My Dragon King System

Chapter 405: Family

Lysandra stepped closer to the railing and stood beside him. For a long moment, neither of them spoke.

Then, after what felt like five minutes, Lysandra broke the silence.

"I saw him," she said quietly. "I saw Father."

Aiden didn’t turn to look at her. It wasn’t as though he hadn’t known. In fact, the moment the spirits had been released into the world, Aiden had been aware of every single one of them.

He had felt their presence, sensed their movements, and known exactly who they were and where they went.

Lysandra’s voice softened. "He looked happy."

Aiden nodded, and a smile appeared on his face.

Lysandra turned to look at him for a moment. Then she let out a breath and said, "You know, for someone who’s supposed to be family, you’ve done a pretty good job of forgetting I exist."

Aiden finally turned his head toward her, one eyebrow raised. "How so?"

Lysandra crossed her arms. "For starters, you didn’t invite me when Andrea and Tristan were born."

Aiden opened his mouth to respond, but she cut him off.

"And those babies grow so fast, Aiden. Soon they’ll be talking, walking around, asking questions. And they won’t even know who their aunt is."

Aiden looked amused when he exhaled and nodded. "I guess I’ll take fault for that one."

There was a brief silence, then he asked, "How are Lucas and Helena?"

Lysandra blinked, surprised by the question. "They’re fine."

Then she scoffed and shook her head. "Does human conversation even intrigue you at this point? You’re an all-powerful being. You probably know everything about everyone in this world already."

Aiden smiled. "Sometimes I shut it off."

Lysandra frowned. "What?"

"The awareness," Aiden said. "Sometimes I turn it off and let myself experience things the way normal humans would."

Lysandra stared at him for a moment, then nodded slowly. "I guess that makes sense."

She paused, then said, "Speaking of parents... did you ever bother to check on your birth mother, like you always said you would?"

Aiden’s expression shifted. He let out a short, genuine laugh, then shook his head. "Damn, I really was naive back then, wasn’t I?"

Lysandra smiled. "Not really." She paused, then added with a teasing grin, "Okay, well... maybe just a tiny bit."

Aiden laughed again, louder this time. Then, after the laughter faded, he said quietly, "Yeah, she’s alive. Married to another man, even. But I never reached out."

Lysandra’s eyes widened in surprise. "Oh, wow."

She hesitated, then asked, "Does that mean... you have more siblings now?"

Aiden nodded. "Two more. Both boys. Seems she has a thing for birthing the same gender."

Lysandra laughed at that, the sound warm and genuine. Then she tilted her head and said, "Wait. That means you did check in on her after all."

Aiden tilted his head playfully, a grin spreading across his face. "I mean, not directly. But I may have gotten involved with a few things without letting her know."

Lysandra raised an eyebrow. "What kind of things?"

Aiden’s grin widened as a memory surfaced.

——

Three years ago, in a quiet town within the lands of Dragonhold, a woman walked along a dirt path that led from the market square back to her modest home.

Her name was Maren, and she was of middle age. Her hair was brown with streaks of gray beginning to show at the temples. Her hands were calloused from years of labor, and her clothes, though clean and carefully maintained, were worn and patched in several places.

Beside her walked a man, her husband. His name was Terrick. He was kind-faced and patient, with gentle eyes that crinkled at the corners when he smiled. Though his shoulders sagged a bit from the weight of their struggles, he never complained. They had little. Barely enough to eat most days. But they made do, and they made do together.

As they walked, Maren’s foot caught on something, and she stumbled slightly.

Terrick reached out immediately to steady her, his hand firm on her elbow.

"Careful," he said gently.

Maren looked down to see what she had tripped over, and her eyes widened.

Lying in the middle of the path, half-buried in the dirt as though it had been there for some time but somehow remained undiscovered, was a leather pouch.

She knelt down slowly and picked it up. It was heavy, far heavier than it should have been for its size.

Terrick frowned. "What is that?"

Maren’s fingers worked at the drawstring, and when she finally opened the pouch, her breath caught in her throat.

Inside were dozens of gold coins. More gold than she had ever seen in recent times. In fact, the last time she had seen money in such quantity was when she was much younger, back when she was still in the business of pleasure, working within the fine establishments that catered to wealthy men.

That life felt like a distant dream now, something that had happened to a different person entirely.

Her hands trembled as she stared at the coins.

"Where did this come from?" Terrick whispered.

Maren looked around, searching for whoever might have dropped it. But the path was empty.

She looked back down at the pouch, then at her husband. "I don’t know," she said.

But deep down, in a place she didn’t fully understand, she felt as though someone had left it there on purpose. It was a strange feeling, one she couldn’t quite explain. Like being watched by someone who meant no harm.

Terrick glanced around nervously. "Should we... should we take it?"

Maren hesitated. Then she thought of the roof that leaked every time it rained.

She thought of the two young boys waiting for them at home, her sons from this marriage. Good boys. Kind boys. Boys who deserved better than the scraps they were able to provide.

"Yes," she said finally. "We take it."

——

Aiden’s smile lingered as the memory faded.

Lysandra stared at him. "You just... left her bags of gold?"

Aiden shrugged. "A few times. She and her husband were living in terrible conditions. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to make things a little easier."

Lysandra shook her head, but she was smiling. "That’s actually kind of sweet."

There was another pause, then Lysandra’s expression grew more serious. She looked down at her hands, then back up at Aiden.

"I know this was difficult for me once," she said. "The whole... family thing. But I hope we can return to what it used to be."

Aiden turned toward her, his expression softening.

Lysandra continued. "I know I pushed you away for a while. And I know things got complicated. But I want to try again.

Aiden didn’t say anything for a moment. Then he stretched both arms out toward her.

Lysandra stepped forward and hugged him tightly. When they pulled apart, Aiden smiled.

"Alright," he said. "I’ll start by making up for three years today. Come with me so that I might introduce my beautiful children to their aunt."

Lysandra’s face lit up, and she nodded eagerly. "I’d like that."

Together, they turned and walked back toward the castle.