I'm Secretly the Father of the Yandere Villainess's Daughter

The next morning, inside Cain’s primary chamber within the palace...

He sat on the edge of his bed, his arms stretched out resting on the mattress.

”I am an absolute fool... All I did last night was throw out a temporary excuse. In the end, that won’t erase the looming threat of her trying to kill me.”

Cain reasoned that even though he was successfully delaying the inevitable confrontation, he had to stop obsessing over the fear of her murdering him. It was glaringly obvious that he wanted to rectify all his past mistakes. He convinced himself that she wanted him dead because he had neglected her and their child, having only found out about them just yesterday.

The words he had frantically uttered last night were nothing more than a desperate gamble to buy time. And now that he had been granted a brief respite, he resolved to win over the hearts of both the mother and daughter to make amends.

Of course, he had been blatantly lying to her about that dream. In reality, absolutely no one on this continent was worthy of being called his enemy. Even Haikes, the so-called Hero, was someone he could crush with utter ease.

Wait a minute...

A sudden realization struck Cain. He was powerful... monstrously powerful, in fact. If he truly wanted to end all of this chaos, he could easily eliminate Lucy. Yet... yet he always hid behind the excuse that she would kill him. Why? Because deep down, he simply didn’t want to hurt her.

He could have easily run away and vanished, yet he chose to deliberately face her. Did he, in truth, actually crave this family?

Was he finally beginning to feel?

Even he didn’t know the answer until now. He had always believed his only goal was mere survival, but he finally recognized his true purpose: he was going to claim this family.

But first, he needed to make Lucy fall in love with him... because right now, she undoubtedly despised his guts.

The moment Cain finally acknowledged his true feelings to himself, he felt a massive, long-standing barrier shatter within his heart.

Shhhhh—

[Congratulations to the Host for breaking free from the emotional shackles caused by the Transcendent State. Attunement initiated. Preparing for Ascension...]

Instantly, a velvet-gold cocoon materialized around Cain, radiating an aura of absolute majesty. The sheer pressure seemed to warp and crush the very fabric of time around him, though it remained tightly contained so as not to affect the outside world.

Within moments, the cocoon evaporated into thin air. Its remnants scattered like glowing particles of cosmic dust, carrying enough light to illuminate the vastness of space before fading into the void.

Cain opened his eyes, staring directly at the System notification floating before him:

[Current Host Realm: The Truth]

It was an indescribable sensation. It felt as though the entire universe had seamlessly integrated with him, making him a living part of it. The Celestial Level was undoubtedly a power as towering as a majestic mountain... but now, he felt like the very earth upon which that mountain stood.

His power had ascended to the apex. Now, even his old excuse that Lucy could eliminate him was completely gone.

It was as if the heavens themselves were giving him a sign... a signal to begin his quest to reclaim his family.

He stood up from the bed and stepped out of the chamber. The aura enveloping him was entirely altered; he moved like a supreme being existing far above all living creatures.

[Daily Sign-In Mission]

The Host’s actions yesterday have caused severe unrest within the Royal Court. This morning, a massive crowd of citizens gathered outside the Imperial Palace to protest.

Proceed to the Imperial Palace, confront the King, and complete the Sign-In while seated upon the Throne of the Holy Kingdom

Reward: Forbidden Star Technique Package — Left behind by the Ancestor of the Starry Empire in the Celestial Continent. Realm: royal Level.]

The mission was honestly a bit disappointing. He already possessed an abundance of King Level techniques. However, he had never owned a technique bound to the Stars Element.

Regardless, he decided to fulfill the mission. Besides, it would serve as the perfect excuse to take his family out for a nice stroll, which was far more important anyway.

Meanwhile, across the vast, lush grassy plaza of the Oster Duchy, Lucy and Amelia were taking a walk through the vibrant green fields, accompanied by one of the palace servants.

The only issue was the sheer absurdity of the flora; the fields were densely packed with spiritual herbs of both the Noble Level and Prince Level.

Lucy had caught glimpses of this garden through Jade’s vision before, but she had only seen a fraction of it. She never could have anticipated that the concentration of magical herbs here would be this staggering.

”Why are there so many spiritual herbs growing here?” Lucy inquired, turning to the servant.

”They belong exclusively to the Duke,” the servant answered respectfully. ”In truth, I wasn’t stationed here when this place was constructed, but rumor has it that this massive green plaza suddenly materialized overnight where a barren wasteland once stood. The Duke has been cultivating these herbs here ever since.”

Lucy extended her spiritual sense across the field, and what she discovered left her utterly shell-shocked. A Blessed Land...

