“Happy Birthday!”

My sister, the center of attention at this party, blushed with embarrassment but accepted their congratulations. We were all outside, in Sturm Manor’s back gardens, celebrating my sister’s birthday. Rather than keep everyone cooped up inside, Mother and Kaylee decided that it was better to hold the party outside. Thankfully, the weather cooperated. The noon sun shone high in the clear sky, and the temperature was fine, if a bit cool.

While birthday celebrations on Lumina were similar in many ways to the ones on Earth, there were just as many, if not more, differences. For one, there wasn’t a birthday cake, which I found disappointing. Instead of one big centerpiece, there were several different kinds of treats and desserts. This meant that there were no candles to blow out, which I also found disappointing.

Another difference was that instead of singing cheesy songs, people made toasts for the birthday person. Usually it was just the person’s family, but it could also include any prominent guests.

For Kaylee’s birthday, we kept the guest list small. The only people who attended, outside of our family and some of our retainers, were Annabelle, Annabelle’s new bodyguard, and Lady Calla. There was also Gabriella, but I counted her as family rather than an outsider.

It was a few days after I fought the group of adventurers and rescued Gabriella, and they had been busy ones. Not only did we prepare for Kaylee’s birthday, but we were also getting ready to send her off to the Solarian Imperial Academy. This was in addition to our training, and our various other projects we had.

While Mother and Kaylee did a lot of the work, Father and I chipped in as well whenever we could. We also had support from our retainers and my disciples. It took a lot of manpower to set everything up. All in all, we somehow managed to get everything done in time. Now we enjoyed the fruits of our labor.

Kaylee’s birthday party included a sumptuous feast, as befitting the heir to House Sturm. There were dozens of dishes, each more mouthwatering than the last. We also had a separate table just for the drinks, of which there was plenty. Most were non-alcoholic, though there were a few pitchers of wine, including one with mulled wine, which made me happy.

For activities, we had set up a variety of games and competitions. Most were silly and childish, though no one complained about that. However, there were a few more serious ones that included prizes for the winners. I was banned from those, since I had an advantage over everyone else because of my cultivation. That made me a bit sad, but Annabelle kept me company when this happened, which more than made up for it.

A band played in the background, providing music as we feasted and played. Some of our retainers even put on a show using their magic. The children in particular loved that.

After the feast and the activities came the toasts. Father and Mother went at the same time, and I went after them. We kept ours short and simple, wishing Kaylee a happy birthday, before sitting down and making way for the next person.

Annabelle, who went after me, gave Kaylee a hug and a kiss on the cheek after her toast. My sister looked pleased by this. This made me feel grumpy for some reason, and I made sure to hold onto Annabelle extra tight after that. My beloved, amused by this, just smiled and said nothing.

Everyone after that decided to keep their toasts short and sweet. This included Roland, my disciples, and Lady Calla, among others.

After everyone toasted Kaylee, next came the gifts. Father and Mother gave Kaylee an enchanted folding fan made from Spiderweave Cloth (a high-grade material that held enchantments well), mythril, and Floatstone. While it had some offensive capabilities, the fan was primarily used for flying. Since everyone else in the family had a magic item that allowed them to fly, except Roland of course, my parents thought it was time Kaylee had one as well.

My little sister was so excited to get the fan, that she hopped on it right away and started flying around. It took us several minutes to convince to come down so she could finish opening the rest of the gifts. She did so with great reluctance. Even as she opened the other gifts, Kaylee’s eyes kept going to the folding fan.

Kaylee received all kinds of gifts. Dresses, jewels, and so on. I decided to save mine for last.

Mother wandered over while Annabelle gave Kaylee her gift, which turned out to be a silver bracelet with a rose motif.

“What’s wrong?” Mother asked me.

“What do you mean?” I said, turning towards her, while still keeping an eye on my sister.

Mother looked at me with a concerned expression on her face.

“You looked upset, so I thought to come here and ask you if something happened.”

