In Vanessa's room sat Alex, Vanessa, and Mira, patiently waiting for something, with both Vanessa and Alex looking through some documents—it was Vanessa's work, but Alex was helping with it.
"Mother, I believe we should cease our trade with the Vermilion Traders."
As Alex was going through a document that needed to be verified by Vanessa, he found a name that made him frown.
"..." Vanessa, in reply just stared deep into Alex's reply, her gaze locked with his for a while, not speaking a word, and finally, when she saw no hint of fluctuation in Alex's expression, she nodded her head, agreeing to his words.
No other words were spoken, nor were they needed to be spoken.
Vanessa wasn't looking at Alex to see if he was sure about his decision or not; what she wanted to know was whether he was going to justify why he wanted that, but his not giving a reason didn't really make her dissatisfied.
She knew her son better than anyone else in this world.
The only reason Vanessa talked with Alex about any big decision or event was because she knew how capable he was. No one had ever spoken of it, but they knew each other's secrets very well—it was something both Vanessa and Alex were aware of.
So, she just accepted his request, knowing full well that he would, in time, reveal whatever reason he had for his sudden request—she believed that he would. Not like she really cared about it. Even if it was just a whimsical wish of Alex, could she, as his mother, not grant it to him?
For Vanessa, even the empire came after her son, much less a trading company.
This, however, wasn't a simple whimsical wish made by Alex; there was a solid reason why Alex wanted to cut off their link with this organization.
This trading company was one of the contributors to the doom of the Drakathor empire in the future and also the domain of one of the villainesses of the novel.
Mira, on the other hand, just kept glancing at Alex from time to time, imagining his bare body, his ripped muscles—wondering how they felt. Were they hard? Or were they soft but looked solid?
She didn't really understand why this was happening—why she was suddenly feeling curious about everything related to Alex—but for some reason, she didn't want to let go of this new feeling. For the first time in her life, she was feeling something.
'My heart...'
Her palm automatically moved to her heart, hearing them beat in a strange pattern, making her wonder if this is what people called living, but just then...
*Knock**Knock*
Breaking all three of them out of their thoughts, the door of the room was knocked, followed by a gentle yet subservient voice.
"My lady, it is me."
It was a voice both Vanessa and Alex were pretty familiar with.
"Come in, Alenia."
Vanessa glanced at Alex, who nodded with a serious glint in his eyes before she called Alenia, her shadow, inside.
"Excuse me."
The next second, the door of the room was pushed open, revealing a woman who looked no older than her mid-20s with back-length silver hair that featured a long braid on each side with small blue bows at the ends, while rest was let down, which ends in twin braids and silver eyes.
She was Alenia Lucifuge, Vanessa's shadow, and a shadow demon from the demon realm, and right now, as soon as she entered the room, she knelt on the floor, voicing out the reason why she came here.
"They have arrived, my lady," reverence cleared Alenia's voice as she said those words with her head bowed, not looking up until asked to.
Her words, however, made both Alex and Vanessa squint their eyes.
"Rise," Vanessa, still in her seat, nodded her head, permitting Alenia to get up, and the shadow demon did as she was asked to, her arms folded in front of her, reaching the frills of her maid dress.
"You know what you have to do now," Vanessa then added, making Alenia nod her head in acknowledgment, turning toward Alex, only to find him smiling at her, almost making her break into a smile, but feeling the gaze of Vanessa on her, she controlled her expression and gave a light bow to Alex.
"You don't have to do this every time we meet, Aunt Alenia..."
Those actions, however, made Alex sigh, helplessness flashing past his eyes as he turned to look at Vanessa, hoping that she would stop this, only to see her staring at him with an expressionless look, making him sigh again.
"Well, Mother, I shall take my leave and go 'meet' this guest of ours."
Knowing that staying here any longer wasn't going to be any good since the people from Church were already here, and the longer those people—who certainly didn't come here with good intentions—stayed without supervision, the higher the chances of things stray from what Alex had planned, Alex decided to take his leave.
"Hm," Vanessa, fully aware of the same, just nodded her head, staring at Alenia and Alex leaving the room, mainly focusing on Alenia's back, her fist clenched as some old memories of the same lady, just a bit younger version of her hoping around flashed in front of her eyes before she closed her eyes.
'...'
She just closed her eyes since she didn't even have anything to say to herself, knowing full well that Alenia was never wrong. But what was done was done, and she couldn't mend it anymore, making her feel helpless.
Again, there was nothing she could do...
Alex and Alenia, on the other hand, walked with an awkward silence between them. Alex had been staring at Alenia, but the lady just kept her head down and walked forward.
Alex didn't know what was going on; in the novel, there was never a thing like this. Alenia was the best friend-cum-bodyguard of Vanessa—a person who, in Vanessa's stead, came to help Mira on many occasions.
So, he knew, at least this much, that he, who was an anomaly in the plot, a person who wasn't even supposed to be here, was most probably the reason for what was happening, so he had to make it right.
Especially when the parties involved were the two people he cared about more than anything in this world, his mother and his second mother—the one who looked after him all the time because Vanessa only scared him.
Alenia, however, was trying not to look at Alex, as that would make her say something, breaking her promise to her master. It wasn't that she didn't want to—she wanted to talk to Alex, smile at him, show him how much she cared about him, and do many other things to him—she wanted it more than Alex could know, but well...
She had done something that had hurt her master in the past, and although she didn't know to this date how that was her fault, she just kept her head down and accepted it. There was a reason why Alex had never seen her around for a while.
"You know, Aunt Alenia, things between you and Mom would never get better if none of you ever talk about it."
It was then that Alex spoke, his words making Alenia's body jerk, her steps pausing mid-step, her expression conflicted as she knew that what he said was true, but she was just a shadow of Vanessa, a slave who had to listen to every word from her master, so how could she voice out her thoughts in from of the same master?
She just forced a smile, turning her head toward Alex, her conflict clear in her eyes, but she tried her best to keep up the subservient smile that a slave should toward her master's child.
"Your Highness, I sense the presence of two individuals—the ones you wished to monitor—making their way toward the medical ward."
Her words made Alex's expression contort, but he just sighed, knowing full well that this matter was probably not something he could solve by forcing both of them at each other. He needed to think of something else.
For now, gritting his teeth, he nodded his head and spoke.
"We must reach the medical ward before they arrive, so I shall rely on your assistance, Aunt Alenia."
His words made it clear that even if she was going to treat him distantly, he would still call her like he used to, making Alenia clench the corner of her maid uniform, her smile almost breaking, but before that could happen, she nodded her head, "Excuse me, your highness," and with those words, she placed her hand on Alex's shoulder.
*Woosh*
And with a woosh, they were covered in a blanket of shadow, being submerged in the floor as if it were water, vanishing from there.