“What is this?“

“It was sent from the Duchess, Your Grace.”

Raven lifted the cloth that was covering the basket to see that it was filled with many white petals. No, it was rather coarse to be called petals. Eventually, the whole office was permeated with that very fragrant scent.

“…so, what is this?”

“Apparently, they are called cookies. They are from the Duchess.”

Terrance responded calmly.

“Oh, and one more thing. The Duchess had baked them herself. It is said that these are good in helping to relieve fatigue.”

“Pu ha ha!”

A sudden burst of laughter can be heard from a person who was standing right beside Raven. He was holding a stack of papers before holding onto his stomach while laughing out loud.

“Lyndon, you’re noisy.”

“But cookies, to My Lord!”

Lyndon felt regrettable that he wasn’t at home. Otherwise, he would definitely be either rolling on the bed or even on the floor while laughing out loud.

Terrance glanced over Lyndon since he was already all too familiar with his attitude. As he predicted on what events would unfold later, Terrance had stopped smiling and turned his gaze away from Lyndon while admiring his pointless avidity.

“What will you do?”

“What I should do.”

As Raven was staring at the cookies, he slowly moved his hand into the basket. They were in bite-sized pieces that could be munched easily. He finally chose one from the many, which resembled a flower the most before popping it into his mouth.

“My, My Lord?”

Raven’s sudden conduct had put a stop to Lyndon’s unreserved laughter. He rolled the piece of cookie in his mouth a few times before swallowing it down.

Gulp. The office was enveloped in silence at the precise moment when the cookie had traveled down his throat.

Terrance and Lyndon couldn’t take their eyes off their Lord. They had been by Raven’s side for so long while assisting him but they had never seen him eat anything sweet at all. Therefore, Lyndon prepared him a handkerchief just in case.

“…what is this called?”

“They are called cookies. Mer…lang—meringue cookies.”

“It’s delicious.”

“Yes?”

Terrance had gawked from afar towards Raven. It’s delicious? Is this person truly that same Duke right now?

Lyndon and Terrance were always on the same page if they were asked to describe what kind of person Raven was. The answer would forever be: the Scrooge of compliments.

He assessed his subordinates via a thorough evaluation of their skills and never did he ever shower them with any praises.

“Are they really that good? May I taste one?”

“Why should you?”

When Lyndon expressed his keen interest in the basket, Raven hastily embraced it in his arms.

Similar to a predator that would never let go of its prey, Raven immediately glared daggers at Lyndon.

“It was addressed to me. So, it’s obvious that these are only mine to own and keep.”

“Can you please allow me to have a taste the next time I train? It was so delicious for you, My Lord. You too…”

“Lyndon.”

His cold voice suddenly reverberated. Lyndon responded promptly with a clear voice as he stood up straight.

“Yes.”

“It seems that you still have much energy to spare.”

Terrance slowly shook his head. The thing that he had been worried about Lyndon had unveiled itself, just like he had predicted before.

“Twenty rounds should be easy enough for you.”

“I understand!”

Lyndon swiftly ran towards the door right after giving Raven a respectful salutation. He would have to force himself to be on the large compound for those twenty rounds with continuous tears rolling down his cheeks.

The office was once again enveloped in silence right after the main culprit of the commotion had departed to his misery. Then, the idle pen was once again dancing on the documents, led by Raven.

None of Raven’s aides were invited to his wedding as most of them had been by his side even before he was bestowed the title of a Duke. Some of them were even commoners who had started from low positions. Due to these facts, the Count would have never truly welcomed these guests.

A sudden marriage held between his master and an unknown duchess. Terrance stared at the Duke for a while before opening his mouth.