"Yes, I'm so happy to be with you at this meaningful moment. Now, now, let's sit over there, come on, hurry up."
Eun-woo took Selena and looked sideways at the crown prince who was walking to another side of the place.
"Is this your first time seeing a Calista performance too?"
She asked Tashian with her lowest voice as possible. Although she sensed that he was looking at the stage, his gaze could feel towering above her.
"No."
Eun-woo was a bit disappointed to hear his short answer. However, she could not hide the radiance in her eyes when he started explaining to her.
"It's my first time seeing an opera."
His voice was indifferent to her as usual.
Nevertheless, Eun-woo became as happy as if he had shared his great secret with her.
It was surprising. She was a little stunned at her reaction. It was because he was crazy to think that he would have been able to enjoy this expensive cultural life as much as he could. It was because no matter what she thinks about, it's crazy that she's enjoying this cultural life however she wants.
She looked at the audience with a relaxed mind, a bit feeling down that she had to pretend that she had seen this performance multiple times already.
Tashian's eyes, which captured her figure, were filled with oddness.
"Why are they standing without chairs?"
At that time, her eyes landed somewhere. There were a lot of people who were standing in a small aisle-like, among the people in the bottom seat.
From their appearance, it was clear that they were commoners or at least merchants who has low status. They had children with them. They were the people that were waiting for the performance in the lowest place where they couldn't even see the stage properly.
"...…That's the standing part. They allow you to enter the concert hall for a minimum admission fee. Those standing seats are worth three months' wages for workers."
He was hesitant whether he should open his mouth or not but in the end, he still answered her curious question, in which she never noticed why he was thinking twice before saying it.
"It's not supposed to be that much, but... It's crowded today, perhaps thanks to the fame of the famous prima donna."
There were numerous people gathered here today in order to watch the spectacular performance.
Watching as the people stood up, she realized how comfortable their seats were and it's the place where you could see the stage well. They were in the perfect height to listen to the singers and see their faces well.
"I must thank the Crown Prince. Thanks to you, I was able to see the performance in such a good seat. "
Tashian snorted back at her words.
The seats dedicated to the royal family are large but not substantial. Rather, Verk's box seat or your family's seat would be better for watching a performance."
"Tashian!"
Eun-woo looked around to see who would listen to him. Then, she suddenly remembered the word that it was a seat exclusively for the Marquis family and asked him.
"What do you mean, seats for my family?"
"… The law of the country is that about a dozen of the venues in the capital go to the royalties, dukes, and hereditary nobles. A reserved seat for political nobles, high-ranking soldiers, bureaucrats, and officers were given too. "
The Grand Theater of Cremons, the capital, was operated with a strong membership system. Most of the box seats were distributed free of charge to military officers, royal servants, and ministers' secretaries with the patronage of nobles. Who sat where was decided by strict rules.
The imperial family would personally send a list of people to the management of the opera on who would be allowed to enter the theater. Mostly, the management will designate seats for them. And of course, Duke Verk and Lord Miller Hu were no exception. They were given seats seat just below the throne room.
"Oh, that's right…. It was."
Eun-woo hurriedly pretended to know and looked away diligently. Tashian looked at her with a faint smile.
Then, from right next to them, a different level of noise began to be heard. It seemed to be the noise coming from the box seat right next to the seat in the royal family's box seat.
"Another foreigner must have arrived in the VIP seat."
Tashian frowned as he heard the roar.
"It is a VIP seat for guests visiting from abroad to see the performances in person. Usually given to guests of the Imperial family, there are no distinguished guests currently visiting Hellasium, so they must be foreign diamond mining owners or silk traders who have crossed the continent. "
Eun-woo carefully listened to the noise. The indistinct noises filled her ears and even unfamiliar instruments accompanied it in a language she couldn't comprehend.
She muttered in great embarrassment.
"The concert is just around the corner... It's okay to make a fuss, isn't it?
"Do they bother you? Should I warn them myself?"
Tashian immediately asked, his sharp eyes glinting at her words. Eun-woo waved her hand nervously.
"No, I am fine. How dare I… especially with the crown prince…"
"You don't have to be self-conscious about the crown prince. The VIP seats are practically a place for anyone in the kingdom if they pay. The person who paid the money becomes the tenant of the box seat, so once the purchase is completed, the theater wouldn't therefore care what he does in it. In short, no one cares if you talk loudly and sing drunk."
Tashian added with a disapproving look.
"So, if it seems like they're going over the limit, I don't think it's disrespectful even if you give them any sanctions."
Eun-Woo thought a little bit. Still, it was not polite to be sensitive already even though the performance had not started yet.
At that time, the noise from the noisy box seat next to them became incomparably louder than before, and in time someone shouted loudly in an unexpected foreign language.
Eun-woo looked at Tashian's face in surprise at the sound that was close to shouting. He was frowning, too, with his irritated face.
However, both had the same idea that the foreigner's voice was somehow familiar.
"This voice...."
