Chapter 169

"It seems there's some kind of commotion happening inside the tower," Alpha remarked, eyes still scanning the mess of documents on his desk. His voice was calm, but curious.

Cosmo stood beside the small kitchenette, calmly stirring milk into a tall glass. Not coffee, Alpha never drank coffee. The eldest son of the Demon Lord preferred milk. Always had.

"Yes, Master Alpha," Cosmo confirmed, placing the spoon down. "Humans have been detected inside the tower."

Alpha's head slowly lifted from the pile of papers he'd been reviewing. "Humans?" he echoed, disbelief lacing his tone. Cosmo gave a single, unbothered nod.

"But… why aren't you panicking then? Shouldn't we be at least mildly alarmed that humans have entered Velrathis?" Alpha asked, brow raised.

Cosmo stepped closer, placing the warm glass of milk gently in front of him. "Mistress Luna is already dealing with them. They were discovered in Master Tuf's bedroom,"

Alpha blinked. "Tuf's… bedroom?" His voice dropped to a low murmur, more to himself than to Cosmo. "Why the hell would that deranged brother of mine send humans here?"

Cosmo's lips barely moved. "It seems they are on their way here now, Master."

The moment he said it, the grand double doors of the office swung open.

Luna walked in first, her movements regal and composed, her aura casting quiet authority over the room. Behind her came the four humans, three knights and a young woman carrying Pixie in her arms.

Delphine's throat went dry. The knights behind her instinctively stiffened as they stepped into the office of the man they assumed was the Demon Lord himself.

The man seated behind the large obsidian desk exuded power. Even sitting down, he was massive, his sheer presence forced them to look up slightly just to meet his eyes. His long white coat hugged broad shoulders, and the faint sapphire glow in his eyes hinted at something ancient.

"G-Greetings, My Lord," Delphine said respectfully once they reached the center of the room, Pixie still in her arms.

"My Lord?" Pixie repeated, confused. "He's not My Lord. He's just Master."

A low chuckle followed.

To their surprise, the giant behind the desk smiled. And gods, what a smile. Warm. Disarming. The kind of smile that made you want to spill your secrets and cry in his arms. A smile that made you feel like, if you were ever in trouble, he'd be the first to offer comfort. Like a friend… or a protector.

"It seems you mistook me for our father," he said, rising from his chair in one fluid, powerful motion. "I am not the Demon Lord Caelum. I am Alpha, the eldest of his ten children."

He stepped forward and extended a hand.

The knights hesitated. Just looking at the size of his hand made them wonder, if he squeezed even a little too hard, would their bones simply crack?

Delphine, unflinching, stepped forward and took his hand.

"I am Delphine, Master Alpha," she said with a soft smile.

"Just Alpha," he corrected gently. "Only subordinates attach 'Master' to my name. I believe you are guests of my little brother, Tuf?"

He then extended his hand to each of the knights, who, after a moment's hesitation, returned the gesture and introduced themselves one by one.

"Please, have a seat," Alpha said, motioning to the velvet chairs arranged near the center of the room.

The group murmured thanks and took their seats.

The three knights couldn't help but glance around, fascinated. The office was unlike anything they'd ever seen, even in royal palaces. Velvet drapery danced with mana threads, ancient weapons hung like art pieces on walls that shimmered with enchantments, and a floating map of Velrathis Empire hovered at the far end of the room, pulsating softly.

"So…" Alpha settled back into his chair, his expression finally growing serious. "Do you know why Tuf sent you here? And how exactly did you get past the Blinding Mist? I didn't feel anyone create a safe path."

Cecilion spoke first. "We came through a portal that Tuf himself opened."

Alpha's brow arched sharply. Even Cosmo paused.

"Tofu doesn't do portals," Pixie chimed innocently from Delphine's lap. "Vivi does. But not Tofu."

Delphine blinked.

"But he was the one who opened the portal from Aquilonis to here," Robin interjected, unable to stop himself. "Maybe it closed suddenly because… he's not experienced enough to hold it open?"

"Impossible," Cosmo muttered, his usually neutral tone laced with disbelief. "Portal weaving isn't one of Master Tuf's abilities."

