Published at 14th of November 2026 7:44 am

Chapter 4680: Reckoning Father

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Rui’s jaw dropped as he saw Ria and Runark at the door to the royal quarters, both bashful, holding hands. Ria seemed especially embarrassed about it, her cheeks permanently flushed a little red, stealing glances at Runark frequently, who remained much cooler and confident.

"Oh my, what do we have here?" Amare emerged from the kitchen, unusually wearing an apron. She scoffed at the idea on eating food made by cooks and at the idea of relying on external help of maintaining their lifestyle. Their home had no maids or butlers; she did everything by herself. She wasn’t overwhelmed, of course. Not only was she a Martial Artist, but the first time Rui met her, she had been scrubbing the grounds of the entirety of the Gen Temple.

Before Ria could speak, Runark stepped forward, still holding Ria’s hand. "Godfather, Aunty Amare. We have come here to tell the two of you that Ria and I have begun a romantic relationship."

Ria couldn’t hide how bashful and embarrassed she was, burying her face in her hand. But she never let go of Runark’s other hand. Amare smiled with delight while Rui’s eyes flew wide open. "What?!"

"What a delightful announcement!" Amare cheerily celebrated, setting the food on the table, before going over to hug her daughter and Runark with one arm each. "I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time."

"You have?" Ria asked her mother with an astonished expression.

"Of course," her mother giggled, patting and stroking her head like she was still a child. "I knew this day would come when I saw how much of a crush Runark had on you when you both were merely five years old."

Ria blushed while Runark simply nodded. "It’s true, I’ve been in love with Ria my entire life. No it is more accurate to say that she is my entire life."

Ria staggered at those words as if somebody had punched her in the solar plexus, glaring at Runark bashfully. "How can you say such cheesy things with a straight face?!"

"Because it’s the truth." He smiled at her radiantly, shifting a tuft of her hair behind her ear. "You are the light of my life, Ria."

"Wow," Amare’s amber eyes lit up with an entertained delight while Rui’s jaw dropped even further.

Another invisible gut punch rocked Ria as she struggled to maintain her composure. "L-Let’s go in already!"

She quickly removed her shoes, trying to maintain a calm expression. It was clear to the eyes that she was overstimulated by simple words of clear affection, though Runark was admittedly very cheesy with his love. Everybody could sense he was genuinely sincere about each word he spoke.

Amare accepted and celebrated the relationship while Rui found himself reeling almost as much as his daughter was. He suppressed a scowl as his eyes shifted to his godson. That brat. Rui had helped him elevate his potential for power to a whole other level, and the first thing he did was to steal his own daughter from him.

A sharp look from Amare helped him school his expression as he put on a stiff smile, walking towards Runark.

PAT

His hand fell on Runark’s shoulder with the weight of the sky. Runark winced as he struggled to stand straight. But he never buckled, instead meeting the thinly veiled hostility in the ethereal eyes of the Emperor of Water.

"I look forward to getting along with you, Father."

Rui’s corporeal consciousness almost lashed out and smacked the kid to another dimension, but he restrained himself. This was a tribulation, he knew. The heavens had decided that he wasn’t being pressured enough, so they sent an agent to steal his precious baby angel from him.

"Stop glaring at him like that, Dad." It was Ria who stood between the of them, glaring at her father. "He’s your godson, you know? And he’s my boyfriend; you should get along with him."

The word boyfriend made him feel a little faint. But he realized that she was dead serious about the relationship, even though she appeared overwhelmed by it herself.

"But when you were young, you said you wanted to marry papa—ouch!"

BANG!

Ria punched her father in the gut, causing him to lurch forward as Ria’s expression grew red with embarrassment. "I told you to never bring that up again!"

Runark turned towards Ria with a strange expression. "I didn’t realize you liked your father that much, hm... maybe I should be more like him."

Those words were pouring fuel on the fire. Amare burst out laughing as Ria protested, trying to get him to forget about those words, before glaring at her father and kicking him in the shin repeatedly, overstimulated with embarrassment.

It took a while before Amare could calm father and daughter down, pulling them to the table. Rui sat at his table with resigned acceptance as Amare probed their relationship.

"So, how do you feel about marriage?"

"How do you feel about living together?"

"What about kids?"

Runark answered the questions as earnestly as he could. His answers generally conveyed an enthusiasm for all of those matters, along with a desire to respect Ria’s comfort and wishes, and a sense of patience. They weren’t ordinary humans, after all. They would live long lives, and there was no need to rush everything.

Ria blushed at the thought of marriage and having kids. They felt like far away matters for her; she was only eighteen. She felt a gap in maturity between them, for it sounded like Runark had already considered these matters seriously, which only made her feel more embarrassed.

"Ah, I hope you understand the consequences of being in a relationship with the royal princess of the Kandrian Empire," Amare spoke with a serious expression. "Trust me, as someone who married into the royal family, this is not a light undertaking. There are many suitors who want Ria’s hand in marriage even though she has virtually disappeared from public life two years ago. You will face a tremendous amount of pressure from countless parties within human civilization, and if you don’t think you can handle it, then... I advise you to end this relationship right away."

Her words were solemn, cutting against the fuzzy, feel-good atmosphere in the room.

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