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“Aurelian, Fleur, come meet someone.
This is Mrs.
Longbottom.”
After the engagement ceremony left Aurelian feeling half dizzy, Miles and Mr.
Delacour brought him and Fleur to a dignified elderly witch with a commanding presence.
“She is the current head of House Longbottom.”
“Good evening, Mrs.
Longbottom.”
Aurelian and Fleur bowed respectfully.
“My grandson is about your age,” Mrs.
Longbottom said, giving Aurelian a kindly smile.
“You may call me Gran Longbottom.”
“Gran Longbottom.”
“What a splendid pair you make.”
Mrs.
Longbottom looked at Aurelian and Fleur with satisfaction.
Fleur blushed at the compliment, glanced at Aurelian, and quickly looked away again.
“Thank you, Gran Longbottom.”
After that, Miles introduced Aurelian and Fleur to most of the British pure-blood families attending the banquet: the Diggorys, the Lovegoods, the Crouches, the Weasleys, and others.
Aurelian and Fleur were led from one guest to the next like polished little figures in a display case, offering one practiced smile after another.
“Miles, if I were you, I would not invite blood traitors like the Weasleys to a pure-blood gathering.”
Arthur Weasley had just been firmly steered away by his wife, Molly, when an arrogant voice sounded behind them.
“Let me introduce you,” Miles said as he turned.
“This is Lucius Malfoy, the current head of House Malfoy.”
A man with long blond hair stood there, watching Mr.
Weasley leave with clear disdain.
After Aurelian and Fleur greeted Lucius Malfoy, Miles gave him a polite smile.
“Lucius, I have never considered House Weasley blood traitors.
They are merely more independent than most.”
“The Weasleys…”
I have no interest in your feud with the Weasleys, and tonight is Aurelian and Fleur’s engagement banquet.
I do not intend to spend the evening listening to complaints about blood traitors.”
Lucius Malfoy seemed ready to say more, but Miles cut him off directly.
Irritation flashed across the man’s face.
“House Pendragon is always like this.
No matter what happens, you keep yourselves apart, as if none of it concerns you.”
“That is House Pendragon’s rule for survival,” Miles replied.
“It is precisely why our family has prospered to this day.
Lucius, take this as friendly advice: pure-blood families should not become the sword in someone else’s hand.”
The meaning beneath his words was unmistakable.
Lucius’s expression turned unpleasant, and he swept away without another word.
“Father, were you talking about Voldemort?”
Aurelian watched Lucius Malfoy leave, then lowered his voice to ask.
He had heard that Lucius had once been one of Voldemort’s Death Eaters.
After Voldemort’s fall, the Malfoys had supposedly spent a great deal of influence and money to keep him out of prison.
The price was that House Malfoy fell from the top tier of Britain’s wizarding pure-blood families to the second rank.
Mr.
Delacour and Fleur both drew in sharp breaths when they heard Aurelian speak Voldemort’s name aloud.
The casualness shocked them.
“You are still too young for those matters,” Miles said, swirling the wine in his glass.
He neither confirmed nor denied it.
“You will understand later.”
Miles was about to continue introducing them to the guests when a footman approached.
“My lord, Bercas asked me to inform you that Lord Lancelot has arrived with his son, Joyce Lancelot.”
Miles’s face hardened at once.
Aurelian’s expression changed as well, and Mr.
Delacour’s gaze grew grave.
All three understood what it meant for the head of House Lancelot to arrive at this moment.
Since the age of King Arthur, House Pendragon and House Lancelot had been mortal enemies.
Throughout history, the two families had fought openly and in secret, each suffering losses at the other’s hands.
For the current Lord Lancelot to appear during tonight’s banquet was clearly not a gesture of goodwill. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
“Father, has something happened?”
Fleur saw the change in all three of them.
She did not know the reason, but she could feel their mood had turned sharply for the worse the moment House Lancelot was mentioned.
Mr.
Delacour did not answer.
He only shook his head at her.
Miles, meanwhile, was weighing how to handle the matter.
Tonight was Aurelian and Fleur’s engagement banquet.
If he allowed Lord Lancelot inside, there was no telling what trouble the man might cause.
If he refused entry, the Lancelots would have an excuse to spread word that House Pendragon had no manners.
“What a headache,” Miles muttered.
“Damn him.
He picked the perfect time to be a nuisance.”
The footman waited silently for his answer.
“Father, let them in.”
Aurelian’s sudden decision surprised Miles.
“Aurelian, you…”
“If we shut House Lancelot outside now, it damages both our reputation and House Delacour’s.
If we allow them to attend the banquet and they cause a scene, then the disgrace belongs to them.”
Aurelian analyzed the situation with unusual calm.
After hearing him out, Miles understood at once and ordered the footman to admit Lord Lancelot and his son.
“Miles, you have a fine son.”
After the footman left, Mr.
Delacour looked at Aurelian with open appreciation and smiled at Miles.
To remain rational while an ancestral enemy arrived to make trouble was impressive at any age.
In a child of eight, it was enough to deepen his satisfaction with the engagement.
“The brat only has a bit of cleverness.”
Miles scolded Aurelian lightly, but the curve of his mouth betrayed how pleased he was.
A short while later, the footman returned with a richly dressed middle-aged man whose hair was stark white.
Behind him walked a boy of similar age to Aurelian, similar in appearance to the man, and wearing the same arrogant look.
I hope you enjoyed this chapter.