A flock of people was on their way to the Ancestral Hall of the Alstreim Family. It consisted of two women and two men, half of them returning from imprisonment.
Yes, these people were none other than Davis, Nora Alstreim, Grand Elder Elise Alstreim, and Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim.
Davis kept an indifferent expression as he led them to the Ancestral Palace to have their cultivations released. Inwardly, he was eager to see where his actions would end up.
Would they end up reconciling as he expected or end up in a fight in an unexpected way?
On the other hand, Nora Alstreim had been afraid that her child would be called a demon spawn as her child was born out of wedlock, but then, they didn’t say anything other than congratulating her for becoming a mother. Their expressions looked complex, and she knew that they had difficulty digesting this fact.
However, as if wanting to see the baby, Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim flew along with them, and even the reluctant Grand Elder Elise Alstreim followed, looking somewhat renewed with life as her eyes were no longer dull. Perhaps, when they see her cute Laura when they get to the Purple Guest Palace, they might finally change their minds, or so Nora Alstreim couldn’t help but think hopefully.
She didn’t wish for conflict to exist within her newfound happiness. Even if she did not care about everybody else, her love and daughter were on the line for her not to mess up.
Soon, they entered the Ancestral Hall after going through the two guardian magical beasts. At that moment, they were stunned to see the people gathered.
A purple-robed man and a white-robed woman stood together as they held two babies in their arms, rocking them.
Davis’s eyes lit up as he saw his new sibling.
It was a boy.
Davis appeared before them as he had hastened his flying speed, taking the black-haired, purple-eyed baby into his arms from his mother, Claire. The hair hadn’t even grown much, but the baby was so small, cute, and extremely adorable that his heart couldn’t help but melt.
This baby was none other than Davis’s fifth sibling, Evan Loret, or at this place, it was Evan Alstreim. When Davis saw the fifth sibling’s name with the Death God Eyes when he had gone to get Nora Alstreim, it was shown Evan Loret.
He couldn’t help but look at the baby that Logan held. Her name is Laura Loret when seen through his Death God Eyes and not Laura Alstreim, even though she was mostly called Laura Alstreim in this place.
Not only Evan or Laura but every one of his siblings was Loret instead of Alstreim, even though the genes of Claire and Nora were superior all this time until Logan surpassed them at this moment.
Maybe it was not gene or talent but what their parents or guardians or someone important or relevant to their life wanted to name them, almost as if his Karmic Intent could see through the future. Well, considering that the Death God Eyes could see the lifespan, he didn’t doubt that it could indeed see the future.
Nevertheless, just from the name, he could see that Nora wanted her daughter to be named after her husband’s family and not hers, which was a great sacrifice in itself. After all, the Alstreims wouldn’t drop their pride in naming their children Alstreims. That certainly would not happen in this place unless they were married off.
The atmosphere was silent, with the two who should make noise were looking as if they were blank as they gazed at the baby in Logan’s arms. Nora rushed as tears moistened her eyes. She didn’t think that they would bring their children to this place. She appeared in front of Logan and took Laura into her arms ever so gently.
Both of the babies were sleeping peacefully but seeing that it was still silent with no word from the two blank faces, Davis turned his head to look at Ancestor Dian Alstreim and Ancestor Tirea Snow and gestured with his eyes. The latter had arrived after hearing that Davis was going to make a big move.
Ancestor Dian Alstreim imperceptibly nodded his head.
"Come, Valdrey. I will release the seal on your cultivation and your daughter’s, or if you want to see your granddaughter’s newly-born daughter first, go ahead."
His voice was a spark that brought Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim out of his reverie while his daughter Elise reacted the same. They gazed at the baby with a complex look, their eyes glittering with innumerable emotions that they found difficult to speak out.
Nora bit her lips as she saw them stand there like a statue. Her lips began to quiver as she began to feel aggrieved.
"Grandpa... Are you not going to come closer...?"
Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim’s expression shook as he heard his precious granddaughter’s voice. He couldn’t hold back these mixed feelings as she instantly rushed towards her and stood in front of her, looking at the baby but not daring to touch her as his hands looked as if they were floating.
Nora moved closer and tried to give the baby to her grandfather with absolute trust that he wouldn’t do anything untoward, and indeed, Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim was like a kid, carefully cradling the baby in his arms as if he was scared to drop her.
His entire being felt different as he held the baby. While staring at her small sleeping face, he couldn’t help but notice the uncanny similarity. It was almost the same face as Nora as her facial features were striking.
"This... She’s really your child?"
Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim’s eyes couldn’t help but tremble as he raised his head to look at Nora, to which she shed tears as she nodded her head.
"She’s my child. Laura’s my child that I had with Logan..."
Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim trembled as he couldn’t help but feel moved. However, his gaze fell on the man responsible for this, Logan Loret. A complex expression couldn’t help but appear on his face before he saw him standing together with Claire, the woman who made them kneel, feel humiliated, and compensate with half of their assets.
