True Love's Seventh Kiss

Ch.21 Party Planning

Weeks passed and Marion was grateful that His mother was true to her friend-request. She and Delora did practically everything together in the most wholesome ways and chattered like school girls about this and that the whole while. On precious free days, Marion went to the dock warehouse and helped repair the Dryad's Whisper. When there was nothing, he could do he hung around with Henry and practiced swordplay and swinging on rigging.

He was getting pretty good at both, if he had to say so himself.

The rest of his time was spent helping out Novak with paperwork and logistics following the dragon scare. There was also the paperwork regarding the sky navy deployment costs as well as a herd of people selling Holy water knock offs and novelty dragon goods. Public opinion was at an all-time high, but that didn't mean public order was able to remain so high.

They also received many letters offering help on conditions, so they made a tally of who was trying to take advantage of them and who was offering more sincere help. At which points Corsair was surprisingly helpful. Along with many other miscellaneous letters from nobility. Everything from blatantly asking for spring water or dragon bits to, trying to partner for business deals, to sending invitations for various events.

Eventually, news got out they had a dragon in human form was staying with them and it got even worse.

At that point Irina quite literally danced to the rescue.

Since Novak had already brought up a party to Irina celebrating her health and as a way to give Marion a chance to Debut before school, the countess was eagerly exploiting this opportunity. Although they were just a count family, they were an old noble family that had persisted against all odds from the time the empire first formed. Novak was also a swordmaster and almost became a sword saint, while Irina was a battle mage from a semi-prestigious mage family.

Due to their health, they were not seen as a threat, but they still had enough connections and had a mostly undesirable territory that most people didn't move against them publicly. Although many were waiting for Novak and Irina to keel over and take advantage of the naive children. But that had collapsed now that Irina's health was on the rise, and they were associating with a dragon.

Things had changed. Which meant people were moving to gain the most advantage of it.

Irina also included Delora in the party prep and Delora was ecstatic to not only be involved but to learn so many new things. They went everywhere together and were tied to the hip, except when Irina was doting on Novak during some choice two-hour lunch times, and any other time her whim brought her in to give him a break.

During those times Delora whisked away Marion and they ate their meal and played away from the flirty couple. Often, they would stop by Erabelle who was starting her education and would eat lunch with her and play for a bit until Irina came to fetch Marion.

Then Marion would be stuck with the women while learning dance, advanced etiquette, and anything else he would need to know since his debut was quickly coming up and since he was at an age to get engaged, he would have a lot to consider in a fiance.

However, when he could break away even with only his thoughts, he remembered the invigorating feeling of flying an airship. All the glory of riding the winds and mana fluctuations were burned into his bones. He also found himself wanting to swing his sword some more. The strange familiar feeling of the handle and the way his body almost moved on its own.

Every day he would check the number of creatures he had left to kill and it was staggering. Corsair didn't give him a time limit so much as he heavily implied that Marion should be done before school.

But his ship was being repaired, and so he couldn't do much since his only means of travel was grounded and... technically so was he. Preparations for the ball had his schedule full. The biggest benefit of it all was the list of attendees.

Since his mother was clued into the dangerous game Cavalier Corsair had thrown him into she drew up a list of the most likely candidates for girls that had to kiss him and vice versa. She also complained that kissing a girl couldn't prove anything which only got laughs from the Corsair stating that was the point.

She only sighed and admitted that if Marion was going to win this game, then he was going to have to kiss at least one girl by the end of the night... without making her fall in love with him. Which would be tricky to say the least.

However, that was when the Corsair protested. Marion wasn't technically required to kiss them; they were required to kiss him. All he had to do was live his life and enjoy the dance with whomever he saw fit. Since it was the other side that would lose if they didn't seek him out and seek to kiss him. Especially since the point of the game was to manipulate the gods and to focus their attention on him.

"So playing with the hearts of girls is your game is it? I don't know how much I like that." Irina huffed.

A neatly packed letter floated in front of her face, clearly from the Corsair. She unfolded it and read the contents. Her eyes narrowed and her face darkened as she read the second page and then the third. When she was finished, she crushed the letter and set it on fire.

"All of those harlots can burn and rot!" She growled as she burned up the letter.

"What did he write?" Marion asked.

"What he wrote doesn't matter because I won't let it happen!" Irina said with a fire in her eyes. "From now on, you will wear those glasses that Corsair gave you. You will explain that spending so much time in the forest has affected your eyesight, we will go over the details later but put them on. Let us see what they look like."

Marion held out his hand and the dark frames appeared. He unfolded them and set them on his face. Irina and Delora tilted their heads and nodded.

"Wow the Corsair has good taste." Irina said.

"They look nice. The magic on them is a little peculiar, but they fit your face nicely." Delora stated.

"So first they have to find you, and then win you over enough to kiss you. How devious... Tell me, how does The honorable Cavalier Corsair want to be worshiped again?" Irina asked.

Another decorated letter was delivered to her although this one was a bit thicker.

Irina opened it and flipped through it. "Oooh subtle, charming, sneaky, cryptic. Oh my he's really thought this out. Everything is in the open without being obvious to the untrained eye, as if he is rubbing it in the face of the other gods." Irina laughed wickedly. "So this is the attitude of the god who saved my life. I think I could easily devote my life to this kind of patron god. Let us flaunt out devotion, in front of all the other absentee gods who would have eagerly watched our family's destruction."

"It looks like he gave you quite the list." Marion said.

"Yes, but it boils down to a few key things: Cutlasses, the colors red, black, and gold, the symbol X, and the number 15." Irina answered. She thought for a second and then spoke up. "You know we have a unique red flower that makes good red dyes, but it hasn't been in very high demand..."

"...Let me guess, they only grow in the forest. And if we gathered a bunch before demand spiked..." Marion's wicked grin showed.

"Oh my sweet dear boy... you got my smile after all." Irina said proudly.

"Flying!" Delora spoke up.

"Yes, I heard that they are almost done with the Dryad's whisper, I can take you on a few flights. But we will have to stop to gather flowers." Marion said.

"That's fine, to fly on the airships will be quite novel." Delora's eyes sparkled.

"Good, this ball will be a good chance to show off our new allegiances." Irina smiled as she looked over the papers. "Joanne! Summon the tailors and jewelers, we have work to do!"