Chapter 112: HUSBANDS MEETING

NERION /CAELAN

Nerion stood motionless, his eyes fixed on the man before him.

Why did it have to be him?

Nerion forced a smile onto his face, concealing the irritation that had already begun to build inside him.

"Well, well. What a surprise. I never expected to meet you here. Cousin.."

Caelan glanced at him indifferently and continued sniffing the soil. He just couldn’t detect Vivian anymore. And he knew it was Aston doing.

"I didn’t come here to visit you."

Of course you didn’t, Nerion thought bitterly.

He maintained his smile. "Then what brings you here, Cousin?"

Caelan’s eyes narrowed slightly at the word.

But he said nothing. Instead, he continued his search acting like Nerion was merely a servant who had come to deliver a message. Or a polluted air disrupting his peace.

"I heard your family intends to establish a partnership with Elena."

Nerion’s smile widened. "So the news has reached you already."

"Naturally. It’s hardly a secret."

"The partnership is a family decision. Everyone agrees that it will benefit us."

"Everyone?"

Caelan raised an eyebrow. Nerion’s smile stiffened. "Most of us."

"How reassuring."

The sarcasm in Caelan’s voice was unmistakable.

Nerion resisted the urge to grind his teeth.

Caelan had always possessed that infuriating ability to make others feel insignificant without even raising his voice. He didn’t need to threaten anyone. His mere presence was often enough to make people reconsider their words.

And Nerion hated him for it.

"Is there something else you wish to discuss?" Nerion asked.

Caelan turned to him slightly, looking at him over his shoulders. "Yes. There’s one thing you should understand before your family becomes too comfortable with this arrangement."

His gaze sharpened. "I will be Elena’s first husband. Since the Drayke family requested it first."

The words fell between them.

Nerion’s smile remained in place, but his fingers curled tightly against his palm. "Her first husband?"

"Did I stutter?"

"No." Nerion chuckled softly. "I was simply wondering whether Elena has agreed to this little arrangement of yours."

Caelan’s expression didn’t change. "That is between Elena and me."

"Of course."

Nerion lowered his gaze, digging his nails into his palm.

Arrogant bastard!! Who does he think he is? With his long ears and horns. He doesn’t know how ugly he is!! Can he compare to my pretty tail?

He had heard the rumours surrounding Caelan and Elena. Their relationship was complicated, to say the least, but Caelan had never been the sort of man to abandon something he wanted.

Especially when he believed it belonged to him.

Nerion lifted his head. "Since we’re discussing Elena, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you."

Caelan gave him a bored look. "Make it quick."

"Why are you looking for Vivian?"

For the first time since their conversation began, Caelan’s expression changed.

He stood upright. His brows drew together, and the temperature in the courtyard seemed to drop.

"What did you just say?"

Nerion blinked innocently. "Vivian. Elena’s elder sister."

Caelan rose to his feet. His eyes locked onto Nerion’s face. "How do you know about Vivian?"

The question came so abruptly that Nerion almost lost his composure.

Almost. He quickly recovered, forcing a careless shrug.

"I heard about her. Everyone knows Elena has an elder sister with a rather unpleasant reputation."

Caelan’s expression darkened. "Who told you that?"

Nerion’s eyes darted briefly toward the forest trees. It was a small movement, but Caelan noticed.

"Does it matter?" Nerion asked. "I’m simply curious. Why are you looking for her here? Surely you didn’t come all this way just to search for Elena’s troublesome elder sister. What kind of relationship do you have with her?"

Caelan stared at him. For several seconds, he said nothing.

Nerion could feel the weight of his gaze pressing against him.

It was an uncomfortable sensation, like standing beneath the shadow of something enormous and knowing that one wrong movement might attract its attention.

Caelan took a step closer. "Listen carefully, Nerion."

His voice was quiet, but every word carried a warning.

"Whatever you’ve heard about Vivian, keep it to yourself. And whatever business I have with her is none of yours."

Nerion’s smile faded slightly. "I was only asking a question." Those words already gave him a sign. That he also has a weird relationship with her. Why are both Elena’s men entangled with Vivian?

"And I’ve given you an answer."

Caelan turned away.

