Lord Elmsworth announced,
"Our forefathers and ancestors bled for this day.
They shed blood, made unforgettable sacrifices for our independence and glory. This land is soaked with their valor, blood, and sweat. Their essence still lingers in this very soil.
So I propose, let us offer our first drink to the ancestors, without whom we would still live at the mercy of the Kingdom, serving their unlawful wishes."
Everyone present was surprised by this change of plan.
However, Lord Elmsworth spoke in such a convincing and commanding tone, with such logic in his proposal, that no one there found any reason to object.
They all agreed and followed Elmsworth, who gracefully poured the drink onto the ground.
Lorian cast a quick glance at all the people present, scanning their facial expressions deeply. While most were amused or a bit confused by Lord Elmsworth's act, the people standing further back were not particularly thrilled, it seemed.
Among those not amused was his dear uncle, Cassian, who watched the whole series of events unfold with a mix of surprise and helplessness, unable to stop or comment. Similar reactions were observed among many others.
However, as every guest emptied their goblets onto the ground before them, a strange phenomenon occurred.
While the wine from most goblets simply fell onto the green grass, the wine from Lord Elmsworth's and Lady Serana's goblets, when it touched the ground, caused the green grass beneath them to appear burnt instantly, emitting a pungent smoke.
Before anyone could fully grasp what had just happened or how to react, the old man serving drinks to the lords suddenly darted towards the outer entrance.
But Drengen Sihar, displaying uncanny flexibility and inhuman agility, closed the gap between himself and the old man in mere seconds.
He struck the old man's back with the hilt of his sword, sending him to the ground with a loud thud. The man fell on his stomach.
Drengen Sihar then flipped him onto his back.
But the old man was laughing instead of cowering in fear or begging for mercy. It seemed he had something in his mouth.
A soft crunch echoed, and then the man began to glow. Bright light erupted from every orifice of his body.
Commander of the Thorne Guards, Valerius Lucian, bellowed at the top of his voice, "THORNE GUARDS! SHIELD UP! EVERYONE! DUCK!"
On his command, the elite Thorne Guards rushed to cover the Lord and his guests, raising their shields in unison to protect those behind them.
Drengen Sihar, displaying his agility once more, flipped back and leaped behind the shield wall of Thorne troops, positioning himself in front of his leader, Lady Serana.
And within a minute, the man exploded in a huge ball of light. The charred remains of his body splattered across the area.
The guests were saved mostly thanks to the Thorne Guards shielding them not only with their shields but with their own bodies as well, but for everyone else, it was a gorefest.
"What mockery is this?" shouted General Marcus Ironclad, leader of the Ironclad Council, Aethelgard's ruling body,
"First, breaking our tradition and pouring down the fine wine we brought as a gift, dishonoring our customs, and now this human corpse explosion! I demand an answer and an apology."
"Not so fast, my Gallant General, not so fast!" High Druid Oakhaven of Sylvanna approached the dead grass which was still emitting pungent smoke.
He touched the residue with the tip of his staff, then sniffed it, "This is indeed a vile concoction. It is not just a typical chemical composition; it reeks of fel energy."
"So Lord Thorne wanted to kill us?" General Marcus Ironclad bellowed.
"My Mighty Lord! Your battle prowess, your might, your courage know no bounds." Grand Scholar Elara of Solara - the grand City of Knowledge, Science, and Mystic Arts - broke the silence.
A proud smile played on Marcus's lips at this unexpected praise from the Grand Scholar herself.
But this smile was as short-lived as the pause taken by Lady Solara, who continued, "I wish I could say the same for your common sense!"
Before Marcus could react, she continued,
"Only two people's drinks were poisoned: Lady Serana's and the host, Lord Elmsworth's, himself. If he wanted to take Lady Serana's life, why would he poison his own drink?"
Before Marcus could reply, she continued, "Before you suggest Lord Elmsworth Thorne did this to feign innocence and play the victim, think again. Why would he pull such a stunt and create this unnecessary drama?"
General Marcus seemed speechless.
After everyone had spoken their mind, Lord Elmsworth and Lady Seraphina stood up from their chairs together and stepped forward, in unison.
They walked a few steps forward, drawing the attention of all the guests.
The First Couple of Veridia bowed towards their guests and, in a solemn, sincere voice, sought apology for everything that had transpired.
Against the High Druid Oakhaven's objection, the Lord and Lady declared that, as hosts, they had failed to provide security to their esteemed guests and allowed such a tragic and risky event to occur.
Seeing the proud Thornes act in such a manner, everyone felt stunned.
Even General Marcus, who had been shouting and throwing tantrums, found himself embarrassed by this.
The Thorne Guards all bent their knees to the guests, apologizing for the lapse on their part, and every guard begged to be allowed to take their own life as punishment.
Lady Serana now approached the Thorne Lordship and raised them up.
She begged the Thornes not to take this to heart.
She instead apologized that she was likely the target of the assassination and had inadvertently brought her troubles to her hosts, thereby endangering not only their lives but the lives of the guests as well.
And with this, the awkward, embarrassing situation was resolved.
After a short delay for the waiters to clean the premises, the lunch program resumed, this time under the special observation of High Druid Oakhaven, who could identify any trace of poison.
Lord Elmsworth looked at Lorian with immense pride; he felt he could hug his son, but had to stop himself for now.
Meanwhile, the Thorne Guards discovered the corpse of the unfortunate servant whose identity the assassin had stolen.