Chapter 006: The Banquet

Soon, the carriage stopped at the entrance of Duke Green’s residence. Servants immediately opened the doors and stood respectfully on either side.

By now, Duke Green’s residence was no longer peaceful as it had been these past few days; instead, it was brightly lit and bustling with activity.

Seeing this scene, Du Fan couldn’t help but frown.

Duke Green, however, seemed to have forgotten what he had said earlier. He just laughed and said, “Du Fan, the rest of the family has arrived as well… You’ve never really liked attending our family gatherings in previous years. Since you’re here this time, why not join the banquet?”

Du Fan’s brows raised slightly, but he still nodded and said, “Yes, Father.”

To be honest, Du Fan had always tried to avoid these family gatherings, which only took place during the spring festival. After all, in the family, only those with talent received proper respect. But Du Fan had been a complete failure before, so he was never very well-received at such gatherings.

Although he was the son of the clan leader and was treated respectfully in front of others, behind his back…

After all, Du Fan had lived two lives. He wasn’t a naive child anymore. How could he not see through people’s thoughts and actions? He just never wanted to expose them.

Later, after going to the Holy Church, he never attended these annual family gatherings. But today, he never expected that those who had come for the gathering still had the mood to hold a banquet right after attending Emperor Austin III’s state funeral.

At the entrance of the duke’s residence, the duchess was already waiting. Seeing Du Fan and Duke Green get out of the carriage, she hurried over, stepped in front of Du Fan, and sized him up before quickly asking, “Has Prince Fischer left you there without any issues?”

Duke Green shook his head slightly.

Du Fan also replied respectfully, “No, Mother… It was just a decision regarding my future fief.”

“Oh, is that so?” A faint smile appeared on the duchess’s delicate face. “That’s good… Today is a family gathering, so let’s not talk about these matters for now… But we can discuss it later. By the way, Du Fan, now that you’re a duke as well, according to imperial law, you must be of marriageable age by now. Not only is there our family gathering tonight, but some young people from the capital have also come… You might as well look around and settle on someone you like if you find one.”

Du Fan inwardly groaned but still forced a smile.

He exchanged a glance with Duke Green, and both father and son smiled bitterly inwardly: you see, Austin III had already arranged a marriage for Du Fan before his death, but the Duchess was still unaware…
Such matters… were truly troublesome.
Yet the Duchess was in high spirits. As she led Du Fan toward the manor, she whispered about this and that about various young ladies…
Duke Green secretly chuckled, but Du Fan felt utterly overwhelmed. The Duchess had said so much, and he had managed to understand only about 70% of it. As for whether he could remember even a fraction of it, that was up to luck.
Moreover, in Du Fan’s eyes, if he really had to get married, it certainly couldn’t be one of these noble ladies…
Those willful young ladies weren’t something everyone could handle.
After what seemed like a short distance, thanks to the Duke deliberately slowing down, they finally arrived in front of the hall where the banquet was held.
Inside, the hall was brightly lit. The men and women attending the banquet looked relaxed and were dressed in gorgeous attire. Almost all of them were young.
When the Duchess brought him here, she smiled slightly and said, “Well, Du Fan, it now depends on your own skills… By tradition, adults like us aren’t allowed in such places! So, my son, I wish you success tonight!”
Success…?
Du Fan was both amused and frustrated. But under these circumstances, he had no choice but to greet Duke Green and the Duchess before slowly stepping inside.
Behind him, Duke Green suddenly smiled and said, “Do you want to hold a grandson?”
The Duchess huffed and replied, “Hold you? Hold your big head… If you don’t explain everything clearly tonight, you won’t be getting into bed!”
Duke Green’s manor was enormous, and the hall used for banquets was also quite large. At a glance, there were probably nearly a hundred people attending—the reds and greens, the intermingling lights—it was truly dazzling.
Du Fan carefully made his way to the front of the hall. Immediately, a servant from his family respectfully stepped forward, bowed slightly, took the cloak off Du Fan, stepped back half a pace, and announced in an extremely elegant voice, “Young Master Du Fan of the Green family has arrived!”
Du Fan immediately felt countless eyes on him, filled with various complex expressions. But with Du Fan’s confidence and composure, such a small scene was nothing at all.

Some gazes held a look of respect, likely due to Du Fan’s newly acquired ducal status; some were filled with envy, from those who yet lacked the right to inherit titles; others carried a smile, mostly from families that had long been on good terms with the Green family. Of course, there were also some meaningful looks, from people from other powerful families in the capital. To outsiders, Du Fan appeared extremely glamorous at this moment, but they were mostly aware of the situation, hence their thoughtful expressions.

Of course, some noble ladies also turned their gazes toward Du Fan. That night, Du Fan still wore the same splendid clothes from the day before. Coupled with his already good looks and the aura of a supreme warrior he now possessed, he indeed had an exceptionally handsome appearance.

Although in the eyes of the ladies, Du Fan seemed a bit thin and young, lacking the maturity of a grown man… at that moment, he carried the aura of a duke, and the story of him defeating the empire’s top fighter had already spread throughout the noble circles. So despite his slight thinness, which woman wouldn’t love a hero, especially one with status, background, and good looks?

As a result, their gazes toward Du Fan grew increasingly enthusiastic.

Du Fan silently greeted a few noble youths he had some acquaintance with and nodded friendlyingly at those he didn’t know, as if they were acquaintances.

Since it wasn’t a formal banquet, people in the hall naturally formed small groups based on familiarity. Du Fan went around each group to ensure no one was neglected before retreating to a corner of the hall.

After all, he wasn’t particularly fond of such occasions—even when facing people he despised, he had to force a smile, which was far from pleasant.

However, nobles are highly attentive to etiquette, so such behavior was understandable.

The servants in the hall had already served amber-colored wine. Du Fan took a few sips casually before feeling bored… If it weren’t for the fact that this was his own home and he couldn’t just leave as the host, he wouldn’t know how long he would have run away by now.

In Du Fan’s opinion, even facing Francis in a life-or-death situation hadn’t made him feel as uncomfortable as he did now.

Although he was displeased, to outsiders, he didn’t appear that way. In the eyes of those who paid attention, Young Master Du Fan was indeed gentle, outstanding, and charming… Even his slight frown made him seem lonelier than fireworks and more desolate than fireflies, like a prince dancing alone… lonely… yet unable to stop…

On top of that, Young Master Du Fan had the title of duke, an astonishingly noble family background, and was highly favored by Prince Fischer. Such a person… wasn’t he the legendary prince charming?

So quickly, several noble ladies with hearts full of admiration surrounded Du Fan.

It’s said that men are very skillful when flirting, but aren’t women the same?

When the first lady approached Du Fan, she wore a reserved smile and said softly, “Cousin…”

Du Fan was instantly terrified. Looking at her ghostly pale face, it took him a while to realize that this girl seemed to be the daughter of one of his distant relatives. He forced a smile and replied, “Mm… cous… cousin…”

Seeing this, the other women became impatient. Before the flirting could even finish, three noble ladies “accidentally” dropped their handkerchiefs in front of Du Fan. Two more “accidentally” let their folding fans fall beside him, and one even went so far as to “accidentally” step on the hem of her dress and rush toward him.

Du Fan inwardly sighed in frustration. But since he was the host, he could only smile and pick up the items to return them to their owners. As for the lady who rushed at him, he casually sent a wind blade spell to subtly straighten her posture.

What really troubled Du Fan was that after picking up the items, calling him cousin, and straightening their posture, these ladies refused to leave. They immediately started chatting with him.