The Alchemists

Aleksis stared at Nicolae lovingly, like a girl to her best friend, whom she loved dearly. This was the only man she would have ever considered marrying, when, after 10 years of trying, she could finally let go of her husband.

The four years they had together will always be there, in her memory. They were family and spent so much time together. Nothing can take that away from either of them. Just how Nicolae expressed it in an emotional "I'll always remember it..."

When the music played and the two hugged for one last time, Aleksis and Nicolae finally danced their last dance together. Tomorrow they were supposed to dance as husband and wife, and today, they danced to say goodbye.

It was solemn, respectful, and bittersweet.

Alaric could only watch Nicolae and Aleksis dance from afar. His heart felt sad for his brother, who from his observation, really loved Aleksis. If it was another man, he certainly wouldn't sympathize at all and would, by all means, expel him.

But Alaric realized that for the ten years he was absent from Aleksis's life, it was Nicolae who was by her side. His heart felt wronged, thinking of how the time Nicolae spent with Aleksis was actually far longer than Alaric and Aleksis' time together, which was only one week.

However, his little heart was very grateful, because all this time, it turned out that Aleksis still loved him. If the girl had turned to another heart, which would have been very reasonable, considering that Alaric had only been with her for a week before being separated for ten years, Alaric didn't know if he would be able to watch the girl he loved build a family with another man.

If he had arrived late and Nicolae had already married Aleksis... and also had children from her, it would have been easier to cancel their one-week-old marriage rather than separating Aleksis from Nicolae.

Thinking about this, he could only take a deep breath and down a glass of wine.

I need a stronger drink than this, he thought.

Lauriel, who saw Alaric's anxiety, came over to his son and invited him to sit together. He was about to discuss tomorrow's event, which was originally prepared for Aleksis and Nicolae's wedding. It certainly could no longer be held now.

"Come here..." Lauriel talked to him gently, patting the chair next to him. He then gave a sign for the waiter to bring whiskey and two glasses. He also felt that he needed a stronger drink.

Alaric obediently sat next to him and received a glass from his father. The two of them sat together watching the party's excitement, and they both smiled. They both didn't like crowds, but this time, both of them could tolerate it because they were surrounded by close relatives.

"Tomorrow, almost all of the clan members will come to witness the wedding," Lauriel said as he gulped down his whiskey. "We have to do something."

"Aleksis isn't allowed to marry Nicolae," Alaric sternly stated. "I'll take her away."

"Aish... you're so short-tempered," Lauriel commented. "Your face is like Luna's, but your nature is very similar to mine. But even I'm not as short-tempered as I used to be."

He smiled proudly when he said that. It was true, he soon realized that although Alaric's face was very similar to his girlfriend, the young man's nature was truly inherited from him. Even now, people passing by could see that their outfit styles and the way they sat were similar.

Alaric smiled wryly. He had also realized the same thing. "I just want to be strict. There will obviously be no wedding, and there is nothing to talk about anymore."

"That's not what I meant..." Lauriel waved his hand. "You and Aleksis were married in secret, right? Why not just get married tomorrow and announce it in front of all the clan members? Wouldn't that be better?"

Alaric was stunned by Lauriel's words. He didn't think about it at all.

Publicly marry Aleksis?

He soon realized that the simple wedding they had had ten years ago in the 24-hour chapel in Sentosa was completely unfit for a woman as precious as Aleksis. The girl deserved the most magnificent and the grandest wedding, where everyone gave her blessings and wishes for her happiness... and Aleksis could be the queen of the day that many people admire.

"Tomorrow, all of the guests will still come. It 'd be strange if they only came to have a feast..." Lauriel continued.

Alaric cast his gaze at Aleksis, who was still dancing and chatting with Nicolae, and he finally nodded. "I can't decide for myself. We should ask Aleksis what she wants."

Lauriel nodded in agreement. Finally, after the song ended and the people who were dancing separated from their dance partners, Lauriel invited Aleksis and Nicolae to sit together with them. He also invited Finland and Caspar to discuss the future of their children.