He couldn’t help but grit his teeth as he uttered in a low voice, "Did you think that this will make me forget what you had done to me, to us!?
Claire’s heartened expression faded, replaced with exasperation, "You don’t think you rightfully deserved it?"
"It doesn’t matter if we had deserved it or not after our entire pride was being trampled upon by a junior. If you had simply sent us to prison, I might’ve been able to swallow that..." Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim’s expression was deep.
"But you would have spent thousands of years rotting in prison without feeling anything for life. Remember, it was you all who chose to kneel to lessen the sentence." Claire shook her head, "I did not force you."
"Grandpa... Please..."
Nora Alstreim echoed aggrievedly from the side, looking desperate to have them reconcile.
Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim’s expression looked a bit hurt. Even he was aggrieved that his precious granddaughter chose their side when he had given her so much. However, the girl baby he held in his arms made him feel better. She was like a light that could direct him the way, but the truth was that he was already lost.
With this kind of scenario, he no longer knew how to keep hold of his grudge towards them. He was reluctant, unconvinced, and uncertain of the future. He had never feared a woman as much as he feared Claire. She was just too much of a mastermind who made him face defeat after defeat at that time of retribution, unaware that it was Davis who took the actions that led to that situation while also supporting her from behind.
He was distrustful of this woman and believed that she could manipulate Nora as she wished. How could he let his granddaughter be subjected to her whims when she was that scary and scheming?
"Father..."
At this moment, a wry voice of a woman echoed.
Everyone turned to look and saw that it was none other than Grand Elder Elise Alstreim. She possessed a vague smile, a smile that seemed one of accepting defeat.
"What the use of holding grudge anymore? The precious granddaughter you had dotted on wants you to reconcile with them while taking their side, even going as far as to..."
As she spoke, she looked at the little Laura in her father’s arms.
"Birth a descendant for them..."
Nora Alstreim felt ashamed at this moment that she couldn’t help but lower her head. She knew that she would be shamed for this action.
"How dare you...!?"
Claire appeared to be enraged as she stepped forward, "Do you know how Nora was willing to sacrifice herself to save you all!? I would’ve killed you all if it weren’t for her endless pleading! If she didn’t exist, you’re all dead!!!"
"Wahhh!~~~"
Abruptly, Evan, in Davis’s arms, began to cry out loud as if he could feel his mother’s wrath and aggrieved feelings.
Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim’s eyes shot wide as he turned to look at his granddaughter. That’s right...
Why did he look at her as if she had betrayed him...?
He knew how she wished for her future life to be... This child had dreamed of becoming an Immortal, and yet, she now looked satisfied with merely having a child and a husband to love.
What kind of situations she had gone through while he was just sitting and roaming around within the confines of the prison, he couldn’t possibly imagine! His heart trembled, feeling like he had blamed her too much!
"Nora... I..."
These words had just escaped his mouth when he was suddenly interrupted.
"Don’t get me wrong..." Grand Elder Elise Alstreim shook her head as she gazed at Claire, "I wasn’t shaming Nora. I was merely saying how foolish it is to pursue you for the humiliation you have caused us. This will lead to the destruction of one of us or both parties, which I certainly don’t want after I have seen the innocent face of this baby, our Nora’s child."
She stepped forward and patted Laura, who had awoken from all the sound with a gentle smile on her face.
"You all think I wouldn’t know how Nora might’ve suffered to get us out? I’m a woman myself, and today, I’ve always felt how suspicious it was that I wasn’t killed even when I threatened Davis. Turns out you all had something going on to make this right..."
She narrowed her eyes and took her hands off Laura, "Dislikeable..."
She turned around and harrumphed.
"Being stripped of your right to take revenge doesn’t feel good at all..."
Everyone blinked while Davis chuckled as he gave Evan back to his dumbfounded mother.
"Not feeling suicidal anymore?"
His teasing voice echoed.
"Not really..." Grand Elder Elise Alstreim looked unamused, "I’ll just go search for that Aqua Flood Dragon and see if I could steal something valuable from it again as I try my luck. If I am unlucky, instead of running, guess I’ll get killed by it..."
"You...!" Grand Elder Valdrey Alstreim felt like he had enough of his suicidal daughter. He was giving back adorable Laura back to Nora when another voice echoed.
"You really do still have a death wish..." Davis shook his head, "It’s a pity that a powerhouse is going to miserably cry and probably go insane while trying to destroy the Alstreim Family on seeing the state of your lifeless corpse..."
"Such a person..." Grand Elder Elise Alstreim let out a self-deprecating giggle, "... does not exist-"
Her expression froze, her purple pupils dilating as a silhouette of a man appeared in her view, reflecting him standing at the entrance of the Ancestral Hall.