Cherwood Borough, Iris Street, Capim Villa.
In the spacious, elegant dining room, the maids placed gold-inlaid ceramic tableware onto the table one piece at a time, then arranged caviar, roast chicken, braised lamb, pan-seared beef eye, fried dragonbone fish, creamy soup, and other dishes in a prescribed order according to specific requirements.
Next, the slightly plump Capim emerged from his study. With a falsely genial smile on his face, he humbly greeted Harras, the middle-aged gentleman in a white hood beside the table; Katie, who wore only a thin shirt; and Parker, whose aged face carried little intimidation.
After everyone was seated, Capim raised his wineglass and gave a soft laugh. Imitating the customs of high society, he offered a toast:
"Storm above, let us drink to a bright future."
Katie touched the old scar on her face. She ignored him and merely gave a slight nod.
Harras likewise said nothing, but at least pinched the stem of his wineglass and lifted it slightly.
Only the elderly gentleman Parker responded:
"To a bright future."
Capim knew their personalities well, so he did not mind. Instead, he attended to the only lady present and ingratiatingly said, "Ms. Katie, there's caviar you like tonight, as well as roast chicken specially prepared for you."
Katie gave a bland "Mm" and began using her knife to carve up the roast chicken before her with the precision of a dissection. She quickly divided it into many pieces, all nearly identical in size.
Though it was not his first time seeing this, Capim still felt his scalp tingle. He hurriedly cut off a piece of fried dragonbone fish containing only the main bone, dipped it in black pepper sauce, and stuffed it into his mouth to hide his embarrassment.
Dinner proceeded in an orderly fashion until