Chapter 108: Manipulation

Naturally, there were plenty of rooms in the house, but they decided to stay together in one rather than separate themselves from each other.

There was a room on the ground floor that didn’t appear to be the master bedroom, so Jean suggested they stay there. The thought of sleeping in someone else’s bedroom made her uncomfortable, and she would rather avoid that if possible. Truthfully, staying in this house at all felt equally strange to both of them.

"Don’t you feel hungry?" Jean asked as Kai watched his little angel crawl around, exploring her new playground with boundless curiosity.

"You must have suffered some injuries, and you said you need to eat a lot to recover." Her expression grew worried as another thought occurred to her. "I haven’t even checked you for injuries. Let me see."

She rose from the bed, only for Kai to reassure her before she could come any closer.

"Everything is fine. I wasn’t injured." He raised a brow, a playful smile tugging at his lips. "But if you want me to take off this gown and show you every inch of my body, I certainly won’t object."

Jean’s face grew hot at his shameless suggestion, but rather than letting herself become flustered, she gave him a scrutinizing look.

"Are you sure you’re telling the truth? Injuries aren’t always caused by enemies, you know. You moved around quite a lot during the battle."

Understanding the genuine concern behind her words, Kai decided not to tease her any further.

"I promise you, Jean. If I’d suffered any wounds, I wouldn’t be so petty as to hide them just to preserve my manly image."

Jean smiled faintly. "You’ve already fulfilled your quota of looking manly for the day."

This time, it was Kai’s turn to feel his face grow warm.

"Is that so? Because back then, I thought I looked more like a maniac than anything else."

Jean hummed thoughtfully before shaking her head.

"Not at all. Initially, it was certainly a shock to see you like that. But when I thought about how someone as kind and gentle as you could turn into such a cold-blooded warrior for your child..." Her lips curved into a small smile. "Yeah, I thought it was pretty cool."

Kai returned her smile, his expression softening as he looked at her.

"Not just for my child, but for you, too."

Jean groaned, looking away for a moment. "I know. I just didn’t want to sound as though I was giving myself too much importance."

Kai chuckled at her blunt response, finding her honesty rather endearing.

"Anyway, are you hungry? I’ll go check the kitchen and see if there’s anything we can eat."

With that, he turned his attention to their little explorer, only to find her near the window, gazing upward at something that had caught her attention.

Kai was just about to pick her up when Elara suddenly turned toward him. Pointing at something with her little finger, she tilted her head and called out, "Neee... Papa?"

Kai froze.

His back was still bent, one hand extended toward his daughter, while Jean stood completely motionless beside him. Neither of them seemed capable of processing what they had just heard.

They had both heard it. There was no mistaking those little syllables, no chance that their ears had deceived them. And yet, it took them more than ten seconds to react.

Kai slowly turned his head toward Jean, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"Did she...?"

Jean could only nod, her lips gradually curving into a smile that mirrored the wonder in his eyes.

Only then did Kai’s tense shoulders relax. He crouched down and scooped his little girl into his arms, cradling her against his chest as though she were the most precious treasure in the world.

"Yes, baby? Papa is here."

He rubbed his cheek affectionately against hers, unable to contain the sheer joy shining in his eyes. The little girl had just called him Papa.

It was only a tiny word, one she might not even understand the significance of yet, but to him, it felt like receiving the greatest gift imaginable.

Elara had no idea what had just happened or why her father seemed so happy all of a sudden. All she knew was that being in Papa’s arms was wonderful, as it always had been.

She wrapped her little arms around him in return and giggled happily, completely content with the world.

Just then, a familiar notification appeared before Kai’s eyes.

[Quest: Hear your child call you for the first time.]

[Reward will be added to the list...]

Kai barely spared the notification a glance. For once, he wasn’t particularly interested in what the system had rewarded him with. His attention was entirely occupied by something far more precious.

He turned toward Jean, unable to suppress the delighted smile spreading across his face.

"Did you hear her? Her first word, and it was meant for me."

Jean crossed her arms, regarding him with a rather peculiar expression.

"Are you sure that was her first word?"

Kai blinked, momentarily caught off guard by the question.

"Yes... of course..."

However, the way Jean continued staring at him made his confidence waver ever so slightly. Still, he refused to back down. After all, he had heard it with his own ears!

Unfortunately, Jean seemed determined to shatter his little moment of triumph.

Without another word, she reached into her pocket and pulled out something familiar.

The sugar dispenser.

"Elara? Want this?"

Kai’s eyes widened as Elara immediately turned her head toward her mother. The moment she spotted the dispenser, her little eyes lit up with excitement. She eagerly stretched out her tiny hand, opening and closing her fingers as though she could somehow grab the object from a distance.

"Ma... Mama!"

"..."

Kai fell completely silent.

For several seconds, he simply stared at his daughter, who was now far too occupied with reaching for the dispenser to pay him any attention.

Then, ever so slowly, he turned toward Jean.

She was smiling at him. Quite smugly, in fact.

Kai raised a finger toward her, looking thoroughly betrayed.

"This is cheating... You can’t use my toy to manipulate my daughter."

Jean let out an amused huff, clearly enjoying his reaction.

"She already calls me Mama depending on the situation. I didn’t need to teach her just now."

Kai groaned, looking between his beloved and daughter with an expression of utter helplessness.

"Yeah, well... she called me Papa without any reason or manipulation."

And as far as he was concerned, that made his victory all the more special.