Golden eyes stared into a pair of intimidated yet curious emerald-colored eyes.

Aku did not blink as he passed over those eyes that reminded him of his cousin. Another pair of lush-tinted eyes was reminiscent of the children's mother before he met the last pair of more timid pastel purple irises.

These were the ugly creatures he met a decade or so ago. Well, they weren't as unpleasing to the eye as before, if that was a good thing. Aku supposed that perhaps, they did have Founder genes and weren't completely hopeless. If his memory served him right, which is a pleonasm, they were Ayato, Laito, and Kanato.

His lips, drawn in a flat line, slightly curved up, making his overall impression soften and the sharp edge of his eyes lessen to seem more inviting. As a diplomat, Aku knew best how to use his looks or features. He was aware of the sharpness of his pair of almond-shaped golden eyes. He knew that with a mere glance, he easily intimidated others. But he was also aware that his face as a Founder was out of this world. With a single twitch of his lips, changing his aura was an easy trick. In any case, a little magic could always work if he was much too lazy to move his facial muscles.

"Why, good evening, children," he greeted at last. His voice, low and mellow, sowed comfort in the children's heart, yet there was also traces of unsettlement.

The triplets, despite being a mere decade old, had experienced a lot already. Placed in their loving mother's care, they knew that with affection came an equal if not more significant amount of hurt.

That was the way Cordelia educated them.

To receive Mother's attention, I shall always come out on top— Failure is not an option. Shall I fail, then certain punishment awaits.

To be gifted Mother's warmth, I shall smother her in all of my attention— Failure to give would mean losing her Love. Losing her Love, isn't that dying to her?

To be granted an ounce of her time, I shall sing the most beautiful songs— Failure to sing, have my throat bleed, would make me a discarded doll. What is a discarded doll, that is a broken toy, the one you throw away?

Although Aku did not know what the triplets went through, he did not care to ask; he could more or less guess from the times he spied on the manor out of boredom. The crystal ball given to him by Karlheinz was a fantastic source of entertainment; voyeurism was delightful, it seemed.

In the triplets' gaze, Aku sensed discomfort and curiosity but also something akin to relief.

With him there, Cordelia had yet to come. She had seen them, minutely frowned, and snapped her mouth open to bark at them, but the moment her snake-like eyes met Founder's preying ones, she had swallowed those words and turned on her heels. Aku did not doubt who she sought out, most probably her Lover, Richter.

Speaking of him, Aku's lips adopted a sly edge as he thoughtlessly narrowed his golden orbs. It seemed Richter was already building up his scheme in a slightly more upfront manner. Sleeping with his Brother, the Demon Lord's First Wife, there was nothing more explicit to state his stand regarding Karlheinz's authority. Not that the King would mind, he was not magnanimous, but Karlheinz had absolute trust in his power. He definitely doubted Richter's plans and awaited his dear Brother's downfall with anticipation.

"Hey, Mister!" Ayato barked, his voice high pitched from his age and his tone adventurous. His words held no stutter as he called out to the First Blood, and he stood tall and proud, chest puffed out as if to assume superiority. "What are you doing here? Who are you?"

He was a bit of a brat, Aku thought. He did not like it.

Instead of answering the young Vampire's question, Aku slid his gaze to Laito, who seemed the most eager to speak out of the two remaining brothers. "You must be Laito, yes," he asserted, face as unimpressed as before.

Perhaps because Endzeit didn't leave much of his kind, Aku searched for some semblance of familiarity in his nephews. Alpha and Omega were half-breeds, but they would never be Founders or anything close to it to Aku. How could he tolerate that such beings joined the Founders' ranks when he was the one they originated from? He was too ashamed, yet also too interested in the benefits the twins brought to have them killed.

Hearing his name from the unknown yet powerful male in front of him, Laito's complexion brightened. His lips stretched into a wide grin that showed off his pearly whites as he gave the much older Demon a firm nod. His reddish-brown hair swayed with the motion of his head, brushing against his visage in a ticklish way that made his grin all the more genuine.

"Yep! Nice to meet you, S— My Lord, I'm Laito Sakamaki," he introduced with a small bow of his stature. He barely corrected how he called out the stranger as he remembered each time an unknown person came in and how servants would address them. It seemed like his choice of words was correct. Aku's lips curved up, satisfied as he lightly hummed in a precarious form of acknowledgment.

On the other hand, Ayato wasn't looking so good. Both embarrassed and angered by the foreigner, his face flushed, and he blew his cheek. His lips pursed out slightly in what seemed to be a pout, and his hands turned into tight fists by his sides as he refused to look up at the male who ignored him, favoring the pavement. He felt wounded and unjustified. He did not understand why his brother, his little brother, the ones deemed inferior to him, would receive the attention he so justly deserved. He was the firstborn, the heir; this was not what Mother told him.

Aku gave the mulling redhead a passing glance, not even bothering to understand his feelings or how he was frustrated.

"And you must be Kanato," he affirmed, gaze sliding to the silent purple head. Kanato was much shorter than his two brothers. He seemed shyer as well, but in his pastel-colored eyes, Aku could spot a raging storm waiting to be unleashed. The boy was a bottle of emotion— powerful emotions. Apart from denying them expression and waiting for them to explode, he did not know how to deal with them.