"Here, take the antidote," Nicolae offered, handing Aleksis a glass of the white potion. He then drank the antidote from his glass. A few minutes later, the two returned to their original appearances. Caspar and Finland also did so.

"This is the first time I find Aldebar's invention useful," Caspar commented with a laugh.

"Tomorrow's party will definitely be festive with Aldebar's party refreshments," Finland nodded in agreement.

"Uhm... Speaking of tomorrow's event, we should discuss what to do with the wedding initially prepared for Aleksis," Lauriel then said. Finland and Caspar looked at each other.

"Hmm... Yes, it obviously seems that Aleksis will marry Alaric in front of the clan. We can't continue her marriage to Nicolae," Caspar turned to Nicolae with a sympathetic look, "You don't mind, do you?"

The young man in question only shook his head, "I agree with Uncle. Now it's up to them."

He looked at Alaric and Aleksis alternately.

"I'll leave everything to Aleksis," Alaric said firmly. "I don't want to decide for myself."

Now all eyes were on the girl. Aleksis' eyes glittered with emotion as he nodded, "I want to remarry Alaric..."

Alaric nodded in agreement and gently squeezed her hand. Although he didn't like crowds, he would yield if it was for Aleksis and their wedding.

"If that's the case, I don't think there's anything to worry about," Caspar turned to Alaric and profoundly looked at him, "Since you're already married, of course, I must accept you as my son-in-law. But this doesn't mean that I agree and accept your views concerning the clan's future."

Alaric nodded, "I understand."

"Alright... We should finish Aleksis' birthday party and rest so we can prepare for the wedding tomorrow."

Alaric immediately remembered that he didn't even know that today was Aleksis's birthday, and felt down again.

"I'm sorry, I don't bring any presents for you. I didn't know today's your birthday," his hand on Aleksis' hand held more tightly as he apologized. "I promise you, I won't forget your next ones."

"Ah... It's okay. It's my fault for faking my data anyway," Aleksis sweetly smiled as she lovingly stroked Alaric's cheeks.

"Uhm... Hold on, I have something for you," Alaric suddenly said. He unbuttoned the top of his shirt and showed her a leather string with a small white ring around his neck. He took off the string and put the ring in Aleksis's palm. "Do you remember, you gave this to me eighteen years ago. You said this was your most precious possession..."

Aleksis was amazed to see that the ring Lauriel had given her as a gift, which she later gave to Alaric eighteen years ago, was still kept by the man.

"Gosh… Do you still keep it? I thought it was already gone..."

Alaric shook his head, "I kept it, and so far, this ring has been my most valuable treasure, because I got it from you. Now I want to give it back to you. This beautiful ring should be worn by someone as beautiful as you are..."

Alaric smiled warmly, something he almost never did, and put the ring on Aleksis's ring finger. "It fits perfectly..."

Lauriel's muffled cry astonished the two, causing them to look up. The man's face was showing how shocked and moved he was.

"That's... That's Luna's ring, I gave it to her..." Lauriel said. "I found the ring on the hand of a girl who died in her family mansion's ruins, which were left from a bombing, and for a hundred years, I thought she was the deceased Luna. I gave the ring to Aleksis because I love her and no other girl deserves to wear Luna's ring... It turns out Aleksis actually gave it to you years ago without my knowledge..."

Alaric and Aleksis were both surprised to hear Lauriel's explanation. It turned out that all along, Alaric had kept his biological mother's ring. And now he was giving it back to the girl he loved.

It was very touching... All this time, his mother's ring had been with him for eighteen years.

This is indeed fate, he thought.

"Now mother's ring has returned to the right owner," Alaric then said, kissing Aleksis's right hand, where he had just put on the ring. "I'm truly happy."

Nicolae and his parents could only look the other way when Alaric and Aleksis could no longer hold back and landed a kiss on each other's lips. Both were deeply moved and longed for each other because of the long separation.

"Ahem... Our conversation is over, then. We just need to get ready for the wedding tomorrow," Lauriel finally said.

Everyone nodded in agreement.