The Garden of Fantasy truly deserved its reputation as a luxurious playground for nobles. The red carpet was inlaid with dazzling gold. Lion heads carved into the outer walls looked vivid and lifelike, their gaping mouths seeming to emit faint roars. From behind the antique wooden doors drifted a refreshing fragrance that made one feel relaxed, as if inviting them to sink into indulgence immediately.
Nobles really loved these flashy but impractical decorations.
“Welcome, Master, to the Garden of Fantasy!” Two scantily dressed cat-beastgirls bowed at the entrance.
Peleti frowned immediately, her expression turning displeased.
“Why are there beastfolk here?”
After what happened on the train, Peleti didn’t have a good impression of beastfolk.
The two petite and adorable catgirls instantly showed terrified expressions upon hearing her words. They kept their bowing posture, eyes fixed on the golden floor beneath them.
Their fear was genuine. Their duty here was to earn the favor of every guest. If they displeased these powerful figures, the only fate awaiting them would be death.
Ailberna tugged lightly at Peleti’s skirt and shook her head with a complicated expression.
Qiao Suna added, “Runes are embedded in their collarbones. With those runes in place, there won’t be any accidents.”
Peleti looked at their necks.
At the same spot on both of their collarbones was a bright flower-shaped mark. There were no straps or clothing holding it in place—it seemed to be directly embedded there.
Peleti sighed softly but didn’t drop her guard.
“Alright. I’ll trust you.”
“Thank you for your mercy!” The beastgirls bowed even lower.
An inexplicable bitterness rose in Peleti’s heart. These beastfolk were doing this simply to stay alive.
But wasn’t she the same?
Looking at Feiye, Peleti saw the same vigilance in her eyes. Feiye clearly didn’t believe beastfolk would willingly live under humans like this.
Still… since it was Qiao Suna’s explanation, she gave a little extra trust and didn’t pursue the matter further.
The interior of the courtyard was magnificently decorated. Every brick and tile radiated the scent of money.
At the center stood a long table covered in red cloth, filled with exquisite food.
Powerful nobles dressed in splendid attire held wine glasses, chatting and socializing with acquaintances around them.
This was how noble gatherings usually were—highly focused on building connections.
But these people weren’t truly friends. What bound them together was interest and profit.
Relationships among nobles were extremely complicated. Many matters couldn’t be handled by a single person’s power. To gain greater benefits, standing alone simply wouldn’t work.
Forming alliances and gathering strength to face challenges together—that was the real strategy.
That was also why nobles loved holding banquets.
At banquets, one could meet many influential figures who were rarely seen otherwise. Most people came with the intention of attaching themselves to someone powerful.
The more famous the host, the larger the banquet.
Too many people came—if the venue were smaller, it simply wouldn’t fit everyone.
Inside the courtyard, the staff were somewhat better than the two at the entrance. Although there were still a few beastfolk, there were also many humans.
At least it wasn’t a sight that made Peleti uncomfortable at first glance.
“Feiye, you probably haven’t seen something like this before, right?” Peleti smiled, thinking she might finally have an area where she knew more than Feiye.
Feiye paused for a moment before answering.
“You’re right. I’ve never seen something this small before.”
Only then did Peleti remember that Feiye had once been a princess of the vampire race.
How could she possibly not have attended banquets?
The banquets Feiye attended growing up were hosted by the Queen of the Night Empire. At that level, almost every noble in the entire empire attended.
Compared to that, the banquet in front of them was nothing.
Looking at it this way, the scale here really was small.
“What a careless mistake…” Peleti covered her face in frustration.
She had wanted to see if there was at least one area where she could surpass Feiye.
Now it seemed that aside from height and chest size, she wasn’t better than Feiye in anything.
The reason Feiye appeared ordinary was simply because she didn’t care about those things. If she did, she would probably surpass Peleti in every aspect.
This is bad…
If things keep going like this, how am I supposed to keep Feiye listening to me?
Relying only on the identity of “big sister” would make it difficult to keep Feiye stable forever.
This is troublesome…
A smiling noble approached them.
Seeing him, Ailberna greeted him with an equally “pleasant” expression and shook his hand.
“Long time no see, Miss Isaacson. You’re still as beautiful as ever.”
“And you as well, Mr. Qiaoleidi. Hosting such a grand event must have been quite tiring.”
Listening to this exchange made Peleti feel speechless.
Were noble conversations always this formulaic?
Even though he was a noble, Ailberna didn’t seem to give him much face. Even Peleti, who knew nothing about noble etiquette, couldn’t help wondering if this behavior was appropriate.
Yet the neatly bearded noble laughed heartily.
“I’m relieved to see Miss Isaacson hasn’t changed. I thought age might have altered your personality.”
“That’s none of your concern. I have my own considerations,” Ailberna said dismissively.
This old fox really refused to take even the smallest loss.
Still, since he was the host of the banquet, some polite conversation was unavoidable.
“So this must be Miss Peleti. Truly astonishing—two unparalleled geniuses appearing in this era. The Holy Light Church must be prospering more and more.”
Qiaoleidi’s gaze shifted briefly toward Peleti before moving away.
“It’s simply fate,” Peleti replied. “But Mr. Qiaoleidi must have worked hard to organize this banquet.”
“Haha, you flatter me. Hosting a simple banquet is hardly difficult.”
“Mr. Qiaoleidi,” Qiao Suna said while taking Peleti’s hand, “since Peleti is new to this place, I’d like to show her around first.”
“Of course. I can’t monopolize you all to myself,” Qiaoleidi said, glancing sideways.
Quite a few nobles nearby were already watching the scene.
“Then I won’t disturb the three of you.”
After saying that, Qiaoleidi turned to chat with another noble.
Clearly, he hadn’t noticed the real big shot standing beside Peleti.
“I’ve been ignored…” Feiye murmured quietly, her tone unreadable.
“It’s fine. You still have me, don’t you?” Peleti said casually.
Soon a crowd of nobles swarmed over, surrounding Ailberna and Qiao Suna.
Peleti had expected this.
It was probably their first time attending a Falisa noble banquet.
One was the beloved daughter of the Isaacson family, and the other was the leading candidate for the church’s next Holy Maiden.
From any perspective, they were people worth befriending.
Even if someone didn’t have much to offer, simply making an acquaintance would already be beneficial.
Local nobles had long been eager to get close to them.
Now that they had finally appeared at a banquet, everyone wanted to seize the opportunity.
Compared to them, Peleti attracted far less attention.
After all, she was only a nominal Senior Priest. Most people didn’t know about her talent. They only knew she had some connection with the archbishop.
But thinking about it—forming a relationship with Qiao Suna would bring the same benefits.
So why bother approaching a Senior Priest who was carrying a child?
As a result, Peleti’s pressure was astonishingly low.
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