Unbeknownst to Marcel’s friends and much to the surprise of Allan as well, there was already a foreign presence in the house.
When they reached the living room and entered it, they met another visitor. Sitting in one of the furniture, was a beautiful girl. She had long, wavy sky-blue hair, gorgeous green eyes. and white skin. She wore a lacy pink outfit with white outlines. The girl looked about their age, though, who really knows?
“Arcy?!” Allan looked shocked to see her at first, but then he ran towards her and asked her,
“Oh, how have you been doing?” He said with an expression of glee plastered across his face. There was this odd energy of enthusiasm around him that surprised not only his friends but the person it was directed at as well.
“I’ve been well!” She answered in a soft voice, stunned by Allan’s expression of enthusiasm directed at her. She never thought this day would come, but it did, and... she was speechless.
Allan, upon seeing her blank expression, realized what he’d done. His enthusiasm just up and disappeared right after when he remembered ‘that’. Yeah, an awkward silence erupted between the two of them for a while, making the others curious about their relationship.
The girl recovered from her shock moments after Allan’s expression changed into that of extreme displeasure after he toned down his feelings. She sat quietly and simply smiled, leaving the others even more curious. What had she done to Allan?
Allan straightened up before picking up his mood and cleared his throat, directing his hand at her before he introduced her to his friends,
“Guys, this is Arcelia Wilcox, my childhood friend... and former fiancée!”
What?! Allan had a former fiancée that they never heard about? Really?! Woah, even famous individuals whose lifestyles are made common knowledge to all, have secrets?!!!
Yes, this news left Marcel and his friends flabbergasted, with Silva showing her usual indifference to basically all reveals. She really does know everything and isn’t even going to pretend she doesn’t. That would be very unlike her.
Marcel was the first to recover,
“Wow, I never knew that Allan once had a fiancée. He never told me!” He smiled slightly, going in for a handshake.
Arcelia took the pretty boy’s hand, revealing a shy smile with a slightly flushed face. She remained entranced by Marcel for a while.
“You really are gorgeous, miss!” Evan recovered next, complimenting the girl, snapping her out of her trance-like state. She didn’t seem too pleased by it, but she acted with the proper courtesy expected from a noblewoman.
“Nice to meet you all, especially if you’re Allan’s friends.” She greeted them with a womanly bow, looking towards Allan with a strange look. She seemed suspicious for some reason.
“May I ask who you are and how you know Allan?” She turned her attention back at Marcel’s friends.
Marcel went first, “Ah, how rude of us! I’m Marcel!” The girl had been acutely staring at him that he thought he had to go first. Maybe she was just curious about who he was, being that Allan is her childhood friend and all.
“The pleasure is all mine!” She answered with a smile. How strange! Marcel hadn’t said ‘Nice to meet you’.
The others introduced themselves to her as well and she responded with an occasional nod as well as ‘A pleasure’. She was very courteous, giving them all the impression that she was a nice girl. Well, Arcelia really was nice, so... yeah!
After the introductions were out of the way, she asked,
“May I ask why you are here for, Allan? I heard from Levitae that you had left Brixden.”
I should remind you that Allan’s mother, is called Levitae.
“Ah, yes! Um... my mother said to come home because it was urgent for some kind of surprise, she had for me.” He replied.
“Likewise! She sent me the same message this morning and I rushed here, but she wasn’t here. I went ahead and made some tea. Would you like some?” She asked Allan, a smile directed at him.
“Yes, please!” He said before he grabbed a seat opposite her with a delighted expression and a light hum. For some reason, this confused the girl even more, but she tried her best to not reveal it despite how visible it was.
The others sat on a large couch placed on one side of the room and she poured them each some tea. Allan and the girl had a private chat; just what the others thought they needed, hence why they sat away from them, despite how not-so-private the chat was because of their respective abilities. The two chatted about regular stuff, with Arcelia, mostly asking Allan about his life and Allan answering politely. They didn’t seem a lot like close friends more as they did two people who were merely acquainted, each of them trying to be polite when speaking to the other. It was the strangest interaction they’d seen Allan have since they met him, but they just pretended that they were having their own conversation to make the two seem less awkward.
And like that, they waited for Allan’s mother, Levitae, to return for hours. Evan had thought of going to flirt with Arcelia when the conversation between Allan and herself seem to quiet down when suddenly, Allan’s mother... barged into the room.
It was a very explosive entrance, surprising only Allan’s friends.
The woman, Levitae, with her infamous blue-black hair and her villain-like, crescent-shaped eyes of onyx, entered in her full glory. She looked ecstatic to see Marcel the moment her eyes caught a glimpse of Marcel's altered appearance that Allan had informed her about.
“His highness really came!” She thought, her good mood visible to all present.
After entering, she walked around the room slowly, filling it with suspense and drama. The air grew heavy and intense as she circled around before suddenly, she walked towards the group to Allan and Arcelia’s side, smiled, and told them,
“Guess what?! Allan’s going to be having a little brother!” She spoke in a restless, cheery tone.
