He was going crazy with worry, but not now. The young master's plan hadn't succeeded yet; everything was just beginning. It wasn't the right time.
Isri struggled to control his thoughts and his urge to rush into the church and drag Cecil out. The reins were tightly wrapped around his hand through his gloves.
After taking off his robe, Cecil slipped away through the back door of the church. He didn't want to be surrounded by people, much less begged to worship by those pedantic humans.
His status as the Holy Son was the best way for him to solidify his position; he had no other choice.
“Isri, let’s go.”
Sehir walked up to Isri and said, "Yes, young master." Isri's gaze fell on Sehir, a hint of desire flashing in his eyes, which he suppressed, and then smiled again: "Yes, young master."
Even after the carriage had traveled some distance, people still lingered by the roadside, their eyes fixed on the carriage that flashed by.
Upon returning to his residence, Sehir had barely rested for a few minutes when he was immediately visited by a series of people.
In just two short days, it seems that the name of the Cretis family has already spread far and wide, and these greedy nobles have begun to extend olive branches to him.
They spared no expense, showering me with gold, silver, and even priceless gems and diamonds, simply to win me over.
Sehir found the situation somewhat ridiculous. Looking at the thick stack of ball invitations in Isri's hand, he suddenly felt a headache coming on.
Isri placed the invitations on the table and said softly, "Should I decline them all?"
Sehir reached out and laid the invitation flat on the table, the black envelope with gold trim immediately drawing his attention.
"Whose is this?" Sehir asked, raising his hand and picking up the small knife from the sidebar to slowly cut open the envelope.
Isri replied respectfully, "From the Reich family."
The envelope was opened, and the letter inside was also black. The pen was made with a special ink made of gold powder, and the fine lines of the pen glided across the soft paper. The contents inside were elegant and polite.
"Your Excellency Duke Cretis, please forgive my intrusion, but I hope you will accept my invitation to visit my humble abode tonight."
Sehir folded the letter and set it aside, then looked at Isri: "Cancel the rest, go here tonight."
"Yes, young master."
As Isri was about to leave with the invitation, he was suddenly stopped by Ceshir.
“Return all the gems and diamonds that were sent.”
Islam paused for a second, the corners of his eyes twitching slightly upwards, his emotions unreadable, before bowing and saying, "Yes."
Although he wouldn't mind what Cecil did, Cecil, who was so pure and untainted by the outside world, was his god, the god he worshipped.
That's why he has the desire to lock people up and enjoy them slowly.
Cecil was his god, the pet of his desires, and his hopeless redemption in nothingness.
Islam swept the hair that was falling on the side of her face behind her ear, making her look even more perfect and delicate with her well-defined jawline.
Her well-fitting butler's uniform accentuated her smooth curves, and without close inspection, one might mistake her for a noblewoman.
“Young Master, which suit would you like to wear tonight?” Isri asked, bowing.
Chapter Nineteen
"You can prepare it yourself." Cecil was too lazy to think about those complicated clothes.
“Yes,” Islam said softly.
After Islam left, Sehir remained alone on the stool. He couldn't refuse all the ball invitations; this was the perfect opportunity to establish his prestige.
However, once he went to the ball, he would inevitably have to interact with people. He was a little annoyed by what happened tonight, and his expression turned sour when he faced Isri.
Islam's timing is always impeccable; he arrives at his destination just as the other side is entering.
Cecil bowed slightly and climbed out of the carriage. He was dressed in a black tuxedo that matched the night, and his short, bright blonde hair was held down by a top hat, making him look noble and reserved.
The collar was decorated with a rose entwined on thorns, which was very eye-catching. As soon as Cecil stepped off the carriage, he attracted a lot of attention.
Isri continued to tidy up the clothes that Sehir's men had messed up, as usual, in a very low voice, so that only the two of them could hear him.
"Young master, you should know what to be careful about tonight."
Sehir frowned slightly, looking at the people constantly entering the venue in the distance, and said with some dissatisfaction to Isri: "There are too many people!"
Isri smiled and said in an elegant voice, "But, this is the place you chose, young master."
Sehir gritted his teeth and remained silent.
As soon as the head of the Lake family saw Cecil approaching, he immediately put down what he was doing and came to greet him.
"Your Excellency Duke Cretis, welcome!" The head of the Reck family spoke with a hint of excitement.
He realized that he wasn't the only one who had invited Cecil, and he hadn't expected that the young duke would choose him.
As he spoke, the head of the Lake family stepped forward and extended his hand in a gesture of goodwill.
Sehir frowned even more deeply, but now that he was being watched, if he didn't take some action, it would inevitably cause losses to both families.
Sehir sighed inwardly, his fingertips were already incredibly cold, but thankfully he was wearing gloves. He glanced at Isri standing next to him and then placed his hand on Isri's.
The head of the Reich family smiled even more broadly, and after withdrawing his hand, he quickly said, "Duke, please."
Sehir nodded and stepped inside. Isri's gaze almost froze him. As soon as he was out of the sight of the head of the Reich family, Sehir immediately took off his gloves and threw them into the trash can.
At this moment, Isri's gaze was able to clear for a few seconds.