She shook Tashian's hem of clothes with doubts. He narrowed the distance between his brows slightly frowned. Ikshid and Selena, who were naturally exchanging friendly talks with each other, turned to them when they seemingly recognized the owner of the voice.
Soon after, I heard the heavy curtain used as an entrance being lifted, and it seemed that someone had escaped with a fuss. And the steps were getting closer. It was unusual from the sound of walking proudly to the box seats for the royal family where they were located. It was unusual, since it's the steps that were explicitly proud to approach their seats.
Eun-woo bit her lips at the upcoming chaos she knew would happen.
"Oh, goodness! Who is this? Elli, my lovely younger sister!"
She turned to her brother, who was a bit drunk and had spread his arms in front of Eun-woo, with a hardened smile on his face.
Fortunately, Tashian, who was faster than Diego, stopped him in his plans.
"Damn it… where the hell does he come from every time?!"
"Ack…! Ack! Put me down, Tashian! How lang has it been since we last met? And why are you hugging me like this? Oh?"
"I am not hugging you, in fact I am strangling you! Just please go out and die!"
Eun-woo watched the emotion of the friendly reunion they shared with a smile.
"No, why are you coming out of there? "
Ikshid also rejoiced at the reunion of the two, who seemed to be fighting more than normal.
"Tsk tsk… Diego, why can't you differentiate on where to sit and not to sit?"
"You're so mean, Your Highness!"
Diego was thrilled with the great hospitality the rest had given while trapped in Tashian's arms.
"I was doing diplomacy with a target person from Austuralch, but the two of you came here to enjoy the joy of the opera?"
"This was after the half-day State Council meeting! Do you want the Crown prince to get sick from working hard for you."
Tashian attacked Diego fiercely, but Ikshid's eyes had already changed after hearing Diego's words.
His eyes instantly changed into an interesting eye and meaningfully looked at the tightly closed red curtain.
"Are you saying that the spices and myrrh over there are the very objects that came from Guinishu?"
Diego didn't miss the chance to take Tashian's arm off from his neck and went to Ikshid to appeal his curiosity.
"That's right. You saw it right away, Your Highness. Half of the Guinishu spices and myrrh distributed in Cremons are delivered by that person's merchant group"
"Do you want me to bring them to you here?"
Selena asked the crown prince with a genuine smile, after seeing his expression. The crown prince's eyes shook deeply when he faced her.
Eun-woo could understand him. Spices and myrrh were typical consumer products in the Santort continental culture, favored by commoners as well as the aristocrats. It was clear that the visit of the target who supplied the class was a highly coveted position as the Crown Prince of a country.
However, Ikshid shook his head. He gently looked at Selena's face and settled the situation smoothly.
"Today, I am here to watch the performance with you all, so let's do that first. If we're meant to be, we'll surely meet again soon."
As Eun-woo watched Selena smiling genuinely to Ikshid, she couldn't help but to wonder that these people, who were originally unfriendly, were actually getting along well and are harmonious.
On the other hand, Diego, who had become useless after having a drink with his difficult target, sat down on any seat with a gloomy expression on his face and let out a long sigh.
"...I heard there's someone who works and someone who plays. I never thought I'd look like that…."
Eun-woo watched Tashian's forehead rise as he heard it, but he kept his mouth shut. He warned in a voice that seemed to be trying to contain his anger within.
"You go back to your seat."
"Wherever my sister is, I shall be there. There's nothing stronger than blood."
Diego's brazen answer gradually rolled up Tashian's fist.
Eun-woo felt that her head throbbed seeing these two. Diego was sitting on the seat Tashian owns.
The two men quarreled like children and began to compete for positions as if they were biting each other on both sides of Eun-woo.
Eun-woo suddenly became an innocent victim between them, trapped like a pickle stuck between sandwiches.
Eventually, the two men's childish war of nerves ended when Diego put his hand on Eun-woo's back and Tashian put his arm on her other armrest.
Ikshid clicked his tongue, watching the two interestingly.
"Come on. Elli's nerves will go thin because of the fight between you two. I wonder if you two lose each of your strengths in things that are not so special…"
At the same time, he did not forget to send a sharp warning to the visitors in the other box seats who looked at Selena.
The box seat occupied by the five of them was located at the very top of the center of the stage, so that one could turn his gaze at them at any time if he wanted to and get a squint of the royal family and their distinguished guests. The open front of the box seats not only helped to watch the performance, but also allowed other people to see the precious people in the box seats.
Therefore, it was natural for the audience to pay attention to the box seats of the imperial family, where the two beautiful women were sitting beautifully with their gentle dresses.
The three men were busy blocking the crowd with their arms folded with an expression of displeasure.
"I guess the show will start soon."
Soon after, when bands appeared on the stage, Eun-woo shouted quietly in a reminiscent tone. But Tashian shook his head and decided.
"Not yet. We'll have quite a long time to reorganize after the band first appears."
Diego grumbled.
"You've never come to a concert like this before, so what kind of wind is blowing onto you?"
"It has nothing to do with you."
Tashian growled savagely at him.