[V3C2] Congratulations, Congratulations

“Ah… the festive air of the new year, and I’m the only one feeling out of place… everyone must be thinking, ‘Why is a shaman coming to such a joyous occasion?’ I know they’re all thinking that… I want to die…”

Ray Albright, the Abyss Shaman and one of Ridill’s Seven Sages, passed through the castle gate, spreading a gloomy atmosphere.

It had been well over half a year since his last visit. Ray often skipped events like the Seven Sages meetings, only visiting the castle for important ceremonies such as the New Year’s one.

In fact, Ray hadn’t returned to the main residence of the Albright family either, so he had been absent from the capital for quite a while.

The lively atmosphere of the royal capital didn’t sit well with a shaman like Ray. The cheerful voices of people, the music emanating throughout the festivities——everything seemed like a curse rejecting him.

The more cheerful the surroundings, the more out of place Ray felt, as if he were being told, “You don’t belong here.”

“Ah, I want to die. I want to die. I want to be loved. Someone, love me. I want to be praised unconditionally. ‘Kyah! Ray-sama, you’re so amazing!’ I want to hear that…”

On his way to the Jade Chamber, where the Seven Sages gathered, Ray wanted to cling to the passing young maids and plead, “Tell me you love me.” However, the young maids would simply avoid him upon sight. After all, they could see Ray’s vivid purple hair coming from a mile away.

It seemed to be an unspoken understanding among the castle maids: if you see a man with purple hair, divert your path immediately.

“…Ah, the world is so cold to me… I want to die…”

Still cursing the world, Ray headed toward the Jade Chamber. Just then, a familiar figure approached from the opposite corridor.

It was Monica Everett, the Silent Witch and another member of the Seven Sages.

Adorned in her Sage’s robe, Monica noticed Ray and bowed her head.

“Long time no see, Abyss Shaman-sama. Um, congratulations on this occasion.”

“…?”

It didn’t sound like a New Year’s greeting; rather, it seemed to be a congratulation directed specifically at Ray.

What on earth was the celebration for? Ray wondered as he continued toward the Jade Chamber. Already seated there were the Starseer Witch, Mary Harvey, and the Artillery Mage, Bradford Firestone. Both spoke immediately once they saw him.

“Oh, Ray-chan, I heard about it! Congratulations~”

“Hey, congratulations, Abyss! Shall we celebrate with a big bang?”

One by one, Ray’s fellow Sages were congratulating him.

What’s going on? Ray thought, his bright pink eyes going wide.

(What’s happening… am I… am I being celebrated…!? Could it be that I’m loved right now? It’s a miracle… a miracle just happened…!)

Ray slowly lifted his usually downward-looking face. All his companions were giving him gentle smiles. Right now, he was undeniably being blessed!

(Amazing, incredible… Everyone is celebrating me… But my birthday was last month!)

Overwhelmed with emotion, Ray’s eyes began to water up. Just then, the door behind him opened, and the Thorn Witch Raul Roseberg entered.

Even though the ceremony was about to begin, the Thorn Witch had draped his robe over a farm outfit. Upon seeing Ray, he smiled enthusiastically, revealing gleaming white teeth.

“Hey, Ray! I heard you got engaged! Congratulations!”

“…Huh?”

“My friend’s engaged! We have to celebrate this in style! Hey, should I gift you one of those veggies with intricate carvings? Or maybe flowers would be better? Leave the flowers for the wedding to me!”

Slapped on the shoulder by Raul, Ray trembled violently, squeezing out his voice with blue-tinged lips.

“I-I-I-I-I-I…”

“Huh? What’s wrong, Ray? Did you get a stomachache?”

Raul’s extremely rude words also failed to reach Ray at the moment.

Why? Because Ray…

“I didn’t hear! I-I didn’t hear anything about an engagement!”

Indeed, this was news to him.

＊　＊　＊

Barrier Mage Louis Miller had a residence in the royal capital, so he usually rode a carriage when coming to the castle.

However, Louis was on the verge of a major delay from the first day of the new year, and thus had no choice but to use flight magic to reach the castle.

The reason for the delay was that, just before departure, he couldn’t find his staff anywhere.

The staff of the Seven Sages was a custom-made item, and there were no spares. While it might be fine for an ordinary meeting, not having the staff for a ceremony was a serious issue.

Having searched his entire house in a panic, Louis found the staff in the garden of his residence.

The golden staff, which had been turned into a makeshift laundry pole at the hands of his foolish maid, was filled to the brim with his daughter’s diapers.

——Raising this staff in the air while flying will expedite the drying of laundry. This is a revolutionary drying method… according to the aforementioned maid.

