“Happiness Ranking, 9th place: The Happiest Child”
Upon seeing this ranking, the people at the Funeral heaved a sigh of relief—there’s no way they could possibly make another appearance this time, right?
Although there was the possibility of them appearing as the ‘parental generation,’ considering the futures of Ashe and his two friends, it seemed unlikely. One was destined to be a career con artist, another was a wanderer with no interest in the living, and the third had just clawed his way out of hell. Where would any of them find time to have children? Would Ashe have children with a Bewitcher in hell?
“Synopsis: Leia Bukin is the daughter of Anfel Belldate and Igor Bukin. From birth, she was destined to be the heir to the Belldate name, master of Mephila, and the sole inheritor of the Dominance Sect. Moreover, after Archibald brought peace to all the clanspeople of Belldate, Leia completely broke free from the bloodline curse. She grew up showered with affection from her parents, and whenever she went out, followers of the Four Pillars Cult protected her from the shadows. Her life was carefree and...”
Just like the last ranking list, the synopsis text suddenly started to distort, and soon the entire page was blackened, with blood-red ink forming a name everyone was sick of seeing: “Ashe Heath.”
At this point, no one cared about the mutation in the Gospel Ranking. Their eyes were fixed on the con artist with peculiar expressions.
Igor’s face didn’t show any surprise, only a thoughtful look.
At that moment, the left half of his body suddenly ignited with grey flames. Though they didn’t scorch his clothes or skin, the flames quickly spread, attempting to engulf his entire body!
“What’s happening?” This sudden attack put everyone on high alert. Banjeet and Annan immediately started to scout the surroundings, but the con artist, whose face was being burned on one side, remained calm: “No need to panic, Ashe, give me a hand.”
As Igor extended his hand, almost entirely turned into a torch of grey flames, Ashe didn’t hesitate and grabbed it. The grey flames whooshed along Ashe’s arm, eliciting gasps from the others, but Ashe only felt a slight chill. Then the flames returned to Igor, but this time they quickly extinguished, as if nothing had happened at all.
“Yvaren just activated a domination Miracle, trying to distort my perception while I was in shock, making me go back to be Belldate’s son-in-law,” Igor explained. “I have to admit, this miracle is quite creative. The abstract act of ‘distorting perception’ actually manifests as flames, speeding up the process through the phenomenon of burning... Great, I’ve learned it.”
“So, was having me help you a necessary step to resolve it?” Ashe asked. “Do I have some mind-control nullification effect?”
“No, I just wanted to scare you a bit,” Igor replied.
“Wait, if Yvaren is trying to send Aunt Bukin back now, and the ranking list mentioned Aunt Bukin’s daughter...” Lise said, “Does that mean Anfel already has little Leia!?”
“Igor, you scoundrel! You played and ran!” Ashe gasped. “How could you have done it in just a few days... You must have used hypnosis! Teach me!”
“Who was the one who lured me into the car in the first place!?” Igor’s lips twitched. “And I think I understand what’s going on with this ranking list... The young lady should have figured it out too. If you all still end up as clueless artiodactyla after we finish watching the ranking list, I’ll explain it to you.”
“Yeah,” Annan nodded in agreement, “This Gospel Ranking will be unexpected for everyone.”
Since the two smartest people in the group had spoken, everyone continued to watch the ranking.
The screen had switched to video footage, showing little Leia’s happy life from birth. She was lovingly cared for by her mother, allowed to grow freely in the Belldate manor. Occasionally, her father would take her out to witness magnificent landscapes and experience the hardships of the world, which nurtured her kind heart and compassion for the weak. Born into wealth, she naturally developed a disciplined character, possessed an insightful understanding of human nature, and excelled in empathy. Aside from a bit of stubbornness and mischief, Leia almost perfectly embodied the best qualities of both her parents.
It’s enough to make anyone envy-Igor, do you and your friends have any plans for more children? Can I make a reservation to be born into this family?
“Eight-year-old Leia was playing in the garden when the scene suddenly flickered, and Ashe appeared behind her out of nowhere.”
“‘Leia, nice to meet you,’ Ashe said, ‘I’m Ashe Heath...’”
“‘I know, Uncle Ashe!’ Leia looked up and said, ‘Aunt Yvaren and Mom talk about you all the time! Are you here to see Dad?’”
“‘No, Leia, I’m here to see you,’ Ashe squatted down in front of Leia, ‘I’m here to take you away.’”
“Leia tilted her head and extended her hands towards Ashe, ‘Okay, where are we going to play?’”
“‘You make it look so normal; you’re making me feel unimportant,’ Ashe laughed.”
“Happiness Ranking, 9th place
: The Happiest Child”
“Synopsis: Leia Bukin, daughter of Anfel Belldate and Igor Bukin, her ranking is invalid due to the influence of Ashe Heath.”
“Reward: Voided.”
“Culprit: Ashe Heath.”
The sheer volume of information left everyone momentarily silent.
“Dad,” Lise looked at Ashe with a touch of annoyance, “you’ve never praised me like that...”
“But I need a reason to praise you,” Ashe replied. “Should I commend you for eating quickly and a lot?”
“But how could you shower a little girl you met just once with so many flattering comments? Are other people’s children really that amazing?!” Lise stomped her foot in frustration.
“Well, then...” Ashe cleared his throat. “Lise, you are naturally born a force of chaos. Any food will turn into nourishment for you. For you, eating and sleeping are as instinctive as breathing...”
“That’s so perfunctory!”
While fending off Lise’s disgruntled attacks, Ashe turned to the Con Artist and said seriously, “Igor, I promise, I would never do that to your daughter—”
“You don’t need to explain,” Igor interrupted. “Just like I won’t explain why the ranking list shows me marrying Anfel and having children. Let’s continue reading.”
“Leia, your daughter Leia, has the talent to become a Divine Sovereign!”
In the Belldate manor, a blue-haired girl was jumping for joy, hugging her sister tightly. “Did you see that? Your child will completely break free from the curse of our bloodline! Don’t worry, Anfel. I’ll make sure Igor comes back to you. Then you can have Leia, and we’ll raise her to become a legend, no, an angel!”
Anfel knew her sister’s happiness was genuine, but there was no doubt she also wanted to use Leia for her own ends.
Although Anfel had shared the ‘Kingdom Coin,’ which could protect one’s will, with her sister, trying to restore her to normalcy, Yvaren’s will was actually not the issue. She had just completely separated her emotions from her reason, so no amount of passion would sway her cold-blooded decisions.
“Yvaren,” Anfel said once her sister had calmed down, “I think you shouldn’t get your hopes up too high—”
“Don’t worry, once I bring Igor back, I have plenty of ways to make him breed: manual stimulation, electric stimulation, all sorts of miracles one after another!” Evaline proudly raised her head, “Even if it doesn’t work, it has to work!”
“I have no doubt about Mr. Igor’s abilities, but the biggest problem now is the future rankings.”
“Hmm?” Yvaren was taken aback, “What’s wrong with the rankings?”
At this moment, the Gospel Book updated. Anfel looked down, and her expression immediately turned very strange, “Take a look and you’ll see.”
Yvaren looked down.
“Happiness Ranking, 8th place: The Happiest Wife”
“Synopsis: Nalber Harvey, wife of Archibald Harvey, is the happiest wife...”