On the day Arasila handed over the invitation to the knighthood to Isaac, she also sent an invitation to Prince Lucas. She couldn’t leave out the one who could be called Demian’s only friend.

“Happy birthday, Lord Vandermir! I finally get to know your birthday. You wouldn’t tell me even when I asked.”

Lucas laughed heartily and patted Demian’s shoulder. Demian felt somewhat embarrassed and nodded his head.

“Thank you for coming, Your Highness.”

“Haha, it’s only natural to attend a friend’s birthday. I’ll invite you next year too, so make sure you and your wife attend.”

“Understood.”

Lucas winked at Arasila, blew a hand kiss to Demian, and then retreated. He appropriately stepped back, knowing there would be many people wanting to greet the party’s guest of honor.

Arasila pulled on the hand of Paula, who had been waiting nearby, and said,

“Demian, this is my friend Paula. You remember her, right?”

“Of course I remember. How have you been, Lady Hayden?”

“Very well, I’ve heard that you and Arasila are getting along splendidly. Perhaps that’s why you look so radiant even though it’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

Paula chuckled, covering her mouth. Her crimson eyes showed goodwill towards Demian.

Demian expressed his gratitude to her, Arasila’s friend, for taking the time to come and congratulate him on his birthday.

“Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule.”

“Not at all, isn’t it loyalty to show up at a friend’s family event?”

Despite her gentle appearance, Paula responded breezily. It was clear that she was indeed Arasila’s friend.

After she left, Isaac and Colin came to visit.

“Oh my, Commander! Happy birthday! May I ask for a word on how you’re feeling today?”

“No. And lower your voice, Isaac, you’re being noisy.”

At the curt answer, Isaac pouted with a deflated expression. He seemed more energetic and excited than usual.

Standing calmly beside him, Colin greeted with a polite smile.

“Congratulations, Commander. I hope you have a comfortable and enjoyable day today, free from any worries or concerns.”

“Thank you, Colin.”

Demian smiled faintly and lightly tapped Colin’s forearm. Isaac then rushed in with a hurt expression.

“Commander, why don’t you do that to me?”

“Think about why on your own.”

“Hmm… Ah, I think I know!”

After pondering with his hand on his chin, Isaac spoke with a bright face. Demian had an ominous feeling.

“You want to receive a group congratulation from the knights, right?”

“No…”

“Everyone, gather around to congratulate the Commander!”

At Isaac’s call, the knights scattered throughout the party venue assembled in unison. Arasila and Colin exchanged glances.

Think we’ll get caught up in this if we stay here? Yes, I think it’s best if we leave.

As Colin bowed slightly and quietly left, Arasila whispered softly to Demian.

“Demian, excuse me for a moment.”

“My lady, where are you going?”

“I’ll be back.”

Arasila smiled and slipped away. Because of the subordinates swarming around, Demian had no choice but to let her go.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to our beloved Commander!”

Soon, the knights surrounding him began to sing the birthday song. Demian frowned at the cacophony created by their deep voices.

No, I don’t think I wanted this kind of celebration even when I was young…

“Oh, but usually you’re supposed to give birthday punches on birthdays. Is it okay to do that to the Commander?”

“Idiot, of course not! Let’s give him a shoulder ride instead of birthday punches!”

As they approached with raised hands, Demian immediately became serious as he imagined the horrific scene of being given a shoulder ride in the middle of the party hall while receiving stares.

“Attention!”

“Attention!”

“That’s enough, return to your positions.”

“Yes, understood!”

Sensing from his lowered voice that they shouldn’t fool around anymore, the knights dispersed.

Where the burly men had receded like an ebbing tide, only two people remained. They were Sally and Rudy.

Originally, Arasila hadn’t planned to invite the juniors, but she changed her mind after meeting Isaac. She thought Demian might be curious about their well-being too.

Thanks to that, Sally and Rudy received their invitations last and attended.

“Ah, hello, Lord Vandermir.”

“It’s been a while for both of you.”

As a result of working together to solve the lamp explosion incident, a certain familiarity had formed between Demian and the two.

“Um, sir. Happy birthday.”

“Thank you, ahem, for inviting us today.”

Regardless of still being nervous in front of Demian.

Demian, who had been tired of his boisterous subordinates, felt his mind and body become peaceful upon seeing the two magicians quietly offering their congratulations.

“Have you both been well?”

