Chapter 334: A Shock For Everyone
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
It was nighttime at the Ptolemy family home.
A long table was placed in the flower bed. Groups of people dressed in gorgeous clothes walked past and danced there. The light of the stars shone on a ma.s.sive fountain in the middle of the dance floor, and the water droplets cracked into spots of silver light.
Watson sat in a remote corner and fiddled with his knife and fork in boredom. He took a piece of beef from the silver plate in front of him and put it into his mouth.
Half a day had pa.s.sed since he met Daniel. Since Antonio had taken the initiative to reveal his ident.i.ty, Daniel had only hesitated for a moment before agreeing to Antonio’s request.
‘As expected, compared to strength, status is more useful in the kingdom.’
If they did not have Antonio with them, they would not be able to attend the dinner party, and they would also fight with the Ptolemy family. Even though that was a world where the strong were respected, they did not have power. It was just that it was easier for the strong to obtain more power.
Watson became more determined to become the ruler of that kingdom and not let his fate and that of his family and friends be manipulated.
“You must be the disciple that Master Antonio recently took in, right? You are very talented. Even your eating actions are so elegant. One look and I can tell that you come from a large family. May I ask which family you are from?”
While Watson was eating, a golden-haired young man in an expensive suit came up to him and praised him softly.
His praise almost made Watson spit out the meat he had just eaten.
Generally speaking, a n.o.bleman’s compliments were usually given out of courtesy. They would usually praise the other party’s appearance and clothing. However, the young man in front of him praised his elegant eating posture, and he could not find any words to describe it.
“I’m from the border, a down and out baron family.” Watson chewed on the beef a few more times and spoke vaguely.
It did not conform to the etiquette of the n.o.bles to speak while eating at the dining table. He did that to make the man retreat. It was Master Antonio’s fault for revealing his ident.i.ty, which caused many n.o.blemen in the floating city to show an interest in him.
The man chuckled. “So you’re from the border. I heard that people at the border are very forthright. I’m very impressed by such a quirky character.” The blonde man felt embarra.s.sed by Watson’s words and turned to look at the people sitting next to Watson—Nightingale and Denise—who were eating the pastries slowly. He said, “My dear beautiful ladies, are you Young Master Watson’s handmaidens? I did not expect such beautiful women to be among the handmaidens. May I have this dance?”
“Sorry, I don’t dance with anyone other than Young Master.”
Nightingale put down the pastries and moved her right hand. A sharp dagger penetrated the table surface, which showed how powerful it was.
Denise hesitated for a moment and looked at Watson.
“Denise, if you want to dance, go ahead.”
“Then I won’t accompany you for now, Young Master.”
Denise stood up and helped the pale-faced blonde youth onto the dance floor.
“Nightingale, dancing is a very good way for n.o.blemen to socialize. If someone asks you to dance and you don’t hate them, it’s okay to go and dance.”
“First, I can’t dance. Secondly, that way of socializing disgusts me. No, I don’t like most of the n.o.blemen’s activities,” Nightingale said as she took the dagger from the table and ate the pastry that she had not finished yet. She stuffed it into her mouth with a look of disgust.
Perhaps it was because of the incident with Casey—Nightingale hated the n.o.bles. She also hated their activities.
“Why are they so arrogant? They just became Master Antonio’s disciples. They are beautiful, yet they don’t respect anyone else! Master Antonio is also very proud. There are so many talented children in the royal city. Even if the royal city didn’t have them, they could have come to this city. Why did they have to go to the border to find a disciple?”
“Doesn’t he know what kind of place is the border? I heard that there are less than 100 n.o.blemen there. It’s a gathering place for barbarians! Judging from how those two ate, they must have not received a good education since they were young, especially that short-haired maid. She sat in her master’s seat and ate. She has no manners at all.”
Several n.o.ble ladies gathered and discussed Nightingale and Watson’s actions; their faces were full of disdain.
“I don’t know why the Ptolemy family would invite those people to a banquet. It lowers our standard to a.s.sociate with them. Don’t you think so?”
One of the girls there had light blonde curly hair that fell onto her back. Her skin was so white that it was almost transparent, and her eyelashes were a rare white color. It was the sunlight disease in that world. People who had that disease could not be exposed to sunlight for a long time, so it was naturally difficult for them to cultivate, causing the girl to look soft and weak.
That girl was Lana Ptolemy, and she was the family’s third young miss.
Lana looked at Watson in the distance as her companions complained about Watson. Her eyes flickered with a different light, and she shook her head. “No, I think those two people are very interesting.”
