Chapter 123 - day before departure
Then we entered the dining room.
I took my usual seat, while Luna sat beside me. We greeted everyone at the table.
The Empress looked at me with an amused smile.
"Good morning, little Gray. I heard Luna had quite a few complaints about you yesterday."
I immediately looked toward Luna.
She looked away and puffed out her cheeks.
"Oh..."
I immediately understood.
The Empress laughed at my reaction.
"You two certainly had a lot of fun yesterday, didn’t you?"
I nodded.
"We did."
But then the Empress’s expression became slightly more serious.
"However, you two won’t be able to attend the training program for a while."
Luna and I looked at each other before turning toward her.
"Why?"
The Empress smiled at our synchronized reaction.
"There’s something important we need to attend."
Both Luna and I immediately became quiet and listened.
The Empress continued.
"I originally planned to tell you yesterday, but you weren’t present at the time, so I decided to tell you today."
"Amy and the others already know."
We glanced toward Amy and Elena before looking back at the Empress.
She continued.
"Isabella will be attending the academy soon, so she needs to participate in the entrance examination."
"We’re going to watch her performance."
Our eyes immediately lit up.
"Really?"
We both looked toward Isabella.
She nodded with a small smile.
"Yes."
However, I noticed a brief flicker of sadness in Luna’s expression.
Isabella noticed it as well.
"Don’t worry, Luna."
"Even if I go to the academy, we can still stay in touch."
"You can always come and visit me."
Luna’s expression immediately brightened.
"Really?"
Isabella nodded.
"Of course."
The Empress smiled before continuing.
"We’re leaving tomorrow, so make sure you’re prepared."
"You may even have the opportunity to meet members of other races and their younger generations."
That immediately caught our attention.
"Other races?"
My curiosity grew.
The Empress nodded.
"Yes."
"This will be more than just an academy entrance examination."
"There will be representatives from several different races attending as well."
My excitement grew.
This was starting to sound interesting.
However, Mother quickly added an important reminder.
"We aren’t going there as ordinary nobles."
"We will be representing humanity."
"So both of you need to conduct yourselves appropriately."
I nodded seriously.
"I understand, Mom."
Luna nodded as well.
"We’ll be careful."
After that, we continued eating while the Empress explained more details about the trip and how the examination would be conducted.
Eventually, breakfast came to an end.
Luna and I left the dining room together.
The moment we stepped outside, I looked around.
Then I leaned closer to Luna.
"Hey."
"Come with me."
"Don’t ask questions."
"And whatever happens..."
"Don’t show any hostility."
Luna stared at me in confusion.
"...What are you talking about?"
"Just trust me."
She hesitated for a moment before nodding.
"Okay..."
I immediately started walking faster.
A few moments later, we reached a safe distance from the dining hall.
I looked back.
No one was following us.
Perfect.
Luna finally couldn’t hold back her curiosity.
"Why are you running?"
"What happened?"
I turned toward her with a grave expression.
"Don’t you know?"
"There’s pure hell waiting for me back there."
Luna blinked.
"Pure hell?"
"What are you talking about?"
I sighed dramatically.
"Don’t you remember what happened during our engagement banquet?"
She tilted her head.
"What happened?"
I facepalmed.
"Didn’t you see Amy’s expression?"
"She’s probably already planning how to turn me into a human clothes hanger."
"I have to escape while I still can."
Luna stared at my horrified expression for a moment.
Then she burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
I sighed.
"At least someone understands my suffering."
Unfortunately...
Her laughter didn’t last long.
A shadow suddenly fell over us.
My entire body froze.
Slowly...
Very slowly...
I turned around.
Amy was standing behind me.
She smiled.
"Oh, Gray."
"Where exactly do you think you’re running?"
"We have work to do."
My expression immediately changed.
"No."
I turned around and tried to run.
But before I could take even two steps—
Amy grabbed me by the collar.
"Got you."
"Let me go!"
"No."
She looked toward Luna.
"Luna, do you want to come with us?"
"We can choose some nice clothes for Gray."
