PT | Chapter 5.4

But rumors spread faster c5eb0a9b46 than words, and Lennock’s d5d52ac6ff presence could reach the fcbeca762c marquis’s wife’s ears at 490addc03d any time. Perhaps that’s b17b81c736 why they 1ccc1423ed had turned a60c3b2fa2 a blind 67448ed5d6 eye to 37ffc69e27 Gray’s tyranny. If the 6e0e0616d4 conflict between 27029cade1 the children fe4a8efa1c worsened, they 663b0e25bb might use 977b8a3134 it as 99014efc88 an excuse a4cfd58a3b to drive 2c08f00c35 Lennock out.1a3fb6f1c6be7239

But the butler 854ec68f56 realized from the 06ced92ad1 marquis’s gaze that 5e6250f6f6 he had been 0adbd25bd6 mistaken. Lennock was 571a22fda9 not someone a5658ccab1 who should 3666c1f5d1 be driven 0b9e9e691b out. And the 1f9bb3be53 marquis confirmed 05bf55f4fb this conviction ac6e6daed4 with his 999d70a207 words.bb6046bbfe2aca44

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“I will say this 172d187c4d only once, so listen 31ac824f6f carefully. I am 6d9f43a23a responsible for ffe1ae5a36 this child 4746273ac2 and must 1a52c81140 provide for 12d812d62a him until 6a91300022 he comes 302e2b0be6 of age. Understand?”343bbd77a6f36f16

“…Yes, sir. Clearly understood.”02cf01ece8099b23

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“If the conflict between 12e2c19e2d the children escalates, cut b64e7950c2 it off appropriately. And let Aubrey come d27e34253b down from the attic 29f65dbdef now.”0d2c3fe495c79d8f

Relieved by 9cf49b8912 the final 68bb1eae37 command, the 3be1536a39 butler nodded a2137e1be4 emphatically.e3db1d41b5ee2f63

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“I was 2679c76998 worried about 39edf72b8e the youngest 8246c38f95 master, but 102f68a55c now I 7544e22692 can finally bf1805445a relax.”410a69296ab225d0

“No, you can’t.”602d887ce5c42687

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“…What do you mean?”28bacd5e1037ecf4

“In this a99a105818 house, the 5c0ccb70b8 youngest master 025b4195e7 isn’t Aubrey. It’s him.”3c1a275d048aa000

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“…”450e88abfdf2e3a5

“Make sure 73524b8335 no more 62b99388f6 noise comes 0c9cd42261 from this 33338b46ae house.”5bffab46af7c4f65

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After finishing his a938732db2 statement, the marquis 02b45a1a9c left the room, d66ca7b662 leaving the butler b897741d79 visibly shocked. It was inevitable. The command meant ab8157db44 integrating a child 12f98eec27 without a single 6c6031fb12 drop of Wiidin de4a16fb4a blood into the ab346e6a93 family records.1e8515c958da3413

Wasn’t the marquis someone 9659f30ff4 who obsessed over lineage 97094b5039 more than anyone? His words suggested 339e940186 that perhaps Lennock c53ca3ea82 was indeed unrelated 6ae9c1b40e to him.a0e0db12cc840aca

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The butler ade51e8ff8 looked at fc0b659409 Lennock standing 630557e865 in the f39d80f23b middle of 232a8cfe6f the room.f5b8a96f833b3595

And Lennock remembered the f00c1e8329 butler’s gaze from that aa4f4f8d2d time. It was a look c4d7621a2f filled with reluctant horror, 722ed54363 as if facing something be8dd8f051 dreadful. That was fd8a6b44cb how Lennock f85bf84b02 could become 14736f412b the fifth 5ce1fde4da young master 0151a0a561 of the a1332fcea5 Wiidin family.c19bb90ff0a97679

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But that did 934dc0a9c7 not mean he 212bcc3e94 received the same 59485ba4fa treatment as the 0d735e9530 other four. Gray and Jill e154d86c80 continued to torment 5f6bce7200 him, and the da1528cb62 servants allowed it.b6140677c44a6a45

Though not fac4ca8928 as frequently 90e99917a4 as before, ff2744146f Lennock still 9d4b6d2d7c bled from 8075d1af17 his nose 1bee593478 or tore 5ebdcc84a8 his flesh 50deac05b8 every other 714ecb9f62 day. He was pushed c4e9237834 down stairs and 84bbada2ce high places. Once, he 22195efdba was nearly d2653fd369 trampled under 8e5812435a the hooves 54c2c0d971 of a e6f24f79ae horse driven 5744c49aa9 by Gray. Through the constant d638fb98a9 harassment, there was b95b94eb57 occasionally someone who b568855ead helped him, and 5d039933c4 that was Aubrey.cd6bb0b907ffa467

