The Prince Who Cannot Fall In Love & The Missing Heiress

Vega was right when she called this a conference. Their whole family consisted of so many people, and when they gathered it was similar to a conference.

Just from her mother alone, she would have her grandfather Caspar Schneider, her grandmother Finland Schneider, grand-uncle Aldebar who made time to come amidst his busy scientific works, her uncle London Schneider and his wife L, together with their daughter Lily. Don't forget her single uncles Terry and Rune.

From her father's side, she had grandfather Lauriel Medici with his girlfriend Rosalien; Kai and Takeshi Rhionen who were Mischa's foster brothers; Nicolae Medici, her father's older brother and his family - his wife, Marie and his daughter, Summer.

Added with Vega's own family, her mother Aleksis and her father Elios, and their twin boys, Ireland and Scotland. And who would have thought Altair also came with his girlfriend, JM.

JM and her parents, Jean-Pierre Wang and Marion, were close family friends and they came too to share Vega's and Mischa's happiness. The Wang couple  brought wine from their vineyard and their son, Jean-Henri expertly told people how their wines were produced.

Those were 24 family members closest to the couple. And they were all here. How wonderful!

"Congratulations!!" One by one they came and hugged the couple to convey their approval and support. Everyone was happy to see how Mischa and Vega seemed so in love with each other and happy together.

They had followed these two's journey after they left Monaco to travel just the two of them. They made a stop in Nice, then continued Grossetto to meet Lauriel with some nice breaks in Marseilles and Genoa to sightsee.

From Grossetto, they went and explored all the small towns in Tuscany. They took a long break there and stayed in a vineyard overlooking the valley.

Then they continued to Florence, then roaming all over Switzerland, before finally headed to Germany to Stuttgart and met the Schneiders.

Along their journey, Mischa often posted pictures from the places they visited on his Splitz account. The man finally created a social media account where the family could keep up with their travel.

He was a good photographer and loved taking pictures of the wonderful places they passed by. He also took a good amount of pictures of his fiancee to her family's delight. They could see how much Vega and Mischa were having fun as they followed the account.

"Thank you... this is such a big surprise," Vega said as she pressed her lips, still feeling disbelief. "When did you all arrive?"

"We arrived yesterday. Some even earlier," Terry explained. "It's been a while since we all gathered like this."

"Well... we usually meet for the year-end holiday," Vega replied. "But.. still, I really appreciate this. We are so happy to be surrounded by family."

"You must be tired," Finland smiled broadly and waved to the butler to bring out the cool beverages so they could all freshen up. "Let's all have a cool drink and tell us about your adventures."

Her husband, Caspar looked at his watch and commented. "Not too much though, lunch is in two hours."

"Yes, of course."

They all enjoyed cool beverages prepared by the servants and had a great time listening to Vega and Mischa's stories about their travel. The couple had been traveling for almost five weeks and they had so much to share.

"Now, now.. let them rest for a while, before we can talk to them again during lunch." Finland, the matriarch of the Schneider family saw that her granddaughter started to look overwhelmed. She decided to let the young couple rest and chased away the others.

She came to Vega and touched her shoulder affectionately. "Would you like to see your room? Our butler has prepared a nice room for you and Mischa. I hope you will like it."

Vega nodded happily. "Yes, please. We are not really tired because of the journey. We took turns driving and we took things slow. But I guess, it's nice to lie down for a bit. I am still overwhelmed by the fact that everyone is here. It's unbelievable!"

"Hahaha... I just want an excuse to get these people to take a break," said Caspar. He looked at his sons, London and Terry, who were both workaholics but were willing to come for Vega. "I am happy they agree to come."

"Thank you for coming to see us, everyone," said Vega with a big smile. She waved at them and walked with her grandmother to the second floor. "We'll see you soon at lunch."

Mischa smiled faintly and nodded to them, as he walked with Vega to see their room.

His heart fluttered, knowing that the family already prepared a bedroom for him and Vega. This would be the first of many where he and the girl would share a room together during family events.

"They look so happy," JM whispered to her boyfriend, Altair, Vega's older brother. "I am glad it works out for them."

"I am glad he proposed immediately," Altair responded.

"He sure doesn't waste time," Terry chimed in. "I think they are meant for each other. Where do you think they will have the wedding?"

"Probably Switzerland," London replied. "They seem to love it there."

"So many options," Terry said again. "Will we have another big wedding soon?"

"I hope we will. It's nice to meet so many clan members and celebrate together."

They kept talking about the upcoming wedding and how they hoped the couple could soon formalize their marriage.

"Will you give Mischa the talk before they walk down the aisle?" Elios suddenly asked his father and father-in-law.

"Which talk?" Caspar asked, not understanding. 

"Hmm.. I remember, before my wedding to Aleksis, you guys all threatened me, that if I made Aleksis cried, you will kill me. No.. you will torture me slowly and then you will kill me."

The handsome man laughed as he remembered that day. Yes, Caspar and Lauriel threatened him, if he failed to be a good husband to Aleksis, they wouldn't forgive him and would kill him.

Even Lauriel, his biological father, made it clear that he would take Aleksis' side if she and Elios would ever have any fights. It showed how much they loved her and wanted her to be happy.

Fortunately, Elios didn't fail. He took his wedding vows seriously and had been the best husband Aleksis could ever hope for. He had loved her, protected her, and cared for her with all his heart and every breath he took.

Now, Vega was his beloved daughter, and he could understand why Lauriel and Caspar were so fierce to him before he married Aleksis. Elios, too, felt the same thing with Vega.

She was his everything. Just like Aleksis was Caspar's and Lauriel's everything.

They just wanted to see their daughter happy and loved.

However, Elios didn't feel the need to threaten Mischa, the way he was threatened by his father and father-in-law thirteen years ago.

Maybe, he just trusted Mischa that much?

"Well, you are her father. You should be the one giving the 'talk'," said Caspar with a laugh. "Tell Mischa that you will kill him if he ever makes Vega cry."

Lauriel laughed too. It was very rare to see the reclusive and aloof man laugh like this. He nodded in agreement. "I agree. You should give him the talk. Caspar and I don't want to do it. We did it to you already. Now, I want to be on Mischa's good side so I can see great-grandchildren easily."

Elios rolled his eyes when he heard his father's reasoning. "That's absurd. We always let you both see your grandchildren."

"I am just joking," Lauriel smiled. "You don't have to do it. I think Mischa will understand that when we trust him to care for Vega, we mean it. And I think he is a good man. If he abused our trust, I don't need to even give him a warning. He wouldn't live to see another day."

Even though Lauriel uttered his words as a matter of factly, and with a smile, somehow, Elios felt shivers ran down his spine. His father was Lauriel, after all. He was the famous pirate from the past who was heartless and cold.

Now, Elios realized, on the day of his wedding to Aleksis, Lauriel and Caspar gave him a warning because he was Lauriel's son.

An outsider like Mischa wouldn't even get a warning. If he ever hurt Vega, he would be gone. Just like that.