I desperately shook my head at Luna.
Don’t.
Please.
This is your chance.
Save me.
Luna looked at me for a moment.
Then...
She smiled.
"Sure."
My soul nearly left my body.
"Luna!"
She simply laughed.
Amy happily dragged me back toward her room.
"I already arranged for someone to bring the clothes to the palace."
"So we can choose everything here."
My expression became increasingly desperate.
"No..."
"Please..."
But it was already too late.
When we arrived, I saw countless clothes waiting for us.
My nightmare had begun.
Luna and Elena immediately joined Amy, examining different outfits and discussing which ones would suit me.
"This one would look good."
"What about this?"
"I think this style suits Gray better."
"Maybe this one too."
I could only stand there helplessly.
Every time I tried to escape, Amy caught me with minimal effort.
Running was useless.
Fighting was even more useless.
And unfortunately...
I couldn’t exactly use Void Step to escape from my own family.
Several hours passed.
By the end of it, Luna, Elena, and Amy had chosen countless different outfits and experimented with various combinations.
I had no choice but to comply.
Eventually, I accepted reality.
There was no escape.
I sighed heavily.
I just had to endure it.
For the sake of the Starlight Family...
And my own survival...
I embraced my fate.
Eventually...
It was finally over.
I had endured the clothes themselves.
Changing outfits wasn’t the problem.
The real problem was the questions.
"This one is too plain."
"This one is too bright."
"This one doesn’t have enough design."
"This one has too much design."
"What do you think about this one?"
"Which one do you prefer?"
Every time they asked for my opinion, I honestly answered.
And every time...
They completely ignored my answer.
They would exchange their own opinions, enter their own little world, and then hand me another outfit to try.
Then another.
And another.
And another.
How many outfits do they even have?!
Eventually, after what felt like an eternity...
I finally escaped that hell.
Amy, Elena, and Luna had finally agreed on a dark-blue outfit.
And most importantly...
I was free.
I immediately walked away before they could change their minds.
Luna followed beside me with a huge smile on her face.
She looked far too happy about what had just happened.
"So..."
"What should we do now?"
I looked at her with resentment.
"You enjoyed that far too much."
She simply smiled.
I sighed before thinking for a moment.
"How about we go tell Elara that we won’t be able to attend the training for the next few days?"
Luna nodded.
"That sounds like a good idea."
So we left to find Elara.
It didn’t take long before we spotted her.
The moment she saw us approaching, she quickly ran over.
"What happened?"
"Why aren’t you two coming to training?"
"The instructor said you wouldn’t be attending today, but he didn’t explain why."
Luna and I exchanged a glance.
Then we explained the situation.
We told her about the trip tomorrow and that we wouldn’t be able to attend the training program for a while.
Elara listened carefully before nodding.
"Oh..."
"I understand."
She smiled faintly.
"I’ll miss having you two around."
"Training alone is rather boring."
I smiled.
"It won’t be for long."
"We’ll be back soon."
Elara nodded.
"I’ll hold you to that."
After talking for a little while longer, Luna and I finally left the training grounds.
Instead of returning directly to the palace, I headed toward the garden.
Luna followed me.
"Why are we going here?"
I didn’t answer immediately.
I simply walked toward one of the benches and sat down.
Then I leaned back and looked up at the sky.
"I like places like this."
"They’re peaceful."
"After escaping that hell..."
"I need to replenish my brain."
I sighed.
"Who asks that many completely nonsensical questions about clothes?"
Luna laughed softly.
"You really suffered that much?"
"Yes."
"More than you can imagine."
She smiled and sat down beside me.
After that...
Neither of us spoke.
We simply sat there together.
The gentle breeze passed through the garden.
The surroundings were quiet.
No training.
No monsters.
No tournament.
No endless questions about clothes.
Just peace.
For once...
Silence didn’t feel awkward.
It felt comfortable.
And somehow...
Having Luna sitting beside me made the peaceful moment feel even better.
———-
A/N :-
Echo_7642 2 Chapter I owe 😁
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