[center][color=#F6DDCC][i][h1] Erik von Rothschild of the Empire of Veredun [/h1][/i][/color][/center]

Literally, any time Erik was away from Veredun, he was happy. To be fair, he loved his homeland. He really did. It was diverse, beautiful, had great food and was filled with some of the most interesting people he'd ever met in his life. What he didn't enjoy about his homeland was his family. His grandmother hated him and to be fair, he didn't really feel too much of familial affection towards her either. He was fairly certain that at least half (maybe more) of his extended family were essentially either psychopaths, sociopaths and everything in between. He could tolerate his siblings, but he tried his best to limit his interactions with his older siblings to an obligatory phone call every few weeks. The only members of his family Erik truly did enjoy spending time with were his brother, Ferdinand; sister, Juliet; and his niece, Helene. He genuinely did not like to be around any other member of his family. And to be fair, nor did they like to be around him. And he was fine with that: [i]live and let live.[/i] That was his life's motto. 

Of course, that didn't quite fly with any member of the nobility in Veredun: higher and lower. And especially not now. Erik could only imagine what his grandmother would do to him if he ever dared to say those words to her. 

Well, actually he knew. Chances were that he'd mostly end up like his parents and brother-[i]unofficially assassinated[/i], he thought to himself. But that was far too morbid of a topic to think of right now. He had constant reminders of that in Veredun. And now that he was in Aciras, he intended to fully enjoy himself.

And on that note, Erik turned his attention back to his reflection in the mirror before him. He was dressed in all black. From head to toe. Black tuxedo blazer and pants, a pair of black oxfords and a light black, turtleneck sweater. Had this been one of his brothers or relatives, a much more formal attire would be donned for this event. But to Erik, this was formal enough. Wearing the formal Veredunian military outfit would be far too much for this event (for Erik anyway). Not to mention, it would be exceedingly uncomfortable. [i]Not that it would matter at all if this was Veredun,[/i] Erik thought to himself dryly. God, being away from his relatives was so refreshing. That was also the reason as to why Erik insisted on not bringing [i]anyone [/i]from Veredun with him- no attendant, no one. This was his time alone, and he was going to cherish it for whatever it was worth.

Besides, he a few medals of honor pinned to his blazer, the important ones anyway. [i]It was formal enough,[/i] Erik thought to himself decisively before leaving the room. 

As Erik walked down the gilded hallways of the palace, he mentally took a note of how many people he already knew here. As a rule of thumb, Erik preferred to [i]stay away[/i] from all those of royal standing. This was simply because his friendships never did remain as friendships when noble rank was involved. There was always something more- Veredunian foreign policy and interests somehow seemed to interfere. 9 out of 10 times, this ruined almost all chances of an actual relationship for him. Which his why, he much preferred to socialize with those without noble rankings and titles. [i]It just made things so much easier[/i], Erik thought to himself. But despite having said that, Erik was genuinely surprised as to how many people he did know here. From what he could tell so far, his fiance Talya was already here, as was Genevieve and Hyeri. He'd run into them at some point yesterday, but had only time to meet them in passing. Other than that, he'd heard from Yelena that Vera was going to be here. He knew 4 members of foreign royalty already, and for Erik that was too many already.

But either ways, he was looking forward to seeing them again. After all, it had been far too long in some cases. 

And with that, Erik entered the Aciran ballroom, standing in the receiving line behind other royals from across the world. Almost every woman he looked at had an extravagant gown and was draped in jewels, and Princess Ayleanna was no exception. Pink and glittery, she seemed to embody the vibrancy of her gown as she greeted her guests. 

When the herald pronounced Erik's arrival,like any other royal guest, he bowed lightly to greet the Acirian Princess and her parents. 

"Princess Ayleanna," Erik began. "Greetings, it is an honor to be invited. I thank you on the Empire of Veredun's behalf for inviting me," Erik continued, flashing the princess and her parents an appropriately pleasant smile with a curt nodd.

"I look forward to getting to know you and your kingdom in the period of my duration at Aciras," he added with another polite smile before stepping into the ballroom.

As he walked away, Erik managed to flash Talya and Hyrei brief, friendly smiles each. Both were engaged in conversations with Princess Ayleanna that he hadn't wanted to disturb. Instead, Erik went straight for the champagne flute, picking it up from the tray of a passing member of the Acirian staff.


[hider=Erik's Outfit for the Ball]
[img]https://www.gosee.de/prev/900x/images/content3big/big69p9237-superstudio.jpg[/img]
[quote]Erik's Tuxedo[/quote]

[img]https://i.pinimg.com/originals/4b/44/11/4b4411ffe06be059c82ceef3e008f741.jpg[/img]
[quote]The Veredunian medals of honor that are pinned to Erik's tuxedo. The medals reflect his royal heritage, noble rank, title and rank in the Veredunian navy.[/quote]

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