Chapter 85: Tea Party (Patreon)

As soon as Annabelle lowered the barrier of thorny vines, Madilyn marched up to the two of us. The older woman looked furious, though it was an icy fury. Her expression remained polite and courteous, but her eyes were cold and sharp.

“Lady Annabelle,” Madilyn said in a quiet voice. “That was-…”

Annabelle held up a hand, cutting the older woman off.

“I understand, Madilyn,” she said. “However, wait until after the tea party. You can scold me all you want then. No need to put on an unseemly display in front of our guests.”

I struggled to keep a straight face at Annabelle’s audacity. Meanwhile, the air around Madilyn turned cold. This wasn’t a euphemism. The temperature around us dropped by several degrees, and I noticed frost spreading from the butler’s shoes. Despite that, her expression remained the same.

Yeah, this woman scared me a little.

“You are correct, Lady Annabelle,” Madilyn said. “I shall save my words for later.” She gestured to the other guests. “Please, follow me.”

Without waiting for an answer, she about-faced and marched towards the tea party.

“You’re shameless,” I said, switching to English.

“You’re goddamn right,” Annabelle replied.

Madilyn led us to the center of the back garden. When we arrived, she bowed, before departing. As the hostess, it was Annabelle’s responsibility to serve her guests. There weren’t any servants or retainers around to do it for her. This was typical of tea parties, since it allowed House scions to talk freely without anyone of lesser status overhearing them. I assumed that there was a privacy magic circle in place as well, to prevent anyone from eavesdropping, since spirit sense existed.

In my experience, there were two kinds of tea parties. The first was a simple get-together, where peers chatted amongst each other, usually to share news and gossip. These kinds of tea parties were fun, relaxing, and a good time overall.

The second kind of tea party was a battlefield, where words were weapons and a single mistake could cost someone everything. Hidden meanings, veiled threats, and verbal sparring were common at these kinds of gatherings.

Given who the other guests were, it was clear to me which kind of tea party this was. While I didn’t care how my reputation affected me, I cared about how it affected my friends and family. Failure here was not an option.

Still, it wasn’t all bad. While two of the guests were potential landmines, two others were potential opportunities.

When we approached, they all stood up.

“I apologize to everyone here for running off like that,” Annabelle said. “As soon as I saw Lord Gabriel, my excitement overcame me and I couldn’t help myself.”

“No need to apologize, Lady Annabelle,” a young woman said with a small smile on her face. “It was quite the display. I take it that Lord Gabriel is the beau you mentioned before, as well as today’s guest of honor?”

“Yes, Lady Isabella. Let me introduce him to all of you.”

As she did so, I wore a polite smile on my face.

In addition to Annabelle and I, there were four other people at this tea party. All of them were either the same age as me, or a bit older. Without my divine sense, I couldn’t tell how powerful they were or what were their elemental affinities, which irked me. When it came to both wizardry and cultivation, looks could be deceiving. Even the most innocent looking child could be an old monster in disguise.

Annabelle gestured to the one with the highest status, which wasn’t the young woman who spoke earlier.

“Lord Gabriel,” she said. “This is Lord Asher Griffin, grandson of Lord Griffin.”

I knew who he was. While I had never met Lord Asher before, I had heard of him. He was Lady Diana Griffin’s oldest son, making him second in line to inherit leadership of  the House, since Lady Diana was Lord Griffin’s eldest daughter and heir. She was also Guildmaster Sinclair’s friend.

Lord Asher was a big man, almost as big as Guildmaster Sinclair. In fact, it looked like he had to get all of his clothes custom made. I doubted that anything off the rack would fit him. Even then, his clothes looked like they strained to contain his bulk.

He had the light brown skin and dark hair typical of those native to this area of the Solarian Empire. His facial features were decent, and I imagine that there were plenty of women who found him attractive, especially those who preferred their men big and beefy.

Lord Asher’s dark brown eyes studied me with indifference. I bowed to him as Annabelle introduced us, while he nodded in return.

“This is Lady Isabella Rhodes,” Annabelle said, gesturing to the young woman who spoke up earlier. “Niece of Lady Rhodes.”

Lady Isabella was a tall woman, taller than me even, with cream-colored skin, grayish-silver hair, and ruby red eyes, of all fucking things. Her body was…There was no polite way to say this. She had a voluptuous body, and the dress she wore emphasized her assets. It was a black piece with a plunging neckline that hugged her curves.