I thought about brushing her off, but decided not to. She was right. I was upset, though I was sad rather than angry.

“Is it that obvious?” I asked.

“Only to the people who know you best,” Mother said.

“So, most of the people here.” I sighed. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be a sourpuss. I’m just…” I gestured to our surroundings. “…envious.”

Mother frowned at that, before glancing around. An expression of understanding crossed her face.

“It’s because we didn’t throw you a birthday party this year,” she said. It wasn’t a question.

I nodded.

“I’m sorry, Gabriel,” Mother said, looking remorseful. “I thought you didn’t want us to celebrate your birthday anymore. That’s what you told us last year. When you didn’t say anything before you went into seclusion, I thought it would be the same this year.”

I gave Mother a puzzled look, before I realized what she meant. Last year, my feud with Annabelle had started to heat up right around the time of my birthday. Before that, Mother had tried to talk to me about my birthday celebration that year, but I kept brushing her off. Eventually I told her, and I quote, “Not to bother me with such trivialities anymore.”

Ancestors, that Dark magic curse had really turned me into a colossal asshole. No wonder my family assumed that I didn’t care about my birthday anymore. I’m surprised Mother hadn’t slapped me silly.

“No,” I said, facepalming. “Don’t apologize. That was my fault. I forgot I said that to you.”

Mother shook her head.

“No. I should have talked with you about it instead of making assumptions.” She sighed. “It’s not easy being a parent, and I’m sorry that you’ve suffered because of my shortcomings.”

I nodded in understanding. When I adopted Flameclaw as my daughter, back when I was Celestial Thunder, I hadn’t realized what I was getting myself into. Becoming a parent came with a steep learning curve.

“Let’s just say that we both made mistakes and move on,” I said.

Mother nodded. The two of us turned towards Kaylee again. She was surrounded by a crowd of women, which consisted of my disciples, Lady Calla, and Annabelle. They were gushing over a dress that someone gave to Kaylee.

My eyes drifted towards a little girl sitting off to the side, next to Roland. She was about eight years old, with pale skin, red hair, and yellow eyes. Her face contained traces of the beauty she would become, though that was still some time away.

She shared a pie with my little brother, which they ate with enthusiasm.

Gabriella Leone, my cousin.

When Mother and I returned to Sturm Manor with Gabriella in tow, it took us some effort to remove the Nullicite collar from around her neck. We couldn’t use magic, since anything strong enough to affect Nullicite would hurt Gabriella. In the end, we used a metal file to saw through the collar and get it off her.

The moment we did, she shifted into her human form and ran into Mother’s arms completely naked, bawling her eyes out.

After Gabriella calmed down, Mother cleaned her up and gave her one of Kaylee’s old dresses before setting her up in the nursery. Roland was excited to finally have a playmate his age, or close enough at least.

Gabriella, excited to be the cool older cousin, took my little brother under her wing. In a short amount of time, the two grew close together. Roland followed Gabriella around everywhere like a duckling following its mother, hanging onto her every word.

“It looks like you’ve been replaced as his favorite,” Father said to me at the time.

I didn’t mind. One of the reasons why we decided to give my little brother a pet was because he was lonely. While we failed in getting him a pet, we succeeded in finding him a friend.

I also discussed starting Roland’s training with my parents. They agreed that getting an early start was a good idea. Mother would handle it, since she wanted to spend more time with Roland, while everyone else would assist her. Mother and I also put together a series of lesson plans, so Roland and the others could learn Spirit Tongue. It was the language of cultivators, and knowing how to speak it was vital when it came to interacting with cultivator society.

“Have you seen any sign of Grandfather Gabe?” I asked Mother, pulling myself back to the present.

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “Which means either something happened to delay him, or he’s waiting to make his big dramatic entrance.” She grimaced. “I hope it’s the latter rather than the former. If he was delayed, but couldn’t send word…”

Mother trailed off, though I understood what she meant. Anything that could delay a Golden Core cultivator was serious business. Not only that, but we had House Shelton to worry about. They had been quiet over the past few days, which wasn’t good news at all. Unless they were completely incompetent, then they already knew that we had stolen a magic beast from them. They had to do something about it, even if it was just demanding compensation for their loss, or others would see it as a sign of weakness.

