2.4

With his speech directed at them, some of the ladies got a slightly reddened face as his black eyes met theirs. Unlike the ladies who analyzed him and inwardly agreed that he would make a good suitor for their daughter. The only ones who weren't affected by his serious, gentleman aura were those who only had male children or who simply didn't care much about his beauty, but didn't disagree that he was handsome.

"H-hello, Lord Ferion. It's been a while since we've seen each other."

Vanessa Astriel said looking at him with a twinkle in her eyes. Her face was composed and she wasn't expressing much, but if anyone looked closely, they'd notice that she was a little nervous to be talking to him.

This, somehow, went unnoticed by those noble women who had to live in the aristocratic social environment, where studying the other is a basic lesson. However, many would ignore it, as they would be the same way when speaking to a knight of renown in war who is still heir to a house.

Ferion turned, frowning as he stared at her. The woman who spoke to him was not on his mind, even though, presumably, they had seen each other before.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I remember you. Could you tell me her name?"

He asked and the woman blushed a little embarrassed for not being remembered. It was embarrassing to say that they had met and met before the person even remembered her. The other women also felt a little for her. Well, it wasn't malicious at all. It made sense, after all. He stayed in the war for three years, without going to balls or any noble events. It is normal for a man to remember only those who lived with him.

"My name is Vanessa Astriel."

She said, her voice a little low, but he still listened. Her mind searched through the names of families she knew or had some sort of relationship with, but she couldn't find it. Perhaps she was one of the nobles he talked to during a feast and ball.

"Sorry, I really don't remember."

"Oh, okay."

The curly brown haired young woman lowered her head, as if regretting a little. Her face flushed as she bit her lip to contain the frustration, disappointment and shame she felt inside. The heir to the earldom nodded at her and his dark eyes darted to the ladies and then to her mother.

"Mom, I still have a lot of work to do. So I'm afraid I can't stay longer. See you at dinner later."

Claire looked at him too, seeing the same eyes she saw in her husband. The countess reciprocated, I understand what he meant. A subtle way out of there, using her work as an excuse. Her boy still didn't enjoy social events as much as he used to. That part of him felt like it would never change, even as the years passed.

"Alright, you can go."

Ferion shook his head and bowed to the noble guests. Brandon did the same greeting, but a little more inclined, and followed Ferion to his office. As determined by the earl, he would have to help him get used to the job. However, just before leaving, the redhead glanced discreetly at the chair where Phillip's fiancée Johannes was sitting, before moving on as if nothing bothered him.

"Your son is great, Countess Miller."

"Thank you, he makes me very proud."

Johannes sipped his tea as he listened to Claire answer a guest, thinking about the scene that just happened. Ferion, his future brother-in-law, is the same one he saw during dinner, not altering his behavior in any way. His analysis that he's serious and Phillip's words don't differ at all from what he's seen. But what intrigued him was Brandon. She noticed how he looked at the woman sitting next to her and after looking at her he paused a bit before returning to his normal conversation.

'He definitely looked at me…'

Her face hid what she thought and she couldn't make out what he felt or what she thought. It was amazing how he managed to do that. But the time he froze was still captured by himself.

That aside, he seemed like someone good to talk to, given how he referred to the ladies at the table and his humble stance towards them. Gentle and with a calm tone, even when he smiles, he remains a mystery. In addition to having a beautiful above average appearance. Perhaps they could have a good friendship relationship or, at the very least, one without hostility, since his behavior didn't seem so friendly to you when you looked at her.

*

Brandon looked at the paper in front of him. The freshly applied ink was black and it was in pretty handwriting and it stood out against the white complexion of the paper. However, his thoughts were elsewhere. More precisely, when he saw Johannes at the tea party.

He didn't think he'd see her there, as she'd only stayed in two places in the mansion since he'd arrived. It was surprising to see her there and he had no way of reacting to it. He couldn't even get out of there, as he was ahead of the guests and his mistress and Ferion were beside him too. A part of him was angry that he'd stood there at the sight of her and frozen. That same part wanted him to act like he'd seen something trivial and that told him he should get used to it, as he would see her more often with her experience at the mansion.

