Does Father Ever Feel Lonely?

Ilodyer lifted his head to look at the child standing beside The Elven King, with pale golden hair flowing down softly, its blue color as pure as the sky over Tibet. In terms of age, this child was three years older than Ilodyer.

Is this a child from the Mithlóte family? Are they the bravest and most skilled warriors among the elves? But why couldn't Ilodyer sense anything from this child?

Curiosity got the best of Ilodyer, and he couldn't help but take another glance. There was nothing particularly special, just a bit more mature than the average child, perhaps due to the presence of The Elven King.

"Ilodyer, introduce yourself." The Elven King gently patted Ilodyer back.

"Hello, I'm Ilodyer." he thought for a moment and then said, "Let's be friends."

The boy smiled slightly, took Ilodyer hand, and bent down to press a kiss on the back of his hand. "I am Rhys from the Mithlóte family. I've heard about you, the child of The Elven King."

Hmm, are all elven children so mature? Ilodyer quickly withdrew his hand, staring at Rhys in astonishment.

The Elven King chuckled softly and held the hand that had been kissed by Rhys. "Don't be afraid, Rhys just want to show admiration to you."

Is that so? Ilodyer turned to look at Rhys, but he didn't see any embarrassment on his face, so he muttered in annoyance.

The Elven King noticed Ilodyer discomfort and sent Rhys away.

"Father..." Ilodyer nuzzled into The Elven King embrace.

"What's wrong?"

Looking up, Ilodyer asked, "Why did he start learning Elvish at the age of six? Is it because he's particularly slow?"

The Elven King smiled when he heard that, his face revealing a smile. "Rhys was studying other things before, and now he has finished, so he's learning Elvish."

"Tch..." Ilodyer made a displeased expression.

The Elven King lowered his head to kiss Ilodyer eyes. "Does my little one dislike him?"

"Not really..." Ilodyer smiled, "I'm just afraid he'll outshine me, and then you won't like me anymore."

The Elven King said, "Father only likes my little one."

"Really?"

The Elven King emerald green eyes, like the most beautiful gemstones in the world, made Ilodyer feel breathless, so he quickly looked away.

The elves had always been the proudest race, which meant Ilodyer, with her human heritage, had no friends except for Rhys.

Rhys was a quiet person, with a demeanor somewhat similar to The Elven King. The impression from their first meeting felt like a mere illusion.

Everyone said that Rhys from the Mithlóte family was destined to become an outstanding elven warrior, but Ilodyer had never seen him in a fight.

Some said that assassins were very lonely, and indeed they were. Luckily, Ilodyer had grown accustomed to such solitude. Living among humans, he often felt isolated or had built a high wall around himself, even when he was in bustling cities there was only an enduring loneliness.

Some said that similarly lonely landscapes could console lonely hearts. So, Ilodyer often traveled alone to beautiful, sparsely populated places, where the quiet and beauty made her feel extremely lonely. He had also visited crowded tourist destinations, the hawkers, the trash, the flashing cameras, the scent of sweat... the unbearable congestion.

Being alone was better, accompanied by those lonely yet beautiful scenes. Perhaps loneliness wasn't so hard to endure.

Until he met that man...

"Ilodyer... Ilodyer..."

"Yeah..." Ilodyer rubbed her eyes and looked up to see Rhys staring at her. "What's wrong?"

"Why did you fall asleep? The sun has already set, it's time to go back." Rhys brushed the black hair from Ilodyer forehead. "The Elven King would worry."

Ilodyer nodded and got up from the grass. The sun had indeed set. He rarely thought about her past, feeling like the 21st century was a long dream.

Suddenly perplexed, he wondered, who was dreaming in whose dream? Did the transformed elf dream about humans, or was he currently dreaming?

"Ilodyer, what's the matter?" Rhys looked at him, the fading sunset casting a graceful shadow under Ilodyer long lashes. "You seem puzzled."

"Rhys, do elves dream?"

"Not very often."

"Do elves feel lonely?"

Rhys fell silent, then after a while, he said, "Ilodyer, what do you mean by loneliness?"

...

After returning home, Ilodyer flopped onto his bed without even having dinner. When the moonlight shone on the Evergreen Glade Forest, The Elven King returned to the room and saw the three-year-old child lying on the bed with closed eyes.

