"Oh? Is that so?"
Upon hearing the sudden intrusion of this cold voice, the corners of Leon's mouth stiffened instantly, and he felt a violent twitch.
With stiff movements reminiscent of a robot, he turned his head and beheld Liliana, who had seemingly materialized out of thin air, now standing beside him with her arms folded across her chest.
A beautiful yet chilling smile graced her lips, sending shivers down the spines of anyone who beheld her.
Furthermore, her crimson eyes bore into Leon with a meaningful gaze.
Upon seeing this, Leon could only curse his very bad luck.
'Why is she here? Didn't she claim to be busy today? Sure enough, this woman never follows the routine!' He muttered helplessly, maintaining a facade of composure and refraining from speaking further.
Upon witnessing Liliana's sudden appearance, Lyra too was overcome with fear, instinctively bowing her head and avoiding direct eye contact.
'I'm done for! Your Majesty Leon, you're really playing with fire!' Lyra inwardly lamented, realizing that she wouldn't survive today without punishment.
Meanwhile, Fiona was the only one excited at the sight of Liliana, her face beaming with joy.
"Mommy!" Her round, golden eyes sparkled with happiness as she swiftly rose to her feet and then threw herself at Liliana's thighs in a display of affection.
With an innocent expression, she pressed her round cheek against Liliana's soft, chubby thigh and inquired, "Mommy, what brings you here? Don't you have a lot of work to do?"
Upon hearing Fiona's question, Liliana responded with only a brief glance, her smile appearing somewhat peculiar.
"It's alright; I happened to be passing by and noticed you all having fun. What game were you playing earlier? You seemed so excited that I didn't want to interrupt," Liliana inquired calmly, her tone devoid of any threat as she glanced at the silent Lyra and Leon.
Upon hearing this, Lyra became even more distressed and cast a pleading glance at Leon, silently imploring for assistance.
Unfortunately, Leon feigned ignorance, maintaining a composed expression that only prompted further inward complaints from Lyra.
Liliana's question instantly filled Fiona with excitement, prompting her to release her hold on Liliana's thigh.
"Oh! I just played a game called Sword Hero against the evil demon emperor with Daddy and Lyra, Mommy! It was so much fun, and I really enjoyed it!" Fiona exclaimed joyfully, bouncing up and down with excitement.
She then eagerly recounted every detail of the game, aiming to convey the immense enjoyment she had experienced.
As Fiona explained, Liliana remained silent, listening attentively.
However, her indifferent expression turned frostier, and the atmosphere around her grew palpably tense in an instant.
Unaware of the shift in the atmosphere, Fiona finished her story and was taken aback to find her daddy, Lyra, and her mom suddenly silent.
"Hm? Why is everyone quiet?" Question marks hovered above her little head as she asked innocently, her confusion adding to her adorable demeanor.
Upon hearing her words, Leon smiled inwardly, torn between whether to laugh or cry at his daughter's innocence.
Then he glanced at Liliana, whose expression had darkened, seemingly on the brink of exploding at any moment.
Furthermore, her breathing sounded somewhat labored, causing her huge breasts to rise and fall noticeably, signaling to Leon that he should promptly prevent her from becoming angry.
After all, he was responsible for the situation and couldn't allow Lyra and Fiona to be subjected to her anger.
With a slight sigh, he stood up slowly and offered a smile to Fiona.
"Alright, little Fiona. You must be exhausted after a long day of playing. Why don't you head back inside the palace with Lyra?"
Leon affectionately rubbed her head and continued in a soft tone, "Your mommy must have sought me out at this time to discuss something important."
Fiona felt a bit confused, sensing something amiss, though she couldn't quite pinpoint what it was.
Nevertheless, she simply nodded like a chick and made her way towards Lyra, who seemed equally hesitant.
"Go ahead," Leon reassured, nodding towards Lyra.
Observing this, Lyra sighed and accompanied Fiona back into the palace.
