"...."

"...."

"...."

All of the women's eyes suddenly turned to Alex, glaring at him.

"Cough, cough, Amelia, could you please check on the old man's condition?" Alex smiled wryly.

She shot him an intense glare before releasing the embrace with Maya and going to check on Cedrix's condition.

"You are doing it on purpose, right?" Anna whispered to Alex.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Alex whispered back, purposefully avoiding eye contact with Anita, who continued to glare at him.

Anna shook her head. "You will really end up killing him if you continue."

Nah, I'm pretty confident the old man can handle a bit of teasing without keeling over," Alex reassured, flashing a grin.

"Is it just teasing though?" Lilia interjected. "You do find his daughter attractive, and I'm certain you wouldn't mind being with her, am I wrong?"

"Gasp! Who do you take me for? I'm not someone who will pounce on every pretty woman I meet. I have standards! I'm greatly disappointed by you thinking so lowly of me," Alex said in a righteous tone.

"...."

"...."

Lilia and Anna exchanged a glance before both rolling their eyes, deciding to focus their attention on Amelia, who was tending to Cedrix's condition, rather than wasting it on their shameless husband.

A few seconds later, Amelia breathed a sigh of relief. "Everything's fine this time; he just passed out from shock," she reassured Anita, who had been worried.

Leaving Cedrix in the care of his daughter, Amelia returned to Alex's side and took her place beside him.

"Don't pull something like that again," she lightly scolded him, causing Alex to chuckle.

"You're adorable when you try to be serious," Alex remarked, leaning in as if to give her a quick kiss before remembering that they were in public.

'What a shame,' he thought.

"The food is ready," Anita announced.

A few minutes later, everyone had a meal plate in their hands.

"Let's dig in, I'm starving!" Alex declared as he eagerly plunged his spoon into his mouth.

As the flavors exploded in his mouth, Alex's eyes lit up with delight. "This is incredible!" he praised.

"I must agree, it's absolutely delightful. Where did you learn to cook like that?" Lilia asked between mouthfuls.

"My mother taught me," Anita replied, her smile brimming with satisfaction.

"I must admit, your cooking surpasses that of the chef at my own home," Maya complimented, savoring the meal with a blissful smile.

"Thank you!" Anita beamed.

"Hey, Maya, I've been meaning to ask you..." Alex paused mid-bite and began questioning Maya about her family and their auction house.

Being immensely grateful to Amelia, Maya didn't hesitate and answered the questions he had, though there were some questions she couldn't answer to avoid divulging their family secrets.

At some point, the discussion veered away entirely from Maya's family, and they started speaking about diverse topics, yet Alex didn't mind the shift and actually welcomed it.

The past few hours had taken a serious toll on him, both physically and mentally, and he desperately needed a break. Sitting and chatting with others seemed to be exactly what he needed to unwind.

As time passed, Alex and Lilia, being the loving parents they were, swiftly diverged the conversation and began telling stories and anecdotes of their daughters.

The others didn't seem to mind, joining in on the conversation. Even Grace, who had remained silent the whole time, couldn't resist and began sharing stories. However, her stories were sometimes a bit embarrassing for Alex and Amelia, as the anecdotes she told were about them when they were young!

As the hours went by, the majority of the women were visibly sleepy, so Alex suggested that they go to rest.

"You can all sleep in the carriage; it's far more comfortable than staying here," he suggested.

"And where will you sleep?" Maya inquired.

"I'm not tired yet, so I'll take the first watch," Alex responded.

"Can't your subordinates handle it?"

"They're all asleep by now," Alex remarked, indicating his subordinates behind him. "They've endured a lot over the past few weeks, so it's best to let them rest before our early departure at dawn tomorrow," Alex paused briefly before adding, "we'll be leaving early too, so you should get some rest as well."

Maya didn't contest anymore. 

"I'm really excited to meet your daughters, especially Scarlett!" she exclaimed as she got up.

"You might, if things go well with your family," Alex commented with a smile.

"I'm going to do my best; nothing untoward will happen," Maya assured.

"Let's hope so. Now off you go, all of you, and take Cedrix with you," Alex instructed.

"Well, see you tomorrow, I guess," Lilia remarked as she gave Alex a peck on the cheek and rose from his lap.

"Here, I'll help you carry him," she offered to Anita, who was struggling to lift her father.

"I'll be going too," Anna chimed in, also giving Alex a peck on the cheek.

