Xara clenched the fork so tightly her knuckles turned pale, the metal trembling slightly in her grip. Her hand hovered mid-air, fingers stiff, as she stared at Aether’s face—his lips slightly parted, his eyes wide and expectant with an innocent face.
But that smug little smile at the corner of his lips… the subtle glint in his eye…
It wasn’t innocent. Not even close.
Her heart thudded heavily in her chest, a chaotic rhythm of frustration and love. She was torn between jabbing the fork into his tongue to shut him up—or shoving it in, just to stop that look.
Or…
“…Fine,” she mumbled under her breath, voice barely audible, more for her own sanity than for anyone else around the table.
With rigid, jerky movements, she stabbed a lone vegetable on her plate and slowly, almost dramatically, lifted it toward his waiting mouth. But halfway through… she paused.
Her hand hovered, trembling.
Aether leaned in slightly, tilting his head as his gaze locked onto hers. There was something dangerously intimate about the way he looked at her—something that made her breath catch in her throat.
“Come on… I’m starving, Mother,” he murmured, his voice low and velvety, thick with sarcasm and something else… something darker. Something that made her thighs tense under the table.
Xara’s ears went red in an instant… Her jaw clenched tighter.
She forced the fork toward him, finally deciding to just get it over with—but just as his mouth parted, ready to take the bite, she yanked it back at the last second and shoved it into her own mouth instead. She chewed with deliberate exaggeration, her eyes never leaving his.
Aether raised a single eyebrow, clearly amused.
“So cold,” he whispered with a chuckle that sent a shiver down her spine. “You’d really starve your own son?”
Xara choked, nearly coughing on the food.
Her jaw tightened so much it ached… She could feel the stares from around the table… especially one in particular. The one that was practically burning holes into her skull.
Kai.
He sat rigid, his teeth clenched so hard they audibly creaked. Each breath he took was sharp, angry. His nostrils flared, and his hand was wrapped around his spoon like he wanted to drive it straight into someone’s chest.
Specifically, the black-haired bastard who was now smirking shamelessly beside his mother.
Still… despite the storm swirling inside her, Xara couldn’t bring herself to push Aether away. Not when he was looking at her like that. Not when his sharp, taunting gaze suddenly softened—just enough to stir something confusingly tender in her chest.
He looked… vulnerable.
He looked childlike… Playful… Wickedly possessive… All at once.
And she hated that it worked on her.
With a resigned breath, she stabbed another piece of vegetable, held it up with a shaking hand, and brought it toward him again.
Aether leaned in slowly—painfully slowly. His lips didn’t open immediately. Instead, his eyes wandered downward, blatantly tracing the shape of her cleavage with infuriating boldness. Then his gaze flicked back up and locked with hers again.
Xara froze.
Then he finally opened his mouth—wide, slow, deliberately sensual.
She blushed so hard it hurt.
Then—chomp.
He bit into the food with a teasing hum, but his lips didn’t stop there. They slid against her fingers that were holding the fork, warm and smooth. His mouth lingered just a moment too long. Then, as if claiming ownership, his tongue darted out and licked a tiny bit of sauce from the tip of her fingertip.
Xara yanked her hand back like she’d been scalded, her face burning bright crimson.
“Delicious,” Aether said, licking his lips, “But now the food tastes even better… thanks to you, Mom~”
CRACK!
Everyone turned toward the sharp sound that cut through the tension like a knife.
Kai stared down in disbelief at the snapped handle of his spoon.
His hands were shaking. He blinked, pretending like it was nothing, like it had just broken on its own. But his furious eyes were locked on Aether, filled with pure, unfiltered rage. His lips curled back into a silent snarl, and his temple twitched like he was seconds from lunging across the table.
Meanwhile, Aqualina had frozen mid-bite. Her fork hovered in the air for a beat before she slowly set it down, expression deadpan.
She stared at Aether, annoyed, then at Xara, and finally whispered in her head,
/Are you… actually seducing her by pretending to be the sweet little innocent brat? Seriously?/
Aether didn’t answer.
Because in that moment, under the table, his hand found Xara’s again. This time, his fingers grazed along her thigh—soft, slow, like he was idly exploring, like he was searching for something beneath the surface of her resolve.
Xara sucked in a quiet gasp. Her knees jerked slightly inward as she gripped the edge of the table for control.
She tried to retaliate with a swift kick beneath the table—but missed.
Aether made a face.
“Oops, did I step on you?” he asked sweetly, clearly enjoying himself. His smirk deepened as he shamelessly plucked a bite from her plate. “My bad, Mom~.”
Clink!
Xara nearly dropped her fork this time. Her hands trembled.
