Asher was walking calmly with Rachael still on his shoulders. He had already taken a glass of wine, while Rachael drank juice through a straw.
Rachaelâs maid simply followed half a step behind them without a word, her eyes scanning everyone. She hadnât expected someone to make a move against Rachael, and she had been tasked with protecting her, a duty in which she had failed because she hadnât reacted in time. She could only thank the stars that Rachael had been with a Wargrave.
So, because of this, she simply became even more vigilant.
Ahead, Asherâs gaze fell on a particular chubby person, Finch, who was walking towards them with a calm expression.
"Big Brother!" Rachael immediately called out as she jumped from Asherâs shoulders, landed lightly on her feet, then ran over and hugged Finch with a big smile.
"You little rascal, you didnât even look for me when you came to the Thalvorn Empire. Instead, you went to Asher," Finch spoke in a mock-angry tone as he lifted her up.
"No, Big Brother, I was looking for you. I just found Brother Asher first, then he said he was going to take me to your room when we got to the hotel if we didnât find you here. Believe me," Rachael explained as she tried to defend herself.
Finch smiled as he spoke, "I believe you." He had only been joking after all.
Finch had been able to find Asher and Rachael because of the commotion between Asher and the Zarik family.
Finch gazed at Asher with a certain expression. Although he didnât speak, Asher was able to understand him perfectly well. Finch was questioning him about displaying such brutality in front of his little sister. She was still pure and innocent; he didnât want her to experience such scenes yet. Those were matters for the future.
Asher shook his head. He had forgotten in the moment because he had been pissed that some lapdog had attacked Rachael.
"Thank you for protecting her," Finch spoke. All in all, Asher had protected Rachael, and he was grateful for that.
Asher shook his head and didnât reply. If Hilton hadnât approached him, the entire matter wouldnât have escalated to Rachael being attacked, so he accepted his share of the fault in the matter.
Finchâs attention turned to Rachael as he asked, "So, how do you like the gala? Beautiful, isnât it? Lots of people, lots of juice, and children your age."
And indeed, children around Rachaelâs age were present, as they were made to attend these kinds of events from a young age.
"Well, everything is sweet and sparkly," Rachael replied with a cute smile. "I was enjoying it before, but now? Iâm enjoying it even more," she stated with a childish chuckle.
"Hoo!!! Why? What changed?" Finch asked curiously.
Rachael stared at him as she asked, "Didnât you see Brother Asher in action?"
As she asked that question, she immediately jumped down from Finchâs arms and went into a martial stance as she punched into the air. "Brother Asher was like pow pow," she mimicked punches she hadnât actually seen, as they had simply been too fast for her eyes to follow, but she could tell they were punches nonetheless.
"Then Brother Asher vanished and broke his head with a boom!" she immediately mimicked Asher grabbing Davidâs face and slamming it into the wall.
Her eyes sparkled as she spoke. Then she stomped on the ground as she continued, "Then he broke his knees, and I could hear the sounds of the bones in my ears," she stated, then went on to mimic Asher tearing Davidâs arm from his shoulder.
As she was mimicking Asherâs feats, Finch turned to Asher, no sound left his lips, but they moved regardless as he silently uttered, "You broke my cute little sister, bro."
Asher simply didnât know whether to laugh or cry. How was it his fault that Rachael had ended up enjoying the entire thing? Childrenâs minds were indeed different. After all, if a child saw a snake, they would pick it up without realising how dangerous it was.
People who passed by glanced at Rachael with curious eyes as they wondered who she was.
Finch sighed and picked up Rachael as they continued walking together.
"Brother Asher, when are we sparring? After the ball?" Rachael asked as though she was ready to test out the inspiration she had gained after watching the ordeal.
"When we get back to the Empire," Asher replied. Although sparring with Rachael wouldnât take more than thirty minutes, he wouldnât do it now. He was here to enjoy himself.
"Not fair," Rachael replied.
"The Gentle Hotel rooms donât have any training chambers, so we canât spar," Asher replied with a shake of his head.
Rachael immediately understood and nodded her head.
"Letâs go find William," Finch stated, completely unbothered by how Asher and Rachael had somehow arrived at discussing a sparring session.
As they walked, a lot of people glanced at Finch, the majority of them frowning and wondering if he was sick or had some kind of disease. After all, even the most gluttonous Nobles and Merchants still possessed athletic builds by default.
Asher held back his laughter and continued walking, while Rachael seemed oblivious to it all.
William wasnât hard to find. Despite witnessing what had happened a few minutes ago, he hadnât approached Asher and Rachael like Finch had because he was busy. Yes, he was busy with women. He was flirting with two girls, both of whom were laughing at his jokes.
Seeing this, Asher and Finch immediately turned around. This time, they began looking for Ryaen instead, but when they found her, she too was talking to a dark-skinned handsome guy.
But upon seeing Asher and Finch arrive, she simply smiled, bade farewell to the guy, and walked away. This wouldnât be the last time they saw each other. After all, they still had time left within the Thalvorn Empire.
"You must be Rachael," Ryaen spoke as she came to a stop.
She had heard Asher, William, and Finch talk about her on two separate occasions, and seeing Finch holding a girl around that age, Ryaen immediately guessed she was Finchâs sister.
"I am, and you are beautiful," Rachael spoke as she was simply enamoured by Ryaenâs beauty. After all, even Asher had confirmed that only Cindralis and Arianna could surpass Ryaen when it came to beauty alone.
"Ohh, thank you. My name is Ryaen," Ryaen replied.
"Nice to meet you, Sister Ryaen," Rachael said with a welcoming smile.
Ryaen smiled and turned to Finch. "You have a beautiful sister."
"Thank you, she is my pride," Finch smirked.
"Now I understand why Asher thinks you are adopted," Ryaen spoke. Asher had once joked that he thought Finch was adopted. Seeing the two of them now, she too was inclined to agree with Asherâs theory. To her, there was simply no way a fairy and a goblin could be siblings.
Finchâs face immediately darkened. He instantly turned and walked away, not bothering to remain in the conversation. He could already tell it would end with him being made fun of.
"Big Brother, where are we going? I havenât asked Sister Ryaen what skin products and makeup she uses," Rachael asked.
"We will ask her tomorrow," Finch replied as he left Ryaen and Asher alone.