Luca blinked, his brain taking a moment to process what Luna had just said.

Her father?

For a second, he thought he had misheard her.

But no. That man standing proudly in front of the male elves, the one with the long golden hair and that infuriatingly perfect face was actually her father.

A wave of disbelief washed over him. But at the same time, it made sense.

Of course the one leading the group would be someone of importance, someone connected to the ruling bloodline.

He should have figured it out earlier, but the thought hadn't even crossed his mind.

Luna had never mentioned her father before, and with the way she had spoken of the male elves as traitors, he had simply assumed the man was no longer part of her life.

And now...he realized the man he'd just joked about smacking in the face was Luna's father.

The realization hit him like a hammer. His eyes widened, and he quickly turned to Luna, awkward laughter bubbling from his throat.

"Ah—uh, sorry about that." He stammered, scratching the back of his head with a nervous grin. "I didn't know he was your father, really! The whole 'I want to slap him' thing was just a...joke! Yeah, a joke! I wasn't serious, I swear."

He let out an uneasy laugh, glancing at her apologetically.

"I mean, come on, I'm not the type to go around whacking people's dads in the face, you know?"

He braced himself for Luna's anger—he fully expected her to glare, pout, or even scold him for being disrespectful.

But to his surprise, she just looked at him for a moment, her expression unreadable. Then she said softly,

"It's fine. Everyone makes mistakes."

Luca blinked. "Wait...what?"

She turned away, her long hair swaying with the motion. "I said it's fine. You didn't know. Don't worry about it."

Her voice was calm—too calm and before he could say anything else, she simply folded her arms and looked away, clearly uninterested in discussing it further.

That threw him completely off.

He'd expected at least a little defensiveness, or maybe hurt, but instead...nothing. No anger. No emotion.

That reaction stunned Luca far more than if she had yelled at him.

He was confused and then glanced at Leona and Nyx, expecting some sort of reaction from them instead.

But Leona didn't even glance at him, her eyes fixed ahead. Nyx, on the other hand, looked mildly amused, as though watching a play unfold.

And when he finally looked at Lulu, she was grinning—no, not just grinning, but looking at him with clear approval, almost as if she were silently saying,

"Good job! I approve of what you said!"

'What the hell?' He thought, staring at her. 'They actually seem fine with it...are they all secretly on my side here?'

'But why was that guy's own family reacting like this?'

Then, as he looked between the two groups—the male elves with their smug expressions, and the female elves standing in quiet formation—understanding slowly dawned on him.

'They hate him.'

It all made sense now.

The coldness, the distance, the lack of outrage.

They weren't angry about what he said because of what their family member had done.

The betrayal.

He looked back at the man, Julius and realized that this wasn't just an old family wound.

This was something deeper.

Leona's exhaustion made sense now. Her expression wasn't one of fear, but of resignation.

Nyx's faint smile wasn't amusement, it was the only way she could mask bitterness.

And the girls...the daughters who should have adored their father...looked at him like he was a stranger.

Luca felt something tighten in his chest.

'So that's how it is.' He thought. 'The husband who left his wife and daughters for the human race. The father who abandoned his family.'

He could already imagine it—Leona, betrayed and heartbroken; Nyx, the loyal sister, left to pick up the pieces; Luna and Lulu, too young to understand, forced to grow up without the man who should've protected them.

"Damn...I walked straight into family drama." He muttered under his breath.

And because of this confrontation, he fully expected the air to crackle with hostility any second now.

He thought that Leona would call him out, that Nyx would draw her blade, that one wrong move would erupt into chaos.

But to his complete disbelief...it didn't.

Instead, the exact happened as Julius took a few graceful steps forward. His face softened into a dazzling smile, and he spread his arms wide as if welcoming a dear friend.

"My beautiful wife!" He called out, his tone warm and bright. "How long has it been? Far too long! It truly brings joy to my heart to see your lovely face again. Truly, I thought I would from not seeing it for too long."

Luca's brain stopped working for a moment.

What.

He blinked once. Twice.

This wasn't the cold, bitter reunion he was expecting.

This was...flirting.

And not just flirting—this was the kind of overly-sweet, shamelessly dramatic declaration straight out of some bad romance play.

The audacity of the man left him speechless.

He looked at Leona, expecting her to scoff, to slap him, to glare holes into his skull.

But what happened next made his jaw go slack.

Leona...smiled.

It wasn't bright or warm, but it was unmistakably a smile.

The same woman who rarely even cracked a grin for her own daughters now smiled—for him.

She then let out a small sigh, her tone composed yet strangely soft as she stepped forward as well.

"It's good to see you again too, Julius." She said quietly. "Though it hasn't even been that long since we last met. It's only been...two weeks."

"Ah." Julius said with a grin, stepping closer. "Two weeks, yes. But even two weeks feels like an eternity away from you."

"I say this because the human continent is full of wonders, my dear—cities that glitter, inventions that shine brighter than magic itself—but none of them compare to your beauty."

Leona's smile twitched, and though she tried to keep it steady, it looked strained.

Still, she nodded politely.

Julius, seemingly oblivious—or simply not caring—gestured to one of the male elves behind him. The elf hurried forward, carrying a large woven basket filled to the brim with strange objects and trinkets.

