Chapter 478 - 218: The Last Supper

After all, the man had made her mad plenty of times before. She was used to it.

Overall, Daeli was quite happy—pleasantly surprised, even—though she didn’t show it. That was just her personality. The most she did was let the corners of her mouth twitch upward when she heard Mockray comment on how well she and Sean got along.

Sean, of course, noticed.

That put his mind at ease.

’As long as she can smile, it’s fine.’

’It means Daeli is happy.’

’And as long as she’s happy, no problem is a real problem.’

’Sean was an expert at playing dumb to smooth things over.’

’At worst, he’d just have to... make it up to her in bed tonight.’

In any case, Sean decided not to dwell on it.

Now that they were together, he would just focus on spending time with Daeli.

He missed her a lot, too.

But while he had come to terms with the situation, Elise was still too scared to make a sound.

Daeli’s earlier presence had been truly terrifying. It was enough to rattle Elise, who was usually so poised and graceful with strangers—a skill even Elvire had praised. For the first time, she looked completely at a loss. She was scared to death and didn’t dare even look at Daeli. Frozen in place, not knowing whether to go or stay, Elise had no idea what to do...

To make matters worse, the attentive Viscount Mockray noticed her and pulled her into the conversation.

Not leaving any guest out was a host’s most basic social grace.

So Mockray smiled and said, "Miss Elise, don’t just stand there, please sit."

"I heard from my son that you and Mr. Sean came to the Golden Coast on official business?"

"How is that going?"

It seemed like casual small talk, but he was actually giving Elise an out.

Mockray had been a Viscount for many years; with his shrewd judgment, how could he fail to see that the relationship between Sean and Elise was anything but simple?

But right now, it *had* to be simple.

Putting himself in their shoes, if he finally found his wife only to see another man by her side, he would have torn the house down on the spot.

But this house was *his* house!

He couldn’t have that. Absolutely not.

He had just witnessed Daeli Duke’s anger firsthand and had no desire for a repeat performance.

So he deliberately mentioned that Elise and Sean were on the Golden Coast for business, implying their relationship was purely professional—the camaraderie of colleagues—and nothing more.

Elise caught his meaning and shot Viscount Mockray a grateful look. "We’re almost finished," she said. "And I must thank you, Viscount Mockray, for letting us impose. Having a safe place to stay has made our work much more convenient."

Viscount Mockray smiled. "That’s good then."

Then he added jokingly, "I bet you never expected your colleague to have such a hidden identity, did you?"

"You’re right," Elise said, feigning indignation as she turned to Sean. "Sean, you kept this buried deep, didn’t you? We’ve worked together for so long, and you never told me your wife was Daeli Duke. Did you not consider me a friend?"

I have to admit, her performance was quite convincing.

But Daeli was no fool. How could she be so easily deceived?

She gave Sean a long, meaningful look. "Are you sure you’re just colleagues?"

Sean nodded vigorously, like a chicken pecking at grain. "Yes, yes! Miss Elise and I belong to the same Wizard Organization back home. We just came here to investigate something."

"Is that so... Fine." Daeli seemed to believe him and turned to Elise with a smile. "Since you’re colleagues, come and sit. My husband’s Magic Power hasn’t recovered yet. Thank you for taking care of him for me while I was away."

The subtext was clear: now that she was here, Elise’s help was no longer required.

Elise said quickly, "It was no trouble, no trouble at all! We’re colleagues, it’s only natural."

Sean wasn’t sure what Daeli was getting at, but he didn’t have time to dwell on it. He quickly changed the subject. "It’s getting late," he said. "Since everyone’s here, why don’t we start eating and talk as we go?"

’The sooner they ate, the sooner he could go back and placate his wife.’

"Well..." Mockray hesitated, looking toward Daeli instead of answering.

Daeli Duke’s younger sister, Miss Elvire, hadn’t returned yet.

He couldn’t afford to offend either side, so he could only leave the decision to Daeli.

Daeli: "..."

’She knew she shouldn’t have let her sister act so willfully.’

Even though the ten minutes Elvire had promised weren’t up yet, Sean and Elise had arrived. Now they would have to wait for her.

"Let’s wait another two minutes," Daeli said, a headache forming.

If Elvire wasn’t back by then, they would just have to start eating themselves.

Although Viscount Mockray wouldn’t object if she insisted on waiting, this was Grev Family territory, not the Blazing Angel Family’s. To do so would be overstepping her bounds as a guest and rather impolite.

