Damian frowned slightly. "So, the person you mentioned-"
"That would be me." Lillian lightly picked up the conversation and stepped in front of Damian, her crimson eyes smiling as she surveyed the entire Mourning Poetry Society with interest.
"You're open to new members here, right? Can I join too?"
Damian looked Lillian up and down. "No. You look like trouble."
Lillian blinked, her smile widening. "Thanks for the compliment~"
Damian choked on his words. He seemed to have some trouble handling this woman.
His gaze fell on the little boy nearby, and his expression softened a little. "You're Eli, aren't you?
Did you get enough to eat at Holy Communion today?"
Eli nodded obediently, then looked up a little sheepishly. "I promised Lillian I'd join her troupe."
Damian frowned slightly and gave Lillian an appraising look. "You're-an actress?"
"More or less. Dance is my life. I act in plays occasionally, too, but opera and things like that are beyond me. I always burst out laughing when I sing."
She spun nimbly in place, her skirt tracing an elegant arc and instantly drawing everyone's attention.
"Don't I look like one?"
Even Damian had to admit at that moment that some people seemed born to be the lead, suited to standing at center stage.
With Lillian standing in the room, everyone's eyes kept drifting toward her without their realizing it.
"This troupe you mentioned is-"
"The Rose Troupe. We've been touring the continent lately. Have you come to see any of my performances?"
"-No."
This time, it was Lillian's turn to be surprised. "You haven't? You really haven't? No way-why?"
Damian shrugged helplessly. "The Mourning Poetry Society is just a small society. We're all ordinary people. Working to earn a living every day is hard enough, and few of us can even