Since they hadn’t sent word, or made a big fuss, that meant they were up to something. The sooner Grandfather Gabe arrived, the better.

I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. Today was a day of celebration. We would worry about House Shelton tomorrow.

Mother and I continued to watch as Kaylee opened all of her gifts. Soon, it was my turn. I headed towards the table where we had all piled the gifts, grabbed the rolled up painting I created for Kaylee, before heading over to her.

“Finally,” my sister said, grinning at me. “I’m curious about what you made. You and Father have been so secretive about it.”

I asked Father to help me hide my gift, so Kaylee wouldn’t peek at it and spoil the surprise for herself.

“Take a look for yourself,” I said, before unfurling the painting with a flourish.

The painting depicted a mountain, but not just any old mountain. It depicted Sky Piercer Peak, my home back in the Blossoming Lotus Sect. I wanted to give something unique to Kaylee, as well as something personal. Sky Piercer Peak was important to me for several reasons, so I chose it as the subject of my painting. In a sense, I was giving a piece of my past to my little sister.

Sky Piercer Peak was a sacred mountain that held an abundance of mana, or qi as they called it on Spirit Earth. That was one of the reasons why the Blossoming Lotus Sect claimed it for their own. Another reason was its height. Sky Piercer Peak, as its name suggested, was so tall that it seemed to pierce the sky. That wasn’t far from the truth. Its peak reached the threshold between the mortal realm and the heavens. In fact, several cultivators from the Celestial lineage chose the peak as the site of their ascension into the heavens, including myself.

The base and the lower parts of Sky Piercer Peak were lush with life. That was also where the majority of the buildings were located. However, the higher one went up the mountain, the more barren and desolate the mountain became. At least, to those who only used their mortal senses. In contrast, the amount of qi grew more abundant the higher one went. The qi was also of a higher quality. It was as if the life energy of the universe was more bountiful the closer one came to the heavens.

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

At first, Kaylee looked at the painting with eager anticipation. However, her expression soon morphed into one of surprise and astonishment.

A trickle of worry ran down my spine. Did she not like it? I wasn’t the best artist around, but I thought she would appreciate the thought and effort I put into her gift.

Damn it! I should have just bought her something instead, like everyone else.

“You painted this?” Kaylee asked, looking at me with wide eyes.

“Yes,” I said, feeling wary. “Do you not like it?”

Kaylee looked at me in disbelief.

“Like it?” she asked, flabbergasted. “I love it! Why didn’t you tell me that you were a master painter?”

I blinked at her in surprise.

“But I’m not!” I protested. “I’m an amateur.”

Kaylee’s jaw dropped at my words. The others, curious about what all the fuss was about, crowded around to take a look at the painting. Like Kaylee, their expressions all morphed into ones of astonishment and admiration.

“Honey,” Annabelle said, staring at the painting. “Modesty is one thing, but calling yourself an amateur is too much.” She tore her eyes away from the painting. “You aren’t humblebragging, are you?”

I snorted.

“Why would I humblebrag?” I asked. “If I wanted to show off, I would just show off.”

Annabelle conceded the point.

“I really am an amateur,” I said, gesturing to the painting.

Father, who stood behind Kaylee, pursed his lips.

“By what standards?” he asked. “To my eyes, this painting looks like a masterpiece.”

“Yes,” Kaylee said, nodding. “I feel like I could unlock the secrets of the universe by studying this painting.”

The others nodded in agreement.

I raised a finger and opened my mouth, before pausing.

Oh. Right.

I was an amateur by Immortal standards. The painting was in fact a masterpiece, if I judged it by mortal standards. It was a matter of context. That’s where I went wrong. I judged everyone around me by mortal standards, except when it came to tea, but I judged myself by Immortal standards.

