Nero remained silent, as he usually does when he was at lost on what to do. He wasn't particularly alarmed by the other's presence. But, seeing how the servants were panicking, he was vigilant. The beautiful man smirked at him, unfazed by his lack of response. He even continued his talk, paying no attention to the tense atmosphere.
"Such creatures are a treasure. They grow fast and have a long lifespan." The beautiful man said and caressed the scales of the dragon's neck. The dragon let out a soft roar in response, seemingly enjoying the touch of the man.
"You Monrells are truly shameless," a familiar voice hissed behind him as a hand firmly grasped Nero's shoulder and gently pulled him. When he looked up, he saw his eldest brother. The heir's face was contorted in disgust as he glared at the lovely man.
Nero caught glimpse of Francine catching her breath. He concluded that the woman must have ran to call for help seeing as there were two knights walking towards his direction. He gave the servant a grateful nod for her efforts. Francine saw this and smiled in return.
"Stay here," Calix instructed him and stepped forward to shield him from the unwanted visitor.
Nero was still silent as he watched the scene unfold. He brought back his gaze to the beautiful man and recalled how his brother referred to the other 'Monrell'. The main family of Monrell gave birth to identical twins. One boy and one girl. Then this must be the heir of the first dukedom, Lord Lumierre Monrell.
"You-" Calix began, but was cut off when the heir of Monrell smiled sweetly at him and called him in an almost sultry voice.
"Ali," the Monrell heir greeted the Lanchaster heir. His purple eyes were dark and mischievous.
Calix clenched his teeth at the obnoxious nickname. The annoying Monrell heir smirked even more and licked his lower lips, clearly pleased with his reaction. Calix fists were clenched. "Your manners are truly out of this world, Lord Lumierre," he said coldly.
Nero, on the other hand, can't help but find the situation amusing. Even if their families had no history, the two would go at each other's throats because they simply can't stand each other. Calix was firm in his beliefs and seeks an orderly process, whereas Lumierre was stubborn and uses his wickedness to achieve his goals.
But what really amused Nero was the knowledge that the two were actually once friends.
By the end of the novel, just before the epilogue, Linda narrated that there were special chapters.
It was revealed that Lord Calix and Lord Lumierre first met as kids at the primary department of the academy.
When it was snack time for the young pupils, Calix wanted some privacy as the other kids won't leave him alone. Being the first child and first son of the first dukedom brought immense fame. At first it was thrilling but it quickly died down when his comfort zone kept on being invaded.
Young Lord Calix hid in one of the academy's secret gardens. He was familiar with this location because his mother had told him about it. When she was still a student, the duchess said it was her favorite place in the academy. It held more sentimental value for her when she first met the Duke there.
Little Calix was quietly munching on a sandwich his mother had prepared when he heard rustling. He came to a halt and quickly hid behind a bush to observe what was going on. There he saw a small figure climbing the wall with ease.
Little Calix, who valued order, did the first thing that came to mind. And that was to go out from his hiding spot and reprimand the kid for escaping and cutting class.
"You rebel, come down this instant!" A small arm stretched out to point the kid.
Surprisingly, the kid just spun around and stared him down. Calix was taken aback when he saw the other's appearance. The child's eyes reminded him of lavenders, a lovely flower he had seen in his mother's garden. Calix's attention was drawn back to reality when an abandoned leaf flew directly in front of his face.
"Didn't you hear me? Come down-" He was stunned once more when the kid stuck his tongue out and laughed at him before jumping off the fence. Little Calix, overwhelmed by someone breaking the rule and his high regard for orderliness, decided it was his mission to find the other kid and bring him back.
As a result, he also climbed the fence.
He discovered the other kid with lovely purple eyes in the town near the academy. When he saw the kid stopped in the middle of the main street, little Calix fastened his steps and tapped the other boy by the shoulder.
"Hey!"
Little Lumierre was enjoying his freedom when someone had the audacity to touch him. His brows furrowed and he muttered a curse as he spun to look as such brazen being. Little Lumierre was about to shout when he saw the same gem-like eyes he saw a while back. His eyes widened for a fraction.
"What were you thinking? You're going cause trouble for going out during school hours," the boy with the entrancing emerald eyes huffed, then frowned at him.
Little Lumierre was so caught off guard, he could only laugh. Does the other kid realize that he indirectly escaped and also ditched his class?
For some reason, Little Calix felt his heart beating faster when he heard the melodious laughter of the other. Unknown to him, his face was slowly turning red.
Little Calix blinked when he realized that the kid disappeared in front of him. He frantically looked around and saw a flash of blue hair in front of the cotton candy stall. He quickly went beside him.
"You ditched class for cotton candy?" He was flabbergasted.
Little Lumierre simply tipped his head to look at the other and smirked. My, what a cute expression, the young lord thought to himself.