Epic Of Caterpillar

Chapter 2858 - 2859: What It Means To Be A Father

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Kireinaʼs father was deeply shaken by his daughterʼs words. They carried a wisdom far beyond her years, making her seem almost timeless. ”But dear...”

”I went there, risking my life and taking a desperate gamble, because I wanted to forge an alliance. I wanted peace,” Kireina sighed softly. ”I know our family thrives on crime, but at the same time, I believe we shouldnʼt tear one another apart. We can share this country. We can live in harmony. I have already formed an alliance with Susanoo. Among the gods there, he and a few others truly agree with me. Not all of them are monstrous, and not all view mortals as insignificant specks.”

If anyone else had spoken such words, Lord Chaos and his subordinates would have dismissed them with laughter. But coming from the young lady herself—the beloved daughter of Lord Chaos and his cherished wife, the girl everyone held dear—they pierced straight to the heart. Even the coldest among them, Wasp, felt a quiet stir within.

Yet would they readily accept a proposal so idealistic, one rooted only in the simple notion of doing what was right?

These people had all been cast aside by society, by their families, by the world itself. They harbored deep resentment toward everything, and that resentment fueled their work for the Chaos Gate.

At the same time, the presence of Kireina and her mother had softened them, reshaping their broken fates and teaching them the worth of love and loyalty.

In the bonds they had formed, bonds that felt like true family.

A family most had long ago lost.

Some, like Victor, whose parents had died, leaving him to frantically create life just to escape loneliness.

Others, like Wasp, who had lost not only his family but his entire tribe to the cruel schemes of Eastern Cultivators.

And some, like Medea, exiled by her own kin, branded a vile witch, betrayed by her lover, and condemned to centuries of isolation.

Everyone here carried deep wounds.

”Please listen to me...” Kireina released her Heart Essence, the surge shocking those around her. ”I have grown much stronger. If strength is what it takes to stop you from destroying the Amaterasu Clan, then I will risk my life to stand in your way. Even against you, Father. You would have to step over my corpse to proceed.”

”...What?!”

”Young lady, donʼt say such things!”

”Are you truly serious?”

Kireina stood resolute, without a trace of hesitation, gently holding Frankʼs hand as she offered him a warm smile.

Seeing the pure honesty in that smile, Frank felt an overwhelming sense of reassurance and safety beside her.

”Frank possesses unlimited potential. If we nurture him properly, he could one day surpass everything,” Kireina continued. ”He already holds incredible power, and we share the same dream, donʼt we?”

”Yes...” Frank rose to stand beside her. ”I apologize for intruding so suddenly into your domain, everyone. But I fully agree with Kireina.”

”I agree as well.”

”Me too.”

Acelina and Ismena stepped forward, unwavering in their support for the young lady they loved more than anything.

”I support her too,” murmured Araña, who had quietly approached with food, nodding in silence.

Her father remained quiet, arms crossed as he tapped impatiently, as though rage simmered just beneath the surface. Yet whenever his gaze fell upon his daughter, that fire dimmed, leaving him strangely vulnerable.

In her, he saw his beloved wife. This child, born of their love and her ultimate sacrifice, had given him a brighter future.

Lord Chaos often wondered what he might have become without meeting his wife, without having Kireina.

Perhaps a far darker being entirely.

The more he loved, the more he cared for his daughter, the deeper his emotions grew.

At first, he had quietly resented that vulnerability. Over time, however, he came to treasure these feelings that had transformed him.

For the first time, they made life feel meaningful.

Before meeting his wife, before Kireina entered his world, Lord Chaos had been a profoundly lonely god.

Nothing held value or purpose. Whatever he touched seemed destined to crumble and perish.

So he had simply embraced his chaotic nature, never striving for anything more.

”My Lord, we await your decision. Whatever it may be, we will follow—even if it opposes her,” Wasp declared.

”Sheʼs young. She doesnʼt yet understand the harsh truth of this broken world. Mercy belongs to the weak,” Victor said with a bitter smile.

”If we wish to protect what weʼve built here, we cannot afford to let it slip away,” Medea added quietly.

Lord Chaos knew the pragmatic choice was to side with them: confine his daughter where she could not interfere, carry out the plan, and return.

But that path would mean Kireina might hate him forever. Their beautiful, open bond would shatter.

She could abandon him, leaving him alone once more, haunted by regret for losing the most precious light in his existence.

He clenched his fists, battling the darker ”self” within—the voice urging him to consume and destroy everything.

He had quieted that urge through Kireinaʼs cooking, yet it lingered, always whispering.

To defy this primal nature, this essence of a Chaos Spawn brought excruciating pain, like rejecting his very being.

But something burned brighter than instinct.

Love.

And the profound connections that had finally given his life meaning.

For the first time in his endless existence, Lord Chaos began to believe the world might not be so irredeemable.

As long as she remained by his side.

His precious daughter, the shining star of his life.

The one who gave him endless headaches yet wrapped him in warm hugs and whispered that she loved him.

The one who offered small, seemingly trivial gifts that became priceless simply because they came from her tiny hands.

That joyful child who once toddled through the garden, giggling as she flapped her little wings, calling to him while smelling flowers and chasing insects.

”Papa! For you!”

”Hm?”

Memories surfaced gently, carrying him back to a cherished moment years ago.

His young daughter had presented him with a small red rose.

She was only three then, and Lord Chaos still grieved deeply for his departed wife, unsure how to carry on.

”A flower? What use is a flower, Kireina?”

”Um... I just thought it was pretty...”

”Is that so...”

”Cheer up!”

She had thrown her arms around him.

Lord Chaos, who had never known the love of a child born from his own blood, felt something profound in that embrace.

”I love you, Daddy. Letʼs play!”

”...My dear. All right.”

He had caressed her small face, seeing his wifeʼs light in her bright eyes.

Yet he also glimpsed a spark of himself within her.

”So this is what it means to have a child... I understand now.”

From that day forward, Lord Chaos was never truly sad again. He smiled often and loved his daughter with all his heart.

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