Just as Ian was about to exin to his mom, he heard multiple footsteps behind him, followed by a sweet voice.


    "Hey, what are you guys talking about? So lively?"


    Ian paused mid-action, turned around, and looked in the direction of the voice.


    Standing before him were three stunning women in long gowns with perfect figures. While two of them looked youthful and vibrant, the other exuded an air of maturity and charm.


    "Why are you so rude? Properly greet your uncle and aunt first," Aunt Evelyn scolded Sylvia, whose face was full of curiosity.


    Although Sylvia was shorter than Lyra, her unique tinum silver hair and faint blue eyes filled with innocence made her particrly striking among her peers.


    "I was just asking," Sylvia muttered, before properly greeting Ian''s father and mother, along with Lyra.


    "What about me?" Ian couldn''t help but interject, seeing that she had skipped over him.


    "Tch. Who cares about you?" Sylvia replied with disdain. Lyra on the other side softlyughed at him; it seemed she found a backup.


    Ian raised an eyebrow. Although his reputation wasn''t good, it wasn''t to the point someone would despise him.


    His eyes shifted to Lyra, who was softlyughing as if she were merely an amused bystander.


    ''Looks like this girl said something to her,'' he thought.


    It was obvious Sylvia was upset with him, as their rtionship wasn''t bad at other times.


    Noticing his questioning gaze, Lyra quickly stifled herughter and turned her face away.


    "Where are your manners? This is a third prince''s banquet. Don''t throw tantrums in public. Apologize to your brother," Duke Alex reprimanded his daughter.


    Given their group''s collection of striking beauties, they had already drawn plenty of attention. He couldn''t let his daughter show bad behavior in public.


    "Sorry!"


    Sylvia, who was full of gunpowder, rapidly deted as she honestly apologized to Ian.


    "Haha, it''s okay. Don''t worry about it," Ian replied with augh, shifting his attention to greet his Aunt Margaret with a warm smile.


    "Hello, Aunt."


    "Um," Aunt Margaret responded with a nod.


    Speaking of which, Ian had another reason for attending the banquet, one tied to her—or more specifically, to her husband, Thomas Veilstrider.


    Throughout history, great powers often fell from within. His uncle Thomas was that very rotten nail in their family.


    When someone has ambition butcks the power to achieve it, they often drag others down with them.


    ording to the novel Ian had read, today the Third Prince would distribute wilnd areas near the empire''s border to the four dukedoms.


    The Ashford Empire had a long-standing tradition of opening up wilnds every 20 years to expand its borders and bolster its resources. It was also a method used by the ancestors to increasepetition and avoid decadence among those in power.


    While the Empire assessed its dignitaries based onpetence, dukes and other officials used this opportunity to train their heirs.


    However, Ian was an obsessed person who couldn''t live without being near Lyra. He instead followed her to the Imperial Academy and ignored his father''s words.


    So, his uncle Thomas seized this chance, iming he was "helping the heir" and taking the wilnd allocation for himself. This sparked internal conflict within the family, escting tensions.


    Though the novel didn''t delve into specifics, Ian knew Thomas had discovered something valuable in the wilnds.


    Six monthster, after his father''s untimely death and the family''s exile, Thomas and his followers disappeared without a trace, leaving no mention of him thereafter.


    Ironically, Thomas had even abandoned Aunt Margaret without a word. Only then did the family realize that the rtionship between his aunt and uncle had always been bad.


    To prevent this series of events, Ian had resolved to personally ept the recruitment order on behalf of the Veilstrider family.


    Snapping out of his thoughts, Ian smiled at Aunt Margaret and asked, "Aunt, where is Uncle Thomas?"


    "Ah, he''s outside with his friends. He''ll be here shortly," she replied, her tone slightly unnatural.


    Although no one else seemed to notice, Ian''s keen perception still picked up on her evasiveness.


    "Third Prince has arrived!"


    Suddenly a loud shout from the door guards interrupted their conversation.


    Ian quickly moved to his designated position beside his father and mother to greet the Third Prince.


    While he didn''t need to grovel before the third prince of the empire, basic respect for royalty was a given. Still, Ian held no affection for the Ashford royal family, knowing they would destroy his family in just six months.@@novelbin@@


    Amidst Ian''s internal musings and the surrounding dignitaries'' ttery, the Third Prince of the Ashford Empire, Dorian Ashford, ascended the throne on the stage.


    "Thank you all foring to this banquet. Now, let''s start the party without further ado," Prince Dorian dered with a smile.


    This banquet had been convened to distribute the wilnd quotas, a responsibility delegated to him by the emperor. In essence, it was a mere formality on his part.


    As music and revelry filled the hall, Ian apanied his father to toast the Third Prince, offering polite smiles as they exchanged courtesies.


    Amid all this activity, time flew by like water.


    ''Why is there no princess?'' Ian wondered as he sipped his wine in a corner, growing weary of the endless small talk with middle-aged men and women.


    ''I don''t know where Lyra and Sylvia went,'' he thought, feeling increasingly bored.


    He intended to finish his quest with Lyra as soon as possible, but they had disappeared.


    Just as boredom set in, Ian spotted Lyra and Sylvia heading toward him alongside Aunt Margaret and Uncle Thomas.


    "Hey, isn''t this Ian? It''s been a long time since I''ve seen him. He''s be more and more handsome,"


    Thomas Veilstrider eximed warmly, patting Ian on the shoulder as he approached. His sunny smile and enthusiastic demeanor could easily fool anyone into believing they were close.


    "Haha, you nevere home. How could you possibly know about your nephew?" Ian replied with a smile.


    Hearing this, Thomas sighed theatrically.


    "Ah, you don''t know. I''ve been so busy fighting on the borders; that I haven''t had the time to returntely."