“Huh,” I said, lowering my hand. “Okay, maybe you have a point.”

Annabelle snickered.

“Looks like we have an artistic genius on our hands,” she said.

I grimaced.

“Please don’t call me that,” I said, before walking up to Kaylee and giving her a kiss on the cheek. “Happy birthday, little sis. I love you.”

Kaylee pulled her eyes away from the painting and smiled.

“I love you too, big brother.”

After that, the birthday party continued without incident. However, Grandfather Gabe never made an appearance.

----------------------------------------

I wandered around the grounds of Sturm Manor, walking without any particular destination in mind. It was evening now, and the sun had set some time ago. We had spent all day celebrating Kaylee’s birthday, but now the party had wound down. I wanted some time alone, so I slipped away and wandered around, lost in my thoughts.

It was cooler now, though still warmer than it would have been just a few days ago. The land was waking up. I could see it in the blossoming flowers, the budding leaves, and the verdant fields. I breathed it all in, taking in the scents of spring.

Above me, the stars twinkled in the night sky, like jewels adorning an indigo cloak. The waxing crescent moon hung high above. Unlike before, when the moon was waning, the moon looked like a kind and loving smile, rather than a crooked and capricious one.

Luna was a fickle goddess. She was both the great mother of the heavens, and a cruel and deceitful trickster. Such was the nature of the moon. It was ever changing, though it followed a set cycle.

After a while, I found myself in the impromptu training yard that the others and myself created. Seeing the Plum Blossom Poles reminded me of Grandfather Gabe. What happened? Why hadn’t he shown up? Was he in danger? If so, from what?

All these questions and more plagued me. His absence worried me for several reasons. Without him, Clan Sturm was in a much more precarious position. If a feud broke out between us and House Shelton, or Clan Shelton in this case, then we might suffer a serious setback. Cultivators respected strength, and without a strong benefactor backing us up, we were at a serious disadvantage.

More than that, I was worried about Grandfather Gabe himself. He was family, and I didn’t want to see him hurt. I wasn’t the only one. The others cared for him as well, especially Mother and Gabriella. He was also Annabelle’s Master.

I would talk about it with Mother tomorrow, after we dropped Kaylee off at the Solarian Imperial Academy. If he didn’t show up by that point, we would have to go find him ourselves.

The sound of footsteps pulled me out of my thoughts. I turned around to find Annabelle approaching me, with her new bodyguard in tow. I didn’t know what happened to Avianna, but I figured that House Thorne replaced her with someone else after what happened in the Icefall Region several months back. Avianna knew the truth of my relationship with Annabelle, but remained quiet instead of saying anything when her friends and family thought that my family had kidnapped Annabelle.

This new bodyguard was closer to Annabelle’s age, but taller and more muscular than Avianna. She reminded me somewhat of Guildmaster Sinclair. From her light brown skin, dark hair, and dark eyes, I assumed this bodyguard’s family came from the imperial heartland. She had a rather attractive face, though she couldn’t compare to Annabelle’s beauty.

The bodyguard stopped a fair distance away, giving myself and Annabelle some semblance of privacy.

I looked at my beloved. She didn’t wear a dress this time around. Instead, she wore a tank top and jeans, like she used to all the time back at Sturm Hill. I needed to ask her where to get Earth clothing because I wanted some.

She also wore two bracelets made from thorny vines around her wrists, one for each arm. They were almost identical, except a small carnelian rose adorned one of them.

“There you are,” Annabelle said when she drew near. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you. You slipped away without saying anything.”

I gave her an apologetic smile.

“Sorry,” I said. “I just wanted some time alone.”

Annabelle wrapped her arms around my neck and gave me a gentle kiss on the lips. Her vanilla scent filled my nose. I grabbed her waist and pulled our bodies together. I savored the warmth of her skin, and the softness of her lips.

After several seconds, Annabelle pulled her lips away, though she kept her arms around my neck.

“What’s wrong?” she asked in English, a concerned expression on her face.

