“Either way, if I become Her Majesty the Empress’s aide, even the second son of a minor family can enter the palace.”
“So, in other words, there’s a lot to gain?”
“Exactly.”
“I can understand that it’s an interview to select aides, but everyone’s just boasting about their strength, their wealth, their looks, or praising my appearance—it really feels like they’re here just to play games with me.”
Adel sighed deeply, pressing her temples as she recalled the people she wanted to kick out immediately.
“Shall we call the next person in?”
At this cautious suggestion, the Empress clicked her tongue and nodded.
“Just a moment. The Empress doesn’t like people who talk too much. She prefers those who can concisely summarize the essentials,” Mrs. Geeks said with a grimace.
Rarely smiling, she nodded politely.
“Yes, I’ll tell them briefly.”
As she stepped outside, Adel muttered under her breath while staring out the window with a cold gaze:
“None of them understand the purpose of the announcement I made.”
Adelaide’s patience had begun to wear thin by the second day of interviews, and by the final day of the grueling process, it had finally reached its limit. Even after going to bed early the night before and sleeping like the dead, she did not feel refreshed.
Around noon, one candidate brought a brick-like object, claiming they would break it with their fists, and had to be carried out. Adel seriously thought:
“I shouldn’t have done this. Even on the last day, this is what it’s come to.”
She had seen so many that she could almost tell a person’s character from their first glance, and there were even candidates she sent out immediately after seeing them. Yet, there still had been no one from the Baldur family’s side.
Looking tiredly at the next applicant’s documents, Mrs. Geeks cautiously asked:
“Shall we send them all away if you’re too tired?”
The suggestion was tempting, but Adel shook her head.
“We’re almost done, aren’t we?”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“Let them in. We need to finish quickly.”
“Understood. Then please bear with it a little longer.”
Mrs. Geeks bowed politely and stepped back outside.
Historically, empresses didn’t have this many candidates because influential families would filter applicants beforehand, and most aides were already pre-selected. It was natural that the Empress was exhausted.
Adjusting her glasses, Mrs. Geeks quickly scanned the next candidate’s information.
“Now, the next applicant is—”
At that moment, an invisible wave seemed to ripple through the room, shaking the world. The waiting room suddenly became chaotic. Mrs. Geeks frowned and looked up. Everyone in the room was staring at the entrance. Mrs. Geeks followed their gaze.
“Oh…”
People drew in their breath in various places. Even Mrs. Geeks squinted and removed her glasses.
A man in a perfectly fitted black suit stood at the waiting room entrance. Even the maid who opened the door was frozen, staring up at him.
His black hair and eyes would likely look blue under the bright sunlight. A handsome man, almost startlingly so, wore a badge on his chest that drew attention as much as his appearance—a pair of crossed swords and a black leopard. Mrs. Geeks stepped forward and bowed politely to him.
“Welcome, Sir Lionel Baldur.”
Lionel took a stiff envelope from his chest and handed it to Mrs. Geeks.
“I hope I’m not too late.”
The experienced elder woman calmly took his documents without asking trivial questions and spoke politely:
“You’ll have to wait for a moment.”
“Understood.”
Following the guidance, Lionel sat on a sofa in the waiting room. Mrs. Geeks professionally called in the next candidate and left for the Empress’s office. Those remaining couldn’t help but keep sneaking glances at him.
‘Lionel Baldur is applying?’
‘He’s really applying?’
‘Is this guy just someone who looks like Lionel Baldur?’
But no, there was no mistaking him. That face, that aura, the Baldur family badge on his chest—it was unmistakable.
‘It’s really Lionel Baldur!!!’
The commotion in the waiting room didn’t reach the Empress’s office directly, but it was conveyed to Adel in another way.
‘What is wrong with all of them?’
The demeanor of the candidates changed subtly, one by one. They were clearly different from the previous applicants, in a way that was hard to describe. Adel tilted her head, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. They seemed either spaced out or unmotivated.
Adel quickly dismissed such thoughts. The tedious interviews were finally over. Regardless of their attitude, all the previous candidates had failed. Some stammered and floundered, others panicked and said unnecessary things.
A few maintained their composure and spoke properly, but fewer than five showed any attitude she found acceptable.
Adel fixed her sharp gaze on Lionel. Upon meeting her intense stare, Lionel was certain: the Empress did not want a game. The realization brought a cold rationality over him. He discarded all flowery words and got straight to the point.
“Do you require an aide, Your Majesty?”
At his question, the Empress slowly crossed her arms and tilted her head. Despite her expressionless face and unwelcoming demeanor, Lionel did not falter.
“Are you seeking to balance power?”
