Turning to where he felt a gaze from, Noir saw a lady—platinum blonde hair, blue eyes, smooth skin—but what disturbed him were her unkind, cautious eyes.
He frowned and thought, "Who is she, and why is she looking at me like that?"
His confused gaze and her cold, cautious one interlocked—blue eyes meeting blue eyes.
Anne then said, "Oh Noir, the new face you're seeing is Cassandra, my best friend."
Anne's voice pulled him out of Cassandra's deep blue eyes, and he raised a brow. "Your friend?"
"You didn't tell me before that you had brought a friend with you," he said, looking at his big sister.
"I forgot, hehe."
"Well, it's not my fault. I got to see my brother after suchhhh a long time! How could I remember such little things?"
"Anyway, now you can meet her," Anne continued, turning to Cassandra. "This is my dear little brother, Noir Vaishrava."
"Hello, Lady Cassandra," Noir said, extending his hand toward her with a polite smile on his face.
Cassandra stared at his hand for a moment, ignoring the confusion—now tinged with slight embarrassment—on Noir's face.
'Why is she staring at my hand so intensely?'
'Is offering a handshake disrespectful in her culture? Ugh, I don't know.'
He looked toward Anne for help. Anne, noticing his predicament, nudged her friend, "Cassy, what are you zoning out for?"
Cassandra flinched slightly, then looked away from his hand. Under Anne's expectant gaze, she finally extended her own hand, though it trembled slightly.
Just as their hands touched, she flinched again and abruptly pulled her hand back, covering the finger that had touched his with her other hand. Her eyes widened slightly.
Both Anne and Noir were shocked.
Noir was about to ask if she was alright, but Anne beat him to it.
"What happened to you, Cassy? Why did you pull back so suddenly? And you... are you trembling?" Anne stood up and moved closer, touching Cassandra's forehead. "Your body temperature is normal." Looking directly into her friend's eyes, she asked, "What happened?"
Seeing the heavy concern in Anne's eyes and the confusion and worry in Noir's, Cassandra steadied herself. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and calmed down.
Opening them again, she regained her composure and smiled slightly. "I'm okay, Anne. I'm just feeling a bit under the weather. Maybe it's because of the change in mana density."
"Hm," Anne nodded. "Haah! That always happens to newcomers. You've never traveled to a low-mana zone before."
Anne returned to her seat, feeling reassured.
Now Noir asked, "Are you really okay? Should I call a healer?"
Taking another breath, Cassandra replied calmly, "I'm okay. And sorry for... behaving like that." Her voice stuttered slightly at the end.
"No, it's fine. I understand. Shifting mana regions can be stressful," Noir said, smiling.
Looking at his smiling face and hearing his voice… It was the same voice, yet something felt different. That dreadful, cold, eerie vibe was gone. His smile—nothing like that demon's smile—was warm. But still, knowing this was the same person who did that to her, her body trembled inside.
She questioned herself, "Who is he? Where is that black-haired demon? That disgusting bastard who humiliated and tortured me?"
"Is he another person? Someone completely different? But it can't be... their faces are exactly the same. Just... that demon was paler."
"Is this really Anne's sweet, innocent brother she's always talked about?"
When her finger brushed against his, her heart had pounded—no, jumped in her chest. A strange sensation, one she didn't understand… but one she never wanted to feel again.
"Did you enjoy your sleep?" Anne asked Noir, changing the subject.
"The first thing you did after coming home—after so long—was go to sleep, not even caring about your sister's feelings."
"Yes, sister," Noir replied. "Finally getting a soft mattress again... I couldn't resist. My body felt heavy, my soul relaxed… I just lost myself in that sensation."
"And no, I didn't forget about you. I just wanted to talk when I felt ready. With my body that tired, I felt I couldn't have a proper, open conversation. You understand, right?"
"You've learned to talk back to your sister now, huh?" she said, narrowing her eyes.
"I always knew how," Noir said with a smirk.
While they were talking, the maids began serving dishes—steak and rows of monster meat, still rich in mana even after death. These were expensive and luxurious ingredients.
But seeing all the meat in front of him, Noir frowned.
He looked at Lara, the maid serving him personally. "Lara, can you bring me something vegetarian? Something without meat or body parts of other beings?"
"Huh?!"
Everyone in the room was shocked.
Lara's eyes widened. "I made all of these, Master. Don't you like them?" Her voice was slightly teary.
"Ah," Noir noticed the sadness and sense of betrayal in her voice.
"Why wouldn't you eat meat? These are all high-mana cuts. They'll help increase your mana affinity and reserves," she said, half-scolding.
"I just don't like eating meat, sister," Noir replied. "Eating something that was breathing not long ago… it's disgusting. I don't like it." He said this with a disgusted expression.
"Eh?! What are you saying?" Anne gasped. "My dear brother, did you get sick while you were away? What kind of disease is this? What nonsense are you speaking?"
"Eating something that was once breathing is bad, sister," Noir said with closed eyes, speaking like a true professional, a true philanthropist, a true man of culture.
Cassandra, meanwhile, was staring at him like he was some exotic, unknown species.