"Eh?!"

Donk District, Adeline's villa.

Adeline, dressed in a pure white cotton nightgown, shot up from her bed, her knees pressed tightly together.

She held the sigil in both hands, a girlish blush quickly spreading across her face.

"Father, what are you talking about? What boyfriend do I have!"

The wind lifted a corner of the curtain, allowing moonlight to spill onto the wooden floor.

The two little pig dolls Felyn had given her were placed on the bedside table, their mouths touching.

Then, Claude's voice came from the sigil.

"Mr. Felyn, Felyn Sorester, isn't he your boyfriend yet? You kept bringing him home a while ago. I thought you two were already together."

"Wait! Father... you, you... woo..."

Adeline hugged the little pig doll from her bedside table and buried her face deep into it.

The rose-tea colored hair scattered on her pillow curled up from embarrassment.

How could Lord Claude not know about Adeline's actions?

If he didn't know, that would be a dereliction of his duty as a father.

Lord Claude was fully aware of Adeline using her personal guard to protect Felyn.

After all, the guards knew who was the one paying them.

Lord Claude respected his daughter's privacy and was willing to cultivate her independence, so he allowed and even encouraged her to live alone.

But this did not mean Lord Claude would let Adeline run completely wild.

Lord Claude didn't want to know what happened inside the villa.

But he knew very clearly who had entered the villa.

However, he did not intervene. It was normal for a teenage girl.

He even felt that his daughter was quite bold. After falling for a boy, she just brought him straight home.

It was quite reminiscent of his own style back in the day. He was very pleased.

In over a year, Adeline had only brought home one boy, Felyn, and he had even stayed the night a few times. Lord Claude just assumed this was Adeline's little boyfriend.

Lord Claude hadn't investigated Felyn either. After all, it wasn't marriage yet, they hadn't reached that step. If he interfered too much, it would also cause his daughter to resent him.

"Father... he, he's not my boyfriend yet."

Adeline's toes curled, gently pressing against the mattress and her shyness.

Lord Claude fell silent.

She's already brought him home, and she still hasn't won Felyn over?!

After more than a year, even a heart of stone should have melted by now.

It was time to give Adeline a proper education on love.

"He's... he's the person I like, that's right... but, but I think I lost him. I pushed him so, so far away that I can't catch up anymore."

Adeline leaned against the headboard, tightly hugging the little pig doll.

This was the first time she had spoken to her family about Felyn.

From the failed confession until now, Adeline couldn't help but feel sad and hurt.

Lord Claude did not reply immediately. Adeline listened to the sound of the moonlight rubbing against the floor, staring blankly at her thighs exposed outside her nightgown.

And on the other side of Seiwa, Lord Claude was also in a daze.

Lord Claude did not intend to interfere in their romance. After all, it hadn't reached the point of marriage, so there was no need to be too strict.

But if it came to marriage, Claude felt that Felyn must meet his requirements before he would allow them to marry. He wouldn't be as casual about a major event like marriage as Silafiel was.

The last time Felyn saved Adeline had left a deep impression on Lord Claude. Whether he relied on the Sorester family's secret arts or had others secretly helping him, he had indeed eliminated a member of the Divine Cult.

He was confident that Felyn would meet his requirements in the near future.

But he didn't expect his own daughter to pursue Felyn and still fail.

Just now was the first time Lord Claude had heard Adeline speak in such a sad tone.

Adeline was very sensible and had never asked him for help.

This time, Lord Claude's heart softened.

"Silafiel will make a move on Felyn at the school festival. To make his daughter happy, he'll do anything. He's a madman in that regard."

"I will be at the school festival too. I will try to stop Silafiel's actions. However, you still have to rely on yourself."

Eastern Seiwa, Sun-Moon Station.

Felyn was transferring here, preparing to return to his small home in Mist Street.

The train hadn't arrived yet, so Felyn sat on a bench and took out his communication sigil to send a message to Daiyi.

[Daiyi, don't wait up for me tonight. I just worked overtime and will be back very late.]

After sending it, Felyn felt something was not quite right. What was with this husband-and-wife-like conversation?

Every night, Daiyi would leave the light on and wait for him to come home.

A few times he hadn't told her, and that girl Daiyi had stayed up all night, looking terrible the next day.

[Don't play too hard, dear. There's a girl waiting for you at home.] Daiyi's message came back almost instantly.

Felyn could imagine her curled up on the sofa, with Hermi lying on her lap, squinting as she replied to the message.

[I'm really exhausted tonight. It'll be three by the time I get back. You should go to sleep first.]

[There's something important I need to tell you, it's about my father. So I'll wait for you.]

Daiyi's father?

Lord Aurilean?

Felyn suddenly felt his head spin.

He had met too many clients' fathers in one night.

There weren't many people at the station at night. A little girl saw Felyn's figure from a distance and trotted all the way over.

"Daddy, I haven't seen you in so long!"

This time, Felyn himself became a father.

This little girl with pigtails and patched clothes still had a vendor's tray hanging around her neck, selling small things at Sun-Moon Station to supplement her family's income.

After seeing her at the station with Daiyi last time, he hadn't run into her much.

Felyn gently caught Lina and held her in his arms.

"Lina, why aren't you sleeping so late?"

"Mhm, Lina still has to work. Lina likes working too. I can meet lots and lots of people."

Felyn stroked Lina's head, letting her act spoiled in his arms.

Lina looked to be only about ten years old. Felyn hadn't asked her exact age.

Felyn knew that people like him and her would never remember birthdays and ages.

"Did Daddy just get off work too?"

Lina's hand rested on Felyn's eyebrows, gently smoothing out his frown.

Then, with great effort, she opened her old vendor's tray, grunting as she dug out a chocolate bar and handed it to Felyn.

"Daddy, eat this and you won't be tired anymore."

Felyn was stunned for a moment. Seeing little Lina's serious face, he smiled faintly.

I should have a daughter in the future.

"Thank you, Lina."

He took the chocolate bar from Lina and asked, "Lina, it's almost twelve o'clock, and there's hardly anyone at the station. You should go home and sleep."

"Lina's not sleepy!" Lina waved her fist in the air. "As soon as I earn a thousand krona, Lina will have enough for tuition and can go to school."

"Is that so? Lina is earning her own tuition, that's amazing."

"Hehe." Lina jumped onto the bench, her feet dangling in the air. She was very happy to be praised by Felyn.

Although not much, Lina's items were very cheap. She earned an average of three or four krona per item.

She would probably have to stay here until winter to save up enough.

Felyn smoothed the wrinkles on her clothes, feeling the thin fabric of her dress.

Just as he was about to take a thousand krona from his pocket, Lina suddenly sneezed.

"It's a little cold~"

She clutched her chest and began to shiver.

It wasn't just her; even Felyn felt the chill.

This abnormal chill could never appear at this time.

And when Felyn suddenly looked up, he saw a figure exuding coldness standing on the empty platform in the distance.

Serafinia.

(End of Chapter)