Pavel stood in front of the main door of the mansion, his eyes keenly watching the courtyard filled with servants and guards who were preparing to welcome the head of the family. The hurried footsteps, the sound of shouted orders, and the approaching gallop of horses made the atmosphere of the Hale residence filled with quiet tension.
As the butler, Pavel had made sure everything went according to plan-the welcoming carpet was laid out, the servants stood in perfect posture, and the knights in charge of guarding the Hale family mansion were lined up neatly by the entrance. However, there was one thing that bothered him.
"The family's knights have begun to approach, but why is Young Master Lucian still nowhere to be seen?" she murmured, her forehead furrowed deeply.
She glanced at the line of servants and immediately caught sight of Natty standing among them. Without hesitation, he stepped quickly closer.
"Hey you," he called out, his voice sounding firmer than usual.
Natty jumped in surprise, hurriedly bowing respectfully. "Yes, butler?"
"Go and make sure Young Master Lucian comes out of his room right now," Pavel ordered, his tone non-negotiable. "If necessary, knock on his door until he responds."
Natty looked doubtful for a moment, but seeing Pavel's serious expression, she could only nod obediently. "Okay, I understand."
Wasting no time, Natty immediately ran towards the wing of the mansion where Lucian's room was, while Pavel returned to staring at the entrance with sharp eyes.
Natty was already standing in front of Lucian's door, her heart pounding slightly as she knew how bad her young master's reputation was in this mansion. However, she also remembered how Lucian treated her yesterday, different from the rumors.
"Young Master, it's me, Natty," she called as she knocked lightly on the door.
From inside, a lazy voice sounded, "Oh, is that you? Just come in, it's not locked anyway."
Natty was silent for a moment. Normally, servants should wait for permission clearly before entering a nobleman's room, but Lucian sounded so casual as if it was no big deal.
"Eh? Well..." she hesitated, then took a deep breath. "Then, if you'll excuse me..."
He opened the door slowly and stepped inside, immediately seeing Lucian standing in front of his bed, trying to put on his own clothes.
"Damn, why are these clothes so hard to put on," he grumbled, his facial expression showing the exhaustion of trying to take care of it himself.
Natty noticed that Lucian was trying to fasten the collar of the ruffler that adorned his neck, but he seemed to be having trouble.
"What a coincidence that you came," Lucian continued, glancing at Natty. "Can you help me put this on, Natty?"
Natty widened her eyes, not expecting the request to come so casually from Lucian. However, seeing how Lucian struggled with his own clothes, she finally sighed and stepped closer.
"Well, I'll help, Young Master," she said, beginning to deftly fix the collar ties of the ruffler.
"I'm sorry to be presumptuous, but Young Master," Natty said softly, her fingers still busy smoothing the ruffler collar around Lucian's neck. "I don't think it's necessary for you to join me in welcoming the Great Master. You don't have a good relationship with him, do you?"
Lucian raised an eyebrow. "Hmm? Apparently you know that too."
"The seniors told me," Natty replied honestly. She pulled the ruffler ties once more to make sure everything was perfectly in place, then took a step back. "It's done, Young Master."
Lucian was silent for a moment, as he lightly smoothed the front of his clothes. Inwardly, he thought, "Well, I don't really want to welcome him either, but... I'm curious about Lucian's father, and how their relationship is."
She then sighed before smiling faintly. "Don't I sound like a jerk if I don't welcome my father home?" She turned to Natty. "It's okay, thanks for worrying about me, Natty."
Natty looked a little surprised by the remark, but before she could reply, Lucian continued, "And also, thank you for your help."
Lucian nodded slowly, then he went back to checking his appearance. The ruffler that had irritated him earlier was now perfectly arranged around his neck.
Meanwhile, Natty only bowed politely before replying to Lucian's words, "I was just doing my duty, Young Master."
"Well, how about leaving now?" said Lucian, giving Natty a quick glance before getting up. However, his steps halted. He stood still for a moment, as if forgetting something, his eyes narrowed for a moment before he finally looked behind him, his gaze fixed on the table in the room.
"Oh, I almost forgot," he muttered as she wandered around, looking for something that had slipped his mind.
After a few seconds, her gaze focused on the object she was looking for, a dark silver half-face lying unceremoniously beside the tea tray. With calm steps, he walked back to the table, grabbing the mask. Then, he casually put the mask on and adjusted it to his current face.
Natty who noticed that immediately asked, "You're wearing it again now?"
"Well, I don't really want to wear it," Lucian replied, his voice sounding flat, then adjusted the position of the mask with one hand. But Pavel says I have to wear it."
After making sure the mask was properly in place, Lucian sighed softly. "Alright, now it's ready," he said, glancing at Natty who was still standing by the pint.
