto the 'Grand Duke' title– much to everyone's shock and anger.

In Helion Empire, being a Grand Duke was different from a duke. After all, a Grand Duke was someone who ruled a Grand Duchy– a large portion of land within the kingdom.

Count Nigel and the nobles that hated Isaak Viotto only accepted the emperor's decision when Emperor Rino revealed that he would give Isaak Viotto the Grand Duchy of Graysin.

[Graysin is located on a large border that's actually near the land that the Grimlings dwell in.]

In short, despite its fancy title as a 'Grand Duchy,' Graysin was practically a "farm" for the Grimlings (the ghouls). Since the villages near the border weren't properly protected, Grimlings would often attack them.

Only Isaak Viotto and his army took care of those villages. But even with the help of the ghoul duke's three friends, it was still hard for them to manage the Grand Duchy of Graysin because of the Grimlings' frequent attacks.

And yet, despite the heavy responsibility on Isaak Viotto's shoulders, that idiot Count Nigel Ratliff still envied the ghoul duke. The count wouldn't miss a chance to harass Isaak Viotto every chance he got.

Since the banquet would be the ghoul duke's first public appearance after a long time, of course, Count Nigel Ratliff planned a grand scheme to humiliate his half-brother.

The banquet that happened in the novel was literally a dinner party for all the higher nobles of the empire. Several tables were prepared, and it was some sort of "competition." The higher a noble's position was, the closer they were to the emperor and the empress's table.

Being the only Grand Duke of the empire, Isaak Viotto's table was naturally the closest to the emperor's.

Unfortunately, Count Nigel Ratliff was the one in charge of not only arranging the tables but also the menu for the banquet. That bastard count prepared a "special dish" for Isaak Viotto: multiple limbs of a corpse.

[I remember being so angry when I read that part in the novel!]

And now, she was angrier because she remembered that Milli-bitch, who attended the banquet as 'Lady Rochester,' was the one who prepared the human limbs under Count Nigel Ratliff's orders.

In short, the count used that stupid bitch as a scapegoat.

Because of that one mistake, every single member of House Rochester died at the hands of Isaak Viotto.

"I won't let that happen," Zoe promised herself while reading the letters that Milli-bitch had been exchanging with Viscountess Clarke, the wife of the viscount that served under Count Nigel Ratliff.

This time, that sly count used the wives of his underlings to take care of the things needed to humiliate Isaak Viotto at the banquet.

After all, that bastard didn't want to leave traces that he was the one who planned everything.

"The star of the banquet will be me and not Isaak Viotto," Zoe whispered to herself.

"My lady?"

She got up from lying on the sofa and turned to Dal, who just entered her room. As soon as she saw the thing in her attendant's smile, she smiled and crumpled the letter in her hand. "Good job, Dal."

"My lady, why did you ask me to get you a big pumpkin?" Dal asked curiously while hugging the huge pumpkin in her arms. "Are you going to eat this?"

"No," she said while pulling her lovely pink chef's knife from under her pillow. "I'm going to carve it."

Her attendant tilted her head to one side. "Carve it? But why would you carve a pumpkin, Lady Zoe?"

"To make a Jack-o'-lantern," Zoe said cheerfully. "The banquet falls on the eve of October 30th after all."

***

"WHY do you look sad, Dal?" Zoe asked her attendant, even though she already knew the answer. "Is it because of my outfit?"

Dal nodded, then she looked at her outfit for tonight with a sad look on her face. "Your hair and makeup are perfect, my lady. If only you wore a more elegant outfit…"

"Don't worry," she assured her attendant with a laugh. "My face will work hard tonight, so people won't pay attention to my outfit."

By "outfit," she meant the maroon floor-length faux fur hooded cloak poncho sweater cape that she was wearing tonight. Yeah, it was inappropriate to wear at a formal banquet. Her real outfit was under that cape, but she wouldn't reveal it until the right moment.

Thankfully, Dal did an excellent job to make her prettier tonight.

Of course, she only put on light makeup even though it was a night party.

After all, the current trend among the ladies at the moment was the makeup look that would make them look innocent. Well, it suited her anyway, so she didn't complain.

Next, her hair.

She asked Dal to just let her wear her pink long hair down because she had a plan for it later. To not make her hair look bland, her attendant created adorable mini flower braids.

Now she looked so pristine and innocent.

"You're right, my lady," Dal said cheerfully while looking at her face. "No one will care about what you wear as long as you have that kind of face."

Zoe laughed at Dal's genuine words, then she winked at her. "I know, right?"

***

[ZOANNE definitely got her pretty genes from Marquis Hendrix Rochester.]

Zoe couldn't help but stare at her father. It was hard to always tell herself that the marquis was Zoanne's father. Her small brain couldn't handle that. So she would just claim Marquis Rochester as her father, since she possessed Zoanne's body, anyway.

"What is it, Zoanne?" Marquis Rochester, who was sitting on the couch across from her inside their family's fancy carriage, asked. "You've been staring at me since we left the mansion."

Who wouldn't stare at her father?

The marquis looked extra handsome and dashing in his navy blue…

Wait.

[My brain doesn't know what kind of suit my father is wearing. But he's adorned with pretty accessories and expensive pieces of jewelry. Why did the men of my world stop wearing those kinds of clothes? Ah, right. They're pretty impractical in the modern world.]

If not for her pretty face, she'd look like a potato next to her father because of her simple outfit.

"Father, I don't mind if you remarry as long as your future wife is decent," Zoe said bluntly. "You must scatter your genes all over the world."

