Angel Monarch

A day came and went. The sun set on the horizon an hour ago. The city's artificial lights came on in most households, especially the mansions.

One particular mansion, though, stayed mostly dark, only a few rooms burning brightly in the early night.

Thea brought the invitation home, but couldn't explain the reason to her parents. The shame still scorched her heart, and she couldn't bear witnessing the disappointment on her family's faces.

Instead of telling the whole truth about her mistakes, Thea lied and told that a friend invited them to dinner. She told them to dress fancily, and so when the time approached 9 pm, everyone stood ready in the living room.

Thea's father, Marc, wore an elegant and very expansive military suit, and a matching cap, which hid his bald head. His light blue eyes burned with joy as he stood and joked around with his son, Marko.

Marko wore a suit of similar cut, but with a lot more vibrant colors, like light green, purple, pink, blue, and red, making his outfit quite chaotic. It matched perfectly with his long neon green hair and bright purple eyes.

Their mother, Luzia, sat quietly. Her dark gray eyes kept glancing at her daughter, noting the nervousness in her body language.

Luzia wore a long, flowing golden dress on, which highlighted each of her beautiful curves. A single crystal hair clip depicting a flower adorned her shoulder-length light gold, almost white hair.

Thea's fierce silver eyes stared out the window in silence, waiting for her doom to arrive.

She wore a shorter dark red dress, only reaching her mid thigh, and revealing her shoulder. The maids braided her long, bright gold hair, weaving a long strip of dark red cloth and a few jewelry into it.

Each of the family members had already reached Ascended Rank, so every single one was above any natural beauty standard.

From the four, Thea was the smallest with her 1,8 meter. His older brother reached just below 2 meters, while both her parents were above that, her father even reaching 2,2.

They were athletic, thanks to rigorous training, and each possessed a unique magnetism. Even Marko, the family introvert, grabbed the attention in every room he stepped into.

While the two men enjoyed a nice drink and friendly banter, Thea's hands continued to sweat as she watched a car pull into their driveway.

The car didn't look special at first sight. Just a large black six-wheeled SUV style truck, capable of carrying a dozen personnel at once. It had a militaristic outlook, like all the other cars Thea had travelled with her parents.

But when the driver stepped out, something extremely strange happened. The SUV turned fully invisible right before Thea's eyes.

Even more strange was the driver. He wore a full-body golden armor, like the ones the Angelic Order had. On his long, flowing blood-red cape, a single large seven-pointed golden star marked his affiliation.

He approached their door, rang the doorbell, and went back to the SUV. When he touched the car's door, it appeared again, and he sat back inside.

The family marched outside, leaving the maids in charge of the property.

Thea's father and brother inspected the black car with great interest, while Luzia just continued staring at her daughter with rising suspicion.

The car's interior was quite luxurious, with dark wood panelling on the floor, and a minibar to the side. Marc and Marko immediately attacked the drinks, even though their Ascended nature rendered them immune to normal alcohol.

When the car began moving, Luzia had enough of her daughter's strange behavior.

"Thea, where are we going exactly? You told us one of your friends invited us for dinner. What's her or his name?… Why haven't you told us anything?"

Facing many questions, Thea breathed deeply to compose herself. But her emotions stayed turbulent, fear and anxiety consuming her mind.

The car jolted awake and began moving at an unnatural speed. Thea yelped in surprise as the car moved through the streets, evading vehicles by inches.

The Empress's Joy was about a twenty minutes drive away, but with this car and reckless driver, they made it there within five.

Thea didn't even have time to answer her mother's questions. They all gasped as the car slowed, and when it came to a full stop, they all breathed a sigh of relief.

All four exited the vehicle unsteadily. Luzia wanted to have a quick exchange with the driver about his recklessness; however, upon exiting, the car turned invisible and sped away.

Upon realizing she couldn't scold the driver, Luzia turned to her daughter, who was staring at the restaurant in awe.

Many believed the Empress's Joy was the best, most famous restaurant in New Athens, but they were wrong… The restaurant's and food's reputation spread through Europe and even other continents on Earth.

The Empress's Joy allows reservations for a day on January 1st, and during that time, the restaurant gets fully booked for the entire year.

Reservations beyond the initial year are unavailable, with exceptions, of course... There are always individuals powerful and influential who can get tables whenever they desire… It seemed Viola was such a person…

All four stared at the restaurant's beautiful, yet reserved, and elegant exterior. Even Luzia's anger vanished when facing such a magnificent building.

It took them a while to compose themselves, but soon reality began dawning on them. They all knew how impossible it was for their family to acquire tables at the Empress's Joy and knew exactly how much influence a person needs to get an emergency reservation.

