DISCLAIMER: The author's imagination and passion are the only sources of inspiration for this novel, which is a work of dedication. Parallels between these pages and the past or present may be apparent to some readers, but they are completely coincidental. You are free to interpret this art anyway you see fit, and it is meant for your enjoyment.
The "Wedding Season" was at its most daunting point. Wooing a woman with extravagant gestures, secret houses, or sophisticated plans was one thing, but confronting the builders of her soul was quite another. The mood that currently pervaded the Great Hall of the Hylde Manor made the previous weeks of romantic dates seem insignificant to the five suitors.
In addition to stability, color, and tranquility, the "Open-Source" universe has also brought back Ryianne and Eyrion Hylde.
The parents of the Hylde line appeared to have been carved from the mountains that guarded their estate as they sat at the head of the long weirwood table. The patriarch, Eyrion, was a man of iron and wealth, with wide shoulders and eyes that bore the weight of ten years of concern for his daughter. Ryianne, a woman whose grace was like a silk glove over a steel fist, sat next to him. She was the one who could demolish a man's ego with a single raised eyebrow; she was the tactician and the heart.
Eyldion stood between them, leaning against his father's chair and grinning in a way that suggested trouble was ahead.
Eyrion yelled, "You've survived the literal end of the world," and his voice reverberated across the vaulted ceiling like rolling thunder. "You've fought auditors, deleted reality, and reclaimed your names. But the question remains: Can you survive a Sunday dinner in this house?"
Ryianne leaned forward and scanned Giywon, Dyierrean, Ji-Hoon, Killian, and Leo with her keen eyes. "We aren't looking for heroes today, gentlemen. In the stories, the hero gets the girl, and the curtain falls. But in this house, the curtain never falls. Life is long, and it is often mundane. We are looking for a man who knows how to keep a hearth burning when the magic runs dry. We are looking for a son-in-law."
The "Family Council Test" was neither a sword fight nor a cunning contest. It tested both emotional intelligence and domestic competency. Ryianne and Eyrion firmly believed that a man's true nature was exposed when he was attempting to manage a household of thirty servants, five wild hunting dogs, and twelve boisterous pages, rather than when he was killing a dragon.
The suitors' tactical equipment and magical items were taken from them. They were placed in the kitchens and gardens of the Manor's "Front Lines" after receiving basic linen tunics.
The first person to struggle was Giywon. He made an effort to manage the kitchen crew with the same imperial effectiveness that he employed while leading a battalion. "Station one, focus on the mirepoix. Station two, prep the poultry," he said. But the only person to whom the Hylde kitchen crew reported was the Lady of the House. In less than twenty minutes, three golden retrievers that thought the Imperial Prince's imperial cloak was a chew toy pinned him to the flour-dusted floor. Watching from the gallery, Reinn bit her lip as Giywon finally lost his dignity and laughed loudly while playing tug-of-war with the dogs with his silk sash.
On the other hand, Dyierrean was a quiet force. He just existed; he didn't give orders. With a gentle intensity, he took up the heavy lifting in the garden, cleaning winter detritus and relocating stone benches. He didn't lose it when the youngest pages on the manor, who were known for being a crazy tornado, started throwing mud pies at him. All he did was pick up one of the kids, sit him on a stone wall, and demonstrate the correct way to sharpen a garden trowel. By midday, the kids were peeling potatoes in perfect, ordered quiet as they followed him in a straight line. Dyierrean was a man who could quiet a noisy home without raising his voice, as Ryianne documented in her ledger.
Ji-Hoon encountered an alternative obstacle. He made an effort to maximize the feast. Using a pen, he sat at the kitchen table and attempted to determine the precise number of calories needed for the visitors as well as the best way to distribute heat for the ovens. Eyrion approached and took the tablet away. "Use your nose, boy, not an algorithm," the Duke complained. "A child doesn't want a data-driven father; they want someone who knows when the bread is burning." Ji-Hoon spent the next hour, sweating and red-faced, with his pricey shirt sleeves rolled up, learning the laborious, manual process of kneading dough by hand until his knuckles hurt.
