AnnouncementYou might have noticed the decreased chapter count. I combined some of the short chapters together and proofread the story a little. Happy reading!

  The short talk with Walce a few months ago pgued Kani to some extent. It contained underlying implications but he actually cked the courage to ask Karel about it. Kani also kept secrets from him, especially when it came to his family.

  Even if he asked about it and Karel answered with nothing, he wouldn’t bme him for it. After all, the grand prince had four millennia under his belt and those years might be grueling knowing how he lost most of his loved ones to the war and mourned for them for an insurmountable amount of time.

  Twirling the pen in his hold, Kani sighed a little as he focused on reading the report again. He’s been stuck reading it for a while now.

  “I’ve been really curious all this time,” Karel began, snapping him out of his thoughts.

  Kani gnced at the blond. “About?”

  He’s not looking at him but still writing something on the paper as his words rang out, “You never told me that much about your family.”

  Apprehension coiled in his gut and deflected almost immediately, “They aren’t worth mentioning at this point.”

  Karel huffed, expecting those words. Those crimson eyes gnced at him exasperatedly. “Indulge me once, will you?”

  “Is it really just your curiosity?”

  “Yes.”

  After a few moments of silence, Kani stopped writing and put down his pen on the table. He wasn’t able to focus anyway and they’ve been dancing around this topic for years now. It’s about time to talk about it.

  “If I asked too much, then we can just drop the topic—”

  He leaned back, crossing his legs then putting his csped hands on them. “My grandmother never loved my grandfather.”

  Karel looked at him in surprise.

  “It possibly started there.”

  It took ages before the other immortal races managed to integrate themselves into the Astadvrani society. With the treaties both signed by the said kingdom and the Ramayan empire for their economic benefits, business flourished as they intended. Uncountable years passed, harmony still existing between them.

  Until that day came.

  Astadvran nobles marveled at the man named Giorgio Prifni who possessed long brunet hair, chiseled jaw, sharp eyes and a muscur body often ogled at by the dies. What actually caught their attention were his pale complexion, molten amber eyes and elongated ears, denoting his status as a High Elf.

  He worked as a royal agriculturist and held onto a special position due to his elven ancestry. Over the years of keeping a low profile and nurturing Astadvran’s forest reservoirs, he eventually caught Marquis Liafor’s attention and gave him the opportunity to work for them. Giorgio politely declined the offer, satisfied by the honest work he did for the royal family and Astadvran.

  Contrary to his pns, the Liafor found something about his former life and apparently threatened him with it.

  “What did he do?” Karel asked.

  Kani shook his head. “I could only guess it was a serious crime since he mentioned being exiled from Beiyul.”

  Karel furrowed his eyebrows more. “How did the Liafor know about it?”

  “I don’t know. What puzzled me most was, my grandmother never liked him but they eventually got married and even had a son.”

  “Suspicious indeed.”

  “With that, if they knew about his criminal record, then why would they want a criminal as a member of their family?”

  Karel became pensive, agreeing with his words. “That means, it was about something else.”

  Kani nodded firmly.

  Giorgio and his wife Mayara Liafor were sent to Deorya thereafter, succeeding the cousin of Lady Mayara who died a single man. They seized the assets, rebuilt the Liafor family in Deorya and they ter became known as one of the prominent families thanks to Giorgio’s efforts.

  Karel quietly pondered about it.

  Deorya still remained an autonomous city since its establishment and even with his authority, he never meddled in its affairs. Only Imperial Princess Belle cooperated with them as she’s the bridge between the Ramayan Court, the trading city, the vassage and intercontinental matters.

  Something must have happened there.

  “My grandfather discarded his surname and used the Liafor’s. He told me then, he only used the cn name Prifni because having no surname in human societies could be dangerous for him.”

  “Some commoners have surnames and sves do not. He doesn’t want to be mistaken as a sve.”

  Kani nodded. “After my father came-of-age, he met my mother who was rescued by my grandfather. You know, like in those romance books we’ve read. My parents fell in love at first sight.”

