Chapter 45
I tried my best not to show how startled I was and answered calmly.
“Have we met somewhere before?”
Lloyd smiled.
It was the same beautiful smile he’d worn in the days when he loved me.
My eyes trembled as I looked at Lloyd’s smile.
He spoke gently to me.
“We saw each other in front of the Vas Guild, remember?”
“Ah…”
Relief washed over me at once.
So that was what he meant.
“We didn’t even have a chance to properly introduce ourselves, yet you remembered me.”
At my words, Lloyd’s silver-blue eyes curved beautifully.
“You don’t exactly have an appearance that’s easy to forget.”
Kallion’s brow twitched at his suggestive remark.
Even if only formally, I was still the lady of Baldomer. He was probably displeased that Lloyd would say something so suggestive to me.
Worried that Lloyd might suffer the consequences, I hurriedly ended the greeting.
“Then, modest though it may be, please take your time and enjoy the banquet.”
* * *
As Juliana moved away, Lloyd looked as though he wanted to say something more, but soon wore a disappointed expression.
Kallion stared at him before speaking.
“I didn’t expect Silverstel to send you instead of the eldest son.”
“My elder brother is extremely busy, so I volunteered to come.”
Even as he spoke, Lloyd’s gaze remained fixed on Juliana.
“It seems I made the right choice in coming.”
Kallion’s brow furrowed slightly at his suggestive words.
Lloyd gave him a gentlemanly smile and bowed.
“I’ll enjoy the banquet. Then, if you’ll excuse me.”
Kallion’s gaze hardened as he watched Lloyd walk away.
For two people who had supposedly only crossed paths briefly, there was something unusual about the way Lloyd looked at Juliana.
Her uncharacteristic agitation was suspicious as well.
As though she’d put on an iron mask before their marriage, the woman was usually frighteningly good at controlling her expressions in front of him. Yet in front of Lloyd, she had been visibly shaken.
The sight irritated him for no reason.
It had absolutely nothing to do with him what sort of man she fooled around with.
But Silverstel was out of the question.
Kallion’s mouth hardened before he casually walked over and stood beside Juliana as she greeted the other guests.
Once they had finished most of the greetings, he intended to ask her about Lloyd somewhere private.
Just as he took his place beside Juliana, Margaret de Marcelino, the head of the great House Marcelino, approached them.
“It’s been a while, Kallion.”
The middle-aged woman with green eyes greeted him with a benevolent smile.
“You’ve come, Margaret.”
“Where’s Darkin?”
“He’s over there.”
At Kallion’s words, Margaret spotted Kallion’s father greeting the other guests and smiled.
“You’ve been working hard as acting head of the house. Now that you’re married, I suppose you’ll inherit the position soon. Darkin must feel much more at ease.”
At Margaret’s gentle voice, Kallion merely bowed his head without replying.
Margaret’s gaze then shifted toward Juliana.
“This is the first time we’ve properly greeted each other since the wedding.”
“Greetings to the Master of the Wood Spirit.”
When Juliana showed the proper respect toward the head of a great house, Margaret smiled pleasantly.
“I didn’t know Heister had such a well-mannered young lady.”
It had been a long time since the bloodline of Marcelino had possessed the power of the Wood Spirit.
The ability, which had traditionally been inherited mostly by men, had died out in Margaret’s predecessor’s generation, and Margaret, the wisest and most strong-willed of Marcelino’s bloodline, had taken over as head of the house.
Once, theirs had been a house capable of freely commanding plants and flowers, but now they were little different from ordinary people who merely gave off a faint fragrance.
Juliana’s respectful treatment of her as the head of a great house made Margaret view her quite favorably. The fact that Juliana came from the notoriously selfish House Heister only endeared her to Margaret even more.
“I’m a member of Baldomer now.”
“Oh my, that’s right. My mistake. As a member of one of the great houses, I have high hopes that thanks to you, the long-standing rift between Baldomer and Heister may finally begin to heal.”
“I’m only fulfilling the duty given to me.”
Kallion stared at Juliana as she offered the conventional words with a polite smile.
It was nothing more than a formal greeting, yet watching her introduce herself as a member of Baldomer left him with a strange feeling.
It was also unexpected to see her wearing such a mild smile instead of her usual sharp gaze.
“Then I’ll leave you young people to enjoy yourselves. I’ll go greet Darkin.”
Juliana responded to Margaret’s meaningful smile with an awkward one.
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