It was so sad it seemed almost funny.

Kanato gazed up at Aku with awed and frightened eyes, his ocular orbs glazed from unshed tears of fright as he bit on his lower lip. His tiny hands gripped at his white frilly dress shirt, wrinkling the ends as he forced himself not to look down and evade the older's piercing gaze. "Y-yes," he whispered, voice trailing off and gaze dodging to the side. His purple eyes fell on Laito. He straightened up before looking at Aku and adding 'My Lord,' in a trembling and uncertain voice.

Aku was satisfied. He did not bother the kid more as he swept his gaze around the rose bushes surrounding the garden. He wasn't particularly fond of them. Their fragrance wasn't the most pleasant, nor was their look, but they were still strangely popular within Demonic high society. The Sakamaki manor was proof itself.

"Tell me, children," he began, voice as smooth and mellow as it sounded at the beginning. "Do you know where I could find the current housekeeper?" he asked, words polite, the demeanor laidback and aloof.

That made the three kids blink. "The servant?" Ayato asked, finally looking up to meet Aku's gaze. Perhaps because he was still just a young child, he seemed to get over his frustration quickly. "You wanna talk to mister butler, uhm— My Lord?" he asked, voice losing in confidence as he called out to the older Demon.

Aku hummed, satisfied enough with how Ayato called him. He allowed himself to spare the redhead a glance. "No," his answer was curt with no place for complaints, making the young Vampire stand straighter and feel unnaturally ashamed by his proposition. "I want to know who's in charge when Karlheinz isn't here," he elaborated, golden eyes intimidatingly narrowing as he felt himself get annoyed by the simplicity of his question.

Karlheinz

The mere mention of that name made all three children straighten up. Anticipation blended with fear and a dash of admiration mixed into their colored irises as they gazed up at the man who supposedly knew their Father. Someone who not only knew him but who was also powerful or crazy enough to call the most powerful of Demon Lords by his name and without any honorific.

"Mother's in charge then!" Ayato declared, pride seeming to coat his voice as he regained some confidence. Right, his mother was the one in charge here.

Aku raised an unimpressed eyebrow, he hummed. "Cordelia is? Lead the way," he ordered, not leaving them a second to answer as he turned on his heels, Kagamine emerging from his shadow before escorting his master into the Sakamaki estate.

As a Shadow Demon, one with experience and a certain amount of power, Kagamine could quickly pinpoint any shadow and the person they belonged to within a certain radius.

"As you wish."

The two Demons separated from the curious triplets.

It was without a knock or a semblance of courtesy that Aku entered Cordelia's room. Kagamine pushed the doors open without an ounce of hesitation, his hands coated in a thick black mist as he forced the spell cast on the door to break.

"Ugh," Aku brought a hand to cover his mouth in disgust.

Here, on the bed entangled, were Richter and Cordelia. Both almost stark naked if not for the duvet that covered their forms. Golden eyes flashed, surveying the room with contempt.

Cordelia flushed, not out of embarrassment but rage at being disturbed and for the rudeness displayed. She was about to call out the unknown male angrily— Richter's presence was an assurance of her power, when the male by her side moved.

"My Lord," Richter greeted, his voice raspy and hurried. The Vampire twisted his wrist behind his back, summoning clothes to dress him as he came out of the bed to respectfully bow at the Founder. It was too early. Richter couldn't afford to have the Founder, one of the strongest pieces on the board, turn his back on him.

Aku shifted his gaze to the frazzled Cordelia, the small amount of kinship he difficultly summoned evaporating in a second.

"Richter, what a coincidence," the Founder greeted, an obvious sneer dangling at his lips. He watched Richter's hands curl into tighter fists and chuckled, his mood growing lighter.

Richter stood straighter. He did not spare his Lover a glance. "Shall I escort you to the drawing-room, My Lord? I'll have some servant prepare refreshments," he indicated, the thumb-size Familiar that lurked in the corner of the room poofing out of existence to execute the task.

Aku's gaze flicked to Cordelia in sick satisfaction. He loved the way her expression distorted so darkly, bringing a new shade and texture to her emerald eyes. It made his stomach twist in deranged delight. He peeled his gaze off of her, leaving behind a contemptible look for her to engrave in her memories.

Aku licked his upper lips. At least her eyes were pretty enough. He particularly loved how her pupils became slits when powerful emotions overcame her.

If Cordelia later lashed on her children to satiate her irritation and tame her temper, Aku was unaware.

If Cordelia used this opportunity to almost drown Ayato in a fit of anger the following week—

If Cordelia decided to go further with her third son's romantic escapade—

If Cordelia gifted the middle triplet with the corpses of dozens of lovers she suddenly eliminated in her fury—

Aku did not know.

Even if Aku knew, he would have laughed, his beautiful lips twisting in an amused smile and his golden eyes glinting with entertainment at the budding discontentment in the triplets' eyes.

It was a small, tiny seed.

It was a seed that required a passionate amount of feelings to grow into the most beautiful and dangerous flowers.

When it happened, Aku's only regret would be not to have plucked out both her eyes to add them to his collection.

But this, the incident was a story for another time.

When it happened, Aku's only regret would be not to have plucked out both her eyes to add them to his collection.