"Someone else is coming?" Sean asked, sensing something was off.

"Mm." Daeli squeezed Sean’s hand, remembering that Elvire had never been fond of the brother-in-law Daeli had chosen. "If she says anything rude later, don’t take it to heart."

"Say what?" Sean asked, confused.

Daeli added, "Of course, I won’t let her go too far either."

She loved her sister dearly, but she loved Sean just as much. Minor family squabbles were one thing—a part of breaking in a new family member—but if her sister truly crossed a line, she wouldn’t hesitate to discipline her.

"So who is it?" Sean asked, baffled. "Do I know her?"

"She’s your own sister-in-law. What do you think?" Daeli pursed her lips. "You should remember her. You even attended her coming-of-age ceremony with me."

Sean: "???"

’My sister-in-law?’

’Elvire??’

’Wait, how is Elvire here?!’

Only then did Sean notice the extra place setting in front of him.

The seat he was currently sitting in was Elvire’s seat!

’It’s over...’

’It’s really over.’

He wasn’t even sure if he’d managed to cover up the situation with Elise. His heart was already in his throat. Now, being told Elvire was coming too... well, that was just perfect.

His fluttering heart finally died.

Hearing Daeli’s words, Elise felt as if she’d been plunged into an icy abyss.

’Is this the consequence of having an affair?’

’Is this karma? What goes around comes around?’

Daeli clearly felt Sean’s hand tremble, his palm even starting to sweat. "What’s wrong?" she asked.

Sean forced a smile. "N-nothing, just a little cold."

Howard, who had been silent until now, finally seemed to snap out of his stupor. Recovering from the shock of Sean and Daeli’s relationship, he said, "I’ll have someone bring up the charcoal fire."

Sean: "?"

Grev Castle had air conditioning and floor heating, they just usually weren’t used.

The family was full of Reshapers; naturally, they preferred a classic fireplace and charcoal heat.

But...

’Was this really about a charcoal fire?’

’A charcoal fire could warm a person’s body.’

’But it couldn’t warm his already ice-cold heart.’

’If he’d known this was the situation, he never would have agreed to attend Howard’s dinner party, no matter what.’

’Other people’s dinner parties might cost you money or a favor. This dinner party from Howard was going to cost him his life!’

The one Daeli doted on the most was Elvire.

The three of them—him, Daeli, and Elvire—all meeting at once, with Elise in the mix...

Sean didn’t dare to imagine how disastrous that scene would be.

Barring a miracle, this was going to be his Last Supper.

Daeli continued, oblivious, "Oh, right. There’s something I haven’t told you."

"What is it?" Sean asked, trying to stay calm.

Daeli: "My sister got a boyfriend."

Sean: "?"

Daeli: "But this boyfriend of hers doesn’t seem very trustworthy."

Sean: "??"

Daeli: "From her tone, it sounds like the man was cheating on her with her best friend."

Sean: "???"

Daeli frowned as she spoke. "He’s from your world, too. As Eli’s brother-in-law, if you ever run into that man, make sure you teach him a lesson for her."

"If he gives you any lip, it’s fine if you kill him."

"No matter what his status is, I will bear all the consequences."

Sean: "..."

A cold sweat broke out across his back, soaking the shirt beneath his jacket.

He finally understood what people mean when they say: When things get tough, don’t despair... because it’s not time to despair yet. Things can, and will, get much, much tougher.

’How would Daeli know that her sister’s boyfriend was cheating with her sister’s best friend?’

’Elvire must have told her. That was the only possibility.’

’In other words, Elvire already knew he and Elise had come to the New World. She knew they were sitting on the living room sofa together. At this moment, Elvire might as well have been sitting right there between them.’

Before, Sean had been thinking about finishing the job with Elise quickly and going home, to avoid disappearing for too long and being discovered by Elvire.

Turns out, Elvire had already found out.

’You can run, but you can’t hide.’

’Even if he made an excuse and fled now—even if Daeli let him go—he would still have to face Elvire’s forty-meter broadsword when he got back.’

’It was a dead end.’

’This was the most despairing part: there was no escape.’

And just as Sean, drenched in sweat, had his mind racing, desperately searching for any possible out—or at least a way to die with some dignity—a familiar, melodious voice drifted in from the doorway, paralyzing his thoughts like a neurotoxin.

"Sister, I’m back!"

...