A luxurious flying ship shot through the skies, hastily leaving the vicinity of Alliance City. Within was Laia and her father, the Astral Emperor, who sat opposite each other in one of the many rooms contained within the ship.
The Astral Emperor stared at Laia with cold, simmering anger, while Laia stared at the floor before her, not saying a word.
"To think my own daughter would betray me so," he growled, clearly still enraged by everything that had happened. "Speak. Tell me what exactly happened within that realm, and tell me everything about that boy."
However, Laia remained silent as she stared at her feet, not willing to say anything. The Astral Emperor felt another wave of anger surge through him, but he quickly suppressed that anger and calmed down as best he could.
Silence filled the room for quite some time while the Astral Emperor thought things over, while Laia continued to remain silent. A light flickered in the Astral Emperor's eyes, as if an idea had come to him, and his demeanor quickly changed as he addressed his daughter once more.
"This boy, what is his name?" he asked.
"John," Laia replied softly, as she knew her father would easily be able to obtain this information with or without her.
"John huh…the fact that you've given him your soul-seed…I take it that you have strong feelings for that boy then?" he asked, while Laia shrugged her shoulders dismissively, refusing to answer one way or another.
Her panic from before had been because she was worried for John's safety, but now that she knew he was safe from her fathers hands for the time being, her cold indifference towards her father had returned.
"There's no point in lying to me, your father," the Astral Emperor sighed, his voice much softer and calmer than before. "I can tell you have feelings for that boy, and he's really not bad. His body contained secrets that even I couldn't see through, and I can tell his power is far greater than he gives off. Perhaps his position as Prime Disciple was truly well earned," he mused out loud, as if wanting his daughter to hear his thoughts.
Laia's gaze shifted from her feet to her father, who stared at her with a rare warmth, something she was not used to seeing.
"Perhaps I was too quick to anger," the Astral Emperor said, as if he almost regretted his actions. Laia stared at her father with a dubious expression, not able to tell if he was true with his feelings or not, although she favored them being false.
The Astral Emperor fell silent again for another short moment as if deep in thought before he addressed his daughter once more.
"I was only angered because I did not want you to throw away your biggest gift on someone unworthy of your talents. You and I both know your soul-seed was to go to the man you eventually married, but now…" he sighed, as if truly concerned for the situation and his daughter.
"However, perhaps this is a good thing after all," he said, causing Laia to stare at him with a peculiar expression. "Perhaps this John truly is worthy of receiving your soul-seed, at which point marriage would not be out of the question. With you as my daughter and him as the Honorable Alliance Prime Disciple, it's not an unfavorable match for either power," he said.
Laia's eyes widened slightly upon hearing this, but she remained silent as her father continued to ruminate over the situation.
"Ah, but I forgot to ask you about this," he said, as if realizing his honest mistake. "Would such an arrangement be to your liking?" he asked Laia, who frowned at his question.
"Since when has my opinion, especially when it comes to my future marriage, been any of your concern?" she asked questioningly. "You've always decided these things on your own."
"And I have realized my mistakes now," he replied sincerely.
"I strongly doubt that," Laia replied, slight iciness in her tone as if she truly didn't believe him at all. She had never heard her father admit fault or wrongdoing for anything, and didn't believe him now either.
"It's only natural that you doubt my sincerity, but only time will reveal the truth of my words," the Astral Emperor replied, and his face suddenly lit up as if an idea had popped into his mind, an idea he was excited to share with her.
"How about we make a deal then. I will allow you to choose your marriage partner, and even let it be this John if you so wish, if you manage to achieve the peak of the Dao Transformation Realm within the next three years," he said, to which Laia frowned once more.
"Why do you care about my cultivation so much?" she asked. "You've always pushed me hard before, even using the threat of harming those close to me to force me to cultivate, and now you're dangling this offer over my head. What are you playing at?" she asked, skeptical of her fathers intent.
"I have yet to reveal this to anyone, but I have decided to name you as my heir, and be next in line for the throne of my Astral Empire," he said as he smiled at her proudly. "However, such a position also requires great strength, and I can only name you my heir if you manage to achieve your full potential, and become someone worthy of such a position" he explained.
"What? Why would you name me as your heir? What about Alexander?" she asked, mentioning her older brother and first born son of the Astral Emperor.
"Tch, you think I would name my heir based on birth order?" the Astral Emperor scoffed. "Such a position can only be earned through talent and power alone, and you, my precious daughter, are by far my most talented child," he said while smiling warmly at her.
Laia continued to stare at her father with skepticism, not really believing her father who she knew only cared about himself. However, if there was a remote chance this was all true, it would be the absolute best thing for her.
"How about this? When you reach the Peak of the Dao Transformation Realm, I will personally escort you to whomever you wish to marry, and propose the marriage myself to whomever that may be. If that man is John, then you will have my blessing at the time," he said, before his demeanor darkened slightly, returning to an expression that Laia was used to seeing on his face.
"But, I will only agree to such a thing if you do as I requested, and reach the Peak of the Dao Transformation Realm within the next three years. Otherwise, I have no use for coddling a child that has no use for my empire," he said, once more sounding like the father she knew.
"That's the first thing you've said that I believe," Laia replied coldly, as her father spoke of conditional love. However, the Astral Emperor didn't refute her words, and instead leaned back in his seat and stared at her as if awaiting an answer.
Laia's mouth twisted in disdain for her father, but his proposal was the first sliver of hope he had ever given her before. While she was sure there was more to her fathers offer than what he was letting on, there was nothing she could do about it. Not only that, but this agreement sounded as if it would provide John a few extra years to raise his strength without interference or harm from her father, which was more than she could hope for now that his existence was revealed to him.
"Fine," she said with an even tone, agreeing to his proposition. Even if her father was planning something, Laia knew that raising her strength for the future was the only thing she could do at the moment. She knew John and her father would confront each other one day, and when that day came, she would be ready to help John as well as best she could.
"Excellent!" the Astral Emperor exclaimed with a merry smile as he stood up and walked over to Laia, resting his hand on her shoulder. "A wise decision, my precious daughter," he said before removing his hand and walking away, leaving Laia alone in the room as their ship sailed rapidly towards the Astral Empire.
