Then he gestured towards a man sitting next to the gate. The man put on his hat and went towards the carriage and janitor. I think he wanted to show him where to keep the carriages.
We set off behind the servant. Our route had beautiful paving that I had never seen before. And there were large gardens around us filled with blue rose flowers. Next to some of the gardens, there was a sculpture of a half-naked woman from whose mouth water came out and poured into the pots.
Aldous said under his breath,"I have never seen such a grand mansion before, so cool!" When Arina saw that the servant was not paying attention, she pulled Aldous's ear firmly. "Ouch!"
"Shhh! Be careful with your behavior. Act like nobles so as not to tarnish our reputation and honor."
"Allright, why will you try to teach me with force?"
After walking along a long path, we finally reached the mansion itself. "Leave your unnecessary belongings at the entrance and hand them over to the servant standing there. If you have any questions, you can ask that servant or the rest of the staff. I hope you enjoy the banquet."
Then he left us and returned to where we came from. When our nanny was sure he had left, she turned back towards my mother and said,
"What rude behavior he had towards you, madam? It's as if you were his employee."
I looked at her face in surprise as it turned red with anger.
'Was his behavior bad?'
Well, it was natural that I didn't understand such values. After all, I have only lived in this world for two years. While my mother was handing her jacket to the servant, she said to,
"There's no need for anger, Mrs. Smith. As a family who has lost their status, it is natural for him to treat us t his way."
"But still..."
When someone approached us, she hit her sentence and stared at him with a smile. When I saw everyone were looking at him, I looked at him too.
A 50-year-old man with completely white hair and a black striped suit and pants approached us while tapping his cane on the ground. "Oh, Countess Bazz! I'm glad to see you again." The man had a very calm and composed look and his face was filled with a smile. The wrinkles on his face somehow helped hik to seem kind. Mom greeted him respectfully and held her skirt in her hands. "Much obliged for your invitation, Duke Manson. It is an honor for us to be present at this grand celebration."
"Please don't be so formal. after all, me and your husband were close friends."
Mom smiled mischievously and shook her head.
'Well, it seems like he is bragging about his friendship with Father.'
Manson's gaze shifted from mom to Arina and Aldous. "Oh Mrs. Baaz, your children have grown so much since the last time I saw them."
Aldous and Arina greeted respectfully and showed their respect. "Thank you for your invitation, Great Duke Manson." Manson laughed loudly.
" seriously, they have grown so much."
Mother smiled composedly and closed her eyes as if imagining something good.
"kids are just like that, Mr. Manson. They grow up before your eyes."
"Oh now that you mentioned it, I wanted to introduce my son Alex to--"
He looked around and scratched his head.
"Huh?"
Then he laughed out loud and said, "These kids are uncontrollable. They never stay in one place. Until just now he was next to me."
He looked around again. When he saw that he couldn't find him, he turned towards us and said,
"You guys enjoy the banquet for now. I'll come back to you."
And then, as usual, without paying any attention to me or nanny, he walked away from us.
I don't know why, but this man seemed... like the nanny.
Because after he left, I couldn't even remember his face... it was as if his existence faded away with his departure. A maid came towards us with a tray of wine.
"Please, enjoy yourselves," she said. And my mother grabbed one of them.
"But I wonder why aren't here any other children? Either way، you guys want a playmate," she said.
"The children's playroom is in another place. If you want, I can take your children there," the maid replied.
My mother smiled and said, "Oh! That would be very kind of you."
Then she turned to Aldous and Arina and continued, "Kids, follow this lady. She will take you to your playmates."
Aldous and Arina lifted their shoulders together and went towards the maid. 'Hey wait, you forgot about me again? Are you going to leave me in the arms of this old dog and go?'
Everyone turned back towards me with my scream.
"Take me too! "
"Oh yes, Angela can go with you," my mother said with a fake smile on her lips while others present in the room looked at us because of my scream.
***
With a frown on my face, I stared at the scene in front of me. A bunch of noisy kids. It seemed like hell made specifically for me. With our arrival, everyone became curious about us. Among them was a boy who looked around 10 years old who came forward. His golden hair covered his pink eyes. He had a calm and pleasant face like Manson's face. "Hello, I'm Alex Manson..."
'Oh so he's the host's son.'
"As a host myself, I feel obliged to welcome you," he said friendly.
'Oh ah! What an eloquent words.'
Arina and Aldous nodded their heads as a sign of respect.
"We are honored to be able to attend this celebration"
I looked at their behavior with a poker face. It seemed too adult-like for their age.I mean,I couldn't talk this respectfully to anyone during my 25 years of life.
"Sorry for not coming to welcome you.I had some work with my friends and had to go with them," Alex said with a friendly smile.
"Actually,your father was looking for you everwhere."
Alex laughed loudly after Aldous finished his sentence."Oh, please excuse my rude behavior."
'He's just as light headed as his father.'
Alex said with a smile on his face
,"Can you introduce yourselves?"
Arina started introducing us:
"I'm Arina.This is my brother,Aldous,and this one in my arms is our sister Angela.We are from the Bazz family."
After mentioning our family name,the whisperings started.Everyone started Talking among themselves.
Alex laughed out loud.
"I'm sorry, but this is the first time I've heard your Family name. I apologize for my lack of knowledge. Can you tell me a bit about the business and status that your family manages?"
"The Bazz family is a fallen family. Am I right?"
My gaze turned towards the girl who had emerged from the crowd and was confidently delivering her words to our faces. The laughter disappeared from Alex's face, replaced by a forced smile. "Oh, Your Highness, Princess Esmeralda."
I looked from head to toe at the princess. Her blonde hair cascaded freely over her shoulders, and her bright blue eyes stared at us with arrogance and pride. Her skin was very fair and scarless, indicating how well she took care of herself. Her blue dress and skirt were adorned with small stones and flowers. Arina and Aldous immediately showed bowed. "Greetings and salutations, Your Highness, Princess Esmeralda."
Well so, this beauty is a princess indeed. But what struck me as strange was her striking resemblance to Arina. They both had blonde hair and fair skin, and they were almost identical in terms of height and build. The only difference was that Arina had green eyes, and instead of pride، dignity shone in her eyes.
Arina spoke while she was still bowing, "Please forgive us for our rudeness. Honestly, we didn't know you were a princess."
The princess covered her face with her black hand fan.
"Since your family's circumstances are not such that you can visit the palace, it doesn't matter."
My eyebrows furrowed as well. I didn't like her condescending tone, especially since Arina was the recipient of it. Aldous wanted to say something but stopped when he saw Arina's gaze. Finally, after seconds passed since the princess finished speaking, she smiled gracefully and said, "Relax, make it your home"
both Arina and Aldous stopped bowing... Esmeralda slowly closed the fan and put it in her purse. "As far as I know, your family has been a generation of knights who fought for the kingdom with swords. Your father was the last knight from your family."