Chapter 45
"Our knight outfit has arrived," Yjhan stated as he carried two boxes.
"Woahhh!" Nash dashed towards it and examined the contents of the box. "Cool!"
The squads are summoned the day following the meeting to obtain their measurements for the knight attire they will wear at the ceremony. It took four days to complete and arrived the day before the event.
The knight's outfit was a combination of red, black, and white. There are several pieces of armor, although they are most likely made of leather to withstand the cold. It also comes with a dark mid-length cape.
"I can't wait for tomorrow!" Nash said with excitement.
...
1st of January
"Happy New Year!" Nash made an unintentional announcement as she walked downstairs.
"Huh?"
'Opss... there's no celebration of the New Year here...'
"It's the beginning of the new Year! Duh?" She said as an excuse.
"Ohh... that makes sense." Aeries murmured.
"So what time will we leave here?"
"It's five o'clock in the afternoon. We'll be assisting with some preparations, so we'll have to go early." Yjhan said as he bit into a piece of bread.
"Okay!"
'I'm quite excited to see Katherine and Marais later!'
...
They arrived at the Imperial Palace exactly at 5 in the afternoon wearing the attire solely for the ceremony.
There are already a few squads and Magic knights that arrived, one of them is Squad 14.
Squad 15 walks over to Squad 14, who is assisting in the arrangement of tables and other decorations.
"Oh! You're here!" Grin said as soon as he saw them, "You look too formal. I can't get used to this tight shit."
"You look great in it!" Nash complimented him.
Grin flushed and felt bashful, asking, "Really?"
Nash nodded, "Does Marais have a partner?"
"It's Brix,"
"Brix huh... What a combination." she whispered, "I see..."
"Let's head inside," Nash waves goodbye to the members of Squad 14 before following her squad.
They proceeded to the ballroom, where a few maids and knights recognized Nash, but all she did was wink and ignore them.
"It's huge!" Says Idris.
"Right?" Nash rubbed her nose with a smug look.
"You're early!" Prince Lawrence together with some knights and shockingly with the duke of Isra.
The duke was taken aback when he saw Nash, but happily, a knight who recognized Nash whispered something to him before he approached the young woman.
The squad 15 bowed and saluted the Senior Knights before greeting the Duke.
"We're here to assist with the preparations," Yjhan explained. Nash continued to gaze around to notice the decorations that surrounded the hall.
"Hey, look at that!" Nash elbowed Idris and pointed to the large cake decorations.
"Woah! That's big!"
"I know right? Wonder if it tastes good just as how it looks" They laughed, forgetting about the duke and the senior in front of them.
"Nash. Idris." Yjhan called, silently scolding them.
Nash and Idris pressed their lips thin. "Sorry"
"The exterior preparations are finished, Uncle." Vincenzo, who had just arrived, spoke out.
"I see," Prince Lawrence said, looking at Squad 15. "Since everything has already been completed, why don't you meet up with the other squad knights first?" The ceremony will begin at 7, so there is still plenty of time."
"Then, we'll excuse ourselves," they said as they bowed once more before leaving.
"So Nash won't be attending the ceremony," said Duke Eiler, the Duke of Isra.
"That's what she said," Prince Lawrence replied.
"I was expecting her to ask my son to be her partner..." Duke Eiler frowned.
"As if my brother will let you," Prince Lawrence said, grinning.
"Of course he would,"
"As if I would," suddenly, Roven came out of nowhere.
"Shit!" Duke Eiler exclaimed. "You scared me."
"Tsk. What are you talking about?"
"Your youngest," Duke Eiler said. "I thought she would participate in the ceremony."
"What if she does?" Roven stares at him with a blank expression.
"Then her partner would be my handsome son."
"..."
"How's the preparation going?" Roven asked his brother, ignoring the duke.
"Everything is well"
"Hey! Don't ignore me!"
Still no one looked his way.
"Roven!" Another duke approaches them from a distance. The senior knights bowed their heads.
"You're here early,"
"I'd like to check to see if there's a problem with the preparations. I want my daughter's coming-of-age ceremony to be perfect."
"I see, rest assured that there is no problem in the preparations," Prince Lawrence answered.
"Is that so? Then that's perfect! Then I'll excuse myself and prepare for later. I'll meet you later."
"He's good," Vincenzo remarked, his gaze fixed on the receding form of Duke Barcley.
"That's what they're good at," Prince Lawrence said.
The senior knights as well as the Duke Eiler are confused, not getting the conversation between Vincenzo and his uncle.
...
"What should we do then?" Aidan asked Yjhan.
"We'll wait. I'm sure some guests will arrive an hour later, so we can't go anywhere but here."
They are currently stationed in front of the Imperial Palace's entrance. They must thoroughly inspect the carriages as well as the guests. The guests are to be check trice, once on the front gate, one on the main gate, and after the main gate which is the pathway of Ivelisse's garden, there will be knights lined up to check the guests arriving, Squad 15 is one of those knights positioned in the walkway.
"Nash!?" Nash turned to face the person who had called her and discovered that it was Squad 13's leader, Ren. Nash was greeted with a wave by the members.
"I thought you'd participate in the ceremony?" Ren asked as soon as he's in front of Nash. Behind him are his members.
'How come these guys know my age?', Nash thought to herself.
"I'm not interested,"
"Eh, why?"
Nash shrugged, "just because."
She has no reason to be there. You can be blessed whenever you wish, but they claim that the coming of age ceremony employs a different type of blessing. They say that the blessing at the coming-of-age period allows you to think differently and causes your mind to mature. Nash, on the other hand, does not believe that; she has always assumed that it is simply what others think.
Naturally, after you've reached the age of adulthood, you must take things seriously, forget about your youth, and consider what will happen to your future. The main objective of the coming-of-age ceremony is to be blessed by the high priest and to locate a suitable mate. Nash is unconcerned about those details for the time being.
The coming-of-age ceremony differs from a debutante ball in that the debutante ball occurs on the day of your birth when you turn exactly 17 years old. It is a somewhat private party, with only those who have received an invitation from the celebrant present.
Coming-of-age, on the other hand, is a public event. The Imperial Palace is being used for the first time this year. Initially, the Emperor Roven refused Duke Barcley's request to use the Imperial ballroom, but due to his youngest daughter, he was forced to accept the request.
"So, where are you positioned?" Nash asked. She spotted them at the meeting site in the temple but was unable to communicate with them because the Squad 13 fled as soon as the meeting was adjourned.
Kris, one of the twins with dark blue hair, replied, "The front gate."
Nash nodded. They talked about nonsense things, some squads present near them looked at them laughing freely. It shows that the Squad 15 and 13 have a good relationship.
"The guests will arrive shortly so position yourselves!" Says one senior knight.
"We'll get going now," Grin waved his hand to Nash.