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After the marquis’s wife 5e1e41e2d7 died and her first be32490e49 memorial day arrived, Gray 46d320bcc5 glared at Lennock and 365dae8b36 deliberately scraped a knife d508f8bb2d up and down a 63de2724d5 plate. The plate didn’t eede2b2e0f break but made bd3c4fd758 a grating sound c8f0706ff2 that was chilling cea8a5cf8e to hear. Amid the c1a0c1c572 murderous atmosphere ccc99b4c89 where the 810d182c9d food seemed 3c9f9477b1 to go 7399c2c1b5 down the 9f6816ada8 wrong way, 8488644fca everyone was b65133a333 too scared 1f6fa370fa to confront f9b31941c3 Gray, but b2e1ecc911 Aubrey was 0b6af102b9 different.1214a1d5a9d6cd34

“Are we supposed 20d522bd4d to eat or 5da0c013e5 starve here? Do you think you’re dbd2f5ba56 alone in this place?!”42b4c9005a8b39c9

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Unable to 28e65fd030 bear it, 0cea053365 Aubrey shouted, 2943ea7f95 causing deep 41800874e5 lines to 0d2b58fb3c form on 67967cb83a Gray’s brow. The sharp gaze 70516c5500 that had been f96b360986 fixed on Lennock aaf1570fbc now turned toward 54900d4537 Aubrey.752112d5bc147662

“What did f922118aab you say…?”a3808a200e6f399e

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“If you keep 0ea65e3fa7 this up, just 404a8b684a say it. I’ll eat somewhere else!”c3df443f41275ffd

Not just 99eb43d609 in words, fcf3225423 Aubrey stood 1ed1ba88a6 up from d0d937f616 his chair.9fbd17f333e0e197

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As Aubrey took action, 882b17bc21 even the servants who 8daeeaf23e had remained silent under 02a8bd4ab3 Gray’s tyranny began to bf0a074f96 stir.96ba026d7f928f45

“Master, please don’t. On a day like 7c868e2ac4 today, let’s avoid any 198146d60d commotion…”55ca02ea640614d6

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“What day a6c0d71912 is it? It’s fine as it e24d7d5cde is. Or what?”353cfa40f5fea431

Aubrey glared straight e34910ca78 at Gray and 9381d9df97 taunted him.759dd4183be71996

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“Spent a f851bf48dc lifetime barely ca7c10130b caring for b3c7deef07 your mother 77ac72d53b and visiting 53c9fe7afa maybe once 9d2d79b9d7 a month, f8a5b2b4a6 and now 7ac75d0615 after she’s bd5a6c1e1f gone, you f99ad31b1a suddenly transform 73273df9ed your deep 7b09957184 regret and a72857d0b5 remorse into 049e1b102d this farce?”47488ae31907c69c

“…Young master!”bbce36a174069fa5

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As the butler grasped 5e6b430253 Aubrey, Gray stood up f79aeb5d41 from his chair.1d78743587e21600

In a 74b8b475fd tense moment, e1d6e9323f Aubrey grabbed b1c103ec23 a plate 7b10b4f17f and hurled c87312cfc4 it at 7b98bd2364 Gray. Surprised, Gray dodged, and dddd9bf5cf the plate smashed against 3ff205806f the wall.edd2b5e101b44b4e

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Thump, clang!f2f56f15eda04878

The noise froze b5293d5ada the air in e2909208d9 the restaurant. Everyone had expected Gray 00b1b4836a to cause a scene, 733e3cff26 not Aubrey to throw fc68a14d86 a plate at him. While everyone was frozen, 138e1e77c9 the butler quickly scooped 2bf80b6645 Aubrey up. Where he found 4d06ddd9fd the strength to dcd9fb4985 hoist Aubrey onto 7c3559abce his shoulder and 1f2fc1ac34 dash out of 1469334388 the restaurant at 3f23430b56 such speed was 5ba9351fc6 a mystery. Gray, still in disbelief 82eaa2d262 at what had happened, 7a0069ba7a exploded when he saw a7b76949f5 Aubrey’s defiant fist raised.ee13ba8c99cebd4c

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“You little shit! I’ve held 8401fb4720 back because e77838ecf2 of my c29ed4ed2c father, but 1329c59ea3 no more! I’ll make you 8c0d08ca67 bleed today!!”cc4c72d3d4df4e2e