And he knew. He knew he should get used to it, but… he couldn't.

Maybe it was just drama for him and others might say he was just looking for attention. However, suffering for love, his first love, was not something he wanted. And having had a breakup, if you can call it that, without even finishing or discussing the details properly was an effect of his situation.

Only a few days had passed, but he was tired of what he felt. And even though she felt such exhaustion, she didn't want to talk to him. Each had to live their lives now, with minimal contact and professionalism. It was an obvious fact to anyone who knew that the person he loved was engaged to someone else.

A measure not to hurt her more to hear him say that he loved her. So as not to be hurt to see that her sweet, smooth speech was for someone else. So that your broken heart can protect itself from the sadness that surrounded it. Brandon hoped what he was doing was right. Which was for his best.

"Brandon, are you okay?"

The redhead blinked, awake from his trance, realizing that his hand was resting on top of the document with the pen in hand. Ferion was looking at him with furrowed brows, as if he didn't understand why he'd stopped.

With a shake of his head, he sighed. He looked at Ferion and smiled, demonstrating that everything was fine. A smile on your face to pretend. A fake smile, but with the desire to be real. That's all he had to do.

The older one watched him closely with serious eyes and an even more frowning brow. He was watching Brandon smile at him, as if he had no problem and nothing was happening. His face twisted with a good deal of displeasure at seeing it. It was obvious Brandon was thinking of something to make him stop and stay like that for a while. And that frustrates him, because he can't figure out what's going on. I was also sure he wouldn't tell him.

Ferion figured James must feel this way every time he looked at Brandon. The boy was the one who spent part of his day with the redhead and was certainly aware of how he was doing. But he also had no idea why he was like that. They both returned to the papers in front of them. One putting his frustration down on paper and the other focusing his mind on not thinking about it again.

*

The sky outside was dark and the sun had disappeared a few hours ago. Johannes was sitting on the bed, leaning against the headboard, reading a book she found that caught her eye. She was curious about the culture of the Yulard empire, as she had never left the city where she lived and worked, and her books were a great source of information, even more so to get used to her new life.

Some facts read and differences in the characters' actions were unusual and strange for her, but nothing she couldn't get used to. She was also amused by some of the feats that took place, so different from what happened in Torzik. However, there was nothing that created a culture conflict. Both countries were similar in social structure, there were just a few different details.

This highlighted that she was not originally from there.

She was a foreigner from a defeated country and had to live in the country that warred with hers. However, she didn't blame Yulard for fighting Torzik. It was a fact known to the people that it was the king of the losing country who declared war, even with the protests of the people in front of the palace, in the royal capital.

According to what he had heard at the place where he worked, many were dissatisfied with the insane decision of the king, especially the nobles who did not want a war but had to obey their monarch. All of them feared that the king's special soldiers would come after them if they didn't obey.

In the end, it resulted in the downfall of the Torzik kingdom; the extinction of the royal family and the loss of thousands of lives.

Johannes was grateful that she had found Phillip in that chaos and that he had helped her. There was no priceless kindness in the world. However, it wasn't something she didn't benefit from either, so it was good for her either way.

'If I hadn't met him at that time, I might have died or kidnapped and sold into slavery.'

The door to the room she was in opened and a male figure in red clothes appeared. The black hair and the eyes of the same color looked at her a little before entering and closing the way she entered. He looked around to see if there was anyone else, but confirmed that there was no one.

Her green eyes watched him begin to undress and remove the garments he wore. His white torso emerged after the shirt had fallen off, but the lower part still remained on the body. He was now looking for other clothes to wear after the shower.

She looked at him with a listless look, already used to him doing this in front of her, without the slightest bit of shame. He also didn't care if she saw, unlike when they first met.

The woman closed the book in her hands, resting her chin on her knees, her hair falling to either side. She studied his actions, wondering what he would do if she told him about what happened earlier that day. It is true that he would question her, but what would her reaction be? Surprise?