The day's biggest surprise was Killian. He handled the "test" as if it were a maritime spectacle. He deboned fish with the dexterity of a pirate while telling the kitchen maids fantastic tales. He was the epitome of the "fun uncle," balancing plates on his head while the kids screamed with joy. But throughout the cleanup, Ryianne kept a careful eye on him. She was surprised that as the labor became monotonous, the "Lawless Pirate" did not vanish. He demonstrated that he didn't just show up for the accolades by staying behind to scrub the pots while humming a sea shanty.
Above all, Leo was the most natural. The pandemonium of a manor kitchen was nothing like rush hour in Seoul, where I grew up in the contemporary world of self-service and high-pressure retail. He made no effort to impress or to take the lead. He just filled in the blanks. Without being asked, he refreshed Ryianne's tea after seeing it had gone cold. The youngest page's shoelaces were tied by him. He provided the "invisible" support that prevented the afternoon from falling apart.
The council proceeded to the drawing room following the supper, which was a chaotic but delectable combination of Northern stews, Imperial spices, and Ji-Hoon's "modernized" salads. Five glasses of a thick, amber Northern brandy that could remove paint from a ship's hull were poured by Eyrion.
"To be a Hylde is to be a shield," Eyrion declared, fixing each man with a stare that required complete candor. "Our daughter is a Lioness. She has survived scripts that would have broken most men. She doesn't need a master, and she doesn't need a savior. She needs a partner who isn't afraid of her strength. Tell me, how do you intend to protect her heart—not from villains, but from the wear and tear of a long life? How do you intend to build a family when the story stops being exciting?"
With the warmth of the sun in his voice, Giywon was the first to speak. "I will ensure she never has to choose between her duty and her soul. Our family will be the bridge that heals the Empire. I want our children to grow up in a world where the crown is a symbol of service, not a burden of blood. I will be the man who ensures her home is the one place she never has to perform."
With reflected blue eyes, Dyierrean gazed into the hearth. "I offer her the silence she needs to hear her own voice. My love is not a speech; it is a fortress that requires no maintenance. I want to build a lineage where our children feel the safety of the mountains. I am the man who will stay awake so she can finally sleep deeply."
Leaning forward, Ji-Hoon's tech-focused mind at last found human language. "I will provide the resources for her to never stop evolving. Our marriage will be a constant state of discovery. I want to be a father who teaches our children that their minds are their greatest weapons, and that their home is a place where every question is welcomed."
The light from the hearth tempered Killian's roguishness as he took a long swallow of the brandy. "I'll make sure she never forgets how to laugh, even when her hair is white, and the world is grey. I've lived a long time, and I've seen that the only thing that lasts is the joy you share. I'll be the man who keeps the adventure alive in the smallest moments."
Leo bided his time till everyone had finished. He turned to see Reinn watching from the shadows of the doorway. "I'll be the one who stays. I've seen a hundred versions of her, and I loved every one. I don't need to build a kingdom or a fortress. I just want to be the person she looks at when she's had a bad day and knows that she's exactly where she belongs. I'll be her anchor to the real version of herself."
Reinn joined her parents on the terrace with a view of the starry gardens as the evening came to an end. The five men were huddled close to the fountain below, conversing in hushed tones. A weird, male link had emerged from the rivalry, a brotherhood created in the flames of Ryianne's "Kitchen Trial."
"They are all good men, Samantha," Ryianne remarked, holding her daughter's hand. Her hold was solid and warm. "Now we only want a match that will save your joy. We want a man who sees you, not the Villainess or the Lady."
Eyrion exhaled, his rough, scarred features melting with a rare, sincere smile. "The Prince is a pillar of light. The Duke is a mountain of stone. The CEO is a brilliant mind. The Pirate is an untamed spirit. And the Fixer... the Fixer is a heart that has already been tested. You've done well to find such men, Reinn. Any one of them would be worthy to be your husband."
"But who do you see at our table twenty years from now?" Reinn asked, her heart hammering against her ribs.
From the railing, Eyldion expressed his voice, flinging and catching a silver ribbon. "The one who didn't try to be a hero today, but tried to be a brother and a son. The choice is yours, Sister. But I think you already know who made Mom laugh when the dogs knocked over the gravy."
Reinn glanced down at the five men. The "Family Council" had eliminated the titles, the magic, and the clichés. They were no longer "Love Interests"; instead, they were flawed, diligent, and intensely committed individuals. Reinn didn't see five suitors for the first time. She finally realized which of the five futures she had seen held the secret to the family she had always imagined.