Chapter 19: Dawson Family [I]
A helicopter descended through the afternoon sky, its massive rotors slicing through the air as it approached the private heliport atop one of the Imperial Palace’s tallest towers. Powerful winds swept across the landing pad, whipping at clothing and sending loose debris skittering across the concrete. Moments later, the aircraft touched down with practiced precision. Before the rotors had fully slowed, the cabin door slid open.
Mikhail stepped out first, the wind tugging at his silver hair. Nikolai followed a second later, one hand shielding his eyes from the downdraft while the other adjusted the collar of his shirt. Without wasting time, the twins strode across the landing pad. Palace security personnel stationed around the perimeter immediately straightened and bowed as they passed. Neither prince slowed.
A pair of reinforced doors opened automatically at their approach. The brothers entered the tower and headed straight for a private elevator reserved exclusively for members of the Imperial Family. The polished metal doors slid shut behind them, and the elevator began its descent through the heart of the palace. Silence filled the cabin as floor after floor flashed past.
Moments later, the elevator slowed before coming to a smooth stop. A soft chime echoed through the cabin, and the doors slid open. A middle-aged man dressed in an immaculate black suit was already waiting outside. The moment he saw them, he bowed deeply. "Your Highnesses."
Mikhail gave a slight nod.
"The Emperor is expecting you," the man said respectfully, straightening as the princes approached. "He is currently waiting in his office."
Without another word, the man turned and led the way down the corridor. His polished shoes clicked softly against the marble floor as he walked, maintaining a respectful pace a few steps ahead of them. Mikhail and Nikolai followed in silence, their expressions calm as they moved through the palace halls, devoid of anyone else.
After a while, they arrived before a pair of towering double doors crafted from dark polished wood and reinforced with silver detailing. The imperial crest, depicting five wolves standing beneath a crescent moon with a crown suspended above them, was engraved at the center, its polished surface gleaming beneath the overhead lights.
The attendant stopped before the doors and raised a hand, knocking three times against the polished wood.
A brief silence followed. Then a deep voice sounded from within. "Enter."
The attendant immediately pushed one of the doors open and stepped aside, lowering his head respectfully to allow the princes through.
Mikhail and Nikolai exchanged a brief glance before stepping inside.
The office was vast. Floor-to-ceiling windows stretched across one side of the room, filling the space with natural light. Dark wood shelves, leather-bound books, framed paintings, and carefully selected pieces of artwork decorated the walls without making the room feel cluttered. Behind a massive desk, the imperial crest gleamed against the polished wall. Standing in the center of the room was the Emperor himself.
Emperor Alexander Wolfhart was a striking man, tall and broad-shouldered, his mere presence commanding attention. He looked less like a man who had lived for well over a century and more like an older version of the twins themselves. His black hair was neatly combed back, exposing sharp features that time seemed reluctant to touch. The years had left little mark on him, preserving the handsome face that had once captivated the empire. His silver-gray eyes, identical to Mikhail’s, were cold and piercing, carrying the weight of a man accustomed to absolute authority.
At the moment, however, those eyes were fixed on them with a dangerous intensity.
His face was hardened, his jaw clenched so tightly that the muscles along it visibly flexed. The only indication of how furious he truly was lay in the rigid set of his shoulders and the faint tension in his hands. It was clear he was exerting considerable effort to keep his temper under control.
The twins immediately straightened.
"Imperial Father," they greeted in unison before bowing respectfully.
The Emperor studied them for a long moment before finally gesturing toward the seating area. "Sit."
Neither prince argued. They crossed the room and took their seats on one of the sofas, their backs perfectly straight, both well aware that whatever came next was unlikely to be pleasant. The Emperor followed a moment later, settling onto the sofa opposite them.
For a moment, silence hung heavily between them. Mikhail cleared his throat.
"Father, we’re here to make our report."
The Emperor stared at him. "Before you do that," he said coldly, "perhaps you can explain why you haven’t been answering my calls."
Mikhail remained composed. "I was going to explain everything in detail face-to-face," he said. "Especially since I know you’re unlikely to be pleased with how events unfolded."
Beside him, Nikolai resisted the urge to grimace. He already knew exactly where this conversation was headed. Since the entire situation existed because of his mistake, he would inevitably be on the receiving end of their father’s wrath sooner or later. For now, however, he remained perfectly still, hoping to delay that moment for as long as possible.
Mikhail continued calmly. "First, I’d like to apologize on behalf of my brother. We understand how much time and effort went into selecting the final candidates. We know the Lunar Lottery is one of the most important projects overseen by the Council, and we fully understand the seriousness of what happened."
"You should have picked up when I called." The Emperor’s voice cut through the room like a blade. His expression darkened.
"Things would never have gotten this far out of hand if you had answered my damn calls."
The twins fell silent. Honestly, it was something of a miracle that the Emperor hadn’t completely lost his temper already. They knew his temper well enough. By now, he should have been hitting Nikolai with whatever happened to be within arm’s reach. The fact that Alexander Wolfhart was still speaking in a relatively controlled tone was proof of just how much restraint he was exercising at the moment.
Mikhail, for his part, had no intention of letting the conversation reach that stage. He had promised himself long ago that he would never allow his twin to be hurt if he could help it. If necessary, he was fully prepared to shoulder the blame himself and divert their father’s anger away from Nikolai.
"We have the situation under control, Father," he said calmly, refusing to let any of those thoughts show on his face. "We can still locate the human candidate who was overlooked. Perhaps we can offer some kind of scholarship to bring them into Asterion Academy, along with additional benefits and compensation. It should be enough to resolve any dissatisfaction from the Council."
The Emperor stared at him. Then he slowly leaned back against the sofa.
"You don’t get it, do you?"
For the first time, genuine confusion flickered across Mikhail’s face. He frowned slightly, trying to determine what exactly he was missing. Beside him, Nikolai suddenly found the decorative pattern on the carpet extremely interesting. He sat as quietly as possible, doing his best to make himself smaller. As far as he was concerned, as long as their father’s attention remained focused on Mikhail, life was still manageable.
At the sight of Mikhail’s confusion, whatever restraint the Emperor had been clinging to finally snapped. "The problem is that you picked that man’s daughter!" Alexander barked, slamming a hand against the arm of the sofa. "Why the Dawsons of all people?"
The sudden outburst shattered the tense calm that had filled the room moments earlier.
Both twins blinked in surprise.
"What man?" Nikolai asked before he could stop himself, only to regret it a second later when the Emperor’s glare swung toward him.
Alexander exhaled sharply and pressed a hand against his forehead, visibly trying to regain control of himself. Losing his temper would not change anything. They had to fix this mess before that man came back from wherever he had disappeared to this time.
"Starlight Dawson," Alexander said, his voice lower now but no less tense. "You should never have picked that girl."
Mikhail’s frown deepened. The more his father spoke, the less sense any of it made. He had expected anger over the Lottery mistake, but not this level of alarm.
The Emperor shook his head. "It’s partially my fault. I should have warned you two about that family, but I never imagined this would happen." His jaw tightened. "I did everything possible to stay away from them and make sure they were never dragged into our crisis, but apparently your idiot brother had to go and select her anyway."
Nikolai flinched and immediately looked away, wisely deciding that defending himself was probably not in his best interest at the moment. Alexander leaned back against the sofa and muttered under his breath, "How she even ended up participating in the Lottery in the first place is beyond me."