Dear Broom Knight.

Chapter 901 The Disrupted Banquet
“Wyatt,” a soft voice sounded behind him, “Don’t say useless things; it only makes people look down on you.”

Wyatt turned to look at his brother Brutus Edwards, his brow furrowed, but he didn't bring up the question of whether the family could enter the top circles of the North again.

"Brother, what are you doing out here?" But he didn't stand on ceremony.

"The Duke of Schroeder's first public appearance outside the palace must be treated with respect." The Edwards heir, dressed in an elegant suit, looked solemn. "Regardless of the inside story, he is still the Duke."

The fact that the father didn't show up is already a bit presumptuous.

But if the Marquis of Edwards were to appear at the reception desk, their objective for the day would be completely thwarted.

Regardless of the Duke of Schröder's motives, this action is a sign of contempt for the Edwards family.

Normally, a nobleman who has not attended formal banquets for a long time or has not reached the age for formal social interaction would never launch a surprise attack on a nobleman of equal status.

He would only appear for a few minutes at banquets of his subordinate families... not even his uncles, aunts, or cousins... to let other nobles know that he was ready to begin socializing.

Only after that will the family that sent him the invitation make preparations for his arrival.

Although Duke Schröder had lost many resources and had few close relatives, his subordinate nobles were not all dead.

High Priest Schröder had already taken away all the families associated with his messy affairs, as well as the restless individuals, leaving behind only the honest and upright people he had managed to protect.

Such a person would not betray the Schröder family in such a short time.

They cannot, and dare not.

After the Duke of Schröder did something so unconventional, if the Marquis of Edwards were to personally intervene, he would have no face to say anything about meeting at the top.

Even a dilapidated Schröder could slap him in the face, what else is there to say?

But if the Marquis Edwards doesn't show up, then the relationship between his family and Schroeder, as well as the Storm Nobles behind him, will naturally become cold.

After all, no matter how many things Duke Schröder did that were against the rules, Edwards, who directly retaliated, clearly didn't take them seriously.

Although Edwards was more polite.

But not making an exception for Schroeder means freezing the relationship between the two parties... It's shameless, but very aristocratic.

Wyatt pursed his lips and muttered under his breath, "What a nasty woman."

His brother glanced at him, his brow furrowed, but he didn't stop him.

This matter is inextricably linked to Celestia McMillan.

Although the woman's main goal was probably to destroy the Schröder family's chance to contact His Majesty Leon, she clearly didn't care about the Edwards family's dissatisfaction.

“You can give Duke Schroeder, who is likely being kept in the dark, a little reminder, Art.”

There are certain things that the head of a family and his heir, who must act in accordance with the traditional style of the nobility, absolutely cannot do.

But any sensible nobleman would assign himself two 'thoughtful people' to do these things and say these things.

The Edwards family was fortunate; they didn't need to find outsiders, as they already had a well-known, unreliable 'good child' who could say anything.

Wyatt narrowed his eyes, understood his brother's implication, and then smiled with pleasure.

He's an expert at this.

Whether the Duke of Schröder was genuinely unaware or was playing along, what does that have to do with Edwards?
They've already given them a way out; if they don't want to take it, then they shouldn't.

Just as Wyatt was about to say something, his brother pulled him behind him and gracefully greeted the group of people who were turning from the entrance corridor.

He couldn't help but frown... His little nephew was still a bit inexperienced, managing to get such a short amount of time.

If it were him, he would never have given the Duke the opportunity to walk up the corridor, but would have instead come from the garden entrance on the other side.

That would at least buy us more than twenty minutes.

Still have to practice.

"Welcome, Duke Schroeder."

The Edwards family is truly overjoyed. Brutus's posture was elegant, but the emphasis of his words was on the word "overjoyed."

The young Duke Schröder, dressed in a silver-grey suit and adorned with silver-blue bird-patterned earrings, smiled and said, "I apologize, Lord Brutus, it was just a spur-of-the-moment decision, and I'm sorry to have troubled you."

Brutus Edwards replied with a serious expression, "It is an honor for the Edwards family to have you here, please don't say such things..."

“That little wench Celestia McMillan is here too. Are you here to see which family she’s going to marry into?” Wyatt swaggered over from behind.

