Chapter 1009: Peaceful Dinner
Chapter 1009 – Peaceful Dinner
"My name is Aela. Nice to meet you all," she greeted herself.
The dining room went silent.
Not because she had said anything strange.
Well.
Actually, she had said it with the kind of old-world solemnity that made a simple dinner introduction sound like a treaty between forests and civilizations. But that was not the real reason.
The real reason was that everyone was staring.
Naomi stared with polite composure that had been trained by high society, hotel management, and the increasingly ridiculous daily survival experience of living with Lux Vaelthorn. Her hands were folded near her plate, her smile gentle, but her eyes were absolutely calculating the historical value of the woman standing before them.
Rava stared with oceanic fascination, blue eyes bright and deep, her kraken instincts probably trying to decide if the first elf counted as a myth, a sacred relic, or someone she should offer tea to.
Mira stared with the blunt focus of a dragon heiress seeing an ancient specimen and immediately wanting to ask ten inappropriate questions.
Fiera stared with nine tails swaying behind her chair, eyes sharp, fox curiosity alive and dangerously entertained.
Sira stared like she was proud of bringing home chaos but did not want anyone to say that out loud.
Lullaby blinked sleepily, hugging her pillow at the table because apparently dining etiquette in this mansion had surrendered long ago.
Ely sat beside Aela, clearly trying not to cry every time Aela looked at her with that soft confused ancestor expression.
Yue simply observed, calm and ancient, as if dinner with the first elf was a perfectly reasonable continuation of their day.
Gula did not stare.
Gula was busy eating.
That was fair.
Lux had ordered a banquet.
Not a normal dinner.
A banquet.
Rare ingredients filled the table. Roasted abyssal boar glazed with honey-pepper sauce, moonfruit salad, infernal truffle rice, phoenix-spiced dumplings, crystal-sea prawns, dragon herb broth, demon realm berry pudding, goldleaf pastries, roasted mana mushrooms, and a plate of glowing fruit.
Lux sat at the head of the table wearing only a dark robe.
A very expensive robe, yes.
Black silk, gold trim, loosely tied at the waist, enough to be decent but not enough to convince anyone in the room he had not just been dragged from recovery and told to behave.
His hair was still slightly damp from the bath. His skin looked healthy again. Too healthy, honestly, considering he had been impaled, cursed, contract-burned, and then medically ambushed by Sloth affection.
He had the posture of a king at leisure.
And the eyes of a man who knew several women were ready to throw him back into bed if he overworked.
Aela looked around the table.
She wore a simple pale green dress Ely had helped choose. Just soft fabric, loose sleeves, and a silver ribbon tied around her waist. Her silver-green hair had been brushed properly for the first time in centuries, falling down her back in waves that still looked a little like roots when the light touched them.
She looked beautiful, ancient and deeply unprepared for this mansion.
Rava was the first to speak. "Wow..." Her voice was soft with awe. "The first elf."
Aela turned toward her.
Rava leaned forward slightly. "So... you are the mother of all elves?"
Aela blinked. Then shook her head. "Not me."
Rava’s brows lifted.
Aela touched the edge of her sleeve as if grounding herself.
"The root. The earth. The nature. They are the mother." She looked down for a moment, thoughtful. "I am the first. But I never... mated."
Mira’s eyes sharpened immediately.
Fiera’s ears twitched.
Aela continued with terrifying innocence. "I only took responsibility to protect my sisters and brothers."
Mira leaned back slowly. "So you are the virginest creature in this world?"
The entire table froze.
Lux closed his eyes.
Aela turned to Mira.
Mira, with the academic seriousness of a dragon who had discovered a fact and intended to drag everyone through it, added, "Like... the oldest virgin?"
Fiera immediately poked Mira in the ribs with her elbow. "Stop saying that."
Mira looked at her. "That’s a fact."
"It’s a rude fact."
"Still fact."
Aela considered the question with the calm dignity of someone who had not yet developed modern embarrassment responses. Then she nodded. "Yes. You can say that."
Fiera’s tails puffed.
Mira pointed triumphantly. "See?"
Naomi covered her mouth politely, but her shoulders trembled.
Rava looked like she wanted to laugh but also did not want to disrespect history.
Lux’s attention, however, had already locked to somewhere else.
Gula sat near the middle of the table, surrounded by plates like a small, adorable, cotton-candy-haired calamity. Her eyes shone. Her cheeks were full. Her smile was so bright it could have powered a minor city.
She took a bite of abyssal boar.
Her expression melted."Mmm..." Then the truffle rice. "Mmmmm..."
Then the crystal-sea prawn.
Her eyes watered.
Lux watched with faint amusement.
Gula whispered, almost religiously, "I love you, Lux."
Sira’s head snapped toward her.
Gula did not care. She grabbed a dumpling. "All hail Prince Lux."
Lux lifted one brow.
Gula took a bite and nearly sank into her chair. "I never thought that simple potion would give me such a treat."
"It wasn’t simple," Sira said.
Gula waved a hand. "Details."
"You said it was a family specialty."
"And now it has returned with interest."
Lux pointed at her with his spoon. "That is my line."
Gula smiled brightly at him. "Ten out of ten. Will do it again. You need to tell me when you are dying again, Lux."
"No."
"Or when you are going to do reckless things again."
"That’s not how it works, Gula."
Gula picked up a goldleaf pastry and took a bite. "Mmm. It can work like that. If you tell me before you almost die, I can prepare medicine. Then I will get this nice food again."
"If I tell you before I do reckless things, several people at this table will lock me in my room."
Naomi smiled serenely. "Correct."
Rava nodded. "Absolutely."
Sira lifted her glass. "I would supervise the locking."
Lullaby hugged her pillow. "I have hammer."
Lux leaned back in his chair.
"This table is a conspiracy."
Yue calmly sipped tea. "It is an intervention with food."
Gula raised her fork. "Best kind."