“Grandfather Gabe should have arrived today, but he didn’t,” I said in English. “I’m worried about him.”

Annabelle’s brow furrowed.

“Do you think something happened to Master?”

I shook my head.

“I don’t know,” I said. “I hope not. Given that he’s a Golden Core cultivator, I’m hoping that he was just delayed. Tch. What poor timing.”

Annabelle raised an eyebrow at that.

“Why?” she asked. “Because of House Shelton?”

“You know about that?”

Annabelle nodded.

“It’s been making the rounds in House society,” she said. “Lady Elizabeth and I have been keeping our ears open for any interesting rumors. Some speculate that you’re trying to provoke House Griffin by picking a fight with their vassal.”

I rolled my eyes at that.

“We just stole a magic beast from House Shelton. That’s hardly us picking a fight. Besides, it was more of a rescue rather than theft.”

While I wished that I could tell Annabelle all of the details, I didn’t. House Leone’s secrets weren’t mine to share.

“There was also the fight during the tea party at Thorne Manor,” Annabelle pointed out. “There are rumors that it was intentional on Lorelei’s part.”

I snorted.

“Those three fuckers were the ones who picked a fight with her,” I said. “Not the other way around.”

“Everyone who was there knows that,” Annabelle said “However, someone has been spreading around House Shelton’s version of the story. Lady Elizabeth and I have tried to find the source of these rumors, but so far we haven’t had any luck.”

I clenched my jaw.

So that’s what House Shelton had been up to. My friends and family had been so busy preparing for Kaylee’s birthday party, as well as her departure for the Solarian Imperial Academy, that none of us had gone out to socialize. This gave House Shelton free reign to spread their version of the story, making Lorelei look bad, and us by extension since she was a House Sturm retainer.

What the fuck was House Griffin doing? Why were they letting House Shelton run amok? Were they unaware of what their vassal was doing? Or did they not care? Loyalty to one’s vassals was one thing, but refusing to reign them in when they misbehaved was another. In the long run, it eroded one’s authority. Given enough time, and free reign, a vassal might view their overlord as weak and try to rebel.

Perhaps it was a good thing House Griffin hadn’t intervened. At the moment, it was just between House Sturm and House Shelton. The moment House Griffin got involved, things would get more complicated.

Maybe House Griffin was waiting to see how we would respond before deciding what to do.

Annabelle kissed me on the lips again, interrupting my thoughts.

“We can worry about House Shelton later,” she said, giving an impish grin. “We have some free time together. Why not take advantage of it?”

I had to admit, my heart soared when she said “we” in regards to the House Shelton situation. It showed that she also thought of us as a pair, a team working together against the rest of the world.

“Did you have anything in particular in mind?” I asked. “If not, we could take a walk around the grounds? The gardens at Sturm Manor might not compare to the ones at Thorne Manor, but they’re still beautiful in their own right.”

“They are,” Annabelle said. “But I did have something in mind.” Her grin widened. “Close your eyes. I have a surprise for you.”

I raised an eyebrow at that, but complied with Annabelle’s request. She removed her arms from around my neck and I heard her fiddling around. Seconds later, I felt her wrap something sharp and prickly around my neck, before locking it in place. While it didn’t hurt, I felt some mild discomfort. It was also tight enough that whenever I moved my neck, I felt it scraping against my skin.

“Okay, you can open your eyes now,” Annabelle said.

When I did, I found gazing at me with her yandere expression, as I had come to call it; possessive, predatory, and a touch sadistic. I caught a glimpse of satisfaction in her eyes.

My eyes flickered to her wrist. One of her bracelets, the one with the carnelian rose, was missing. Rather, it was now wrapped around my neck.

“Perfect,” she purred. “What do you think?”

“It’s a bit tight,” I admitted. “And sharp.”