This was, without a doubt, the largest piece of Blessed Land Lucy had ever witnessed in her entire life. She knew of a single Blessed Land in the Far North where the ancient ancestors had exhausted every ounce of their power just to bless a miserable three centimeters of soil. Atop that tiny plot, they grew a single Red Heart Flower of the Noble Level, which was considered an unparalleled, priceless treasure.

Yet here, she was staring at an entire, sprawling field of them.

As for Amelia, she was naturally astounded, but her gaze quickly locked onto something that made her want to pounce instantly.

A Star Fruit.

It was a sacred fruit spoken of only in the ancient legends of her past empire, and now it was sitting right in front of her face. If she could just consume it, her innate talent in the Star Element would instantly evolve by a whole tier.

However, she hesitated, gripped by a sudden wave of caution. A fruit of this magnitude was impossibly valuable; taking it would undoubtedly trigger severe consequences.

She desperately tried to restrain her impulses as she walked alongside her mother, staring at a collection of herbs that would make every single one of her treacherous former disciples weep tears of pure envy. She was almost tempted to thank the students who had betrayed her, simply because their betrayal had allowed her to reincarnate and witness a paradise like this.

Eventually, they all came to a halt at a spot where the scenery was breathtakingly beautiful, the gentle breeze softly caressing their faces.

For a fleeting moment, an image flashed in Lucy’s mind. She imagined herself and Cain—imagined him wrapping his hands around her waist, lifting her high into the air as they laughed together, chasing each other through these endless fields. Carefree. Free from the hatred of the rest of the world.

’I need to systematically eliminate his enemies as fast as possible...’ she concluded silently.

However, she didn’t know who they were, and she couldn’t exactly walk up and demand a list from him. Therefore, her only viable solution lay in a specific, delicate technique.

The Heart’s Touch.

It was a dynamic soul-reading technique that required the target’s soul to be entirely, flawlessly focused on the caster for a single split second. With just a physical touch, it allowed the user to extract any desired piece of information directly from the depths of the target’s soul.

But this technique was bound to fail unless the person it was cast upon was thinking of her completely.

Thus, there was only one foolproof method: a kiss.

First, she would induce him into a deep hypnotic sleep. Then, she would briefly allow him to catch a glimpse of her true essence, making him believe it was nothing more than a passing dream. Finally, while he was fast asleep, she would kiss him and siphon every single piece of information she desperately needed.

Just the mere thought of it made her face turn bright crimson.

In reality, this technique was originally designed for brutal torture. After enduring unimaginable suffering, the victim’s entire mind, hatred, and absolute focus would inevitably lock onto their tormentor. That single, fleeting moment of absolute focus was all the user needed to violently rip the information from their soul.

Of course... Lucy was only doing this so she could eradicate Cain’s enemies much faster. Yes, that was it. It was strictly for his protection, and absolutely not an excuse to steal a kiss from him.

By the afternoon, Cain had finally finished all the endless paperwork concerning Hal Province, which was under his direct jurisdiction. To be more precise, he was privately dubbed the ”Fierce Seal Warrior.” Sometimes, Cain genuinely feared that among the mountain of papers he was blindly stamping and signing, there might accidentally be a document authorizing the sale of his own underwear.

Yet, his ordeal was far from over. The papers requiring his seal never truly ended, because they simply couldn’t end. To make matters worse, an official Imperial Decree had just delivered straight to him.

He stood before the royal messenger, who had arrived moments ago via the teleportation gate at the nearby Magic Tower.

Standing right outside the palace gates, Cain unfurled the decree in front of everyone.

”From the King to the Honorable Duke Oster... We formally request your presence in the capital city of Anastasia to deliver a public speech, with the aim of pacifying the growing civil unrest regarding the endless queues at government offices.”

Cain nodded slowly. ”Am I permitted to bring companions with me?”

”Most certainly, Your Grace... However, you must arrive before tomorrow. His Majesty stated that your address is scheduled for tomorrow morning.”

Cain gave another nod. Once the royal messenger took his leave, Matthew seamlessly materialized from the shadows.

”Matthew, pack the summer vacation attire. Purchase children’s swimwear... and some female swimwear.”

Matthew’s jaw dropped. After a long, stunned silence, he finally managed to ask, ”What... what sizes, Your Grace?”

Cain went completely quiet.

”Bring every single size, every color, and every style... And, if possible, bring multiple variations in black.”

Deep down, Cain desperately wished to see Lucy in a black bikini.

He had absolutely no intention of going to a public beach anyway; he owned an exclusive, highly secure private beach in a prime location within the capital.

He simply hoped that Lucy would choose black, as it was his absolute favorite... though she could wear whatever she pleased. The most crucial factor was that it had to be a two-piece.

He was being completely honest with himself now. He wanted to see her in it, badly.