Chapter 154: Are you my daddy?

The Next Day -

Roxanne hugged me tightly and she rose on her feetin to kiss me on the lips of her own accord. After the kiss, she took a few steps back, blushing due to the presence of the surrounding people. We were currently right next to the teleportation portal, and I was about to return to Asina with Isabella. That's why my guild members and a few others had come here to see me off.

After Roxanne, Ellera stepped forward and simply said, "Take care of yourself," before stepping back. No more, no less; she was always like that.

Then Kayle approached me, and when I opened my arms, she hugged me tightly. While hugging her, I caught a glimpse of Ellera's not-so-obvious jealous look from behind. She probably wanted to hug me too, but either she was too shy or thought it was an unreasonable request, so she simply said, "Take care of yourself" instead of hugging me. S~eaʀᴄh the ηovёlFire .net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

I felt Kayle inhaling my scent like a wolf, and I gently pushed her away. "Take care, Ethan!" said Kayle.

Violet had been standing in the corner the whole time, watching me with a shy and somewhat sad expression. Deciding that talking to her in front of everyone wouldn't be a good idea for now, I just smiled slightly at her. She averted her eyes in response, but I caught her glancing at me secretly afterward. I thought maybe she realized that what she was doing was wrong.

Then it was Evangeline's turn. Evangeline had her long, straight, pink hair tied in a braided bun at the back of her head. She had a slight smile on her face. As she approached me, she smiled and said in a teasing tone, "Why did it take you so long to leave? It's like you're going off to war."

"Hey, that wasn't funny!" came a voice from behind, and everyone turned towards the source of the sound. Violet, surprised by her own words, said, "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to say that."

"It's alright, Violet," I said, turning back to Evangeline. Fortunately, Evangeline didn't seem to be offended.

Evangeline stretched as much as she could on her feet and tried to lean closer to my ear, but since she couldn't reach, I bent down a bit for her.

"Thank you," said Evangeline, and then in a hushed voice, "We should talk about your kiss with that girl later, Mr. Ethan." She said, referring to Roxanne

She then stepped away from me, leaving me there. I realized I had forgotten to explain my relationship with Roxanne to her, but I thought our relationship was merely a transactional one before the tournament. We would have to talk about it after I got back. Actually, I had to talk about many things with many people..

"Then let's go," Isabella said.

My gaze scanned the area again, but I didn't see Catherine; instead, I spotted Limahlat in the distance, who I expected to see. He didn't have his usual wide smile on his face; instead, there was a smaller grin.

"Okay, let's go." Isabella turned around and started walking towards the teleportation portal.

I also turned around and began walking towards the portal. The purple teleportation portal had already been set up, and the location was chosen. The destination was the capital palace of the Asina kingdom. As Isabella stepped into the portal, I took one last look at everyone behind me. Kayle, Ellera, Roxanne, Violet, Evangeline… Each of them was bidding me farewell with different emotions. When I reached the front of the portal, I took a deep breath and stepped through calmly.

After passing through the portal, I started following Isabella, who was walking naturally a little ahead of me. The surrounding lights were blinding, but I kept walking until the light finally faded away. When I looked around, I realized I was in the vast garden of the Asina kingdom palace. The scent of the nearby lake peacefully reached my nose. Isabella was right in front of me, looking back at me with a smile. This place was literally a forest and, although it was connected to the palace grounds, it was outside the palace walls.

"Are you really going to leave without even seeing your mother?" she asked.

"Yes, unfortunately. I don't want anyone to know I'm meeting with Avanne," I replied.

Isabella approached me and wrapped her arms around me. Just to be safe, she hesitated to kiss me; it was just an innocent hug. Then she pulled back. "Well, I'll see you later. You know where to find me, right?"

"Yes, I know. Take care."

