Knights and Magic Wand
Chapter 521 - 521 248 Discussing Wedding Banquet Matters

521: Chapter 248: Discussing Wedding Banquet Matters 521: Chapter 248: Discussing Wedding Banquet Matters After the ceremony on the square dispersed, Leon followed the crowd to the mid-level area, where he saw maids distributing small cakes to the academy’s children.

He picked up a portion, walking quickly back to the square, climbing the higher steps, and passed through the Magic Veil.

“Lola.” Spotting the white-haired girl still leaning against the balcony railing, gazing into the distance, Leon waved the cake wrapped in a napkin in his hand: “Come try this.

Everyone gets some.”

Lola tilted her head slightly, smiled, and rose gracefully before descending lightly from the balcony.

Watching the young teacher take the cake, unwrap the napkin, and take a small bite with delicate lips, Leon couldn’t help but ask, “Are you really not attending the banquet?”

Swallowing the sweet pastry, Lola’s gaze softened as she saw his expression of concern for her loneliness, unable to suppress her amusement.

“Didn’t I tell you already?

I prefer quieter places,” she teased.

“Besides, if I can only linger around you while you enjoy the lavish dishes and fine wine at the banquet, are you trying to make me envious on purpose?”

“Then…

I’ll bring you something delicious later.

What would you like?” Leon hurriedly offered.

“I’m just teasing.

I have no appetite anymore.

Don’t waste the effort.

Saving food is a virtue.

Go on, hurry up and attend your banquet,” Lola said with a shake of her head, gently shooing him away with her small hand.

Leon had no choice but to give up, bid her farewell, and left.

Turning back, he saw his young teacher standing there alone, holding the cake and waving.

The sight further deepened his resolve to find a solution so she could move freely.

In this world, he had no other family.

Lola, as his teacher, was his elder in a certain sense.

If Olivia’s wedding ceremony could have her officiating, it would undoubtedly be the most fitting choice.

Carrying a quiet hope for the future in his heart, Leon quickly made his way back to the main castle.

Inside the fortress, once the groom had changed into a more mobile formal suit, and the servants had arranged the food and tableware, the wedding banquet officially began.

Soft music played, as attendees took their seats according to hierarchy and social connections.

Dressed in his new attire, Azeryan rose to thank the guests for attending the wedding, offering his tribute to everyone, and inviting the most distinguished guest, Count Eriv, to deliver a speech.

Once the monarch of the Earldom provided his blessings to the newlyweds and announced the start of the banquet, everyone could finally dig in to the delicious feast sprawling across the long table.

Starting with various hearty soups to whet the appetite, there was roasted venison, whole pig, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, fish, goose, and an array of game.

Nothing was spared—the hallmark of noble banquets of this age.

The proportion of meat was exceptionally high, though vegetables and fruits were present as well, though typically not as main dishes in such displays of status and generosity.

The most eye-catching dish on the table, however, had to be the beautifully plated roasted peacock…

This wasn’t a meal prepared by Avalon.

Although Leon’s domain could procure expensive peacock feathers, a live peacock was utterly unheard of.

This one was specifically brought over by Count Eriv from the aviaries of an old noble estate in Glade County.

He had transported it to Avalon, where the Thorny Flower Family’s chef showcased their culinary skills.

When Leon first saw the chef holding the peacock by its neck, he was almost amused by the Sealing Lord’s innocent yet heartfelt gesture.

Naturally, Leon hadn’t declined Count Eriv’s small but thoughtful gift, so the roasted “Valensis Delight” was sooner rather than later devoured by the guests at the table.

The flavor was indeed exceptional.

Compared to chicken, roasted peacock had a firmer, bouncier texture.

Its meat carried a unique taste that fell somewhere between chicken and beef, with melted fats from the roasting process penetrating the flesh, enhancing its richness.

For Leon, whether in this lifetime or the last, it was his first time eating peacock.

Not only was it absent from civilian tables, it was rare even among typical noble households.

As the main courses concluded, the wine feast began, and the atmosphere in the banquet hall and adjoining rooms transitioned to one of social mingling.

Nobles and knights under the rule of the Farolis Family rose to sample the grape wine and apple cider provided by Avalon, engaging in conversation, slowly settling their stomachs, savoring the leisure before the ballroom dance.

The focal point of the banquet, without a doubt, remained on newlyweds Azeryan and Olivia, as well as Count Eriv, and their host, Baron Avalon.

Leon courteously entertained the nobles approaching for connections, while Olivia, standing by his side, effectively shielded him from many hopeful single ladies.

These women, realizing the Baron of Avalon was already betrothed, and his young companion beside him was both stunningly beautiful and strikingly dignified, begrudgingly shifted their attention to other eligible noblemen among the crowd.

With his golden hair and striking presence, Kovis enjoyed significant attention.

And another young baron, with an imposing and exaggeratedly muscular frame, drew scores of noble ladies into his orbit.

Standing over two meters tall, Lokhak’s stature rivaled that of the Astartes.

Even amidst the generally robust Knights of Valor, he was exceptionally conspicuous.

His fame birthed from the Battle of Ustato, coupled with the most important attribute—his unmarried status—drew numerous noble maidens, and even some widowed aristocratic ladies, into pursuit.

In the Northern Kingdom, widowhood wasn’t seen as virtuous.

For many charming, unwed noblewomen, a baron of around ten years’ age was a prime “delicacy” in all senses of the word.

The straightforwardly earnest giant boy was soon surrounded by a flock of chattering ladies.

Amid their soft laughter, his face turned beet red, his hands and feet awkward, utterly unsure where to place himself.

The passion of Orland noble maidens far surpassed the expectations of the son of a Holy Land sergeant.

Lokhak had never experienced such a scene before.

Even the King’s banquet, while grander, wasn’t so intimate with noble women—at the time, he was merely an unremarkable little knight.

At this very moment, facing a few ravishing ladies whose words carried flirtatious hints and whose eyes radiated enticing allure, Lokhak felt like a fledgling deer surrounded by a pack of ferocious tigers, his back tingling with both apprehension and unease.

Not even when he’d braved the dense ranks of Kantadar in bloodshed had he felt this disoriented.

….

On the other side of the banquet.

Sally gracefully raised the hem of her pale yellow dress, expressing her apologies as she tactfully declined yet another young knight’s invitation to dance.

Watching the knight leave in disappointment, the girl sighed internally, her gaze unconsciously drifting toward Lokhak, bound by the encircling noblewomen.

Her mind buzzed as if alarm bells were ringing relentlessly in her head, an intense sense of crisis enveloping her, yet she couldn’t summon the courage to act.

The distracted young lady barely noticed the voice close to her ear.

“…If you don’t make a move, my Lokhak is going to be snatched away by the wolf pack~”

The housekeeper lady had quietly approached at some point, leaning in to whisper teasingly near her ear.

“…Elena,” Sally’s cheeks flushed as she turned around shyly.

Elena smiled encouragingly at her, lovingly patting her hair.

“What are you hesitating about, Sally?

You know my brother’s feelings well.

He’s still waiting for your reply.”

“But I’m not worthy of him…” Sally lowered her gaze, her expression tinged with melancholy, instinctively leaning closer to Elena, much as she had when afraid in the past.

“He’s a flawless knight, deserving of a pure and virtuous wife, but I…”