色戒无删除版

It was a cloudless night and the moon\'s silver glow gave the streets a magical feel to it. The streets were lively as carriages were simultaneously coming as if they were in a parade.

The Duchess of Ginehart would be having her birthday banquet and every noble from the land was invited. It was a joyous affair that happens only once a year, thus many people won\'t pass up the opportunity to attend and most importantly to make connections.

Single ladies from every household came while giggling and showing off their best dresses. They would whisper and compare their clothing then they would make fun of the ones they didn\'t like.

The men of each family would look for people they are acquainted with and ask them for an introduction to the other members of nobility. Even though the celebration hadn\'t started yet, the ball room was already buzzing with activity.

The chatter suddenly became louder as a distinct carriage stopped at the entrance of the manor. It has the Ginehart insignia on its door and yet instead of black shield behind the crossing swords, it was the color of blood, which meant that the owner of the carriage was from a branch family.

Countless pairs of eyes were focused on the door that opened. They were waiting to see who had come and they were not disappointed. The person who alighted from the carriage was a distinguished person because he was an official under the king\'s rule and his position in the government was not that simple.

He was an adviser for the heir to the throne of Lunaira. A distinguished position coveted by many but because of his connections and his friendship with the prince, he easily got the position.

The ladies who were still in the lobby of the manor couldn\'t take their eyes off the man. He was tall and handsome. His green forest eyes looked lively coupled with the sweet smile on his face that could make any ladies fall for him.

He smiled at everyone who greeted him and even had a short conversation with them. Parents with their daughters took this chance to introduce them to the young man. He gladly accepted their introduction and gave the ladies a smile which made them blush and embarrassed.

Lindon Ginehart was truly a man who knows how to use his looks and charisma. All the ladies were undoubtedly enjoying his attention. He was also good at talking so that those people easily believed whatever he said.

He instantly became the center of attention after he entered the ballroom. Lindon was ecstatic because people could recognize him and that everyone\'s attention was on him. He really enjoyed all those eyes admiring him.

The man took it upon himself to make rounds and greet the guests since the hosts of the banquet were nowhere to be seen. Since even his cousin was not there to entertain the guests, he would take that chance to get to know more people.

After a while, the music started to play softly and the butler to the house of Ginehart came forward to greet all of their guests. "Thank you everyone for coming to this very special occasion. As you have noticed, none from my master\'s family are here yet because tonight, they will be announcing a very special news to everyone."

Those words stirred the crowd as another round of whispering and speculations began but only one topic was being circulated, and that was about the duke\'s second son. They waited with tense silence as the butler tapped the glass that he was holding to get their attention once again.

"Now let us welcome the duke and duchess, his Excellency Duke Ulysses with his wife the birthday celebrant for tonight, Duchess Linette." A thundering applause sounded inside the room as the door to the second level opened and out came the lovely couple who waved at their guests.

They didn\'t go down and stood on the side of the opened door then the guests heard the butler speak once again. "Let us also welcome the duke\'s first son, Major Linius Ginehart and it is with great joy that I finally got to introduce a person that I know all of you are curious about, Rigel Maverick Ginehart, the duke\'s second son."

From the opened door, two figures came out as they walked side by side. Everyone already knew who the other was and by the introduction of the butler, they could already surmise who the other one was. His looks were very similar to the duchess and his eyes were as expressionless as the major\'s was.

The hall was silent as they stared at the family of four but it didn\'t remain that way for too long. The butler started to clap followed by the servants then everyone was already clapping their hands. Lindon looked as they descended the stairs and how they naturally caught the people\'s attention without doing anything.

He clenched his jaws before he smiled once again and walked towards them to give his greetings. He made sure that his steps were firm and confident as he did not want any of the guests to see that he felt insecure.

"Uncle, Aunt." He bowed and when he lifted his head, he gave the couple a smile. "Happy birthday dear Aunt. You still look beautiful no matter how time passes."

Linette smiled and patted her nephew\'s shoulders, "You always flatter me and thank you for your greeting. Is your mother also here?"

"I\'m sorry but she isn\'t here right now. She suddenly got sick a few days ago and hasn\'t gotten better yet. She was even looking forward to this event but my father forbade her. He was worried that mother would be too tired from the journey and her sickness might get severe," he explained in one breath even though it was just an excuse.

"Is that so, then I hope for her to get well soon," Linette frowned a little bit before she sighed as she gently patted the child\'s shoulder again. "Before you leave, come to me first alright, and I\'ll prepare a get well soon gift for your mother."

Lindon nodded and dutifully accepted the woman\'s kindness because it was a plus for him to be able to show that his relationship with the main family was good. After talking with the duchess, he approached the two men who were standing a little bit to the back.

People were trying to approach them but Linius was the only one who was speaking. Rigel on the other hand kept standing behind his brother like someone would eat him alive. He looked so fragile that if he was going to be pushed down, he\'d break.

Cygnus\'s head turned towards the direction of the man and their eyes met briefly but Lindon did not miss the smirk on the other\'s face. He froze for a moment and when he returned his gaze, the man\'s attention was already on the people who were talking to Linius.

He clenched his fists and took a deep breath before he continued to walk towards them with his eyes focused on the man behind Linius. "Cousin!" He called out when he was a few feet away. His grin was playful and refreshing so the people were convinced that they were on good terms.

"Hello Lindon, I am glad to see that you are here!" Linius walked up to the man and took the initiative to give him a hug.

Lisbon was a bit taken aback by the sudden action but he accepted it and returned the hug. He knew that he was hated by the major but he didn\'t really care. After their greeting with each other, they walked up to Cygnus who was left alone in the place where they were previously standing.

"It\'s nice to finally meet you." Lindon stretched his hand towards Cygnus but instead of taking it, he looked back to Linius waiting for his approval. When the major nodded his head, Cgynus also stretched out and shook the hands waiting for him.

"It is also my pleasure to know you, Sir Lindon." Cygnus was smiling as he shook the man\'s hand.