Chapter 144

Chapter 144

* * *

“It would be my honor, Lady Roxana Agrece.”

As soon as the words left Cassis’ lips, the hall was once again abuzz, but this time with even more excited chattering. He had sealed his acceptance of her proposal with a kiss on the back of her hand, then the two glided through the crowd hand-in-hand. Their movements were as smooth as the flow of a calm stream.

“Uh... What the hell’s going on?” Of all the clans, her own brethren appeared to be the most flabbergasted by their half-sister’s actions.

“How are those two even on speaking terms?”

“Why’s Roxana asking a Pedelian to be her escort?”

Their grumbling came to an abrupt halt at Jeremy’s command though. “You all need to shut the hell up. Xana’s only doing this because of you idiots. You’re nothing but a pack of wild animals always itching to fight.”

They all fell silent almost comically fast. Not one of them would dare contradict him. He, of course, was still suffering from his own uncertainty about the turn of events. The urge to yank the two apart was overwhelming, but he could not afford to allow such a foolish impulse to get the better of him.

The night before, he and his sister had discussed at length how she would proceed at that night’s banquet. Roxana holding his hand all the while had done wonders to appease his otherwise turbulent heart.

“How difficult it must have been for you to take on so many burdens by yourself, dear brother.”

Hearing such an open recognition of his struggles was enough to make everything else seem inconsequential. It goes without saying that he never once blamed her for anything. It was simply nice to hear her concern over his well-being. He could almost feel all the sad and ugly dregs left in his heart draining away as she stroked the back of his hand.

“Sis, I...”

He clutched her hand even more tightly as if to gather the courage to make his pronouncement.

“I’ll do even better.”

He had gazed up at her with all the intensity he could muster. What he had actually wanted to tell her was that he hoped she would never forsake him again. As he pondered how he would ensure that, he at least resolved that he would become more useful to her. Jeremy genuinely believed that he would die happy as long as he could dedicate his entire life to Roxana. As long as she allowed him to remain by her side as he had since their reunion.

“Jeremy, you’re doing a wonderful job already.”

Her gaze was steady as she peered down at him, but instead of feeling reassured, he found himself worrying all over again.

“And Jeremy... Please don’t go out of your way to do things for me.”

He could feel his heart sink as if it had stopped and was deflating down toward his feet. As he looked at his sister, her expression remained calm and collected. Is she trying to imply that she doesn’t need me anymore? Is that why she’s telling me not to even bother?

“Let’s you and I not be like that anymore.”

Yet as her hands softly enveloped his, he could feel their warmth also enveloping him.

“I’ve come to realize that measuring a person’s value based on those sorts of things is meaningless. Let’s not do that to one another anymore, okay?”

“But, Sis...”

“I want you to know that I’d be perfectly happy even if there wasn’t anything you could do for me ever again.”

If that hadn’t been enough to shake him to his core, she went on.

“No matter what, you will always and forever be my precious little brother. You are someone I will never again forsake.”

As she smiled at him, the sweetness of her grin and words spread over him like a faint watercolor on an empty canvas.

“I’m so sorry about how I left you that day. Nothing like that will ever happen again.”

As his heart began to reinflate and soar through his being, she added one final admission which penetrated to the deepest corner of his heart as if to ensure it remained full.

“The thing is, Jeremy, I know that the only people who truly care and worry about me are you and my mother.”

It suddenly occurred to him that he was seeing Roxana’s honest side for the first time. That revelation was somehow more satisfying than a garden full of fragrant flowers or a cool night full of twinkling stars.

He would do anything for her regardless.

So as he watched her take the Blue Heir’s hand that evening, he resolved that if these were the actions she was set on taking to cool things down between the two clans, then they were necessary. Of course, he didn’t think to tell her that it was something he would have made an effort to do himself even if his sister hadn’t been there. Thus, he had no reason not to support Roxana’s efforts.

