The faint light of dawn filtered through Red Tide City's tall windows, spilling gently over the carved dining table and silver-rimmed plates, like a soft whisper in the quiet morning.
It was Louis's first time having breakfast with Duke Edmund and his family.
It was also his first time sitting beside the most powerful duke in the Northern Frontier as both the Lord of Red Tide and his son-in-law.
He wore a neat black formal suit, observing every courtesy without either servility or arrogance.
The duke sat at the head of the table, his expression composed, his gaze as deep and distant as a snowy plain.
To his left sat Lady Elena, gentle and graceful as ever in a mist-blue gown.
Emily sat to Louis's right, her posture restrained, though her eyes lingered quietly on his profile.
The long table was laden with an exquisite breakfast: steaming wheat cakes and cheese on silver platters, warm honey wine in delicate porcelain pitchers, and thin slices of smoked salmon, golden-orange and wonderfully fragrant.
Yet the strongest presence in the air was not the aroma of food, but the subtle family atmosphere that had yet to fully relax.
"This fish is quite good." Edmund spoke first, picking up a slice of smoked salmon with a slight lift of his brows.
"A Red Tide specialty," Louis replied calmly. "It's smoked especially in our workshops. If you like it, my lord, I can have some prepared for you to take back to Frost Glaive City."
"Mm." The duke gave a quiet acknowledgment, his tone unchanged.
Emily raised her teacup and took a small sip. Her gaze passed across the table, settling between her father and her husband, a hint of nervousness in her expression.
She knew this meal was more than breakfast. It was a