Considering House Rhodes’ reputation for being reclusive and secretive, this surprised me. I expected Lady Isabella to look more like an academic, like Lady Calla, rather than some beguiling temptress. She had the last time I saw her. While the two of us never spoke with each other, I once caught sight of her at the Tower of Magic when I visited the place during a school trip. I hadn’t known who she was until later, when I asked one of my teachers about her.

Like Lord Asher, Lady Isabella nodded when I bowed to her.

I didn’t know what the two of them were doing here, but this was an opportunity that I could not pass up. Clan Sturm needed allies, and Clan Griffin and Clan Rhodes were the most powerful cultivator Clans in and around Sunheart. Making friends with them would be a great boon.

While I had initially wanted to focus my attention on Clan Griffin, that was only because Clan Rhodes didn’t participate in House society all that much. I didn’t think I would get much of a chance to make contact with them. I needed to leave a good impression on both Lord Asher and Lady Isabella, or at least catch their attention so that they sought me out on their own later on.

I already had an idea of how to deal with Lord Asher, thanks to Guildmaster Sinclair. Lady Isabella was more of an enigma. I didn’t know much about her, her personal interests, or her Clan’s interests.

Annabelle then turned to the first of the two potential landmines.

“Next is Lord Derek Brant,” she said in a cold tone. “Oldest son and heir of Lord Brant.”

Lord Derek was a lean and fit young man, with pale skin and flaming red hair. Despite having the lowest status here, of those belonging to a Great House that was, his clothing looked the most expensive and extravagant. He didn’t even bother to hide the mockery in his blue eyes, and he smirked as I bowed, igniting anger within my heart. The arrogant little shit gave me the barest of nods in return.

Not only was this insulting, but it was bad manners. Both Lord Asher and Lady Isabella frowned at Lord Derek’s behavior, but neither one said a thing.

If Annabelle knew the history between House Sturm and House Brant, then that explained her chilly tone when she introduced him.

Almost two centuries ago, House Sturm lost a war with another Great House, which started our slow decline to our current state. House Brant had been that Great House. While House Sturm and House Thorne used to be rivals, that had been civil compared to the feud we fought with House Brant. The reason behind the conflict pissed me off as well.

House Brant had been founded by a Chosen of Brand, the God of Fire. This Chosen picked a name similar to Brand’s in order to honor his patron god. It took House Brant decades to reach Great House status, but they managed to, thanks to their Chosen. However, that wasn’t enough for them. They wanted to prove to everyone just how bad ass they were, so they picked a fight with the weakest of the Great Houses at the time, House Sturm.

It was a bloodbath. While House Sturm had several talented wizards at the time, they were no match for the Chosen of Brand. He slaughtered them all, almost destroying House Sturm outright. If House Solaria hadn’t intervened, a rare occurrence, then House Brant would have wiped us out altogether. Even so, we never recovered from that feud. Instead, House Sturm suffered a long and slow decline.

Ego. That was why my House was in dire straits today. Not because of politics or resources or even a personal grudge. House Brant declared war on us, and almost wiped us out, because of pure, unadulterated ego. It sickened me.

While House Sturm and House Brant had clashed a few times in the centuries since then, those skirmishes were nothing compared to that first bloody feud.

If Annabelle hadn’t explained that today’s tea party was a test, I would have interpreted Lord Derek’s presence here as an insult against my House, as well as a declaration of House Thorne’s intent to align themselves against House Sturm.

Even knowing that his presence here was part of some test by House Thorne, it was still a dick move on their part. While I had never met Lord Derek before, quite on purpose, I knew of him. He was a brash, arrogant asshole who looked down on those who he considered his inferiors. From what I knew, that included everyone who wasn’t from a Great House. The similarities between him and how I used to be pissed me off even further.

My head started to hurt.

Ha! The mere presence of a Brant was enough to give me a headache.

Annabelle turned to the second potential landmine.

“I believe you’re already familiar with my last guest,” she continued, her tone still cold. “But I’ll introduce you anyway. This is Lady Elizabeth, niece of Lady Corwin.”

Elizabeth and I studied each other for a brief moment. Today she wore a lavender dress that looked good with skin tone. Her makeup and accessories were simple, but elegant and beautiful. All in all, she struck a good balance. Not too flashy, but not too dull. Graceful. That was the word I would use to describe her appearance today.

Appearance aside, what the hell was Elizabeth doing here? The others made sense, since they were scions from Great Houses, but House Corwin was nowhere near that high in status. Had House Thorne sought her out to mess with me and Annabelle? That was the only explanation I could think of. Why else would they invite my former fiancée to this tea party?

