There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]: Chapter 80

There Is No Place for a Fake - 80

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Fortunately, the bizarrely shaped cloud disappeared before any of the guests noticed it.

When I questioned Le Guin, who had transformed into a human, about whether someone elsewhere might have seen it even if the people here hadn’t, he shook his head.

“It’s not a real cloud; it’s illusion magic.”

According to him, he had only cast the spell around this area, so in other regions, it would only appear as a normal cloud.

‘I’ve aged ten years…….’

The ice sculpture was one thing, but not the cloud, no way.

Philomell shook her head. Even now, the attendees probably thought of her as someone extravagant enough to involve a court magician for her birthday celebration, but she couldn’t risk being misunderstood as having ordered such an embarrassing display.

After sending Le Guin back, Philomell returned to the banquet hall.

The guests freely enjoyed the standing reception until lunchtime approached, at which point they took their assigned seats.

Twelve guests were divided among three tables.

Nasar, the only male among the attendees, was seated next to Philomell. She was, at least, the most familiar with Nasar among them.

While eating, Philomell asked him,

“Are you perhaps uncomfortable being here?”

Nasar smiled, his eyes crinkling pleasantly.

“Not at all. It’s a truly wonderful banquet.”

“But…… you’re the only man here, Nasar.”

“That’s what I like most about it.”

“……?”

What was that? Did he enjoy being among women?

Philomell opened her mouth again with a puzzled expression.

“Perhaps it would have been better to invite another young nobleman?”

“…….”

“For example, the young Marquis Odelli, Nasar’s close friend…….”

Suddenly, his handsome mouth tightened.

“I don’t need friends.”

Philomell fell into even deeper confusion.

‘Huh. I thought he used to have a lot of friends…… Did his social circle shrink in the meantime?’

After the luncheon, Philomell received gifts from the attendees in turn. Earrings, silk ribbons, bookmarks, outing hats, and more.

The last was Nasar’s gift.

He handed Philomell a simple bouquet tied with a ribbon.

“This is…….”

She saw multiple layers of pure white petals spreading out from a verdant stem.

Philomell knew the flower well.

“……Philomell flower.”

A flower with the same name as her.

But there was something strange. The flower bud was larger than the Philomell flowers she knew. And above all…….

“Why is this flower still in bloom?”

That was the biggest question.

The Philomell flower was an ephemeral flower that only bloomed in the Utina region. To be precise, it bloomed and withered only during one night, not even a full day. That’s why she had never seen it in person.

It was nearly impossible to transport the flower from Utina to the capital before the night passed.

It wouldn’t be impossible if she hired a magician who used excellent teleportation magic, but Philomell didn’t want to see this flower that badly. It was because she didn’t like the flower’s meaning.

The Philomell flower had meanings like ‘transience of life,’ ‘fleeting youth,’ and ’emptiness of good times.’

It was an expression that compared its beautiful appearance to the sorrow of its short lifespan.

Well, it was a somewhat awkward flower to name a person after. Although many people didn’t care about flower meanings.

Nasar cleared up Philomell’s question.

“We have greatly extended the life of the flower through selective breeding. The flower bud also grew larger in the process.”

He then placed a small pouch in Philomell’s hand.

“These are seeds. We’ve grown the flower in our garden, so it will grow well here too.”

She could feel the texture of the seeds beneath the cloth.

“This flower doesn’t have a name yet. Please give it one, Philomell.”

Philomell put her nose to the bouquet and smelled it. It was just a pleasant floral scent. Neither faint nor sad.

This flower would have a normally pretty meaning. Thinking that, she felt somehow good.

Philomell smiled splendidly.

“Thank you so much, Nasar.”

After the gift presentation, a tea party was held.

The seating arrangement at the table was different from the luncheon, but Nasar was still next to Philomell.

Melinda and Lady Godrif sat in the remaining two seats. The four of them chatted.

The topic of cats came up. Lady Godrif made an ‘ah’ sound as if something had occurred to her.

“Come to think of it, what’s the name of Philomell’s cat?”

“Ah, the name is…….”

Melinda answered before Philomell could.

“Gwingwing!”

Nasar praised,

“It’s a unique and good name.”

