Chapter 121: Congratulations, Grandfather

Daemon looked at the woman standing in front of him and asked quietly,

"What is your name?"

She lowered her gaze for a second, then answered with a steady voice.

"My name is Sylphie. I am your personal maid."

She paused, as if measuring how much she should say.

"I traveled with you across every kingdom. I was the one who spent the most time with you... more than your wives."

Her lips pressed together. For a moment, she seemed unsure whether to continue. Then she raised her eyes again.

"I am your lover."

Daemon studied her carefully.

So she was more than a maid after all.

He looked at her properly this time. She appeared to be in her thirties, maybe early forties, but he already knew better. She was an elf. If his guess was right, she could easily be around five hundred years old.

And she was beautiful in a mature, composed way.

Her long white hair was tied up for work, neat and practical. A few loose strands framed her face. Her eyes carried old promises and restrained love, the kind that had survived centuries without turning bitter. When she looked at him, her lips trembled slightly. The maid dress hugged her full chest and wide hips, yet her body still held an athletic firmness from years of palace work and travel. She looked like the kind of mature woman young men dreamed about without ever expecting to meet in real life.

Daemon pulled his thoughts back before they wandered too far.

*She waited this long... and I don’t even remember her face.*

That thought alone made his chest tighten.

"Sylphie... thank you for waiting for me."

His voice softened.

"I also want to return that love. But I still don’t have the memories of us."

Sylphie shook her head gently.

"I only care about your presence, my lord. I will wait even longer if it means your memories return. We believe in you."

Something in Daemon’s chest loosened.

Her consideration was simple, but it hit deep. She did not demand answers. She did not accuse him for forgetting. She only asked to remain near him.

He reached out and touched her cheek with care.

"Alright. We can talk more later."

Sylphie’s pointed ears turned red at once.

"Yes, my lord."

Daemon then handed her his mobile and explained slowly, with clear steps, how to take a picture. He showed her where to press, how to hold it steady, and how to check the result on the screen.

"Like this?" she asked.

"Yes. Keep your hands steady. Good."

Sylphie learned quickly. After a few practice shots of the table and the window light, the results were already clean and steady.

"Good," Daemon said with a small smile. "Now take one of us."

He called Morwenna and Zephyra first.

"Come here. Both of you."

Morwenna gave him a questioning look, but still walked over. Zephyra came faster, already curious about the device in Sylphie’s hands.

"What is that thing, Father?"

"A way to keep a moment from disappearing," Daemon said.

He stood in the center. Morwenna and Zephyra leaned into him from either side, and Sylphie took the shot. Then she took a few more from slightly different angles. After that, Aelther joined them as well, standing a little stiff at first before Zephyra pulled him closer by the sleeve.

"Don’t stand like a soldier," Zephyra whispered.

"I am a soldier," Aelther answered under his breath.

When the pictures appeared on the screen, everyone gathered close.

They had never seen a mobile phone before, or any modern device like it. Curiosity lit their faces. They leaned in, pointed at the frozen images, and spoke over one another in soft surprise. Zephyra, especially, stared at the screen with open fascination.

"Father... this captured us in an instant."

"Yes."

"I want one."

Daemon laughed.

"I figured you would."

He turned slightly and noticed Sylphie watching them with a soft, affectionate expression. She stood a little apart, smiling as if the happiness in front of her was already enough. She did not try to force her way into the moment. She only protected it from the outside.

That made Daemon call to her.

"Sylphie, come. We’ll take one together too."

She immediately shook her head.

"No, my lord. I am just a maid. I don’t deserve that. Only family members should stand there."

Daemon’s expression hardened.

"You said you are my lover. You know more about me than my wives did in that life. That means, in my heart, you are more than just a maid."

Sylphie’s fists clenched at her sides. She looked torn, unsure of what step to take next. Desire and hesitation pulled her in opposite directions.

*If I step forward, everything changes.*

Then Morwenna came up beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Sylphie," she said quietly, "if you keep holding your feelings back, he may leave again. Don’t think about what others will say. Don’t even think about what I might think, or what the people around us will whisper."

Morwenna’s voice stayed firm, but not unkind.

"I know you. We have been together for more than four hundred years. If you truly love him, go and prove it to him."

She gave Sylphie a light push toward Daemon.

Sylphie’s eyes grew wet.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

She walked forward until she stood right in front of Daemon.

For a moment, she only looked into his eyes. The chamber around them seemed to fade. Her breathing was shallow, but her voice, when it came, was clear and steady.

"I love you. Not as a servant. Not as a maid. As a woman, I want to be your wife."

Her hands trembled once, then stilled.

"Can you marry me and give this relationship meaning? After this, I want to stand beside your wives... not as a maid."

The determination in her voice surprised even Daemon.

There was no hesitation left in her. No half-spoken hope. She had placed her heart in the open.

He held her gaze for a long second.

*She waited through centuries for a man who doesn’t even remember her... and she still chose him again.*

Then he silently called to the System.

*Activate Soul Bond.*

A response entered Sylphie’s mind.

[Do you accept becoming a Soul-Bonded Wife of Daemon Miles?]

Sylphie did not look shocked by the voice in her head. Perhaps after four hundred years in this palace, strange truths no longer frightened her as easily as they once did.

"Yes," she answered inwardly. "I accept him as my husband."

The bond formed at once.

White light wrapped around her body as the connection settled between them. In that moment, the link went deeper than either of them expected. Sylphie could feel his presence more clearly. His emotions. The quiet weight he carried. The bond tied them together in a way ordinary vows never could.

Daemon felt it too — a new thread fastening itself into the network of people already bound to his soul.

When the light faded, the System confirmed it.

[Sylphie has been added as a Soul-Bonded Wife.]

Then another line appeared.

[Congratulations, Host. You have recently become a grandfather.]

The System even showed a smirking reaction mark beside the message.

Daemon’s eyes widened.

For a second, he could not process the words at all.

Then he actually shouted.

"What did you say?!"