I wasn't told it would be this big.
The Ceremony Hall was massive. Extremely high ceilings, flags of the Lang Group's company logo and the Lang family crest draped on the walls, and the bright spotlights cast on the stage somehow managed to feel like natural sunlight. The place had the authority of a palace, the reverence of a cathedral, and the minimalistic vibe and tiered seating arrangement of a modern opera house.
I knew I shouldn't have trusted Luc as I waited nervously backstage, my eyes fixed on the raised podium that was waiting for me to step on. To me, it felt like a sacrificial altar where I'd be both the minister and the sacrifice.
It all started an hour ago when Luc casually informed me that there would be 'a small internal event.'
"Wha… what event?"
The word 'small' did not ease my alarm at the word 'event'.
I dreaded any type of event. Even as an audience member, it made me nervous. An occasion with purpose, meaning, and conventions - all those things were landmines that I had to navigate through, making me question and doubt myself endlessly regarding what would be appropriate and what would get me glared at like a stain that ruined a clean sheet.
"Nothing big, Miss. Now that you have been officially recognized as the heiress by the Council, it is time to make an appearance for your workers."
"Make an appearance…?"
"I'm sorry to mention this again - but everyone is still grieving from the loss of the Lang family members. You are the last remaining, and the only new hope and light for these people. You just need to be there and live up to their expectations. No pressure."
"Oh, God…"
"The PR team prepared a speech script for you. You do not need to memorize."
Luc handed me a slim leather folder. I opened it and found two typed pages.
"I… just need to read this out loud?"
"You can improvise if you wish."
"Heck no."
"Right. Script it is then. Please follow me."
When we left the office, Cain and Abe were waiting for us by the door. They looked like twin marble statues. Cain was big, bulky, and stoic, while Abe was short, slim, and had a cheeky smile in his eyes. Abe gave me a thumbs up. I could only return a nervous and idiotic 'Heh.'
Just as before, we walked in a formation with me trapped in the triangle headed by Luc. I wanted the elevator to drop and crash. While death isn't exactly what I craved for, I would have been happy to be injured and hospitalized for a few months if I could avoid all this.
Once we got off, the walk to the Ceremony Hall felt like a parade to a slaughterhouse. Staff members I didn't recognize lined the hallway. Some bowed. Others whispered. One woman clasped her hands in prayer. I couldn't tell if she was praying for me or praying to me.
When we arrived backstage, the production manager did a final examination and straightening of my jacket. Her hands were shaking.
"She's more nervous than I am," I muttered after she walked off.
"She's never touched a devil's chosen before," Abe whispered, far too close to my ear. "You're basically a saint."
"Abe," Luc's voice was icy cold.
"Please forgive me," Abe's apology was instant.
I turned to Luc.
"I'm not a saint. This is crazy."
"Today is the day that you might become one. In their eyes."
"I might vomit."
"Do so before you walk onstage."
"Luc."
"Yes, Miss."
"You are so mean."
Without a response, Luc handed me the slim leather folder, tapped the small of my back, and I was pushed into the light.
Applause erupted the moment I stepped onto the stage. It was the polite kind, but also reverent. I hadn't said a word, but they were already grateful.
I reached the center, turned to face them—and froze.
Hundreds of eyes. Hundreds of people. Expectant. Hopeful. Faithful.
I breathed in. Out. In again.
My hands were shaking so badly that I had to set the folder down on the podium.
I quickly opened it to find that the two sheets of paper that were supposed to be there were -
NOT THERE.
I tried to turn around to catch Luc with my eyes, to signal her that something went seriously wrong before I could even get started.
But those eyes - the eyes of the audience wouldn't let me. I felt like I was standing in front of five hundred Medusa.
I wasn't capable of doing this.
I simply did not have the ability.
And I had no right to be doing this - being the fake that I am.
My right hand twitched. Then my left hand followed. I grabbed each side of the podium to steady myself. Then I looked up. I stood and faced the five hundred - or even a thousand - demons, because for them, I was the angel.
"Something went wrong here."
I groaned inside. Those were my first words to the public, as their supposed leader.
But on the other hand, that was the most honest thing I could say.
"I didn't plan to be here."
Silence.
"But I'm here."
That stirred the audience. Murmurs, whispers, gasps.
"You all think I'm someone important. But the truth is, I'm not. I'm just someone who… "
I paused. A few people shifted uncomfortably.
"Came to be here."
The audience erupted into cheer. Deafening applause. Fervor, frenzy, fanatical faith - faces flushed with feverish fire.
I triggered them in a way that I did not intend.
I knew I had to dial it back. Somehow. Like right now.
"I… I'm just like any of you. All of you… I'm no different."
Then someone shouted.
"She's one of us!"
Wha-
"One of us!"
"One of us!"
It turned into a full chanting. People were clapping their hands above their heads in sync. It echoed and resonated so loudly I was getting scared that the hall would collapse.
I raised my hands to stop them, flailing my arms, but the chanting only got louder.
They were totally misunderstanding me. They thought I was acknowledging them.
I did the only thing I could think to do. I stopped waving and just held my two hands high in the air, showing my palms.
Then with terrifying precision, the hall went completely silent.
"I… I can't promise I'll be a great leader. I can't even promise I'll be a good one. But… But…"
Tears welled up in my eyes. My vision was blurry, but somehow I felt like I could see everyone.
Those eyes were not scary anymore.
They were loving, comforting, reassuring.
"Thank you, everyone. I will never forget today."
Tears rolled down my cheeks. I heard someone sob in the audience too.
"I will remember this day… til the day that I die. And even after I die. I will remember this day."
Without being able to say anything further, I stepped back.
I bowed deeply, turned, and walked backstage.
There was only silence in the hall now.
Then came the applause.
It started hesitantly, then surged. Standing. Thunderous. Applause that wasn't for the Lang family or the name.
It was for me.