The Alchemists

Nicolae incessantly sighed as he checked himself in the mirror. He only had two pairs of jeans that weren't ripped jeans and one formal suit, so it was actually not that difficult to choose what to wear for this lunch date. Just take the suit and one of his jeans, and he was done.

It's just that... he hadn't been dating for a long time. Last year, he still went out on dates with Aleksis, but their relationship was already so close that he didn't need to dress up and deliberately wore formal attire. He knew Aleksis liked him the way he was.

Ugh... Cold sweat trickled down Nicolae's forehead as he thought about Aleksis.

He must forget the woman he loved because Aleksis was Alaric's wife, his biological brother's wife.

Even Altair and Vega understood that Nicolae had to find another woman to anchor his heart so he could forget their mother.

"All right, Daddy is ready. What do you think?" Nicolae asked as he came out of his room and asked for the opinions of his two children.

Vega and Altair squinted their eyes, then nodded in approval.

"Daddy, you look so handsome. That auntie will faint because she didn't think she'll be so lucky to have lunch with such a handsome man." Vega giggled. She then pulled Nicolae's hand out the door. "Let's go. It's bad to make a woman wait."

Nicolae knew his children had deliberately booked a table at the Sky Bar for the date this afternoon. In addition to being a very exclusive place that could impress her, they will also find it easier to wait for Nicolae to finish because they only need to go to the penthouse and wait with their uncles.

"Uncle Terry, Uncle London, and Uncle Rune are all waiting for us at the penthouse," Altair told him. "Daddy should just go straight to Sky Bar later, we can go up by ourselves."

"You... you guys are still little. Let me take you there," Nicolae refused.

"No need, Uncle Rune will meet us in the lobby," Altair replied.

Nicolae finally relented. He got out of the taxi with his two children then walked into the lobby of the Continental Building.

For a moment, he was stunned in front of the building. He remembered the events ten years ago, when he was still posing as a student in Singapore and met Aleksis, then met Terry. So many things had changed in such a long time.

Now, he returned here with the two children he considered his own kids. The twins who were very similar to his brother, who had become the enemy hunted by his family ten years ago.

"Welcome," Rune greeted Nicolae and his nephew and niece. He looked even more serious than the last time Nicolae had met him. He carried Vega and guided Altair's hand eagerly. "You guys are here. What a coincidence. I have a new invention that needs a little test validation... hehehe..."

Vega and Altair chattered to Rune about their lives in Singapore and how they cleverly hacked the age restrictions on an a.d.u.l.t dating website and created a profile for their father, who hadn't dated women for a long time.

"Wow... you guys are very scary," Rune commented. "Uh, remember, your Uncle Rune don't need to find a partner. I am happy living alone."

He glanced at Nicolae, who rolled his eyes in an attempt to hold back his unhappiness.

"I'm happy living alone, too," Nicolae said, looking at his children in annoyance. "If it wasn't because you two had your birthdays, I wouldn't have relented like this... Only three times. Three times."

Altair and Vega didn't feel discouraged at all. They knew Nicolae could never refuse whatever they asked, so the two felt that they could do anything. Both of them knew better that Nicolae was NOT happy living alone. That's why they were now trying to find him a partner.

Before Nicolae met Aleksis, he had never wanted to have a serious relationship with any woman and kept his distance, because he didn't know he was an alchemist who could live forever.

But now, he didn't need to be afraid to establish a love relationship with anyone, including ordinary people, because Aldebar would provide the immortality potion for the woman of Nicolae's choice, so they could be together forever.

It was time for Nicolae to open his heart. People said the best way to forget a woman was to look for another, even a few women if necessary, so his wounded heart could slowly recover and be ready to receive new love.

Altair and Vega just wanted to see their father happy.

Reluctantly, Nicolae stepped out on the 99th floor and headed to Moonshine Restaurant, while Rune and his nephew and niece proceeded to the 100th floor, heading for the penthouse.

A waiter welcomed Nicolae at the entrance of Sky Bar and invited him inside. Apparently, the twins had booked the best table with tall glass walls, which gave a view of the entire city of Singapore from a height of 100 floors. His date hadn't arrived yet because Nicolae arrived ten minutes early.

He ordered prosecco and decided to look at the scenery. After he was bored, he did something on his tablet. He looked at the situation in Darknet and checked for new developments.

Nicolae had 'disappeared' from Darknet for several years now. He no longer accepted hacking jobs from anyone. His position as the number one hacker had been taken over by another hacker who was just as mysterious.

This new hacker went by the name 'Goose', and lately, this hacker had begun to be the subject of discussion in Darknet. This was because 'Goose' unraveled the crimes of some high-ranking officials in big countries, which involved s.e.x trafficking.

However, this hacker didn't want to be called a good hacker. This was because 'Goose' also accepted shady jobs to track down and destroy people's reputations according to order.

When he was reading in a forum about the behavior of Goose, Nicolae became interested because there were some people who said they were eager to see who was better, Wolf, Nicolae's pseudonym, or Goose. This week, there was even a collection of betting money for anyone who managed to reveal the identity of the other.

One million dollars? That's crazy! Nicolae inwardly shouted.

The contest which had such prize money attracted many in the underworld who were eager to see the battle between Wolf and Goose.

If Goose found Wolf, then the money will belong to Goose. Meanwhile, if Wolf managed to find Goose first, then he will be considered the winner and was entitled to get one million dollars.

"Tsk tsk..." Nicolae shook his head. He didn't expect his identity to attract enough people to bet. He didn't need money nor did he like betting, so this kind of competition didn't interest him.

But... what if Goose was interested?

Hmm...

Nicolae examined the data himself and breathed a sigh of relief. He covered his tracks well. No one would ever find him. After all, he had retired. He just wanted to live a quiet life in Grosseto as the heir to the Medici family and take care of his two children, and maybe look for a partner to accompany him to live quietly someday.

"Good afternoon..."

"Yes?" Nicolae asked in amazement.

"Mmm... I have a lunch appointment with someone. The waiter said the table was here, but I don't see anyone else. Is it possible that you're mistakenly sitting at my table?"

Ah. Nicolae immediately realized. This must be his lunch date. The girl thought Nicolae was mistaken sitting on the table because she must have expected to meet an old man in his 40s, while Nicolae clearly looked young.

"Sanna?" Nicolae asked later. "I'm Nico. Sorry, I'm actually sitting here, and I've been waiting for you."

The girl called Sanna widened her eyes. Her mouth repeatedly opened and closed, but no sound came out.

She was ready to meet an old man as a date; a man who was too busy working, thus having no time to find a wife. But the truth is... the young man in front of her was very handsome, very young, and looking so impressive.

There must be something wrong.

Such a perfect man registered on a dating website to look for a girlfriend? Impossible!

He's so handsome... Why did he lie with his picture? What was the meaning of this? Did he want to make me fall into his trap with his charms?

The girl's legs became shaky as she reluctantly sat down in the seat Nicolae politely pulled out for her.

Oh God... This must be a serial killer who is looking for a victim, Sanna thought in panic. She smiled awkwardly and quickly typed a message on her phone.

[Help me. I think my date is a serial killer.]

***