"Keith!"
The moment he entered the lounge next to the family dining room, a sweet voice called out to him, and then a beautiful lady rushed up to hug him.
"I hope you missed me." He chuckled as he separated from her and looked into her sterling-grey eyes.
"No, I did not." Celine giggled and shook her head.
"I guessed so." He shrugged. "You have been quite busy with your Gallery in the last two years. And why would the famous Celia, who is going to receive the Netherian Medal of Art this fall, miss me?" He smirked and watched her bloom into a bright smile.
"How do you know?! They have not announced it yet."
"I do know." He said and then grabbed her hand to plant a kiss on her knuckles. "Congratulations!"
"Thank you!" She was not shy to receive praise from him.
He was rather impressed that she had reached the Mid Stage of the Nascent Profound Realm in the last two and half years. When he had left, she was in the Body Refinement Stage of the Foundation Profound Realm, and so, her progress could be viewed as something outrageous for someone her age.
However, given that she had given birth to a child with a very special Physique, it all made sense that she was very talented.
His eyes then landed on the two girls who were standing next to each other. One had those stunning auburn hair, and the other had dark brown bob-cut hair, which suited her very well.
Though Marianne had not really changed, and her height remained the same as well, Ingrid had exponentially grown in height and all other departments. She was tall, just half an inch shorter than Kiara, and now, a proper Aura of a Princess oozed out of her.
No one who would look at her would believe that she was a Shadow, and her beauty comfortably eclipsed the likes of Marianne, Minami, Celine, Nana, and Yingying. But Minami could compete with her in terms of her natural cuteness and innocence, and it was quite a close call.
Seeing his eyes on her, her Amber eyes sparkled a little, and he could sense that she was yearning for him, or rather his blood.
Walking over to her, he planted a kiss on her cheek before doing the same to Marianne. His action made them both blush, and the mischievous smiles on Rebecca and Kiara's faces only added to his shyness.
"And my, my, who is this beautiful lady?" He playfully approached the girl who once used to be quite timid, but was holding herself with a lot of grace right now, wearing a peach-coloured pantsuit that looked perfect on her.
"Eh!" Nana cried out in surprise when he suddenly picked her up and spun her around in his arms. Her heart broke loose as her eyes suddenly turned a little misty, and she hugged him tightly, revelling in the warmth of his body and scent. "I missed you, Keith!"
"I missed you too, Nana." He playfully nudged his nose with hers before he put her down on her feet. "The colour suits you." He complimented her, and her smile was quite heart-warming to witness.
Next, he greeted Viola and May. And he was glad that Rebecca had been taking care of the latter, who was in perfect health.
"You should come to the office tomorrow. Some things need your attention, Young Master." May seriously said to him, and he sighed at her words.
"Okay." He nodded to her and then slowly walked to the emerald-eyed girl who was sitting on the couch, lightly smiling at him.
"You are late." She said as he arrived to stand in front of him.
"I know. My apologies, Love." He gently smiled at her and accepted her in his arms when she stood up.
Her body went soft as soon as his arms were around her, and her face had a content smile on it now that she rested her head against his chest.
She did not stop him as he inspected the state of her body and squeezed him a little when he sensed how much of a constant struggle she was going through right now.
"System, show me her information." He said in his mind, and soon a blue panel appeared before him.
[Subject: Amelia Jane Demiliore née Mourntale]
[Heroine and the Child of Destiny; Grade S]
[Age: 27]
[Race: Human (Auror)]
[Status: Inheritor of the Runic Monarch, Daughter-in-law of the Demiliore Family, Vice-President of the Black Forest Group.]
[Cultivation Rank: Primal Desolation (Sky Refinement Stage)]
[Special Physique: Runic Monarch Profound Veins (Divine)]
[Cultivation Talent: Gold]
[Strength: 16]
[Constitution: 18]
[Speed & Reflexes: 15]
(10 is the average
limit for Cultivators in the Primal Desolation)
[Charm: 96]
[Fate: 10,875 (Fluctuating)]
Keith froze when he saw Amelia's information. He kept staring at the words that she was a Child of Destiny and his mind started racing to find an explanation for it.
{Amelia is indeed a Child of Destiny, Host. And she was also meant to be a Heroine of the Child of Destiny, Yexuan Parker} The System informed him.
Keith frowned at those words and recalled the Plan of Destiny he had read about Amelia and Yexuan. He wondered how he had overlooked the key information since Amelia never really needed Yexuan's help at any stage of her life, and even to the end of their story, she remained quite independent. In fact, had Yexuan not returned in time, Amelia would have still become the Sacred Architect as she had in the timeline in which he was just a normal person.
"But the Quest that I completed had no mention of her being a Child of Destiny?" He frowned.
{The Quest you completed was one of the two Quests that were supposed to be given to you to make your choice.}
[Main Quest 4.2: Kill the Child of Destiny, Amelia Mourntale. Rewards: Runic Monarch Profound Veins. The Grimoire of the Runic Monarch. 25,000 System Points. 25000 System Exp.]
{Since Host has married her through a Sacred Wedding, it was deemed to be your choice.}
His heart thumped hard against his chest, and he felt a chill run up his spine. Given the rewards, it was clear that accomplishing that Quest was deadly dangerous. However, he was brought out of his trance when he looked down and found her curious emerald eyes staring at him.
"Hey." She smiled at him, and he could not help but smile back at her.
"I love you." He told her from the bottom of his heart. And he knew that marrying her was one of the best decisions of his life.
His words brought a warm smile to her lips, and then he separated from her to give her something.
Everyone in the room gasped in surprise when he suddenly took out an enchanting bracelet from his pocket, which had the most beautiful gems that they had seen in their lives.