“Don’t call me that,” she hissed in a sharp whisper, voice low and furious, almost growling against his ear as she leaned in toward him, cheeks flushed hot. “I am not your mother!!!” she snapped through gritted teeth, into his ears.
How could he? After everything?
Aether leaned in as well, his breath brushing her skin as his lips hovered just beside her ear.
“But I thought you liked it when I called you… M.o.m~,” he murmured quietly into her ear, dragging out each syllable with wicked delight.
Seeing Xara and Aether whispering to each other as if they were sharing a deep secret between mother and son…
Across the table, Kai’s face was red with rage.
He had stopped eating altogether. His spoon lay forgotten beside the plate. He couldn’t take another bite—not while watching that scene unfold in front of him.
His mother…
His real mother…
Feeding him?
He clenched his fists under the table.
Kai had come all the way back after everything. After nearly dying on his journey. After enduring pain, hardship, and a struggle that most people couldn’t imagine.
He had returned hoping for warmth, rest, for a little peace. He had wanted to feel the comfort of home… To feel his mother’s affection.
To feel like he still belonged!!
And what did he come back to?
A slave getting all of that?
How infuriating.
How disgusting.
How… utterly enraging!
The hatred bubbling in his chest was too much. He wanted to burn Aether alive just by glaring at him. Every second that bastard smiled made Kai’s blood boil hotter.
And Aether—he didn’t even seem fazed.
He grinned playfully at Xara’s annoyed expression, her flustered pout, her scowl.
Of course, she didn’t want to be called that… And that’s exactly why he kept doing it. He chuckled inwardly, relishing her frustration.
She had made him suffer.
She had used that word as a weapon.
So now… he was using it right back.
Teasing her like this sparked something dangerous in him. Something dark. Something growing.
Aether’s smile curled wider as his eyes gleamed with mischief.
“Mom—”
“ENOUGH!!”
BAM!!
Kai slammed his hand down on the table with such force that the plates rattled and silverware jumped. The room fell into silence as everyone turned toward him.
He shot to his feet, eyes locked onto Aether with unfiltered fury.
“How dare you… Slave?!”
Xara stood up, frowning, “Watch your to—”
“And you!!” Kai cut her off, voice cracking with raw pain. “How dare you feed a slave in front of me? When your real son just came back after so long, Mom?!”
Xara blinked, taken aback by the sudden explosion of emotion.
She stared at her son, but her voice came out cool and composed. “Came back? Kai… did you forget who ran away from this house without saying a word to anyone?”
Kai’s jaw clenched. His fingers trembled as he lowered himself back into his seat.
“I… I wasn’t trying to run away,” he muttered defensively.
Xara raised her brows, folding her arms, “Then what were you doing?”
“…I was trying to build myself!” he snapped, louder now, voice strained, “Because all of you kept calling me fake!!”
His glare turned on everyone around the table. His eyes burned with resentment. But when his gaze met Aqualina’s, it didn’t move… It lingered. Sharp… Wounded!!
“Especially you, Aqualina,” he spat. “You made me sick. And your so-called mother? She had the audacity to threaten my family just to cancel the engagement? Why?! Because I’m a fake Chosen One?”
His voice cracked with frustration, but he didn’t stop.
“Mind you—Arcane herself accepted me! I don’t see a fucking problem! So why the hell is your mother acting like some self-righteous bitch about it?!”
He exhaled sharply, chest rising and falling. His heart pounded. His throat felt tight.
But for the first time in a long time, he had said it.
All of it.
The weight he’d been carrying for so long—finally thrown out into the open.
His chest heaved with a strange sense of relief.
But that moment of clarity didn’t last.
The room’s temperature dropped without warning.
A cold, creeping sensation slid across his skin like ghostly fingers crawling down his spine.
Aqualina slowly set down her cup.
Her eyes narrowed into slits. Her hair fluttered despite the still air, lifted by unseen power.
Her voice was deadly calm.
“That’s Princess to you… mongrel.”
The pressure in the room intensified.
Kai’s body tensed as he felt the suffocating weight of her aura. But even as her power coiled like a snake ready to strike, he met her eyes and smirked.
“You think I’m still the same old Kai?” he asked darkly. “That powerless, weak brat from before?”
His voice lowered, sharpened.
“Let me tell you something. My current level… the power I hold now? Not even a Sovereign had achieved this at my age. I’m not weak anymore. I’m fucking strong.”
The room felt like it was about to crack from the tension.
And yet…
Aether calmly chewed his food, watching the chaos unfold around him like it was someone else’s problem.
He picked up another bite from his plate and sighed internally.
‘Youngsters these days don’t know the worth of good food…’
He shook his head in quiet pity, lips twitching in mild annoyance.
To him, the meal before him was more important than any family drama.