Elven Legacy (Part 2)

Chapter 269: Sibling's Or Lover's Banter

Currently, I am in the throne room, sitting on my small throne beside Father while he and Mother spoke with a few nobles; now that I'm officially an adult, by tradition, I'm required to attend certain meetings in preparation for when I ascend to the throne. It was, without a doubt, annoying and tedious since most of the time, I was just meant to silently watch and learn how Mother and Father manage their daily duties of being the Emperor and Empress, and while they'll occasionally ask for input, it's far and few in-between, which means, I'm actually forced to pay attention.

However, thankfully, right now, I'm merely waiting for Elaine so she and I can finally head toward the Divine Phoenix Clan; this is one of the rare opportunities where I just have to act like a pretty face, so I wasn't really complaining.

'Though, if Elaine doesn't hurry up, Mother or Father might ask me something, and it'll be a shameful display if I can't answer.' Mused Elif lightly as he rested his head on his fist while gazing at the numerous nobles down below, nodding as if he was genuinely involved in the conversation.

A few minutes passed by, and finally, the throne room doors opened, followed by Elaine and that fool Maxim entering, causing me to smile and stand up as I completely ignored the latter.

"I apologize for the interruption, but I'll be leaving now." Said Elif with a happy smile as he stood up and looked at the numerous nobles before glancing at Maria and Marcus, prompting the latter to raise his hand and silence the nobles.

"You're leaving for the Phoenix Clan, correct?" Asked Marcus with a raised eyebrow as he looked at Elif, who nodded while gracefully walking down the steps and approaching Elaine.

"Yes, Father, we had intended to leave a little bit earlier before the meeting started, but Elaine forced us to wait." Replied Elif with a nod as he gave Elaine an annoyed look before reaching down and lightly pinching her nose.

"You sure took your sweet time, Elaine." Said Elif with a small frown as he lightly shook Elaine from her nose, causing her to pout before looking at Maria.

"Mother, Brother is bullying me!" Yelled Elaine with a pitiful expression as she ignored Elif while looking at Maria, who failed at concealing her smile.

"Hehe, Elif, stop bullying your sister." Said Maria with a soft chuckle and a motherly smile as she eyed Elif, causing him to huff in annoyance before he removed his hand.

Looking at Elaine rub her nose while sticking her tongue out at me, I felt my face twitch in annoyance as I once again grabbed her nose, pinching it harder than before.

"My little sister is being quite the troublemaker today, it seems." Remarked Elif with an unamused expression as he pinched Elaine's nose, only for his ear to suddenly get pulled.

"What did I say about bullying Elaine, Elif?" Asked Maria with furrowed brows as she stood beside Elif while eyeing him, causing him to roll his eyes before releasing Elaine's nose.

"Hmph, she started it first, Mother; she stuck her tongue out at me. I can't just take her disrespect without retaliating; I'd lose my pride as the elder brother." Replied Elif with a slightly pained expression as he glanced at Elaine, who was boldly sticking her tongue out before glancing at Maria, trying to garner her sympathy since she was also an elder sibling.

"Hmm, I do understand what you're referring to. Marcus also used to be annoying, but you can't just go around using violence; that's not solving your problem, is it?" Remarked Maria with a raised eyebrow as she nodded while releasing Elif's ear, causing him to gently rub it while Marcus's face constantly twitched.

"That is incredibly rich coming from you, Maria; if I'm not mistaken, most of my childhood was you bullying me and treating me like a servant." Declared Marcus with an irritated expression as he intently eyed Maria, who softly blushed before awkwardly looking away and clearing her throat.