  Kani’s grandmother vehemently rejected the idea about his son marrying another person of elven ancestry. Until now, they never really learned the reason behind that hatred she harbored against them.

  Mapiya also recognized Giorgio during their meeting in Astadvran after the rescue. However, the tter warned him about speaking about their previous retionship. He’s afraid that Mapiya would be maltreated by his wife, seeing as she also descended from the same ancestry.

  Later on, Kani’s grandfather revealed it to him: Giorgio hailed from the Prifni cn, One Bounded by the Earth; Mapiya hailed from the Akasa cn, One Soaring in the Skies. Those two cns worked closely together in serving the royalty of Beiyul and they often crossed paths. Giorgio also treated Mapiya as a younger kin, as he’s two generations older than the tter.

  Kani leaned back on his chair, looking at the ceiling. “My father insisted on marrying my mother, ignoring grandmother’s protests.”

  “Was it a harmonious marriage?”

  Kani huffed in defeat. “Yes.”

  Even his grandmother had to admit then that Mapiya made Fergus a happy man. Those smiles his son showed while with the elven woman were genuine. If anything, she wanted her son to have a good retionship with his spouse, unlike with hers.

  Everything went well until then the current mistress of his father squeezed herself in that supposedly harmonious marriage.

  “How did that happen?”

  “To be honest, I don’t know. She just showed up one day and ruined everything.”

  His grandmother, even against her pride and will, supported Mapiya when it came to the couple’s already strained retionship. Madam Mayara berated the mistress and often scolded Fergus for his misbehavior but every outspoken concern fell into deaf ears. As the situation became worse, she developed a sickness that required her to stay in her room all day.

  “When my grandfather died due to his illness, she returned to Astadvran without saying anything to us. I only learned it through Cashile when we already left Deorya.”

  “What do you feel about the mistress?”

  Kani leaned onto the table as he held onto his head with both hands, long tresses obscuring his face. “I had always feared her. I don’t like how she looked at me or my mother back then.”

  “Was magic involved?”

  “Yes. That’s why I learned what I needed to. I pestered my mother to teach me everything she knew, even the guarded secret of the Akasa Cn.”

  “Guarded secret?”

  “A healing magic but it requires divine power.”

  Karel swallowed, still unnerved about mentioning divine or heavenly-reted matters. “I will ask no more about that.”

  Silence hung in the room and Kani had already closed his eyes.

  “Your grandmother asking you to pay respects…” Karel prompted. “What if it’s actually to check on you?”

  He sighed. “I don’t know anymore, Karel. Everything’s messed up since then.”

  “She might also have a reason why she treated all of you like that. Do you want to confront her? Or a closure?”

  He sighed forlornly, staring up the ceiling. “My grandmother is already old. She’s past her nineties and seeing me might trigger some of her unwanted memories.”

  “But I can tell that you want answers.”

  He casted his look down again. “I do.”

  “Questions must be answered, Kani. If you ever change your mind about going to Rouwen, inform me.”

  Is it really the right thing to do, mother?

  And only a day after, Kani steeled his resolve. After finishing his work for the week, he called for two people: “Hendrika? Walce?”

  “Master,” both of them saluted as they met in the grand hall.

  “Karel and I will go to Astadvran in a while. I will leave the estate and town management in your care.”

  “You finally made up your mind,” Karel remarked, staring at them from the second floor.

  Kani faced him as he firmly said these words: “I need the answers to these questions or I won’t be at ease.”

  Karel nodded approvingly. “Good.”

  “Please take care, Master.”

  Kani smiled at the Head Maid. “Don’t worry that much, Hendrika. With Karel, I’d be fine.”

  With the Gateway already erected in Astadvran, they arrived quicker than intended. Kani heaved a deep breath once he stepped on Rouwen’s central pza. It’s been years since he st stepped foot in this pce and yet nothing had changed.

  “Kani?”

  “I’m fine.”

  “We can dey going there if you like.”