“Art! Wyatt Edwards!” Brutus snapped, “No one will think you’re mute if you don’t speak! Come and greet Duke Schroeder.”

“Oh~ Hello, young duke.” Wyatt draped himself over his brother’s shoulders, grinning arrogantly, and asked, “So you’ve reached the age for courtship?” This earned him an awkward smile from young Duke Schröder, a slap on the forehead from his brother, and a soft scolding: “Wyatt!”

Wyatt simply gave a mocking smile to the other side, then pressed his face against his brother's shoulder and shut his mouth.

Anyway, he didn't say anything wrong.

Although the young duke had gained access to social circles after receiving the title of Duke Schröder ahead of time, the constraints imposed on his descendants could not be applied to the head of the family.

No one can interfere with a duke's social circle.

He can come whenever he wants.

However, people who take over the title ahead of time usually only start joining social circles two years in advance, because they need to let those who are willing to marry them discover their good qualities as soon as possible.

Young nobles without parental care would quickly find marriage partners to avoid being attacked from nowhere and left bewildered when they entered the adult world.

Of course, if he has strong enough backing and can support himself, he will wait until he is strong enough to stand on his own two feet without the support of in-laws before considering marriage partners.

Such a marriage at least ensures that his power will not be divided, and he can marry a relatively satisfactory wife... The weak have no right to be picky, so he can only find someone who is passable among the worst.

A prime example is the Earl of Fabrice in Montes.

In fact, a long time ago, the nobles in the capital had prepared to welcome the invitation from the count, who was not very talented and not very strong.

Unfortunately, no one expected that Baron Lowry of Green Maple Territory, and his great knight mother, would actually be willing to protect Fabrice.

Fabrice even broke through to the Cavaliers in time, and his strength did not stop growing from there.

Indeed, Fabrice is no longer young, but as a powerful, unmarried, 40-year-old count of the tenth rank, he is qualified to stand before all the noble ladies.

He was no longer chosen by others.

But that was Fabrice's good fortune; he actually had a truly kind person by his side who didn't care about power or money, and wouldn't even hold a grudge against him.

Lori Montes' kindness suffocated the entire capital.

Other underage nobles, however, rarely have such good relatives. Before the age of 14, they usually confine themselves to the castle. At most, they have a relatively close relationship with a few relatives, and they are friendly, at least not too greedy in their family interactions.

After struggling to reach the age of 14, she quickly plunged into the turbulent currents, hoping to sell herself for a good price.

However, the age can only be 14.

After all, even if they are precocious, there are some things that are not suitable for them to participate in.

Entering the social scene too early not only affected his own growth, but also the secret flirting among other nobles.

It's somewhat acceptable for adults to watch their games if they're 14 years old, but any earlier... that's not exactly respectable behavior.

His relatives could change the nature of the banquet for him. As long as the invitation stated that he would be there, everyone would naturally put on a gentlemanly demeanor and attend an all-ages banquet, perhaps even bringing along a family member of the same age.

But why should other nobles give up the most enjoyable things in their social circles because of him?

Even if there were no adults in the house, his servants would remind him of the inappropriateness of these things.

The Edwards family's banquet was, of course, for adults.

It wasn't lewd; after all, it was a proper banquet.

But it's inevitable that there will be some consensual flirting.

The 12-year-old Duke Schröder's sudden visit to the Edwards' house without any warning was practically a public declaration that "you must behave calmly and restrained at this banquet because of my arrival," which was truly rude.

Whether or not his presence is used to mediate, the Edwards family is caught in a lose-lose situation.

Moreover, they held this banquet to demonstrate their close relationship with His Majesty the King, and if it were to become a gathering for the Storm Nobles, all their preparations would be in vain.

Even if everyone knows they are innocent, they will still inevitably mock Edwards' incompetence.

Even if it were anyone else, they would still face this difficult and awkward situation.

So even though Wyatt's words were somewhat harsh, his dear brother only gave a slow and deliberate rebuke.

The young Duke Schröder was stunned for two seconds before quickly realizing the danger of Wyatt's words... If he went in like that, word would spread that the Schröder family was on its last legs and had to sell the Duchess's position.

Although the Schröder family did indeed find it difficult to find excellent marriage partners because of those events, it didn't mean that he wanted all the marriage partners to be hyenas.

It has to be a hungry wolf, at least!

(End of this chapter)