“That dumbass maid… when will she learn housekeeping?”

Having arrived at the castle, Louis cursed while briskly walking down the corridor, then opened the door to the Jade Chamber.

“Excuse me, my apologies for being late…”

His words involuntarily stopped because his attention was drawn to an object at his feet.

On the floor of the Jade Chamber, where only the Seven Sages and the king were allowed to enter, the Abyss Shaman lay on the ground, as motionless as a corpse.

Raul and Monica were huddled together next to Ray. Raul playfully poked Ray’s cheek with a carrot, saying, “Eat vegetables and regain your energy!” while Monica simply looked flustered.

Since Louis thought he was just in the way, he silently stepped on Ray’s back.

“Mrguh!”

Ignoring the strange grunt from below, Louis coolly advanced his steps and took a seat in his own chair.

“A-Abyss Shaman-sama!!”

“Pull yourself together, Ray! Your injuries are superficial!”

As the younger members made a fuss, Louis turned to the older members, Mary and Bradford. The two gave Louis reproachful looks.

“That was much too cruel, Louis-chan.”

“Yeah, pretty heartless. Can you even feel compassion?”

“My apologies. I had assumed he wanted someone to step on him. Should I have twisted my heel as well?”

Louis replied as if it what he did was only natural. Mary and Bradford both sighed in resignation. Of course, Louis didn’t care about the reactions of his colleagues.

“So may I ask why our esteemed shaman has turned himself into a carpet?”

“Well, you heard about how Ray-chan got engaged a little while ago, right?”

Mary’s words made Louis stroke his chin. Over the past year or so, Louis had been flying around the country rather frequently, so he grew somewhat out of touch with this kind of news.

“Come to think of it, there might have been a letter in the accumulated mail reporting on his engagement… Haha, I see. So he did something to disgust his fiancé, and the engagement was called off.”

“…Well, no. It seems he just found out right now.”

“About the canceling of the engagement?”

Louis had assumed that the engagement was called off, but Mary shook her head with a wry smile.

“About the engagement itself.”

“…”

When Louis looked silently at the floor, the man who had become a carpet covered his face with both hands and finally started sobbing.

“It’s Grandmother… All of this is Grandmother’s doing… This is terrible, too awful… Unbelievable.”

He was likely referring to Adeline Albright, Ray’s grandmother and the second Abyss Shaman.

While Ray was the current head of House Albright in name, he rarely returned to the main mansion. Adeline, his grandmother, had complete control over the household in his absence. This was a well-known fact.

Although Louis had no acquaintance with the second Abyss Shaman, Adeline, he had heard rumors that she was quite a formidable woman.

“…E-Engaged… T-This is too much. Deciding without saying anything to me… Moreover, it was decided half a year ago…”

To Louis, not realizing that you were engaged for half a year was the epitome of foolishness, but he didn’t voice that opinion.

This clearly happened because Ray never left his home, and kept skipping the Seven Sages meetings. Louis gave a deep sigh.

Honestly, he couldn’t care less about Ray’s engagement, but if Ray continued acting like this, it would affect the ceremony.

“What on earth are you so unhappy about? An engagement is quite an accomplishment. Weren’t you always wanting to be loved? You should be happy that you’ve miraculously found a fiancé who loves you, no?”

“Y-you’re making fun of me… You’re making fun of me so casually… That’s why handsome guys like you are so detestable…!”

“I apologize for being handsome and married with a wife and child. Oh, please, feel free to envy me as much as you want. Hahaha.”

Perhaps seeing Ray being crushed every time Louis opened his mouth, Bradford, who usually didn’t play the admonishing role, awkwardly interjected.

“Ah, well, what the Barrier Mage means to say is… Abyss, why are you so down in the dumps? Getting engaged is a good thing, isn’t it?”

Ray Albright the Abyss Shaman was famous for wanting to be loved.

If a man asks, “Do you love me?” whenever he sees a young woman, it’s natural for him to be happy once engaged. However, Ray was acting as if it were the end of the world.

“…Because, it’s an engagement. A promise of marriage. If I’m hated by my fiancé… I-I’ll die… I’ll die, my delicate heart will surely be shattered to pieces…!”

The assumption that he’s already hated was rather poignant.

As everyone else hesitated to say anything, Raul patted Ray’s shoulder and raised his thumb, speaking energetically.

“It’s okay, Ray! You can approach anyone and say, ‘Love me,’ without caring who they are, so your heart isn’t delicate at all! You’re incredibly tough! The toughest I know, even! Have faith in yourself!”

“…”

Ray rolled over and pressed himself against the wall, facing away from everyone, and murmured gloomily, “I hate you all…”

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