“It’s not that I don’t understand you guys, but for now... don’t stir up any trouble. Besides, we won’t have to keep our heads down forever.”

At hearing the sudden change in their half-brother’s tone, the atmosphere among the other Agreces thawed rather quickly. Once he saw that they had indeed settled down, Jeremy set off on his own mission. He walked straight to where Sylvia Pedelian was standing.

* * *

Orka, who had been watching the entire scene from his table, suddenly let out a guffaw.

“Boy, am I glad I came to Yggdrasil this time!”

It was only the second night, yet all sorts of interesting developments were underway.

“Glad you’re finding all of this amusing, Cuz,” Pandora muttered acidly as she observed the Agrece-Pedelian couple essentially out themselves before the other clans.

Unlike Orka, she was still worried sick that Jeremy Agrece might discover her identity. She relaxed somewhat once she noticed that he was heading toward Sylvia Pedelian. Thus, her plan for the evening was to simply remain tucked into a corner for as long as possible until she could get the hell out of there. Meanwhile, her clueless cousin had a wholly different plan in mind. To her horror, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, then ushered her forward.

“Let’s go join the party.”

“Join the what?!”

“Everyone’s moving around and mingling. I think we should as well.” He ignored her mortified expression as he proceeded to scan the hall. “Let’s see... The Black Master is already going for Sylvia. No skin off my nose there since we’re already well acquainted. Oh my. Isn’t that fellow next to the Red Master just your type, Cuz? What say we go and get a closer look?”

“Just go by yourself!”

“Aw, come on... You know how shy I get. Besides, look at him! He’s exactly your type.”

“How would you know what my type is?!”

“It’s pretty obvious from the sorts of demons you keep.”

He practically dragged his reluctant cousin all the way across the banquet to where Luzark Castro stood without an ounce of regard for Pandora’s protests. That was how the second night of festivities at the Yggdrasil castle kicked off.

* * *

Despite the curious stares coming at them from all sides, Roxana and Cassis continued to walk forward together. Just behind them, Jeremy was closing the gap between him and Sylvia. His decision to act had in truth surprised his older sister slightly, but his boldness appeared to serve as some sort of signal to the onlookers as members of other clans began to mix as well.

The tables inside the hall were usually arranged differently each day. Thus, unlike the previous night’s row arrangement which allowed each clan to sit together in distinct straight lines, circular tables were interspersed here and there with seats for only four to five diners that evening. The couple of the hour decided to sit at one of the tables in the center of the hall. Like a proper gentleman, the Blue Heir pulled out the lady Agrece’s seat for her before sitting across from her.

“I do hope your trip to Yggdrasil was a smooth one.”

He lost no time in opening the conversation with her. Aware that there were still curious eyes and ears surrounding them, he continued to speak in a formal tone to ensure they were still perceived as distant and unfamiliar. There was no mistaking the warmth in his gaze though.

“Yes, there was no problem at all. Thank you for asking. And what of you, Blue Heir? Did you enjoy your journey here?”

“I was a bit worried that it would prove a rather long trip, but fortunately we arrived without hardly any delay.”

They had both just made certain that nothing major had occurred on their respective treks to the castle. Roxana felt more at ease knowing that she had correctly interpreted his head shake when he first arrived and she was out on her terrace. So there was indeed no clash with the Vertiums.

Before long, attendants came to set their table.

“I actually happened to notice you out on your terrace upon my arrival today.” He had paused momentarily when the attendants first appeared, but as they were clearly wrapping up, he made yet another conversational remark.

“Ah, yes. I had decided to step out for some fresh air since the rain was so abysmal last night.”

“Then I take it you arrived in Yggdrasil much sooner than we did.”

“Yes, I think by about two full days.”

He, of course, had a good reason to be curious about when Roxana had arrived. As she reached for her water glass, Cassis watched the elegant movement of her slim wrist, then chanced a more pointed question.

“Then were you able to meet the relative you had been longing to see?”

Her hand halted in midair just before she could close it around her glass.