Chapter 31
Inside the bedroom, the three of them had finished getting ready, dressed in special attire for the occasion. After making their final checks in front of the mirror, they were ready to leave.
Adam simply waited for the two women while reading a book. As the seconds passed in peaceful silence, everyone focused on what they still needed to finish.
The sound of footsteps approached Adam. Looking up from his book, he smiled as usual when he saw them walking toward him. After a second or two, he complimented them in his own way.
"The outfits suit both of you very well."
His words made the two standing before him happy, until Elara puffed out her chest and declared with pride and arrogance,
"Of course! I'm the prettiest girl in the entire universe!"
Seeing her boastful attitude, neither Adam nor Stephanie reacted, as if it were perfectly normal behavior.
"Well then, let's go if we don't want to be late."
Adam stood up gracefully. Despite his words, he made no effort to hurry, choosing instead to move at his usual calm pace.
The two followed behind him. For some reason, Elara remained unusually quiet, something both Adam and Stephanie immediately noticed. They also understood why.
"You already know what's happening today, so I won't repeat everything. However, I do need to remind you of a few things. First of all, there won't be many children there, so I hope you'll behave yourself for me."
Adam calmly gave his instructions as they walked.
Walking beside him, Elara lowered her head. This would be a first for her. She had never truly interacted with anyone besides the Stellaron Hunters, Adam, and Stephanie.
"Okay... I understand..."
She answered in a small voice.
Hearing her reply, Adam simply accepted it and said nothing more, as though her answer alone was enough.
Stephanie, however, noticed her own fingers trembling slightly, as if she wanted to reach out and comfort Elara before ultimately giving up.
"I don't understand... Why does the Saint seem so indifferent toward his own daughter?"
Watching Adam's straight back, Stephanie frowned inwardly.
"And why does Elara seem sadder than usual? It isn't just because she's nervous... nor because she'll be meeting strangers. Then why?"
After that, the rest of the walk toward the car passed in complete silence.
Each of the three was lost in their own thoughts.
Adam remained impossible to read.
Elara wrestled with her anxiety and sadness.
Stephanie quietly worried about Elara.
As they approached a beautiful midnight-blue luxury car, someone was already waiting beside it, as though he had been expecting them.
Unlike the three approaching, the man wore formal attire along with a pair of sunglasses.
He was a tall, bronze-skinned man whose long hair reached his shoulders. The most striking feature, however, was the scar that remained visible even beneath his sunglasses.
With a swift, practiced motion, he lowered his head and placed his right hand over his heart in respect toward Adam.
"Good morning, Your Holiness."
The greeting made Stephanie frown slightly before relaxing.
"Why didn't he greet Elara as well? Even if she's just a child, she's still the Saint's daughter... Then again, she's been hidden from the public until now. It's only natural that no one knows who she is."
While Adam smiled and continued speaking with the man, Elara quietly looked around.
She noticed countless people had stopped to watch them, yet none dared approach.
She concluded they simply didn't want to disturb her father.
However, as she realized many pairs of eyes were also fixed on her, she instinctively took half a step backward.
Being the center of so much attention made her uncomfortable, even though she was naturally curious.
Over the past year, she had gone outside only rarely. Aside from the day she first arrived on the planet, she had only been able to take occasional walks with Adam, but because of his duties, he never had much free time.
She understood that.
Still...
She was only six years old, and her emotions overwhelmed her.
Watching from the side, Stephanie immediately noticed Elara's subtle movement.
Confused, she turned her head to observe the surrounding crowd.
Her brows furrowed even more, and her gaze grew noticeably colder.
"Why are these people staring at Elara as if she's some stranger? Our Lord teaches us to love our neighbors..."
Stephanie realized the people around them were looking at Elara with suspicion, though she couldn't understand why.
Unknown to them, whispers quietly spread through the crowd.
"Hey... are you sure that little girl is really the Saint's daughter?" a black-haired woman quietly asked the man beside her.
The topic of conversation was clearly Elara.
"Yeah, I'm sure. I've seen her walking outside with the Saint before."
Her companion answered confidently, but his expression revealed mixed emotions—suspicion and disbelief.
Nor was he the only one reacting that way.
After about one or two minutes of conversation, Adam and the stranger finally finished speaking.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting. Let's go."
Adam turned back toward the two waiting behind him, apologizing with his usual gentle smile.
The two simply nodded.
Adam entered the front seat, while Stephanie and Elara climbed into the back.
Neither of them noticed the stranger's unusual gaze, especially when it lingered on Stephanie for several seconds.
Once everyone had settled into the vehicle, the stranger started driving.
Since the journey would take some time, Elara brought out her handheld game console.
Stephanie checked her phone.
Adam picked up a tablet to continue working.
His eyes remained fixed on the screen as his fingers moved across it.
As the car drove through the city, Adam occasionally offered the citizens outside a warm smile.
Whenever they saw him smiling, cheers immediately erupted from the crowd.
For just a brief second, however, his gaze settled on one particular section of the population before returning to his work.
Then, without warning, he looked far beyond the crowd toward a distant building.
His golden eyes rested there for only a moment before calmly returning to the financial documents displayed on his tablet.
Seeing how focused he remained on his work, the two adults couldn't help but feel proud of their Saint and everything he did.
Yet at the location where Adam's gaze had lingered, four silhouettes could be seen.
Three women.
One man.
All four silently watched the car carrying Adam and Elara.