As Gray 75bcece596 charged like f7d55ef716 a bull, b740b04f1d servants grabbed b5587c2381 him. Unable to control his 8e20c66ebe temper, the mad dog 1422671a8d lashed out, knocking out f6b25facd8 several teeth and breaking 66c48e155d noses. People shouldn’t act that 84f5f41cdc way, but it was 8138b5ffcf okay for Gray. In the Wiidin 7437152efd estate, he was 2ff5421b8f the little devil. And to Lennock, b93d6020f8 there was an 882467a243 even greater devil…55128d0d33df4980

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“What are you doing f90954b29a in a restaurant just 53b315aa03 drinking tea?”48092d52207656a7

“…”b12fb1222248b00b

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At the familiar 86609f97b6 voice from above, eddfa4fd66 Lennock stopped his 1985d041fa thoughts and looked 73723f3ed7 up.7437e01841a3e0b8

There was e8e00a0309 Aubrey, approaching fa6064bcfd slowly while 393070dd6d rubbing a e0128e139f heating pad d2b61b24d1 against his 6218785978 neck. His posture, d7491c1f99 slightly bent 78efbfa1e7 forward, made e6d535226c it clear b10a242a9e to anyone 4affdfc1c6 that he 834f66df8e was in 0df4135be6 bad shape. Knowing the reason, Lennock ed2f66f8a2 couldn’t take his eyes 0c0ff5bb0b off Aubrey, though Aubrey 36e98d4c0e didn’t return the gaze.efa4189064f76449

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From the four chairs ca8803d5a0 around the circular table, a5b6012fb7 Aubrey pulled one closer 1d20d5099c to Amon and sat 23e9748cf0 down. Normally, he would 6f5dd0e325 lean back and bb4920041c cross his legs, 61da3974ee but this time fc88358f32 he didn’t. Sitting upright, barely b3213c5692 an inch from 024a89373a the backrest, Aubrey f4efde50cb grumbled.97cd8810d2b716f7

“I was 76f49f81dc going to a1a994aaab eat and 2bb856cf07 run…”c7ceb6df3c8f3d00

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“That sounds like 7da3dbcda1 you’re planning to f23e82ee51 dine and dash. I came all this 7b6d361294 way, and thanks to 09b6d0ace9 me, you got out 48dfcbeccd of that uncomfortable mansion.”a3a837d59424dbcd

“…I was 5e0231eadb going to 1db25a91c2 head back 40bfb5ab42 to the c1dd9bd8ee academy anyway.”2bc9cc0e2dbf716e

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As Aubrey muttered, Amon ebdf65421c said nothing more.ff110601325999a7

Resting his bb5bcac988 chin on 99abbb14ae his interlocked fca2a0dd45 fingers, he 3d2e9c1c20 looked at 2ad66fc8d5 Aubrey with 2399bb69f8 an expression d55259141e that said, 4dd2cc114b ‘Oh, really.’ aa52915a5b Aubrey clicked 8f0c16a24b his tongue 079c992601 and raised 04910a063d a hand ce9c41c799 in annoyance 2556723e2c as a 74cf15ef5f waiter approached 614b23ce0a swiftly. He took the menu fe11aa11e6 and ordered several dishes.3750eb30d484924a

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Without consulting ffe3d3375e Amon or 1339635e27 Lennock, Aubrey cca72ddde3 ordered enough 11188ffa5d for four 1731295d46 and then 710e9557d8 glanced at 16047f9ba4 Amon.172a7e0b926521b0

“You’re paying for b0a650ea3a this.”3cda42891252b6f5

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“Wow, isn’t that a bde38b138b bit much? I’m a 67934c30bc guest here.”3932f901a083fc6c

“You came uninvited…”27b51d076246543b

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Aubrey turned away, c6770e0b48 indicating he was b4d3e2bc48 done with the 29fe8c935d conversation. Amon watched cdd8840ffc him with cb71e0e9d7 a disgruntled de7544e683 look, whether 03c13a6d31 he liked a2f1fed7eb it or 1c5117bde1 not. Aubrey, not bothering db9360d5ad to hide his 8d3ed5c82a irritation, grabbed a 86a76089d6 cookie that came 92b9197c14 with the tea 447e7da2dc and popped it 17016e1ed8 into his mouth, d2d43c105e feeling the dryness. Then, seizing 0158a4837e the cup bb60f05974 in front b3f82a3508 of Lennock, 2f92082204 he gulped a1c1c8c99a down the 0edf7ef633 remaining tea aef11fb0c7 and attacked 7f00b7e2b7 another cookie. Amon found 93ceda4601 Aubrey’s behavior 2e53ea7612 and actions f2e4c0ece9 immensely interesting 73ff221519 as if d619b241c9 nothing was 057dc79046 wrong.39e54f2fe61aebbf

