My Dad Is a Popular Villain in a Comic Book - Chapter 5

Edward was stunned for a moment. He had been prepared to kill his way through a swarm of monsters to support Zeman, yet he was told that Zeman, who so rarely asked for help, was doing so just to have him look after a child?

The scene in his head instantly shifted from a bloody, murderous battlefield echoing with shouts of “Kill! Kill! Kill!” to a warm, bright parenting scene where he wore a baby-blue apron and chirped, “There, there, baby, drink your milk!”

Edward shook his head to clear the fantasy and agreed immediately. “No problem. Where is the child? How long do I need to take care of him?” Since Zeman specifically asked him, it likely wasn’t just for a short time.

“He is being targeted by monsters. I will resolve this, but I need you to take care of him until he reaches adulthood.”

“Can do.” Edward smiled and agreed again. He was quite curious about the child being targeted by monsters. With his status and ability, taking care of someone until adulthood let alone a lifetime was a breeze. No matter what, monsters couldn’t possibly reach into the Temple.

Zeman led him back to the hunting cabin. Before leaving, Edward’s gaze swept over the monster carcasses on the ground, his playful smile fading into a grave, solemn look.

Something is wrong. Although these monsters were killed by a single strike of immense power, the style and technique were different from Zeman’s usual method. Zeman’s control over magic was incredibly precise; his technique shouldn’t have been this crude.

However, he had already tested him the person in front of him was indeed Zeman. So, what went wrong with him? They worshipped different gods, belonged to different sects and countries, and rarely interacted in daily life, making it difficult to detect any changes in Zeman.

After a moment of contemplation, he asked bluntly, “Did something happen to His Holiness the Pope?”

Edward said, “I foresaw a sunset scene that day a ‘sunset afterimage,’ where the sky was a fiery red, as if burning in a blaze. I feared something was about to happen to your Sun Temple, so I sent someone to notify you, only to hear the next day that you and the old Pope had both vanished.”

His precognition manifested in two forms: active and passive. Passive precognition often presented itself through specific events, so even if he had only seen a simple sunset, he had to examine it carefully.

There were only four existences that could be referenced by a “sun” motif: The Sun God, the Sun Temple, the old Pope, and the Saint, Zeman.

The Sun God could not possibly be in trouble, there were no signs of the Temple’s destruction, and Zeman looked unharmed. Only the old Pope was missing without a trace. Therefore, the “setting sun” he foresaw could only mean the old Pope had fallen. He just didn’t understand what the “afterimage” meant perhaps it indicated that Zeman was also in crisis at the time?

Zeman, walking ahead, paused but did not deny it.

Edward sighed. “My condolences.” He knew that Zeman had been chosen as a Saint at age four and raised by the old Pope in the Temple, viewing him as a father. Perhaps the foster father’s death had deeply affected Zeman’s state of mind, causing his control over his magic to lose its former precision?

“What exactly happened back then?”

The old Pope’s strength was extraordinary; Edward couldn’t imagine what enemy could kill him. “Was it… the Demon Dragon?” Edward whispered.

Zeman turned to look at him, his face shrouded in tree shadows, complex emotions swirling in his dark, gloomy eyes.

“The Demon Dragon?”

Edward nodded. “Apart from the sunset vision, I also saw another premonition that day a tremendously powerful, silver-white Demon Dragon, a monster I had never heard of before. It’s rare to have successive visions; they are usually related events.” Even a brief glimpse of the vision had given him a powerful sense of shock. That Demon Dragon was likely even more powerful than the King of Monsters from six years ago. That was why, when Zeman asked for his help earlier, he had assumed they were going to slay a dragon.

Zeman stood tall and lean, his lips parting slightly. He wanted to tell Edward that he was the Demon Dragon; he had killed not only the old Pope but the Sun God as well. He wanted to beg Edward to kill him.

But if his consciousness weakened, he would no longer be able to suppress the curse and demonic energy within him. He would instantly transform into an out-of-control Demon Dragon. At that point, not only would Edward be attacked, but Albin in the hunting cabin would also be targeted. And Edward, alone, would never be able to slay the Demon Dragon, nor prevent it from ravaging the world.

That would be a catastrophe.

And so, he remained silent for a long time, eventually saying nothing at all, growing only more taciturn. He needed to find a way to kill himself without unleashing the Demon Dragon, or someone capable of slaying it.

Edward could sense that his friend was acting strangely, but since the other party refused to speak, he could only assume Zeman was grieving the old Pope’s death the sorrow in those gloomy eyes was certainly real.

The two walked back to the hunting cabin in an eerie silence. Edward led the horse he had ridden; even the horse seemed afraid to make a sound and break the silence.

Upon arriving at the cabin, Edward saw a white-haired child crouching by the side, tinkering with something. Hearing their footsteps, the child turned around, acting like a kid caught doing something naughty, hiding his hands behind his back and blinking his red eyes obediently.

White hair, red eyes…

Edward was shocked, turning his head like a lightning bolt to look at his friend, his face full of astonishment.

“Zeman! Since when did you have such a big son?!”

