CHAPTER 255: MOTHER’S BEST FRIENDS

Raegar, the girls and parents were sitting in front of his grandparents who looked angry, confused and baffled. Griffin shook his head, questioning him with narrowed eyes. ’’Why would you accept such a proposal boy? She’s a bit younger than your own mother!’’

’’Well I like older women and Dahlia is gorgeous,’’ he responded, trying to keep the smirk off his face. ’’Look at Yuki, she’s twenty-seven and the empress being in her late thirties isn’t a problem for me grandfather.’’

When the girls heard this they giggled as Dominique teased. ’’Should I hide my mother? She’s around the same age.’’

Raegar glanced at the Vampire with a blank expression before answering. ’’No.. I don’t go after just anyone Dom. Dahlia came onto me just like Elara, Valentina and Cecelia.’’

Victoria grasped in shook as she jumped up, exclaiming. ’’That bitch! How dare she go for my son!’’

’’Mother calm down,’’ he reassured. ’’She’s a lovely woman, we haven’t spent much time together.’’

The white-haired woman, her gaze usually so composed, faltered for a moment, a flicker of surprise rippling across her features as the heavy flap of the tent rustled. The makeshift shelter erected by the Vaelthorne guards in the destroyed garden, creaked softly under the weight of the afternoon breeze.

Raegar instinctively turned toward the noise, his hand twitching, ready to summon his daggers. But as his eyes settled on the newcomer in the tent’s entrance, his breath caught, and his jaw dropped in stunned disbelief. There, bathed in the flickering glow of the tent’s lanterns, stood Valentina, her presence as commanding as ever.

A wide, triumphant grin stretched across her face, her red eyes sparkling with mischief and confidence as she greeted him. ’’Hello Rae, it’s good to see you still standing after the Vaelthorne attack.’’

Beside her was Elara, the tiger woman, her striped tail swaying lazily and her green eyes gleaming with amusement. The air seemed to hum with the weight of their arrival, as if the very atmosphere within the tent had shifted to accommodate their presence. ’’Looks like you’ve got stronger handsome, it’s time for us to fight like before,’’ she teased.

Victoria’s shock deepened, her lips parting as if to speak, but no words came, only the faintest hint of a smile, betraying a mix of disbelief and reluctant admiration. ’’Girls!’’ she suddenly exclaimed.

Raegar watched his mother rush toward the two women who welcomed her with a hug and big smiles. Elara was the first too speak. ’’Come on Vic, we told you we’d come to see you one summer break started but who thought our little hero would be here after all the fighting?’’

’’Well this is my grandparent’s home ladies,’’ he revealed, standing up.

Elara was about to move but Valentina beat her to it and wrapped her arms around his shoulders before planting a kiss against his lips. Gasps and shock rippled through the tent as Drusilla jump up, enraged. ’’Rae! What is it with all this women kissing you! Aren’t we enough!’’

Everyone laughed as Zahara revealed to the Dark Fairy. ’’We’ve known about these two, its hard not to notice when Professor Crowhurst here watches him like a hawk and Valentina has snuck into his room on multiple occasions.’’

Griffin let out a booming laugh that bounced off the tents walls, shaking the flickering lanterns that cast their warm glow. His weathered face, carved with the lines of countless battles and hard-won wisdom, split into a wide, unrestrained grin.

’’Well, I’ll be damned,’’ he bellowed. ’’Looks like my boy’s gone and won himself a harem of women who’d storm the heavens for him! Caring, fierce, and loyal to the core! And if the empress herself is tangled up in this, so be it, means the Vaelthorne name will be bound to the imperial bloodline once again. A fine legacy for our house!’’

His words hung in the air, bold and unapologetic, drawing a ripple of reactions from those around him. Valentina, her eyes usually sharp with cunning, blinked in fleeting shock, her mischievous grin faltering for just a moment as she processed Griffin’s claim. Beside her, Elara, the tiger woman, let her eyes gleam with a mix of amusement and defiance.

