The Greatest Warrior of All Time Returns

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Chapter 500

Elpiria’s sixth birthday party carried quite a significant meaning.

And there was no helping that.

Apparently, it was because the power Elpiria possessed would fully awaken when she turned six.

That was why the opinion came up that, rather than gathering with only family like usual, wouldn’t it be better to hold the sixth birthday party on a rather larger scale?

“So. What are you trying to say, Martial God?”

“I was curious what you were planning to give our kid as a birthday present.”

Dolls were pointless because she already had her beloved doll and paid no attention even if given others, and as for food, she already had more than enough.

And it wasn’t as though the child held much interest in jewelry either, making it an oddly complicated matter.

“A birthday present for Lady Elpiria. I see. I had heard humans possess such a culture, so I had been giving it thought.”

Michael muttered in a solemn tone before rising from his seat.

Then, after going somewhere and returning, he asked me.

“I have already prepared a gift suitable for Lady Elpiria.”

What he held out was a strange cloth that looked something like winged garments.

“What is this?”

“It is a winged robe called the Jewel of Heavenly Grace. It floats as though alive and bestows blessings upon its wearer.”

Watching it move on its own like the fluttering portion behind the winged robes worn by celestial maidens, I fell into thought.

Wasn’t there something better to give her than something so obvious?

From the perspective of a novice parent, it wasn’t easy to think of a suitable gift for a six-year-old girl.

“They’ll come again this time too, right?”

“It is the period when Lady Elpiria’s authority fully awakens. As an archangel, I have the duty to witness it with my own eyes.”

“If archangels descend again, things are going to get noisy.”

Still, from the standpoint of being the child’s father, giving the same kind of gift as everyone else strangely hurt my pride.

So I figured it was only right to give her something different.

Afterward, I met various people and checked what they were planning to give her.

Merkavalt of Dragon Forge intended to prepare a gift crafted from her own scales, while Lispa planned to bring a holy relic whose origin no one could even guess.

Among them, Duke Catsey, who at least had experience raising a child, said she simply prepared a dress the child would probably like.

As for Emperor Credos, he apparently prepared a flashy brooch adorned with decorative tassels that made one question whether it was truly appropriate for Elpiria.

At a glance, it merely looked like an accessory, but it was immediately obvious that it was an item of tremendous value.

“So how did it go?”

“Everyone had some sort of concept going on.”

“Hoo…….”

Yet Luna and I still couldn’t easily get a sense of what we should give her.

“Why are you thinking so hard about it? Just pick something the kid would like.”

Arsha said while stuffing snacks into her mouth.

Grivy and the spirits had also prepared gifts of their own.

“Grivy’s gonna give this!”

What Grivy brought was a pebble with quite a rare color.

“This red pebble Grivy treasures the most!”

Judging purely by value, it wasn’t worth much, but somehow I felt a strange sense of defeat from the sincerity contained within it.

Grivy merely looked excited, saying she was going to go play with Elpiria again before running off.

“It’s not about money. What matters isn’t whether it’s valuable or amazing.”

“Something that will remain in the child’s memory……. Something that will make her truly happy…….”

Wasn’t that what a parent’s heart was like?

The thought suddenly crossed my mind.

You want to give them something even better no matter what.

But simply satisfying an adult’s vanity didn’t sit right with me.

To begin with, giving Elpiria something she wouldn’t even understand after receiving it was no different from putting the cart before the horse.

Just as I was agonizing over it for quite some time.

Whether I made something or searched for it, I needed a clear goal first.

While I was worrying like that, Elpiria looked at me, then came trotting over and flung herself into my arms.

“Awaawaawaawa!”

Then she playfully bit my hand and started nibbling on it.

“Elpiria. Did you have fun playing?”

“Yep! Played with unnie!”

Judging by how covered in dirt she was, she must have been playing in the mud with Grivy.

As I brushed the dirt off her body, I asked.

“Elpiria.”

“Mmm?”

“What do you want as a present?”

Right.

At times like this, it was best to just ask directly.

Luna seemed to understand my intention and agreed.

“What you want.”

“Mmm…….”

We watched nervously as Elpiria plopped down and stroked her chin while thinking hard.

“Mmmuuu…….”

But now that she actually had to think of something, it didn’t seem to come easily.

That was when it happened.

“Ah! Something I want!”

Elpiria said with a bright smile.

“Mommy and Daddy kisses!”

At those words, the tension drained right out of Luna and me, and we let out hollow laughs.

“We already do that whenever you want.”

When I picked Elpiria up and kissed her cheek, she burst into giggles as though it made her unbelievably happy.

“There’s nothing!”

Elpiria soon declared.

It felt strangely like getting hit in the head with a hammer.

To begin with, the gifts others planned to give weren’t truly the kind Elpiria wanted.

They were simply fitting for her.

Precious things.

Rather than gifts for Elpiria herself, they were objects adults thought suited her well.

Was this what raising a child was like?

Luna and I fell silent for a moment at the strange feeling.

“Ah! There is one thing!”

Elpiria suddenly beamed, jumped out of my arms, and scampered away.

And then.

She returned carrying a pretty doll before speaking.

It was Titi, Elpiria’s beloved doll.

“Titi family! I want a Titi family!”

At her words, Luna and I pondered for a moment before nodding.

“That’s enough?”

“Yep!”

Right. What did value matter?

What the child wanted was what mattered most.

Still, I couldn’t possibly be satisfied with just ordinary stuffed dolls!

-In the end, we’re back at square one.

I lightly ignored Lucifer’s muttering.

* * *

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Elpiria’s sixth birthday party was held.

