"You look beautiful, Celeste," Evan Indi Estella couldn't help but complint his younger sister. She wore a white and blue off-the-shoulder gown that accentuated all her natural charm.
As soon as she entered the party hall, she drew the attention of every man in the room. However, their gazes quickly shifted away under the fierce glare of Evan. As a proud and overprotective brother, he couldn't tolerate such looks directed at his beloved sister.
Celeste, on the other hand, felt uneasy as usual with her brother's behavior. "Yeah, just stay away from for this party, big brother," she said, her voice tinged with irritation.
Evan's eyes widened in shock, as if her words had stabbed his heart. "Celes?" He uttered, his tone filled with hurt.
"Stop doing that! It's embarrassing!" Celeste exclaid, covering her face in embarrassnt before dashing away.
"Wait, I just want you to know you look just like Mom, Celes!" Evan called out loudly.
Celeste shook her head, exasperated, but couldn't help a small smile from forming. Being compared to their mother was the highest praise she could receive, but hearing it for the umpteenth ti from her brother was starting to wear thin.
"Celeste," ca a familiar voice.
Celeste turned around, her smile widening. "Cylien! Wow, as expected, you look stunning in a traditional dress!" she said with a grin.
Cylien was dressed in traditional Elven attire, making her stand out alongside Aerinwyn and Sephira. She smiled warmly in return. "You look very beautiful too. It seems like you put more effort than usual?"
Cylien was a close friend to Celeste now, though not as close as Alia, so she wasn't entirely sure. But her guess was correct.
"Haha, I just thought it might be good to make an effort today," Celeste laughed awkwardly, scratching her head.
"Oh look, Victor is there as well!" Celeste quickly changed the subject, pointing at Victor who was dressed in a classy suit.
With a grin, she made her way towards him, and Cylien followed. But they soon noticed he wasn't alone. Victor was chatting with Roda, and it was clear from their expressions that they were sharing so jokes. Since the Exam in Dolphis, where they ended up in the sa group, the Senior and Junior had grown quite close.
Seeing Celeste stop and watch the duo, Cylien decided to tease her friend a little. "Are you jealous, Celes?" She asked with a mischievous smile.
"Eh? For what?"
To her surprise, Celeste's reaction was one of complete disinterest.
It was too disinterested, in fact.
'Strange...' Cylien felt confused. At the beginning of the year, she could have sworn that Celeste and Victor would end up together. They were already close and had a relationship that was a bit more than friendly. Everything seed to be heading in the right direction, even with Selene around.
But seeing Celeste's nonchalant expression made Cylien doubt her previous assumptions. Had sothing changed?
The face of a white-haired man suddenly ca to mind.
'Certainly things have changed since he appeared...'
"Hey! Victor!" Celeste called out, pinching the hem of her skirt to avoid tripping as she approached.
"Oh? Celeste? Don't you look beautiful?" Victor said with a playful laugh, smiling at her.
Celeste rolled her eyes but couldn't help grinning. "I see you're already busy making connections?"
"Ah... well?" Victor scratched his head, casting a pleading look at Roda for help.
"Good morning, Senior Celeste, Senior Cylien," Roda greeted them with a smile, her yellow gown glowing in the light.
"Roda? You're not usually the one to wear such flashy dresses?" Celeste asked, her expression thoughtful.
"Indeed, but today is a historic day as two Great Houses will be allied through sacred vows. Many nobles are attending for this, and as such, Father wishes to make acquaintances with them," Roda replied.
Celeste sowhat understood where Roda was going with such a speech.
'Isn't that too early for her?' she thought at first, but then she rembered that Elizabeth, who was only a year older, was also getting engaged. So, she refrained from asking.
"Well, good luck. A lot of them are just weirdos," Celeste said, grimacing at the lascivious gazes directed at her, Roda, and Cylien from other nobles.
All three of them were pri targets, being Princesses of Sancta Vedelia after all.
"Thank you, I might need it," Roda chuckled.
Victor, noticing the issue, spoke up. "What about Rodolf? And even Monarch Jefer? Shouldn't they be first before Roda?"
It was a fair question since they were older than Roda. Moreover, Jefer, being a Monarch, was a perfect target for all noblewon.
"I don't know about Monarch Jefer, but Rodolf is already promised to a certain Elven
Princess," Celeste said with a teasing smile directed toward Cylien.
"Ahem..." Cylien cleared her throat, though a faint blush colored her cheeks.
"Huh?!" Victor, as dense as ever, was beyond shocked at this revelation.
He knew Rodolf had a one-sided crush on Cylien, but since when had it beco reciprocated?
"I knew Senior Victor was dense, but this is sothing else..." Roda smiled a bit, finding Victor's unawareness cute.
"He is always like that. It took him ten years to understand Selene has a thing for him,"
Celeste added, throwing a jab at Victor.
"Ugh..." Victor couldn't retort to that.
"By the way, where are your siblings? I'm glad Cyril isn't here, but what about the other
two?" Celeste asked, curiously inquiring about Alicia and Sirius.
"Oh, they are over there... with Father," Victor pointed a little away.
Celeste quickly spotted them standing with Jas Raven. She smiled a little, noticing Alicia. Though she still wore an aloof expression, Celeste knew her well enough to see the subtle
signs.
"She clearly is feeling better since her engagent ended, isn't she?"
Victor nodded with a smile. "I am grateful to Amael for that. She doesn't have to feel oppressed at school anymore, but still, I didn't wish that for Adrian..."
When Victor ntioned Adrian's recent critical condition, the mood turned somber. Despite their hatred for Adrian due to how he had treated Alicia, he was still a childhood acquaintance.
As for Celeste, her thoughts shifted to her best friend, Alia, and her condition.
"I really feel a little bad for him..." Cylien suddenly said.
"Bad for Adrian?" Roda asked.
"No... about Cain, I an," Cylien said, her gaze fixed on the brown-haired vampire speaking
with Sirius.
Cain Redgrave. Everyone knew he harbored feelings for Elizabeth, but she never reciprocated them. It had been worse in recent years when she completely ignored him. At least this year, she treated him nicely, but she never gave him any hope, and before he knew it, his crush had been engaged to a foreigner.
"I hope he can just turn the page though..." Victor said, not knowing what else to say. Cain's expression was darker than usual. He was clearly against the engagent and firmly believed that Amael had tricked Elizabeth.
User Comments
0 comments from readers