Chapter 46
Kallion leaned close to her ear and quietly said something.
“You could be an actress.”
At his sarcastic remark, Juliana glared back at him without backing down.
“Then should I run out of here saying I can’t stand this anymore?”
Kallion let out a small laugh at her unabashedly blunt response.
Compared to how she used to foolishly show her affection for him, he was almost more comfortable with her being this sharp now.
“You can’t do that. Like you said, fulfill your duty until the banquet is over, Madam Baldomer.”
“I’ll handle it just fine on my own, so you should stop picking fights with me.”
“You?”
Ignoring Kallion’s furrowed brow, Juliana turned to greet an approaching guest.
Just then, the attendant guarding the entrance announced the arrival of another great house.
“Lord Caesar de Heister, eldest son of House Heister, has arrived.”
At the announcement of House Heister’s arrival, everyone’s attention turned toward the entrance.
Heister, Baldomer’s sworn enemy.
Since it was the moment the two houses came face to face, it was only natural that everyone’s attention would gather on them.
Caesar, Juliana’s elder brother and the heir to House Heister, leisurely approached Juliana and Kallion.
Caesar de Heister.
He was her elder brother, but their relationship was worse than that of strangers.
Among her many siblings, Juliana had been the most insignificant, and she and Caesar were so distant that they had barely ever exchanged a proper conversation.
“It’s been a while, Kallion. Father was busy with work, so I came in his place.”
“It’s been a while, Caesar.”
Unlike Caesar, who spoke politely, Kallion deliberately answered him without honorifics.
There was already an overwhelming difference in the strength of their abilities, and Kallion saw no reason to show deference to Caesar, who was merely an heir and not even the head of his house.
Regardless of the marriage, Kallion still considered Heister his enemy.
At Kallion’s casual condescension, Caesar’s brow twitched.
But Caesar himself knew how vast the difference in their power was, so despite his resentment, he forced himself to remain calm and turned his attention to Juliana.
“It’s been a while, Juliana. You’ve grown prettier since I last saw you.”
‘Then you clearly haven’t taken a proper look at me.’
Thinking that, Juliana gave him a false smile.
“I hope you’ve been well too, Brother.”
“Well? Hardly. Unlike you, who only had to marry off comfortably and be done with it, I have mountains of work to handle as the heir. I don’t have a moment to rest.”
It was laughable coming from someone who had married her off to an enemy house as though selling an object.
Well, they were practically strangers now anyway, so there was no need to get worked up over something like this.
“It seems it won’t be long before you inherit the position of head of the house.”
“Yes, and that’s why I’ve been so busy lately. None of my siblings are of any use whatsoever. Still, I suppose it’s fortunate. Baldomer was willing to take in the most insignificant of all my siblings.”
Caesar, who lived entirely convinced of his own superiority, forgot where he was and let his usual cruel words slip out.
Kallion’s brow furrowed slightly as he listened.
“That sounds as though Heister sent Baldomer defective goods.”
Only then did Caesar, who had been spouting pointless remarks at Juliana, flinch and look toward Kallion.
Noticing Kallion’s cold gaze looking down at him, Caesar became visibly flustered.
“O-Of course not! Whatever else can be said about Juliana, she’s the most beautiful among all our siblings, isn’t she? A woman only needs to be pretty! Isn’t that right? Haha…!”
His attempt at an excuse was even worse.
Kallion had never acknowledged Juliana as his wife, but recently, he had come to regard her abilities as the lady of the house highly.
So Caesar speaking as though Juliana were worth less than an ant irritated him for no reason.
“Don’t impose your own standards on me. It’s disgusting.”
The atmosphere suddenly turned vicious, and murmurs spread through the surrounding crowd.
Caesar’s pride also seemed wounded by Kallion’s harsh words, but this was Baldomer’s stronghold.
Forcing down his anger, Caesar gave a strained smile.
“Ahaha… I’m rather hungry after traveling such a long way, so I’ll just…”
People glanced between Kallion’s grim expression and Caesar retreating with his tail between his legs, then began whispering.
“Did you hear what Lord Kallion just said?”
“You mean when he asked whether Heister had sent Baldomer defective goods?”
“As expected, even after the marriage, it seems Baldomer still sees the Madam as nothing more than an object.”
“That was the purpose of the marriage in the first place.”
Then one noblewoman tilted her head and said something different.
“Still, wasn’t Lord Kallion defending Madam Baldomer just now?”
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