However, judging from the momentary hardening of Lady Godrif’s face, it seemed to be Nasar’s opinion alone.

Melinda even said something she didn’t need to say.

“But the other day, I saw that Gwingwing was in heat, so Philomell seemed worried.”

Then Lady Godrif made a disconcerting suggestion.

“Ah, our cat is also female and happens to be in heat. How about introducing them to each other next time?”

Philomell wasn’t about to let her cat get a stepmother, so she vaguely brushed it off.

“Our Gwingwing is going to be neutered.”

It was during such small talk. An uninvited guest appeared.

“Hello!”

Ellensia, who appeared alone in the Namgung Garden, exclaimed cheerfully.

Everyone in the room rose from their seats at the appearance of the princess.

Philomell approached Ellensia and greeted her.

“Greetings to the little sun of the Empire.”

“Philomell, happy birthday!”

“You shouldn’t have. It’s not even my real birthday.”

Then Ellensia responded with a pure smile.

“Still, congratulations. It’s the first time in my life that I’m being congratulated on a day that isn’t my birthday.”

The atmosphere instantly turned cold.

Ellensia had a knack for pretending to be innocent while making barbed remarks.

Philomell replied without breaking her smile.

“But what brings you here? I don’t recall sending an invitation to the princess.”

Ellensia wore a seemingly upset expression.

“That’s too much! I was waiting for Philomell to send me an invitation, but you didn’t give one to me.”

“I would have given it to you if you had told me you wanted one.”

“I thought that between us, you would naturally give it to me without me having to ask.”

“I’m sorry. It was a humble banquet, not befitting of hosting someone as noble as the princess, so it didn’t occur to me.”

“I see. Quite humble…….”

Her eyes, looking around the surroundings, fell upon Philomell’s ice sculpture.

With fully bloomed flowers and other sculptures. It was a banquet that was hard to call humble, even as a figure of speech.

But Ellensia didn’t want to admit that Philomell’s banquet was extravagant, so she cleared her throat and brought up another topic.

“Anyway, seeing Philomell’s banquet gave me a good idea.”

For some reason, Philomell frowned slightly and looked at Ellensia with unease.

“I’m going to hold a birthday banquet soon too! My birthday has already passed, but I haven’t been celebrated here. So I’m going to hold a big one. I’ll be sure to invite everyone here!”

As expected.

The ladies had embarrassed faces at Ellensia’s declaration.

It was incredibly rude to not only show up at a place uninvited but also promote her own banquet.

But no one could show it because the person who committed the rudeness was none other than the princess.

‘What should I do?’

If it were just Philomell alone, who was already disliked by Ellensia, it would be nothing to point out the rudeness.

However, she was concerned about the other people in this place. It would be troublesome for them to be on the wrong side of the princess.

Since no one said anything, Ellensia pointedly asked Nasar.

“Nasar, you’ll come to my banquet, right?”

He placed his hand on his chest and bowed deeply.

“Your Highness, I am sorry. Unfortunately, I have a prior engagement that day, so I will not be able to enjoy the honor of attending.”

It was a perfectly polite refusal, as expected of Nasar Averide. His expression also looked genuinely regretful.

There was only one problem…….

Ellensia had not yet mentioned the date of the banquet.

There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]

There Is No Place For Fakes [EN]

No Place for the Fake Princess Philomel the Fake (Serialized Title) 가짜를 위한 장소는 없다
Status: Completed Author: Native Language: Korean
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[English Translation] Philomel's life takes a dark turn when she's executed for impersonating a princess and causing a devastating war. But fate has a twisted sense of humor. After her death, she finds herself reborn as the very character she despised from a mysterious book. Determined to escape her doomed fate, young Philomel embarks on a perilous journey of survival. She seeks out the real princess, Ellencia, hoping to forge a new life far from the palace's treacherous intrigues. Yet, her past refuses to stay buried. The emperor, who once loathed her, now desperately seeks her return, while her indifferent fiancé suddenly vies for her attention. Even her biological father emerges, disrupting her carefully laid plans. Can Philomel unravel the secrets of the ominous book that foretold her demise? Will she ever truly escape the shadow of her past and discover a future where she can finally be free? Dive into a world of royal secrets, hidden identities, and unexpected romance in this captivating fantasy series!

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