In a few minutes, Lilia, Anna, Maya, and Anita departed, carrying Cedrix.

In the end, only Alex, Amelia, and their grandmother remained.

Grace stared at her grandkids for a long moment, not saying anything, and they also didn't speak, staring back at her.

After a while, Alex decided to break the silence.

"Are we going to have the 'talk' from you?" He inquired with a chuckle.

Grace sighed and asked with a solemn tone, "You two, what kind of relationship is there between the two of you?"

"Well, we're siblings," Alex chuckled once again.

"Don't play dumb with me, Alexandre. You know what I mean," Grace retorted, her tone firm.

"Why must you ask something when you already know the answer?" Alex replied.

"Just answer my question," Grace insisted, her tone growing more assertive.

"Well, if you're so eager to hear it," Alex smoothly pulled Amelia closer to him while firmly grasping her by her waist, "we are lovers."

Grace closed her eyes and sighed. As Alex said, she already knew the answer, but hearing it right from Alex's mouth was a bit overwhelming.

"I don't even have to spell it out; you two are old enough to know that you shouldn't be in that kind of relation-" 

"Oh, please stop that," Alex interrupted her, his patience wearing thin, "You're not a moralizer, Grace. We both know it, so please, drop the act and return to your usual cool grandma persona."

Amelia released a muffled giggle upon hearing him, while Grace's eyelids twitched in irritation.

"I might not be someone who moralizes, but when my son's kids are sleeping with each other, I must take it upon myself to do something, even if I really dislike doing so."

"Well, let's simplify things for you," Alex remarked, intertwining his fingers with Amelia's, "There's nothing you can do or say that will separate us."

"Yes, grandma, he is the only man I love," Amelia declared.

"And I've already marked her as my woman. I won't allow another man to lay his fingers on her," Alex declared possessively.

"That woman as you say is your sister, does your wives even know about the relationship between you two?"

"Of course they know, I wouldn't hide it from them."

"And they are okay with it?"

"Why wouldn't they be? I love Amelia, and she loves me back. That's all that matters. Plus, if I'm not mistaken, incest is legal in this empire," Alex retorted.

Grace rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Please, everyone knows it's because that bastard of an emperor wanted to screw his sister."

"Still, it's permitted, and even if it wasn't, it wouldn't have stopped us anyway," Alex shrugged.

Hearing this, Grace sighed in frustation, "I always knew that you two were too close, but I didn't think you would end up fucking, do you realize how messed up your relationship is?"

"As messed up as kissing your grandson and enjoying it," Alex remarked.

"Wait, what?" Amelia's eyes widened in astonishment. "Y-You kissed? When did that happen?" She exclaimed, unable to believe what she was hearing.

"It was a mistake," Grace said, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks.

"It didn't seem that you were thinking this when you were fervently exploring my lips," Alex said in a sultry tone. "Ahh, even now, I can vividly remember how passionate you were~"

"Now that I think about it," a grin spread across Alex's face as he looked at Grace, "Perhaps the reason you're so adamant about us separating is because you're envious of what we have?"

"Don't be ridiculous. As I said, this was a mistake, and such a thing won't ever happen again," Grace said with a hint of exasperation in her tone.

"Is that so?" Alex let go of Amelia, stood up, and walked towards Grace.

However, he barely took a few steps towards her when his path was blocked. A sort of invisible barrier appeared in front of him, and he couldn't get through it, no matter how hard he pushed.

Alex ceased his futile attempts to breach the barrier and smirked. "See? You're scared of what might happen if I approach you. That's why you erected this barrier, right?"

"No, it's there to stop you from doing anything stupid," Grace calmly replied.

"Stupid, you say? Well, I assure you, I won't do anything 'stupid.' Just allow me to approach you. Or perhaps you're worried you won't be able to resist and will pounce on me?" Alex grinned playfully.

Grace's eyelids twitched slightly. "I'm not some horny teenager, you know."

"Well, then prove it," Alex grinned.

"Boy, I'm too old to fall for such tricks," Grace shook her head, "besides, we're getting too sidetracked. The conversation here is about your incestuous relationship with Amelia."

"What of it?" Alex inquired as he returned to sit next to his sister. "We already told you that no one or nothing will force us to separate. There is nothing further to discuss," Alex declared.

"Then I have nothing more to add. It's your lives, and you're old enough to deal with the consequences of your choices," Grace remarked.

She looked at her grandkids and grinned, "Well, at least you two make a cute couple."

After that last remark, Grace vanished.