Chapter 320: Lis Tea

Chapter 320

Lis Tea

"Please, come inside," the soldier welcomed them.

Although their demeanor indicated they wanted to make the entire family representatives of the Emperor, Steven was reluctant to take on such a role. He had told the council that he would remain just a noble, and the Emperor would continue as before, managing the people and the nobles.

Furthermore, they intended to take on the task of buying cities for others. If they had enough resources to trade, they too would become city lords. After ascending the 7th floor, there would be no more fuss about positions. Living in separate cities meant there was no need for any changes.

As a result, the soldiers had to treat them like ordinary nobles for another 10 years, even though they knew their status had changed significantly...

Steven nodded to them and led the way. The banquet hall, which could accommodate nearly ten thousand people, was the Emperor’s grand palace. He had sacrificed his personal palace to transform it into the banquet venue because everyone knew how important this event was. As soon as they entered...they were greeted with a magnificent sight.

"Look! They’re here."

"Indeed, the people of the Setter family have arrived! Look at them, all dressed in the same color."

"That’s the great head of the Setter family, Lord Steven, isn’t he? He’s wearing a darker blue than the others."

"Yes, and next to him is the eldest young lord. And...the woman who seduced the eldest young lord, right?"

"Tsk! Are you out of your mind? How dare you speak of Her Highness like that?"

"I’m just envious of her luck. Even though she looks decent when dressed up like this, I’m still confident that I’m much more beautiful."

"True, but you can compete in everything except people’s destiny."

"Heh, heh, heh, destiny? Isn’t it just because she seduced..."

"Hey! Are you still going on about that?"

"Fine, fine. Let’s look at the next person. Is that Second Young Lord Aman? He still looks like the Demon of the Setter family as ever. His sly smile makes me want to faint. If I could make him like me, that would be wonderful."

"Yes, only the Second Young Lord doesn’t have a partner now. But I’ve heard that many still want to approach the Eldest Young Lord too. After all, neither of them is married yet."

"It’s true that they are not married yet, but that woman is always monopolizing the Eldest Young Lord. How can anyone else have a chance to get close?"

The sound of people talking about the arrival of the Setter family filled the air. Ellie let her spores gather information as usual out of habit. However...she couldn’t help but glance at the eldest young lord beside her. She wondered how he felt hearing others say she seduced him. The thought amused her!

"What are you laughing at?" Owen noticed even the smallest actions of the young girl. Just seeing Ellie cover her mouth slightly was enough for him to know she was stifling a laugh. He had walked through the hall and hadn’t seen anything funny. It was even more suspicious that Ellie looked at him and laughed.

"..............." Ellie froze for a moment, pretending not to hear the question. As a result, Owen let go of her hand and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer.

Owen’s face remained stoic, but inside, he felt a bit embarrassed. The girl he liked looked at him and laughed. Suddenly, his self-confidence wavered. If she looked at him with admiration, it wouldn’t have been as bad. But she looked and laughed, making him feel as if he had done something embarrassing.

Seeing this display of affection, Aman couldn’t help but pout, looking like a jealous young boy. This made all the followers lower their heads. Their master’s behavior was indeed strange today. Could it be just because of the young lady’s presence?

"Welcome, Setter family, to the event,"

The Emperor personally came to greet them. Previously, he would have stayed seated and let the Setter family approach to pay their respects. This change in his behavior made Steven quite pleased.

"Pay respects to His Majesty." Despite everything, they still showed their respect publicly.

The 5 princes behind the Emperor also respectfully greeted the Setter family. Even Joseph’s expression changed when he looked at the Setter family. He knew how important they were now. If the Setter family betrayed them by not using the resources given to buy cities on the 7th floor, or even if they bought them but didn’t allow access, it would all be in vain, wouldn’t it?

Being enemies with the Setter family now was not something to be done lightly...

"Please, make yourselves comfortable. The banquet has just begun, and there’s plenty of food prepared for all of you."

The Emperor gestured around to invite others to help themselves. However, the important members of the Setter family didn’t need to do this. They were invited to a special seating area where many maids would serve them food, so there was no need to mingle with others.

The members of the Setter family who were personally invited by the Emperor felt a bit embarrassed. Normally, they couldn’t even look directly at the Emperor’s face, and now it felt like a dream.

Everyone gradually went to get their food, and there were many tables for them to sit at. Naturally, as they separated, many from the other major families began to approach them. Even the less significant hunters became a focus of attention since they had participated in the tower challenge, making them interesting to others.

Today, the head of the Fernal family attended with a particularly unusual expression. They didn’t dare approach the head of the Setter family first but tried to mingle with other hunters instead.

Unfortunately, their efforts were largely in vain. The hatred between the Setter and Fernal families was long-standing, so it wasn’t surprising that the Setter family members ignored them. This made the Fernal family head feel as if they were about to cough up blood from the pain.