He bent down to gently kiss his forehead, and the child on the bed opened his eyes, as black as the night, looking at The Elven King.

"Father..."

The Elven King nodded. "Why didn't you have dinner tonight?"

"I'm not hungry."

"What's wrong? You seem preoccupied."

"Do elves ever feel lonely?" Ilodyer asked.

"Why are you asking this?" The Elven King had someone bring in Ilodyer dinner.

"I'm just curious."

"Does the little one feel lonely?" The Elven King inquired.

"Occasionally..."

"My Ilodyer, there's no word for 'loneliness' in Elvish. It's a concept from the human world. Leaves in the Evergreen Glade Forest fall and grow five hundred times; to us, it's just a blink of an eye. If elves understood loneliness, it would be when they understand love."

Ilodyer was surprised by The Elven King answer, blinking his eyes. "So, does Father ever feel lonely?"

"Not now, because my little one is here." The Elven King smiled and lifted Ilodyer, sitting at the table.

"When my little one has someone they love in the future, perhaps they'll understand loneliness. Now, eat your dinner."

Ilodyer picked up his fork and slowly began to eat his dinner. He even had a plate of strawberries. The presence of The Elven King aura surrounded him, creating an inexplicable sense of tranquility.

When it was time for bed, The Elven King didn't go to bed with Ilodyer. Instead, he gently plucked at the strings of a harp. The elf harp was about ten centimeters shorter than modern ones, around eighty centimeters in height and fifty centimeters in width.

Ilodyer had never heard anyone play the harp better than The Elven King. As the enchanting melody filled the air, The Elven King softly began to sing a poem.

Of course, elven poetry was quite different from modern pop songs. The Elven King sang an ancient poem praising the God Of Creation.

They said elven music had a fatally captivating effect on human ears.

Perhaps due to Ilodyer human heritage, he was bewitched by the deep voice.

The Elven King voice held a faint sorrow beneath the harp resonance, yet behind that sorrow was an infinite vitality, easily enchanting anyone who listened.

Since that evening, Ilodyer became enamored with elven music. Every night, he pestered The Elven King to teach him the harp. Perhaps due to his human heritage, learning the harp was difficult and challenging, but fortunately, The Elven King had an extraordinary patience and excellent teaching methods. After ten years of learning, Rhys finally commented that he sounded somewhat like elven music. Ilodyer was exasperated.

When Ilodyer was eight and Rhys was eleven, the height difference between them began to widen. Finally, at sixteen, Ilodyer gave up on surpassing Rhys height. Their rankings also remained consistent throughout these ten years, with Rhys consistently holding the first place and Ilodyer always being the last.

Perhaps due to his Hometown heritage, Ilodyer was satisfied with his black hair and eyes.

As Ilodyer grew older, his body became even more slender than the average elf. He had always thought that The Elven King had starved his as a child.

His black eyes and hair made Ilodyer stand out as an anomaly among The Elven race. No one had ever told Ilodyer about his biological father, nor had anyone mentioned his mother. If it weren't for childhood memories, Ilodyer would truly believe that The Elven King was his biological father.

To elves, their teens were nothing, as they didn't truly mature until they were a hundred years old, officially inheriting their family surname. But could The Elven King surname truly be used by him? Ilodyer pondered.

The Evergreen Glade Forest was like a sea of green. Standing at the top of the tallest tree, when a strong wind blew, the entire sea of trees swayed like an ocean.

"Father, have you ever seen the sea?" Ilodyer stood beside The Elven King.

The Elven King voice was melodious and tranquil. "Yes, I have."

"When?" Ilodyer turned his head, and his black hair danced in the wind, creating alluring lines.

"During the awakening of the first elves in the distant east, I was one of them."

"Then what about the other elves, aside from you?"

The Elven King voice carried a hint of melancholy. "Some elves died, or their souls chose to remain asleep in the temple forever. Others became dark elves, and many lost contact."

"...Why would they choose to sleep? Aren't elves supposed to have a deep love for nature and all things, favored by the gods?"

Ilodyer didn't understand...

Ilodyer lightly moved his body, gracefully descending the intertwined branches, and without a doubt, The Elven King had been waiting for him under the tree.