Alpha's sapphire gaze shifted meaningfully to Luna, who was lounging in an ornate velvet high chair near the window, her posture relaxed but her expression unreadable, as if she knew something she wasn't sharing.

"So tell us, humans," Cosmo continued, his stare hard and skeptical. "How did you manage to pass through the Blinding Mist, and more importantly, breach the Black Tower?"

Before any of them could answer, a high-pitched voice cut through the tension like a whip.

"Hey! Cosmo! Don't look at my Delphine like that!" Pixie snapped, standing on Delphine's lap with her tiny hands planted defiantly on her hips, her eyes narrowed in adorable fury.

"Your Delphine?" Alpha and Luna echoed in unison, both raising an eyebrow.

"Yes," Pixie declared. "She's mine now. Because she's pitiful. So pitiful she had to be friends with Tofu. So now she belongs to me, and she doesn't need to be friends with him anymore."

"But, Regent…" Cosmo tried to protest, but Alpha cut him off smoothly.

"That's enough, Cosmo." Alpha's voice dropped into command. "If they say it was Tuf who opened the portal, then it was him."

Then his stern gaze softened slightly as he turned to Pixie.

"And Pixie… you can't just claim people like toys. They're not possessions."

"But she's mine!" Pixie's big eyes welled with tears as she looked back at Delphine. "Right, Delphine? You're mine, aren't you?"

Delphine opened her mouth, instinctively about to agree, because how could anyone say no to that heartbreaking face?

"Don't answer that, Delphine," Alpha said before she could speak, his tone gentle but firm.

Pixie's eyes widened in betrayal. Then her expression shifted. Her tiny body trembled as she slid down from Delphine's lap and stormed toward Alpha.

And with all her might, she punched him.

Well, tried to.

Her little fist landed on Alpha's thigh, the highest part she could reach.

Then, without a word, she turned and bolted toward the door where Calixira and the aides were waiting.

"Alpha, you're BAD!" she shouted, voice cracking with emotion. "I'm going to tell Papa on you!"

The aides rushed after her, calling out her name as she disappeared beyond the doors.

Alpha sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Sorry about that. But if Pixie puts you on the spot, don't say yes, not unless you truly mean it. She'll hold onto it forever."

The knights and Delphine all nodded awkwardly.

"Anyway," Alpha continued, his tone shifting back to business, "let's return to the real topic. So, why did Tuf send you here?"

Delphine took a deep breath.

"He didn't. He was supposed to follow after us, along with our Empress, my brother Legion, Lady Arwen, and the Holy Beast Seiryu. Our Empress wanted to speak with the Demon Lord Caelum. But the portal suddenly closed behind us… and they never arrived."

Alpha looked once more to Luna.

"Is his portal failing?" he asked.

Luna shook her head slowly. "No. But I did feel something strange. The portal didn't close naturally, it felt like something swallowed his Dark Energy."

Alpha's expression darkened. "Does it function like Vivi's?"

"Yes. But it's a smaller version. Only five people can cross at a time, unlike Vivi's portals, which can handle a hundred thousand," Luna explained.

"Ahm… excuse me," Renee raised his hand hesitantly like a schoolboy, then glanced at Alpha. "Why do you sound like you didn't know Tuf could create portals?"

"Because," Alpha said with a light chuckle, "this is the first time I'm hearing that he can."

He leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled. "Truth is, aside from Luna and our father, none of us know what Tuf's actual abilities are. As far as we've all witnessed, his deadliest power is annoying someone to death."

The corners of his lips curved upward in a wry smile.

"You mean… you don't know his powers?" Cecilion asked, stunned.

"No," Alpha replied honestly. "He's never shown them, not fully. During fights, he uses nothing but his bare hands. No magic. No weapons. No flair."

Alpha glanced knowingly at the knights. "Judging by the look on your faces… I'm guessing he showed you more than just fists. Did he show you something amazing?"

Robin leaned forward, his expression grim, jaw clenched as he recalled the memory.

"'Something amazing'?" he echoed, voice tight with disbelief. "If almost erasing Aquilonis from the map counts as amazing, then yeah. We saw something."

Alpha let out a low chuckle.

"For now, we don't know what to do with you," he said, lacing his fingers together as he leaned back in his chair. "We'll have to wait for our father to decide whether to send you back to your kingdom or keep you here until Tuf arrives with your Empress."

