228 White Lotus vs The Huntress

(Planet Gaia- Imperial Palace)

(Grand Hall)

"Announcing the entrance of Sophie of House Peterlor."

"Announcing the entrance of Leona of House Braveheart."

"Announcing the entrance of Chase of House Morechild."

"Announcing the entrance of…."

The series of introductions that came one after the other caused many of the participants in the grand hall to gradually take notice.

Typically, each noble would enter the banquet by themselves unless they were part of a faction. 

But was there a faction with so many high nobles?

This casual interest soon turned to shock as the palace attendant continued to shout out names until the total number reached six.

Six may not seem like a high number but considering that the most popular faction attending the banquet only had ten members, it was a respectable count.

All eyes turned to the towering wooden doors that would swing open to reveal the appearance of the nobles who were being announced.

The palace attendant cleared his throat once he finished with the introductions and then carefully opened the wooden door.

Sophie confidently stepped forward with a cold and indifferent expression on her face. 

She could see the looks of undisguised surprise appear in the eyes of the younger nobles and even some of the more mature ones.

Every noble would have most likely done some prior research on the guests who would be attending the banquet.

It was one thing to read a report that talked about Duke Peterlor deciding to name a hybrid as his heir, but it was another matter to see the beautiful and not fully human girl enter the room.

The small traces of a smile appeared on Sophie's lip as she purposely extended the blade-like appendages on her back outwards for all to see.

There was no use in hiding her alien features, so the best option was to put them on full display.

Sophie's gorgeous dress sparkled under the dim light of the chandelier and the sparkling stars that were visible every time she made a small movement were simply memorizing.

Adam had truly outdone himself. 

There were no shortage of rare and exotic materials that went into the construction of the outfits worn by the nobles in the banquet hall, but Sophie's evening gown was clearly a cut above the rest.

She could hear some quiet footsteps behind her and soon Leona appeared with Lily safely held in her arms.

Luna was looking a bit nervous as she followed Clara's steady footsteps, but the older woman just held her hand and whispered some calming words.

The two men in the group soon followed shortly after. 

Alexander's gentleman-like demeanor and aura of a weak scholar contrasted sharply with Chase's lively and sunny personality.

Sophie's pointed ears twitched slightly as she could hear some unflattering gossip, but she paid it no mind. 

It was nothing that she hadn't heard before.

Now it was time to put her plan into play.

Sophie raised her head upwards and confidently walked down the royal stairway with an aura of majesty that no dared to provoke.

Her piercing golden eyes seemed particularly harsh as she stared directly at a group of nobles who were mocking her looks just a few moments earlier.

Those nobles turned away with reddened faces as they could not withstand the pressure hidden just beneath Sophie's seemingly normal gaze.

Her entourage easily slipped into the planned formation with Sophie in the center of the group and collecting all the attention.

Lily wanted to dive into the arms of her beautiful big sister, but Leona held onto her firmly to prevent the little girl from making any trouble.

There was an empty spot in the middle of the banquet hall, so Sophie made her way over in full view of the crowd.

Her goal was not to be completely cold and distant as one would still need to network during the banquet.

To form a good relationship with her fellow peers would mean an easier time for Duke Peterlor to expand his faction.

"Good evening, I am Sophie of House Peterlor."

Sophie politely nodded and raised her hand to perform the standard noble greeting to any young heirs that were in her path.

Some replied favourably and returned the greeting while others pretended not to see it. 

Leona was much better at socialising than her and Clara was an old monster who had lived for over five hundred years.

With the help of the two of them giving out subtle hints, Sophie was able to converse freely with some of the nearby nobles and not commit any faux pas.

However, Sophie breezed past those who ignored her without any trace of embarrassment on her face at the humiliation.

This made these unpleasant heirs seem like clowns performing a show for no one.

The walk to the open spot in the middle of the banquet hall took quite some time as Sophie made sure to leave a good impression on as many heirs as possible.

The spot was directly under the dimly lit chandelier so when the artificial light hit Sophie and her entourage, they seemed like the most dazzling presence in the hall.

Sophie closed her eyes briefly to steady herself before opening them once more and engaging in light conversation with Luna.

Truthfully…. socialising was not her favourite pastime. 

Sophie would much rather be spending a relaxing afternoon with Cleo on the couch and doing nothing.

Dealing with these nobles who would easily wear a smile while hiding a dagger in their sleeves was extremely tiring.

After they arrived at the spot, Sophie no longer sought out the company of other noble heirs and waited for others to approach their faction first.

It was okay to socialise briefly on the way to their area of the banquet hall but anything else would seem excessive.

There was a fine balance that had to be maintained.

One had to establish connections and form social relations, but they could not seem desperate to do so or all their hard work would be lost.

Nobles were inherently arrogant and especially these proud sons and daughters of dukes and duchesses would not appreciate someone pestering them.

A tiny part of Sophie was a bit worried that no one would approach them after several minutes passed by uneventfully.

But her fears soon turned out to be unfounded as she heard a cheerful voice.

"Greeting Miss Sophie Peterlor. My name is Iv…. Rosalina Farkin," a fragile and delicate noble girl smiled softly and performed the standard noble greeting.

She had a fresh and youthful appearance that went well with her simple white dress that invoked a feeling of tenderness.

"It is a pleasure to meet you missus Farkin," Sophie narrowed her eyes slightly but returned the greeting.

Rosalina was holding a wineglass full of purplish liquid in her hand and during the conversation she would continue to take large sips.

Seeing that someone had taken the lead, a steady stream of other noble heirs approached Sophie's group and begun to converse.

Despite the Imperial Teacher and the Human Supremacy faction's best efforts, most of the noble class held an indifferent view towards hybrids.

They were just treated as a slightly more interesting subgroup of commoners.

Sophie could not tell what was making her feel unnerved as she listened carefully to Rosalina's funny stories about her time living in the outer regions.

Her first impression of Rosalina was that this noble girl could conduct herself with dignity and grace but had an aura that made others want to protect her.

It was this humble and subservient attitude that directly contrasted with the arrogant and independent nature of the other noble heirs.

Sophie did not personally dislike this type of personality, but she was of the opinion that it was too dangerous in this cruel world to rely on others completely without having some strength of your own.

As Rosalina continued to talk more and more about her childhood experiences, Sophie could not help but think that she described these events as if they occurred to a stranger.

Something was off about this seemingly innocent girl, but she just could not put her finger on it…...

[Oh, this is interesting]

Sophie flinched subconsciously as a cold ancient- sounding voice appeared in her mind and whispered in a dark tone.

[She would make a worthy sacrifice]