Vanessa looked at him and showed a smile before asking, "Are you not curious why I did this?"
Es looked back at her quietly, then asked, "Are you going to tell me?"
She pinched his cheeks lightly, the gesture soft but leaving him flustered. "You will know when you turn ten."
Taking his hand, she guided him through the wide hallway until they reached the far corner of the house. A heavy wooden door stood there. She opened it and revealed a neatly arranged room—simple, but filled with warmth.
"From today, this room will be yours until you turn fifteen," Vanessa said, her voice calm yet firm. "I know you need some privacy at this point, so I won't say anything." She paused, her gaze lingering on him with a strange mixture of affection and possession. "But after your fifteenth birthday, you will sleep with me."
She turned to leave, but halfway out, she suddenly turned back, leaned down, and kissed his forehead. "Good night."
Es froze, his face burning. Timidly, almost inaudible, he whispered, "Good night."
Vanessa smiled faintly at his reaction before walking out and closing the door gently behind her.
After stepping into the hall, she took out her phone and dialed.
"Amaya," she called.
The voice on the other side picked up immediately. "What is it, miss?"
"Amaya, enroll Es in an elementary school," Vanessa ordered.
"Yes, miss," Amaya replied without hesitation.
"And start preparing for his Soul Rune Awakening. Be as discreet as possible."
"I will do my best, miss."
"Good. Continue your work."
Vanessa ended the call and slipped the phone back into her pocket. She entered her own room, a spacious chamber lined with bookshelves and stacks of documents. Sitting at her desk, she carefully reviewed several important papers, her sharp eyes scanning every line until she was satisfied.
When she finally finished, she set them aside, extinguished the lamp, and lay down on her bed. The moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting pale light across her figure.
Her eyes softened as she whispered to herself, so quietly it was almost as if she feared the world might overhear.
"Finally… I found him, after thousands of years."
Es sat on the bed in his new room, staring at the ceiling. The apartment was quiet, the muffled hum of the city drifting in from outside. The room wasn't large—just a bed, a desk near the window, a wardrobe, and a shelf with a few neatly placed books—but to him, it felt like luxury. For the first time, he had a space that belonged only to him.
Still, he couldn't calm down.
"After your fifteenth birthday, you will sleep with me."
Vanessa's words lingered in his head, strange and heavy. He didn't really understand what she meant, but he could feel they carried a promise that reached beyond simple affection. The kiss on his forehead still burned faintly in his memory, making his chest tighten.
Es hugged his blanket and whispered, "Why me?"
He thought back to the orphanage—how no one had cared for him, how he was treated as just another child to feed. Yet Vanessa Gray had chosen him out of everyone. She had adopted him, given him a new name, and even called him her husband.
It felt unreal.
When sleep finally came, his dreams were shallow, filled with shifting shapes he couldn't remember when he woke.
Morning light broke through the curtains. Es rubbed his eyes and got up, walking to the window. The city below was already alive—cars moving, people rushing to work. He pressed his hand against the glass, catching his own reflection faintly staring back.
His face was delicate, almost girlish, with soft skin and long lashes. Children at the orphanage used to tease him for it, but here, in the quiet of his new room, he saw something else. There was nothing about his looks that explained why Vanessa had chosen him. He was beautiful, yes, but not extraordinary enough to warrant the strange way she treated him.
And yet she said he would "know when he turned ten."
Es frowned. "What does she see in me that I don't?"
The smell of breakfast floated from the kitchen, snapping him out of his thoughts. His stomach growled. He hesitated, then left his room.
Vanessa was seated at the dining table, a calm smile on her face. A plate was already set for him. Her eyes softened the moment she saw him.
"Good morning, Es," she said.
He shifted nervously, then replied, "Good morning."
"Come, sit," she said, gesturing to the chair across from her. "Your new life begins today."
Es obeyed, quietly taking his seat. As he picked up his fork, he wondered again—what kind of life did she see for him? And why did she look at him as if he was something far more important than he could ever imagine?
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