He was two years older than Zeman and was still single! He had actually lost to this big block of ice! Was there any justice in this world?! The child looked seven or eight; calculating the age, Zeman must have had a child as soon as he reached adulthood!

Is it an illegitimate child? No wonder Zeman didn’t ask people from the Sun Temple to take care of him, but asked me instead. Edward’s brain began storming, trying to figure out who Zeman could have fallen for. Aside from the hair and eye color, the child didn’t look much like Zeman. Strictly speaking, the eye color was also slightly different, so they probably resembled the mother. The face looked vaguely familiar, but unlike Zeman, who didn’t like to move around, Edward traveled far and wide and had met too many people; he couldn’t quite place it.

Seeing his shifting expressions, Zeman shot him a cold glare.

“Hello, Uncle!” Albin’s eyes curved, forming a favorable impression of this insightful uncle. “I’m Albin. I met Mr. Zeman just two days ago. Are you a friend of Mr. Zeman’s?”

Edward realized belatedly that they didn’t seem to be father and son.

See! I knew it! How could I possibly lose to Zeman!

“Haha, haha.” He gave a dry laugh, putting his previous thoughts aside, scratched his head, and gave Albin a bright smile. “I’m Edward, and I’ve known Zeman for many years.”

Albin’s gaze shifted to Zeman, then deliberately looked away. It was agreed that I wouldn’t pay attention to Mr. Zeman anymore!

Edward keenly sensed that the two seemed to be having a conflict. Albin ignored Zeman several times on purpose, but couldn’t help but keep checking on him.

He casually changed the subject: “What was little Albin playing with just now?”

Albin’s expression changed, as if he’d been waiting for this question. He raised the corners of his mouth and said triumphantly, “I was practicing magic! I’ve successfully released magical power! Look!”

His hands were wrapped in a faint glow, even managing to lift a leaf. Zeman cast a glance at him instantly.

Edward was curious: “Have you been to the Temple for testing yet?”

Albin shook his head: “I was just bored, felt I should have magic, so I tried it out.”

Now Edward was stunned, too. Especially as he noticed that Zeman seemed completely unaware of this.

Edward pondered: “You mean… you never knew you had magic, and the first time you tried, you felt it and learned how to control and release it?”

Albin nodded and added: “I practiced releasing it many times, it didn’t succeed immediately.”

Thankfully I had Jade to give me feedback; it’s hard to get the hang of it alone.

Edward wiped his face. That’s not the point!

It took this child less than a day to go from sensing magic to releasing it?! Even the most gifted children in the Temple took at least a month just to sense magic. The younger the child, the longer it took, as the basic concept was very difficult to understand. Releasing magic was even harder; learning it was the prerequisite for studying incantations.

Some children studied for a year and still couldn’t do it, stuck at the threshold of the magical realm. But this child had done it in a day and stepped right into the world of magic!

This child was undoubtedly a genius! The last time he heard of someone this gifted, it was Zeman. Because Zeman was so outstanding, the Saints of other Temples had grown up hearing countless tales of this “Saint from someone else’s Temple.” He looked between the two, bewildered. Are these two really not father and son?

Albin couldn’t quite read his strange expression and said nervously, “Did I do poorly?”

“No! Of course not!” Edward patted his head. “You’re as amazing as Zeman was.”

Hearing this, Albin didn’t feel praised at all. Mr. Zeman… isn’t he a frail, dummy beauty? Although he can use magic, he seems completely incompetent at it.

If I’m like him, doesn’t that mean I’m completely incompetent too?!

He became indignant, tugged on Edward’s sleeve, and said, “Uncle, can you use magic? Can you teach me?”

Edward asked: “Why not let Zeman teach you?”

Albin pursed his lips, his eyelashes fluttering, and he muttered in a low, dejected voice: “Mr. Zeman seems to hate me clinging to him.”

Edward was startled and tilted his head to look at Zeman. Although Albin thought he was speaking quietly, given Zeman’s hearing, he had heard every word clearly. The cold face was furrowed, and there was even a hint of what looked like bewilderment.

Edward grew thoughtful. He agreed readily: “Fine, I’ll teach you. Let me have a word with Zeman first, and I’ll demonstrate magic for you in a bit.”

“Yay!” Albin grew excited and obediently went inside the cabin, not wanting to disturb their conversation.

Confirming that the child couldn’t hear them, Edward asked Zeman: “Are you really going to leave Albin with me? A genius child like this, I’ll definitely have him join the Love Temple, is that okay? You could just keep him in the Sun Temple, you know.”

Zeman said calmly: “Let him choose for himself whether to join the Temple.”

Edward raised an eyebrow. Zeman cared about this child more than he had imagined. Since you care so much, why not raise him yourself? You two care about each other, so what am I here for? To join this family?

Thinking this to himself, he agreed gracefully on the surface. “Of course. Our Love Temple values passion more than talent.”

He changed the subject and asked pointedly: “Then, let me confirm: you and that child are not father and son, right?”

Zeman frowned at him: “Of course.”

A flash of arrogance appeared in Edward’s flamboyant smile.

“That child and I get along very well. Since I’ll be taking care of him in the future, I might as well adopt him directly, let him call me Father, you don’t have any objections, do you?”