[Third Person POV]
For the next 10 minutes, the Phenex family was gathered at the table, waiting for their dinner guests to arrive.
Most of the discussion was either about recent news and business, or their newest resident, Erza.
Since Riser was trying to catch up on Erza's education, she hadn't met most of the family.
Aside from his mother, whom Erza met shortly after her summoning, Erza had only met Ravel, who obviously wasn't intelligent enough to understand what was going on.
It made sense, since Ravel was the only family member, besides Riser, who didn't work.
Roland, as head of the clan, was almost always working. Building connections, making Phenex tears, managing the many businesses of the Phenex clan, all of it took up most of his time, though not as much as the Satans. Sure, had people under him to help with it all, including his peerage, but for a family as wealthy as theirs, you didn't get to that level by sitting on your ass all the time.
Rae was also busy, but as the lady of the house, she had much more free time. Most of her work involved making connections and managing the house, and she occasionally stepped in when her husband was too busy for his own good.
Ruval, as the strongest in the house and the heir, was even busier than his father. Not only did he have responsibilities as heir to the house, but he also had his Rating Game career, which required extensive training and several public appearances.
Truthfully, if it weren't for their mother ordering him to come home for dinner, they might not see him for months.
Rory, as the second son, had a much freer schedule than any of them. He still had duties to take care of, as well as training for if Ruval ever passed on his positions, but he was noticeably more relaxed than the rest of the house if his entrance was anything to go by.
Just thinking about how busy everyone was made Riser happy that he was third in line.
Ravel was even luckier. Though she, like Riser, would still get nobility training, the odds of her taking on the family's business without her desiring it were practically zero.
Given her talents, it was likely she would take on those responsibilities herself.
Riser though? Not an issue.
He knew that even if forced to take on any work, he could handle it easily. Not himself, obviously, but by summoning others. Emma Frost, for example, was one of the strongest businesswomen he could think of, not to mention the most capable. He could just let her loose, and with her telepathy and management skills, she would not only get everything done but also expand the business.
Finally, a butler opened the dining room door, leading two families of three inside.
The first family to enter had pale greenish-blonde hair and pink eyes.
The man had a distinctly sharp face with a beard, mustache, and sideburns. The suit he wore was black, reminiscent of the French military. He wore a stern look on his face, as if he were perpetually serious, though it clearly softened when his attention was on his family.
The woman hanging off his arm wore a reddish-pink bodycon dress, her attention more on her family than the setting.
Trailing just behind them was a toddler in a simple navy blue dress.
In order, they were Gordan, Adella, and Seekvaira, of the Agares clan.
Behind them, another family entered, each wearing almost the same black bob cut, with only minor differences among them.
The man, who had the shortest hair of the three, wore a light blue suit with a few military medals, clearly proud of his accomplishments.
To his right was his wife, whose hair was nice and straight, wearing a matching light blue dress with puffy shoulder sleeves and a knife-pleated skirt.
To the man's left was a similarly aged girl to Seekvaira, with heterochromia and a bob cut, wearing a yellow dress.
They were Alwin, Sarah, and Sona Sitri.
"Ah, Gordan, Alwin! It's good to see you two again," Roland Phenex stood up and walked over to the two other clan leaders to shake their hands.
"Adella, Sarah, you both look as beautiful as ever," he flattered.
"And you must be Seekvaira and Sona. You both look just like your parents," Roland greeted the two young devils.
After greeting everyone, Roland quickly engaged the two fathers in conversation, while the wives launched into a similar discussion.
Ruval and Rory, not really interested in either of those conversations, talked to each other, mostly gossiping about other devils their age.
That left Erza and the four children, though, since Ravel couldn't exactly understand language, three.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, Erza decided to talk to the two girls.
"So, how are you two doing today?" Erza started. It was basic small talk, but she didn't know what they liked. Riser knew they liked mechas and chess, but since he hadn't met them before today, he couldn't exactly say that now, could he?
"I'm alright," Sona replied aloofly.
Despite carrying a colder look on her face, Seekvaira was much more talkative.
"Great. They finally released the newest Gundam movie, and I've already watched it twice," Seekvaira said with enthusiasm.
"Gundam?" Erza questioned, which immediately triggered Seekvaira.
"Wait. You don't know what Gundam is?!" Seekvaira asked in complete shock, as if she were watching the sun rise in the west.
"Erza didn't have a television back home," Riser interjected to explain.
"Can you explain what it is?" Erza politely asked, causing Seekvaira to launch into a lecture about the history of mechas.
Sona and Riser decided to join Erza, who was listening intently, not wanting to interrupt the mecha otaku.
Soon enough, the servants arrived with dinner, prompting everyone to dig in, though the food entering her mouth didn't seem to stop Seekvaira's lecture.
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Author's Note:
Thanks for reading; I'll see you next time!