That was the door at the very end of the east side of the fourth floor, with an image of a pink wine glass carved onto it. Two pots of nightshade stood on either side of the door, a plant not commonly seen in Andrei's Mausoleum.
The gentleman held the doorknob, cocked his head, his body leaning back slightly, and with a hint of teasing in his voice, he said, "Be prepared, Plague Doctor, for what you're about to face might be a tad stimulating."
Lyle glanced at the pink wine glass on the door, wondering if he should tell the gentleman that such a pattern and style would almost be synonymous with a certain type of risqué bar in the 21st century. With such associations in mind, Lyle didn't think there was anything inside that could shatter his rationality.
"I am ready, sir."
With the creaking sound of the wooden door opening.
Lyle saw it, the treasure.
This wasn't an adjective.
It was actual gold and jewels, piled up like small hills not far behind the door. As the door moved, several Gold Coins rolled down from the pile.
A barely passable path showed itself through the valleys of the gold mounds, and the gentleman kicked the coins with his feet as if moving through a swamp, signaling Lyle to follow.
"I've reminded Mr. Dragon not to leave his personal belongings in public areas, especially not at the entrance."
The crisp sound of bodies passing through gems almost snapped Lyle back.
The journey was arduous; Lyle's entire field of vision was captivated by the treasures, making it difficult to keep track of the gentleman's position in his peripheral vision.
They had a magic to them, greedily sucking in Lyle's gaze. It definitely wasn't his fault, definitely not.
Only his moral baseline tormented Lyle, not allowing him to contaminate his conscience with filthy Copper Rust. These were all possessions with owners.
Finally, they crossed through the treasure zone.
If what had just been experienced was a direct assault, then what Lyle saw next was a subtle erosion.
In the so-called communal area at the very center, a crystal lamp with the diameter of one person unabashedly displayed its own light.
The main body of the lamp was a meticulously cut polygonal gemstone facet, making the light sufficiently bright. Several equally divided metallic arms secured the accompanying points of light, and the lantern-shaped lampshades, with the texture of soft jade, interfered with the bright and soft light, making the richly textured marble floor appear even more valuable.
Several tables and chairs covered with lace scarves were placed in the corners of the hall, a space spacious enough for a dance floor.
Ostentatious opulence combined with understated luxury sped up Lyle's heartbeat. He was now, from surrendering, only missing an exquisitely fatal blow.
At the dimly lit end, behind the wine-red window curtains, came a tinkling sound.
It was the sound of a spoon stirring in a porcelain cup, its crispness not jarring, but it sounded out of place in such surroundings.
Lyle was very curious.
He lifted a corner of the curtain.
Behind it was a semi-enclosed balcony, where, cut off from the light, only the moonlight danced unrestrained over this small area.
A stone table, a wooden chair, a figure.
On a pale blue silk gown, pearls and lace trimmings were the perfect embellishments, clinging to body curves, the parts that would normally show fair skin covered by a light veil, barely perceptibly indistinct.
A long dress embroidered with dense patterns wasn't constrained by hoopskirts, the wide hem dragging casually on the floor like a wilted flower tragically broken off.
The hat adorned with a bow and a bright feather also had a veil, completely concealing her face, as if it were a bridal veil.
Moonlight like silver frost fell. She belonged to the night, a princess of the evening.
The princess's slender arm directed the spoon to glide in the cup, the aroma of tea spilling out with her stirring.
Lyle unconsciously held his breath, not wanting to disturb her peace.
"Oh~ Brewing tea again, Alianna?" The gentleman, seemingly anticipating this scenario, came over with a chair. The noise of the chair legs striking the floor pulled her back from the beauty of her tea ceremony into reality.
The gentleman was such a blockhead.
Putting the spoon aside, she looked at the few wisps of steam rising from the cup.
Alianna sighed, "It still lacks something."
"Why not try adding some honey?" Lyle didn't understand the art of brewing Earl's Black Tea, but he simply didn't want to hear her sound disappointed.
Alianna seemed to finally notice the third person present.
The veil turned towards Lyle's side, and although he did not see the face behind the veil, Lyle still straightened his back, trying to control his pace of speech and enunciation.
"Honey and lemon slices, I think you won't refuse their taste."
After speaking, Lyle regretted it. What if she didn't like it, what if the taste was different?
Alianna didn't say much, gracefully stood up from her seat, and like a gentle breeze, left from Lyle's side.
"I'll get it."
Lyle watched the direction she left in.
"Enchanted?" The gentleman lounged comfortably in his chair with an air of experience.
"She's truly beautiful," Lyle found a chair to sit, "It sounds illogical when I say it, though I haven't seen her face, there's an intuition in my heart that she's beautiful."
"Hmm, I can understand, it's hard to escape Alianna's demonically charming allure the first time you meet her."
"Demonically charming?"
"You can think of it as an attraction beyond that of ordinary people, it's a talent."
Lyle fell into silence.
"In fact, Alianna's true appearance is indeed beautiful, would you like to see it?" Mr. Gentleman gestured as if sharing a secret all men understood.
Lyle nodded fervently, almost sycophantically.
"Actually, you've seen it already."
"?"
"The ghost in front of Andrei's Mausoleum, you've seen it, right? That's Alianna's visage, a weakened version with a tenth of her charm."
Lyle recalled that profound beauty, "No wonder, that figure felt very familiar. But why would that ghost look like her?"
"Isn't that simple?" Mr. Gentleman said matter-of-factly, "That ghost was designed by me. When I was sculpting its face, I used Alianna as the model."
"Huh? Eh! The ghost is artificial?" And here he had thought it was a miracle of nature.
"It's a filtering device that excludes uninvited guests. How about that, the feeling of dying for love is pretty intense, isn't it?"
Lyle remembered everything he had suffered through, the culprit was right in front of him—it was you, you scoundrel, he struggled to suppress the urge to hurl the gentleman off the fourth-floor balcony.
"At that moment, I felt like my soul was about to leave my body."
"That's right, it's that feeling as if you're dying a second time, surely you're filled with emotions for me now."
Indeed, resentment and anger were about to swallow Lyle's rationale.
"I'm back."
Alianna returned to the table holding a plate of honey and lemon slices.
Sweet Alianna, she had saved a life tonight.
"The newcomer?"
"Yes, Lady Alianna, I am the Plague Doctor."
"Just call me by my name, Plague Doctor."
"Alright, Alianna."
He stirred a few lemon slices and a spoonful of honey into the tea, making sure it was well mixed before pushing the Earl's Black Tea in front of Lyle.
"Thank you, but I'm sorry, because of the mask, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to enjoy this delicious cup of Earl's Black Tea here."
"Earl's Black Tea?" Alianna tilted her head.
"What a good name, easy to understand. Made by the hands of Countess Alianna, the name Earl's Black Tea couldn't be more appropriate," Mr. Gentleman praised.
Watching Alianna, who was lost in thought staring at the newly named Earl's Black Tea, Lyle had only one thought in his mind.
If I marry her, I'll have made a fortune.