  Kani heaved a breath again but smiled in the end. “It’s better to move quickly. I’d hate it if we attract more attention.”

  “If Master says so.”

  They stood in front of the majestic Liafor’s Estate in the te afternoon.

  Kani held Karel’s arm tightly, grounding himself. Karel slightly nodded to him and informed the guards about the unannounced appointment.

  “The Old Madam’s butler?”

  “Yes, if you please. Thank you.”

  The butler hurriedly attended to them and he gasped upon recognizing Kani. “Master Ka—”

  He slightly raised his hand, gesturing for him to stop speaking. “I would like to meet the Old Madam discreetly… if you allow me to…”

  “She’s…” The old butler frowned. “Please return in the evening at nine, I will let you in.”

  The two men nodded in assent then walked away.

  As the butler promised, they stealthily entered the Liafor’s Estate at the agreed time. They quietly walked the corridors towards Madam Mayara’s room and Kani braced himself when he saw her sleeping figure. Her aged face seemed stricken and the air in the room hung heavier than usual.

  “Madam Mayara, Young Master Kani is here.”

  “Who…” Blurry eyes opened and she saw the butler’s face instead.

  “Young Master Kani is here.”

  “I must have been dreaming…”

  “No, madam. Young Master Kani is truly here to see you.”

  A loud cough shook her old body. “Only now he’d visit me when I’m already like this.”

  Kani clenched his fists and asked aloud, “Why did you hate grandfather?”

  There was a beat of silence before the old madam gnced at him.

  “So, you came to ask questions.” She slowly sat up on the bed, aided by the butler. “Your grandfather, I hated him because I felt envious about what he could do. I tried to learn everything but I’m incapable of matching him.”

  Irritation bubbled inside of him and attempted to reply in an even tone, “That doesn’t excuse you to actually hate him to the bone.”

  The older woman chuckled. “That’s right. And Fergus, he’s the best gift he’d given me despite our estranged retionship.”

  Kani scrunched his nose. “Then, why did you send people to kill me?”

  His grandmother stared at him quizzically. “I never did.”

  “Just as I thought,” Karel muttered thoughtfully.

  “You mean…”

  “It’s the mistress’ doing, obviously.” She violently coughed. “I’m not that vile to wish harm upon you in any way. You’re still my grandson.”

  “You are contradicting yourself,” he gritted out, “grandmother.”

  She chuckled breathily. “I might be. People change when they’re already near the end of their lives, after all.”

  “Madam, please don’t say that,” the butler chimed in as he offered a gss of water.

  After drinking slowly, she heaved a deep breath. “The mistress… Giorgio knew what she was. A Ramayan.”

  “She used a magic incapacitating you and your husband and maniputed Master Liafor into her liking, right?”

  She nodded slightly and her hazy eyes turned to him. “You’re also a Ramayan, right?”

  “He’s—”

  “Blond hair like spun golden threads and red eyes like rubies.” She hummed. “I had the pleasure of meeting Her Imperial Highness before and she definitely looked like you. What’s your retionship with her?”

  “She’s my paternal aunt.”

  An approving nod. “And I can feel that you’re as kind as her. Please treat our Kani well.”

  “It’s my duty to do so. He’s safe by my side.”

  The old woman chuckled and turned to Kani. “You father and son had always been attracted to the immortals. Perhaps, you got it both from me.”

  Kani scrunched his nose in question.

  “I fancied your grandfather once, to be honest. Now, you’re his spitting image aside from the soft look on your face and the elongated ears.” She heaved another deep breath. “Even during his death, despite our strained retionship, he asked me… no, he begged me to leave Deorya to prolong my life.”

  Kani bowed his head. “Why are you only telling me this now?”

  She paused to smile, still lost in reminiscence. “If anything, he still protected me and advised that upon his death, I should return here, away from the scheming mistress and tell you the truth if you’d seek it one day.”

  Kani clenched his teeth. “What… truth?”

