The Alchemists

The Schneider family still hadn't announced their three children and heirs, so none of the party guests knew who Aleksis really was, well,  apart from the host's family and Wolf Pack members who were present.

Now Aleksis' presence and her two children began to invite questions about her identity. She looked very young, and her children were still small. 

Considering that there was no marriage announced among the Alchemists other than Endo and Billie Yves', for the past 10 years, they suspected that the girl was only an ordinary human taken in by Lauriel. Maybe Lauriel felt sorry for her because of her unfortunate life. After all, it was not easy being a single mother of two small children.

The girls' hostile gaze now turned condescending because they thought of Aleksis as unequal to them who were pure Alchemists. They didn't need the immortality potion to be able to marry the heir of the Medici family. But the girl in front of them... Sheesh.

She must be flirting with Nicolae because she wanted to be an immortal too, she and her children!

The gossip amongst them reached Terry's ears. The young man became so annoyed because his sister was being subjected to nasty rumors, all because Caspar did not want to announce his children's identities to the public.

Terry truly wanted to slap those people one by one and tell them that Aleksis was not who they were gossiping about. But he knew that he could not overstep Caspar's authority. He could only clench his fist without being able to do anything. If her father still wished to not announce Aleksis as his heiress, then Terry must comply with it and keep her identity a secret.

After saying a few more words, Lauriel officially concluded Nicolae's birthday party and thanked all the guests who came.

One by one, the guests came over to Lauriel and Nicolae and said their goodbyes before heading home. Until the last moment, the two kids latching onto Nicolae's arms faithfully continued clinging on to him.

At first glance, he looked like the twin's father because their faces looked similar and all three had the exact same eye color.

After threatening her children that she would leave them in the Medici castle with Nicolae, Aleksis regretted her action because she realized that in actuality, it was her who would not be able to part with them. She could only look at the three from afar while trying to calm her own mind.

She should have avoided Nicolae.

Aleksis, you stupid girl... she criticized herself. The moment Nicolae came to see her, she already understood that the man was still carrying a torch for her. She should have known better and avoided Nicolae as much as possible.

As of now, the girl could only take a deep breath and watch as Nicolae grew closer to her two children.

Aleksis was reluctant to admit it, but she now realized how much Altair and Vega missed a father figure in their lives. Nicolae's sudden presence impressed them and so, before they knew it, they had already projected their longing for their father subconsciously to Nicolae.

Oh ... my poor children, she was feeling really sad.

She was still unable to tell Altair and Vega what had happened to their father. She did not want them to hate Grandpa Rory and Grandpa Caspar, for the terrible misunderstanding that had occurred.

All this time, her brothers, Terry, even London and Rune had tried to become father figures to Altair and Vega. But of course, their attempts did not work well. Terry was a busy person, and London and Rune were still childish due to their young age.

Oh, Alaric ... your children grew up without a father figure, but they really need you ...

Unknowingly tears trickled down Aleksis' cheeks. She promised herself for the last few years not to cry over Alaric again because she had to stay strong for their children.

But today, seeing how Altair and Vega were being spoiled by Nicolae and that they seemed to want him around more, Aleksis once again became somber.

If only it was that easy to forget about Alaric and fall in love with Nicolae ...

***

The temperature in the grand bedroom was automatically regulated and now the barometer was showing 18 degrees Celsius, exactly how the owner liked it. The black curtains covering the large floor to ceiling windows made the place dark and made it seem like a very comfortable cave.

The birds' chirping and the other sounds of nature that were soothing to the ears could be heard in the room. The noises started out soft and increasingly became louder.

The dark room also slowly turned bright along with the automatic alarm that sounded like a bird's chirping and the sounds of nature earlier. The soothing sounds of water streams also resounded faintly from somewhere.

Life seemed to return to the large elegant room decorated with shades of white. In the middle of the room, in a magnificent white bed, laid a handsome young man. His purple platinum hair framed his face that was adorned with delicate lines. He was sleeping peacefully.

At first glance, one would think that the sleeping person was a woman due to his long hair and a delicate face. But when observed carefully, his tall and sturdy body, the muscles adorning his shoulders, arms, and chest on the right proportion, would immediately make his figure looked very masculine.

When the sound of birds chirping and the stream of water engulfed the place again, his pair of eyes slowly opened, revealing a pair of very attractive purple-blue eyes. People who stare into that pair of eyes would feel like they were sucked in and couldn't escape from there.

Alaric closed his eyes again and enjoyed the sounds he liked. He prepared his mind to wake up with a calm heart.

Hmmm ... his sleep started to improve lately.

Since he woke up from a coma a few months ago, he had to adjust his body to get used to the new atmosphere. He took some time to remember everything that happened and of course to train his body to function normally. After four months, he began to feel like he was himself again.

"Good morning, Sir. Happy birthday," a beautiful voice of a woman greeted him.

Alaric frowned for a moment and then nodded. This was the first time his birthday felt important. In his 100 years of living in this world, he had always hated the day he was born, because this date was also when his mother died.

August 1 was the date he had to commemorate her death every year. Instead of throwing parties for himself, he would spend it by lighting candles and pondering over the memories the woman who had passed away for 100 years left him.

Luna Linden was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. The thought came to Alaric when he finally saw his mother's face through the various paintings in the Lewis-Baden Palace and some old photographs provided by Portia.

He also heard stories about his mother's amazing skills at archery, how much she loved adventures, and how pleasant her personality was. Those stories touched his heart so deeply. If the war did not happen, Princess Luna would still be exploring the earth happily and her life would be filled with adventures and excitement.

"Thank you, Luna. I never thought I would live 'til my hundredth birthday, but as you can see, I'm still here." Alaric said to his personal digital assistant who had been greeting and taking care of him since he woke up from the coma.

"I hope you will live until your next birthday one hundred years from now, and that your days will always be filled with happiness and success," Luna replied with her melodious voice.

"Hmm ... success, maybe," Alaric got up from the bed and promptly took the coffee pot that was automatically made available on the table beside him. He then poured himself a cup of espresso. "But happiness ... I don't think so. I will never be happy."

He sipped his espresso and reminisced a beautiful face that had a pair of witty green-blue eyes which he always missed. Alaric tried to remove the face from his mind and focused on his coffee.

"Happiness is in how one views life, Sir," replied Luna who did not want to give up providing positive vibes to her boss.

"Hmmm ... you're so fussy," Alaric commented after finishing two cups of espresso. He then headed towards the bathroom to wash up.

The bathroom door automatically opened, and so was the shower which turned on to the preferred water temperature that he had set. Alaric took off all his clothes and then stepped under the shower. The warm floor felt very comfortable to his feet when he stepped into it.

Today he would be very busy, he shouldn't waste time getting ready, he told himself.