“Yes, we’ve been having busy and enjoyable days since our senior returned to work.”

Sally answered with a bright smile. Her words were filled with sincerity.

“Are you very busy?”

“A little bit. We recently started research on a truth serum under our senior’s initiative.”

“Truth serum?”

Demian frowned at the unexpected research topic. He too knew that truth serum had been discontinued in the past and was now rarely mentioned.

“Can you still produce it now?”

“Actually, we’re still in the early stages of research, so we’re not sure. Due to the extinction of the main ingredient, we’re trying to find ways to revive it or find a substitute.”

“Hmm, what’s the main ingredient?”

“Have you heard of the Dilai flower? It’s said to have seven petals, each a different color like a rainbow.”

Sally spoke based on the description in the plant encyclopedia, as she had never seen it herself. Demian shook his head briefly.

“It seems like it won’t be an easy research.”

“I think so too. But I’m not too worried since we have our senior leading us.”

Rudy chimed in spiritedly. He believed that with Arasila, they could overcome any difficulty.

And usually, the more difficult the process, the greater the catharsis from the result.

Demian smirked seeing how energetic they were now, compared to how listless they had been when they came to ask for help with Audrey in the lead.

Then, the two noticed Arasila approaching with the Duke Hugo’s family and left after bowing.

Seeing Isaac approach them with a welcoming face, Demian slowly turned around. Just then, Arasila and her family arrived in front of him.

“Demian, my family is here.”

“It’s been a while.”

Demian bowed his head politely. Duke Hugo chuckled and patted his shoulder.

“I’ve missed you, Demian. Why so formal between family?”

“That’s right. You’ve become even more handsome since we last saw you, Demian.”

The Duchess also spoke to him familiarly.

Behind them stood Iris holding Adrian’s hand. A strange man was also with them.

As it seemed her parents had finished greeting, Iris stepped forward with Adrian.

“Happy birthday, sir. Since it’s your first birthday after marriage, I hope you spend it pleasantly with Arasila.”

“Brother, happy birthday!”

Adrian said brightly with a flushed face. His eyes sparkled as he looked up at Demian.

“Thank you. And thank you.”

A faint smile appeared on Demian’s lips as he patted Adrian’s round head.

Although his real family, the Vandermir ducal family, was absent, the presence of the Hugo ducal family more than made up for that void.

At an appropriate moment, Iris introduced the unfamiliar man beside her.

“This is Lord Eric Roberts. He’s attending as my partner today.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir. I’m Eric Roberts.”

“Demian Vandermir.”

The two men shook hands. Demian was a bit surprised that Eric’s hand was large and calloused despite his delicate appearance, and Eric was quite surprised by the tremendous grip strength befitting a Sword Master.

Golden eyes scrutinized Eric closely. As he was close enough to come as Iris’s partner, he could potentially become the second son-in-law of the Hugo ducal family in the near future.

‘He gives off a similar vibe to Lady Hugo.’

Just as Arasila and Demian matched in a glamorous style, this couple matched in a soft and gentle feeling.

“Actually, I met Lord Roberts for the first time today too. My sister has been dating so mysteriously.”

“Oh my, Ari. You were the busy one. Are you shifting the blame to your sister?”

Iris playfully put her hands on her hips and scolded her younger sister. For a moment, Demian glanced at Arasila as if checking, but Eric intervened with a laugh.

“I’m quite sorry that I’m only now greeting the lady. I should have met you earlier and earned some points.”

“You’ve already earned quite a few points with your first impression, so don’t worry.”

“Haha, is that so? Thanks to that, I’ll be able to sleep well tonight.”

Demian found himself staring at Eric, who was chatting amiably with the sisters.

Despite meeting for the first time today, he seemed to converse quite comfortably with Arasila, appearing to be a very sociable person.

Just as he was about to frown at their strangely smooth interaction, the Duchess spoke first.

“Oh my, I feel anew that our daughter has grown up. The child who used to fight with friends and get kicked out of parties is now hosting her husband’s birthday party.”

“Mom, why are you suddenly bringing that up?”

As past stories she wanted to bury began to raise their heads, Arasila quickly went on the defensive. However, she failed as the Duke joined in.

“Ho ho, our Ari only fought with friends. There was also a time when she insisted on making a grand magical entrance on her birthday, only to fall right onto the cake and end up covered in cream.”

“Dad, you too?”