  “Madam, this is a distressing matter…” The butler reminded. “You will be—”

  She shook her head. “He needs to know, dear. Kani deserves to know this.”

  “What truth are you talking about?” Kani scrunched his nose again, clearly distressed by those words. “Was my family just built upon lies?”

  Madam Mayara shook her head then drew in another deep breath. Her speech remained coherent but she slowed down when she talked next, “Giorgio served the Elven King while Mapiya served Her Royal Highness. They protected Her Royal Highness against their kin and were imprisoned after a certain incident.”

  “That is…”

  “Oh Queen Mother Raise,” Karel also muttered.

  There’s more to that tragic story?

  “Instead of being executed, they were both exiled by the Elven Court as punishment for their treason, as they both helped Her Royal Highness escape. After all, the Elven King cherished his grandaunt like a mother and she turned her back away from her kin because of a Ramayan. In the end…”

  In the end, Her Royal Highness died in the arms of the same Ramayan she dearly loved.

  “This is…” Kani sobbed and Karel held firmly onto his shoulders to let him sit on the nearby chair. “That’s why I’m also helpless when I saw how infatuated Fergus was with Mapiya before. I saw myself in him and let them be. He was happy.”

  She sobbed more, wiping her tears away with trembling fingers. “I don’t have the heart to take that away from him.”

  The butler patted her back, soothing her.

  “I never hated all of you… it was just… my…” she coughed again as tears continued to pour down from her face. “My insecurity… my envy… selfishness…”

  “You’re dying,” Karel remarked in a grave tone.

  “I am.” She heaved another breath. “Giorgio was an Octocaster and casted a revitalizing spell on me before he died. I’ve been holding on, just to speak with Kani one st time.”

  Karel gaped, distress now on his face. “I… I am the reason why Kani didn’t visit you years back. I…”

  “Wary, yes. I understand. I also spat harsh words at Kani just to vent my anger. I sincerely apologize for that.”

  “Grand…mother… why…”

  “The real vilin among us wasn’t me right from the start, although I admit, I acted like one. The real vilin is the mistress and if you ever cross paths with her again,” she clutched onto the sheets and her ragged, angry voice sounded, “be sure to kill her and not let her walk these nds again.”

  “I’ll do my best to protect Kani,” Karel answered instead, determined.

  “Kani… you have a loyal and trustworthy companion…” she csped her hands and closed her eyes solemnly. “Cherish him, alright? My dear grandson.”

  Silence hung around them after those spoken words and only then Kani looked up, staring at the peaceful expression on his grandmother’s face.

  “Grandmother?” Kani held her shoulders frantically but her head ggardly dropped forward, a sign of a lifeless body.

  At the realization, he knelt onto the floor as muffled wails echoed in the room.

  The old butler soothed his back then looked back at Karel. “Please leave, Your Highness. If the young master is seen here, I don’t know how Marquis Liafor will react.”

  Karel crumpled his fists as his heart clenched at the sight. “I understand. My condolences, sir. I hope the Madam finally found relief now that she said everything she needed to.”

  “I hope so too.”

  Walce sensed a portal appearing out of thin air in the grand hall and his silver eyes widened in panic seeing the master being held by Karel tightly in his arms. Hendrika also saw the same scene from above and shouted for Mersya to come. The three of them ran towards them in emergence as Karel just stood there in a daze.

  “What happened?”

  Mersya immediately moved forward, holding the master’s wrist to check his pulse.

  Karel looked away, expression clearly downcast. “His grandmother passed away. Kani passed out crying.”

  Hendrika covered her mouth. “Madam Mayara passed away? She…”

  Crimson eyes looked at the figure in his arms, snuggled close to him and face still tear-streaked.

  “It’s a tough day for the master,” he audibly muttered. “I’ll care for him in the room for now.”

  “Wait, Ka—”

  “Let him be, Mersya,” Walce chimed in, wayying his arm to stop her.

  Master, when will you become honest with yourself? Walce asked himself while he stared at Karel’s receding back.

  lymsleiah