MIDNIGHT PRINCE: Empire of Sin

After Cecilia's moving speech came to a conclusion, the atmosphere shifted to a more friendly note as everyone started mingling by introducing themselves to each other and started simply chatting about anything and everything, talking about mundane or irrelevant things like there was no tomorrow…

It didn't take long for the food cooked by Makarov to be served with the help of Susanne and Viktor. It was mostly meat, grilled meat to be exact, but Makarov's mastery over fire was so sublime that they were as perfectly cooked as perfect could be and boasted a great taste.

The juicy meat packed to the brim with flavors was so heavenly that some couldn't hold themselves and started eating like voracious beasts.

Everyone complimented Makarov for making such delicious food and the atmosphere became even more lively and cheerful as a result.

It didn't take long for the plates to be wiped clean by everyone present and for the food to vanish into the stomach of the famished guests.

Makarov had a proud expression on his face when he witnessed such a scene. After all, there was no cook that would not be happy to see his food being devoured with so much appetite by the people that he cooked the food for.

Once the meal was finished and the plates were taken away from the table, the drinks soon followed and by then people began to stand up and form small groups to talk and mingle.

Yui had been quite interested in talking more with Adam but just as she was about to engage in a conversation with him with a small smile on her face, her arm had become interlocked with someone that startled her to no end…

"Hi. You're Shuri's friend, right? May I have a word with you?"

Yui glanced at Cecilia's hand wrapped around her arm with a sense of palpitation. This might have been worded as a polite invitation but she had a feeling that refusing was not a possibility for her which only strained her taut nerves further.

'How strong…'

Even now, though she could easily push away the hand that was wrapped around her arm, her beastly instincts were screaming at her to not make problems for the being in front of her and stay put like a good girl.

Outside of the palpitation she naturally, felt she did not wish to create problems for Adam and his family. So, there were no ways left for her other than to comply.

"Sure. How may I help you?"

Letting herself be pulled by Cecilia's hand, the two of them finally reached a rather deserted place in the living room and began their standoff.

"You must be Yui, right?"

'Ah, this is starting in a rather problematic way.'

The confrontational tone in her voice was clear for anyone to hear as they reached the isolated area. Gone was the loving mother full of emotions that had delivered that heart-touching speech.

What replaced her was a monster that could destroy anything in its path in a heartbeat.

Once they were far enough, in their opinion, Cecilia finally turned to give a look at the one facing her. Now that she was far from being seen or heard by Shuri and the others, Cecilia let go of the charade and continued one…

"Feng Huang Yui, I wished to visit you for a few weeks now but did not have the time. It seems like you brought my son to the wrong path once again."

Yui could only smile bitterly, "I did not lead Adam anywhere. He is not some gullible kid. Be it back then or now, it has always been his own decision to follow me."

"Heh, trust me. I know about that and this is why your gang is still standing to this day."

Her aura became fierce, and she could almost see the illusion of a volcanic eruption for a split second there, but was soon able to calm her emotions down and it was fast enough that no one would notice.

"I don't really care about what Adam chooses to do and by following you I am sure he will be doing many things I might not appreciate…"

In the past, she had fought Adam to make him stop from going down the dark road. But it was because Adam was just a kid in her eyes back then. Even more so since he was just someone normal.

How could she leave her powerless son to deal with such a gang?

But now, things were different.

She only saw herself as a safety net for her child now. Adam was old enough for him to make his own choices and mature enough to take responsibility for them as well.

Even then,

"I really don't wanna act like the cliche parent and threaten you here which would only result in you answering with something like you already planned on taking care of him or anything like that… No, I just wanna tell you one thing. Just a single thing, okay?"

Cecilia looked deeply into Tui's eyes and it was then that Yui saw it. Something grueling and horrific, brewing inside Cecilia's heart.

A beast thirsting for unending destruction and the eradication of everything in existence.

"Adam is one of the last things I truly care about in this world."

In terms of height, both Yui and Cecilia were more or less equal with Cecilia being a few centimeters taller. But currently, Yui felt like she had to raise her head to look at Cecilia's face. It was like she was nothing more than a dwarf trying to gaze at the majesty of a towering giant covered in endless flames.

"Trust me when I say that you don't want to know what I am capable of doing if anything happens to him."

And with those words, the vision ceased like it didn't exist in the first place. They were back to the living room of Adam's house and Cecilia was back to simply being a slightly taller woman.

'What in the…?'

She felt like her breath had become short for an instant. It felt almost like how she was when she met her true mother for the very first time. The feeling of power and majesty left no place for any rebuttal only acceptance…

Patting her back, Cecilia smiled kindly, "I am sorry for souring the mood for you. Please take care of my son and who knows, you might become my daughter-in-law in the future."

She chuckled and took her drink from the table before walking away as she felt Adam coming close to their area. If she had one small wish, it was that she wished to see her grandchildren pretty fast.

Though they would have the blood of Cain in them, this was all the more reason for her to be alive when this happened.

'Thinking about it, there are many potential mates for him…'

She laughed. Wondering who— or how many would Adam end up with. This would be an interesting sight to witness for sure.

'I guess now I should make things clear with Shuri.'

If things worked as she thought they would, Shuri might soon really be part of her family.

Though, not as a sister…

Imagining Shuri calling her mother nearly made Cecilia explode in endless laughter. She would really tease her to no end when that happened for sure.

"Mom…"

"Don't worry. I didn't touch even a single bit of skin of your friend. She's alright…"

She smiled kindly at Adam and walked off, leaving him alone with Yui.

"Are you okay?"

Yui gave a strained grin, "Your mom is fucking terrifying, you know?"

There was no more fitting word to describe what she had witnessed just then. If she was right in what she had deducted, then Cecilia was hiding a very big secret, and one very dangerous for all of them involved.

'I hope I am wrong.'

Shaking her head she looked at Adam and gave him a small smile, "Well, now that you are here, what do you say we talk a little about what happened last night?"

Adam looked around, confused, "Here?"

She shrugged, "Why not? Or even better… Let's go to your room; I wanna see what it looks like."

She had put so much effort into coming here. She had to at least see something interesting before leaving, right?

This was common courtesy, after all.

(AN: Opinion on the current arc for now? Trying something calm with not much wave but having the characters move and interact with each other. Is it alright? Too boring? Too slow?)