Allan sat quietly with Arcelia for a moment and processed the information. They went like “What?!” in shock, afterward.
Allan sighed, then looked at his mother, contemplating if this might be some kind of trick, she was trying to play on him, maybe to break the ice before she delivered the ‘real’ news.
“Ahem...” He was about to ask his mother if she was joking when suddenly, he remembered; his mother had never once, in the ‘short’ time they’ve known each other for, ever joked with him. She was the kind of mother who gave orders to him when his father didn’t, then disappeared for days or even months at a time. Simply put, his noble werewolf of a mother was more like his other boss until they sort of fired him and put him in the Demon Lord’s and Marcel’s care.
Instead of his earlier question, he phrased another, “So, when did it happen, mother?”
“Yes, also, when are you due, Levitae?!” Arcelia added. She was excited for Levitae.
“Oh~, it happened around a month ago when your father and I happened to stumble upon each other. Figure the rest out from there. You know how babies are made, Allan.” She crossed her arms and ‘hmph’-ed Allan. Seriously, why’s he asking when he knows all about how reproduction works.
“To answer your question, dear Arcelia, I estimate that I’ll be welcoming him in about a year and a half if nothing ‘unexpected’ happens again.” She answered Arcelia’s earlier question with excitement that was absent when she answered Allan’s.
“Unexpected?” Allan wondered what she meant.
She explained, “Oh~, it’s nothing! I experienced the same thing when I had you, except this time... it’s so much stronger! The first stages of its development have already begun, it seems. When you were developing, you drained at least a good third of my magic power and vitality, but your brother weakens me significantly, so much so that I might need to take a break from my usual work so I don’t die.”
“What?!” Allan exclaimed. His mother is an S-class werewolf with immense reserves in her magic pool even compared to other S-class werewolves, and she’s telling him that his sibling, who’ll come out at its weakest, can drain her of all her power? He drained his mother of a third of her power when in his early stages of development and is now a famous genius and natural magic talent. If he who only had a third of her power turned out like this, then what will his brother be like? For some reason, he was getting excited by this recent development.
Meanwhile, Marcel was a bit shocked when he heard that it’d take a year and a half before Allan’s mother gave birth. Sure, he’d gotten used to everything in the demon realms and all, but still, that’s a lot of time. That time, in the human world, was enough time to conceive, give birth to a child, and then see it enter the development stages just before some began walking. He also wondered how she knew that she was going to have a boy.
Gwendal explained, “Someone of her status can simply find the nearest diviner and she’ll easily discover something like the baby’s gender.” He was glad to answer Marcel’s question for him. Marcel once again, thought that the world that he lived in was indeed weird, but slowly, it had become his world too. Oh well~
“Speaking of diviners, mother! Do you remember when I ‘reported’ my recent experiences to you?” Allan thought it was finally the right time to bring it up. Unexpectedly, this was going to be the time to deliver that piece of news to his family, but... the consequences; he didn’t think it’d be good if his ‘entire’ family found out about it.
“Keep it to yourselves but, I, quite recently, sort of awakened to a new power...” He began, then he let the title he received tell his mother and Arcelia the rest. He made it ‘visible’, allowing these two with their appraisal skills to discover what he meant.
“You--you!” His mother was speechless... from the excitement, she felt inside. She always knew that he was destined for more, and she discovered that SHE WAS RIGHT!
“You are a [Prophet]! Aren’t those very rare? Whose prophet are you?” Arcelia was curious, extremely curious, that she almost climbed unto Allan’s face to ask him.
“Um... I don’t know exactly, but I am certain that it isn’t some malicious entity. One thing led to another and before I knew it, I had the power to peer through the workings of fate to divine the most desirable outcome. I don’t really understand it, but one thing is certain! I don’t just see the future, I can also choose which one I desire.” Allan had this weird glint of confidence in his eyes that made them all think, “So cool!”
“I see! So, you’re a...” His mother finally understood the implications of Allan’s words, making her increasingly excited.
“Yes, mother~ I’m sort of like both an Alchemic and Diviner witch at the same time,” Allan confirmed her deductions.
“Woah~, Allan! You never told me that!” Gwendal was shocked too.
“Hey, you aren’t the only one with secrets! Silva sees our impending future and I see all the other ‘futures’ we could be heading for. For now, it only seems to work when I can really focus and when Marcel’s in danger, which is almost all the time.” Allan chuckled while looking at Marcel. He surprised more than just Arcelia this time. His mother was speechless.
Levitae recovered quickly, however, leaning in towards Allan’s with gleaming eyes. Uh-oh!
“Then I must ask you to divine more about your brother! Will he be talented, will he have any weird dispositions? Will he...”
I won't go into too much detail but Levitae had a lot to find answers to. Her son simply listened.