After watching the two depart, Leon turned his attention back to Liliana, offering a slight smile.
"Well, Liliana Crimson, is there something you need from me?" Leon asked casually, adopting a shameless demeanor.
He understood that the best approach to dealing with Liliana in her current state, on the brink of anger, was to act shamelessly and feign ignorance.
As expected, upon hearing his shameless question, Liliana's anger gradually subsided, morphing into a hateful glare directed at him.
"Are you still asking? Are you truly this shameless?" Liliana gritted her teeth in disbelief, unable to fathom how the man before her could pose such a shameless question.
Had it been anyone else, she would have already administered a ruthless beating.
"Well, I may indeed be shameless, but I'm also doing this because it was caused by you, wasn't it?" Leon offered a small smile and regarded Liliana playfully.
"Because of me? What do you mean?" Liliana frowned, utterly perplexed by his statement.
Leon folded his arms and adopted the demeanor of a composed master.
"Earlier, I inquired about Fiona's opinion of the sword hero, and she described him as a villain, a pervert, and an ugly person. You must understand that the sword hero is me, and all her criticisms are directed towards me, her father," Leon calmly and meticulously explained, laying out the situation to Liliana.
Naturally, he would embellish the lies to add flavor and lend an air of authenticity to his story.
As she listened to his explanation, Liliana's expression shifted, her demeanor betraying a hint of frowning.
After explaining for a while, Leon pretended to make a sad face and sighed.
"Hey~ You have to understand how I would feel if one day my true identity as the sword hero was revealed and Fiona discovered that her father was described as a pervert, as you mentioned to her. Furthermore, I'm concerned about whether you also said negative things about me to my other two daughters. Just imagine their sadness upon learning such hurtful and false information." Leon spoke with a wry smile, his expression reflecting genuine distress as if he didn't wish to contemplate such a scenario.
His acting was so convincing that even Hollywood actors would applaud him and inquire about enrolling in his classes, eagerly seeking the price for joining.
Liliana fell silent at his words, unsure how to refute his argument.
It was true that she had spoken poorly of Leon, the very Sword Hero responsible for her Demon army's successive defeats, to both Fiona and her other two daughters.
However, who would have imagined that the father of her three daughters and the bastard who assaulted her four years ago in the border city of mankind was none other than the very Leon standing before her—the sword hero she cursed every day?
Taking this into consideration, Liliana ultimately chose to surrender, and the rage within her promptly began to dissipate.
Still, it merely simmered beneath the surface, as she harbored intentions to settle the score at a more opportune moment in the future.
'Humph! You'll see, Leon Kruger. We, the Demon Race, are very vengeful, and I'll get back to you later...' Liliana sneered inwardly.
Observing Leon's calm demeanor, as if everything were under control, only fueled her desire to exact revenge.
With a sullen expression, as if admitting defeat in the argument, she turned around and departed.
"Follow me; I have something to discuss with you," Liliana said nonchalantly, striding forward without waiting for Leon.
However, after a few steps, her pace slowed slightly as her gaze fixated on a tree 200 meters away.
Her eyebrows raised slightly, as if contemplating something, before she simply smiled and continued walking.
Watching her graceful figure as she moved away, Leon chuckled to himself, feeling a sense of contentment wash over him.
'This Demon Emperor is so easy to defeat...' he muttered nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.
With his hands casually tucked into his pockets, he followed Liliana, whistling a tune of happiness.
After the two of them left the palace garden, suddenly, from the shady tree that had captured Liliana's attention earlier, emerged a little girl with long white hair adorned with a red ribbon.
She stared curiously in the direction the two had gone, her golden eyes resembling those of Fiona and Leon, reflecting an indifferent gaze just like Liliana's.
"Where did that man go with Mommy?"
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AN: As my promise, one chapter bonus! Thank you and don't forget your support! ☆⌒(≧▽° )