10
Everyone thought it was very difficult, but…
Now there was hope, right?
Compared to the despair of merely counting down to her beloved’s death, what was the harm in hoping?
Kariette felt a warmth in her heart, like the ice that had clung to her for years was slowly melting.
Her breath released in a sigh, as if the burden she had carried for so long was finally being shared.
“What do you need?
I’m ready to support you,” Kariette asked Gavin, lacking knowledge in this area and seeking his guidance.
“I don’t know.
My confidence is really low.
I don’t have knowledge of this.”
“…” Kariette looked at him intently.
Holly started to get irritated—if he didn’t know, why offer hope?
“Transforming a space in the human world into a magical world goes against the fate decreed by the heavens.
It’s like bringing the magical world here.
It’s too difficult.
Even if I combine all my expertise, I can’t guarantee success.
But we have to try,” Gavin inhaled deeply and continued.
“I won’t ask for your help.
I owe the Coford family too much.
Eris is my only daughter.
For over three years, I wasn’t there to take care of her as a father should.
I even made you pregnant, tarnishing the family’s reputation.
Just don’t despise me and grant me half the right to care for Eris.
That would be enough for me.”
Gavin stood up slowly, facing Kariette directly.
He truly felt ashamed before her, whether for their brief relationship or Eris’s situation.
Every word she had spoken echoed in his mind.
‘But if I don’t say it now, I am no man.’
“Kariette Coford,” when Gavin uttered her full name, Kariette became alert.
“I am trash and hope you can forgive me.
I understand what you meant now—that even if I take responsibility, our life together would not be happy.”
“…” Kariette’s heart was shaking violently.
His garnet eyes were filled with a mix of sorrow, regret, determination, and expectation.
“But I insist I will take responsibility for you and make you and our daughter the happiest in the world.
I pledge this to you.”
Gavin took a knife and slashed his wrist, letting fresh blood flow freely before dripping onto the floor, watched in shock by the three.
“What are you doing!” Kariette exclaimed as the others just stared.
The blood on the floor slowly moved, forming a ring and numerous runes.
Kariette, experienced in magic, recognized it as cursed runes.
He was performing a ritual to curse someone!
“I will curse myself, using a level five magic curse that is irreversible and unforgiving.
You haven’t seen me for years, so you might have forgotten what I’m capable of, but I’m here to remind you.”
“Gavin!
You are sleep-deprived; your judgment is impaired.
Stop this madness right now!”
Kariette implored, but her words were lost to Gavin’s derisive laughter.
Gavin now looked like a deranged man, but in her heart, she knew he wasn’t joking.
He was serious!
“You’re right.
I can’t imagine your pain, but my ignorance only deepens my sorrow.
I won’t repeat my mistakes.
I, Gavin Carlos, am a despicable man.
I’ve caused a woman to weep, inflicted pain, and branded my daughter as fatherless.
Heaven and earth, I curse myself!”
As Gavin spoke, dark red energy erupted from the rune circle on the floor, the aura of the curse spreading and coalescing beside him.
Kurt and Holly understood from the conversation that their brother was about to place a curse on himself!
“My daughter is gravely ill with no known cure.
She might not live past five.
Her death would be a tragedy for us all, and no one would find happiness.
I’m not content with just prolonging her life.
I must find a cure.
She has to grow up, surpass her mother’s beauty, exceed her father’s intellect.
When that time comes, I will assume responsibility for the rest of her life, Kariette Coford.”
“You…”
“Do you promise me that if I cure our daughter, you’ll reconsider our relationship?”
“Why are you so insistent?
You don’t love me, do you?
Why would you—”
“You know too little about me.
Do you think I randomly engage with women?
You’re wrong.
I rejected even a princess of the magical world.
Why would I be with you?
Are we strangers?
It’s not just about us having a child now.
It was my selfishness.”
Gavin took a deep breath.
He never thought he’d have to be so sensitive about relationships with women again.
It was not the first time, but it would be the last time.
“I’ve always thought I wouldn’t marry, have children, or date again.
But with you, it doesn’t seem so bad.
I believe I can entrust you with the rest of my life.
It might not be a prince’s love for his princess, but it’s not that I feel nothing for you.
I genuinely like you.”
“…”
“I’m not romantic, am I?” Gavin smiled at Kariette, internally affirming he’d done his utmost.
He was uncertain whether Kariette would believe his words, a mix of truth and lies.
Yet, he earnestly wished to take responsibility for her remaining life.
“If I fail to extend our daughter’s life and cause her premature death, let this curse kill me seven days after her funeral.
If I can’t cure her within fifteen years, let me end my career as a sorcerer and destroy all my knowledge.” With Gavin’s final words, the curse was sealed.
Bang!
A bolt of lightning cleaved the noontime sky, heralding a sudden change in weather before a profound silence settled.
The curse seeped into Gavin’s being, anchoring itself decisively.
A level five curse was nearly the pinnacle of potency, an intentional affliction with no safeguard.
Gavin would die instantly after the curse activated.
“You… Do you even realize what you’ve done?” Kariette’s voice trembled.
What would happen if he couldn’t fulfill his vow?
He would die alongside his daughter.
“I know.
But how else could I show you my seriousness?” Gavin smiled, feeling oddly liberated by his decision.
It offered him a newfound drive.
“If I can’t save my daughter, I’d rather die.
If I fail to cure her, I’m just an ordinary man, unfit for a sorcerer’s life.”
“Was this necessary…
It’s pointless!
You’re risking death.”
“I’m aware.
But I have no regrets,” Gavin affirmed resolutely, confident in his decision.
“What’s your answer?”
“What answer?”
“If I extend our daughter’s lifespan, will you reconsider our relationship?”
“I…” Kariette’s heart, long encased in ice, quivered slightly.
Was this thawing sensation real, or had she been numb all along?
Was she excited by his proposition, feeling as if it bordered on a marriage proposal?
Kariette calmed her tumultuous emotions, lips moving silently, her words audible only to Gavin.
His face brightened with satisfaction, yet Kurt and Holly, mere spectators to this intense scene, remained clueless.
One thing became clear to them, though: Gavin Carlos, Eris’s loving father and the man Kariette respected, was an individual of extreme measures.
What a reckless act indeed.
Read ‘The Return of Asura Who Suddenly Becomes a Father’ before anyone else with more chapters at http://www.jinovel.com/en