The Alchemists

For Alaric, nothing else mattered in this world, apart from getting his Aleksis back. The children were just nice bonuses. He never knew that he had two kids with his wife.

He was very surprised. He felt his chest churn in excitement when he found out that the two adorable children were his own flesh and blood ...

But the feeling of euphoria disappeared soon since reality hit him cruelly. His children had never felt his presence as a father and so they had considered another man as such.

Although his heart ached because they could not yet accept him, he must tolerate this fact since he was not in their lives for ten years. He must be fair and let Nicolae be the father chosen by his children. He could not force his way in.

True love means letting go. He would never force his kids to love him back ...

"Uncle Lavender ..." Aleksis and Alaric were shocked when they heard Altair, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up, "Are you really my father?"

Alaric faced the boy and nodded. "I believe so..."

"Ah ... alright." Altair stretched out his hand again and took Alaric's right hand.

"You ... you don't reject me?" Alaric asked in amazement. "You're not afraid of me?"

Altair shook his head. In fact, he was happy to find out that the uncle he had met this afternoon was his father. He could see himself in Alaric and felt an instant connection between them.

He was very happy because after he grew up, he knew that he would grow strong and handsome like his father. It wouldn't matter if right now he looked like a girl. My father must have looked like me when he was young too, he thought.

Tears welled up from Alaric's eyes as he knelt and hugged Altair very tightly.

"Oh ... my son..." he whispered in a hoarse voice.

For the first time in several years, Alaric let his emotions fully show. He hugged and then kissed the boy's cheeks.

This was his son, conceived by his love with the only woman he loves. If fate had not separated them, Alaric would have done everything for Aleksis and his children, including sacrificing his life.

Unfortunately, he was separated from his family without knowing this important information ...

He didn't know ...

He did not know that he was not alone ...

"I'll talk to you for as long as you want. I'll make you see lavender whenever you want." Alaric promised with a smile. Within a very short span of time, his face that was cold and always wearing a flat expression began to show happiness and a variety of other expressions at once.

Altair smiled widely and spread his arms.

"I see lavender..." he whispered into Alaric's ear. "It's like summer."

His father smiled and nodded. He then looked up and stared at Aleksis deeply. His lips silently mouthed 'thank you'.

Aleksis smiled and nodded, before suddenly dashing to her husband and kissing Alaric.

Aleksis felt so happy that she could no longer hold her feelings. Alaric closed his eyes and enjoyed Aleksis's kiss on his lips. He had never been so happy in his life.

"Uhmm... I can't breathe..." Altair, who got sandwiched between the two, voiced out.

His parents were immediately awoken and hurriedly broke free. Aleksis bashfully smiled, as she was the one who took the initiative to kiss Alaric in front of everyone.

Now that the problem had been resolved with Lauriel, Nicolae, and her children, she felt extremely relieved. She couldn't hold back and pulled herself closer to Alaric as if she didn't want to let go anymore.

"Hmm... I didn't expect things to end this way..." Portia suddenly spoke up. She had been paying attention to what was happening and could only press her chest. She recalled the events ten years ago when she first met Alaric in Glasgow. At that time, she noticed how Alaric barely ever smiled.

Portia only saw the young man smile once when he received a phone call from his wife. Now, Portia saw the same smile of happiness on her adopted son's face when Aleksis was by his side, and the lady understood that this girl was indeed the same person who had once made Alaric happy.

Alaric seemed happy only when he's with this girl, Portia thought. She observed Aleksis and thought of how the girl was perfect. She was beautiful, her manners were flawless, and moreover, she was the daughter of Caspar Schneider.

Portia couldn't think of another girl who could match Aleksis in terms of beauty and heredity. She then remembered Kit Blue and a number of other girls she had wanted to match with Alaric. Now she understood that none of them had even half of what Aleksis had.

Everyone turned toward Portia and tried to guess what she was going to say. Portia's opinions inevitably held importance, as she was a noble's daughter from the most respected family. Not only that, but she also held great influence within the clan.

"Neither did I," Caspar responded to Portia's words. "I've met Eli, and we've had our disagreements on numerous things. Today's events are completely beyond my expectations."

Alaric looked at Caspar without blinking. He knew that Caspar meant the mindset of those who contradicted the Alchemist clan. His hand on Aleksis's tightened as if he was ready to run away with her if Caspar were to refuse to give his blessing.

"This is all because you didn't announce your daughter," Portia grumbled. "You only announced your sons. If I knew you had a daughter, I could've known earlier that my daughter-in-law was still alive."

Caspar frowned and pointed at Sophia, who was sitting next to Portia, "I hid my daughter to protect her. Don't you know that Alexei, Sophia's brother, kidnapped and poisoned my daughter, almost bringing her to death's doorstep? I only prevented malicious people like them from disturbing her. I've almost lost my daughter several times already. It's only natural that I become more protective of her."

"Sophia?" Portia turned to Sophia, who suddenly turned pale. "Alexei did that? Did you know about it?"