Father, I Won’t Do Anything

“Hihihingg!”

The white horse that landed on the ground galloped away, its hooves clattering loudly. People hurriedly scattered, putting distance between themselves and the white horse.

“Waaahh!”

Arnen was no exception.

He was too preoccupied with frantically fleeing, relying on the riding skills he had boasted to Jaina.

He didn’t seem to care whether the people around him were surprised or not.

And in the now deserted training grounds, with everyone else having fled, Jaina naturally came face-to-face with the white horse.

Jaina slowly approached the white horse and asked:

“What’s the problem?”

It was a remarkably calm demeanor, contrasting with the commotion around her.

“Jaina!”

From afar, Princess Elia came running with her sword drawn, but Jaina felt no concern at all.

Instead, she took another step closer and met the horse’s gaze.

“…!”

When Jaina quietly locked eyes with it, the white horse seemed to flinch before meekly backing away.

It then fell completely docile, as if deflated.

The flustered Princess Elia sheathed her sword again.

“What on earth…?”

“The more sensitive the animal, the more they seem to react to my aura.”

Princess Elia immediately understood the meaning behind Jaina’s words.

Jaina was of the dragon clan, said to be the pinnacle of all races.

The white horse must have sensed the aura of a predator in Jaina’s gaze.

“The horse is quite clever, if a bit ill-tempered.”

As Jaina calmed the white horse, the people who had kept their distance began murmuring.

“Oh my, it just stops in its tracks in front of that child?”

“Is she good with horses?”

Watching from afar, Arnen muttered with an annoyed expression.

‘What the hell is up with her…?’

Is she even human? There’s no such thing as normal around that fool Rosian.

Just as the situation was settling down, a man came riding a large wolf from a distance.

“Melbesstan!”

“Hihihingg!”

The white horse whinnied in response to his voice. Seeing this, Princess Elia sighed as if speaking.

“You’re too late.”

“Oh dear, did this one cause a ruckus again? But I couldn’t help it, we had a bit of a tussle.”

The man scratched his disheveled brown hair as he spoke.

“Elia, have you been well?”

“Yes. I would have been better if someone hadn’t let the horse run wild.”

“Haha, I guess stopping by unannounced after not contacting you for a while ended up being a nuisance.”

Despite his slovenly attire, the Princess and the man seemed quite familiar with each other.

The man grinned sheepishly before looking around.

“By the way, this one hasn’t been listening to me lately, acting up especially in front of others… Elia, did you calm it down?”

“No, it was this child who settled the horse.”

“A child?”

Only then did the man seem to notice Jaina beside them, turning to look at her.

“Eh…? That face looks familiar somehow.”

The man tilted his head before leaning his face close to Jaina’s.

“Haven’t we met somewhere before?”

“No, I don’t recall meeting you.”

“Strange. If it’s a face I can’t seem to forget, it must mean…”

The man who had been stroking his chin suddenly bounced up on the wolf’s back.

“Bezrice! You were alive? Why did you suddenly get younger?”

Caught off guard by the man’s abrupt rear attack, the wolf let out an indignant howl. The man scratched his head and apologized to the wolf.

“You haven’t changed a bit even after all this time. But this child isn’t Bezrice, she’s Bezrice’s daughter.”

Instead of the tilting Jaina, it was Elia who spoke with a tone of pity. The man scratched the back of his neck.

“Bezrice. Right, why didn’t I realize she was Bezrice’s daughter when she looks just like her?”

From how casually he interacted with Elia and referred to Jaina’s mother Bezrice, it was clear he had been an old comrade of hers.

Jaina respectfully bowed her head towards the man.

“Hello, my name is Jaina.”

“I’m Seiden Aldert. You may have figured it out, but I’m a summoner who handles ‘divine beasts’… and one of the people who helped your mother seal the Demon Lord.”

Seiden Aldert.

The Nightmare of Keald Cliffs.

Jaina’s eyes widened as she realized the man’s identity.

Despite his scruffy appearance, this man was the greatest summoner on the continent.

“He may seem unreliable, but his skills are certainly reliable.”

“Haha… I’ve become someone who fails to inspire trust in children.”

“That’s because you can’t even properly tame one of your summons.”

“Speaking of which, thank you for settling that Winged Horse of mine, Jaina.”

Winged Horse…?

When Jaina tilted her head, Elia explained.

“He’s referring to the Pegasus. This one has no sense for naming.”

“Even for someone of the dragon clan, a Pegasus must have been surprising to see for the first time, yet you remained so composed. If Bezrice saw this, she would have bragged that you’re definitely her daughter.”

“That doesn’t sound like Bezrice’s nature at all.”

“Aren’t all parents the same when it comes to their children?”

As he continued speaking, Seiden tilted his head.

“But… if there’s a mother, there should naturally be a father too. Who is your father? As far as I know, Bezrice only had Diamid. Oh, my apologies. The two of them split up. I carelessly brought up your mother’s old lover…”

“There’s no need. Jaina’s father is indeed Diamid.”

