Chapter 480: Brother-in-law, Brother-in-law

Viscount Mockray, who had been spectating, finally came to his senses and hastily instructed the servants to bring out the food.

To be honest, he didn’t understand.

From his perspective, Sean was the husband of the Daeli Duke, and Elvire was the Daeli Duke’s sister. It was perfectly normal for a younger sister to know her brother-in-law. But what was the deal with Miss Elise?

Logically speaking, Sean and Elise had an ambiguous relationship, so he shouldn’t have let “others” know of her existence. And yet, judging by Elvire’s surprised tone just now, it seemed she and Elise were friends…

This left Mockray, who had been a Viscount for decades, unable to make heads or tails of the situation.

Fortunately, this wasn’t a major issue… well, at least not for the Grev Family. Their job was simply to serve these distinguished guests well, and then pretend they had seen nothing and knew nothing.

Yielding to her sister’s pressure, Elvire reluctantly came over to sit and greeted Sean. “Long time no see, brother-in-law.”

Sean forced an awkward smile. “Long time no see, Eli.”

He felt completely out of his depth. Things were spiraling in a direction he could neither control nor predict, making him panic more than a little. But panic was one thing; he still had his wits about him and knew he couldn’t afford to lose his composure.

Since Elvire hadn’t recognized him yet, he would just play dumb and try to get through this for now.

Elvire, however, frowned slightly. She didn’t like her brother-in-law calling her by that name; it made it sound as if they were close. But no matter how she felt, Carl Black was still her brother-in-law, a member of her family. So, after a moment’s thought, she decided to let it slide. She didn’t retort, merely letting out a soft “humph” to express her stance.

Sean let out a dry chuckle, feeling even more unnerved.

Daeli shot her sister a mild glare before squeezing Sean’s hand and saying softly, “That’s just her personality. You don’t have to mind her.”

The servants quickly brought the dishes to the table.

As expected, the spread was incredibly lavish.

As the administrators of this Seaport City, and with Howard being a man who enjoyed life’s pleasures, the Grev Family’s chefs were naturally top-tier. Every dish was a collaboration between at least two master chefs, prepared with the freshest ingredients, so the taste was beyond reproach. Howard had also given special instructions, noting that two of the honored guests were from the Inland. Consequently, the chefs had also taken Inland palates into account, minimizing the risk of the guests not being accustomed to the flavors.

Even the rather picky Elvire found the food to be quite good.

Only Sean and Elise couldn’t seem to taste a thing.

Or rather, no matter what they ate, it all tasted of doom.

The doom of being utterly finished.

Daeli noticed Sean was distracted and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong? Is there a problem?”

Viscount Mockray also smiled. “If the food is not to your liking, please don’t hesitate to say so. I can have them prepare something else.”

Sean coughed. “No, no, it’s great. Really.”

As he spoke, he forked a piece of smoked eel into his mouth.

This was made from Seaweed Eel. In its natural form, the creature resembled a strand of vegetable-green seaweed and typically lived in waters 500 meters deep. Since anything below 200 meters was generally considered the deep sea, the Seaweed Eel was also a type of Sea Beast. It was expensive and very difficult to obtain. Unlike the deep-sea white shark, it was used more often as food or as an ingredient in Magic Potions that could promote the body’s Magic Power circulation.

This was the Grev Family’s entire stock of it, and they had brought it all out for the occasion, which showed their considerable sincerity.

Sean usually loved eating these delicacies, but right now, he simply wasn’t in the mood.

His mind was currently preoccupied with Elvire.

He really couldn’t tell if the young woman was putting on an act for his benefit.

‘Seriously, this feeling of suspense is the worst kind of torture. I would have preferred a quick and decisive end.’

Howard, too, was lost in thought.

He hadn’t said a word in some time.

Although he and Sean weren’t thinking about the same thing, he also felt that something was not quite right.

Seeing Sean lost in thought, Elvire sneered and said pointedly, “Brother-in-law, you’ve been quite busy lately, haven’t you? One moment you’re sending people with messages, the next you’re showing up in person. Now that you finally get to see my sister, instead of talking with her and keeping her company, you’re over there trying to act all deep and mysterious… Oh!”

She spoke as if a thought had just occurred to her. “You aren’t thinking about a certain Saintess, are you?”

Sean: “?”

Elise: “…”

If Elvire hadn’t brought it up, she’d almost forgotten there was also Her Highness the Saintess in the “New World.”

Just another way to die.

Sean felt the pressure mount.

‘This sister-in-law of mine really knows how to be passive-aggressive.’

His situation was already difficult enough, and now Elvire was adding fuel to the fire… This could literally get him killed!

And yet, he had to keep playing the part of the dutiful brother-in-law, so he feigned displeasure. “Don’t be ridiculous. The only one in my heart right now is your sister.”

‘And you.’

The corners of Daeli’s lips lifted when she heard this.

She had long grown accustomed to Olivia’s existence, so the word “Saintess” alone wasn’t enough to make her angry. On the contrary, Sean’s claim that she was the only one in his heart brought her a bit of joy. Even though she knew it was a sweet lie, she still loved hearing it.

Seeing her attempt to stir up trouble fail, Elvire pouted and started complaining about Sean’s face. “Brother-in-law, can you get rid of that mosaic on your face before you speak? You’re always hiding your face. Is it because you did something wrong behind my sister’s back and you’re afraid someone will recognize you and expose you?”

Sean: “…”

‘Wait, since when was this sister-in-law of mine so sharp-tongued? I’d never noticed it before.’

‘And another thing—’

“What mosaic?” Sean asked, puzzled.

Elvire, thinking he was playing dumb, rolled her eyes. “The Cognitive Magic you put on your own face. What other mosaic would I be talking about?”