Elizabeth’s expression revealed nothing of her thoughts. So either she already knew about my relationship with Annabelle before this, or she had one hell of a poker face. Still, I wished I could read her thoughts. Was she my ally here, or a foe? I didn’t know, and that was why she was a potential landmine; or maybe wild card was a better term.

I bowed to her, and she curtsied in return.

“As you all know,” Annabelle said, gesturing to me. “This is Lord Gabriel Sturm, eldest son of Lord Sturm.” She clapped her hands together. “Now that introductions are out of the way, please have a seat so that we can begin.”

We all sat down. Elizabeth sat in the chair to my left, while the seat to my right remained empty. I leaned the case containing the gift I painted against the table, making sure that it wouldn’t get in the way.

Annabelle remained standing and served the tea. She had a fancy set up. There was a teapot, a kettle filled with hot water, and a small container filled with tea leaves. The kettle sat atop the magical equivalent of a hot plate, to keep the water hot. The tea pot itself was also enchanted. It had a rose design on the side, painted in a red ink that faintly glowed. I assumed it was enchanted to maintain the perfect temperature for tea, though I couldn’t tell for sure since I couldn’t use my divine sense.

Annabelle went through the ritual for making tea. This didn’t happen at all tea parties, but for those between House scions, especially those of high status, it was necessary. Annabelle would make the tea, while the rest of us waited in silence. We could look around, but that was it. Speaking during this time was considered rude, as well as insulting towards the host.

It was a custom as old as the Solarian Empire itself, one that hadn’t changed much since the empire’s founding. Some speculated that after founding the Solarian Empire, the Sun Emperor himself performed the first tea ritual for the companions who aided him in his endeavors, in honor of their bravery and sacrifice. Thus, the ritual had a special meaning to Solarians, even though it wasn’t magical or religious in nature.

As Annabelle prepared the tea, I studied her every movement. Not to find any mistakes or faults in her actions, but because I simply wished to drink in the sight of her. She could make a complete mess of things, and I wouldn’t care.

“So you’re Lord Gabriel?” Lord Derek asked, breaking the silence. He spoke in a rough manner.

Atmosphere around the table chilled at his words. Annabelle paused for a second when Lord Derek spoke, before ignoring him and continuing with the ritual. She continued to wear the serene expression on her face, though her eyes blazed with fury. I felt the same way. While I wore a polite smile, I wanted nothing more than to grab a nearby fork and jab it into his throat.

How dare he disrespect Annabelle like that?

The others frowned at Lord Derek’s actions, but no one said anything. This was because the ritual was ongoing. To speak out against Lord Derek would be to stoop to his level, and he wasn’t worth it. Otherwise, I would have said something myself.

However, I had to admit that I was tempted.

“I heard a lot about you, after what happened last year,” Lord Derek continued. “What kind of House scion loses to an Otherworlder who never even heard of magic before coming to Lumina? It’s pathetic.”

Annabelle clenched her fists for a brief moment, before she continued making the tea.

“I have to say, now that I’ve seen you in person, I find myself disappointed. I didn’t expect much from you, but even then you fell short.”

It was clear that Lord Derek was trying to goad me and Annabelle. Why else would he insult me during the tea ritual? He wanted to provoke a reaction out of us. The question was, did House Thorne put him up to it as part of their test? Or did they count on Lord Derek’s natural boorishness to do the job for them?

Regardless of the truth, Lord Derek was being as subtle as a bull in a china shop. As a scion from a Great House, he knew more than anyone about the importance of the tea ritual. Insulting me and Annabelle like this was too obvious, too blatant. I refused to believe that he didn’t know what he was doing. This had to be some kind of smokescreen or distraction of some kind.

“Hey!” Lord Derek said when I didn’t respond to his words. “I’m talking to you. Don’t you know that it’s rude to ignore someone?”

When I continued to ignore him, and focused on Annabelle’s actions, Lord Derek reached for me. Since he sat on the other side of Elizabeth, he didn’t have to reach far. However, as his arm passed in front of Elizabeth, she grabbed his hand.

“What the hell do you think yo-…?” Lord Derek started to ask, but stopped and let out a yelp of pain when Elizabeth squeezed.

While she didn’t have an affinity for Earth, and thus didn’t have Earth internal magic, Elizabeth did have sharp nails. They dug into Lord Derek’s flesh. He pulled his hand away, but not before Elizabeth managed to break the skin in a few places.

