Offended by the question, the family grew annoyed. Some young man they didn't know had the nerve to take such a tone with them on their joyous occasion. The crowd sensing the beginning of commotion began to stare in Victor's direction.
"To think you'd have the audacity to be rude to us on our anniversary. State your name at once and how you managed to enter this palace," Duke Cassell said angrily. His face started to redden and the annoyance of the family was physically visible for all to see.
"I'm offended grandfather. To think you couldn't recognise the firstborn child of your precious daughter. I am Victor Luxenberg son of Vipon and Vaella Luxenberg and heir to the Luxenberg Dukedom," Proclaimed Victor.
Shock infected the table, the Cassells couldn't believe they were seeing Victor. Visibly shaken, the duke stood from the table and staggered towards his grandson. His palm rested on Victor's cheek. His eyes slowly began to tear up.
"Is it really you Victor? My god how much you have grown." Lucious said in a shaky voice. Victor warmly smiled grabbing his grandfather's hand and nodded. It was a heart-wrenching moment as Lucious clung to Victor in a long and wholesome embrace. The other family members still processing who he was.
"Do you seriously not recognise me, little sister," Victor asked looking straight at Veronica. Her eyes widened and began to tear. Jumping up from her seat she ran to her brother where they shared a warm embrace.
For Victor, it was a touching moment. When was the last time he was shown such love? As far back as he could remember he had not felt such warmth and genuine affection from anyone since Veronica left.
Invited to join them at the table Victor happily obliged recounting all that happened in their years apart. From the obvious neglect and mistreatment of him battling bandits and defeating Klaus, his tale had his family on an emotional rollercoaster. After finishing his tale, Sebastian, with impeccable timing approached the table with Victor's gift.
Placing the gift the delicately wrapped gift in Victor's hands Sebastian left after performing a small bow to the family. Now holding a rectangular shaped box Victor looked at his grandparents with soft eyes and a warm smile.
"Grandfather, Grandmother. Once again congratulations on your wedding anniversary. Here is a small gift from me. I am sorry I could not come visit sooner." Said Victor as he put the box on the table in front of his teary-eyed grandparents.
Eager to see what their grandson got them the couple began to rip off the wrapping paper and opened the box. Inside was a beautiful floral ceramic tea set. 5 pale blue items were in the set. A teapot, a pouring cup and 3 cups, all with unique floral patterns.
Many would consider this a humble gift, but to the Duke and Duchess, this was the perfect gift. More importantly, the fact that it was given to them by their grandson who they had not seen in ages made the sentimental value of the gift rise astronomically. Touched by such a wholesome gift the elderly couple thanked Victor and gave him a nice long hug.
The onlookers could only look in confusion. No one knew who this mysterious young man was but he was receiving affection from the Duke and Duchess and sat with their family. One onlooker approached the table nervously.
"Pardon me, Duke and Duchess, but who exactly is that young man? Many of us would like to know the identity of him." The guest said in a non-confident tone.
Grabbing Victor by the hand, Duke Cassell stepped forward to address the crowd. Before speaking he looked at his grandson with a gentle smile. Turning back to the onlooking crowd the Duke spoke in a calm but loud tone, "Many of you wish to know the identity of this man. He is a grandson I haven't seen in 3 years. He is the firstborn child of my dear deceased daughter and the older sibling to my favourite granddaughter. I present to you Victor Luxenberg, Heir of the Luxenberg Dukedom."
A wave of gasps and shocked expressions engulfed the ballroom. No one there had ever seen him before. All the rumours had suggested he was a frail and ugly young man with no presence at all. Victor was a walking contradiction to the outlandish rumours.
Left to fend for himself Victor was thrust into the center of attention. Many prominent people went to make introductions and tried to form connections with Victor. Although his objective was to form connections with prominent individuals it was a lot more full-on than he had anticipated. With the party in full swing, Victor spent hours socialising with fellow heirs and leaders of other territories in the Bulgar continent.
Many young ladies questioned Victor about his interests and views on hot topics. Not accustomed to dealing with multiple young ladies Victor valiantly tried his best to be confident and charismatic but was extremely nervous. Seeing Victor being swarmed by these young ladies, Veronica swooped in and interrupted them.
"Dearest brother, would you care to dance?" Veronica offered courteously, with a way to escape the onslaught of questions Victor readily accepted. Veronica led Victor by the hand to the centre of the ballroom to begin the dance.
The band began to play eloquent slow music and with that, the ballroom erupted in a synchronised dance. Everyone danced in such dazzling fashion that Victor was constantly fretting that'd he make a mistake. Able to lead Veronica to the best of his abilities he managed to finish the dance with no errors. The training he had with Florence paid off.
Staring at his younger sister, Victor could only see the once shy and small girl who was bullied alongside him had come out of her shell. Her gorgeous dress matched her dazzling silver eyes. Anyone who knew their mother would be able to say that Veronica was the spitting image of her.
As Victor thanked his beloved sister for the dance a red message from the system appeared that sent a deathly chill down his spine.
'Dangerous Quest! Stop The Assassination of Veronica Luxenberg!'