novelraw Chapter 186: Stay away from me
Chapter 186: Stay away from me
They were all the ones who had abandoned her in the past.
The realization struck like a bolt from the blue.
Gods... they truly deserved to die.
And worse—they had said those horrible things... right in front of her.
Aviel swallowed hard, his throat dry. He had called her a bad female. Said he would never marry her.
Finch’s heart trembled. He had said she was cruel—said he didn’t like her at all.
Lex’s palms grew slick with sweat. He had declared she was vile—claimed no male would ever want her.
Their fingers trembled. Cold sweat soaked their backs. Their eyes filled with unease and dread.
They had said such terrible things to her. No wonder she had been so furious that day.
It’s over... we’re finished.
Yanai felt as though he had fallen into an icy abyss. He had said she was vicious and ugly. That even if every other female in the world died, no male would ever choose her.
He had even... Yanai staggered backward, his face drained of all color.
What he had done... was unforgivable. No wonder she refused to get close to him. No wonder she would not accept him. It was all because of him.
And yet he had the audacity to hope for her affection?
A bitter laugh rose in his chest.
He didn’t even deserve to remain by her side.
He deserved to die.
Aron caught him before he fell and let out a long sigh.
This foolish boy... truly had no hope left. He had made far too many mistakes.
Nina stepped forward, stopping in front of Drago. "Father?" she said, a cold laugh escaping her lips. "How ridiculous. You were the one who said you never had a daughter like me. From the moment I left, we ceased to have any relationship."
Drago’s expression darkened. "Nina, I am your father—your blood. That is not something you can simply deny."
But as he looked at her face, surprise flickered in his eyes.
Her face... had healed.
Not only that—she had become stunningly beautiful. Even more so than Lina. No wonder those males surrounded her.
A calculating glint surfaced in his gaze.
She finally has some value.
If not for that, he wouldn’t have bothered acknowledging her at all.
His eyes drifted to the children in her arms. Why did they feel... strangely familiar?
Could it be—
No.
Impossible.
There were too many of them.
And Nina was infertile—he must be overthinking.
Still... With that face alone, she could easily charm those males.
"Father?" Nina’s gaze turned sharp, her voice cutting like ice. "Do you think you deserve that title?"
She let out a cold, mocking laugh. "Tell me—what kind of father ignores his own daughter from childhood, lets others bully her without lifting a finger? What kind of father favors another female’s child and exiles his own?"
Her voice sharpened as she stared straight at Drago.
"You knew those rumors were lies. Did you ever defend me—even once? You knew I was framed by Lina, yet you still sided with her. You never punished her. Even after I proved my innocence, you still chose to exile me."
She let out a quiet, biting laugh. "And you call yourself my father?"
Odian and the others felt their hearts ache.
So this was how Nina had lived...
No wonder, despite being a princess, she could do everything herself.
Aviel and the others were overwhelmed with guilt. It was because they had broken the engagement... that she had fallen so far as to be exiled.
Those were only rumors, and yet they had never bothered to verify them. Instead, they had used those same lies to wound her.
She had already endured so much... and they had only made it worse.
They were despicable.
Yanai felt as though his heart were being carved apart.
How could he have said those things?
How could he...
Taru and the others lowered their heads. They owed her far more than they could ever repay.
Even Setan and his group looked at Nina with sympathy.
This small female... had suffered far too much.
"I..." Drago faltered, then frowned. "Fine. I was wrong about what happened before. It won’t happen again."
Nina let out a sharp, disdainful scoff.
"One empty ’I was wrong’—without even a trace of sincerity—and you think that erases everything I’ve endured all these years?"
Her gaze turned cold.
"From now on, don’t ever claim to be my father again. You don’t deserve it."
"You—" Drago suppressed his anger. "I’ve already apologized. What more do you want? Come back with me. From now on, you’ll be treated the same as Lina. That should be enough. Stop throwing a tantrum."
In his eyes, she was simply being difficult—ungrateful, even.
Nina’s expression didn’t change.
"Who wants your apology? This is the last time I’ll say it—we have no relationship anymore. Remember that. Stop trying to claim kinship with me."
Her voice was even colder now. "And stay away from me. Otherwise... don’t blame me for being merciless."
She turned without another glance. "Let’s go."
"Nina Song!" Drago roared, furious. "I’m your family—how can you treat me like this?!"
But Nina didn’t look back.
She left with Odian and the others without a single pause.
The truth was simple.
His apology today meant nothing.
It was only because she now had value to him that he wanted her back.
And even if he had truly regretted it, she would never forgive him.
Drago tried to follow, but Ridan and the others blocked his path.
"Do not disturb Lady Nina again," Ridan said coldly. "Or we won’t be so polite next time."
Their eyes burned with disgust and anger. A male like him... didn’t deserve to be called a father. He did not deserve to be called anything.
Outmatched, Drago could only watch as Nina disappeared into the distance.
His expression darkened.
Damn that girl... she truly dares to deny me.
But then his gaze shifted, calculating once more.
She was now surrounded by so many powerful males—even the descendants of Ming and Taru stood by her side.
If he could win her back, he would gain all of their support.
. . .
As Nina walked, Roro suddenly tugged at the hem of her clothes.
Master, can we go back to my nest first? There’s something good there.
Nina looked down at it. "Where is your nest?"
If there really was something valuable, it wouldn’t hurt to take it—who knew when it might come in handy?
Roro pointed eagerly in a direction. Over there!
Nina turned to Odian and the others. "Let’s head to the volcano first."
"Alright."
None of them questioned her decision. Wherever Nina went, they would follow.
She led the group toward the volcanic crater, with Roro bounding ahead to guide the way.
Behind them, Setan’s eyes lit up slightly.
Could there be more Flame Crystals in the Scarlet Flame Beast’s nest?
But when he thought about what Nina had been through, he found himself unable to ask.
...I’ll bring it up later.
"Nina, who are those beastmen behind us?" Odian asked.
"I don’t really know them," Nina replied. "They were trying to capture Roro at first, but I accidentally bonded with it."
"Then they wanted the Flame Crystal—but the egg swallowed it. Now they’re waiting for it to hatch so they can get it back, so they’ve been following me."
She paused, then added, "But they’ve been quite polite. They even roasted food for me."
That was why she hadn’t driven them away immediately—nor did she want to start a conflict.
As far as she could tell, they seemed like a fairly upright and decent group.
"I see," Odian said, glancing at Setan and his companions. "Should we let them keep following us?"
"They probably won’t leave without the Flame Crystal," Nina said. "Let’s just leave it for now."
She hadn’t figured out how to deal with them yet.
Aviel watched Nina’s back quietly, then turned to Viann. "Go find more durians."
He felt the weight of their sins pressing down on him.
The ones he had already prepared... were nowhere near enough.
Finch and the others shared the same thought.
By evening, Nina and the group found a cave to rest in. Ridan and the other males went ahead to clean it out.
Meanwhile, Aviel and the others approached Nina.
One by one, they each took out a large pile of durians.
Then, in a perfectly straight line, they dropped to their knees in front of her.