One day later
Very early in the morning, as the sun rose, a line of large flying carriages pulled by white beautiful pegasi appeared on the horizon of the mansion where Alex's family resides.
Each of these carriages bore the emblem of the Eswald family, featuring the golden image of three wolves in a lunar formation, symbolizing their united strength, loyalty, and profound connection to lunar magic.
Alex's father has once told him that the reason their family emblem was that of wolves was because they were stronger when united and were a loyal bunch, although if one remembers the way he died - betrayed his family members -, then one would doubt if the emblem signification is really that of a united family, his father also said that they had some kind of link with the moon, but even him didn't really know what that connection was.
The trail of carriages arrived minutes later at just at the entrance of the mansion where Candace, Ava, Eleanor, Lilia and all of Alex's daughters were waiting as a committee of welcome.
Meanwhile, Grace could be seen laying on a nearby chair with black sunglasses on.
She didn't even bother to look towards the carriages that just arrived, all the more so going to welcome those that had come, and why would she do so ? She was the head of the branch, she wasn't supposed to be the one to welcome the members, it should be the other way around.
As the girls looked on, the first carriage opened and an old man with a long beard stepped out first.
This man appeared so old that one might think he was on his deathbed; however, his eyes were so sharp that one would immediately dismiss that notion.
There was a long scar on his right cheek and several other scars all over his body, indicating that he had quite a turbulent youth.
This man was the younger brother of Alex's grandfather : Adrian Eswald.
After he got out of the carriage, two women emerged from the same carriage; one had light green hair, while the other had shining black hair.
One could see some strands of white hair on their heads, indicating that they were quite aged. However, despite that, they still looked really beautiful, proving that they were both incredible beauties in their youth.
These two were also the younger siblings of Alex's grandfather: the one with green hair was named Abigail, and the one with black hair was named Madison.
After those two women stepped out of the carriages, another individual emerged, appearing younger than the first three.
She had light blue hair and blue eyes and despite being a tall woman, she possessed a curvaceous body accentuated by a light blue gown that perfectly complemented her hair and eyes.
This exquisite woman was none other than Victoria Evernight, Alex's grandfather's second wife.
After those four, two others women's came out as well. Those were the wives of Adrian.
The carriages were arranged so that the oldest generation occupied the leading carriage in the convoy. After they disembarked, the door to the second carriage opened, and Alex's father's brothers, along with his cousins, emerged one by one.
Then, after they came out, it was the turn of the third and fourth carriages to fling open, and those inside started walking out. These two carriages contained members who were actually of the same generation as Alex.
Finally, the furthest carriage at the back opened, and family members of the same age as Alex's daughters came out. However, these kids were the least numerous of the bunch, which was quite normal as not many people wanted to settle down and marry at such a young age. Only Alex and a few others had children.
After everyone was out, Adrian and those of the oldest generation walked towards the ones waiting to welcome them.
"Oh, Candace, you are already here ?" Asked Adrian with a surprised tone.
"Yes, I came a few days back with Eleanor and Grace" replied Candace.
"The branch head is already here, that's quite rare for her to be the first one to arrive" said Adrian with a still surprised tone as everyone here knew that Grace was usually a latecomer.
"Where is sh-" before he could finish his sentence, Candace pointed to Grace laying on a chair.
Seeing this, Adrian's lips twitched, but he didn't make a ruckus, knowing that if he were to offend her, that woman wouldn't mind beating him up, even in front of his great grandkids!
So, he approached her and spoke courteously.
"I greet the branch head".
It was only after she was greeted that Grace finally took off her sunglasses to look towards those that had just arrived.
"How are you doing, little Adrian?" Asked Grace.
Her question made Adrian's lips twitch again.
'Damn woman, why would you call me little in front of my wives and offspring' growled internally Adrian, but on the exterior he kept smiling courteously.
Grace stood up and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's start the meeting before proceeding to the competition and decide who will take my position."