Phillip, noticing the gaze that was on him, turned to Johannes, his fiancée. Their eyes met and stared at each other. The man was a little confused by her gaze, as she was simply staring at him.

"Some problem?" He questioned her and she smiled.

"None. Only my fiancé didn't greet me when he entered the room."

"We met at dinner. I didn't think there would be a need."

"Hmm."

A murmur was made in response by her. Her gaze strayed from him somewhere and then back to him. A smirk danced on her lips and a slight mischievous glint appeared.

"I..." She started, catching the attention of the man who was looking at her questioningly.

"What?"

"I found the one called Brandon. He's more handsome than he expected. And he seems like a good person too."

Phillip frowned, not believing what he was hearing. When did she meet him? And why was he only hearing this now? They meet a few times earlier, but hasn't she told you this before?

More importantly, she's found Brandon, when the redhead doesn't even appear in front of her, like a ghost that disappears and reappears at will. He felt bitter about it.

"Where?"

"At your mother's tea party. He appeared during the conversation."

Phillip shook his head, getting the point. When he still hadn't left the mansion, he remembered that Brandon attended some parties that his mother organized, it seemed that it still happened to this day.

"What happened?"

"The ladies were talking about you and your brother, Ferion, and the subject of where you were came up. Ferion soon arrived with Brandon and the two joined in the conversation."

"That doesn't look like Ferion."

"You're right, he left soon after. But Brandon was kind to the ladies and followed him. He just didn't say much, but I understood a little bit of why the employees and the ladies had praised him."

Johannes remembered the red-haired young man. He was different from Ferion who was beside him, but he looked like he was serious too. His smile as he addressed the ladies was gentle, but she realized that this wasn't her real smile, just a professional smile, just like the one she'd learned to give over the years.

However, she still hadn't figured out what he was thinking. Her indifferent expression was visible when he finished speaking and faded into the background when Ferion took the lead.

'Like it's part of the setting or doesn't care about the environment. But he looked at me, of that I'm sure.'

What would make him stop when he looked at her? What did he think? They were questions she asked herself a little bit, but she wouldn't have answers anytime soon.

"Still... He must be someone responsible, because he's working with Ferion."

She gave her opinion. The man who would be her brother-in-law was someone who, at first, looked like he worked hard and was diligent, and she would confirm that fact by speaking to him. For Brandon to be working with such a man, he would have to be capable of it.

"Are they working together?"

Phillip asked surprised by the information. He hadn't imagined Brandon would be working with his brother. They had barely had contact in the past, as the redhead had his job and spent the remaining time with either himself or James. Ferion took care of county affairs, not having many opportunities for them to meet, so this was new.

'Brandon and Ferion… The two of them together…'

A pang of jealousy was felt in her chest that her brother could spend time with Brandon. A sigh escaped Phillip's mouth. He couldn't do anything more than that. And he couldn't even do it even if he wanted to.

He knew as soon as he arrived that Brandon was working with his father on county affairs as a sidekick or aide. And the events of the day after his arrival, when she wanted him to go out with her, confirmed that he was in the care of his parents. So it was understandable that he was helping Ferion, the heir and future head of the house.

However, no one knew how he felt to hear him call young master, as if he were a stranger; an ordinary employee who does not have, or has had, any relationship with you. The shock was great enough that he couldn't even concentrate on what his mother was saying right.

Brandon had never called him that. He never called any of his brothers in such a manner either. Still, it was aimed at him. For him. The other would never imagine how painful it was to hear that for himself.

And now, treated like a stranger while his brother was working with him. The odds of anything happening were slim and it was almost ridiculous for him to even think about it, as Brandon would never see Ferion in such a way and neither would his brother. But he still felt jealous and a little insecure about it.

"Yea. His mother said they had gone out to settle matters. I don't know the details."

"I understand…"

She watched him depress a little, but she couldn't change any of that. "I hope you remember that it was your idea in the first place."

"I will not forget."

He nodded. She was right; the idea was his. Now all that was left was for him to deal with the consequences. He just hoped Brandon would understand when the moment came.