Her tail flicked lazily, and her smile widened, revealing the glint of her feline fangs. Without a moment’s hesitation, she surged forward, wrapping Raegar in a fierce embrace and she pulled his head into the warm, seductive cleavage, her laughter low and purring as she held him close, utterly unmindful of the stares around her.

’’Lara!’’ Victoria’s voice sliced through the tent.

The white-haired woman, her locks catching the light like a halo, half-rose from her seat, her piercing gaze blazing with a mother’s protectiveness. ’’Tina, you too! Have you no shame? He’s my son! How can you both throw yourselves at him like that when you’re practically twice his age?’’

’’Look Vic,’’ The tigress questioned, catching everyone off guard. ’’You know we’re not bad women and can care for Raegar? What’s the problem when you’ve known us for decades? It’s better then some stranger walking into your lives?’’

’’That’s a good point,’’ Elysia added causing Victoria to looked betrayed. ’’I’ve known these two since they were little girls. Elara is playful and can be extremely loyal while Valentina is as caring as they come for an Devil Hunter, but its clear you care for my grandson and you have our blessing to continue this relationship.’’

When the two older women heard this, their faces lit up as they rushed Elysia and hugged her. Raegar watched this all go down and was honestly shocked, he shook his head and went to walk toward the entrance catching everyone’s attention. His father Alaric finally spoke. ’’Where are you going son?’’

’’To get some fresh air, this is all a bit too much for me right now,’’ he answered.

Without waiting, Raegar vanished using Flash Step and travelled across the Dawnfire Empire until arriving at mountain range he’d visited when he was a young child. He stopped on the peak of the highest one only to flop down against a boulder that gave him a perfect view of the surrounding landscape.

’’Getting too much for you? My Lord?’’ Arthur the Fusion Knight questioned as he appeared beside him.

’’Yes, I thought six girls was enough,’’ he admitted, sighing. ’’But now there’s Dahlia, Elara and Valentina. Then there’s Cecelia, the twins, headmistress and nurse Aiko. It’s a bit too much for me.’’

Arthur began laughing and sat next to him after dismissing the giant sword he carried around. ’’You know the previous Fusion King suffered from this exact problem, and he had twenty wives he had to keep up with.’’

Raegar paled at such a number, he felt his hands getting sweaty but he shook his head. ’’Thirteen seems to much, its not like I’ve flirted with the headmistress or Cecelia, plus she’s Luna’s mother and it would be wrong to court her.’’

’’More wrong then your mothers best friends?’’ the knight countered.

’’Alright, you have a point,’’ he said, chuckling. ’’Well I couldn’t help that could I? Elara is a strong woman who is beautiful and Valentina’s brave and courageous when it comes to fighting Devils but shy and adorable in private.’’

’’What about the other girls?’’

’’Zahara is a kind and caring girl, I honestly don’t know why she choose me to be honest,’’ Raegar answered. ’’Then there’s Dominique who is dark and gloomy but when you look past that, she’s a young woman who wants to be seen and cared for beyond family ties. When we first met I rescued her but she rushed off before we met at Drakenwood.’’

’’And?’’

’’Selene is feisty and excitable which I love about her,’’ he continued. ’’Her red skin is gorgeous and those yellow eyes suck me in.’’

’’So only looks? There’s nothing else about her that you like? My Lord?’’

Raegar looked at Arthur with narrowed eyes. ’’Well yes, she’s kind and gets happy all the time. I love how she always has a smile on her face and how she cares for me in her own way.’’

The knight nodded and motioned for him to continue, causing him to roll his eyes. ’’Well then there’s Drusilla, the devious Dark Fairy I saved over a year ago. We bonded and ever since then I’ve loved her for the way she truly loves me, I can feel it in her gaze, her touch and the way she gets jealous despite the other girls.’’

’’I can tell she cares deeply for you,’’ Arthur added. ’’Those blue eyes speak many words without her lips moving.’’

Raegar started laughing, but agreed with a nod. ’’Yes, I feel a spark every time she touches me just like the others.’’

’’What about the last two?’’

’’Alice, what can I say about her? She’s a misunderstood girl. We started off on the wrong foot but she apologized and since getting to know her better, I realized she was shy and introverted unless with the others where she comes out of her shell.’’