Chapter 78: A Lunch With General selene
Chapter 78: A Lunch With General selene
Selene looked at Andras with narrowed eyes before folding her arms.
"I can’t remember the last time you invited me to have lunch with you."
A faint smile appeared on Andras’s face.
"I can."
"It was shortly after I began training under you as a child."
He met her gaze.
"So..."
"Are you coming?"
For a brief moment, Selene simply studied him.
Then the corners of her lips curved into a faint smile.
"...Very well."
The two left the training grounds together and walked toward the manor’s dining hall.
Unlike most days, the hall was unusually quiet.
Only a handful of servants moved about, preparing the midday meal.
Evelyne was nowhere to be seen.
She was occupied with matters concerning House Darkmoor and had chosen to eat in her study instead.
That was precisely why Andras had invited Selene.
The servants respectfully pulled out their chairs before serving a variety of carefully prepared dishes.
Neither of them spoke immediately.
Instead, they enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere while beginning their meal.
After a few moments, Selene finally broke the silence.
"So..."
"What made you invite me to lunch all of a sudden?"
Andras calmly cut a piece of roasted meat before answering.
"My mother is busy today."
"She won’t be joining me for lunch."
He shrugged casually.
"I was feeling rather lonely, so I thought it would be nice to share a meal with someone."
Selene stared at him for a long moment.
Then she let out a quiet laugh.
"So Andras Darkmoor..."
"The young man who hardly enjoys anyone’s company..."
"...was feeling lonely?"
She smiled teasingly.
"Do you really expect me to believe that?"
Andras laughed softly.
"Not entirely."
He placed his fork down.
"The truth is..."
"We haven’t shared a meal together in years."
"I thought it might be a good opportunity."
"You spend nearly every day training either me or the knights."
"I figured even you deserved a chance to relax."
Selene looked at him with mild surprise.
A warm smile gradually appeared on her face.
"...Really?"
Andras nodded.
"Really."
For a brief moment, neither of them spoke.
The comfortable silence felt strangely nostalgic.
Selene took another bite before asking,
"So..."
"How was the Princess’s banquet?"
"It was... interesting," Andras replied.
He briefly recounted everything that had happened.
Their encounter with the tribal people during the journey.
Their arrival in the Imperial Capital.
Meeting Seris once again.
Selene listened quietly before raising an eyebrow.
"So Seris attended the banquet as well?"
"She did."
"And how are things between the two of you?"
Andras gave a small shrug.
" good."
Selene nodded, though inwardly she found that difficult to believe.
She knew Andras better than almost anyone.
Still, she chose not to question him further.
Then about The banquet itself.
And finally, his meeting with the theatre director regarding the moving picture play.
Selene paused halfway through her meal.
"A moving picture play?"
She looked genuinely surprised.
"I didn’t know you had talent in that field."
A nostalgic smile crossed her face.
"Your mother and I used to watch moving picture plays whenever we had the chance."
"They were always quite entertaining."
She tilted her head.
"So..."
"What’s the story about?"
Andras smiled mysteriously.
"I’d rather not tell you."
Selene raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
"If I spoil the story now, you’ll enjoy it far less when it’s finally released."
"I’d prefer you experience it in the theatre like everyone else."
For a moment, Selene simply looked at him.
Then she sighed in mock defeat.
"...Very well."
"I suppose I’ll wait."
A faint smile remained on Andras’s face.
A short silence followed before another thought crossed his mind.
"You mentioned that you and Mother used to watch moving picture plays together."
Selene nodded.
"We did."
"I’ve always known the two of you were close."
Andras rested his chin lightly on his hand.
"But I’ve never actually asked..."
"How did the two of you meet?"
Selene’s movements paused.
For a moment, her golden eyes grew distant, as though they had travelled many years into the past.
A faint smile touched her lips.
"That’s..."
"A rather old story."
She looked at Andras before setting down her cup.
"If you’re willing to listen..."
"Evelyne and I first met at Ambrose Academy."
"We were both considered among the most talented students of our generation."
A hint of nostalgia surfaced in her voice.
"I possessed an A+ Rank talent."
"And Evelyne possessed an S-Rank talent."
"Naturally, both of us attracted a great deal of attention."
She paused briefly before letting out a quiet sigh.
"But despite standing in the same classroom..."
"We were never treated the same."
Andras listened silently.
"Evelyne was born into a noble House ."
"I was nothing more than a commoner."
Her expression gradually turned solemn.
"At Ambrose Academy, talent opened the gates for commoners."
"But birth still decided how people looked at you."
She looked down at the tea in her cup.
"A commoner could only enter the Academy by possessing exceptional talent."
"Without it, the gates remained forever closed."
"But many nobles were admitted regardless of whether their talent was remarkable or merely average."
"They enjoyed privileges that commoners could never hope to receive."
"The instructors were more patient with them."
"The servants treated them with greater respect."
"Even the students thought twice before offending a noble."
A faint bitterness crept into her voice.
"As for commoners..."
"We had to prove our worth every single day."
"One mistake was enough for others to question whether we deserved to stand there at all."
She gave a quiet, self-deprecating laugh.
"Back then..."
"I truly hated nobles."
"I believed every one of them was arrogant..."
"...that they all looked down on people like me."
Her gaze drifted toward Andras.
"At the time, I was convinced there could never be a genuine friendship between a noble and a commoner."
A faint smile slowly returned to her face.
"Then I met Evelyne."
"And little by little..."
"I realised just how wrong I had been."