Arriving at the same hall as before, we calmly entered, but without the same imposing grandeur of yesterday; an decision made in an attempt to preserve the thinly veiled appearance, that barely breached the surface level, of maintaining the mirage of this being a true masquerade party were your identity was truly hidden, and most people would never recognize you.

Even the customary position of the master of ceremony was discarded today for this very same reason; so we entered with little fanfare into the already bustling hall, as dozens were already elegantly swaying on the danse floor, while hundreds more were scattered around them, either huddled together in groups of varying sizes, or simply idling away in a lonely corner with a drink in hand.

Yet without exception everyone was dressed in the finest garments one could imagine, with silken robes, fabulous furs and bedazzling jewels a plenty; the Astrapi queen truly had gone above and beyond for the opening event of the Banquet.

Once inside, a great host of calculating gazes were trained towards us, with many beginning to fidget in place, as their tongues grew unnaturally dry, as though they'd just swallowed a handful of sand, from the sheer excitement of all the possible prospectives that were laced in danger, like a taboo too sweet to ignore; all the while trying to ignore the feeling of a tug of their legs, who hungered for adventure, as they began to irritably itch from both the pull of possible profit and the repulsion of the fear of a horrible death at a miffed dragon's claws; all the while their measuring eyes subtly continued to glance at us every now and then, attempting to assess when best to approach us.

"...They're not really hiding it are they?" Cyrus whisperingly muttered from behind his mask.

Nizam merely nodded in reply, his eyes still cautiously scanning all those around us, as he silently critiqued them for their poor elusiveness, that was so atrocious that even the usually carefree Cyrus had noticed them.

"Worry not little brother," I then said "it's me they'll mainly target, so if we separate now then you'll be spared the worst of the political talk."

"Works for me!" Cyrus instantly said, with what was undoubtedly a cheeky smile behind his lion mask, before he then unceremoniously turned around and disappeared into the sea of people around.

I merely sighed at his actions, and looked at Nizam thinking he would remain by my side, as he usually did when matters of the state were undoubtedly about to be discussed, but contrary to my expectations, he said "I think I'll take you up on that offer as well, big brother."

He then also turned and left, making me stare at his retreating back for a moment in stunned silence, before then remembering that Nizam seemed to have been in pursuit of something in the hall yesterday; something that after the hecticness of yesterday's meeting with Maximillian, I had momentarily forgot to inquire about.

But before I could think of anything more, Darius' voice came from my side, as he approached me from a far, with three older men in tow.

"My emperor." He said as he respectfully bowed. "Allow me to introduce a few old acquaintances of mine."

"It's an honour for us to meet the Ruinous Dragon." They all said as they bowed as well, but far lower than Darius.

"Well met." I replied with a nod and the radiating dignity and oppression I had mastered over the centuries of my two lifetimes, as I awaited their introductions and objectives to spill from their mouths, which quickly melted into the long coming hours, as group after group came to me, just as I had known, making me unable to relax for even a moment, as bladed words and hidden agendas were exchanged between us for hours on end.

But despite all of that, I thought of them as no more than annoying insects that would merely prick me if I'm not careful, but all they would be capable of drawing out is a drop or two of blood, nothing more, so I sporadically took sweeping glances through the hall every now and then, gathering what information I could, while continuing to occasionally greet and discuss with those rare few worthy of my time, in between shooing away the converging swarm of buzzards, that thought themselves smart enough to tear a chunk of benefit for themselves from my sides without me noticing.

The first thing that stood out to me was the absence of the master of the west Octavian, and his beautiful wife Roxana, while Aurelius and Maximillian weren't, as I spotted the two a ways off, where they were surrounded by a few dozen men and women, all of whom seemed to be from the western realms.

"Seems like the bond between the western hegemon and his subjugated vassals is stronger than we originally thought." Darius whisperingly remarked in the brief second we had of respite, before the next group of hopeful scammers and bootlickers arrived.

