The nobleman felt the pressure on his body but hid it; he had a reputation to maintain. He declared, "I am Viscount Dorian Halden, and I look after this region." He bowed slightly at the end.
Sera nodded and turned back to point at the decapitated bodies and said, "Check their hearts, they are demonic humans."
Dorian was shocked by Sera's revelation. He quickly moved to the bodies, summoned a dagger from dimensional space, and carefully sliced open one of their chests. He saw the heart inside was turning black—a known sign of demonic humans in the early stages. He methodically checked the other two bodies in the same way, confirming their hearts were also discolored.
He immediately bowed to Sera, this time with gratitude, "Thank you, I have not done a good job. I am grateful for your help."
Sera just nodded her head and added, "I was not planning on killing them at first. I only wanted to scare them so they wouldn't repeat it again. But they were releasing subtle demonic energy. They had hidden it so well that I barely found it when I sealed them in ice."
Dorian finally understood how the grand duchess had found out about them. He thought, 'They must have tried to break free from ice and involuntarily release demonic energy to break the ice." It is very hard to tell who is a demonic human, as only their mana can reveal it. Also, high-ranking demonic humans can mask it very well.
Sera walked over to her children. She knelt down, spreading her arms for a hug. When she noticed the hesitation in their eyes, she smiled bitterly, her face showing deep sadness for her recent actions. She didn't want to share this side of herself with them so soon, but circumstances forced her to reveal it. Though she knew they would see it eventually, she had wanted to delay that moment; after all, she was only human and wanted to show the good sides only to her children.
Alex glanced at his sister, Ariana, who had lowered her head and was trembling. He placed his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, and he gave her an encouraging smile. With that reassurance, Ariana turned to her mother and hugged her tightly.
She mumbled, "I'm so sorry. I couldn't live up to your expectations. I love you, and I'm not afraid of you, Mother. You did all this for my sake, yet I couldn't meet your eyes. Mother, forgive me. I love you." Her voice broke, trembling as she sobbed in her mother's arms. Sera gently moved her hands on her daughter's back, soothing her with tender strokes.
Only after a while did she calm down. When Ariana got back, Sera cupped her daughter's cheeks, her hands trembling with relief, and whispered, her voice breaking with emotion, "I love you, daughter. I am not upset by your actions. Truthfully, I was more frightened than you. The thought that you might start fearing me terrified me."
Ariana shook her head, "No, we don't fear you, right brother?" She looked back at her brother, who was standing just a little distance away from them.
Alex nodded, "Yes, how could we be afraid of our mother? We know how much you love us."
Sera felt relieved at Alex's words and pouted at how he was keeping a distance. She teased, "Won't my son give me a hug? Or, is that you don't love me anymore?"
Alex looked around at the group, feeling embarrassed to hug his mother in front of everyone. Although he was old enough to hug her, the presence of so many onlookers made him even more uncomfortable.
Sera laughed at Alex's face, whose face was going through a myriad of emotions. She said, "I am just joking, son. I know you love me."
Shane smiled at their interactions. He also did not know at first how their children would react to seeing Sera's other side. They had only seen her smile and love them with occasional outbursts of anger, but it was so rare that they could count the times she had been angry.
Dorian waited on the side, careful not to disturb the family. He quietly organized the people in the inn hall, directing them to leave one by one. They exited one by one, moving so subtly that Ariana, who was still in her mother's embrace, did not notice the hall had emptied, and the dead bodies had been removed. When she finally looked around, she realized the hall was empty, and the corpse was gone. She did not ask who removed it, since it no longer concerned her.
Dorian slowly approached them and bent his body to Shane, "Grand duke, I would love to welcome you to my humble manor, since the inn is vacant and this place is so dark."
Shane looked at Dorian suspiciously. Sera returned to his side, and Ariana stood beside her brother. He asked, "How do you know about us? Why did you come here so urgently?" He immediately called his sword, darkred, and pointed it towards Dorian's neck, making him freeze in his stance.
Dorian remained frozen, not daring to lift his head. He steadied himself, recalling his rank as a viscount, albeit a lesser noble. He answered shakily, "I was informed of your arrival by the guard captain, who said you wished to change your attire. I believed it was best to invite your family to my manor to change clothes and rest, rather than staying in this dark inn," his voice carrying a clear note of fear.
Shane turned to look at the reception desk, where the inn manager had run away with others. He grazed his sword on Dorian's neck, almost drawing blood, but for some miraculous reason, it did not. He ordered, "Tell me why you are showing this much kindness. What are your reasons? Don't test my patience."
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