Roman felt the sensation on his back—Elise’s smooth, gentle palms stroking softly.
As a maid, she was certainly skilled in taking care of people; Roman had already relaxed enough to close his eyes contentedly.
Unconsciously leaning back, his body brushed against something behind him.
Roman paused for two seconds and immediately realized what he’d touched.
“Don’t mess around…”
Elise frowned and instinctively shielded herself—not out of irritation from being touched there, but out of frustration with herself for still not being able to identify his Sacred Seal.
Gradually, her movements grew quicker, her hand sweeping back and forth more rapidly, as if she were confirming something.
Mentally cycling through every lower-tier Sacred Seal listed in the codex, Elise opened her eyes again, unable to hide her shock.
She glanced at Roman’s profile, bit her lip, and pressed down the astonishment in her voice.
“Please wait a moment.”
In less than five seconds, Elise had picked up the maid dress from the floor and slipped it back on with practiced ease.
As she tied the string behind her neck, she spoke to Roman,
“Unless there’s a lower-tier Sacred Seal not recorded in the codex, your seal is at least mid-tier or higher.”
“But you said…”
“That’s right. No man has ever awakened a Sacred Seal of mid-tier or above.”
Fastening the collar at her chest, Elise continued, “For a moment, I even wondered if you were actually a girl. But you’re standing right here in front of me—so we can rule that out completely.”
As she finished speaking, her eyes flicked down briefly—then quickly looked away.
Picking up the dress that had fallen to the floor, Elise frowned and tossed it aside.
She went back to the wardrobe and found a new outfit, dressing Roman from head to toe.
While helping him into the new clothes, she caught a glimpse of his body and casually said, “There are no men’s undergarments in the estate. If you’re really uncomfortable, I could find you a set of women’s ones? It’s just underwear—it doesn’t matter under the dress.”
“Thanks, but I’ll pass…” Roman replied, declining politely.
Elise suddenly felt her mood lighten.
She offered a kind reminder, “If you ever find it hard to suppress things in public, you can learn the ladylike way of holding up your skirt to adjust discreetly. If the hem suddenly pops up, that would be a disaster.”
“Miss Elise, is your Sacred Seal a viper?”
Roman asked helplessly, as he lowered his head and used both hands to lift the skirt, practicing how to adjust it.
“Viper? Why do you say that?”
Elise didn’t catch the hidden meaning in Roman’s words.
Because you’ve got a venomous tongue.
But Roman wasn’t speaking Chinese, so of course Elise didn’t pick up on the pun.
Once he’d finished adjusting his clothes, Roman used both hands to gather his hair, pinning it back behind his ears and at the nape of his neck.
He glanced over to Elise, who was picking up a white lace headband and putting it back on while facing the mirror.
“I’m going to tell the lady about this,” Elise suddenly said, just as they were wrapping up.
“I was planning to tell Sister Luo Xiya myself,” Roman replied.
Elise studied him carefully for a moment, then gave a satisfied nod.
Obedient, mature, and self-aware—seems like he won’t be too much trouble going forward.
“Then, shall we go see the lady now?”
Returning to her role as maid, Elise placed both hands in front of her and spoke to Roman with respectful composure.
They descended to the first floor of the estate, where preparations for the banquet were in full swing.
Maids moved constantly through the grand hall, busily attending to their tasks.
“Lady Elise.”
Greetings like this echoed all around as maids respectfully acknowledged her.
Elise nodded back at the fluttering procession of young women with calm authority.
Roman, thinking about the continent’s matriarchal traditions, asked curiously, “Aren’t there any male servants among the nobility?”
A trace of amusement appeared in Elise’s eyes.
“For personal service, of course maids are preferred—more attentive and meticulous. Men mostly work as labor slaves. Though, yes, some noblewomen do train men into personal attendants, but those are rare—and their intentions are rarely pure.”
Only then did Roman realize his mistaken assumption.
A matriarchal world wasn’t just a reversed version of a patriarchal one—there were no perfect one-to-one replacements.
The phrase “men are slaves, women are whores” pretty much summed up how both genders were treated when they stood at the bottom of the social ladder.
The two of them arrived at the hall.
By now, it was already filled with tables, oil lamps flickering gently on each one. In the kitchen, dishes had been prepared and were simply waiting for the banquet to begin.
As twilight settled over the sky, Elise took up position at the door, guiding the arriving guests inside.
Roman, not knowing what he was supposed to do, stood quietly near the edge of the hall with his fingers interlaced in front of him.
Every passing maid gave him more than one glance.
A few bold ones even stepped up and tried to make conversation.
“What are you doing standing here?” came a melodious voice from behind.
An arm slipped around his shoulder.
The sudden touch startled Roman—he was wearing an off-shoulder pure white gown, and the contact against his bare skin made him flinch slightly.
Turning his head, he met Luo Xiya’s sea-blue eyes.
She had changed out of her usual leather armor and was now dressed in a black evening gown, the flowing skirt flaring out like a blooming black rose.
“I didn’t know what I was supposed to do,” Roman said softly.
“You didn’t know?”
Luo Xiya raised an eyebrow, the hand on his shoulder sliding downward to rest on his waist.
Smiling, she wrapped an arm around him and led him to one of the tables.
She picked up a dish and set it in front of him.
“Do you want me to feed you?”
The question was clearly just for show.
Before Roman could even answer, she held up a piece of ham wrapped in foil and brought it to his lips.
“Open up,” she coaxed gently.
Roman gave in helplessly and parted his lips, leaning slightly against Luo Xiya’s side as he bit into the ham.
“The banquet hasn’t started yet. Is this okay?”
“I’m the host. If I say it’s okay, then it’s okay.”
“And besides…”
Luo Xiya’s voice dropped slightly, though her face remained smiling.
“There’s going to be a ball tonight. You’re only allowed to accept my invitation—got it?”
Roman looked uneasy.
“I don’t know how to dance.”
“That’s fine. Just follow my lead. Everyone starts out not knowing,” she said dismissively, as if it were nothing.
Before long, more and more guests filled the hall—almost… no, entirely women nobles.
After being greeted by the maids, they each picked up a wine glass and came over to chat with Luo Xiya.
The banquet was held at Luo Xiya’s estate, and only a small number of people were invited.
Though low-key, the atmosphere was incredibly warm and pleasant. Everyone was enjoying the evening.
The maids, too, were part of that mood.
Luo Xiya treated them with great leniency—once the guests were settled, she had arranged a table just for them.
They didn’t have to spend the whole night walking around with trays in hand.
There was none of the scheming or backstabbing Roman had imagined would happen at a noble banquet.
Holding a glass of wine, he stood quietly with a peaceful smile on his face.