Everyone in the hall stood up to greet my mother. Well, everyone except me, since I was already standing.
When I raised my head to look at her,
I couldn't help but be struck by the sight. A shiver ran through the depths of my soul.
She was a woman of transcendent beauty, draped in a royal crimson gown, walking with a calm and captivating grace. Her skin was as pale as a corpse, with a faint smile playing on her scarlet lips. Her coal-black hair fell like a shimmering waterfall of darkness, but there was something strange and terrifying hidden within her beautiful, enchanting eyes.
She sat down and looked around before speaking in a calm, marble-like voice that carried a hint of amusement.
"Come now, don't be so tense. There's no need to stand—everyone, please, sit."
My sisters sat down one by one. Seishan, Revel, Eunbin, and selene took their seats as well. And well... I was the only one left.
Looking around, I realized there was no thirteenth chair for me. But before I could process the situation, my mother's voice reached me.
"Why don't you sit as well, little prince?"
She was smiling at me peacefully, but after spending all this time with Eunbin and my other sisters, I knew better than to be deceived. After all, the only person my sisters would ever look up to as a role model was my mother. And there it was—that look in her eyes, as if she were plotting something, or rather, anticipating something.
"But there is no empty seat," I replied.
My mother looked around with exaggerated thought, then placed her right index finger on her lip as she mused aloud.
"Oh dear, it seems my maids have become quite incompetent lately. Hmm... where should you sit?"
I didn't answer because I realized from the playfulness in her voice that she was planning something. Sure enough, she soon clapped her hands as if she had found the perfect solution and patted her lap.
Damn it.
"Well, dear, why don't you sit on my lap tonight since there isn't another chair?"
I didn't know that bringing a chair was such a difficult task for a Queen. Tsk tsk. However, a month of suffering had taught me that I would lose the argument anyway—especially since I was already on the losing side of it.
Fine, let's balance the scales a bit. Hehehehe.
"Of course, mother!" I said in a cheerful voice.
I ran toward her, and before she could even reach out to pick me up, I had already jumped into her lap. For a few moments, my mother didn't react, and neither did anyone else in the room. Well, at least until she burst into a loud laugh while adjusting my position.
She lifted me by my underarms until my face was close to hers, smiling as she spoke.
"Hmm, you don't have a name yet, do you? Well, I know exactly what your name will be."
"Orion... Song Orion. That is your name from now on."
She quickly placed me back on her lap and clapped her hands. Before a second could pass, a line of maids advanced, serving the meals with quiet, seamless precision. The discipline among them was so intense that I briefly wondered if they were synchronized robots or just Pilgrims controlled by my mother herself.
As I watched them serve the food, I couldn't help but notice something strange. Meat. Everything served consisted of meat. Meat soup, steaks, potatoes stuffed with meat, seasoned meat chunks.
Before I could wrap my head around that, the next shock came with the drinks.
Hmm... is this blood?
The color and consistency were exactly like blood; the only difference was the scent.
"Are you curious about it?" my mother asked.
I could only nod my head.
"I would tell you, but it's a top-secret recipe unique to the Song Clan. Only two people know the ingredients."
One look at my sisters' faces told me that everything my mother just said was pure nonsense.
"Well, it isn't good for children, but I suppose I'll let you have a small taste."
My mother said this and quickly raised her glass to my lips. Hmm, what's the worst that could happen? It's not like she's going to poison me. I opened my lips slightly and took a sip from her glass.
Oh my god. It was overwhelming.
In my entire life—well, both of my lives—I had never tasted anything like this. Although I didn't know all the ingredients, it definitely contained a high percentage of blood and wine. Before my mother could pull her hand away completely, I tried to take another sip, but my attempt was met with failure.
"Don't be greedy. I'll let you drink it when you're over eleven. For now, drink your milk."
As she spoke, a maid stepped forward and placed a glass filled with milk in front of me. She's mocking me. I'm absolutely sure of it.
The rest of the meal passed smoothly. my sisters talked about their lives and laughed, and my mother shared their smiles as we ate. The food was delicious; if it weren't for my mother's overwhelming presence around me, I would have been happy to eat with my hands without any regard for etiquette.
Naturally, all my attempts to sneak another sip of my mother's drink failed. She didn't speak or pull the glass away; simply, the moment my hand moved toward it, I felt her gaze on me. I didn't know how, but I could definitely feel her watching me, and I was certain the reason was my mother's aura, not some superhuman sense of mine.
It was also decided that I would stay in the Raven's Heart, where my room had been prepared in the massive fortress. Revel would also officially stop coming to the waking world until the winter solstice a few months away. Many facilities had been prepared for her beneath the great castle to provide all her needs in total darkness. After all, even though she had come to the waking world three times while I was there, it was always in complete darkness or at night. Her flaw was truly troublesome: the inability to stand under the sun or its light.
The meal soon ended, and I heard my mother's voice behind me.
"Orion."
---------------------------------------------------
The name Orion is an ancient Greek mythological name that belongs to a giant hunter in Greek mythology, known for his great strength, bravery, and exceptional hunting skills. After his death, the gods placed him in the sky as a constellation known as Orion, one of the most famous constellations in the night sky, which can be seen easily.
Since the Beast God is also the god of hunting, I felt that the name Orion suits him well