CHAPTER 538: CHAPTER 538 - FATHER KAI’S POV (BACKSTORIES PART 2)

In the dead of night, I carried the child out of the duchy underneath my robes, making sure he still had ample space to breathe. I was able to go through the gates quite easily given my position and since I was only carrying nothing but a pouch tied to my waist band, I practically looked like someone who was only instructed to go out for a quick errand.

I have been living in this city all my life and I am quite confident in my ability to make myself disappear without a trace if I need to. I may have been only a butler in this household but the position have enabled me to build tons of connections with people from all walks of life over the years so I know just who to ask and where to go to make it happen.

The first place that came to my mind was a long time friend who was a government official. I remember telling him that of all government offices, why did he have to choose one that is boring but also problematic at the same time. He works in the family registration office and who would have thought that the same job that I laughed about was eventually the one that would be of great help to me in this time of my great need.

As I knocked on the door of his house frantically, he opened the door with his half-lidded and sleepy eyes. He was surprised to see me in a shady looking outfit of course and at an ungodly hour with a child in my arms even more. He looked at me in confusion and I swear he had thoughts that the child in my arms was my child from who knows where.

He led me inside the house and asked me to sit on one of the comfortable chairs in his living room. Not wanting to waste anymore time, I started explaining everything the happened even before I reached the seat he ushered me to. He looked at me with helpless eyes and sighed but he did not have any second thoughts of helping me out.

He went to his office quickly and took out some of the official document forms used to set up new families. Upon coming back to the living room, he laid out all the papers and started explaining to me the process of how what I wanted can come to fruition.

With his quick thinking and agile hands, he started filling out the forms, falsifying and backdating records for me. I looked at him in surprised and he simply rolled his eyes on me then murmured, "Yeah... Yeah... This isn’t the first time so keep your thoughts to yourself."

In the official documents he created, a new household just popped up under the surname THALORIEN and the head of the family was me. I decided to change my name to Kai from my previous name of Oceano. It is better to make it as totally different as possible and even the surname was unique which indicates it as nothing but a commoner’s household. He also made sure that it would seem that I never worked in the duchy and that my commoner household was created under my name when I came of age.

After my part of the document was completed, he then went ahead and added this infant’s and his father as part of my family, my grandson and my son. I gave that young man, my new son his name after all this time even though it came too late. I named him as Lahja which means "special gift" just like how he was and this child in my otherwise routinary life.

Finally, I named the new grandson in my arms as Lir following the 3 letter pattern of my new name. Our names both have something to do with water which is quite appropriate for merfolk if I may say so.

To complete the plans, I cut my hair short, shaved my beard and mustache and even changed the way I dress up. Me and my new grandson then fled towards Cobalt City and stayed in farthest and most inconspicuous area of the city. I found several odd jobs to earn money to take care of my grandson and I personally made sure that he learned how to read and write through me.

I just want to clarify that we aren’t poor but it would be hard to explain where I get money to buy food and clothes as well as to pay rent if I do not have a job. It turns out that the pouch that was given to me by Lahja was filled with wealth that we don’t even know if Lir and I can use up in our lifetimes. My son’s identity is becoming more and more mysterious as time goes by.

After several years, Lir became more and more like his father in terms of looks and with it, he gets in trouble no matter how well-mannered or humble he was. The sabotage due to the envy of others as well as lewd looks that are thrown his way were endless from the time he reached his teenage years. I was always worried for his future especially after the time when he comes of age.

Fast forward to a few years after that, several weeks after my grandson came of age, Lir suddenly came home with two people in tow in the dead of night. They were wearing hooded capes that obscured their whole body. I really thought that he actually got into big trouble this time.

It did not help to calm down my nerves when my grandson started to hurriedly close the door and windows until only the light of the candles on our dining table remained. I hope whatever this is, it can be fixed with money or mediation.

Once the visitors somewhat felt secured, the two hooded merfolk pulled their hoods back and surprisingly, they were familiar faces. They are the children of the two enemy factions in Coral City where I and Lir originally came from. It was none other than Neris from the Coralflare family and Itsa from the Frostglow family.

I thought this was all the surprise that I would be getting but I can never be more wrong. The two nobles suddenly kneeled before me and from Itsa’s hooded cape, a newborn child was pulled out, wrapped in thick cloth to keep her warm. I took the child in my arms almost instinctively just like the first time Lir was given to me.

As I looked through the cloth, I saw the face of a beautiful little girl that has Itsa’s face and Neris’ hair color. She looked so precious but then comes the confusion on why they are giving the child to me out of the blue.

They confessed that they investigated and found out about Lir’s circumstances and that they wanted to ask for my help to do the same for their daughter since they don’t want her to end up being killed. They promised to give constant child support and visits as the child grows up too. They also asked help if it was possible for me to adopt them both in to my family register under different names and then include Naia as my new grand daughter.

I looked at Lir with furrowed brows, thinking as to why he just had to bring these two nuisances to my home. As for Naia, she is the only exception to being tagged as a nuisance. I honestly missed carrying a small baby like this since this stupid grandson of mine has grown up already.

I sent Lir quickly to the same friend’s house that helped me more than a decade ago with the instruction for my grandson to tell the guy that he had to "do it for me again" and "come to my house with the necessary things". I am sure he would understand what I meant.

It only took about a quarter of an hour when Lir came back with my old friend. When he arrived at my home and saw the child in my arms and the two people who look very familiar, he looked at me with a face that totally screams "Are you kidding me right now?"

I simply nodded with an apologetic smile to him. He sighed and asked me what needs to be placed in the official documents which I readily gave him. The whole thing did not even last an hour and this should all be submitted and finalized when the offices open tomorrow.

After everything has been done, Neris and Itsa reluctantly left their child with me together with a bunch of other stuff that a child may need inside a magical pouch. There were even a few packs of what looks to be essences coming from Neris to feed the child for at least a week. I saw Neris crying but Itsa pulled him away before they get caught sneaking out of Coral City.

With that, my family has grown again with one more son, a daughter-in-law (both opted to keep their names but adopted the new surname) and another grandchild. This is making my heart happy but my head hurt too with how complicated my family has become. I don’t even have a wife yet!