Blood Lion Empire, Ross Family Mansion, Banquet Hall.
Under the dazzling crystal chandeliers, glasses clinked in a chorus of celebration.
Young nobles raised their cups, offering words of high praise to Count Hector Ross, who was surrounded by the crowd at the center of the hall.
“Miss Cecilia Ross is truly the brightest jewel of the Ross family—no, of the entire Empire!” a young noble’s voice rang out, filled with flattery.
“Lord Hector, for your daughter to break through to the Bright Moon stage at such a young age, her talent is truly astounding.”
“Oh, you flatter her, you flatter her. My daughter has merely achieved a tiny bit of success, that is all.” Hector Ross desperately suppressed the urge to let his smile widen, waving his hand with feigned modesty, though his pride was practically overflowing from his every expression.
“May I ask, Lord Hector Ross, how you raised such an exceptional daughter? Please, you must give me a pointer or two so I can return and teach my own worthless son.”
“You flatter her too much.” The middle-aged Count looked at the young noble before him with increasing favor and decided to give the man a hand. “I recall your son is also a rare talent of the Empire.”
“In my opinion, he is very suitable for further studies at the Imperial Capital Royal Knight Academy. I will write a letter of recommendation later; I believe the Empire will soon gain another pillar of strength.”
“Lord Hector, please accept my most sincere gratitude!” Overjoyed, the young noble quickly signaled a servant to present a shimmering magic robe.
“Now, what is the need for this? We are all simply contributing to the Empire.” Hector Ross glanced at the robe. It wasn’t exceptionally valuable, but the style was exquisite and suited Cecilia’s temperament perfectly. He eventually nodded.
“Very well, I will let Cecilia decide for herself whether she wants to keep this garment later.”
With the gift accepted, the young noble retreated contentedly, merging back into the other guests.
“Count Hector Ross,” a deep voice called out.
Hector looked up, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.
The newcomer was a long-time political rival, another old-money noble who held significant power.
Seeing the man approach of his own accord, Hector immediately grew wary. If this man intended to spoil his mood at his moment of greatest triumph, then he wouldn’t be blamed for being ruthless.
“Your daughter Cecilia is truly an exceptional girl. I doubt one could find another girl in the entire Empire who could compare to her.” The middle-aged noble’s words were unexpectedly complimentary.
To Hector Ross’s surprise, his rival had actually come to soften his stance.
How satisfying!
An indescribable surge of pleasure rushed to Hector’s head.
Cecilia had truly won him an immense amount of face!
As expected of his most beloved daughter, he was even beginning to consider whether he should let her inherit the family’s authority.
Hector Ross sat up straighter and spoke in a humble tone, “The Empire is full of talent; my daughter is but one of many.”
“I beg to differ.” The middle-aged noble shook his head and continued, “Miss Cecilia is currently the most brilliant pearl in the Empire.”
“Furthermore, as the daughter of the Ross family, how many in the Empire are truly worthy of Miss Cecilia?”
“Oh?” Hector Ross caught the underlying meaning in the man’s words.
“What if Miss Cecilia were to marry my second son? I wonder what your thoughts are on the matter.” The middle-aged noble smiled as he revealed his true objective.
[Is he here to poach her? Does your son even deserve her?]
Though he was already cursing the man in his mind, Hector Ross maintained a baseline level of politeness.
“This is my daughter’s lifelong happiness. I have no intention of interfering too much in her choice of partner.”
“Why be in such a hurry to refuse, Count?” The middle-aged noble did not back down. “If the union is formed, I can promise that the descendants of Cecilia and my second son will inherit the title under my wife’s name.”
He paused, adding weight to his tone as he continued, “My son has admired Miss Cecilia for a long time and is deeply devoted to her. Were it not for that, I would not have made such a request so abruptly.”
Hector Ross suddenly remembered a report about someone harassing Cecilia for a long time. It seemed that person was this man’s son.
“If your son is interested, then please have him earn my daughter’s approval himself. If the feelings are mutual, I naturally will not stand in their way.”
Hector Ross had his own little scheme. Not only would he refuse the request, but he would also warn Cecilia to string the boy along and torment him, using it as a way to take revenge for years of political grievances.
“Alas, very well.” The middle-aged noble could only retreat dejectedly.
What a truly exhilarating day!
Hector accepted various gifts from all sorts of nobles, engaging in unspoken exchanges of interest while immersing himself in the pleasure of being the center of attention. He felt he could listen to this flattery for another whole day and not grow tired of it.
