Chapter 451 - 251: Reunion

Isabella’s dark eyes shifted, one moment on Barbara’s graceful figure as she mingled with the socialites, the next on Freya, who was being pestered by Jill.

Freya crossed her arms and stomped her foot impatiently.

She was in no mood to listen to her fiancé’s concerned questions. Right now, all she wanted was to find the Baron and ask about the next step—whether they would move to kidnap Elder Pence, or just give the Elder a quick death to avenge Anthony... Those were the things Freya cared more about.

Or rather, this was all she dared to care about.

Because she was afraid that if she didn’t think about those things, she would think about Anthony—her own brother, who had tried to kill her for the sake of some woman inhabiting his body.

’But... why did it have to be this way? Anthony had promised he’d be my brother for life...’

’When we were little, he’d carry me on his broad back to the top of Greenwich Hill to watch the ships on the Thames River race by like wildebeests on the plains. Before I went to sleep, he’d take out his Alchemy textbook and tell me all sorts of bizarre stories—about Vampires, the Celestial Horses of Scotland, the lost Ice Giants—just to make me happy... Was all of that a lie?’

At this thought, her gaze dimmed. Jill saw it, and his heart sank. In his mind, though Freya was difficult and arrogant, she was also a carefree girl. But now, her sudden distance and inexplicable sadness all pointed to what Elder Pence had told him at the start of the auction:

"Jill, from now on, your fiancée may no longer be on the same path as you."

When he had said this, the expression on Elder Pence’s face reminded Jill of the ceremony for his first Spiritual Sense, when he and Roy had stood before the Elder as he chose the family’s "Light and Shadow."

At the time, Elder Pence had looked at him and Roy and simply asked, "Have either of you ever felt the desire to kill the other?"

Jill couldn’t clearly remember what happened after that. He only knew that in the end, he was chosen as the "Light," becoming the next Patriarch of the Hestia Family.

His younger brother, Roy, became the "Shadow," who, according to Elder Pence, would hide behind the scenes to handle the family’s unsavory affairs.

Furthermore, according to both Elder Pence and his father, the existence of the "Light and Shadow" was connected to the Hestia Family’s long-held secret of the "Old Blood."

’I just can’t imagine what kind of situation would cause Freya to no longer be on the same path as me... Truth be told, ever since our engagement was arranged, my mind has been filled with nothing but daily training and the occasional thought of the eldest daughter of the Beowulf Family. The only reason I agreed to the engagement was because of the ’sense of family honor’ that was instilled in me from a young age. This sense of honor told me that since I was the family’s next Patriarch, it was my duty to bear the responsibility of making the family stronger. But later, after meeting Freya again and again, writing letters, and going to watch her practice Magic while I was on duty... I have to admit, I’ve unknowingly fallen in love with this girl, who’s a bit prickly but also adorably frank. For a long time, I considered our meetings the most relaxing and enjoyable part of my week. Even when it was just me sitting ramrod straight in a corner of the garden, watching Freya practice her Magic—and incidentally draw turtles on her handmaiden’s face—I still felt incredibly happy.’

Jill said, "Freya... what’s been wrong with you lately? Ever since you came back from the Dracul Mountain Range, you haven’t been yourself. Is it because of Baron Constantin?"

At the mention of that name—a name that in the Inner Side was regarded by the poor as something akin to Robin Hood, and by the elites as chaos or even a taboo figure to be privately courted—Jill’s heart suddenly clenched in pain.

He remembered that his own brother, Roy, had been severely wounded by this very man, and his fate was now unknown.

Jill said, "I can promise you, Freya. I swear on my honor as a Knight of the Griffin Knight Order, I will capture him... I’ll make him pay for Anthony, for Roy, and for all those he has harmed."

Freya spoke, but to Jill, her voice sounded hollow, like a cavern so deep it takes a long time for the echo of a dropped stone to return.

She said, "Jill Hestia, tell me, do you know Fla?"

Jill froze.

Freya said, "I understand now."

Jill said, "How do you know that name, Freya? Did Anthony tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"Fla... is your mother’s name."

Jill didn’t see Freya’s stunned expression as he continued:

"That was a long time ago. I had just entered the Holy Hall back then, still just an ordinary Intern Knight in the Griffin Knight Order. Anthony told me about it once. He said he’d found where his mother was living and that he would definitely bring her back... If I’m not mistaken, I believe that was her name."

"Fla..." Freya said, dumbfounded. "How is that possible?"

.........

After finishing his discussion of related matters with Isabella, the Baron turned to leave when he suddenly heard a commotion from the crowd, accompanied by arguing and shouting.

He looked over instinctively.

In the direction of the gathered crowd, several drunken young men had surrounded a lady.

According to the people nearby, these young men were all Law Enforcers from the elite generation of various Old Blood Clans.

Normally, this sort of thing wouldn’t happen at a banquet full of elites like an auction. Unfortunately, most young men lack the rationality and restraint that middle-aged men gain with age, and the woman they were harassing was not a descendant of any Old Blood Clan.