*Knock Knock*
“Young master, are you awake?” A soft voice came from outside the door of my room.
I held my head to suppress the headache caused by the nightmare while replying.
“Come in. I’m already awake.”
The door opened and a beautiful girl wearing a maid uniform came inside.
She was around fifteen years old, with long black hair that fell until her waist, beautiful brown eyes, and a tidy appearance.
Just like every morning, she had a soft smile on her face. I always thought that seeing her smile first thing in the morning was the best way to start the day.
“Good morning, Vanessa.” I smiled at her.
Vanessa was startled as soon as she saw me.
“Young master, you are sweating. Did you have a nightmare again?”
I nodded with a bitter smile.
She frowned and walked toward me, putting the back of her hand on my forehead.
“Your temperature is normal. It looks like it’s not a fever. Are you feeling alright?”
“I am, don’t worry. It was just a nightmare.”
“Understood. But if you feel unwell, tell me immediately. Your health is the greatest priority.”
I forced out a smile and nodded.
Vanessa was my personal maid. She had been serving me since I was ten, making it already five years.
As the personal maid of a member of the Steerl Family, she was perfect in every way. Well, she had a few flaws, and one of them was her tendency to be a worrywart.
“Young master, are you thinking something rude?”
“Of course not.” I lied without changing my expression.
I was always surprised by her sharp instincts.
Vanessa looked at me and sighed before shaking her head with a smile.
“It looks like it’s true you are not feeling unwell. That is good, otherwise, you would have been forced to miss today’s ceremony.”
“Right, today is the entrance ceremony.”
“Yes, it’s today. So hurry up and get ready, young master. You don’t want to be late.”
I nodded.
After standing from the bed, I stretched out and let out a big yawn. Then, I took a bath and got ready to start the day.
After Vanessa helped me to put on my clothes, she looked at me and put on a satisfied expression.
“You look dashing, young master.”
“Really?” I raised an eyebrow and looked at the mirror.
What greeted me was the image of a handsome young man with short black hair and blue eyes smiling softly.
At first glance, he could only be described as good-looking. His clothes and appearance made it clear that he came from a prominent family.
But if you looked closely, you could see that his face was slightly pale and his cheeks lacked the normal healthy red usually found in humans, although that only gave him a different kind of charm.
“As expected, I’m handsome.” I could not help but mutter.
Vanessa giggled softly.
“Young master is just as narcissist as always.”
“I’m telling the truth, though?”
“Hehe, I know. Hurry up, the master and the others are already waiting at the table.”
“Coming, coming.”
The Steerl house was a well-known noble family with several generations of history, and the family manor showed it. It was so extravagant that just one of the jars decorating the corridors was enough to feed a normal family for several months.
The dining room of the mansion was just as luxurious. A long table able to accommodate twenty people, two chandeliers filled with different jewels hanging from the roof, and dozens of different kinds of flowers decorating the table, every one of them worth hundreds of gold coins.
When I entered the dining room, I found three people already sitting at the table.
At the head of the table was a middle-aged man with short black hair just like mine and a stern expression. He had a well-sculpted body, and his black eyes were enough to intimidate anyone he was staring at.
He was my father and the head of the family, Charles Steerl.
He glanced at me as soon as I came in and nodded.
“You are here, Linsley. Sit down.”
I nodded and sat at his right, beside a petite girl who smiled as soon as she saw me.
“Good morning, big brother.”
“Morning, Lina.” I smiled back and ruffled her hair, making her glare at me angrily.
“You are going to mess up my hair! It took the maids almost one hour to get it done!”
“Sorry, sorry. I just could not resist.”
“Hmph!”
“It’s not my fault. Who made you so cute?”
“Do you think that will make me forgive you?”
“Maybe?”
“It won’t.”
“Well, then I guess I should ruffle your hair again to make it worth it.”
“Brother!”
As expected, my lil sis is really cute.
Unlike my father and me, Lina had blond hair and green eyes. She was fifteen just like me, but she appeared much younger, perhaps because her body had not developed that much.
That may be the reason why I love teasing her.
I laughed and pinched her cheeks, making my little sister pout angrily.
“Fufu, you are as close as always.” A chuckle came from a woman across us and the last person on the table.
Just like Lina, she had blond hair and green eyes, although, unlike Lina, her body was very developed. She had the charm of an adult woman.
Her name was Alexa Green. She was Lina’s mother and the madam of the Steerl Family.
I greeted her politely with a small bow.
“Good morning, madam.”
“Lin, didn’t I tell you to call me mom?” She replied with a pout.
I smiled awkwardly and looked away.
In this situation, the best answer is to remain silent.
Alexa seemed dissatisfied with my answer, but she did not insist. She had been trying to make me call her mom for more than five years, but she had never succeeded.
I wonder why she has not given up yet.
While I was lost in my thoughts, my father coughed.
“Have you prepared everything, Linsley?”
“Don’t worry, father. Everything is ready.”
“That is good. Today is an important day, so you must be careful to not mess it up.”
“Honey, stop scaring Lin. Don’t worry, he’ll be alright. Besides, Seela is at Academy City. She can help if something happens.”
Seela was my big sister, and she was a senior at Central Academy.
When Alexa mentioned her, my father’s frown straightened.
“Even so, it doesn’t hurt to be cautious.” He still said.
“I know, father. I’ll be careful.” I spoke up.
My father stared at me for several seconds and nodded.
“Good.”
I chuckled and started to eat.
I guess my father is a worrywart too, huh?
Although I understand why he is worried.
After all, today is an important day.
Today is the entrance ceremony for Central Academy.