CHAPTER 163: THE REUNION!

Rin didn’t even realise when his legs started moving. His cloak barely stayed on his shoulders as he dashed through the hallway, his boots thudding against the polished wooden floor of the brothel. His heart pounded in his chest, loud enough that it almost drowned out the startled gasps and curious murmurs from the Omegas he passed.

"Rin—!" Kiro called, but Rin was already gone, his hand gripping the knob of Lirien’s door before the boy could finish.

The door burst open with a bang loud enough to make the chandelier above sway slightly.

Lirien, who had been sitting with her pipe, almost cursed whoever dared make such an entrance. "Who the hell..." she began sharply, but stopped when she saw Rin standing there, breathless, eyes wide.

Her expression softened instantly, a sigh of relief escaping her lips. "Oh, it’s you."

The room was filled with quiet gasps as the few people in the room turned to him. Rin didn’t look at anyone. His eyes were locked on the woman sitting by the bed... pale, fragile, but with the same silver-white hair and soft red eyes that seemed to mirror his own.

Elyria.

The woman froze, her lips trembling as she slowly rose to her feet. The young boy beside her... obviously Winter.. raised his head in confusion, clutching a half-eaten biscuit in his small hand.

"Rin..." Elyria whispered, her voice breaking.

Rin didn’t move. His throat felt tight, his body frozen in place as if something heavy had wrapped around him. He didn’t know why his chest hurt so much, or why his hands were trembling.

Then Elyria took one step toward him. And another. Her tears spilt freely as she dropped to her knees before him, her trembling fingers reaching toward his boots.

"Forgive me," she choked. "Please... forgive me."

The room went silent. Even the air felt still.

Rin stared down at her... his mother. The woman who had abandoned him. The woman, the real Rin, had once cried for.

But even as he thought those words, his vision blurred.

He wasn’t the real Rin. He knew that. The memories in his head belonged to someone else. But right now... his heart didn’t care.

His lips trembled as he crouched down and touched her shoulders gently.

*Don’t... do that," he said quietly.

Elyria lifted her head, tears streaking her pale cheeks.

Rin’s eyes softened. "You don’t need to kneel."

Then, before he knew it, he wrapped his arms around her.

Elyria’s sob escaped like a whisper of pain. She buried her face into his chest, trembling as she clung to him. Rin’s own tears rolled silently down his cheeks. He didn’t even know why he was crying... but the warmth in her embrace, the smell of her hair, the faint trace of jasmine and something familiar... it was all too real.

’Did she use Lirien’s shampoo?’

"I was never upset," Rin whispered. "So please stop crying."

They stayed like that for what felt like forever. The Omegas who had been standing by the door quietly stepped out, whispering among themselves. None of them had ever seen Lirien cry before... and now, they had seen Rin crying too.

After a few long minutes, Lirien finally walked over and rested a hand on Elyria’s shoulder. "Enough tears for today," she said softly. "Sit down, both of you."

Elyria sniffled and nodded, sitting back beside the bed. Rin sat next to her, still quiet. Winter felt someone sitting at the other side, even if he couldn’t see.

"Mother," the boy said softly, tugging at Elyria’s sleeve. "Who is he?"

Elyria smiled faintly, though her eyes were still wet. "This is your brother, Winter."

Winter’s little mouth formed an ’O’.

"My brother?"

Rin smiled gently. "That’s right."

Winter blinked, then giggled shyly.

"Do you look like me?"

"Oho! Have you noticed?" Rin chuckled, lightly tapping the boy’s nose. "I think so too."

Rin then whispered to Lirien.

"He can’t see me, can he?"

Lirien shook her head, giving him an answer.

She sat down opposite them, crossing her legs. "Now that we’re done crying, maybe you can start explaining what happened."

Elyria sighed deeply, brushing a lock of white hair behind her ear. "It’s... a long story."

"We have time," Lirien said. "We’ll listen to everything even if it takes three days,"

Rin nodded in agreement, curiosity glinting in his eyes.

"Me too..."

Elyria inhaled slowly. "After I left the brothel years ago, I went to the Magic Tower. I thought if I could lock away Rin’s demonic energy, he could live peacefully as a normal Omega. No one would hunt him for his demon blood."

Lirien frowned. "You went alone?"

Elyria nodded. "The Tower promised to help. They said it was possible to transfer the demonic essence out of him, but they needed something in return."

"What did they take?" Rin asked quietly.

Elyria smiled bitterly. "My power. Most of it."

Rin’s fingers clenched slightly on his lap.

"When they were done, they told me they’d send Rin to an academy, where he could live quietly as a staff member. I went to the dean myself and asked him to take care of him." Her voice trembled. "That’s the last thing I remember. After that... I don’t know what happened. Maybe I was attacked. Maybe my weakened energy made me lose my memories. All I know is... I woke up in a human village. There was a man who found me. He was kind. He took care of me even when I had no memories. We fell in love."

Her lips curved sadly. "Then I had Winter."

Rin looked down at the boy, who was still staring into the thin air.

Elyria’s eyes softened. "Last night, everything came back. Every piece of my memory. Every face. I remembered you, Lirien. I remembered Rin. So I ran. I ran all night until I reached here."

The room was quiet for a moment.

"It’s not your fault," Lirien finally said.

Rin nodded. "She’s right."

Elyria smiled faintly, wiping her cheeks. "You haven’t changed."

Lirien smirked. "Flatter me all you want, but I still want to slap you for disappearing."

