00:00The kingdom was on edge for my sake, yet my husband, Lord Ronan, was nowhere to be seen.
00:08I was used to his coldness, but at this moment, having gambled my life and burned my manna to
00:17bear this child, a ridiculous shred of hope still flickered in my heart. Years ago, when I was in
00:22a desperate situation, the young Ronan saved my life. That kindness became my lifelong obsession,
00:33but he had no idea that I was the sole pure-blooded daughter of the High Elfin King.
00:41When I met with disaster in my youth, I was rescued by him, the lord of a mere mid-tier
00:49elfin kingdom. To repay that debt, I concealed my supreme identity, even using a forbidden ritual
00:57to seal away the radiant wings of nature on my back that symbolized supreme divine authority.
01:05I willingly became an ordinary female elf with no background, marrying into his territory
01:12under a false name. For years, I remained gentle and submissive, using my own pure-blooded
01:19mana to nourish his family, all for a sliver of his affection.
01:28Yet, I could never warm a heart of stone. In Ronan's heart, there was only ever room for
01:34his first love, Vanessa. The agony intensified, as the mana and bloodlines within my body surged
01:47in a violent reverse flow. But I held on to my last strength. Yet, all that arrived was a cold,
01:54ruthless message from a god.
01:57My lady, the lord is busy with official matters and cannot come. Please deliver the child on your
02:02own, and do not delay the lord's business. At that moment, a self-deprecating laugh escaped
02:08my lips. This life of mine, and the child in my womb, never mattered to him. After an entire
02:15day and night of deathly struggle, a soft, fragile wile finally shattered the silence of the infirmary.
02:22This was my daughter, a precious treasure, bought at the cost of all my manor.
02:30I named her Iris. At that exact moment, my personal guard rushed in to report.
02:36My lady, the lord has finished his external affairs, and has returned to the main manor in
02:42his unicorn sacred carriage. Within my deadland heart, a tiny spark suddenly ignited. I instinctively
02:47assumed that no matter how cold or selfish he might be, at least he would at least want to look
02:52at his
02:52newborn flesh and blood. Forcing my exhausted, severely depleted body up, I carefully held my daughter in
02:57her swaddling clothes, making my way toward the promenade of the main temple to see my husband.
03:02But just as I reached the promenade and looked through the lush courtyard of the sacred elven tree,
03:07I froze instantly, the blood in my veins turning to ice. My husband, stood there, tall and elegant in
03:15his black robes, and right beside him stood a woman, the first love he had yearned for and never forgotten.
03:20It was Vanessa. What struck me like a bolt from the blue was that in front of them stood a
03:24little
03:24elfin boy, roughly three years old, with long pointed ears and a pair of eyes that flashed with
03:30a cunning disguised as inonence. Countless absurd possibilities flashed through my mind. My hands
03:36shook uncontrollably from shock and rage, but I forced myself to stand my ground. Enduring the tearing
03:42pain of the postpartum mana reverse flow, Vanessa looked up and spotted me, her mouth curving into a
03:48flitting, provocative smirk. She intentionally leaned closer into Ronin's embrace, her voice soft yet
03:54dripping with malice. Ronin, so she's the one who stole my man and my title while I was away?
04:00Tenderness instantly flooded Ronin's eyes as he wrapped his arm around her. He comforted her softly,
04:06even placing a lingering kiss upon her forehead, right in front of me. When he turned to me,
04:13his tone was piercingly cold and dismissive. Think nothing of it, Vanessa. You are my true love.
04:22I have never loved her. She is nothing more than a tool to manage the tribe.
04:29Ronin, look closely. This is the daughter I just risked my life to give you. Look at her. She was
04:35just born. Look how beautiful she is. Ronin cast a brief, indifferent glance downward. In his eyes,
04:40there was not a shred of paternal emotion, only naked disgust and annoyance. He swiftly averted
04:45his gaze, as though looking at his own flesh and blood for even a second longer would defile his
04:50relationship with Vanessa. Vanessa's gaze locked onto the infant in my arms, a flash of venom crossing
04:56her eyes. Promptly, she lifted her pitiful face, gazing up at Ronin with a trembling sob.
