The butler opened the doors to the three guest rooms one by one.
"The master and madam will be in this room, Miss Evelyn next door, and Young Master Richard in the one at the very end."
He handed each of them their key.
"If you require anything, you may ring the bell for assistance. Someone will come to guide you before the dinner party."
Before turning to leave, the butler noticed the small leather shoes on Evelyn’s feet, which were clearly ill-fitting, and made a mental note of it.
Richard walked down the corridor toward the end.
He pushed open the door. The room was at least three times the size of his own bedroom.
The furnishings inside lacked the kind of things that scream "expensive" at a glance, like gilded ornaments or crystal chandeliers.
But the quality of the materials, the craftsmanship, and the age of each piece spoke for themselves.
This was the essence of old money. The Grey family’s car had given him the same impression.
He took off his stuffy, sweat-dampened jacket and hung it on a hook, then picked a vest from his spare clothes and put it on.
A shirt and vest wouldn’t be impolite at the dinner party, but it was much more comfortable than a three-piece suit.
After changing, Richard flopped onto the bed in a spread-eagle position and began to sort through the events that had just transpired.
’My maternal grandfather is also on the Mysterious Side. That much is certain now.’
’His move—crushing my microcirculation with his Ether Field—was clean and effortless, perfectly controlled.’
’He released it only at me; the people next to us didn’t sense a thing.’
’A Practitioner couldn’t achieve that kind of precision.’
’A Practitioner’s manipulation of Ether is still in the active stage. It’s like picking up a tool to do a job—every step requires complete focus.’
’But my grandfather’s technique just now... it was as if he *was* the Ether itself, able to control the Ether Field with a mere thought.’
’The gap between the two is a clear demonstration of the qualitative leap between Tiers.’
’According to the Tiers deciphered from *Western Continent Flora*:’
’Newcomer, Practitioner, Minor Mastery, Grand Mastery, Expert, Master, Hidden Seat.’
’He has to be at least Minor Mastery, possibly even Grand Mastery.’
’The book is almost blank when it comes to descriptions of Tier Five, Expert, and above.’
’But judging from the scattered phrasing, those High Tiers have already deviated from the category of "human."’
’My grandfather probably hasn’t reached that level yet.’
’Somewhere between Minor Mastery and Grand Mastery—that’s the most reasonable judgment I can make right now.’
’But regardless of his specific level, he’s unimaginably powerful to me.’
’Judging by the change in his attitude after the test, I suppose I passed.’
Richard didn’t know if passing the test was a good or bad thing, but no matter what his grandfather was planning, he couldn’t let his own rhythm be disrupted.
He stood up and was about to open the door to check the floor’s layout.
Just as his fingers touched the doorknob, a muffled thud came from the next room.
It sounded like something had hit the wall—a chair or a stool.
The sound was faint by the time it reached him; high-end residences like this had excellent soundproofing.
Evelyn was in the room next door.
Richard’s hand paused on the doorknob. He waited for a few seconds.
Nothing followed.
’Did she kick a piece of furniture? Or knock something over while changing?’
He frowned. ’In an unfamiliar place, a little extra caution can’t hurt.’
Richard turned, walked back to the side of the room by the wall, and focused his attention on the Throne of the Sun.
He drew a wisp of Ether from his microcirculation, guiding it up the side of his neck and into his ear canal.
Nourished by the Ether, his cochlea became exceptionally sensitive, and the sounds from the next room suddenly became crystal clear.
"N-No, that’s alright! Really, it’s fine!"
His sister sounded flustered.
"Miss, the butler instructed me to have you try on these pairs of shoes to see which one fits."
The other voice belonged to an older woman, likely a maid of the estate.
"I can change them myself! Just leave them at the door! At the door!"
"Miss, to change shoes, I need to measure your foot. I have to see if the size is right..."
"No need to measure! My feet... I-It’s a little inconvenient for me right now!"
"Miss?" The maid was clearly confused.
Richard had already figured out what was going on.
Before they left today, he had given his sister his own socks, which were a full size too large for her.
They had been stuffed into her already-tight little leather shoes, she’d walked around in them for half a day, and the Imperial Capital was warmer than Brighton...
Her feet had been stewing all day. One could only imagine their condition.
"Miss, are you unwell? Should I call for a doctor?"
"No, no, no! Please, just go outside! I’ll change them myself!"
Through the wall, Richard listened to the entire acoustic performance.
First came the sound of hurried footsteps, probably Evelyn backing away quickly in her room;
The chair made another noise, likely his sister bumping into its back;
The maid’s footsteps followed, and the two of them chased each other around the room for at least half a lap.
’Seems like it’s nothing serious.’
He withdrew the Ether from his hearing, his shoulders shaking as he struggled to hold back his laughter.
A few minutes later, the sound of a door opening and closing came from next door.
Soon after, there was a knock on Richard’s door.
"It’s not locked," he called out.
Evelyn poked half her head around the door. "Bro?"
"What’s up?"
The girl stood on the carpet, her hands hidden behind her back.
"Did you... hear anything?"
"Hear what?"
"You know... the sounds from next door."
"The walls are really soundproof. I didn’t hear a thing," Richard said with a straight face.
Evelyn stared at him suspiciously for several seconds before finally letting out a slow breath.
"The maid insisted on helping me change my shoes."
"So? Let her change them."
"I was wearing your socks today! After walking around all day!"
As she said this, her expression was a mix of exasperation and mortification.
"You’re just changing your shoes, not your feet."
"You don’t get it!" Evelyn’s voice rose a notch.
"She was squatting in front of me, wanting to help take off my shoes... I... I just didn’t dare stick my foot out."
The girl covered her face with her hands.
"What if word gets out... that the Ashford Family’s granddaughter..."
"She won’t. Maids don’t spread gossip."
"How do you know?!"
"Because if you’re a servant in a family like this, you get fired long ago if you can’t keep your mouth shut."
Evelyn opened her mouth, feeling that he had a point, but her heart was still pounding with anxiety.
"So, did you change them or not?"
"I did." She stuck out her foot for Richard to see.
On her foot was a pair of dark brown, soft-soled sheepskin shoes, a perfect fit.
"These are way more comfortable than my own."
She couldn’t help but stomp on the carpet twice, her expression changing from embarrassed to satisfied.
"See? Problem solved."
"But my socks..." She shrank back again.
"I stuffed them under the pillow. I absolutely cannot forget to take them when we leave."
"You should find a place to wash and dry them."
"And what if someone sees them while they’re washing? A pair of oversized, stinky socks hanging out to dry in the Ashford estate?"
"...Good point."
"So I just shoved them under the pillow."
"Are you planning to make the pillow suffer too?"
Evelyn shot him a glare, then turned and slammed the door shut with a SLAM.
Two seconds later, the door cracked open again.
"Come knock on my door before the dinner party. We’ll go down together."
"Okay."
"And another thing."
"Hm?"
"If you dare mention the sock incident to anyone, I’m disowning you as my brother."

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