“…What?”

Seiden bounced on the spot once again.

“Diamid? That guy went on a rampage for a while, claiming Bezrice had betrayed him, didn’t he?”

“You really have no filter in front of a child.”

“Oh, my apologies. I’ve made several blunders today…”

Seiden fumbled before finally redirecting the conversation.

“So are you living with the dragon clan now, or at the Magic Tower?”

“I live at the Magic Tower.”

“Then I might as well take this chance to see Diamid’s face too… Ow, Elia! Why did you hit me?”

“I’ll explain later, so keep your mouth shut.”

Elia glanced back as she spoke.

“And calm down your horse again, it looks like it’s about to cause another commotion.”

* * *

Apparently, the reason the Pegasus, or ‘Winged Horse’, had caused a commotion was due to an argument with Seiden.

“After I gave this one a few sweet treats, it started insisting on only eating unhealthy food instead of its usual…”

Seiden added that he had also carelessly given his beloved an onion when she liked sweet apples.

“It was my mistake.”

With a lazy, nonchalant motion, Seiden scratched his head.

The man had more than a few dull spots.

‘Then again, that’s why he probably couldn’t even recognize the child of a deceased comrade…’

“We’re busy enough taking care of our own kids, of course I wouldn’t pay much attention to other people… I don’t really have many friends either, I guess the only people I meet are old comrades like Elia.”

Jaina was riding on the Pegasus with Seiden, as he had offered to escort her back to the Magic Tower himself.

Looking down, she saw Arnen staring dumbly up at the Pegasus.

There was a reason Seiden, for all his laziness, was personally escorting Jaina to the Magic Tower.

-Could you check and see if Jaina is doing well at the Magic Tower? Rosian says she’s fine, but a child’s perspective is bound to be different from an adult’s…

-Can’t you go yourself as Mikael’s aunt?

-If I go, it might look like the Empire is interfering with the Magic Tower. Not that there aren’t already rumors about Rosian visiting the Magic Tower too frequently.

“Lord Seiden, you seem to get along well with your summons.”

Seeing the Pegasus whinnying discontentedly at Seiden again, Jaina commented.

“Well, I have to look after the ones I summoned, don’t I? By the way, why doesn’t your father take responsibility for what he’s done?”

Elia had deliberately discussed the situation behind Jaina’s back, but Seiden was too riled up to pick up on that.

However, unlike the excited Seiden, the subject herself remained perfectly composed.

“Who knows? I don’t really need a father.”

“What?”

“I’m satisfied as I am now. I’ve never felt unhappy about not having a father.”

“Hmm, of course not all parentless children are unhappy… But a man who doesn’t take responsibility is still trash.”

Seiden’s eyes narrowed.

How heartbroken must Elia have been, a cold and brusque woman, to take Jaina along to social gatherings and even teach her horseback riding?

Having spent part of his own childhood in a warehouse with no one to care for him, Seiden felt a surge of anger, seeing Jaina as his former self.

‘Diamid Bellafanian, that scoundrel.’

Just because he was scatterbrained didn’t mean he was ignorant of basic human decency.

Having kept his distance from humanity for so long, he possessed an incorruptible purity, uncompromising towards injustice.

“We’re here.”

As Seiden dismounted the Pegasus, the gate guards’ eyes widened.

“Tell Diamid I’ve come to see him.”

There were few who could so casually invoke the name of the man they revered like a deity, so the guards tensed up and showed deference.

“Who might you be, sir, and where are you from?”

“Tell Diamid it’s Seiden Aldert, he’ll know.”

Upon hearing Seiden’s name, the guards started in shock and hurriedly made contact with those inside.

Indeed, he was someone who could address Diamid so casually.

A man with a history of completely wiping out the demons of the cliffs.

“The Tower Lord is currently away, sir. Would you like to wait inside? We can arrange a room in the reception hall…”

“No need. I’ll take a tour of the Magic Tower guided by this child.”

The guards looked at Jaina with astonished eyes.

It was already remarkable that she had monopolized the attention of Mikael and Hilvenzia at the Magic Tower, but to also be acquainted with the legendary hero Seiden…

As Jaina headed into the Magic Tower, she looked up at Seiden.

“But what part of the Magic Tower are you curious about?”

“Anything is fine. Show me the places you frequently visit or your favorite spots.”

Seiden gave a friendly smile.

Jaina stared intently at him.

Not only was he an old comrade of her mother Bezrice, but Elia had also asked him a favor, so despite being a stranger, she felt an odd sense of familiarity.

‘It seems he cares about me enough to even insult the Tower Lord.’

She didn’t particularly want to be acknowledged as the Tower Lord’s daughter… but he seemed to have misunderstood.

“Then I’ll start by showing you the library, my favorite place in the Magic Tower where I spend most of my time.