Raised in Dungeon

Prince Francis' birthday party was attended by not only the country's nobles but also by nobles from abroad. Ministers from the Duchy of Benchmandy in the south, Ministers from the Kingdom of Saxcolony in the southeast, and even the enemy kingdom of Denscratch in the east. Their arrival was also a form of respect for the aging King Henry.

"You're coming too, Minister Vagn Balle; I thought you wouldn't accept an invitation from your enemy, Wildenhall," asked Minister Ailmar from Benchmandy.

"We are invited; of course we will come. Our king always wished for King Henry's death, but since he seems to be dying soon, he sent me as an honor; how strange… Maybe he sees King Henry as a rival or something?"

The Palace Ballroom was the most spacious room in the entire palace, even larger than the royal chamber. The room was arranged with tables on each side, serving an array of mouth-watering dishes.

Prince Francis stood tall between two massive pillars at the far end of the room. In the center of the pillars was a large seat, but it remained empty, as the prince had no time to sit down. This was understandable, for an hour before the event began, the room had been filled with nobles eager to meet the prince. Francis was busy shaking hands with everyone who came his way, grinning widely and conversing politely. He was clearly trying his best to leave a good impression on each guest. The event hadn't started, yet he was already doing his best to maintain his friendly demeanor. Despite the fatigue, the prince continued greeting guests, wishing them well and thanking them for coming.

Finally, she could sit there after more than half an hour of standing and smiling.

"It's finally over!" complained Prince Francis.

"Not yet, your highness. You have to be prepared for the guests that will keep coming," said Sabine who was standing next to him.

"But I'm already tired; can't I greet them while sitting down? From the start, they all have a lower status than me; why do I have to stand for them?"

"Because tonight you are the main character, Prince Francis. Everyone here came because of your birthday, so you have to answer them," Sabine said, trying to convince Francis with her sweet words.

"Oh! That's right!" It worked; he wrote "main character" into his favorite dictionary.

As Sabine's said, there were still others to come.

"Happy birthday, your highness..." a rather heavy female voice. Francis looked at her with a bit of amazement until he came to his senses and stood up to shake her hand.

"Thank you very much, Miss Fleur. You look beautiful in that dress," Francis said.

"Haha, how often have you said that to all the ladies here?"

"About 20 or so, but my words are honest; I just can't come up with anything better."

"That's great."

'Good, your highness. As per training, you must say that repeatedly,' Sabine thought.

"But I don't feel like this outfit suits me at all," Fleur continued. She was wearing a red dress that went all the way down.

"That's not right! As Prince Francis said, you are very beautiful!" said a black-haired man behind Fleur, Birawa Budiono, one of the knights of the rounds. He was wearing a knight's official outfit similar to the other knights. So at first glance, they looked like nobles and their personal knights.

"I apologize for the impudence of my subordinate, Prince Francis; he is indeed a bit unique from others," Fleur said.

Birawa then came forward and shook Francis' hand with both hands.

"Selamat ulang tahun, Pangeran Prancis!"

"Eh? What did you say?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I often mix the language of my home world with this world... I mean, happy birthday, prince Francis."

"Thank you for coming to my birthday party, Sir Birawa."

"You remember me?! I'm so happy to be remembered by the prince of this country!"

"Yeah... I don't think there's anyone in this castle who doesn't recognize you, noisy one," Francis whispered.

"So, what are you doing here? I heard Rounds is busy guarding the entire castle," Sabine asked.

"Oh, we're-"

"DATING! We're going on a date after not seeing each other for so long!" said Birawa, who interrupted the conversation.

Fleur immediately punched Birawa in the face to shut him up.

Then she continued,

"We're here to work."

"But, you're not wearing knight clothes," Francis said.

"This room is a place we have to guard. About my armor, Queen Regina ordered us not to wear it because of the feast."

"I understand, let's hope nothing happens here," Sabine said.

"That's right... then I and this fool will leave here first."

Francis waved his hand at them, then sank into his chair again.

Sabine then lowered her head to Prince Francis' ear and said,

"Your highness... the party will begin in ten minutes. What do you think, Prince Francis? Is there anyone you're interested in? Which girl would you like to dance with first?"

'Uh, this is my least favorite question,' thought the prince.

'Why is this old hag always talking about women? I wasn't interested in finding a partner to begin with. Instead of doing useless things like that, I'd rather practice my sword.'

But as Sabine said, Francis kept looking at all the women in the room.

'Yeah... maybe I'll pick the one who looks the most nervous and the lamest. If my dance partner makes a mistake, I can stop the dance anytime.'

"What about that girl over there? She walks gracefully and looks confident. Her name is Marion Johnson; she's an earl's daughter with the best background of any girl your age. I've heard that many men would like to choose her as a partner," Sabine whispered.

Francis looked at Marion, then thought

'Uwaaah... there's no way I'm going to dance with someone like her. She looks good at dancing! Are you trying to embarrass me, Sabine?!'

