Chapter 699: Night Sky
In a gentle streak of radiant light, both Anthony and Klaus materialized upon the balcony where Vega and Amara sat together. The two women lifted their gazes toward the sudden appearance, their captivating purple and golden eyes meeting the piercing contrast of blue and black.
"You both have returned," Vega remarked softly, a smile tugging at her lips as warmth colored her expression.
"How was your little man-to-man bonding moment?" Amara inquired smoothly, as though she already possessed the answer yet desired to hear it from their own mouths.
"Well..." Klaus began, his tone measured and calm, "let us simply say it went far better than either of us initially expected."
"I hope you didn’t bully Anthony, Dad," Vega countered immediately, narrowing her eyes at her father with suspicion as though she already expected mischief on his part.
Klaus’s black eyes shifted directly toward his daughter, the edges softening as he placed upon himself an expression that was both gentle and faintly pained. His voice carried the weight of mock sorrow as he spoke, "It truly saddens me, Vega, that you could imagine your own father as a bully. Has Anthony bewitched you so thoroughly? Has your love for him grown so vast that it eclipses the love you once reserved for me as your father?"
Amara and Anthony observed quietly from the side, both choosing to remain silent in the face of Klaus’s theatrics.
Vega said nothing. She simply puffed her cheeks slightly, pouting in an almost childlike manner, refusing to dignify her father’s question with a spoken answer.
’I am sorry for everything that happened while you were with him,’ Amara spoke directly into Anthony’s mind through telepathic speech, her words touched with genuine regret.
Anthony did not respond outwardly, his calm gaze still fixed upon Vega, but inwardly he answered her with composed serenity, ’It is fine. Truth be told, I actually enjoyed it. In the end, it truly was a man-to-man bonding moment, just as it should have been.’
Amara refrained from nodding or offering further reply. There was no need for more. Both understood that their private conversation was concealed from Klaus and Vega, which was precisely how they intended it.
Although Amara did not know every detail of what transpired between Klaus and Anthony, she could not be bothered to investigate deeply, she had sensed enough. A clash of wills so great that the very galaxy had trembled at its foundation when their presences flared against one another, as if war itself had nearly broken out.
She had no certainty as to where the second presence originated, but she carried her suspicions, though they remained merely that, speculation unspoken.
"Take a seat," Amara invited, her tone as smooth and soothing as a flowing stream, the effortless grace of her voice ever-present.
Anthony gave a small nod before lowering himself into the soft embrace of a couch. Klaus followed, choosing a seat directly beside him. Together, the two men sat quietly while the pair of women leaned back into their chairs, and thus the four of them turned their eyes outward. They stared into the endless night sky of the Blue Planet. In that moment, the invisible burdens that two of them had carried became the burden of three, but the weight remained unresolved, and no solution had yet presented itself.
Soon after, Jenna arrived once more, her presence quiet and diligent as she served an assortment of fresh fruit and chilled juices. Of course, with their cultivation ranks, such mortal refreshments were utterly unnecessary; sustenance was far beneath them. And yet, even the most exalted beings indulged from time to time, for in the end, they remained living creatures blessed with functioning tongues and taste buds, capable of savoring the simplest pleasures.
The atmosphere was calm, serene, and utterly tranquil, as though the vast universe itself had paused, blessing and acknowledging the rare harmony of this gathering.
"So then, Vega," Amara began, her delicate hands wrapped elegantly around a porcelain teacup, "when do you plan to meet Anthony’s parents?" Her tone was calm, composed, and graceful. Amara had always preferred tea above all other drinks, even water, finding it both grounding and comforting.
"Hm..." Vega hummed softly, her fingers tapping against her lap. "They are currently away on a mission due to their duties as Supreme Monarchs. However, Anthony received word that they should be returning within a few days. So, most likely, around the same period that we are set to leave here, I should finally meet them."
Her voice was even, but within her purple eyes flashed a subtle mixture of emotions, a cocktail of happiness, eagerness, and nervous anticipation flickered beneath the surface.
Anthony, Klaus, and Amara noticed the brief display, yet none of them commented. Anthony and Amara merely exchanged faint smiles, silently acknowledging the sentiment.
"You make it sound as though you are preparing to meet his family for the sake of a proposal," Klaus observed casually, his gaze unbroken as it lingered upon the distant night sky.
In his mind, such matters were far too premature. Engagement, marriage, commitment, these were things that ought to be given centuries, perhaps longer. Time was abundant for beings such as them, and to rush into something so sacred was nothing short of folly. Anthony and Vega, no matter their attachment, were still young by his standards.
"It has nothing to do with you, Dad," Vega shot back quickly, almost defensively.
"Hooo..." Klaus exhaled with a half-smile, "on the contrary, Vega, it has everything to do with me."
His lips curved slightly higher as he added, "Besides, I have not sparred with Michael in several decades. I cannot help but wonder how much stronger he has become since then."
Anthony, hearing this, could only fall into a respectful silence for his father. Though Michael had indeed grown stronger, he was still leagues away from reaching Klaus’s overwhelming level.
’Mother will be ecstatic when she finally meets Vega,’ Anthony mused inwardly. ’I only hope she does not attempt to run off with her in her excitement.’
’I also wonder how they are faring... Mother, Father, and even Grandfather. Even if they carry hidden wounds that even Grandmother cannot heal, just a single drop of my blood should be sufficient.’
Anthony was not excessively worried, however. He could already imagine the scene: his father, Michael, wearing a wild grin as he rampaged across a battlefield, his mother standing beside him with her ever-sarcastic remarks, unleashing devastating spells one after another with flawless precision.
Time drifted gently as Amara began sharing anecdotes from Vega’s childhood. She did not hesitate to unveil stories, from mischievous adventures to youthful embarrassments, carefully skirting only the most sensitive details.
Anthony laughed far too often, his chest shaking with mirth. Vega, on the other hand, squirmed uncomfortably, practically begging her mother to cease exposing her childhood secrets.
But Amara was relentless.
Klaus, meanwhile, remained characteristically composed. He offered no additional commentary. He simply observed in silence, one leg crossed neatly over the other.
’Is this family about to expand?’ he wondered quietly to himself, his mind wandering.
If the family did expand, it would undoubtedly be anything but ordinary. Neither normal in the common sense nor abnormal in the trivial sense, this family of beings who wore human skin yet possessed monstrous power was on the verge of welcoming perhaps the greatest monster of them all.
Klaus’s lips curved into the faintest smile, so small it might easily have been mistaken for no smile at all.
’Let us see where all of this leads... in a century or two,’ he thought calmly, letting the night sky claim his gaze once more.