Atela gracefully placed her hand on the chair next to Noa, as her white dress reflected the light from the golden bulbs of the chandelier above.
— Did it go well?
Noa asked the question without any real curiosity. He didn't really know why he had asked it himself… He assumed it was just out of politeness.
Atela answered him with a radiant smile.
— Yes, everything went well.
Lara took a seat next to Eric, who had already started eating.
— Eric…
She turned toward him, intrigued, her mouth half full as she continued:
— Do you remember Noa's 7th birthday…?
Eric, a bit confused, answered yes. Lara crossed her arms.
— That day, he—
She didn't even have time to finish before Noa slammed the table violently, making them all jump.
— Well, well… who do we have here!
A man with golden blond hair and an imposing build stood in front of their table. His voice brought back flashes of very unpleasant memories in Noa's mind—the white room—causing a headache as he quickly placed his hand on his forehead.
The person who had just arrived was named Dante Hyperion, a member of the secondary branch of the Hyperion family.
— I'm delighted to see you all in good health, children.
But the same couldn't be said for them, as they seemed uncomfortable, especially Noa.
Atela noticed the state of our protagonist.
— Noa…?
Dante then noticed Atela's presence.
— Lady Atela? I wasn't informed that you would be present this evening. I didn't even know you had come to the Empire.
Yuna caught his attention with a wave of her hand.
— I'll explain later, if you don't mind.
It didn't bother him.
He placed his hand on Noa's shoulder. Noa showed no visible reaction.
— And you, Noa… I know you're not very talkative, but you could at least greet me.
Noa abruptly stood up from his seat, his head lowered.
Concern was visible on Eric, Yuna, and Atela's faces, while Elena and Lara tried to ignore the situation.
Noa raised his head toward his uncle. His gaze was emptier than ever.
— I need to go to the bathroom… I'll be back.
He left the conversation and headed toward the large door.
He passed by a table where two other family members were seated: two perfectly identical twins.
— Wasn't that Noa who just walked by…?
The first, Jonas Hyperion, 18 years old, had his legs on the table, leaning back in his chair, his hands behind his head. He looked relaxed while still serious.
— Probably, but well…
The second, Johan Hyperion, also 18 and the older of the two, looked much more tired, with dark circles under his eyes, and was tracing circles on the table with his finger.
— Could you finish your sentence? It's very frustrating when you stop in the middle.
Johan sighed.
— I think he's not in the mood to talk right now… so avoid speaking to him if you don't want to end up full of holes.
Jonas closed his eyes while touching his chin, thinking.
— Actually, I prefer it when you don't talk. It suits you better.
— Shut up.
Meanwhile, Noa was walking calmly down the hallway…
But the further he went, the more something changed.
His breathing grew louder. His pace quickened.
Bursting frantically into the bathroom, he almost fell as he leaned on the sink.
— No… not now…
His blue aura slowly began to emanate from his body… then, more violently, the entire bathroom started to tremble.
His breathing became heavier and heavier.
His vision blurred… and his blue eyes shone with an unsettling light.
Sweating heavily, fragments of memories resurfaced in his mind, followed by an unbearable headache.
Under the pressure, all the mirrors shattered.
A shard of glass cut his ear, but he remained still.
His aura began to stabilize.
He slowly raised his head, looking at himself in a piece of mirror that had remained intact.
His right eye had turned black… and his pupil glowed with a strange light.
He placed his hand over his face to hide his eye… then prepared to leave.
A few minutes later, Noa returned to the main hall.
He seemed much more tired.
From afar, he spotted Atela and the others, talking and laughing around the table.
Noa walked toward them… but for a brief moment, Atela's face perfectly overlapped with that of a red-haired girl in his mind.
He stopped abruptly.
— Noa… are you okay?
Atela asked.
Still shaken, he rubbed his eyes before answering:
— Yes… I'm fine… but we need to go now.
Atela didn't understand immediately, then remembered her conversation with the patriarch.
She stood up under the others' gaze.
— Alright.
Lara asked:
— Where are you going like that?
— We have something to take care of… at the patriarch's request.
As if in response to those words, the large door opened.
The entire room fell silent.
The patriarch David Hyperion and his father André Hyperion had just entered.
At the same moment, Noa and Atela walked past them.
Their gazes didn't even meet.
Each of them looked straight ahead… toward their own destination.
They left the room without a word.
Lara sighed.
— If I were you, I would've really wanted to go with them…
Eric replied calmly:
— You can't leave a family meeting like that without permission from a high-ranking member.
— It's just that I don't feel like talking about politics… it's so annoying.
Eric gave a slight smile.
— You'll have to get used to it.
— About time, we almost thought we'd be waiting forever.
David raised his eyes.
A woman with black hair and red eyes was walking toward him with confidence.
Behind her, someone tried to calm her down.
Lara rolled her eyes tiredly.
— And here we go again…
Next chapter: Children's Paradise