Perhaps in the entire Ares Kingdom, only the Fernal family was treated this way. Even the Cherine family received some attention. But the Fernal family had repeatedly plotted against them, leading to this treatment.

"Previously, I had the chance to speak with Steven and your son, but this is the first time I’ve met the young lady of the Setter family in person. I wondered what kind of woman she would be, and now that I’ve met her, I can see she is truly sweet and beautiful,"

The Emperor flattered Ellie openly, without hiding his intentions. However, his unverified words caused Jason to choke on his tea, and the members of the Setter family smirked disdainfully.

Who dared to say their young lady was sweet and beautiful? Such a statement clearly indicated a lack of true understanding of their young lady!!

The Emperor was not foolish. After he spoke, he noticed the strange reactions instead of the expected happiness. He glanced at Prince Jason, who was hurriedly signaling to him. But Owen did not want Ellie to hear any more nonsense. Ignoring the Emperor’s words, he carefully poured fragrant tea for Ellie.

"Try this tea and see if you like it. If you do...I’ll have our family alternate it with the “Lis Tea” tea you used to drink. Some say this tea has a fragrant aroma and a slightly sweet taste, but I think Lis tea is sweeter, which is why I had the servants prepare it for you." Owen poured the tea for Ellie with great care. Everyone who saw this attentiveness was stunned.

It wasn’t just the Emperor and the prince who were stunned by Owen’s behavior, acting as if he were a servant to the young girl. Typically, no man would pour tea for a woman in such a manner. It seemed only this intimidating eldest young lord would do so.

Of course, besides the royal family who were taken aback, many others witnessed this scene and exchanged glances. They were from major families and knew that such behavior was not typical for a courageous man.

"The Eldest Young Lord of the Setter family seems to be overly close with that woman, don’t you think?"

"Did he just mention “Lis tea”? That tea...isn’t it extremely expensive? Rarer and pricier than the tea served today."

"I’ve heard that the Setter family takes great care of her, but I didn’t think it was to this extent. A handful of Lis tea could buy a luxurious house in the city."

"Exactly, even my family can’t afford to drink it. It’s too expensive."

"It’s not just about the expensive tea. I feel the eldest young lord’s behavior is quite unusual."

"Indeed, before this, I thought that woman was trying to seduce the eldest young lord, but now...does this look like someone seducing him?" People whispered among themselves. Certainly, they didn’t speak too loudly, for fear of execution. But the curiosity that filled their hearts needed an outlet; otherwise, their chests might burst!

The conversation circle of the royal family and the Setter family remained silent. Everyone watched the young girl elegantly sip her tea.

She didn’t show any excitement or delight at being cared for in such a manner, as if this were a normal occurrence. When they looked at Steven or Aman, Steven was calm, merely sipping his tea after the young girl. However, Aman’s envious pouting confused them. Why did they act like this situation had happened before?

"How is it?" Owen asked when Ellie sipped her tea.

"The taste is quite good, but Lis tea is indeed better," Ellie replied, and Owen nodded, feeling proud of his correct choice of tea for her.

"You are right, Lis tea is slightly better. So, I will have someone bring you Lis tea..." The Emperor tried to regain attention. However, before he could finish speaking, his eyes widened.

It turned out that upon hearing the girl’s response, Owen touched his ring. Suddenly, a luxurious tea set appeared. He took some Lis tea powder from a packet and poured them in the teapot. After brewing, he carefully poured it into a new cup for Ellie.

His movements were swift, and the fragrant aroma emanating from the high-quality teacup made the Emperor’s eyes tremble violently.

"Could that be the tea set that high-level races used before?!! I heard it has magical runes that preserve the quality of the tea and imbue it with magic power. Is that the real thing?"

The Emperor nearly fell from his chair. He had managed to acquire 1 set himself, but it was so precious that he had never used it, keeping it as a personal treasure.

But who would have thought that the eldest young lord of the Setter family would take it out and brew tea for the young girl so casually!!

“Ha ha, Your Majesty still has a keen eye,” Steven laughed. Even he had to discreetly swallowed.

When he first saw the special tea set being used for the young girl, his heart clenched violently. He himself had never owned such a set. It turned out that his ungrateful son had given it to the maids to brew tea for the young girl.

Occasionally, when Ellie wasn’t at the family estate, he would seize the opportunity to use the tea set. If not for those rare moments, he feared he might never get the chance to taste the exquisite tea brewed with such a special set in his entire life!!

“T-This...” The Emperor secretly swallowed hard. Like everyone else, he had once wondered what was so special about this young girl that she could seduce the eldest young lord of the Setter family. But now he realized his suspicions were entirely misplaced!

Prince Jason nodded to himself. From the beginning, he had felt that Ellie’s personality wouldn’t suit someone who seduces others. Moreover, seeing how the eldest young lord had come to her aid and how gentle he was with her, he was sure that Ellie couldn’t have been the one to approach him first.

It must be this stoic man, whom everyone considered so great, who had tried to lure the young girl!