Chapter 151: Acknowledgement(5)

When they entered the dining hall, the maids immediately prepared their seats for them, and everyone took their seats. Luke sat naturally between the two kids. He then turned to face the butler, who was standing behind him. The butler took notice of him and spoke up.

"I'm here to ensure that you all have a delicious breakfast, as ordered by the crown prince."

Nash then turned to face the butler and spoke in a gleeful tone that made the maids who witnessed it blush.

"Will Uncle Lance show up?"

After Nash's question, the butler fell silent for a few seconds. He then bowed to Nash, as if apologizing.

"I'm sorry, but his highness does not normally eat breakfast. He works from morning and just stops to eat for dinner. He spends the majority of his time alone in his office working."

Snow then made a sad expression.

"I see, is that so... It's a shame."

Nash agreed with a nod.

"I want him to join us for dinner and thank him for the toys he gave us."

The maids and butler looked nervously at the two sad children.

"A-ah, please don't cry! I'm sure his majesty is already pleased to see you children happy with his gifts, so there's no need to thank him!"

One of the maids appears to have had enough and spoke up to console Nash and Snow.

"D-don't worry! He will join the banquet earlier so he will surely eat with you!"

The other maids all nodded at the same time.

"Yes, yes!"

"Don't be sad anymore okay?"

Luke and the others stared blankly at the scene of maids and butler comforting the two children. Luke just stared at it with his chin on his palm, then sighed, drawing the attention of the others.

"I'll go get him."

Luke then rose from his seat and prepared to leave, but the butler intervened to stop him.

"Ah please don't waste your efforts!"

"Hmm? Why?"

"Because no matter how many times we call him for breakfast every day, he either doesn't answer or drives us away."

"Really? He is that busy?"

"Y-yes, his majesty, the king gives him a pile of works every day because of his majesty's sickness making his highness the crown prince unable to have time for himself. And his highness not having breakfast here is already the norm."

Luke fixed his gaze on the butler's worried expression. Luke's lips then began to form a smile.

"Don't worry, this time, I'll talk to him. I'm confident he won't ignore me, his younger brother."

"B-but."

"Lead the way, no buts."

"Understood..."

Luke then waved at the kids for a bit before turning around and following the butler towards Lance's office. While walking, Luke notices the extravagant interior design and design of the walls, as well as the expensive golden statues displayed in the hallways. Luke's eyes light up when he sees this. Even though the royal family is corrupt, he can't deny that they are filthy rich.

Luke and the butler came to a halt in front of a lavishly decorated white double door. Luke looks at this for a moment before he walks forward towards the door and knocks it loudly making the butler surprised. Luke ignored him and concentrated on the door.

Knock, knock, knock

He heard Lance's voice behind the door after knocking.

"Butler, if it's you, leave me alone. I'm very busy."

"It's me, Your Highness... Your younger brother."

"What are you doing there? Go away; I don't have time for you right now."

"I'd like to invite you to breakfast."

"Thank you but no."

"Even if the kids in the dining hall are waiting for you?"

"..."

After a brief silence, Luke and the butler heard aggressive footsteps approaching the door. Soon after, the door swings wide open, revealing Lance's serious expression. Lance then spoke while fixing his creased sleeves.

"I'll take a short break."

Luke smirked triumphantly while the butler looked at this with wide eyes. The butler cannot believe that Luke managed to pull Lance out with just a few words while they will take a hundred tries but still unable to fish him out for breakfast.

The butler's senses were returned when he heard Lance and Luke's footsteps walking away and Lance talking.

"You said the kids were waiting for me?"

"Yeah, they were saddened to hear you wouldn't be coming for breakfast, so I came to pick you up."

"They got sad?"

"Yep."

Lance covered his mouth with his hand to cover his smile which Luke and the butler obviously noticed but ignored it and instead listened to Lance's oddly cheerful words. All of a sudden, he appears to be glowing.

"T-then ehem! I'm going to take a quick break- ehem!"

"Your highness, are you sick?"

Lance then gave Luke a scowl.

"Shut up."

"I am just asking."

Lance scowled and hurried towards the dining hall. When they arrived at the door, the knights and maids in front of it were taken aback by Lance's appearance, but they quickly bowed and respectfully opened the door. As soon as the door opened, Luke and Lance noticed his group chomping on the food while the kids chatted happily. When they saw the door open, they came to a halt and looked at Lance, Luke, and the butler, who were staring at them blankly. Luke then crossed his arms and smirked at their nervous expressions.

"Looks like you were all so hungry that you didn't even bother waiting for us, huh?"

Selena then ate her pasta and spoke with her mouth full.

"We figured you'd take a while to return, so we all decided to help ourselves."

Then Luke cocked his head to the side.

"What makes you think I'll take a long time to get his highness?"

Selena and the others exchanged glances before returning their gaze to Luke. Yulia then spoke.

"Well, looking at the butler's face, we can tell that his highness is very stubborn and will not leave his office no matter what, so we assumed it would be the same for you."

Luke simply sighed and returned to his chair. Lance trailed behind him and immediately smiled as he noticed the well-dressed kids jumping down their chairs and greeting him.

"Hello there, Uncle Lance!"

"Uncle, please join us for breakfast. Thank you for the lovely dresses as well!"

"She's correct! Thank you very much!"

Lance appeared to be deeply moved, as his face immediately softened, leaving the maids and butler's mouths agape. This is the first time they've ever seen Lance smile so softly; he's never smiled like this before, not even to the queen or king.

'What kind of power do those kids wield?!'

'How did they make the prince smile like that?'

'Unbelievable!'

While the maids and butler were stunned in the background, Lance carried the children and placed them beside his seat before beginning to eat with them. Luke and the others just stared at it while slurping their pasta. Even though their numbers outnumber the three, seeing three bright royal-looking people dining with them while they all looked like commoners from the market makes them feel so out of place.

Luke just sighed and turned his head towards Ava, who is awkwardly sitting on a small chair while crouching due to her large size. She appeared troubled, which made the butler and maids concerned as they tried to figure out how to make her comfortable.

"Ava."

Ava flinched and turned to face Luke, who had called her. Luke then addressed her.

"You will be the one to represent the giants later. Can you pull it off?"

Ava blinked a few times before turning her attention to her plate.

"My father and I expected it because I am the smallest and can somehow fit in the banquet, but... Can I really do it?"

Erdene patted Ava's back as he ate his food as if to console her. Luke remained silent for a moment before responding.

"Didn't I tell you I've got your back?"

Ava then turned to face Luke, who simply ignored her and sipped his glass of wine from the table. Luke then set the glass down and smiled at Ava.

"Don't worry, just walk in there like you normally would, and I'll take care of the rest."

Ava was taken aback for a moment before softly smiling.

"Okay!"

"Hmm."

Luke then continued to drink his wine, but he came to a halt when he noticed a few stares around him. He then frowned as he looked at them.

"What?"

Spencer then spoke as if he was taken aback.

"It's the first time I've heard you being so dependable."

Lina nodded in response to Spencer's remarks.

"Agreed."

Seconds later, the entire group, including Lance, nodded in unison, causing Luke to frown deeply. Luke just ignored them and kept eating his pasta.