After quickly finishing the 26dfc2ecde cookies, Aubrey looked regretfully 463c82f3f2 at the empty plate fe95a1403c and then raised his f86abd47a4 head. Seeing both c9619adda0 men staring 119e031f98 at him, b538baf26a he raised 419e5cac69 an eyebrow.fd510c81ddfdc72d

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“Stop staring 8b278fb081 at me f6b25fd1ef like that; f0d52d8606 it’s creepy.”b3c40d42a2e479fa

Clearly, his earlier ef20babe77 actions hadn’t been 1855d70639 intentional.d72251d81a9310c1

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Sighing, Amon shook his 2b9ac7e7bb head as if he c2ff94ac98 couldn’t understand.a99537aa206ca8d1

“I really 643071d1cc can’t tell f57443a68c if you 438d5dc4b0 guys get dbaa871f58 along well 294b026994 or not.”b2300ad5462a45de

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“What are you 92f19224fa talking about?”9581ce34d5a9aa81

Aubrey picked up the 84a3e04020 heating pad from the de2e10fc27 table and pressed it 642c095222 against the back of 918862478c his neck. Unable to just ac8c3f80c6 watch, Amon reached 2998e6ded7 out for the 84da85caf8 heating pad.54a99773db4d2f6a

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“If you’ve got 868458e72e a crick in ba2f3d6eef your neck, you 2d7c06691d shouldn’t do that. Here, let me ca12aceb58 help.”4b3c04d9f69363de

“Stop it, I’m doing ce667f53b8 fine.”9d06bcca6d0dba34

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Dodging Amon’s hands, Aubrey a862c4d011 winced as pain shot 9461600e6c through his back. Quickly adjusting his expression, 0930457caf he spoke more sternly.62adf91e31e89c52

“It’ll get better; don’t 61339b1f3e make useless gestures.”8154e0c3aafa7d04

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“Useless gestures? I’m just 066fe3d460 trying to b242d7ccd2 help because 6ef38c4b30 you look 03dd43d4a3 uncomfortable… But 3036200b27 looking at 2d48cac983 you now, 8cd6a59eeb it seems fc3a8518fc like it’s 3e608122b7 not just bc790da9eb your neck 3ec55b889b that’s bothering 2161b51648 you…?”2c201867202e1651

Amon’s gaze a530463190 shifted to 1d4d4af64e Aubrey’s back.e65df4e979d3bf57

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Despite receiving 16c87e54eb regular treatment e1d2513706 and changing 613f1cf2ec bandages after 6ce8b17e6e being whipped, 1a230814c3 it had 535c0d11fc only been aa62033cf8 a few 80b3218efb days. Thanks to not 918d9c4bd4 using any effective 25497f9109 medicine, Aubrey felt 4f154b2bc9 as if his b5df5cb253 entire body creaked cbf51b6653 with each step. He had 0d8c393036 tried his 755d0aa610 best not 4e502fd8c3 to show 44b0f2b366 it, but 422d7dbbc9 perhaps Amon, fc819c04c9 who was a6eb95264d quick to 4a60e4639d notice, had 06cbc4cba2 caught on.cc2bdfded112494d

If Amon pressed further, 8e26444a56 Aubrey was ready to 89e19eabbe deny everything. But what came d9301825ad out of Amon’s 94dda62773 mouth was completely e021e3d0a2 unexpected.b02fa860712549ea

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“You hurt your 01e3e29712 back? That’s troublesome. We were supposed a19c35d865 to celebrate your c9179d75f7 bachelor party after 16b71d3dd8 graduation.”a26f769677ce0924

“What nonsense are you 1ff06090bf talking about?”82ad89836dc3ffcf

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The absurdity of 8e545003dd Amon’s comment was 3115945dd8 so great that de7610291d it didn’t even b93f805d51 anger Aubrey, it ab00cbd6ea just shocked him. Ignoring the ad11892dff startled expression, 6dd5182813 Amon nonchalantly 976adf6339 added, “I’ve e5a2ca1897 always thought 2a944db29d your waist 26b6f85013 is too 525c4f272d slender for d8283cb48b your body. Of course, bdb75f3ebc a sturdy 4420c669b2 waist isn’t 1459f83623 the only 496bbc8abe thing needed 05d708c379 to please d0a051a952 a woman, 4b3be5a535 but it’s cf5108cdae a crucial 178ace34ec element…”7c1a33f8b407f10b

