Saturday evening, 8 o'clock.
Klein took his own luxurious carriage and arrived at the home of Member of Parliament Macht at No. 39 Berkelund Street in two and a half minutes.
Glancing at the fountain pool with its splashing water and reflected lights, he buttoned his tailcoat's buttons, descended from the carriage, and walked slowly toward the front door.
Richardson followed closely behind his employer, carrying a beautifully wrapped bottle of Southwell red wine.
Once through the main door, Klein saw at once Member of Parliament Mori Macht and his wife Lady Liana coming forward to greet him.
The former wore an olive-green army officer's uniform with an orange-red sash and several medals on his chest—in the Loen Kingdom, active-duty or retired officers liked to wear military uniforms to balls.
The latter wore a yellow dress without a stand-up collar, rich in ruffles but with little delicate lace, different from unmarried ladies, but still revealing her white neck and half her shoulders.
Klein took the bottle of Southwell red wine from his valet Richardson, handed it to Member of Parliament Macht, then bowed and said:
"Sorry, I'm a few minutes late."
This was actually a common situation at Loen banquets: guests would rather be a bit late than early, because the host might still be busy with the final preparations, and it's not suitable for entertaining guests. Of course, one should try to keep the lateness within ten minutes.
If not for Vahana's special instruction on this common knowledge, Klein would have courteously arrived early.
"It's fine, the ball doesn't begin yet." Macht glanced at the Southwell red wine in his hand, handed it to his own valet, and nodded with a smile.
In Loen high society, when attending a banquet for the first time, one must give the host a small gift, with alcoholic beverages being the most popular, but one must remember to choose domestic products for the first time.
After greeting the host, Klein looked at Lady Liana, saw her slightly raise her right hand, so he stepped forward, took her hand, bent over and made a simulated kiss, saying:
"Your radiance illuminates the entire ball."
Before the banquet begins, compliments to the host are one of the few times in Loen social situations where subtlety is unnecessary, and unlike Intis, the hand-kissing ritual in Loen requires the lady to make the first move before the gentleman can proceed; otherwise it's a serious breach of etiquette.
"Your arrival does the same," Lady Liana replied with a smile.
Then the couple led Dwayne Dantès through the foyer into the hall, where a melodious tune was already echoing.
After taking a few steps, Mori Macht pointed to a young woman in a sky-blue dress:
"My daughter, Hazel."
Klein looked at the young woman and suddenly his pupils contracted!
He knew this young woman!
To be precise, he had seen her image!
When he had asked Arrodes where he could obtain a mystical item that could steal others' Beyonder powers, a scene shown by the magic mirror featured a haughty young woman wandering the sewers, and that was exactly Hazel Macht—a young lady with wavy dark green hair and bright dark-brown eyes!
Did she possess a mystical item corresponding to a Fire Thief? Given her family situation, why would she wander in the sewers? Was it her adventure? Was she searching for or waiting for something in the sewers? Had she already become a Beyonder? How did she become one? Could it be that an old man was also parasitic inside her? Would that old man be able to sense the Gray Fog like the Blasphemer Amon? Klein, wearing the "skin" of Dwayne Dantès, instantly thought of many questions, but outwardly calm, he pressed his hand to his chest and bowed:
"Good evening, Miss Hazel."
In the process, he quietly scanned Hazel Macht's face and found that the young woman had a bland expression and proud eyes, replying only with a polite smile:
"Good evening, Mr. Dantès."
She had no abnormal reaction, which meant at least she couldn't sense the Gray Fog's aura... As for whether she had an old man parasitic inside her, that remained to be determined and required further observation... Klein straightened up, took a glass of pale gold champagne from the tray held by a nearby attendant, and turned to talk with Member of Parliament Mori Macht:
"I didn't expect you were once a major, MP."
This was inferred from the epaulets on Member of Parliament Macht.
If he were a colonel, Klein would suspect that the gentleman was also a Beyonder, but a major was harder to say.
"Haha, it's nothing. There are too many opportunities to earn merit in East Balam," Mori Macht replied modestly. "Of course, the climate there is very uncomfortable. I've been suggesting to the army high command that they design special uniforms for East and West Balam, getting rid of the traditional dark colors, or else officers feel like beef on a grill."
As for soldiers, most of them were red above and white below.
"Yes, the climate there is completely different from home. Even Dixie Bay isn't that hot," Klein said, insinuating that he had been to the Southern Continent and one of East or West Balam, corroborating the hunting experience he had mentioned a few days ago.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Member of Parliament Macht apologized and led his wife Liana toward the staircase, went up to the second floor, stood at the railing facing the main door, and raised a glass of red wine, saying: