Chapter 46 - Chapter 6.5: Father

"You are Seirna, my daughter, my blood. As such, you will have to remember that you bear my legacy, thus, you should be ambitious and powerful."

The young child smiled and nodded, as her mother, the Lady Arame, reminded her of her destiny. Back then, the Lord Gaius, conqueror and god of the Children of Ava, has already agreed to take the latter as his wife, as a 'peace offering' from the demons.

"Lady Arame," one of the horned people appeared at the entrance of their tent. "It is time."

At once, the mother and her child followed the demon outside. They were immediately greeted by a group of other demons—the leaders of each demon clan, and they carried banners big enough to cover the appearance of the Lady Arame and Seirna. After all, it was a demon custom back then to keep their offerings from being seen, even as the recipient already knew about it. They walked through the desert sand, accompanied by an armed retinue of demons on each flank; and it was slow, steady procession.

"…"

On the other side of the desert was an army of humans, and at their head was the Lord Gaius, dressed in his splendid Roman-style armor. As a sign of complete submission to his authority, the demon leaders kneeled before him, much to their humiliation in front of the Children of Ava, eventually revealing the Lady Arame and Seirna behind the banners.

"A beautiful offering indeed," said Gaius, whispering to the human kings that stood beside him. "However, I am not happy to see that child in her arms. The demons said nothing about her."

"Shall we resume our attacks against them, milord?" one of the kings asked. "They swindled us with their promise."

"No, all is well," the god of Chersea smiled. "After all, that child is a proof that lady is truly beautiful, even in the eyes of these despicable people."

The Lady Arame, carrying the young Seirna in her arms, approached them. Once she stood before Gaius, the offering of the demons did a curtsy, followed by her daughter. A king commented, "Such a beautiful creature you made, demon. What is her name?"

"Milord," the Lady Arame replied, "I am also a human, as is my daughter. Please, feel free to check on me if you wish; but I stand on my words."

"How can this be? The Children of Ava are one and the same; yet, here you are, in the camps of these horned bastards."

"I was saved by these people, to which, I have no knowledge why," she explained, never taking her eyes off Gaius. "I and that child; she is not from my womb, yet I raised her like my own."

Upon hearing that, the kings and the god of Chersea were satisfied. After all, the recent conflict produced war orphans, as well as widows. They were so pleased at her story that the Lord Gaius commented, "So, even these evil people are capable of sympathies. An admirable development; I have hopes they will continue down such path. Then, we can be friends."

The Lady Arame bowed, "And in the name of these demons, I and my daughter shall serve you with all our strength and abilities."

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In the generations that followed after the offering of Lady Arame to the Lord Gaius, her charms and wit eventually gained his trust, and he elevated her to the status of that of his 'wife.' As Gaius never really concerned himself with the everyday running of the lives of his subjects, he delegated these tasks to his partner. It became so frequent that soon, the people began to worship the Lady Arame as well, alongside the Roman. And he did nothing to stop it.

The young Seirna, on the other hand, also received unwarranted attention from everyone. Viewing her as a 'child deity,' they would soon start offer to her, in hopes that she would convince her father to give them blessings. And to this, Gaius was not pleased.

"Seirna!" he called out to her one time. "Seirna, come here before me at once!"

"Yes, father!" She rushed out of her chamber and presented herself before him. "Can I help you with anything?"

"You should address me as 'lord,' for that's who I am!" Gaius rebuked her, before showing the child a doll that was originally an offering to her. "What is this?"

"M-Milord," Seirna found herself unable to speak properly, as that doll was one of the gifts she treasured, silently passed to her by Lady Arame after it was offered.

"Speak before me properly!" the god of Chersea raised his voice, slamming his fists on the arm rests of his throne. "You're too weak of a child, Seirna! Fix yourself!"

"Y-Yes, milord…"

"Now, explain to me about this doll!"

"I-It was g-given to me by mother…"

"You received gifts again?" he bellowed. "Have you understood my command not to accept these offerings?"

"I-I'm sorry…"

"You won't listen!"

"I-I'm sorry…" there were tears welling-up in Seirna's eyes.

At that point, Gaius threw the doll aside. Then, he stood from his throne, and approached the sobbing child. Once he was beside her, his face's expression suddenly changed from that of anger to a gentle, consoling one. "Look, Seirna, it's not like I'm forbidding you to receive toys like that. However, you have to understand our status. I'm a god, and you're my daughter. Of course, people will exploit and abuse that relationship between us, and it might not end well for you."

"I'm sorry…milord…"

"It's fine," he wrapped his arms around her. "Your father still loves you. It's just that, I'm worried if you keep trusting people without question. We can buy a toy for you later, though, in another world. I think I haven't showed you toys from a place called Earth, no? I'm sure you'll like it there. You don't need the people's offerings. How about that?"

At once, Seirna stopped her crying and smiled, "Y-Yes, milord! I'll stop my tears."

"That's a good girl!" Gaius ruffled her hair. "Now be a dear, and please call your mother. I need to talk to her."

Seirna, excited at the prospect of picking a toy with her stepfather, giggled as she ran off from the throne room. Meanwhile, Gaius was a bit annoyed; he did specify to the Lady Arame not to 'receive' gifts of favor for Seirna, yet she defied him.