05:03Ronin, she has already born a child for the tribe. Then what about our Jasper? He followed me,
05:08wandering among foreign kingdoms, and suffered for three long years. He is your eldest son,
05:14the future heir of the Wind Kingdom. Looking at that three-year-old elfin child clinging to their
05:19side, I felt as if my soul had been struck by lightning. It turned out that my suspicion was
05:25actually the truth. What exactly is going on here? Ronin looked down at me, entirely devoid of guilt,
05:32and let out a righteous, cold snot. Good, you saw it. Saves me the trouble of explaining. When
05:38Vanessa left three years ago, she was already pregnant with my child. For these three years,
05:42she raised Jasper alone among foreign kingdoms, enduring endless grievance. Now that she has
05:46returned, I must make it them properly, restoring everything that belongs to them a thousand times over.
05:52I stared at the picture-perfect family of three before me, as a boundless despair swallowed me like
05:59a tidal wave. Just as I was on the verge of collapsing, Ronin's mother, Elodie, walked over
06:05hoarsely, flanked by attendants. Three-year-old Jasper was incredibly sweet-talked, twitching his
06:11delicate little elven ears. He immediately ran over on his short legs and tightly hugged Elodie's leg.
06:18Grandma, I finally get to see you. Mother said you are the most benevolent and noble elder. In the entire
06:28kingdom! Elodie, who was extremely superstitious about bloodlines and male esters, melted instantly.
06:35She gathered Jasper into her arms, treating him like her ultimate treasure. Seizing the moment,
06:42Vanetha leaned into Ronin's embrace, weeping with feigned grievance.
06:47It's all my fault. If I had been stronger, your perfect grandson wouldn't have spent three years
06:55starving in exile. Elodie's heart ached for them. She snapped her head around to look at me with my
07:02deathly pale face and my weakly wailing daughter, her eyes instantly turning into daggers of piercing
07:09disgust. You nearly died just to produce a magicless, useless girl? What a pathetic waste!
07:20Pack up that defective brat and drag yourselves to the Withan Tower at the border right now!
07:26I won't let you bring your bad luck near my precious grandson!
07:32Ronin, Iris is your flesh and blood too.
07:37How can you just let them trample all over us?!
07:42But Ronin's face remained completely indifferent, his tone dripping with disdain.
07:47Mother is right.
07:49Jasper is the future and hope of Wind Kingdom.
07:54The daughter you gave birth to has a dull divine mark.
08:00She is utterly unworthy of living in the main manor.
08:05Going to the tower is your only option.
08:10Vanessa threw a provocative glance my way, squeezing her throat to spit out the most poison words.
08:16Loser.
08:17Since you possess no noble bloodline, staying here will only bring you self-inflicted humiliation.
08:25Looking at their hypocritical, I clenched my fingers, and the very last ember of gratitude within me
08:31was completely extinguished.
08:34The cold wind wowed through the withered tower, a place that never saw a single ray of moonlight.
08:41I held my frail little daughter close, huddling in the corner of the freezing stone wall.
08:47Having barely survived childbirth, and with my mana completely burned out.
08:53My chest felt as if it were being torn apart.
08:57By ten thousand winds!
08:59Just when I was completely helpless and desperate,
09:03The heavy wooden door of the tower was suddenly pushed open, and Ronan walked in, silhouetted against the light.
09:12In that single instant, a ridiculous shred of hope actually flared up once more in my deadland heart.
09:21He was the child's father.
09:23Had he finally softened, coming to bring some mana, to ward off the cold?
09:29Or to take my daughter and me back, forcing my mana-depleased body up?
09:33Ronan!
09:34My pale lips trembled.
09:36Ronan!
09:36Did you come to see Iris?
09:38She caught a chill, and the divine mark on her forehead is growing weaker and weaker.
09:45Please, save her!
09:46But before I could even get close,
09:50Ronan took a disgusted step backward.
09:52Serafana.
09:53As if the child and I were some kind of thing.
09:55I only came here to warn you.
09:59Stay in your withered tower quietly.
10:00Sign this declaration, relinquishing your rights as the primary mistress.
10:03And don't try any clever tricks.
10:06I felt as though I had been struck by lightning, taking a shocked step back.
10:10I stared firmly at the man.
10:13I had loved with my very life for three years.
10:17You came all the way to this desolate place.
10:20Not to cast a single glance at your own daughter, but merely to force me to give up my position.
10:27And to warn me?
10:29Ronan let out a cold laugh, his eyes filled with arrogance, and a fierce protectiveness for Vanessa.
10:36Vanessa is kind-hearted.
10:39And she suffered terribly.
10:42While wandering among foreign kingdoms with our child.
10:44What he thought to do…
10:44...I thought to him or are young?
10:45I ate at the place where we talked about the impact of their life.
10:45And he underwent that weight relief and our children.
10:45So many people have Kinder bouquainted.
10:45As if they throw away,