"Indeed." I muttered in reply with narrowed eyes, before I quickly re-joined Darius in his talks with the others, as I noticed Aurelius' gaze momentarily turn to me.

The second thing I noticed was the odd reclusive attitude adopted by the eastern aristocrats headed by the Yue Dynasty, as unlike everyone else, who were peacefully mingling among each other, even if only in a performative and perfunctory manner, they seemed to vehemently refuse any long lasting contact with any foreign nation, no matter who they may be.

Even snubbing our hosts, king Aegaeon along with his queen and ministers, when they approached them earlier, trying to smooth things over with them, or at least inquire if something was the matter that caused the eastern emperor's feathers to be so ruffled that he would act so cold in the face of the other guests, but it seems they too were repulsed without any answers.

All of which only heightened my suspicions of them even more, as Maximillian's earlier warning of an army one hundred thousand hired swords once again reverberated in mind.

'Could they be acting in such a manner, because they are simply desperate to keep the fact of their internal struggles under wraps?' I thought with narrowed eyes, as I stared sceptically at emperor Tianlan for a moment, uneased by this man's cryptic and uncharacteristic actions.

The third thing I registered after that was the abject apathy of the Boreas Empire towards the last two remaining thorns in their side, the last two nations who still dare challenge the northern giant in their own backyard, much like the Luminous Empire's situation with the twin lands of Kleossa and Herimissa in the west; the frost and forest covered countries of Ullargorod and Vidar-rikka, ruled over by the descendants of the Goddess of the Hunt and the Goddess of Vengeance respectively.

Which surprisingly, was the most normal of the three things I noticed, since although they have despised each other for centuries now, the previous frequent wars and skirmishes between them had grown less frequent under Mikhail's reign; and if anything, is trending towards a positive relationship.

Yet while I was picking up those few details from amongst the crowded hall, my mind was still mostly focused on the most important task at hand, as my eyes momentarily flickered between the gathered people, I constantly tried to see if I would be fortunate enough to be blessed by the God of Luck's fickle favour, and manage to catch a glimpse of my beloved Eve, but as always it was to no avail.

'For the love of all the Gods Eve, where are you?!' I nearly screamed the words I thought, but then I took a calming breath that was laced with that same scent of intoxicating lavender I always kept on hand.

'The Banquet in only in it's second day, so I still have an entire month left. I survived without her for centuries, and I've already waited four years, what's a few more days?' I thought trying to calm my own restless mind, when suddenly a voice reached my ears that flung my thoughts and frustrations of her to the back of my mind.

"You seem troubled Ruinous Dragon." It was a voice I could never mistake, as it was that of one of my most hated enemies, the one I recognized as the illustrious Herald of Light, or the Radiant Dragon as he's called in this life, Aurelius, the next ruler of the Luminous Empire.

He approached me with a few men in tow, the most significant of whom was Marius Nerva, before they all then followed proper etiquette and slightly bowed before me. Aurelius, like everyone was dressed in an elaborate costume, designed to clearly signify his identity so that no fool would dare mistake the future hegemon of the west for someone else, which was obvious by the excessive golden colour palate, along with the light and dragon symbology all over him; especially along the chest plate; that was wore below a glamorous leopard's hide, where a prominent sun was carved with a white dragon design in the middle of it; that were also matched on his greaves and bracers.

"Nothing to concern yourself with crown prince of the Luminous Empire." I coldly replied, before turning to the legendary prime minister of my rivals, who now looked returned to his prime.

"I'm glad to see you looking so refreshed lord Marius." I said in faux politeness that was concealed behind a light smile to the man who now reeked of a martial artists aura.

"Well I had a pledge of a promised battle at our peaks to keep after all." Marius bit back, reminding me of the words we spoke on the first time we met on the Melting Mist Plains.

I merely smiled confidently in return, but before we could continue a new pair of footsteps approached us, as a gentle voice echoed out "Mind if I join you, as well?"