“You crazy bitch!” he yelled. “What the hell was that for? Have you forgotten why we’re he-…”

Lady Isabella, who sat on the opposite side of Lord Derek, kicked him underneath the table. She was subtle about it, but I noticed her movements. Lord Derek let out another yelp, and glared at Lady Isabella. She gave him a cold look in return. Several tense seconds passed, before Lord Derek lowered his eyes in acquiescence. Despite this, he looked furious. He wasn’t going to let this go.

The rest of the tea party passed by in silence. I studied Elizabeth from the corner of my eye for a second. She continued to wear her polite mask, looking unperturbed by what just transpired.

Her actions suggested that maybe she was my ally, but I didn’t know for sure. Maybe she found Lord Derek’s flagrant disregard for propriety offensive. She was a big believer in manners and etiquette, maybe enough to chastise a scion from a Great House. After all, this particular situation was one of the few circumstances that a scion of Elizabeth’s status could reprimand a scion of Lord Derek’s status and get away with it.

Lots of maybes, but nothing for certain.

Minutes later, Annabelle finished making the tea and filled everyone’s cups, starting with mine and moving counter-clockwise. Once Annabelle finished, she sat down and gave me an expectant look. As the guest of honor, I needed to take the first drink. No one could go before me. I lifted my cup and took a sip.

It was a black tea that had a light floral scent, with a hint of citrus. It tasted terrible. Not because Annabelle did a poor job making the tea. In fact, by mortal standards, she did a fantastic job. However, my standards were a lot higher. After drinking tea prepared by an Immortal, any tea made by mortal hands tasted like mud water.

That said, Annabelle made this tea, which meant it was the best tea I have ever had.

“It tastes fantastic,” I said with a smile, meaning every word.

Annabelle beamed at me, looking both relieved and proud of herself.

“Yes, Lady Annabelle,” Lady Isabella said, wearing a smile of her own. It looked genuine. “If I hadn’t known any better, I wouldn’t have known that this was your first tea party.”

“It certainly tastes better than mine,” Lord Asher muttered, though I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to hear that. He spoke low enough that I only heard him because I was a cultivator.

“Exemplary,” Lady Elizabeth said, giving Annabelle a nod. “You did well, Lady Annabelle.”

My beloved blushed as everyone praised her efforts. The only one who didn’t say anything was Lord Derek, who scowled at his tea cup. Since he didn’t say anything derogatory, I counted that as a compliment on his part.

“Thank you,” Annabelle said, her cheeks flushed. She sipped her tea. “Though, Lady Elizabeth deserves all the credit. Without her tutelage, I wouldn’t have learned this much in such a short amount of time. She is an excellent teacher.”

I raised an eyebrow at that. Elizabeth was Annabelle’s tutor? That was…interesting. Wait, a minute. Didn’t Annabelle say that she got to choose her tutor. Why the hell did she pick Elizabeth? The two of us needed to have a conversation after this tea party.

“You think too little of yourself, Lady Annabelle,” Elizabeth said, shaking her head. “In the week since we’ve started working together, you managed to exceed my expectations time and time again. Be proud of yourself.”

Annabelle managed to master the tea ritual in a week? Damn. It took some House scions years to get to this level. Isekai protagonist energy for the win.

“I wonder how you feel about that, Lord Gabriel,” Lord Derek said.

I tilted my head and gave him a puzzled look, though I knew exactly what he meant by that.

“Feel about what?” I asked.

He scowled at me.

“About the fact that your former fiancée is Lady Annabelle’s tutor?” he asked. “Wasn’t that obvious? Or are you an idiot as well as a weakling?”

Annabelle scowled at him and opened her mouth, but I gave her a slight shake of the head. I wanted to handle this myself, though I gave her a small smile to let her know that I still appreciated her efforts.

“I’m confused,” I said. “Was I supposed to feel anything in particular?” I nodded towards Elizabeth. “There aren’t any ill feelings between Lady Elizabeth and I, at least on my end. Who she chooses to spend time with is none of my business. She is a free woman, and I wish her the best in her future endeavors.”

Lord Derek’s scowl deepened, but Lady Isabella was the one who spoke up next.

“And how about you, Lady Elizabeth?” she asked. “Are there any ill feelings towards Lord Gabriel on your end?”

Lady Elizabeth shook her head.

“Of course not,” she said. “Lord Gabriel and I parted on amicable terms. It’s a shame how things turned out, but such is life.” She glanced at Annabelle. “However, I believe it all worked out well for everyone in the end.”