“Young Master, I’ll be waiting for you here.” Isri walked up to Sehir and bowed slightly.
Sehir glanced at Isri, and what he had just said was more like, "You're watching my every move. If you do anything to displease me, you'll be punished tonight."
However, Sehir simply looked at Isri without saying a word; he no longer wanted to argue with Isri.
Cecil pulled his hat down even further to cover his face and walked as far into the hall as possible, hiding in a less crowded corner, hoping to slip through the night's ball unnoticed.
After the guests had finished greeting him, the head of the Lake family finally went on stage to give a speech.
"Today, my Reck family cordially invites Duke Cretis."
The audience gasped in shock and began to look around with wide eyes, seemingly trying to find Cecil's whereabouts.
Sehir was extremely nervous. If it were exposed now, he would definitely not be able to escape tonight. Inevitably, out of fear, Sehir raised his gaze and fell on Isri standing in the distance.
The deep black butler's uniform was extremely eye-catching, and Cecil could immediately spot Isri's location in the crowd. His amber eyes were now looking at him.
His eyes held a savage, playful glint, like a caged dog greedily craving its meal; those eyes seemed to be telling itself something.
Young master, how do you plan to handle this matter? I really want you to fail.
Sehir glanced at it and then looked away, muttering under his breath, "Madman!"
Fortunately, the head of the Rex family was quite experienced. His voice was provocative, and his gaze swept over everyone present as he spoke.
"Duke Cretis is among you. Let's see who finds him first."
"Now, the ball begins!"
After saying that, the head of the Reich family stepped down from the stage and disappeared without a trace. Everyone present sighed. What kind of talk was that? The Duke had to find him himself.
Yes, these nobles only valued Kritis's status and did not actually know Cesil, nor did they even know what Cesil looked like or his age.
Only some nobles who had arrived earlier and witnessed the two shaking hands had their eyes purposefully searching for Cecil's figure.
Sehir, hiding in the shadows, breathed a sigh of relief. His gaze returned to the spot where he had just seen Isri, but unfortunately, Isri had vanished.
The ball had already begun, and everyone was looking for their ideal dance partner. But even when the two of them were dancing together, their eyes were still wandering around, trying to find the Duke.
Sehir remained hidden in the shadows, unnoticed. Watching everything unfold in the hall, Sehir shrank even further into the darkness.
"Your Excellency, greetings." Suddenly, a voice appeared, causing Cecil to stand up abruptly and turn to look at the source of the voice.
Seeing that he had frightened Isri, the man immediately apologized: "I'm sorry, Your Highness, I didn't mean to frighten you."
Sehir snapped out of his daze and looked at the girl in front of him. She had brown curly hair draped over her shoulders, reddish-brown eyes, and a light pink dress that accentuated her figure almost perfectly.
But Cecil wasn't concerned with those things; what the girl was talking about was the Holy Son.
"How do you know?" Sehir asked. His identity as the Holy Son had not yet been revealed, so it was impossible for these nobles to know so quickly.
The girl's manners were impeccable. She lifted her skirt, squatted down slightly, and said, "I happened to be at the church that day."
Sehir let out a breath, and then the girl asked, "I didn't expect you to be a nobleman. May I ask where you belong?"
“I’m sorry, forgive me for not being able to tell you,” Cecil replied politely, a slight smile playing on his lips.
"Oh, who is this? It's my dear sister!" Suddenly, a shrill voice rang in their ears.
Sahir couldn't help but frown, and the girl froze.
The speaker stepped out from behind the girl, pushed her aside, stood opposite Cecil, glanced at her, and did not bow.
“I am the eldest daughter of the Rex family, Rex Anna. And who are you?” Rex Anna looked at Cecil with disdain, her tone anything but polite.
Sehir didn't want to cause any trouble, as it would be too complicated to deal with, so he patiently bowed to the other party.
“I am Cecil.” He did not add his own prefix.
Upon hearing this, Rex Anna's eyes gleamed with even more mockery and disdain. She glanced at her timid younger sister beside her and let out a soft sneer.
"Who was this guy? Why are they inviting everyone in now? Turns out he's just some trashy nobleman."
Chapter Twenty
Sehir's expression remained unchanged; he didn't want to get entangled in these trivial matters and preferred to keep everything simple.
“Sister, how could you say that?” The girl who had been pushed to the side was a little timid, but she still defended Cecil.
Rex Anna suddenly raised her hand and slapped the girl across the face, her eyes filled with disgust and disdain: "Who do you think you are, daring to talk to me here?"
Instinctively, Cecil wanted to go up and stop him, but just as he was about to take a step forward, the image of Isri flashed through his mind, and he froze in place.
This simple action was unfortunately caught by Rex Anna, who let go of the girl's hair next to her and turned to look at Cecil.
As the eldest daughter, she was naturally taller than Cecil. She took a step forward, stood in front of Cecil, looked down at her, and spoke with disdain.
"What? You want to help her?"
“I didn’t make a move.” Cecil’s voice remained calm and unhurried, as if the other party had been hit with cotton.
The other person gritted their teeth, their tone filled with anger: "Do you intend to attack me?"
Sehir, still smiling, looked at Rex Anna and said, "Miss, this is none of my business."