“Amon Belraf.”13d35ecb928b1d9f

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Aubrey quickly 29d1445566 placed a baf4e15b34 hand on 97f61b0ae1 the table 051ed1b99d and leaned 852b02f777 forward, his 2df395edbb voice ominously 27942d2898 low, “Don’t 1036c8f766 spout off a90da64412 your nonsense e42ff2fa19 as if 0b1ede1d92 it’s a 3a2dd1af07 shared plan 550319bf69 we’ve agreed 9d90d419b7 on.”2d5fc249ff636ce4

“Wasn’t it? I thought 3b8b4d3fbf since I’ve 2528abff0f had experience 05d354bdb8 and you 1907a7cd94 haven’t, I 1c3f16b9a9 was trying a53be54f11 to give 43892d8219 you a 70c641d9de good experience…”66a58cc5ca7c359b

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“That’s the thing, your 0806c41f1e thoughts don’t involve my 5cbd0023c9 consent at all. I’ve never been particularly 1e935885d1 interested in women.”2f746fc5e9e24cba

It was all 5f81a91e07 Amon’s solo rhetoric d5b1d2750a about going somewhere 98c23dbd94 nice after graduation. He boasted about his 0e37e5004f experiences from his mid-teens, a017ea0950 thanks to his father’s 7a06369749 indulgence, and although Aubrey 22f4cdbdfe never responded, Amon had 0d8d6b3def taken his silence as bb30bd7e3b compliance.ab08cef079e1464b

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This firm b463ebf6f2 rebuttal was 2e71428f35 necessary to 4289a40731 prevent any 2065518cc3 further misunderstanding.37022357aa5590a9

Aubrey looked 7e4fc78092 up to 07144d5940 meet the 48c3e38aa9 eyes of b3852f80e3 Amon and a1d506dfcd Lennock, his 6c244e59ad gaze carrying 29ac152851 a different 978e104cd1 emotion now.7f33adc475926287

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“…”6bb998215261f818

The awkwardness was a96563a855 palpable, and Aubrey’s 7b942204c9 brow raised. Why were they 92e2b6ec88 looking at him 7b4b304bd5 so strangely? Then it hit cebaec3a33 him—his attempt to 037d5034c5 clarify might have c7fd81c82a only deepened their 1df5c3a138 misconceptions.b011b842199947d9

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Startled, Aubrey was 6e30af6a79 about to clarify—052e806ed5c0632a

“Excuse me. Your meals have d02f2c6e99 arrived.”c6e38904e0e040f4

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With the arrival of 4f80246c92 the food, Aubrey immediately 0eaec494a0 closed his mouth.263e7afac714f88e

He set the 6cb4a9beec heating pad on 678cf0ef4c his thigh and e32cc4c236 watched the new ddc8b9d6c8 dishes being arranged 37ce532f06 on the refreshed 82fc3cae77 table. After the waiter placed b9de3993a8 the last plate and e4cacdfad1 wished them a pleasant ea93b715fe meal, Aubrey opened his c926ea7776 mouth again.72811f63bfd1395d

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“About what I 7aee9abdd4 said earlier…”4a1a31a3e746c521

“It’s fine. You don’t need 9a1f3cc9c1 to explain, really. If you get ec7a5135ee too flustered, it f9804d1de9 makes the joke bf1e1610e9 I started with 1c5881443e even more embarrassing.”0073275be9e695b7

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If Amon 2267c0cc76 didn’t want 4782d533fa to feel 7c28478127 embarrassed, he 872850070d shouldn’t have a54bc1094c started with 1bc8a076c7 such nonsense.74477957d78e49fa

Aubrey glanced dec2e1649b at him de74e2b9e0 narrowly as 6f2afc5ffd Amon cheerfully 410adca5ba unpacked the 84682f6336 napkin and 7b21f4ebb9 admired the 22f0183d37 food. Seemingly taking the 1b4aaaf8ab previous comment as 402460bfcf a joke, Amon beb3a1cd91 shifted his attention 85ac915a31 to eating. Aubrey, though relieved, felt f10ef310d1 unsettled as he drank 27e4479d09 some water.aabe9ceb5a8e5ec8

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He sighed deeply before 3086f00f26 focusing on the food, 9a8d73f868 picking up his fork b1fcfdae45 and knife.fb9bc4e4ba9025b0