"Speaking of which." Julius said brightly. "I brought gifts from the human lands. Exotic foods, rare fruits, delicacies they call 'pastries'—and of course, a few things specially made for women."

He knelt down slightly, rummaging through the basket.

"This cream here..." He said, holding up a glass jar. "...is said to make your skin glow brighter than moonlight. And this—" He lifted a thin, silvery tube "—you put on your eyelashes to make them glisten."

"Imagine, my dear Leona, how gorgeous you'll look with these. I made sure to bring the best."

He handed the basket to her with a charming smile, as if expecting her to be delighted.

Leona hesitated, then slowly took it from him.

"Thank you for being so considerate." She said without much actual appreciation.

But then she looked down at the items inside and her smile faltered.

"However." She continued, her voice growing more distant. "I don't think it would be appropriate to use human products when we're fighting against them. You should probably take these back."

Julius waved his hand dismissively, chuckling.

"No, no, nonsense! Just ignore where they came from. Think of them as gifts from your husband, not from humans. It's fine."

He pushed the basket gently back toward her, his grin unwavering.

"Please, take it. All of it is for you."

While they were pushing the basket back and forth, Luca, standing off to the side, watched the whole scene unfold with an expression halfway between confusion and disbelief.

'What in the hell am I even watching right now?'

This wasn't the reunion between vengeful ex-lovers he expected.

It wasn't a confrontation.

It was...something else entirely.

Something deeply uncomfortable.

After all, Leona, the cold and calculating matriarch, was forcing a smile for the man who had abandoned her. While Julius, the charming traitor, was acting like nothing had ever gone wrong.

And even as he wondered about what was going on, Julius kept talking, piling on compliments and words of affection as if nothing in the world was wrong.

And Leona, for reasons Luca couldn't begin to understand, stood there listening—smiling, nodding, pretending.

It was awkward. Painfully, unbearably awkward.

But just when Luca thought the situation couldn't possibly get any stranger—or more confusing—Nyx suddenly stepped forward.

He tensed instinctively.

Given her personality and how fiercely protective she'd been the day before, Luca was certain she was about to hurl venomous words at Julius.

Maybe even threaten him, shove him back from Leona's side, or call him out for his betrayal.

But what actually happened made Luca's brain short-circuit.

Nyx approached Julius with a bright, flirtatious smile, her eyes half-lidded and her tone dripping with exaggerated sweetness.

"Oh, come on, brother-in-law!" She said, her voice sing-song. "You've been standing here all this time talking only to my sister, and you totally forgot about me!"

"Do you not care about me at all these days?"

Luca's mouth parted open so much so that Lulu had to close it before her started drooling.

'What...the hell? W-What the actual hell is going on here?'

But no one minded Luca losing his mind, as Julius laughed warmly like he was delighted by the teasing.

"Of course not, Nyx." He said warmly. "How could I ever forget about you?"

He motioned for one of the male elves to step forward and produced another basket from among the goods they'd brought.

"Here—this one's for you. It's filled with the things I know you'd like, and even a set of garments that would suit you perfectly. Try them—you'll see."

Nyx accepted the basket, tilting her head playfully as if amused. But before Luca could process how surreal the scene was, Julius leaned in with a grin and said,

"Now that I've given you your gifts, don't you think you owe your brother-in-law a hug?"

Luca almost choked on air.

'Is she actually going to hug the man who abandoned her sister and niece's?'

But to his relief—Nyx sidestepped elegantly, letting his outstretched arm meet only empty space. She placed a hand on her hip, her tone turning lightly flirtatious but careful.

"Ah, as much as I'd love to, you know I can't." She said smoothly. "You remember how jealous my sister can get, don't you?"

"If she saw me hugging you right in front of her, I'd never hear the end of it. She'd scold me to the moon and back. So let's avoid that, shall we?"

Her words came out sweet as honey, but her movement had been razor-sharp—a dance of grace and distance.

Then she smiled politely, adding, "But still, thank you for the gifts, brother-in-law."

From where he stood, Luca could only stare at the bizzare scene before him.

Leona was standing just beside Julius, wearing that same stiff, artificial smile from before—nodding slightly at every word he said, replying courteously but with no real warmth behind it.

The contrast between her cold demeanor from earlier and this oddly submissive politeness left Luca completely lost.

Meanwhile, Nyx, despite her cheer, had kept a clear barrier between herself and Julius, never letting him step even a hand's length closer.

Her tone was soft, her eyes playfu. But her body language screamed distance.

To any outsider, it looked like a cordial family reunion.

To Luca, it looked like a play where everyone knew their lines but hated the script.

He rubbed his eyes, muttering quietly,

"Just what is going going on here…What is the wierd soap opera that's happening in front of me?"

The family dynamics were nothing like what he had imagined.

He had expected open hostility, anger, accusations.

But instead there were smiles, politeness, and laughter that didn't reach their eyes.

It was all wrong.

The more he watched, the more he realized this family wasn't just divided by loyalty.

It was fractured by something deeper—years of bitterness, obligation, and masks worn too tightly to ever come off.

And as Julius turned back to Leona with his bright, winning smile, and Leona forced another courteous nod in response, Luca couldn't help but think,

'This is a battlefield too...Just a quieter one.'

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