However, the biggest surprise was that although this was meant to be a routine gathering of the Imperial nobility, the Empire had actually sent a congratulatory gift—even going as far as to exceptionally bestow the title of Imperial Viscount upon Cecilia, even if it was only a titular rank without land.
One had to know that the granting of noble titles had become increasingly strict over the years. Only by joining that mysterious ‘Eye of the Emperor’ organization and serving the Emperor across the world could one be eligible for a title.
His daughter Cecilia had actually picked one up for nothing. Was this the weight of a true genius?
Hector Ross couldn’t help but drink another glass of champagne.
“Is Miss Cecilia not attending today?” a noblewoman who had brought her son along asked, looking around with a hint of disappointment.
She had brought her son today to test their luck. If Cecilia and her son happened to take a liking to each other, wouldn’t that be a meteoric rise for them?
“My apologies, my daughter has always been somewhat solitary. She might be a bit shy.” Hector Ross clapped his hands and called the butler over. “Go and bring Cecilia here.”
The butler nodded and was about to turn away when Hector Ross stopped him.
“Forget it, I’ll go with you. As her father, I haven’t seen my Cecilia in quite some time.”
Master and servant walked one after the other toward the depths of the mansion.
“Old friend, tell me, is my Cecilia… the best?” Hector couldn’t help but brag to the butler again, his tone full of uncontrollable pride.
“The young lady is naturally peerless.” The butler couldn’t help but smile at his master’s rare childishness.
Lord Hector was magnanimous in all other matters, but when it came to Miss Cecilia, he was always like a petty young boy.
“My daughter is so beautiful!” Hector Ross stopped in his tracks, standing before an oil painting. “Is my painting not excellent?”
The oil painting depicted a beautiful girl.
She had a graceful figure and sat at a table. Her fluffy, brilliant blonde hair hung by her ears like flowing sunlight, and her sapphire-like eyes held a gaze of righteous brilliance.
Elegant, dignified, and graceful—nothing could better bring out the temperament of the girl in the painting. This was exactly how Cecilia appeared in Hector Ross’s eyes.
“My daughter is so wonderful; of course she wouldn’t fall for that fellow’s second son.”
“Did you know? That fellow’s daughter actually eloped with some wandering poet who came out of nowhere!”
At this point, Hector Ross couldn’t help but burst out laughing, tears pricking his eyes.
“With that kind of upbringing and family values, he actually thinks he can marry my daughter? He can dream about it in his next life!”
The butler beside him also couldn’t help but chuckle softly.
“Enough, let’s not talk about it. Let’s go find Cecilia.”
Hector Ross hummed a little tune as he walked toward Cecilia’s room.
“Cecilia, are you in there?” He tapped gently on the door a few times. “Papa has come to see you. You need to attend the banquet once to help me spite that old man, alright?”
There was no response.
Hector Ross knocked again.
“Cecilia?”
A strange sense of unease quietly crept into his heart.
He pushed the door open with force.
As far as the eye could see, the scene looked as though a thief had broken in, with items scattered haphazardly across the floor.
“Cecilia!” Hector Ross’s magic surged.
He panicked, thinking that his daughter Cecilia might have met with some accident right under his nose.
“Wait, Master, there is a letter on the table.” The butler pointed to a letter pinned down on the desk.
Hector Ross rushed over in a panic and tore open the envelope.
[Dear Father, please forgive my unannounced departure.]
[I know that you would never agree to my request, Father, and might even place me under house arrest.]
[But I have met the lover I wish to spend my life with.]
[I worked hard for so long and finally broke through to the Bright Moon stage just so that one day, I could use my own strength to take them for myself!]
[This parting might last for decades.]
[Until the day I can completely resist you, Father, I will bring them home to show you that my choice was correct.]
[Goodbye.]
Hector felt his vision go dark and his legs go weak. He stumbled back, collapsing onto the edge of the bed, his chest so tight he could hardly breathe.
The butler hurriedly rushed forward to support him. His gaze swept over the letter, noticing writing on the back. “Master! There’s more on the back!”
Hector forced himself to take a breath and struggled to flip the paper over:
[I have taken the dowry you left in my bedroom for me.]
[I’ll take a bit more money as well. I’ll go to the treasury myself to get it, so don’t worry about thieves.]
[After all… our happy life together might require quite a bit of spending.]
[Oh, right, I have joined the Eye of the Emperor organization. There is no need to come looking for me.]
Hector gripped the butler’s arm tightly, his face as pale as paper and his lips trembling.
“There’s… there’s a blonde guy!”
Before he could finish his sentence, his eyes rolled back, and he completely lost consciousness.
The butler turned pale with fright and quickly hoisted up his unconscious master, stumbling outside to call for help.