"Damien, why did you and Mira sneak into the hall like that?" Akira asked with her arms crossed as she and Damien were standing in her room, which was quite elegant and big. Even the height of the room was tall enough to make Damien feel like he was standing in a hall.

Right before he could go and see her, she had summoned him to her room already.

Damien could see that his aunt didn't want him to be there during the meeting and said as he stood before her, "Is it because you don't want me to learn what you are dealing with?"

Akira let out a heavy sigh as she briefly closed her eyes before raising her head to look at him, "Yes. You already have a lot of things to handle, and the last thing I want is for you to worry about needless things. I can handle these things perfectly, just like I have been doing for all these years. You have nothing to worry about," She said with a subtle smile.

Damien was about to say something, but then he held in his words, realizing that his aunt would never say things weren't okay for her. He could understand that she wanted to stay strong for him. Maybe she could handle it all herself or has a plan in her mind. However, he still didn't want her to be alone in this.

And this made him realize no matter how many times he asked, her answer would be the same unless..He can prove to her that he was capable enough to shoulder her burdens.

But for that, he would have to first prove it through his actions instead of words.

So he nodded with a light smile, "I understand, aunt. But don't worry, I only sneaked in to know more about the other clans and their lords. Since I am going to be here for a long time, I thought I should get myself used to everything."

"Good. I like that you are smart about these things. This makes me wonder how you learned to think and act like this. That's why I wanted to ask..will you talk about your past with me? I am curious to know how you lived all these years without any family by your side. Even if the Rising Sun Continent is a better place compared to ours, the world of cultivation isn't kind to anyone," Her brows wrinkled as she added, "But if you are uncomfortable talking about it, I will understand. It's just that not a day went by where I didn't worry about how you were doing or if you were safe. Your life and death were something I wondered about at first, but then I had a feeling that you were probably surviving somehow..I strongly hoped that was true, and it was, fortunately.." She said with her lips tightly pressed together.

This was the first time Damien saw someone getting so concerned about how he lived his past, even if it was long over.

'Is this how family worries about each other?' Damien wondered, as this was new to him. However, he felt a sense of warmth in his chest, feeling such care.

He could see that his aunt was probably blaming herself for not being there for him and didn't know if talking about his past might make her blame herself more.

But his past in the Rising Sun Continent was miserable only in the beginning. The rest was brighter because of meeting his wives and falling in love with them. Of course, there were hardships that seemed impossible to overcome, but in the end, he did.

"Of course, I will tell you how I lived over there, but in turn, I want you to tell me more about our family," Damien said with a glow in his eyes.

Akira nodded with a subtle smile and said, "That would be nice. I can let you know about your father's great exploits and how your grandparents progressed our clan greatly. But first, I want you to eat something I am going to prepare."

"Eh?" Damien was a bit surprised since cultivators like him need not depend on conventional food. It had been a long while since he tasted such food.

Akira saw his surprised look and made him sit on one of the chairs near a large table, "I know you have been swallowing pills whenever your stomach feels empty. But it is not right. You have yet to taste our food or..the food from your own family. Since you never got the chance to, I feel it is only right I prepare you some."

"You are going to cook for me?" Damien asked with his brows raised as he couldn't even picture someone powerful and assertive like her cooking food. It was not like such a skill was necessary for her, or did she have such a hobby?

Akira raised one of her brows and asked, "You think it's that shocking that I am going to?"

"No..it's just..Well, I will be happy to, but.." His expression suddenly became awkward as he remembered Mira telling him about the dietary habits of most of the ghouls. This made him anxious since he had no idea if his aunt might get offended if he asked if she was going to serve him..Damn it, how do I ask her about this?

"What's with that look? Don't tell me that..you were expecting me to serve you human meat?" Akira said with a slight shake of her head.

Damien awkwardly chuckled as he said, "Ehm...you are not?"

Akira placed her hand on her lips as if she was stopping herself from chuckling and said with a shake of her hand, "Don't worry, I would never serve you something like that, nor would we eat human flesh in our clan. Only common ghouls do that while we, of higher station, actually look down upon eating human flesh, though some of them still do. But here, in our clan, we never serve such things. But wait and see what I am going to cook for you. I am sure you will like it even though it's been a long time since I did this last," Akira said as Damien saw her walk towards an open fire.historical