He then turned to Cosmo. "Prepare refreshments for our guests."

Cosmo bowed slightly and exited the room.

"While we wait, why don't you tell us what that brother of ours did that left such an impression," Alpha added, curiosity glinting in his eyes.

Encouraged by his openness, and by the absence of hostility, Cecilion, Renee, and Robin wasted no time. With Delphine silently listening beside them, the knights began recounting the story of Tuf's first day in Aquilonis.

They told him everything.

How chaos erupted the moment he arrived.

How one man had stood alone against ten thousand soldiers. How they thought they had cornered him, only for him to tear off the enchanted chains from his wrists, and become a hundred times stronger.

How he multiplied, summoned Valkyries, resurrected the dead into a skeletal army, conjured monsters, and then dragons.

And how, when five dragons fused into one, it birthed the apocalyptic Death Dragon, the very creature that had forced their Empress to surrender.

Alpha listened closely, head tilting slightly. His smile was faint, but his eyes flickered with genuine interest.

Luna, for once, didn't hide her reactions. A rare smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, and even a quiet shake of her head betrayed her inner amusement at her beloved brother's usual chaos.

"He even said he wanted to kill Seiryu's master, our Empress," Cecilion added, exasperated. "Because apparently… she made Luna paranoid."

"I wasn't paranoid," Luna interjected, a bit too fast. "I was… concerned."

Alpha laughed. "That's her version of paranoid."

The knights couldn't help but grin.

Alpha laughed, fully now. A rich, deep sound that eased some of the lingering tension in the room.

"Sounds like he did a lot more than just observe, considering Father only instructed him to keep an eye on your kingdom," Alpha remarked.

"If he had unleashed that much power from the start, I think Aquilonis wouldn't be on the map anymore, before lunch," Renee muttered.

Luna raised a brow. "That wasn't his full power."

Their heads snapped to her.

"What?" Delphine blinked. "That wasn't?"

"No." Luna set her coffee cup down with a soft clink. "As you described, he only removed two chains, those around his wrists. Tuf wears five. Two on his hands, two on his ankles… and the last one, if you've seen him up close, is the obsidian earring on his left ear."

The room fell into stunned silence.

They hadn't even noticed the earring had meaning.

Before Delphine could ask more, the doors of the office burst open again.

"Alpha, you're in trouble now!" Pixie's small voice rang like a bell. She marched in, arms crossed, eyes still red but glittering with defiance.

Alpha blinked, amused. "Did you… wake up Father?"

"Yes. And you're in trouble." She stuck out her tongue and turned toward the doorway. "Papa! Alpha made me cry. You punish him, okay?"

Delphine, Cecilion, Robin, and Renee all visibly tensed.

Their blood froze. Their breath caught in their throats.

He's here.

The Demon Lord. The legendary, fearsome Caelum.

Even Luna and Alpha stood as if on instinct, brushing imaginary wrinkles from their clothes. That alone told the guests that his presence wasn't something to take lightly.

Delphine stood too, followed by the three knights, hands twitching at their sides.

Sweat cooled quickly on their palms.

He's coming.

"Papa, carry me," Pixie demanded as someone approached from the hallway. "Carry me while you scold Alpha, please."

And then, they saw him.

And their breath left their bodies.

Because he was not what they expected at all.

He was tall, yes, but not as towering as Alpha. His presence wasn't overtly monstrous, nor did he carry the infernal wrath they had imagined.

In fact, he looked eerily similar to Tuf, if Tuf were a year older and far, far calmer.

He had gentle, thoughtful golden eyes. Soft, dark hair that framed a refined face. He exuded power, yes, but not the kind that crushed you under its weight.

His aura was composed, quiet, controlled.

And as he knelt to pick up Pixie with practiced ease, he didn't feel like a demon lord.

He felt like a father.

"Papa," Pixie whispered sweetly as she curled into his embrace. "Alpha was mean."

Caelum smiled, a smile of a doting father.

Then slowly, he looked up at Alpha…

And then…

At the four humans standing before him.

Delphine's pulse thundered in her ears.

This… This gentle man is the Demon Lord Caelum?