Family Comes First

"Father," Ellendise called out, bowing formally to the Count. She raised her head and smiled.

"Ellen." The Count acknowledged. He sat on his chair, resting his hands on his office table. The stacks of documents on it made it obvious that the Count was a very busy person.

Ellendise inwardly felt slight pity for her father.

It was never a good thing to see a bunch of paperwork waiting for you to finish. When she was still Rianne, she dealt with this kind of thing. Being a mafioso's daughter was hard and her restrainer, Leslie, always ensured that she finished her work before stepping out of her office.

Many times, she wished that she could escape that life. Now that she was given a second chance, she realized that being idle was not her style. She was an ambitious person filled with pride.

"I'm sorry, Father. Did I come at a bad time?" Ellendise motioned with her eyes to the documents on the table.

"No. These things aren't that important."

Ellendise smiled.

Using magic to enhance her vision, she was sure that she saw a subjugation about wyverns in one of those documents. That kind of thing was not important?

The Count was really funny. A subjugation that concerned the death and lives of the knights of the county wasn't important.

"Are you sure, Father? I can wait until your work is finished. I don't want to get in the way of your..."

"Ellen." The Count said, stopping her.

"Nothing is more important than my daughter."

Ellendise didn't think that the Count would say this but these words made her more convinced.

It convinced her that the Count truly did see her as his daughter no matter what the elf priest said. While he was keeping in mind what the elf priest said, he was a good man and he truly cared for her.

'Ah...'

For a moment, Ellendise wasn't sure how to continue. No one has ever said these words to her. She never even heard these words from her own mother when she was still Rianne.

But as Ellendise, she was blessed enough to be on the receiving end of a father's affection.

Her heart felt a little warm.

"Thank you, Father." She said in a soft tone.

"Please, sit down."

Ellendise sat down on the couch. The Count left his table and moved to the seat across her. The two of them were quiet for a few moments.

The tension from their last argument was still fresh in their minds.

Finally, it was the Count who spoke first.

"Ellen.. You must remember that everything I do is for the family. Above all else, our family comes first. That is what I promised your mother and that is what I swore infront of the Goddess Mortia."

Ellendise nodded in understanding. "I understand, Father. I would also like to apologize for what I said before... They were words spoken in a moment of anger and confusion so please, I hope you can forget about them."

The Count looked at her, his gaze was a little desolate. "You need not apologize. I know that I have hurt you. They were necessary actions and you may even hate me for it. Ellen, what you felt was justified. Therefore, you do not need to apologize."

"It was me who should apologize. My actions endangered your life. I almost lost my.." His expression became serious. "Ellen, you are my daughter. No matter what other people say or do, you are my flesh and blood, a child of the proud Vitron family. I promise you, I would not allow this kind of thing to happen again. I have deceived you before but believe me when I say that I only want what is best for our family."

Ellendise listened to this while hiding her emotions. She appeared to be smiling but inwardly, she felt a bit confused because the man before her was truly confusing.

But at the same time, he was a very principled person.

Ellendise decided to follow her instincts instead.

"I believe in you, Father. Father is the kind of man who wouldn't do something unreasonable. Father, rest assured, that as your daughter, I would not disgrace our family. I will live with honor and place our family first above everything else." Then she became a little serious.

"But I sincerely hope that Father would stop spying on me."

The Count crossed his arms. "Is it wrong for me to want to know what my daughter is up to?"

Ellendise laughed demurely and covered her mouth, raising her eyes. "Father, I would like it if you could respect my privacy. Even Big brother Nitense wasn't monitored like I was."

The Count shook his head. A daughter was different from a son. A daughter was an angel while the son was expected to be an heir. Naturally, he would protect and care more for his daughter.

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