chapter_0034

Chapter 33 : 7 years later

A riot broke out, and after suppressing the riot, the officers of Worst were handed over, I met Arad, and the officers I handed over died.

To say all of this happened in just two days would be an understatement.

However, after everything ended, we returned to our normal lives.

In fact, things were resolved much faster than expected, so I withdrew my plan to stay a few more days in the kingdom and set out on my way back to the cabin.

And the person who came to greet us was Zenre, with whom we would now truly say our goodbyes.

“Then I hope you have a safe journey. Master, Ruina, and Miss Elia. I will inform you immediately once the investigation into this matter is concluded.”

“Yeah, take care of yourself too. If you want to play with our daughter, come by sometimes.”

“Ah… Haha, yes. I’ll visit from time to time.”

At my words, Zenre tried to make a disgusted expression for a moment but then smiled as she looked at Elia beside me.

Seeing that funny scene, I burst into laughter and, without any more lengthy words, took Elia and Ruina’s hands and stepped into the teleport gate.

“Then, I’m going.”

“Please return safely!”

After all, we weren’t saying goodbye forever, so why would we need more words?

In fact, once the mansion I had purchased in the kingdom was completed in two years, it would be like seeing each other almost every day.

Of course, even though she knew that, the still young Elia seemed regretful about not being able to see Zenre often, but if we visited the kingdom from time to time, that would be fine.

So, with strength, I hugged Elia, who was holding on tightly, and entrusted our bodies to the mana of the teleport gate that was swallowing us.

Pzzzt

When I opened my eyes again, the scene before me was the familiar view of Hagen Village.

And from that day when everything ended…

Time passed quickly.

Seven years had passed.

The events during those years were not that varied.

For seven years, Worst had not shown any proper actions.

So, to briefly summarize what happened in those seven years, it wasn’t that long.

For two years, I waited for the mansion’s construction while continuing to teach Elia swordsmanship.

After the mansion was completed, our family moved to the kingdom and slowly settled there.

In the kingdom, I continued teaching Elia swordsmanship, and in my spare time, I worked as a mercenary.

Of course, there was an issue with Martin struggling when registering as a mercenary, but since it wasn’t that important, I’ll skip over that.

Thus, in the past seven years, I enjoyed Elia’s swordsmanship training, my mercenary life, and my still fresh marriage with Ruina.

During those seven years, there were no major problems.

In fact, it was peaceful… too peaceful, and every day was happy.

However, was that peace just the calm before the storm for this year?

In the seventh year, I faced the greatest crisis of my life.

Thud!

As soon as I opened the door, a scabbard flew toward me.

I could have easily avoided it, but knowing that avoiding it would cause an even bigger problem, I caught the scabbard that hit me and gave an awkward smile.

The one who threw the scabbard at me was none other than my daughter, Elia, who turned 15 this year.

“Get out!!”

Elia, who had been practicing swordsmanship with a strange atmosphere in the room, threw the scabbard and shouted.

Even though I had knocked and opened the door, she seemed so focused that she didn’t hear me.

And at this scene, Ruina, who had been standing behind me, shouted in anger.

“Elia! What kind of manner is that toward your father?! Can’t you apologize right now?!”

“I told you not to come in when I’m in my room! I’m making a practical sword style!”

“This is really…!”

“Ah, wait a minute! Ruina, Ruina!”

Unable to stand Elia’s bad manners anymore, Ruina was about to step forward, but I barely stopped her.

If I had let Ruina go, I had seen firsthand what would happen.

If I let her go, she would definitely beat Elia like a cat for at least a few hours.

While it might have an immediate effect, I had already confirmed that Elia wouldn’t learn from it, so I hugged Ruina and moved away from Elia’s room.

“Alright, alright, our daughter. Still, make sure you eat, okay? Above all, your health comes first?”

“I’ll do it myself!”

As we moved away, Elia immediately closed her door.

Bang!

With a loud crash, Elia’s door slammed shut so hard that debris fell from it.

“Ugh…!”

Naturally, the veins in Ruina’s forehead, who was in my arms, popped up, but I pressed her head down to calm her down.

[It was the wind! It’s just because the door slammed shut because of the wind!]

Did Elia sense the murderous intent from Ruina in my arms? She shouted back, and as I stepped toward the living room, I headed there with Ruina in tow.