"For you." He brightly smiled when he watched her get hooked on the bracelet in his hand.
Even she was not immune to the beauty of these green gems who seemed so full of life.
He had initially planned on keeping them on him for a while, but decided to just give them right away to her.
"What stones are these?" She curiously asked after he put the jewellery on her left wrist, gently tracing the stones that were embedded in the platinum bracelet.
"Green Diamonds." He told her and her brows furrowed. "The purest Green Diamonds in existence." He added before anyone could raise their questions.
The ladies in the room were more surprised after hearing his words and they all curiously looked at the bracelet on Amelia's wrist, which was sparkling so enchantingly that it made their hearts thump in desire.
"They are beautiful," Amelia said and then tip-toed to capture his lips in a kiss. "Thank you."
"You are welcome." He chuckled and then planted a kiss on her forehead.
The girls immediately surrounded Amelia to check out the bracelet, and Keith wisely stepped aside.
His attention turned toward the lady who had just entered the room, and he could not help but smile as he watched her fidgeting under his eyes.
"Hey, fatso." He grinned as he walked over to her, and tears slipped out of Ayesha's eyes at hearing him call her fat.
She was not fat, but she had indeed put quite a lot of weight since he had last seen her. Had he come a few months later, she would surely have turned into a plump lady.
Keith laughed when he saw her tears and strongly pulled her in his arms, squeezing her tightly in his embrace.
"Well, since I am here now, you can eat all you want and I will help you burn those calories, my dear Ayesha." He devilishly spoke near her ear, and her body trembled in his arms.
Her heart was relieved that he did not find her unsightly. She had been fretting about it since the morning when she was informed of his return, and she had even debated not coming over tonight.
However, her worries proved to be untrue.
Keith separated from her and then turned to look at the girls, who were still busy checking out Amelia's bracelet.
"Let's go. I am famished."
May and Viola understandably smiled at him. They knew that the girls would be taking their time, and the dinner was likely to turn cold by then.
If they move to the table now, all the girls would come over because the next thing the girls were going to do was bombard Keith with questions about the bracelet.
"Hiss..."
Keith frowned when Ayesha's arm jerked as he grabbed her wrist, and seeing the fear on her face, his eyes narrowed.
"No.." She tried to stop him as he pulled back the sleeves from her left wrist, but he gave her no time to stop him.
There were clear bruises on her wrist, and just a look told him that she had received them because someone had forcefully grabbed her there.
"Who did this?" He coldly asked, and Ayesha was already shedding tears.
His words had caught the attention of Ingrid, who turned to look towards them, and the girls around her followed her lead to look their way too.
They saw the marks on her wrist, and Qingyue was the most surprised of them all.
"Ayesha..." She worriedly walked over and looked at the marks on her skin. "What happened?"
Ayesha lowered her head, and hid her wrist behind her.
"It's nothing.." She fearfully said, but her mind failed to find a proper excuse for it.
"Who was it?" Keith asked again, rather sternly, which made the Kurdish girl flinch.
"Keith..." Qingyue frowned at him for being so forceful, but she wisely turned quiet when her eyes met his cold gaze.
"Tell me who did this or I will go find out about it myself." He pressed Ayesha to answer him, and the girl started trembling.
"I had an argument with a friend..." She tried to make an excuse, but it was a dumb one as everyone narrowed their eyes at her.
"And your friend grabbed your wrist so forcefully?" Rebecca questioned, and Ayesha realised that she should have not said those words.
Inadvertently, her eyes turned to look at Keith, and the moment she met his cold gaze, her heart nearly stopped.
"It was the same man who sneaked into your house two months ago, right, my dear Ayesha?" He faintly smiled at her, and all the colour drained from her face.
Everyone was shocked and confused at his words and seeing the pale face of the girl, they felt their hearts constrict.
"Nothing happened... he was... was just mad that night at Qingyue for not showing him any face... he... just asked for my help... but I turned him away." She reached forward and grabbed Keith's arm, crying as she said those words.
Qingyue had a bad premonition in her heart when she listened to what Ayesha mumbled. She now knew who they were talking about, and her eyes coldly looked at Ayesha.
"What's your relationship with him?" She asked, and Ayesha flinched at her question.
"We were in the same orphanage and were friends..." She pleadingly looked at her boss and friend. "Please don't misunderstand, Qingyue. I did not tell you about it because I overheard your conversation in the office. I know you hate him, and..."
"And when did he do this?" The grey-eyed girl looked at her wrist and asked.
"Yesterday evening..." Warm tears streamed out of her eyes as she told them what happened.
The Clark Family had asked Ye Tian to vacate the Starlight Tower, where he had rented an office for his Security Company. He was upset at what was happening and she happened to come across him when she was taking the lift to the underground parking lot.
She ignored him as he spoke some ill words toward her and Qingyue, but then he grabbed her wrist and shouted at her, asking her why she would side with a scum like Keith, and why she was not helping him get close to Qingyue. He blamed her for being quiet, which was why Qingyue had asked the Clark Family to make him leave the building.
"I never made such a request to the Clark Family..." Qingyue frowned at her words.
"It was me."
Everyone turned to look at Rebecca, and the blonde girl was wearing a frown on her face as she looked at the bruises on Ayesha's wrist.
"I paid the Clark Family the penalty they had to pay on terminating the contract with Ye Tian and told them to make him leave the building so that he would stop pestering you."
Qingyue frowned at her words but nodded her head.
Silence reigned in the room for a good few minutes, and everyone was sneaking glances at Keith, who was coldly looking at the Kurdish girl.
"You can hate me for what I will do to him. But don't expect me to show him any mercy if you plan on begging me for it." He indifferently said to her and then turned around to walk out of the lounge, leaving both Qingyue and Ayesha with conflicted emotions.