“Lana, you are the host, so you would say something to protect your guests. But I think there’s really no need to protect such people.” Her companion added unkindly. Lana shook her head again, and the other girls were astonished. As she walked toward Watson, she said, “No, I don’t mean to protect them. I’m serious.”
“Young Master, the Ptolemy family steaks are served according to the time slot. They’re usually served once every 20 minutes. Judging from how you eat, you won’t have anything to eat in less than ten minutes. Your idea of using food to kill time won’t stand.”
Watson raised his head and realized that a 12 or 13-year-old girl had appeared in front of him out of nowhere. Her hair was pale gold, and her eyelashes and eyebrows were pure white. She was staring at him with her light-colored pupils, and there was a smile on her face. Her two small dimples looked very cute.
“So, what do you think I should do?”
“Let’s dance. The next song, Rumba Waltz, will take exactly ten minutes. After that, you can enjoy the steak again.”
As he faced the girl’s outstretched hand, Watson hesitated for a moment. Then, he smiled and stood up. He raised his hand and said, “Okay, then I’ll do it.”
Watson and the girl entered the dance floor and began to dance to a melodious tune. At first, Watson’s steps were a little out of sync, but soon he found the memories of several female experts who were proficient at dancing in the Einherjar’s body. He used the fusion system to enhance those memories.
“Look at those two.”
At some point, the dancers on the dance floor slowly stopped moving. Many of them even began to retreat, making way for the middle area, where a young man and a girl danced near the fountain. The young girl was like a white b.u.t.terfly, her movements light and otherworldly. The young man’s movements were full of strength, like a strong tree that s.h.i.+elded the b.u.t.terfly from the wind and rain, its leaves swaying with the wind.
Every time the white b.u.t.terfly spun to leave the tree, it would fly back to rest longingly in his arms. It was as if the young man’s arms were her best harbor.
“So beautiful.”
A few women put their hands together, their eyes s.h.i.+ning as they watched that scene. Some n.o.blewomen looked at Watson and Lana, then at their partners, and then shyly pulled away from each other. The girls who had ridiculed Watson and Nightingale as barbarians from the border also widened their eyes in surprise. They were speechless at that moment.
Even a dance master who had studied for decades might not be able to perform such a beautiful dance. If they were barbarians, they would not have been able to do that.
Nightingale was holding a dagger and cutting the pastry in front of her fiercely as if she had a grudge against the cake. Every cut penetrated the table, causing the men who had wanted to get close to her to flee speedily.
“Young Master Watson, you were lying when you said that you are from a down and out baron’s family. Such exquisite dance skills can’t be learned in a day.” Lana twirled lightly in Watson’s arms. She put her arm around Watson’s neck. She had still needed to exert her strength at the beginning of the dance. After that, she did not have to do anything; she relied on Watson’s strength to make those beautiful circles.
“I’m not lying, and I don’t have any dance skills. I’m just casually dancing.”
“Really?”
Lana turned into Watson’s arms. Her cheek was pressed in front of Watson, almost touching the tip of their noses. “When you injured my second brother’s bodyguard, did you just casually hit him?”
Watson narrowed his eyes. “I’m sorry, Miss. I forgot to ask. You are—”
“I’m Lana Ptolemy, the Ptolemy family’s third young miss.”
Lana let go of Watson’s hand and turned away. She lifted her skirt slightly and curtsied toward Watson. At that moment, the bell rang.
No one knew who had started clapping. Under the thunderous applause, Lana strolled to Watson’s side and tiptoed close to his ear. “Don’t worry. I don’t blame you for what you did. On the contrary, I’m pleased because I’m also very annoyed by what my second brother does daily! I just want to remind you that my brother is a vengeful person. You have to be wary of his schemes, especially against the people around you.”
Then, Lana turned around and left without turning back, leaving Watson with a frown on his face. Then, he relaxed.
It seemed like Lana had good intentions, but he did not care about that. If Casey really wanted to do something, he would not be the one to suffer.
With that thought in mind, Watson began to return to his seat. The n.o.blemen looked at him differently from before. They looked at him with respect. A dance could reflect the etiquette of a n.o.bleman to a certain extent. Watson could perform that dance because he had received high-quality dance lessons.
“Young Master Watson, your dance was too good. I wonder if you are as outstanding in other aspects of n.o.ble etiquette as well?”
A hateful voice sounded. Watson turned around and saw Casey. He was the one who had spoken. His hands were wrapped in bandages and tied to his chest. His face was swollen, and he had a sinister smile on his face.