Elyria chuckled weakly. "You can slap me later."

Lirien rolled her eyes and looked at Winter. "What about his father?"

Elyria’s face darkened. "He’s gone. He was killed by demons during a hunt. I buried him myself."

The silence that followed was heavy.

"I’m sorry," Rin said softly.

Elyria forced a smile. "Don’t be. He died protecting us."

To change the mood, Lirien clapped her hands. "Enough sad talk. Tell us something else. The demon attacks, for example... what’s been happening out there?"

Elyria exhaled. "I also heard the news. They’ve been spreading. They attacked the academy, nearby cities, and even the palace. The balance is breaking."

Rin frowned.

"That explains the tension everywhere. The Duke’s even cancelled his games."

"Games?" Elyria asked.

"Let’s just say... something stupid nobles do for fun," Rin muttered, earning a snort from Lirien.

Lirien poured herself a drink and leaned back. "You’d think they’d have better things to do before a war."

Rin shrugged. "They’ll probably find another way to be idiots."

Elyria laughed softly. "You sound so much like your father."

Rin blinked. "My... father?"

Lirien shot Elyria a curious look, but Elyria only smiled sadly. "You have his stubbornness. And his sharp tongue."

Rin scratched his cheek, unsure whether to be flattered or insulted.

"Guess I take after him, then."

Their laughter filled the room again. Even Lirien smiled quietly, watching the two of them.

After a while, Rin turned to Winter, who was now nibbling another biscuit.

"Hey, little one."

Winter lifted his head, crumbs on his lips. "Yes?"

Rin smiled. "Do you want some juice?"

Winter nodded eagerly.

Rin reached for the small fruit knife Lirien had used earlier and pricked his palm without hesitation.

"Rin—!" Elyria gasped, standing quickly.

Lirien grabbed her wrist gently. "Calm down. Let him."

Rin squeezed a few drops of his blood into the cup and mixed it with the juice. The faint crimson swirl disappeared into the golden liquid.

He handed it to Winter. "Drink it. It’ll help you."

Winter took it without question and sipped. After all, he didn’t see anything that had just happened. A second later, he winced and clutched his head, a pained cry escaping his throat.

"Winter!" Elyria panicked, kneeling beside him. "What’s happening?"

Rin held her back gently.

"Don’t move. It’ll pass. His body’s reacting to the demonic energy."

Lirien watched quietly, her eyes sharp but calm.

Winter’s cries echoed for almost a minute before they softened. He blinked rapidly, his breaths shaky. Then, slowly... his eyes opened wider.

Elyria froze.

Winter blinked again, his once-cloudy eyes now clear, glimmering with bright grey light. He looked around in awe.

"Mother?"

Elyria’s breath hitched. "You can... see?"

Winter smiled widely. "I can see you!"

Elyria’s tears came rushing again as she cupped his face.

"My baby... my sweet boy."

Rin leaned back, letting out a relieved sigh. A small, proud smile tugged at his lips. He didn’t know why he tried it, but it’s something he had seen while reading manhwa and also anime. He thought he could try it but didn’t expect it to work.

"It actually worked." He grinned.

Lirien smacked the back of his head. "You idiot! What if it didn’t?"

"Ow—!" Rin groaned, rubbing his head. "It worked, didn’t it?"

Lirien glared. "You still could’ve bled out, brat."

He held up his healed palm with a grin. "I’m fine. See? I heal fast."

Elyria turned to him, still crying but smiling through it.

"Thank you. You don’t know what this means to me."

Rin shrugged, hiding his own smile. "Just call me the cool big brother."

Winter giggled. "Big brother!"

"Ouuu!" Rin almost melted. "Say that again."

"Big brother!" Winter repeated louder.

"Oh! Jesus, you’re so cute,"

"Jesus? His name is Winter," Lirien sighed, shaking her head. "You’re both impossible."

Rin grinned and stood.

"Come on, Winter. Let’s show everyone how cute you are. I finally have a little brother to brag about."

Winter laughed, holding his hand.

"Wait," Lirien called, crossing her arms. "Close the brothel for today. We’ll throw a banquet to celebrate our dear madam’s return."

Rin smirked. "You sure you can afford it?"

Lirien rolled her eyes. "Please. This place makes enough gold in a day to feed half the city."

"Then it’s settled," Rin said, dragging Winter toward the door. "You’d better prepare something sweet. He loves biscuits."

"Go already before I change my mind," Lirien said, waving them off.

The door closed behind them, leaving the two women alone. The air in the room grew quiet again.

Elyria exhaled slowly, her expression soft but tired. "I don’t want to take back the brothel."

Lirien blinked. "What?"

Elyria smiled faintly.

"You’ve done well here. Better than I ever could. I’d rather you keep running it. I need to focus on regaining my power."

Lirien nodded after a long pause. "If that’s what you want."

Elyria’s smile faded when she saw Lirien’s expression turn serious.

"What’s wrong?"

Lirien’s tone dropped. "You should regain your strength quickly. Asmodeus is planning something. He wants Rin."

Elyria’s eyes widened. "What did you say?"

Lirien’s gaze hardened. "He wants your son for himself."

Elyria’s voice trembled. "Why?"

Lirien didn’t answer immediately. She looked toward the door where Rin and Winter had just left and whispered,

"Obviously it’s because he knows that Rin isn’t just any demon. He’s the last of your bloodline... and the key to the underworld. He also met your father,"

Elyria’s face drained of colour.

"What?"

And the room went silent.