I followed Elizabeth’s gaze and a chill ran down my spine. Annabelle sipped her tea, looking every inch the House lady. Neither her expression nor her body language betrayed her thoughts, yet I could feel the killing intent radiating off of her.

“So it seems,” Lady Isabella said. “Remind me again, how did the engagement between you two end? I was busy with research at the time, so I’m a bit ignorant regarding this matter.”

“Oh?” Lord Derek said. “Didn’t you hear? Lady Elizabeth ended her engagement with Lord Gabriel, after he lost his duel with Lady Annabelle. He deserved it, of course, given his actions. The duel, and events leading up to it, was all everyone could talk about for weeks afterwards. Apparently Lord Gabriel acted like quite the brute towards Lady Annabelle. Lady Elizabeth abandoned him to save her own reputation.”

I guess this was Lord Derek’s way of getting revenge on Elizabeth for what she did earlier, by calling her a disloyal and selfish fiancée. Prick.

“Oh my,” Lady Isabella gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. “I heard about that. No wonder Lady Elizabeth ended their engagement. I don’t blame her one bit. In her shoes, I would have done the same.” She smirked. “Well, if I had been in her shoes, it wouldn't have gotten that far.”

Aha, I saw what they were doing now. If Lord Derek was a hammer, blunt and obvious, then Lady Isabella was a dagger, a hidden blade in the dark. If their goal was to provoke me, then bringing up what happened between me and Annabelle like this wasn’t a bad strategy, if I were any other House scion. However, to someone like me, it all seemed so childish and immature. At least when I acted that way, it was deliberate on my part.

What pissed me off more was how they dragged Elizabeth into this. Since she sided with Annabelle and I, they decided to target her as well. While I didn’t love her, I cared about her. The two of us had known each other for almost our whole lives, and we were engaged together for most of that time. Seeing these too use Elizabeth as a weapon against me infuriated me, and worsened my headache.

Glancing at Elizabeth from the corner of my eye, I saw that she did her best to imitate an ice statue. While she seemed fine on the surface, my intuition told me that she was brittle and fragile underneath that polite mask of hers. One wrong move, and she would shatter to pieces.

However, before either Elizabeth or I could say anything, Annabelle slammed her tea cup down. She wore an icy expression on her face.

“Enough,” she said in a hard voice. “Lord Gabriel is my man now, and I consider Lady Elizabeth a friend. I will not have you air out their private business at my tea party like this, as if you have any right to judge them. Nor will I stand by while you insult them to my face.”

Annabelle’s killing intent intensified. I resisted the urge to grin. Given our low status compared to everyone else at the table, Elizabeth and I were easy targets, which made Elizabeth’s actions against Lord Derek earlier even more impressive. Annabelle, on the other hand, was another story. Insulting her was the same as insulting House Thorne.

Both Lord Derek and Lady Isabella stared at her in stunned silence.

“Apologies,” Lady Isabella stammered out. “Lord Derek and I were-…”

“Gossiping about other people’s lives,” Annabelle interrupted. “Like a pair of old village women with nothing better to do with your time.”

Lady Isabella looked even further taken aback by Annabelle’s words, while Lord Derek’s face twisted with fury.

“Listen here, you little-…” he started to say, but I cut him off.

“Finish that sentence, Lord Derek,” I said. “And you’ll regret it.”

The man looked affronted, as if surprised that I had the audacity to interrupt him like that.

“Did you just threaten me, Lord Gabriel?”

I chuckled.

“Of course not,” I said. “When I make threats, there’s no doubt about it. I was simply warning you that making an enemy of Lady Annabelle is a poor idea. I speak from personal experience. As ignorant and ill-mannered as you are, I figured that you might need someone to point out the obvious to you.” I gave him a smile that didn’t reach my eyes. “You should be grateful. I wish someone had extended the same courtesy to me. Otherwise, things might not have turned out as they had.”

A hypocritical statement, since plenty of people had warned me not to make an enemy of Annabelle. Not only that, but it all worked out for the best in the end. I regained the memories of my past lives, and Annabelle and I were now courting. Still, I wasn’t going to point any of that out.

“I don’t know about that, Lord Gabriel,” Lord Asher said, speaking up for the first time in a while. He glanced between me and Annabelle. “As Lady Elizabeth said earlier, it looks like it turned out well for everyone in the end. However, I admit that I am curious. Forgive my prying, but how did you two end up courting? A little less than a year ago, you two tried to kill each other in a duel. How did you go from enemies to lovers in such a short time frame?”