Isabella nodded, and we parted ways. Since she was already one of the strongest people in the Asina kingdom, I didn't need to worry about leaving her alone in the forest. So I pulled up my hood and set off towards the viscountcy estate where Avanne was located. Of course, I wouldn't forget to use my dark element to shorten my journey. The weather was quite cloudy and dark on this new day when the sun had just risen. But there was still no unfavorable weather for the journey

°°°°

One Night Later -

On a rainy day, I was standing in front of the walls of Avanne's mansion. Since I wasn't using my false identity as Arthur, I was considering entering the mansion using my dark element. After all, the fact that I was actually Prince Ethan, and Arthur, would spread across the entire continent in a few weeks, so using that identity was risky. I moved a little away from the walls and, after putting on my dark armor again, transitioned into the dark realm, making sure no one was watching me.

I journeyed through the dark realm and entered Avanne's mansion, starting to wander through the rooms one by one. The number of servants in the mansion was quite low. It seemed that Avanne was trying to keep the child a secret or at least restrict information about the child, assuming there really was a child involved. As I went from room to room, I finally found Avanne. She was sitting in a comfortable-looking chair behind a large table, focused on the documents in front of her.

Then I shifted my gaze from Avanne and scanned the room with my eyes… And there she was. Just like Avanne, she was busy with the papers in front of her. Next to Avanne's desk was another table, and behind it was a very high chair equipped with a belt for children. A little girl with blue eyes and black hair was sitting there, drawing something on the papers on the table. It was clear she was imitating Avanne. From her posture to her expression, it was obvious. The child looked to be at most two years old and was undoubtedly the sweetest child I had ever seen in my life.

For a moment, I felt quite emotional, but then I took a deep breath and left the room. After all, if I suddenly appeared out of nowhere, I might scare the child. So I went just behind the door but didn't exit the dark realm. I felt so strange that I couldn't even think clearly. I had a daughter. I have a daughter. It was normal to feel strange because I had just learned this fact a few seconds ago.

But then I quickly exited the dark realm. Now, I was excited because I wanted to meet her, my daughter. Fortunately, since there was no servant in the long corridor, no one saw my odd state. I then knocked on the door a few times. After knocking a few times, I heard Avanne say from inside, "Come in." I took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and entered.

"Hello," I said quietly, unsure of what to say for a moment.

My eyes first landed on the sweet little girl; she had a curious expression, as if trying to figure out who I was. Then my gaze turned to Avanne. She looked at me in shock, but then she stood up and approached me. She seemed extremely anxious and stood in front of the child.

"Ethan… I hadn't received a letter about your arrival, but… I told you to send a letter if you wanted to see her…" she said with a worried expression.

"… I'm sorry, I didn't read your letters. And don't worry, I won't separate the child from you," I said, causing Avanne to relax.

"… I… Thank you… I'm sure there are a lot of questions you want to ask," said Avanne, stuttering slightly

"Yes, there are, but right now I just want to meet my daughter."

Avanne nodded, then took a deep breath and moved to the side of the little girl behind her. The little girl looked at me, her curiosity becoming more pronounced on her face. As I looked into her blue eyes, I was trying to suppress the complex emotions inside me; I felt caught off guard, but I didn't want to miss this moment. Discover hidden tales at m,v l'e-NovelFire.net

Avanne gently touched the girl's shoulder and said in a calm tone, "Sweetheart, this man… Ethan. He is your father." The little girl continued to look at me with her head tilted but then, excitedly, smiled widely, causing her chubby cheeks to puff up.

"Are you my daddy?" she asked in her sweet voice.

"Yes, I am," I said softly, smiling nervously. For a moment, a shy expression appeared on the little girl's face, but then she gathered courage with Avanne's reassuring gaze. Afterward, with Avanne's help, she got up from her chair and ran toward me after Avanne let her down. Slowly, she reached out her hand and took a small step closer to me. Her small, soft hands touched mine, and a pure smile appeared on her face.

"What's your name, sweetie?" I asked.

"My name Lyra!"