"Pardon?"

"I want a baby brother that looks like a mini-you, Father."

Her father "coughed" as if he was hiding his embarrassment. He couldn't hide his flushed cheeks, though.

[He's really a tsundere.]

"This is the first time that you're attending a banquet ever since you've returned to the empire," her father said, obviously changing the topic. "Zoanne, I know that the temple taught you how to live simply. Although there's nothing wrong with your choice of clothing tonight, I believe you could have chosen a better dress. I hope you weren't thinking that our family can't afford a fabulous dress, were you?"

"This isn't my final form yet, Father."

"I'm afraid I don't understand what you mean by that, Zoanne."

"Father, are you embarrassed because I'm wearing this kind of outfit to the banquet?" she asked instead. "Is this going to stain the reputation of our family?"

"Of course not," her father said guiltily. "I apologize for my hurtful words, Zoanne."

"It's okay, Father," she said with a smile. "I understand your point. But please trust me. At the end of this banquet, I will make you proud."

His father remained poker-faced, but he nodded in the end. "I'm looking forward to it, Zoanne."

She just smiled at the marquis.

A few moments later, they finally arrived at the Royal Palace.

To be precise, they were at Aurora Palace where the banquet was taking place.

As expected, the palace was luxurious and very aesthetically pleasing to the eye. Moreover, from where she stood, she could already see how fabulous the dresses and gowns that the ladies were wearing.

She would surely stick out like a sore thumb later.

[Well, that is what makes a star a star anyway.]

Her thoughts were cut off when her dashing father extended his hand to her as she was getting down from the carriage.

[What a gentleman.]

She took her father's hand and thanked him for helping her.

"Father, you may enter the hall first," she said while looking at the carriage behind theirs. It was the carriage that Dal and Fritz, her attendant and personal knight, used. "I have something to discuss with my attendants first."

She didn't know if it was just her imagination or if her father really looked disappointed.

But it was only for a moment.

"Then I'll go ahead," her father said indifferently. "I'll wait for you inside, Zoanne."

"I won't take long, Father," she said while smiling and waving at her father.

Marquis Rochester just gave her a firm nod, then he entered the hall while oozing with confidence. God, her father really had that air of power and wealth around him.

[My biological father was the same, but he was crazy.]

"My lady, we're here."

She turned to Dal and Fritz, who both looked extra nice and neat tonight.

Dal wore a simple yet elegant light yellow dress, while Fritz wore his dress uniform as a knight.

"Is everything set according to our plan?" she asked her attendants.

Of course, locking up Milli-bitch in the mansion wasn't enough.

She didn't want the bitch's cohorts to think that 'Lady Rochester' had backed down from the plan. So she confiscated all the letters that Milli-bitch exchanged with her "friends."

Then, she wrote back to them herself.

And yes, she went along with their plan.

[With a twist!]

"Everything is ready, Lady Zoe," Dal said, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "The people who delivered the limbs that Miss Ashmore ordered didn't realize that the "mistress" has changed."

"I already met with the kitchen staff working for "him,"" Fritz said in a low and nervous voice. "They trusted me as soon as I showed them the letters that Miss Ashmore received from Viscountess Clarke."

"Good job, kids," Zoe said cheerfully, then she turned to the bright entrance of the grand ballroom. "Let the party begin."

***

AS ZOE expected, she stuck out like a sore thumb because of her outfit.

Most of the noblemen (dressed in fancy suits and decorated with expensive accessories) didn't seem to mind what she wore. After all, those men only care about her face and the silhouette of her gorgeous body under her cloak.

Most of the noblewomen, however, were having a field trip while making fun of her.

[This is nothing compared to what I went through during my teenage years.]

She was used to people talking shit behind her back because she came from a dysfunctional family. Thanks to that, she got good at ignoring insults.

[There are only twelve tables here.]

But each round table had eight chairs around it. That meant there were families bound to share the same table. But it seemed like the banquet hadn't officially started yet because no one had taken a seat yet.

The nobles inside the hall were still mingling and talking with each other.

[The thrones in front are both still empty. Then, it must mean the banquet will officially begin once the emperor and the empress arrive.]

"I can't believe she really went here wearing that…"

"Is it because she studied to be a priestess for so long?"

"If I were Marquis Rochester, it would embarrass me to come with her."

"Well, you're not my father," Zoe said with a smirk, then she turned to the three pretty young ladies dressed in stunning gowns. They looked younger than her. And they seemed to be shocked that she snapped back at them. "My father is completely fine with what I wore tonight because unlike you, the honorable Marquis Hendrix Rochester doesn't judge people by their clothes. Thank goodness my father is a decent person. And shame on your parents who raised petty and shallow kids like you."

Of course, the ladies were offended.

"Don't you dare bring up our parents in this conversation," the blonde lady with blue eyes said angrily. "They have nothing to do with us."

"You should have expected for your parents to be dragged in the mud the moment you mentioned my father," she said with a shrug. "Moreover, everyone here who's making fun of me my outfit should worry more about the face they were born with instead of my clothes."

The moment she said that, the nobles around them, who were obviously listening to the conversation, all turned to her.

"I am born with a naturally beautiful face," Zoe said with a sweet smile on her face. "Unlike you, who can't change the face you're born with, my "problem" can be easily solved if I just wear pretty clothes, right?"

***

NOTE: Hi! Please consider ADDING 'I Won't Let The Ghoul Duke Go Hungry!' to your LIBRARY. Thank you! <3