Damn, I Have to Marry the Strongest Antagonist at the Start? - Chapter 555

Chapter 555: Chapter5-My Dad Is a BIG SHOT!
Inside the carriage, Yevna took the piece of bread Elena handed her, eyes filled with curiosity.

“Child, what’s your name? And who gave it to you?”

“My name is Elena. My dad gave it to me. Isn’t it pretty?” Elena beamed with pride.

Yevna’s heart skipped a beat. Elena—that was the very name she and Owen had once imagined giving to their daughter.

Nearby, a knight almost lost his composure when he heard Elena casually refer to the Empress as “pretty sister.” But seeing that Yevna didn’t seem to mind, he held his tongue.

“What’s your father’s name? Why would he leave you alone in such a desolate place? Where’s your home? We can take you back,” Yevna continued.

Elena’s eyes darted around. She remembered Owen’s warning: never reveal family details easily while outside.

So she replied, “I don’t know where home is. I got lost. I rode my pony for days to get here. But my dad is really strong—he used to be a great hero on the continent. Now he lives in seclusion. People call him the Mysterious Swordmaster.”

The knights riding alongside the carriage couldn’t help but chuckle.

In their eyes, the words of an eight-year-old girl were nothing more than childish imagination.

Even the High Elder, a high-rank mage, found Elena’s story rather absurd.

Yevna, however, frowned slightly. She had started to wonder if Elena could be her daughter, but the mention of a powerful father didn’t fit with Owen’s circumstances.

Owen is just an ordinary man, she thought. Perhaps I’m overthinking. This child can’t be ours.

“Since your dad is a powerhouse, I suppose he knows a lot of magic? Why hasn’t he taught you any?” Yevna asked, still probing.

Elena straightened up proudly. “Dad knows Fire Storm, Icebound World, Spatial Shift, and tons of other powerful spells. But they’re all dangerous. Dad doesn’t want me to get hurt, so he won’t teach me yet.”

Yevna exchanged a glance with the High Elder, both inwardly shocked. The spells Elena mentioned were all high-rank magic—even the High Elder only had surface knowledge of some of them.

And judging by Elena’s expression, she didn’t seem to be lying.

Could her father really be someone extraordinary? Yevna’s small flame of hope flickered again—only to die out moments later. No, if Owen truly had such abilities, he wouldn’t have hidden them all this time.

But still, there was something about Elena that tugged at Yevna’s heart. A strange sense of intimacy that she couldn’t explain. Perhaps it was because the girl looked so much like her younger self.

“And your mother? Isn’t she worried about you being out here all alone?” Yevna asked softly.

Elena’s eyes dimmed at the mention of her mother. “I’ve never met my mom. Dad says she left right after I was born. He’s been the one raising me ever since.”

Yevna’s chest tightened with pain.

She thought of how she’d left Owen and their child behind for the sake of the kingdom—leaving them to fend for themselves. Her heart ached with guilt.

A knight, unable to hold back, reached out and gently ruffled Elena’s hair. Yevna, feeling a maternal tenderness swell in her heart, pulled the girl into a gentle embrace.

“To abandon her child like that… what a heartless woman,” Yevna muttered angrily. “She doesn’t deserve to be called a mother. If I ever meet her, I won’t let her off easily.”

Elena nodded firmly. “Sister, you’re absolutely right! She made Dad wait for her all these years. He never married anyone else. If I ever find her, I won’t forgive her!”

Yevna’s affection for Elena deepened even further, and she began to feel genuine respect for the girl’s father.

An ordinary man raising a daughter on his own, and still managing to raise such a cheerful, confident child… that’s no small feat.

“Do you remember which direction your home is in?” Yevna asked gently. “Tell Sister, and I’ll take you back. It’s too dangerous for a child to be out here alone.”

“No need, Sister,” Elena replied. “Dad sent me out to train. And I have his treasures with me. I’ll be fine.”

As she spoke, she pulled out a few magic talismans from her treasure pouch.

Yevna and the High Elder took one glance at them and could immediately tell they were just ordinary pieces of paper—not real magical tools.

Still, Elena refused to give up her family’s location, and there was little they could do about it.

“Then stay with me for now,” Yevna said. “Once I finish my business here, I’ll have the knights teach you magic. Then we’ll help you find your home.”

Elena stared at Yevna’s beautiful face, and a sudden idea popped into her head.

If I can’t find Mom, maybe I can bring this pretty sister home and let her marry Dad!

“Okay! Thank you, Sister! When I learn magic, I’ll protect you!”

Yevna smiled and nodded, accepting the bread Elena handed her and taking a bite.

As soon as it entered her mouth, a familiar taste spread across her tongue. It was the same flavor of bread that Owen used to bake for her.

“This bread…” Yevna was just about to reflect further when a voice came from outside the carriage.

“Your Majesty, we’ve arrived. The valley ahead is the secluded home of the High Priest of the God of Light Temple.”

The carriage rolled to a stop at the mouth of a remote valley. Empress Yevna stepped down, holding Elena’s hand as they strode forward.

Knight Ursula followed closely, hand on her sword hilt, eyes sharp and alert, ready to deal with any threat.

Behind them, several mid-rank knights carried the gravely injured Grand Archmage Eldritch on a stretcher.

In the center of the valley stood a modest wooden cottage. Rare herbs grew in abundance around it, their fragrance drifting on the breeze like an otherworldly garden.

But as the group surveyed the valley more closely, a chill crept up their spines.

The surrounding cliffs were etched with grotesque images of demons and monsters, radiating a faint aura of dread that made one’s scalp tingle.

Under the guard of Ursula and another high-rank knight, the Empress approached the cottage and gave a respectful bow to its closed wooden door.

“This junior, accompanied by Mentor Eldritch, has come to pay her respects to High Priest Leonchi.”

Creeeaaak—

The wooden door opened on its own without a sound.

“Heh… The little girl from back then has become the Empress who shakes the world, while this old man is still holed up in this valley,” a drifting voice said with a chuckle. “Come in.”

Without hesitation, the Empress stepped inside, still holding Elena’s hand, showing no fear of possible danger.

Inside the cabin sat a man in a lavish robe, a vermillion mark between his brows, seated in a wheelchair and deeply focused on writing.

His legs were limp, clearly paralyzed. This was none other than the legendary High Priest—Leonchi.

With flowing black hair and an elegant face, the man looked youthful, almost unreal. The Empress gave a slight nod and offered him the courtesy due to a senior.

“Your grace remains undiminished, elder.”

Others might not know, but as Eldritch’s student, the Empress was well aware: Leonchi was one of the last remaining experts in Light Magic across the continent. Though he appeared young, he had lived for more than three hundred years.

Leonchi let out a soft laugh, his gaze warm as it fell on the Empress.

“You flatter me, Empress. This old body already has one foot in the grave. I doubt I’ve many years left.”

He paused, his eyes settling on her face.

“But that scar on your cheek—”