Chapter 100: A Peaceful Morning, Restless Hearts

After having a bath, Victor and Lane left the room just as the new day was breaking.

Morning had already arrived.

Finally, warm sunlight filtered into the house via the windows and fell on the corridor. The sunlight was stunning and dulled everything it touched and the large and silent passageway had a relaxed impression.

The air was cool and fresh.

Once in a while, the quiet calm of morning was its only existence.

Lane soon broke away from Victor.

She had breakfast to prepare.

"I’ll meet you at the table, Young Master."

She flashed him a bright smile and then ran toward the kitchen.

Her hair, which was jet black, danced softly at each movement. The edge of her black robe fluttered in the breeze as she rounded the bend.

Victor watched her leave for a moment.

A faint smile touched his lips.

Then he turned around.

He still had another place to be.

He wandered down the empty halls until he reached his mother’s study.

The door was slightly open.

Victor pushed it aside and looked inside.

Anna was already busy.

She was down by a large metal cauldron, bending over it completely absorbed. A few herbs and other ingredients had been laid out around her in neat little piles.

The entire room smelled of medicinal herbs.

There was also a subtle sweetness underneath the more fragrant aroma.

Whatever Anna was working on, it appeared to be something she was throwing in at the very end.

The fire beneath the cauldron crackled softly.

Little threads of steam floated away, circling up in the sunlight for a moment and then vanishing.

Pause Victor hovered in the door.

Then he spoke.

"Good morning, Mother."

Anna glanced up.

Her bright eyes grew gentle with delight to see him.

Still she looked warm even though she was intensely busy at her work.

She had gathered her long black hair up in a ponytail, to keep it out of her face.

"Good morning, Victor."

She offered him a small smile and then refocused on the vat.

"Give me a moment. I’m almost finished."

Inside, her F-cup breasts pushed against her sleek black robe embroidered with a red petal design.

"Good morning, my son. Sleeped well?"

"Yes. I slept well, Mother." Victor looked about. "You are occupied."

"I’m on." Anna set down the cauldron with another delicate stir. "This is a constantly stirring batch. I’ll come up for breakfast in a while."

Victor nodded.

He didn’t want to pull her away while she was working.

"I understand. Just don’t work too hard."

Anna smiled softly.

"I won’t."

Victor cast a final look at her and headed for the door.

He didn’t see the slight flush coming into Anna’s cheeks.

As he walked away, her smile gradually disappeared.

Her mind wandered back to the night before.

She recalled how she and Clara had watched Victor and Lane secretly.

Memories flooded her mind so vividly that she blushed even more.

Anna immediately lowered her head.

What kind of mother am I?

She blinked, and then shook her head.

Watching my own son...

An odd cocktail of embarrassment and guilt washed over her.

"No. Enough."

She whispered the words to herself and forced her focus.

The pill refinement came first.

With delicate hands she lifted her next herb and threw it into the cauldron.

But her mind refused to cooperate.

He’s grown so much.

The thought came before I could stop it.

Victor was not the boy she’d known.

He was a fine-looking fellow by this time.

Vibrant, bold, and not at all the same girl who had once been a child they’d watched lunge about the house.

Anna’s fingers paused.

Another memory surfaced.

And the way he touched Lane...

Her face immediately turned red.

She quickly shook her head.

"Stop it, Anna."

She took a slow breath.

"Just stop."

Her digits lit on the outcroppings when she went back to add the herbs, her fingers shaking just a tad.

She turned her glare toward the cauldron and sat there and pretended she had not seen anything.

However the heat on her cheeks wouldn’t go away.

What am I even thinking about?

Anna sighed quietly.

Then she focused on the refinement again.

At least, she tried to.

---

Victor exited his mother’s study and gently shut the door.

He paused in the hallway.

It was very quiet around the mansion. The only thing that he could hear was the muffled sound of his own footsteps following him on his way down the hallway.

He eased up when he passed by Rias’ room.

The door was slightly open.

Victor glanced inside.

Rias was there.

He saw his sister-in-law sitting cross-legged on her bed, deeply immersed in cultivation. Her eyelids closed, slow and steady breathing.

Her long red hair flowed down her shoulders and her back and sparkled in the faint light of the room. It was like a waterfall of fire.

Her ribs moved up and down on each gentle breath.

Nothing like an expression of stress on her face.

She looked completely at peace.

For a moment, Victor simply watched her.

You can still carry her class too! Even while growing – she was a natural beauty you couldn’t help but notice.

But he had no reason to be up there.

Victor forced his eyes to glance another way and resumed walking in silence.

A moment after, he got to the dining-hall.

The table had already been prepared.

Clean plates and bowls were cleanly stacked on its surface, withware utensil to one side.

Everything was ready for the meal.

Clara was there, setting the last ones.

Purple-haired girl with shimmering hair in the sun.

Her purple eyes sparkled with warmth.

Her E-cup breasts pushed into the purple flower embroidered robe.

"Good morning, Aunt Clara," Victor said as he took his place.

Clara looked up and smiled warmly.

"Good morning, Victor. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, thank you."

Victor saw that Clara’s face looked a little red-that is, much redder than usual.

He thought it was make-up. "Auntie Clara, your face is very red today. You are very beautiful."

Clara’s eyes widened.

She stammered, "Th-thank you, Victor."

She quickly turned away, hiding her blush.

Her mind raced back to last night.

How she and Anna had snuck away to Victor’s room.

Watching him with Lane.