16. Who is the handsome man beside Seiran?!

Jae Woon clears his throat after he had managed to calm his raging hormone and a particular issue down below. His cheek still had faint tints of pink hues. Nevertheless, he intends to ignore his body's needs and focus on the crucial problem.

"Please-cough-describe the curse. My mother must have told you something about the upcoming war and curse."

"I only know the curse will strike on the kingdom the moment you reached 18 years old. And, it will become worse after this point if the Emperor refused to stop his tyranny. Carina also said this in her letter. She keeps reminding me to help and assist you in the upcoming war. The Great War will happen sooner or later between us and the Maverick faction. That's all." Liliane honestly replied. "Although, she never pinpoint what kind of curse will befall on us."

"I need to talk with the stup...I mean, my father." Jae Woon said. He almost blurted out the word stupid in front of them. It is inappropriate to call the Emperor like that, even though the man is his father[in name only].

"I understand. When my husband is coming back from the palace, I will ask him to bring you there."

"Thank you, Lady Liliane, for actually telling us the harsh and hidden truth. It's must be hard on you, isn't it?"

Liliane wryly smiles.

"I had sinned toward my friend and her son. For a long time, I hid the truth. I didn't deserve your forgiveness, my prince. Nor I deserved to be forgiven by my daughter. I am sorry. My selfishness had dragged your suffering up to this point."

Seiran circled her arms around the thin waist of her mother. She buried her face in Liliane's bumpy chest, nuzzling her neck in affection.

"It's not your fault, mother. You just scared. You feared for the unknown possibilities and inconsistent future."

Liliane tenderly caressed her daughter's hair. She returned her hug and pampered Seiran with kisses. Seiran is giggling as she felt ticklish around her neck.

---------

Jae Woon tentatively glanced at Mochi which had been munching popcorn on the corner of the room. Its delightful smile ticked him off. He thought Mochi took off somewhere and fled. This gluttonous energy ball is surprisingly disappeared into its space to fetch snacks and junk food.

{Mochi?}

(Yes, host?) Mochi blinked its round eyes to Jae Woon. Its face is tainted with the residue of popcorn's crumbling pieces, and Mochi's condition is a bit messy.

{How many things you hide from me?} Jae Woon squinted his eyes. {You said I only need to help the male lead escaped his miserable fate. But, from what I heard, this is not a simple fate counterattacking. A war might happen soon, between the good side and the evil side. Is the dark and sinister force you mentioned previously is the same kind as this Maverick?}

Mochi throws the empty bowl into its space that resembled a bottomless void.

(Well, Maverick is a branch of them, host. In this world, you can say, Maverick is the main villain, the last evil boss you need to defeat.) Mochi took out another bowl of snacks from its space.

Jae Woon's brows twitched in displeasure. This blue energy ball had enormous storage of snacks in its possession. Yet, why didn't it think about its host's hunger? If he is not mistaken, he hasn't eaten anything for two days, damn it! Why didn't his stomach grumbling though? He also no longer felt hungry.

{You sure eat a lot, Mochi. And even drunk alcohol the first time we meet. I thought you were an AI?}

(I never said that I eat because of hunger. It's more like my own satisfaction to eat something. And, I can adjust my taste, emotion, and feeling as much as I desired.) Mochi nonchalantly replied. (The benefit we get depends on the level of missions we completed. More like, the seniority determines the ranking. I finished thousand of expeditions, with around 102 hosts, in the span of two thousand years! Isn't it amazing, host?) The blue energy ball puffed out its chest with its face full of pride.

{Sure, sure, you're indeed amazing. Congrats, Mochi.} Jae Woon dryly replied. {You haven't answered my question, Mochi.}

(What question? By the way, host, those ladies are staring at you weirdly as you are contemplating in silence.)

Jae Woon cuts his conversation with Mochi. As he glanced at the two beautiful women, his face flushed in embarrassment. Red color spread out all over his face, and Jae Woon pinched his nose immediately. He's having a nosebleed!

Lady Liliane and Seiran, with faces, closely resembled one another, tilted their head in wonder. Confused expressions plastered on their faces. Especially for Seiran, her innocent persona immaculate with her beauty is shooting an arrow straight to Jae Woon's heart. Jae Woon unwillingly tore his gazes from her and run to the kitchen in haste. He tightly pinched the bridge of his nose. Blood is trickling down his thumb.