Then, as though remembering something unpleasant, he paused.

"One more thing."

Nerion looked up. Caelan glanced over his shoulder. "Don’t call me Cousin!!."

Nerion’s expression stiffened. Caelan’s lips curled into a cold smile. "I am not related to Merfolks!!."

Silence descended upon the forest. For a moment, Nerion could hear nothing but the furious pounding of his own heart.

Nerion’s mother was born into the Qilin Deer Clan. She was cast out because she fell in love with a Merfolk and chose to remain with him. And Caelan hated having any relationship to fishes

His eyes swept over Nerion with undisguised contempt.

"Your Mother’s misfortune doesn’t make us family."

Nerion’s fingernails dug deeper into his palm. He had always hated this part of his life’s story.

Not because his mother had been banished, but because Caelan spoke of Merfolk as though they were beneath him, despite being blood related to a woman who had once loved one.

He is from.the Qilin Deer Clan, and he wore that heritage like a crown.

To Caelan, it was proof that he was different. Superior. Untouchable.

And he never missed an opportunity to remind others of it.

Caelan adjusted his coat. "Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have more important matters to attend to."

He walked past Nerion without waiting for a response.

His footsteps echoed across the forest leaves before gradually fading into the distance.

Nerion remained where he was. His smile had disappeared entirely.

He stared at the route through which Caelan had left, his entire body trembling with suppressed fury.

Then he spun around and drove his foot into the nearest tree.

The impact sent a shower of leaves fluttering to the ground.

"Damn him!"

He kicked the trunk again. "Acting all mighty! Who does he think he is?"

His guards, who had been waiting at a distance, immediately lowered their heads.

None dared approach.

Nerion clenched his jaw. "That arrogant bastard thinks his bloodline makes him better than everyone else. One day, I’ll make him regret looking down on me."

He pressed his palm against the tree, breathing heavily.

But even as he cursed Caelan, another thought began to trouble him.

How much does he know about Vivian?

Caelan’s reaction had been too intense.

He hadn’t merely been surprised to hear her name.

He had been alarmed.

And Nerion had no intention of letting that detail escape him.

He straightened slowly.

"Find Caelan," he ordered one of his guards.

The guard looked up in surprise.

"Your Highness?"

"Not to confront him. I want to know where he’s going and who he’s meeting."

"Understood."

"And if you hear anything about Vivian, report it to me immediately."

The guard bowed and hurried away.

Nerion looked toward the sky.

Something was happening.

Something that involved Vivian, Caelan, and possibly Elena.

And he intended to discover what it was before anyone else could.

Somewhere in the Forest...

"Where the hell did she go?"

Herbert pushed aside another thick branch, his irritation growing with every step.

Serial excused himself, he was tired of Herbert’s tantrums. He went further to find her. Serial was calm, he had searched the surrounding forest for nearly an hour, but there was still no sign of Vivian.

Not even a trace of her presence.

It was becoming increasingly frustrating.

He had purposely left her and the beasts for her to devour. He knew she came along to this mission because she needs dead Beasts. But no trace of her.

Yet, when he returned to the area, the beasts had vanished.

Every last one of them.

Serial stopped beside a large boulder and scanned the forest.

Did she really eat everything?

The thought made him frown.

It wasn’t that he doubted Vivian’s appetite. After everything he had witnessed, he was beginning to believe that her stomach had no limits.

But where could she possibly have gone?

He turned and headed back toward the Herbert..Perhaps they had found something. Or perhaps Vivian had returned without him noticing.

He could only hope.

By the time Serial reached the forest clearing, Herbert was pacing back and forth, his expression dark with frustration.

The moment he spotted Serial, he hurried over.

"Well? Did you find her?"

Serial shook his head.

"No."

Herbert stopped pacing. "What do you mean, no? Where are the beasts? They were all here when we left!"

Serial glanced toward the empty clearing. "I don’t know. Maybe another beast came along and ate them."

Herbert stared at him as though he had just said something utterly ridiculous.

"Another beast ate them?"

"That’s what I said."

"Are you listening to yourself? How does a beast eat that many of its own kind without leaving a single trace?"

Serial shrugged. "Perhaps it was hungry."