MDK 83

Episode 83 – Golden Blood

A noble’s tea party was never small or simple. Everything had to be grand. It showed the host’s wealth, history, and skill. In the capital, tea parties were on another level. Young heirs, knights, and nobles attended. Sons wore clean uniforms with family symbols on the chest. Daughters wore colorful dresses like blooming flowers. Everyone wanted to be the center of attention.

But no matter how hard they tried, one person outshone them all like the sun: Olivia Arken.

Golden hair. Blue eyes. Even waking up messy in the morning, she looked beautiful. She was the Emperor’s daughter, smart, and the most wanted bride in history.

“Look! It’s Lady Olivia!”
“She really came to this party?”
“How can someone be so beautiful…”

Everyone stared, men and women alike. Young noblemen pretended not to look, but they always did. Some hoped bravery could win her attention.

“I greet the Princess of the Empire, Guardian of the Golden Dawn and Blade of the Border—”
“I’m sorry.”

A woman beside Olivia interrupted with a sweet smile.

“She’s in a meeting with the young ladies. Only Golden Rose members can join.”

The man stammered, embarrassed, and left. The ladies laughed quietly.

“Another fool who doesn’t know his place.”
“Even the Duke of Mussel’s son got rejected. And this backwater baron dares speak to the princess?”

Olivia tilted her head, holding her teacup.

“But if he protects the border, shouldn’t we greet him?”

“Oh, that’s not needed!”
“Yes! If we’re too nice, the low ones climb over us!”
“Is that so?”
“Of course!”
“Ah, Princess Olivia, you’re just so pure…”
“I want to protect you forever!”

The young ladies acted like they adored her. Olivia smiled, pretending to be pure, but inside she thought: Protect me, my foot.

She knew her beauty, knew how to use it, and knew how to protect herself. Her bodyguards both adored and resented her.

“Because all the men only look at me.”

No jewelry or designer clothes could match her attention. She controlled them by forming the Golden Rose, a social club for elite women. They could flirt with men they liked, but if they started dating, they left the club, and someone new replaced them. The system kept loyalty and protection intact.

“You’re perfect in every way, like you have golden blood!”

Golden Blood. People said the Arken family had the blood of true rulers. But Olivia hated that word. She had the blood, but she was stuck in a flower garden, not ruling.

“Yes, well, that’s right,” she said coldly.

The mood turned chilly. The girl apologized quickly.

“S-sorry, Princess! I didn’t mean to upset you…”

“Even if Lady Hons didn’t mean it, it was rude.”
“Yes. How could you bring that topic here?”

Olivia hid her true feelings. Snakes. All of them.

“Oh my, why are you upset?”
“I just thought I offended you, Princess…”
“That can’t be. I was thinking too deeply. Sorry for not paying attention.”

Olivia’s blue eyes sparkled. The girls panicked.

“No, no, Princess!”
“You looked beautiful in thought. Like a painting!”

They laughed, cursing her for pretending to be kind. Let them talk. A mask worn long enough becomes the real face.

Then someone changed the subject.

“Did you hear?”
“About what?”
“About Lord Ferda.”

Olivia’s hand froze.

“They say he did something amazing in Halim.”
“Halim? That filthy place?”
“Isn’t that where half-naked women seduce men?”
“No! It was for an Escolaya exhibition.”
“Are you sure? I heard men come back totally drained…”

The gossip sounded silly, but Olivia spoke.

“What happened there?”

“A monster rift opened, seven wolf monsters came out. He defeated them all, and no one died.”
“No one died?”

The girls blinked, unable to understand. Olivia knew.
No deaths in a surprise attack? That’s a miracle. She studied war tactics and knew the talent it took.

Did he use dark magic? She thought of a lost shadow spell book from Barbatos, rumored gone after a fight with an investigator. Better to leave mysteries as mysteries. That’s how Olivia acted—for the greater good.

“I heard he used dark magic,” Lady Hons said again.

Everyone perked up.

“They say Ferda reacted too quickly, like he knew the monsters were coming.”
“Isn’t that a stretch?”
“Some say Ferda caused the rift himself, to show off in Halim.”

The girls nodded as if it made sense. Olivia felt disgust inside.

“What do you think, Princess?” Lady Hons asked.
“Lady Hons, I think it’s wrong to call a hero who saved lives a dark mage.”

The gossip turned against Lady Hons. She was now ignored at tea parties from then on.

She meant no harm… but she dug her own grave.

Anyway, Lord Ferda is moving smoothly. Since claiming conquest of the cursed land, he gained support. Now, he was a hero of Halim. No one could stop him. He would surely build a second capital.

I need to do something too… But Olivia had made no progress. To gain real power, she needed to become a saint. Yet all she did was drink tea, gossip, and smile fake smiles.

Being a princess is so frustrating. She had to learn things she didn’t care about—tea flavors, pastry recipes. Far from the holy path.

But I still have to try. If she became a saint, she could finally earn the cursed title: Golden Blood.

Meanwhile, Ferda thought about his new city and the workers building it.

“Hmm… 2 shillings a day?”

The pay was humiliating. Yet someone still worked efficiently.

“Does he know construction law or something?”
“No. He has no knowledge, but just with strength, he finished tasks faster than expected.”

Superhuman strength. Ferda thought of someone.

“The armored knight?”
“Yes.”
“Was he struggling in heavy armor?”
“No. Half-plate, like wandering knights.”

Ferda recalled the fortress, Alberdo. No sightings. Secret movement with heavy armor. Superhuman strength… That strength finished work two months ahead of schedule.

“Should we investigate him?” Isabella asked.
“No. We don’t want him to run away.”

Cutting off the golden goose would be foolish.

“We can’t overlook his value. Think of ways to keep using him.”
“Wise decision.”

A useful person for the kingdom should be recruited—or made to join. If not, every benefit would be extracted.

“By the way… what should we name the city?”
“Valdrova?” Isabella suggested, hesitating.

“It’s the name of the fortress and kingdom. Mention it too often, its dignity fades.”
“Then we need a new name.”

She held a public poll. Two names remained: Diarine, “frontline of magic,” or Alterios, “light in the darkness.”

“Diarine sounds gloomy, Alterios reminds of Alter religion.”

Ferda had enough of the Alter religion. They showed no mercy.

“What about Hestia?”

The name came from a past project: Project Hestia, to rescue his fiancée. Hestia, the woman who kept the flame since ancient times. Rare, meaningful.

“Hestia…”

Light, easy to say, strong meaning. Valdrova—master of strength and fire—would protect it. The city would be a stronghold for fire protectors.

So I must make the most of that armored knight. Ferda would extract as much as he could until the knight changed his mind. That was his will.