Thea's three parents and sibling showed deep anxiety and curiosity on their faces. They became a lot more interested in the dinner now and awaited the meeting with Thea's 'friend'.

On shaky legs, Thea took one step towards the restaurant, then another, until she began walking with faked firmness. Her family followed close behind, eyes glowing with awe.

The large building's interior was even more luxurious than the outside. Upon stepping in, Thea saw a large desk, with a young woman smiling kindly, behind it.

She wore an elegant feminine suit, with a long skirt, and bowtie. Her shoulder-length hair, clipped to the sides, extenuated her neck, bringing additional beauty to her already gorgeous face.

"Good evening, ma'am! Do you have a reservation?"

While her smile seemed kind, her eyes moved across each family member, examining their outfits, determining their prices. From just one look, she easily gathered most information about their family's background.

"Not exactly… Uh, we were invited to dinner by my… Friends… Is there a reservation as Viola or Hayden?"

The young examined her holo-screen, pressing buttons fast with great efficiency. Her smile became thoughtful for a moment, then she looked back at Thea with a strange boredom behind her smile.

"There is no reservation by the name of Viola or Hayden, sorry? Can I help you with anything else?"

Thea's hand swam with sweat from this new obstacle. She looked around curiously, waiting for a divine intervention, so she wouldn't feel embarrassed.

A crimson blush stained her cheeks, while she wondered why no reservations existed.

She suspected Viola, or perhaps that soldier pranked her, yet the car's timely arrival refutes this theory.

With no explanation, Thea became helpless, and just as she opened her mouth to speak, the young receptionist began speaking with someone through her earpiece.

"Really?… But they have no reservations… WHAT?!… I understand!… I won't hold them up further… Thank you, ma'am!"

Throughout the one-sided conversation, the young woman's face turned paler and more terrified. At some point, she actually shouted from shock, then immediately became submissive.

When the conversation reached its conclusion, she took a deep breath, and stared at Thea with a wide, trembling grin. Sweat dripped down her beautiful face, and she hid her shaking hands below her desk.

"Sorry for causing a fuss! Your friends are already here, waiting! Proceed through the entry and a waiter will escort you!… Sorry for the disturbance again, and I assure you it will never happen!… Enjoy your meal and please don't mention this to your… Friends…"

The receptionist continued to shake, with pure horror in her eyes. Thea and everyone else felt a similar coldness as they walked through the door.

The waiter greeted them accordingly and led them to the occupied main hall. Not a single empty table existed, but the waiter didn't stop at any.

He led them behind the main hall, where private rooms stood prepared for VIP guests. He guided them towards the most lavish one.

The door stood seemingly made of gold, with lots of intricate embellishments. It slid open, with barely any noise, revealing an even more luxurious inside.

The waiter ushered them all inside, then left the area, leaving Thea and her family alone with the two other guests.

The door slid closed and Thea finally gathered enough strength to look Viola in the eye. But to her utter surprise, the person sitting at the large round table wasn't Viola.

She was much more beautiful with short, shoulder-length white hair.

The most amazing piece of clothing Thea had ever seen covered her body. The night sky seemed woven into the knee-length dress. Small points of light kept appearing and disappearing on the dark fabric.

Her milky white, pale skin contrasted the dress perfectly, giving her small stature a regal beauty.

The girl's youthful face showed a tasteful amount of make-up, making her age a few years. But a single scar stretching from her eyebrow, to her left jaw, took away from her perfect image.

Thea knew Viola's age, yet those piercing white eyes revealed someone other than the thirteen-year-old she remembered.

While her body was of a teen's, her eyes told a different tale, one full of suffering, pain, and sacrifices.

Thea and all her family trembled at the sight of the girl, but she either didn't notice or care. She just stood up with a wide smile and spread her arms encompassing the entire room.

"Welcome everyone, to the Empress's Joy! I'm sure Thea introduced me as Viola, and my boyfriend as Hayden, but as you can probably tell, we lied to her about our real identity!"

'Hayden' stood up next to 'Viola', towering over her meagre height. He wasn't as different compared to his school looks.

His black hair became golden, and his already handsome face became even more perfect. His dark blue eyes scanned the faces of Thea's family.

He wore a suit tailored exactly to his well-muscled, tall body. Its material was unlike anything Thea had witnessed before, likely made of some monster's skin.

The young man held a similar smile as his girlfriend while addressing them.

"You can probably guess why we hid our identities, and by the looks on your faces, you recognized both of us. Either way, let me introduce ourselves more properly… My name is Henry, Prince of London, and this is my girlfriend, Victoria, Princess of the Angelic Order!"