“Good. That’s what I wanted.” Annabelle caressed the thorny choker she placed around my neck. “I wanted it to be just a touch too tight. That way, every time you move your neck, you’d feel it and be reminded of me.” A dreamy smile spread across her face. “No matter what you’re doing, no matter where you are, I want you to think about me every second of every hour of every day. Maybe then, you’d come close to understanding how I feel about you. You’re on my mind all the time, and I wanted to even things out between us.”

I snorted, before grabbing Annabelle and giving her a deep kiss. She let out a moan, and just about melted in my arms.

“This wasn’t necessary for that,” I said after we pulled apart. “You’re always on my mind as well. Even when I’m busy with something else, a part of me is always thinking about you. You’re in my blood, my bones, my very soul.” I let out a bitter chuckle. “I think that’s why you became the object of my obsession after I got cursed by Dark magic. Even when I don’t remember who you are to me, I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Annabelle laid her head against my chest.

“I told you, I already forgive you for that.”

“It’ll take me a bit longer before I forgive myself, but I’ll get there in the end.”

We stayed silent for the next several minutes.

“You know I’m not a masochist, right?” I asked.

Annabelle pulled away, her eyes regaining a bit of clarity.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said. “I was so excited that I didn’t take into consideration how you might feel about it. If you want, I can get diff-…”

I silenced her by placing my finger on her lips.

“I never said that I hated it,” I said. “While I don’t enjoy pain, my little sadist, I can tolerate it just fine.”

Annabelle nodded, keeping my finger on her lips.

“That said, I do like that you marked me as yours,” I said, caressing my choker with my free hand. It felt warm, almost as if it were alive. Given Annabelle’s affinities, maybe it was. “I’m just sad that I don’t have anything for you yet.”

While I had the design for Annabelle’s choker in mind, I hadn’t had time to visit a silversmith yet in order to commission it. The feeling of the choker she gave me, a mark of ownership, made my heart race and my blood boil. The thought of Annabelle wearing a choker I designed for her fanned the flames of my desire even further. It took a good chunk of willpower and self control to hold myself back. Otherwise, I would have taken her right then and there.

“You don’t need to get anything for me yet,” Annabelle said, speaking with my finger still against her lips. For some reason, I felt reluctant to remove it. “I just got so excited that I couldn’t help myself. Mom even helped me make it. She taught me how to infuse a bit of my aura into the choker, so everyone knows who you belong to.”

Ooh, that was a good idea. I would do the same with her choker.

“But,” Annabelle said, her eyes turning mischievous. “If it’s that big of a deal for you, I’m sure we can come to some sort of arrangement.”

Annabelle grabbed my hand and licked my finger in a suggestive manner. Her tongue felt warm. I read an invitation in her eyes. My pants tightened.

Fuck.

This woman was going to be the death of me.

“We’re practically engaged now,” Annabelle continued. “Doesn’t that mean we can stop holding back?”

On the one hand, maintaining propriety and preserving Annabelle’s reputation. On the other, connecting with the woman I loved. The smart choice would be to-…

Oh fuck it.

With my free hand, I gripped Annabelle’s hair and yanked her head back. Annabelle let out a gasp, before a wide smile spread across her face.

“The things you do to me,” I whispered.

Annabelle chuckled.

“You love it,” she said, her eyes twinkling. She called out to her bodyguard. “Shannon, give us some privacy. Don’t come back until I call for you.”

I glanced at the bodyguard, Shannon. She wore a stoic expression on her face, but I caught hints of smirk.

“Yes, Lady Annabelle.”

With that, the bodyguard walked off.

“Aren’t you worried that she’ll report this to your parents?” I asked.

Not that I cared in that moment. All that I wanted, all that I could think about, was Annabelle. Only a small part of me managed to remain sane.

“Shannon is one of my people,” Annabelle said. “Just as you have your own retainers, I have mine now. Shannon will keep quiet. There’s nothing holding us back anymore.”

Well, there were. Yet, they didn’t matter anymore.

“Now,” Annabelle said, taking my free hand and placing it against her neck. “Show me how much you want me.”

Her words burned away my last remaining sliver of sanity. We made love underneath the stars that night.