Chapter 642: Their True Feelings
Hearing that Aldrian wanted to discuss something with them, the three elves looked at him in wonder. They had never had any direct connection or communication with Aldrian. Even when he stayed in the Ivory Empire in the past, Duke Valerin, who belonged to the conservative faction, never spoke to him and only observed him in silence.
That was why, when Aldrian came to Duke Valerin with Sylphia during the wedding ceremony, they were truly curious. The only thing that made them slightly nervous was the lingering fear that this might somehow involve a fault of theirs for some unknown reason. It was only natural for them to think that way, as they had never interacted with Aldrian, yet he suddenly approached Duke Valerin.
At the ceremony, Aldrian simply told them to meet him at his palace today, and said it would be better if Duke Valerin brought his entire direct family. The duke, of course, complied, as it was a direct request from Aldrian himself.
And so, here they were, all seated inside Aldrian’s palace.
"My apologies, Your Majesty, but I suppose what you want to talk about isn’t something I made a mistake on, right? I’m afraid I might have somehow done something wrong without realizing it and offended Your Majesty," Duke Valerin said with a worried expression.
"Oh no, Duke Valerin. You haven’t done anything wrong. I simply invited you here for another matter, and it’s not something that has wronged me, so you don’t need to worry," Aldrian replied, which made the three elves sigh in relief.
"Then?"
"Duke Valerin, as far as I know, you have one more child, named Vera Valerin. Correct?" Aldrian asked, which left the three elves stunned.
At this moment, Aldrian’s expression remained calm, but he was reading the thoughts and emotions of the elves. He wanted to understand what went through their minds the moment the name of a child, who had run away from home years ago was brought up.
Then he felt it. These elves were angry, but that anger was scattered in many directions. They were angry at Vera, angry at each other, and even angry at themselves. And after the anger came sadness, the kind that felt like they had truly lost someone dear to them. Aldrian could sense that, despite everything, they still held deep affection for Vera as part of their family.
"Yes, Your Majesty, that is correct. I have another child named Vera, our youngest. However, she is no longer with us," Duke Valerin said after a moment of silence. But then his eyes narrowed slightly in suspicion. Why would Aldrian suddenly ask about Vera out of nowhere?
He wanted to ask, but Aldrian spoke first.