“She once gave me her own hair as a birthday present. I had accidentally cut the head off her favorite doll and was feeling down. Can you believe it, giving me hair instead of the doll?”

Even Iris chimed in, and a big laugh erupted while Arasila’s expression turned sulky.

She looked down in search of a new victim. Adrian was innocently munching on cookies.

“At least I didn’t cry for 3 hours because I was startled by fireworks like our Adri.”

“Si-Sister! It wasn’t 3 hours, it was 2 hours!”

Adrian’s face turned bright red as his embarrassing past was suddenly exposed. His cute reaction caused laughter to burst out.

“Everyone does something silly on their birthday when they’re young. I once played hide-and-seek with friends during a party and fell asleep alone in the attic, turning the house upside down.”

Eric naturally joined in by sharing his own story. Iris opened her eyes wide, covering her mouth.

“Oh my, really?”

“Yes, my parents thought I had been kidnapped and even reported it to the authorities.”

“Goodness, they must have been so surprised.”

“I still remember how everyone looked at me as if they’d seen a ghost when I came out after sleeping soundly. I got scolded a lot that day.”

Everyone giggled at the follow-up story of him crying and kneeling down for punishment. Even Adrian burst into laughter.

Only Demian stood there with an ambiguous smile.

Feeling a wall somehow erected between himself and them, Demian searched his memory for any such interesting incidents.

Of course, there were none.

The birthday parties of the son born to the legitimate wife with an unstable position were always filled with tension.

Young Demian tried hard to act mature so that his mother wouldn’t be criticized because of him.

He never had a single cheerful birthday like the Hugo ducal family or Eric.

Even though he already knew this fact, somehow his mood sank. Perhaps it was because the people before him were shining so brightly without a hint of shadow.

“Dad, you also cried while singing at Mom’s birthday.”

“Oh, Ari? You shouldn’t mention that.”

“Ned, why are you being so cowardly? You told all of Arasila’s stories.”

“In exchange, I didn’t mention that you cried while reading a letter on my eighteenth birthday.”

“You just did.”

“Oops, my mistake.”

As Arasila said this with an unapologetic face, laughter erupted again.

Looking at the Hugo family with their endless cheerful smiles, and Arasila who belonged among them, Demian felt his heart grow heavy.

No matter how much he liked her, he could never be such a family to her. He was too full of unhealed scars for that.

Demian’s gaze, which had sunk into thought, turned towards Eric. He saw this man who, unlike himself, seemed accustomed to blending into a harmonious family.

‘The person suitable for my wife… is not me, but a man like that.’

Although Eric’s courtship with Iris wasn’t very long, and today was his first meeting with Arasila, he had already integrated into the Hugo ducal family.

He possessed a brightness that only someone raised in a flawless home could emit.

If Eric really ends up starting a family with Iris, he will inevitably be compared to himself. He will surely give his wife a perfect home.

Perhaps it will be the moment Arasila realizes that being with him is a tragedy.

‘It would be better to leave before that happens.’

That would probably be for the best. To return a harmonious and perfect family to Arasila without any blemishes.

His head accepted that fact, but his heart throbbed arbitrarily, dragging his mood to the bottom. Demian managed his expression to not show this as much as possible.

Fortunately, no one noticed that Demian’s complexion was strangely off.

“Demian, are you alright?”

Except for one person.

Demian flinched at the warmth that gently enveloped his forearm. Arasila, who had keenly noticed the change in his expression, continued in a soft whisper.

“If you’re uncomfortable, please bear with it for a little while. I’ll send my family away soon.”

“No. I’m fine.”

“Come now, that’s a lie. You look too drained for that to be true.”

Arasila pressed her index finger firmly on Demian’s forearm and wore a worried expression.

Looking at her face so intently focused on him, Demian impulsively asked.

“Am I your family?”

If she said yes, it felt like it might erase this sense of alienation, even if just a little.

At the sudden question that didn’t fit the situation, Arasila looked bewildered but answered promptly.

“Of course you’re family. We’re married, aren’t we?”

“…Then that’s enough.”

With that one answer, the feeling of being pushed out as a stranger melted away like snow. Demian tightly grasped Arasila’s hand.

Although she gave him a strange look, she didn’t reject the physical contact like before. Demian looked ahead with a much more relaxed expression.

At least for now, I belong to your family. Just having that confirmation was enough to make him happy.

So much so that he couldn’t even think of desiring anything more.