The Alchemists

Rune then turned to Rose and introduced Vega and Mischa to her. "Rose, hey, meet my niece, her name is Vega, and this is her husband, Mischa Rhionen."

Rose batted her eyes in surprise. She couldn't believe her own ears. So, she assumed correctly when she thought the guests were Aleksis's children. 

Rose was very surprised to see Vega who looked like she was of the same age as her mother, Aleksis. Even though Rose had already guessed that the two were mother and daughter, she still found it hard to believe when Rune confirmed it.

Gosh... Rose was now becoming more and more convinced that super-rich people actually had different standards of living and their level was unthinkable to the ordinary people.

Now Rose believed what Rune used to say that his family had youthful appearances. A woman from a very wealthy family like Aleksis must have access to the very expensive anti-aging regiment. 

Those rich people could look young because they received treatments from the best technology to slow down aging and rejuvenate their skin, something that Rose definitely couldn't get as she wasn't on their level.

Aleksis' husband, Elios Linden was also the owner of the company group with the most advanced technology! Things like that must be easy for them to get.

Seeing Rose's amazed expression, Rune also planned to quickly introduce Rose to Caspar and Finland. 

Perhaps after introducing Rose to his parents he would be able to find the right time to discuss the important and more pressing matter of his family's identity as a member of the Alchemist clan.

In the past, Rune had thought about introducing his parents as his older brother and sister-in-law for a while. Well, until he could get the confidence that Rose wouldn't think of his family as... freaks. Then, he would tell her the truth.

However, now he decided to tell the truth and reveal that all his family members looked young because they were immortals so that Rose wouldn't get confused even more.

Rune cleared his throat. "Would you like to say hello?"

Rose snapped out of her reverie. "Oh, hello good evening, Vega and Mischa. Nice to meet you."

"Good evening. Nice to meet you, Rose," Vega said pleasantly.

Mischa just nodded and greeted Rose with the same friendliness as his wife. Rose felt relieved because Rune's family were all very kind to her. What's more, they also seemed to really love each other. Their gestures and words toward each other were filled with warmth and love.

Aleksis smirked seeing that Rune had introduced Rose as his girlfriend. He was no longer a fake boyfriend to her. Among all their family members, Aleksis was the one who knew in detail how Rune's and Rose's relationship started as a fake one.

She was happy for Rune. Since Rose seemed like a really sweet girl, she was happy to see Rose become part of their big family. Aleksis smiled to herself when she remembered the day Rune confessed that he had fallen in love, at first sight, many months ago.

The beautiful wife of Elios Linden then clapped her hands and exclaimed happily, "Let's start the dinner, it's already six."

"Yes, I am hungry," Ireland commented.

"Okay, let's go to the dining room," Aleksis chuckled and wrapped her arm around his shoulder and walked with him to the dining room. Their steps were followed by the others.

After welcoming Vega and Mischa, the family went down to the massive dining room to enjoy dinner and filled the chairs around the dining table. It was a really big and airy room with glass doors from floor to ceiling that opened to the garden, filled with all kinds of flowers.

Elios cared for a lot of bonsais in his garden and from this room, they could all admire his handiwork. There was also a huge koi pond in the middle of the garden that was filled with hundreds of those colorful fish.

After they were all seated, suddenly they heard the sounds of babies cooing. Mischa was right, his two young children woke up when their noses smelled food.

"Daddy..." His two-year-old son immediately reached out and asked to be carried, while his white-haired baby girl immediately started crying loudly after she opened her eyes.

"Ahahaha… wait a minute," Vega laughed as she got up from her chair. She took the baby from the double stroller and carried her. "Let me feed this little one. She likes to eat outside."

She excused herself out through the glass doors and sat down on one of the comfortable rattan sofas in the garden to nurse her baby. The baby girl named Luna immediately stopped crying and ate quietly.

Everyone in the dining room looked at each other and laughed. Mischa smiled the widest as he looked at his wife who was breastfeeding Luna while humming her a song. Rose could see the man's eyes were filled with love.

"Daddy..." His son's voice made Mischa turn his attention to him

"Oh, sorry," he said with a chuckle. "Let me take you out of there."

Mischa carried his son and sat him on a high chair provided by a servant.

"Do you want some juice?" asked Mischa attentively. The boy who looked very much like him nodded with a broad smile. Rose was mesmerized by the father and son pair who looked so much alike, especially when they smiled.

"He is the cutest baby boy I have ever seen! What's his name?" asked Rose who took the seat across from Mischa, next to Rune. She realized that the son of the newly arrived couple was very much like the father, and their daughter was very much like the mother.

"This is Alaric," said Mischa. "Alaric Junior. Alaric, say hi to Auntie Rose."

The boy fluttered his long lashes and smiled broadly. He looked like an angel and made Rose feel tempted to pinch his cheeks, but of course, she didn't do it. "Hello, Auntie Rose." 

"Hello, Alaric...." Rose nodded and smiled back. Then she turned to Mischa. "That is a really nice name. If he's a junior, that means his name is taken from.. his grandfather's name?"

"That's right," said Mischa. "We named him after my…adoptive father."

"Oh..." Rose nodded. "I've never heard of anyone with that name. It's very unique."

"Thank you."

Elios smiled faintly as he proceeded to sip his wine. He almost never smiled as far as Rose remembered from the two encounters they had had so far.

So, seeing the man smile at the mention that his first grandchild was named after another man instead of himself made Rose feel that there must be a story behind the name. However, she didn't want to be nosy and so she didn't probe into the naming decisions.

"Alaric is such a cool name. It sounds powerful, masculine, and cool. I like it. What about his sister? What's her name?" Rose asked again. "I think you guys are very lucky to have two cute kids. Alaric is so handsome, and his little sister is adorable."

"His sister's name is Luna," Mischa explained. "We named her after Vega's grandmother."

"Ahhh… Luna, like the moon. So beautiful." Rose nodded in understanding. "I can see they both will grow up into very beautiful children. Ahh... they are so adorable."

Right at that moment, Rose realized that she was surrounded by people who seemed to win the genetic lottery. Every single one of them. From the youngest to the oldest, they looked like perfect humans. 

Suddenly she felt the need to pinch her arm. It was like being in a twilight zone. The oldest man and woman in this room must be Elios Linden and Aleksis, since they were the grandparents, but why did they look just as young as their children?

She smiled awkwardly at Rune and mouthed her impression. "Your family is really nice."

Rune winked at her and replied, also without a sound. "They will soon become your family too."

Rose coughed and her cheeks immediately flushed red. She took her wine glass and sipped her wine to cover up her blushing face.

Rune smiled to himself when he saw her reaction. Ahh... he was serious with his feelings for Rose and he couldn't wait to take their relationship to the next level. However, he must be patient and tread carefully.

Rose already looked overwhelmed when she met Aleksis's family.. Rune must find out what she thought about them after they got home before he could think of what to do next.