This was the moment when the greatest crisis of my life had arrived.

Seven years had passed, and Elia, who was now 15 years old, was going through puberty.

I briefly calmed Ruina down as we arrived in the living room.

Once we were in the living room, Ruina, now somewhat calmed down, lay on the couch with her head on my lap, looking up at me and asking,

“When are you planning to leave Elia like this? Her manners are getting worse every day… No matter how much I love her, isn’t it better to educate her properly when it comes to this?”

“I’ve told you a few times already, but Elia is just going through puberty. It’s a struggle every kid her age goes through, so let’s be patient for now. Once she crosses the line, we can give her a firm warning.”

Elves didn’t have the concept of puberty.

Well, they did have something similar, but because their perspective on life was different from humans due to their immortality, their puberty was much gentler.

Human puberty came quickly and strongly, while elf puberty came slowly and weakly.

So, Ruina, who was seeing human puberty for the first time, insisted on educating Elia strictly, but from my perspective, I had no choice but to disagree.

After all, human puberty is something every human goes through, and it’s a problem that proper education from parents and time can solve.

I had to stop Ruina, who was trying to solve it with medieval-style overwhelming force.

“But if we leave her like this, won’t there really be a problem…?”

“Really, every normal kid goes through puberty at that age, so there’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure after 1 or 2 years, things will get better.”

Really, puberty was a problem that mostly resolved itself with time.

However, it was important to correct any deviations before they took a strange turn.

So, the most important thing for me and Ruina right now was to keep watching over Elia while maintaining some distance.

Ruina puffed her cheeks slightly, as if she didn’t like my approach, but when I gently pinched her cheek, the air inside escaped with a “Puu.”

“Anyway, even if Elia acts out, don’t take it too hard, and if possible, try to refrain from violence.”

“If Kael says so…”

Ruina still looked dissatisfied with my words, but she nodded with a slightly understanding expression.

And thinking about Elia, who was probably feeling upset because of me today, I hesitated for a moment before asking Ruina.

“By the way, should we make some lemon tarts for a snack today? You like them too, don’t you, Ruina?”

“That sounds good! I think Elia would like them too.”

Ruina responded with a bright smile, showing her approval.

Hearing her answer, I immediately stood up with Ruina and reached out my hand.

“Then shall we quickly go shopping? The market should be the busiest around this time.”

“Yeah, let’s go quickly, Kael!”

Maybe it was the thought of getting to eat lemon tarts, but the dissatisfied expression Ruina had just a moment ago vanished without a trace.

She took my hand, and with Ruina humming beside me, we left the house.

Clank—

Not knowing what would happen in that short span of time.

We left the house.

While Kael and Ruina briefly stepped out to shop at the market…

One of the maids, Sera, who had been doing housework, cautiously knocked on Elia’s door.

Knock, knock.

“Miss, may I come in?”

She knocked on the door and politely asked.

However, there was no response from inside.

But since Elia hadn’t left her room all day except for when Kael entered earlier, she was definitely inside.

So, Sera knocked again.

Knock, knock, knock.

“I came to clean. May I come in, Miss?”

A second knock.

If it were the usual Elia, by now, she would have made some kind of noise, come to the door, and either let her in or said cleaning wasn’t needed today.

But strangely, even after the second knock, there was no sign of life from inside Elia’s room.

“Miss?”

Feeling that something was off, Sera carefully pressed her ear against the door to listen for any sounds.

However, even with her ear right against the door, the room was completely silent.

Normally, Elia would be chanting strange spells, making odd battle cries, or at the very least, the sound of her swinging a sword would be heard.

But now, there was nothing.

And that silence sent a chilling thought through Sera’s mind.

Bang, bang, bang!

“Miss?! May I come in?! I’m really going to open the door now?!”

Elia had no chronic illness or health issues.

So only one thought crossed Sera’s mind.

With no response from Elia, Sera eventually forced the door open.

And inside the opened room—

Whoosh—

Only the usual messy state of the room greeted her.

As expected, Elia was nowhere to be found.

Instead, the window in her room was wide open, and on her desk lay a single letter.

And when Sera read the contents of that letter, she immediately understood what it felt like for one’s heart to drop.

“I’m running away from home.”

Fifteen-year-old teenage girl, Elia.

Has run away from home.