Allan and Arcelia conversed with Levitae for hours after that and sometimes, she’d ask the others about a few things, especially Marcel. She asked him a whole lot until the poor lad got so comfortable that he, as usual, began to casually converse with his best friend’s mother like she was just his old friend; you know, like how he does everyone.
During one such conversation, Marcel commented,
“It’s no wonder you raised someone like Allan!” He meant it as a compliment but it really got Levitae to ruminate about the past.
“Haa... Allan’s father and I didn’t raise him. He raised himself. We... were terrible parents!” She uttered, staring at the poor boy she and her husband forced to be their tool. It was something that weighed heavily on her mind.
She left Marcel’s to join Arcelia and Allan. She looked like she had something to say, especially to Allan.
First, she bent down to face Allan, and in a low, apologetic tone, she said,
“Allan, I’m very sorry for how your father and I have treated you over the years. We were terrible parents! We wanted you to live out our dreams for us and so we deprived you of your childhood. We treated you like you were some kind of object for accomplishing our goals. We taught you nothing unrelated to our wishes. We deprived you of everything, and even then, you simply accepted it and moved on. We’re very sorry!” She looked utterly remorseful, on the verge of tears as she remembered how she and her husband had mostly neglected their only child upon whom they forced all the dreams and hopes they could never achieve.
They were never around to, add to all of their other offenses, meaning that he had to navigate the world of things like emotions. She doesn’t remember ever seeing him smile or do something like a chuckle at the words of someone else; like the ‘genuine’ chuckle he gave Gwendal earlier. Just what have they done for him?! Nothing at all! They gave him flesh and blood, then used all they gave him for their own purposes. They ‘enslaved’ him, and his highness, Marcel, reached out to his soul and set him free. What a terrible thing they’ve done to Allan!
Allan’s father entered the room at that exact moment and he continued, “Yes, even though we neglected you and put you on a path that normal kids would never walk, you still walked that path to the best of your abilities without any qualms and in the end, you sort of ended up fulfilling our dreams. For that, we are very sorry and we hope that you can forgive us!” He walked towards Allan and kneeled in front of him. His mother joined her husband.
Allan, extremely agitated, immediately had him get up, “It’s nothing, father! All the knowledge and research I was forced to do ended up being useful to you, myself, and my friends in the end. I also happen to like doing it very much. I was born for it! Everything’s fine as long as it helps everyone in the end.” He said and then he smiled. Arcelia, once again, looked at Allan with an expression that suggested that she hadn’t seen Allan like that before.
His father found himself on the verge of tears as well. Levitae was already sobbing. Despite how much they’ve taken away from him, he was just going to let them go like that, with a few words to say for what they did? Surely, he must have had a lot of resentment in his heart that he wanted to unleash upon them for their actions, but what?! He didn’t?! Something must be going on because, surely, Allan can’t be as happy as he looks on the outside about this turn of events, right?! Levitae found herself feeling even guiltier for her past actions; a feeling that was going to linger with her and ensure that none of her future children ever experienced the same treatment she showed Allan. She learned greatly from this experience.
Allan’s father, being the person that he is, gave Allan a pat on the back, or more like a slap. He laughed proudly, despite the watery eyes that seemed like he’d break down at any moment as his mother already had.
He shook the forming tears away and readjusted his deep, resounding voice to sound normal again,
“Yes, what you’ve said is right... You’ve turned out into such a strong young man! Now I can only hope that you won’t be petty when we give your brother more attention than you received from us. You... won’t be petty, right?!” Allan’s father asked, peering menacingly at Allan in a way that made him very uncomfortable. To close to his face, dad!
Allan nodded, his eyes very dodgy, “Okay, I won’t!” He answered in a pouty, wronged voice. Uh-oh, Allan is salty! I repeat, Allan is incredibly salty.
Peering at this odd sight, Arcelia laughed for the first time since entering the room. She’d never once seen a scene like this between the father and son. It was refreshing to see that those two could act like normal people. Something had really changed everything for them. Was it somehow this demon guy ‘his highness’ named Marcel’s fault somehow? From how close they all seem to this guy who has something to do with why Allan moved to Brixden, that seems very likely. How amazing he must be to have somehow changed this odd family of three people who are ‘just related’ to each other into something with a somewhat emotional-attached family. That’s... just great!
They continued to converse and, after a while, Allan’s father suggested that they stay over for a few days. Levitae went to prepare for dinner with ‘her’ servants and Allan had an awkward chat with his father for the first time in his life. Arcelia stared at the two for a while, noticing something whenever Allan looked at Marcel. She felt, with Allan, an emotion that she longed for, directed at Marcel. It was then that it all clicked together; the choice she made, the current change in Allan, and what it implied. She knew that she would never receive ‘it’, even if she hadn’t done what she did a while ago.
Arcelia, was finally ready to proceed to the next stage of her healing.
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