Both of them were stunned by his abrupt action and exchanging curious glances with one another. Lady Liliane's lips curled into a smile as she shook her head in understanding. Ah, young love. How nostalgic.

"Mother, what's wrong with Danny?" Seiran tugged her arm and asked her in a worried tone. "Is he okay?"

"Don't worry. The prince had an intense reaction due to someone. As soon as he calmed down, he will be back here." Lady Liliane casually replied. Honestly, she couldn't trust the prince with the responsibility to take care of Seiran, yet, who is she to defy fate? She is only a normal human being. Only god could control human destiny. All she can do is guide them and protected them from the sideline.

"I will check him up. He might have an aftereffect due to the hasty healing ritual." Seiran stands up. "Amee..."

"Seiran!!! Are you okay?!" Three persons are barging into the living room, simultaneously asking her a question. The concerned looks on their face are undoubtedly amusing that Seiran burst out into laughter as soon as she regained her composure.

"Do you guys have a nice trip to the palace, Daddy, Brother Julian, and Brother Sean? And, where is big brother Arthur?"

"I am here." An exhausted voice replied. Arthur is teleported directly on the sofa and plopped down beside his mother. "Those three are the worst! I almost couldn't hold their ridiculous outburst when they heard you went missing for overnight, Seiran."

Seiran chuckles. Her oldest brother, Arthur, is a mix of their mother and father. He had their father's gold hair with a hint of black on the very end, combed stylishly to the back of his head, and their mother's oceanic eyes. Previously, his bother is very protective of her. However, when Seiran reached eighteen years old, Arthur changed his personality to a better one. He still as protective as before, yet, consciously restrained his possessiveness.

Although, Arthur's other siblings, with the addition of their father, are giving him a severe headache. He usually becomes the person who acts as a peacemaker among the other person and his family. Since everything related to Seiran will be making those three crazy.

"As you can see, I am okay." Seiran ascertained her well-being to their family. "Oh, someone is here. Please don't be rude to him, or else..."

"What? Who is here?! Don't tell me that piggy is..." Julian shut his mouth as Seiran glared dagger at him.

"Are you sure it is okay for the prince to leave the palace's ground?" Arthur raised his eyebrows. "I mean, maybe the emperor will not notice his disappearance, but he is still a royalty."

Sean scoffed.

"As if the Emperor cared about him. He might indulge in the lust and human desire all night long and pushed the national affair to the prime minister. The Prime minister's power steadily rose these last two or three years. I'm afraid, soon, inside fighting will happen between the royalty and prime minister."

"The Emperor hasn't named his heir, isn't it, guys? Those left in the Royal Palace are all the concubine's sons. They lacked manners, dumb, and had the worst personality. Poor Maria, the Imperial concubine. She the most favored one, yet she cannot give birth to a son for The Emperor."

"Do you think Grandfather will rename you as the next leader to compete with the royalty? Since you're the oldest." Julian is eyeing their older brother with a genuine curiosity in his hazel orbs. He ruffled his messy black hair and slumped his body into the mahogany chair in the corner of the living room.

"No way. Ran will hate me if I do that. Besides, didn't the prince is still around?" Arthur shook his head. True to his notion, Seiran glared at her brother with an 'If you dare to convert Danial's seat, I'll kick your balls' look. "See that? She might cripple me if I ever had that intention in my mind."

Julian and Sean smirk. They both glanced at their sister, who is now pouting her cherry lips. Seiran crossed her arms over her body, her back straight as a ramrod, huffing and puffing her angry breaths.

Suddenly, a big, warm hand draped over her wavy blond hair and affectionately ruffling her curly locks. Seiran turned her head, and she is making eye contact with the smiling Danial. Danial just washed his face, and his snow-white hair still glistens with water residue. His brown eyes gleamed in elated feeling.

"Danny!" Seiran squealed. "Don't treat me like a child."

"Yes, yes." Jae Woon adoringly replied.

The other four men's jaws dropped. They stared at the tall man and Seiran in utter disbelief.

"Who the fuck are you?!" Sean and Julian simultaneously asked.

Arthur blinked his eyes in confusion. A flash of familiarity bypassed his hazel orbs before they returned to normal. Arthur is quite dumbfounded by his body's reaction. Familiar? Why? Does he know this man?

Aklight almost stumbled off from his seat when Jae Woon appeared. The resemblance of the young male with someone shocked him to the core.

Ca-Carina...?!