When Kabe said he wanted to meet her father, Lucy naturally agreed without hesitation.
With Kabe's current fame, she was not worried at all that her arrogant father would refuse to see him.
Only after the two of them finished catching up did Lucy suddenly remember the main matter.
"Oh, right. The Celestial Spirit Mage who asked Mrs. Moore to pass on a message about seeing me must be this lady, right?
Sorry, Kabe and I haven't seen each other for years, so I got a bit too excited just now. Please forgive me."
Lucy gave Sorano a slight bow in apology.
Sorano looked at her, then subtly glanced at Kabe out of the corner of her eye. In the end, she did not act up. She forced out a polite smile and replied,
"Miss Lucy, you're too kind. I was actually worried that coming to visit so abruptly might be rude. Since you already know Kabe, that makes things much easier."
Hearing that, Kabe naturally stepped in as a mediator and introduced her.
"This is Sorano Agria. You can consider her a friend of mine.
She's a Celestial Spirit Mage too, just like you. You two probably have quite a few common topics."
"That's wonderful. Aside from my mom and Sister Karen, Miss Sorano is the third Celestial Spirit Mage I've ever met.
Please, both of you, come with me. Let's go to the reception room inside. We can sit down and talk properly."
Lucy warmly invited them inside. Neither Kabe nor Sorano refused, and they followed her into the luxurious estate.
Compared to the manor Lucy had lived in back in Hargeon, this residence was even more grand and dazzling.
After entering, it took them over ten minutes just to walk to the reception room Lucy mentioned.
Along the way, they frequently passed maids and butlers in servant uniforms, and even armored guards, all of whom lowered their heads and greeted the three of them respectfully.
The sheer extravagance made even Kabe's eyelids twitch. He could not help clicking his tongue at the ostentatious display of a so called wealthy household.
"You can all leave now. I'll personally entertain the guests."
Once they entered the reception room, Lucy dismissed the servants who had been waiting there on standby.
Then she invited Kabe and Sorano to sit at either side of a small round table. She herself lifted a beautifully patterned teapot and personally poured a cup of black tea for each of them.
"Miss Sorano, you like Celestial Spirits too, right? I've always believed that spirits aren't tools to be ordered around.
They should be the most important partners and family of us Celestial Spirit Mages."
The moment she sat down, Lucy eagerly shared her views on Celestial Spirits with Sorano.
Hearing this, Sorano's hand paused as she reached for her teacup.
Deep down, she could not help mocking this little girl's naïveté.
Celestial Spirits were nothing more than slaves bound by contracts, tools that helped their masters fight.
She herself did not deliberately summon her spirits just to insult or abuse them.
But in battle, when it came time to discard them or use them as bait, she never hesitated.
And she would never foolishly regard them as family.
After all, they existed to serve her. If she treated them as family, then how was she supposed to fight properly?
Sorano sneered inwardly and was just about to speak when she suddenly felt something poke her at the waist.
Her gaze flicked down to the side, where she saw a brown, fluffy tail sway at her briefly before quietly retracting.
Understanding dawned.
She shot a glance at Kabe, who was calmly drinking his tea, irritation bubbling up inside. But on the surface, she still smiled and nodded in agreement with Lucy.
"Miss Lucy is right. Celestial Spirits… are indeed our important partners."
"Really? So Sorano, you think the same way too?!"
Lucy's happiness was visible to the naked eye, her fondness for Sorano skyrocketing instantly.
In the next moment, she unfastened the key pouch at her waist and eagerly took out her own Celestial Spirit keys to show Sorano.
"Sorano, which keys do you have right now?
These are my partners. Aquarius of the Water Bearer, Taurus the Bull, and Cancer the Crab.
Aside from these three Zodiac keys, I also have the Silver Keys for the Clock Spirit, the Lyra Spirit, the Southern Cross Spirit, and the Horologium Spirit."
As Lucy named them one by one, Sorano's eyes gradually widened, a mix of envy and greed stirring in her heart.
Not to mention the three priceless Golden Zodiac keys, even those Silver Keys were extremely rare.
If Kabe had not been sitting right there, Sorano might have already reached out to snatch them.
But now, all she could do was curse "damn rich people" once again in her heart.
After finishing her introductions, Lucy looked at Sorano expectantly, her eyes full of anticipation.
Being stared at with that puppy like gaze made Sorano uncomfortable.
With no other choice, she reluctantly took out her own keys as well.
Compared to Lucy, she looked pitiful. She only had three keys in total.
"Scorpio, Gemini, and Sculptor!"
Before Sorano could even introduce them herself, Lucy recognized all three at a glance and exclaimed excitedly.
Three black lines fell across Sorano's forehead. For a moment, she could not tell whether this little girl was unintentionally mocking her.
Unwilling to lose face, she lifted her chin and spoke stiffly,
"O of course. I have high standards for my partners. Ordinary spirits don't catch my eye."
Lucy nodded thoughtfully. Everyone had their own preferences.
Sorano liking powerful spirits was understandable, and it did not make Lucy dislike her at all.