Originally, unlike other noble households, birthday parties were usually modest affairs celebrated only among family.

Part of that was to avoid revealing my existence, but more than that, we preferred enjoying ourselves together rather than creating exhausting formal gatherings under the excuse of parties and banquets.

However, this sixth birthday carried meaning in its own way, so the scale inevitably became somewhat larger.

In one corner stood the archangels.

In another, Merkavalt, the Blue Dragon Lord, could be seen hugging an extremely tense Black Dragon and mercilessly rubbing his head.

The Black Dragon desperately sent rescue signals toward his contractor Arsha, but Arsha only laughed as though this was the best thing ever and busied herself teasing him.

Elsewhere stood the Stars, including the Sword Saint, while beside Melissa were Isna, Rebecca, and Meryl.

There were also the Saintess, Emperor Credos who had come from the Western Continent with only a handful of attendants, and even High Priest Dibl.

Though it was certainly larger in scale than usual, by the standards of ordinary noble parties, it was still rather modest.

“It’s Elpiria’s sixth birthday.”

“Indeed it is.”

“Every time the child grows so quickly, I become a little worried.”

Remiel approached my side.

No, Lispa Elde spoke.

“What do you mean?”

“If someday I bear a child with you. I worry the age difference between that child and Elpiria might become too great.”

There wasn’t the slightest hesitation on Lispa’s face.

As cold sweat ran down my back, Luna suddenly appeared, grabbed Lispa by the head, and hurled her out the window.

Of course, she’d probably come back in soon enough.

Eventually, once everyone had gathered, I stepped forward.

Everyone here already knew of my survival, so there was no reason to hide myself.

“Thank you all for attending. Since today’s main character is Elpiria Cascadia, I ask for your abundant attention and congratulations.”

With my calm words, I brought out the enormous cake Arsha and I had made together and lit the candles.

“Cake!! Candles!!”

The excited Elpiria immediately tried to rush at the cake, but Luna skillfully scooped her into her arms and stopped her.

“Slowly. And wait a little.”

“Mmm……. Hurry! Hurry! I wanna blow them out already!”

Apparently blowing out the candles made her that happy, because Elpiria’s face was filled with anticipation.

The moment I finished lighting the candles, she even started blowing at them from far away.

What was astonishing was that every single time, a gust of wind flew in from somewhere and extinguished them immediately.

The tiny breeze she blew had been imbued with the power of authority and snuffed out the flames like bullets.

They said her authority was gradually awakening, but I never imagined it would gain this much versatility.

Laughter burst out here and there, and the more that happened, the more excited Elpiria became as she blew wind into the air.

In the end, the candles were never fully lit, but by then, it no longer mattered.

As long as the child was having fun.

Soon afterward, the others began handing Elpiria their presents, and as she had been taught, the child repeatedly bowed politely and said thank you.

Seeing the child’s adorable manners, smiles endlessly spread across the faces of those giving gifts.

Catsey in particular, unlike Isna, seemed so charmed by her polite behavior that she even forgot her usual cold expression and showed a wistful look.

“If only my husband had still been alive…….”

At last, Luna and I, being the final ones, handed Elpiria a small box.

“Daddy! Can I open it?!”

“Yeah. Open it.”

At my words, Elpiria excitedly tore away the wrapping and opened the box.

And then.

Her eyes sparkled.

“Waaah!!”

Inside the box was a doll made of soft cloth that looked exactly like Elpiria.

And beside that stuffed doll were dolls resembling Luna and me as well.

“It’s Mommy! Daddy! Me!”

As she hugged the dolls and shouted, everyone around us burst into laughter.

At that moment.

Luna handed Elpiria a tiny snow-white baby doll from who-knows-where.

“Elpiria. Treasure this carefully too.”

“What’s this?”

Elpiria tilted her head as she asked, and Luna smiled gently.

At the same time, both Melissa and I widened our eyes as we realized something.

I looked at her in shock.

“Luna?”

“I was keeping it secret.”

Elpiria herself was already practically a miracle, but a second child?

This was something I never expected at all.

“Elpiria’s younger sibling. You’ll be able to meet them in eight months.”

“Y-Younger sibling!”

Elpiria’s eyes sparkled.

Even though she didn’t truly understand what becoming an older sister meant, she simply seemed thrilled by the word sibling itself and bounced up and down excitedly.

Every time she did, clusters of beautiful white light spread out around her.

The archangels all dropped to one knee and bowed, while Dibl and the Saintess widened their eyes in shock.

Those sensitive to power immediately realized the force flowing from Elpiria was anything but ordinary and found themselves unable to tear their gaze away.

“Leon, that…….”

Isna beside me asked in a startled voice.

In response, I ignored the text floating before my eyes and spoke.

[World Blessing manifests. Powerful vitality fills the world. Blessings are being granted to all living beings.]

“World Blessing…….”

Elpiria’s awakened authority was an overwhelming power that made it abundantly clear why the archangels cherished and protected her so fiercely.

There were many reasons why her sixth birthday carried the greatest significance and why this became the time her power awakened, but among the seven days during which the Chief God created the world.

It was because this marked the passing of the sixth day, excluding the one day designated for rest.

And that awakening was deeply influenced by the child’s emotions.

The emotions Elpiria felt now were boundless happiness and joy, and her authority responded to those feelings by blanketing the world in blessings.

As though responding to her power, outside the Cascadia estate, beyond the duchy’s skies, brilliant aurora-like waves of five-colored light rippled across the heavens and beautifully embroidered the night sky.

The blessing she unleashed spread far beyond Cascadia and throughout the entire continent, allowing countless people to witness the miracle.

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