Natty looked at him for a moment, before she nodded slowly. Then, she hurriedly resumed her steps and followed her young master behind. The two of them exited the room and walked down the quiet corridor, heading towards the front yard of the Mansion.
As soon as Lucian stepped into the main courtyard, the atmosphere that had been filled with the sounds of signals and preparations suddenly became quiet. Eyes began to turn towards him, and quiet whispers flowed between the rows of servants and soldiers.
"Why did he come here? Isn't he usually indifferent to the arrival of the Great Lord?" whispered a young maid in an astonished tone, her eyes continuing to fixate on Lucian who passed through the door of the mansion calmly.
"Isn't he afraid? I heard their relationship was bad..." interjected a senior guard standing nearby, his voice lowered but clear enough to add to the awkwardness between the ranks.
"Is he planning to cause trouble again?" said a maid girl nervously, her fingers wringing the apron she was wearing. She looked down quickly as Lucian's eyes flickered to her.
The whispers started, and although he didn't show any reaction, Lucian heard them all. He just took a slow breath and stared straight ahead, as if the voices were just a passing wind that didn't deserve his attention.
Natty glanced at Lucian with some concern, worried that the servants' remarks would anger him. However, to her surprise, Lucian seemed relaxed, even smiling slightly behind his mask.
Pavel stood tall among the servants, his eyes scanning the figure of Lucian who had just arrived. He sighed softly, "Young Master...." He muttered as he linked his hands together with teary eyes.
Meanwhile, the hoofbeats of the Hale family troops echoed in the front courtyard, signaling the arrival of the awaited figure. A line of black uniformed soldiers with the Hale family emblem on their chests lined up neatly, followed by a middle-aged man who walked with steady steps in front of them.
As soon as the leading horse stopped, the figure riding it dismounted from the saddle and stepped on the pedals hanging from the horse. His hair was jet black though it was beginning to be interspersed with strands of ash, and a pair of piercing blue eyes scanned the surroundings with a piercing calmness.
He was Keith Hale, the current head of the Hale family and Lucian's father. Pavel stepped forward respectfully, bowing before him.
"Welcome back, Master." he said firmly but respectfully.
The Duke only nodded slightly, he then held out his horse to one of the knights and resumed his steps, Without changing his cold and stern expression, Keith Hale continued his steps forward, his leather boots tread the stone floor with a sound that was clearly audible in the silence.
"Looks like you're still doing your job well this time." He finally opened his voice.
Pavel bowed once more, keeping his posture perfect. "Of course, Master." he replied without hesitation.
However, in his heart, he was a little worried. Duke Hale had never paid any attention to Lucian before, but still, he had to make sure no problems arose this time.
Footsteps sounded from the front door of the mansion, a man with black hair and eyes like saphire gems stepped up to meet Duke Hale who was now in the main courtyard of the mansion.
"Julian Hale welcomes Father and the family troops," he said loudly, bowing respectfully before Duke Hale.
From where he stood, Lucian watched the meeting with interest. His eyes alternated between Julian and Keith Hale, before finally whispering softly.
"So he is? Wow, when juxtaposed with Julian, they look like the old version and the young version." he muttered in a barely audible voice.
Keith Hale does bear a resemblance to his eldest son. His jet-black hair and piercing eyes reflect the authority of a leader. However, if Julian carried a firm and disciplined impression, Keith carried a much heavier aura of dominance-like someone who was used to commanding and being feared.
Keith gave Julian a quick glance before nodding slowly. "Thank you for taking care of the mansion while I was doing my duty, Julian."
Julian replied with a flat expression full of professionalism. "No problem, Dad. It's already my duty."
Keith simply nodded before stepping straight towards the mansion, his demeanor remaining calm and dignified. However, while walking, his eyes briefly flickered to Lucian.Just a glimpse. As if Lucian's presence there was completely unimportant.
Without the slightest change of expression, Keith walked straight past Lucian without saying a word-as if his son was just a shadow that didn't need to be noticed.
Lucian remained standing where he was, staring at Keith's retreating back. He folded his arms across his chest, tilted his head slightly and raised his eyebrows.
"I'm pretty sure he saw me earlier, but why is it as if he didn't see me here?" Lucian's hands clenched slightly, but he quickly relaxed his grip.
"Damn, this family is really complicated." He continued with a sigh then held his head this time.
Around them, the few servants who witnessed the incident could only steal glances at each other, some seemed to want to whisper, but dared not speak openly. Pavel, who had been observing the brief interaction, could only sigh softly before hurriedly catching up with Keith. As he passed Lucian, he briefly glanced at him with a worried expression, but Lucian didn't show any reaction.
Pavel approached Duke Hale, he finally opened his voice. "Master, do you feel like you forgot to do something?"