The Rosa Conference Hall only had a hundred years of history to it, but the several million gold coins invested in it ensured that it was one of the most magnificent buildings in Rosa, if not the world. It enjoyed great international fame for two reasons.
One, it was so big that it even had its own horse racecourse.
Two, the venue had a transparent ceiling that allowed for stargazing.
The Sorofyas had an innate talent for divination, and studying constellations was one of the means to foretell the future. Due to such a connection, stargazing was considered to be a graceful activity in Rosa. Over the years, it had taken on a more romantic connotation, where the act of inviting another person of the opposite gender to stargaze was considered an expression of romantic interest.
To some extent, that was also Charlotte’s intention when she invited Roel to stargaze.
Unfortunately, tonight, Roel ended up not accompanying her to stargaze, but instead, he was sitting all alone on the balcony of the Hundred Birds Gallery, facing the buffeting of the night breeze.
Gazing out at that tall and majestic building at the center of the city, as well as the merrymaking noises coming from the streets, Roel sighed softly before taking a sip from the Pamela wine placed on the small table next to his chair.
Mm, sweet.
Roel’s emotions calmed down a little under the soothing taste of the alcohol.
Needless to say, he wasn’t alone due to some play by Charlotte at abandoning him. In fact, she had invited him to the banquet too, but after careful consideration, Roel had turned down her offer.
The reason? He just wanted to avoid further escalation of the conflict.
If it was only Alicia who had traveled all the way here to fetch him, Roel, as the proxy fief lord, had nothing much to worry about. He could at least hold his ground. However, the one leading the group this time was his own father, Carter. In that case, his say would be greatly weakened.
In terms of interpersonal relationship, Carter was his father, someone whom he ought to respect. On top of that, he was also the patriarch of the Ascart House, which meant that he had the final say when it came to family-related matters.
In terms of standing, Carter was a conferred marquess, which was way more prominent than Roel’s position as proxy fief lord.
If Roel showed up at the banquet and Carter asked him to head back right away, what could he do? Abandon Charlotte and leave right away? Or disobey his father and insist on remaining here?
Clearly, neither option was acceptable. Since there was no optimal solution out of this, he decided to just camp it out for the time being. Admittedly, his act of escapism was shameful, but it was indeed effective.
While Roel was praying fervently for world peace, he couldn’t have imagined that storm clouds had begun gathering above the two girls in the banquet hall, bringing about a heavy pressure that heralded tempestuous weather ahead.
...
Back at the Rosa Conference Hall, Charlotte and Alicia stared intently at one another with their impeccably polite smiles not faltering in the least. The way they stood before one another suggested a close, intimate relationship between them, and this ‘beautiful’ friendship understandably caught the attention from the surrounding guests, especially considering the ravishing looks and prominent standings of the two.
The young female nobles began chatting excitedly with one another while the young male nobles directed worried glances in their direction. These two ladies were definitely the most sought after partners of the men in Rosa, and it would break their hearts if the two of them were to end up with one another.
Little did they know that beneath their warm smiles lurked sharp daggers.
“Miss Charlotte, did you think that Lord Brother would be yours just because you took him out of the Ascart Fiefdom? Hah, what a pointless struggle. You’re just going to humiliate yourself?”
“Pointless struggle? We’ll see about that. Nothing has been fixed in place yet. However, if I may ask, Miss Alicia, what’s your place in all of this? You should be aware that Roel and I are an engaged couple, right?”
Charlotte swirled her wine cup with a confident smile as she looked at Alicia with slightly narrowed eyes.
“As Roel’s non-blood-related adopted sister, don’t you think that you’re interfering too much in his relationships?”
“The bond between me and Lord Brother is eternal. What does us being non-blood-related even matter at all? Instead, should I say that it works to my benefit?”
“Just as I’ve thought, you are planning much more than just being his sibling... Such a pity though, you aren’t even a threat in my eyes at all.”
Charlotte looked at the frowning Alicia as she spoke with a light, casual tone.
“I don’t deny that there’s a deep bond between you and Roel. It’s something that you have built up over the years, and I can’t hope to compete with it. Regretfully for you, however, you don’t understand love. You have chosen to walk down a path you shouldn’t have.”
Charlotte looked at Alicia with sympathy in her eyes before she raised her gaze to peer off into the distance, in the direction of the Hundred Birds Gallery, with gentleness in her eyes.
“He might be a sentimental man, but he isn’t a particularly discerning person. He lacks sensitivity when it comes to matters relating to emotions. Your affection for him might have been obvious to everyone else, but to Roel, who has grown up together with you, he sees it as nothing but kinship. You think that victory is in your grasp, but in truth, you have already lost the battle right from the start.”
“...”
Faced with Charlotte’s merciless analysis, Alicia lowered her head and clenched her fists tightly in agitation. These words had struck the thorn lodged in her heart. However, a moment later, her complexion reverted back to normal.
“Like I’ve told you, I simply have yet to make a move.”
“No, nothing you do matters anymore...”
“It matters.”
Alicia calmly but resolutely refuted Charlotte’s verdict. She raised her head to gaze at the silvery moon in the sky, which in turn reflected its splendor into her eyes.
“Three times.”
“What?”
“In the days that you took Lord Brother away from my side, he has thought of me at least thrice, and he has subconsciously spoken it aloud at least once.”
“!”
Charlotte was immediately reminded of Roel’s grumblings back at the Worun Mountain Range, and her pupils dilated in astonishment. Looking at the inconcealable shock in Charlotte’s eyes, Alicia’s lips curled into a smile.
“... Looks like I’m right.”
“Ha. So what about it? Isn’t it perfectly normal to think of one’s kin when leaving home for an extended period of time?”
“Is it normal? Well, you might be right there. Just as you’ve said, our kinship has unknowingly become my greatest obstacle from reaching out to Lord Brother. However, there are some things that can only be cultivated through time, for example... interdependence.”
Alicia gently played with the wine glass in her hand as she stared intently at the light yellow alcohol in it, seemingly reminiscing the long days they had spent with one another back at the Ascarts’ manor.
“While the rest of you thought that I haven’t been doing anything, Lord Brother has already become incapable of leaving my side. He’s unable to reject me.”
Alicia revealed a smile of triumph whereas Charlotte was utterly dumbstruck hearing her statement. Charlotte could never have imagined such a move from her rival, and it immediately triggered warning bells in her mind.
“I see. Is that the greatest card you have in hand? I’ll admit, you have caught me off guard. However, it’s a pity that I won’t let you continue it anymore. At the very least, you can’t hope to threaten me from where you are now.”
“What about me then, Charlotte Sorofya?”
Right after Charlotte spoke, another voice suddenly sounded not too far away. Following that, a golden-haired figure descended from the sky.
Nora Xeclyde had arrived.