Chapter 692: Telling His Story (1)

Third Person’s POV

"I know you missed me too. But I am here now, by your side.

You don’t need to hold back your emotions anymore."

The moment those words left Ethan’s mouth, all the shame, shyness, and embarrassment in Aurelia’s eyes vanished.

For a brief moment, she simply stared at him, as though his words had struck a place deep within her that she had been desperately trying to run away from.

Then the shock in her eyes slowly changed into a bittersweet sadness.

The next moment, she threw her arms around Ethan and began to cry inconsolably.

All the emotions of fear, despair, anger, and longing she had kept buried for the past ten years seemed to pour out at once.

Ethan held her gently in his arms, allowing her to cry without saying anything more.

He looked down at the red-haired girl sobbing against his chest, his expression softening as he slowly patted her head with one hand while keeping his other arm wrapped around her slim waist.

He could feel her shoulders trembling against him.

Her fingers had tightly grasped the fabric of his clothes as though she were afraid that if she loosened her grip even for a moment, he might disappear from her sight again.

Ethan didn’t try to stop her from crying.

He simply let her let all of it out.

His shirt became completely wet within a few minutes from her tears, but he didn’t seem to care in the slightest.

For someone who had spent ten years separated from the people he loved, this simple embrace was more precious than anything he could have said.

Eventually, after roughly five minutes, Aurelia’s uncontrollable crying gradually subsided into quiet sobs and occasional sniffles.

It was then that Eleanor’s dull voice suddenly sounded from behind them.

"Hey, Aurelia, till how many years are you planning on crying?

From the moment you have seen my son, all you have done is cry.

Are you a child?

Don’t you understand that we are in such a dangerous place?"

The sudden words startled Aurelia, causing her to jump away from Ethan.

Ethan also turned around and looked toward his mother.

Eleanor’s eyes had narrowed into slits as she gazed at Aurelia before slowly shifting her attention toward him.

There was a faint displeasure in her expression.

Ethan couldn’t quite put his finger on what exactly had caused it.

Aurelia, however, seemed to understand the situation immediately.

"I am sorry, Aunt Eleanor! I didn’t mean to cause such a scene..."

She hurriedly wiped the remaining tears from her cheeks and apologized several times, her expression filled with embarrassment.

Eleanor simply waved her hand dismissively.

"Enough. I wasn’t seriously scolding you."

Hearing that, Aurelia’s tense expression immediately relaxed, and a small smile appeared on her face.

She knew Eleanor well enough to understand that this interaction was nothing serious.

It was simply Eleanor’s somewhat blunt and endearing way of scolding her for being too weak at heart after watching her cry for several minutes.

The brief emotional atmosphere between the three of them finally settled.

Eleanor then sat down in front of Ethan, her previous expression replaced by one of curiosity.

There were many questions she had wanted to ask ever since Ethan had regained consciousness, and now that they finally had a private moment together, she had no intention of holding them back any longer.

"Now, tell us where you were for the last ten years.

Where were you teleported to?

And what happened to that dark demon visage that appeared during your awakening ceremony all those years ago?"

Listening to these long-expected questions, Ethan let out a quiet sigh.

Only he knew how many times he had imagined this exact moment during the past ten years.

Whenever he allowed himself to think about reuniting with his family, he had often constructed this scene in his mind, imagining what he would say when they finally asked him where he had been all these years.

However, now that the moment had actually arrived, the words felt heavier than he had imagined.

"You can never guess the place I found myself in the moment I woke up, Mom..."

His voice carried a trace of seriousness as he spoke.

Ethan’s crimson eyes gradually seemed to glaze over with darkness when he looked toward the worn ceiling above them, as though the memories of that place were still vividly etched into his mind.

He didn’t immediately continue.

Instead, he first raised one hand.

A dim, dark mana essence quietly bloomed on his palm.

The darkness slowly expanded outward, spreading through the surrounding air before eventually forming a large dome that enveloped the three of them.

The moment the barrier took shape, the atmosphere inside the room changed.

The outside world seemed to become distant and muted.

This dark barrier effectively blocked outside interference and prevented anyone from easily spying on their conversation or sensing what was happening inside.

Both women were once again shocked by what they witnessed.

This was clearly a type of isolation barrier magic, and Ethan had created it with such casual ease that neither of them could immediately hide their surprise.

Still, neither Eleanor nor Aurelia showed much outward reaction.

After everything that had happened during this day, they had already been shocked by Ethan more times than they could count.

Even so, they couldn’t help but marvel at the darkness flowing around his hand.

This was the first time they had seen Ethan use that mysterious element so naturally.

They had only witnessed the strange darkness during his awakening ceremony, and afterward, they had often wondered why he never seemed to use it in his battle against the demons in the day.

Eventually, they had assumed that Ethan was deliberately concealing his dual elemental affinity and proficiency, most likely because revealing such an ability would attract unnecessary attention.

Seeing him casually construct such a sophisticated isolation barrier now, however, made them realize that there was clearly much more to his control over darkness than they had previously understood.

Ethan finally lowered his hand slightly and continued.