Then at the last moment before the start of the feast, the soldier shouted the name of the last nobleman to arrive.

"EARL BOLDENVILLE HAS ARRIVED AT PALACE!"

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the entrance. The first reason was that they were the last to arrive right before the party started; the second was because they were Boldenville's famous nobles. Reynold entered with Ayde holding his hand.

And the third reason...

Because of the girl behind Ayde and Reynold.

As soon as Felicia made her entrance, everyone in the ballroom was immediately captivated by her stunning presence. She entered the room with a graceful and confident stride, her long dress flowing elegantly behind her.

The room fell silent as Felicia arrived, and every set of eyes in the crowd was fixated on her every move. Her beauty was undeniable, and even the most reserved of guests couldn't help but stare in awe at the breathtaking sight before them. As she moved across the room, every step seemed to be more graceful than the last, and her infectious energy bubbled up in the hearts of everyone she passed.

The atmosphere in the room was electric, and it was clear that Felicia had wholly stolen the show. Even the soft murmur of conversation that had permeated the room before her arrival had ceased, leaving only the sound of her dress rustling against the smooth wooden floorboards.

Everyone admires Felicia and her beautiful but unique dress except Birawa.

"Hmm? Aren't they Felicia and Allen?" said Birawa.

"Do you know them?" asked Fleur curiously.

"Yes, I met them on the way here. But she's so brave, why she wore clothes so different from everyone else? Isn't she embarrassed?"

"Why are you commenting on that? She's wearing a very unique and pretty dress; why should she be embarrassed?"

"Unique?" Birawa looked at Felicia's dress again; then, he realized something.

"Ah! That's right! In this time and in this world, that kind of dress didn't exist! I didn't pay much attention to it."

"In your world, does everyone wear those clothes?"

"Not really... Just a few people were wearing a dress like that."

While looking at Felicia, Birawa thought,

'This world is a little late in various ways, at first, I thought this world was the usual medieval-like isekai manga because the food was good, then there was paper, pens, sword skills, and many more things that made the development in this world look messy most likely because of the other-worlders who came from various ages. That girl's clothes probably never existed in this world...

If I'm not mistaken...

Victorian? Renaissance?

I don't know....'

...

The whispers and glances from every corner of the room were unsettling, causing Felicia's face to droop with anxiety. Sweat trickled down her forehead as her hands trembled, and her heart raced faster than ever before. The sparkles on her dress seemed to magnify the attention she was getting, making her more nervous by the second. The memories of the past flooded her mind as she tried hard to suppress them. It was similar to her birthday party two years ago when people had looked down on her. The mere thought of it made her nauseous.

She surveyed her surroundings, she could feel her confidence slipping away. It was then she noticed not a single person could take their eyes off her. More than just admiring her dress, it was obvious they were fascinated by her. Felicia couldn't bring herself to meet their gaze, but she knew they were all staring at her intensely. The attention only intensified her anxiety, and she could barely stand still, her legs were shaking uncontrollably.

Felicia could feel the walls closing in on her. She tried to regulate her breathing and search for an escape route, but she was trapped. She had to face the situation and maintain her composure. As the stares continued, she felt more vulnerable than ever before, exposed to a room full of nobles.

'They must be amazed at the dress; they must also be amazed at how beautiful I am right now,' Felicia thought, but Felicia was complimenting herself not to show off to herself but because she was scared.

It was no different from what happened two years ago; she looked beautiful, and people were also looking at her expectantly.

'If this situation continues, someone will ask me to dance!'

Unable to contain her anxiety, Felicia looked back toward Allen.

"Did you just give up?" muttered Allen.

"Hurry up!" shouted Felicia.

Allen came forward, and he grasped Felicia's hand.

"This way, no one will ever ask me to dance again-"

But Felicia was too naive. One person at full speed approached her and offered her his hand.

"W-WO-WOU-WOULD YOU LIKE TO DANCE WITH ME?!"

He was the 14th prince of the Wildenhall kingdom, Francis Ismenia Wildenhall. He blurted out, his face as red as a tomato, and he looked very nervous in front of Felicia. Felicia was taken aback by the prince's sudden appearance and equally sudden request.

'I know she's beautiful, but she already has a dance partner, your highness!' Sabine thought. Everyone around them watched in surprise as the prince made his move.

Felicia could feel the tension in the air as she tried to understand what was happening. Should she dance with Francis, even though she didn't want to? Is it okay to reject the prince? And what about Allen, standing beside her, holding her hand?

As she looked back and forth between the two, Felicia couldn't help but feel confused. Did Francis not know you can't ask someone with a dance partner to switch? And why was he so nervous in front of her, anyway?

'Prince?! Why would you offer me a dance when I'm already holding someone else's hand? Doesn't he know about this? Or is it possible that my honor to his party is being tested?! What should I do?!' thought Felicia.