I've Surpassed You, Father!

"If... this is what she gave me, then... I'd rather not have the Cainhurst name!"

Aifanier was like a stubborn child; the more his parents forbade him to do something, the more he wanted to do it.

He not only called out that name, but he even chose to abandon it!

This made Lamaline frown in annoyance.

But...

Don't you like it?

A calm voice suddenly rang out, startling everyone present.

They all turned their heads away.

Right behind Aifanier.

That woman, as serene as the moon... stood quietly...

A gentle breeze stirred the two people's similar trench coats...

375

Chapter 375 I have surpassed you! Father!

"Ah..."

Maria's appearance was clearly something no one could have predicted.

Even Lamaline was somewhat surprised.

Although she always knew that Maria would appear by her side if she called upon her, she never expected Maria to arrive so quickly!

And...

Don't you like this name?

Maria looked calmly at Aifanier in front of her and blinked her gray eyes.

Lamaline to the side, frowned with some concern.

On one side is the person she loves most, and on the other side is their child.

Faced with this problem, no matter which side she speaks for, she's bound to hurt the other, which leaves her somewhat at a loss...

"This..."

Aifanier was stunned for a moment, then quickly came to his senses.

He didn't know why Maria had suddenly appeared, but one thing he was certain of.

"This surname is excellent, but please take it back."

As he spoke, he took a small step back, his expression grave.

To be fair, he didn't resent Maria, but he couldn't bring himself to acknowledge Maria identity.

In his eyes, his relationship with Maria was far too weak.

Aside from the blood flowing through their bodies, he had no idea what else could be considered a bond between the two of them.

Moreover, rather than continuing to entangle the relationship between the two, Aifanier would much rather gain his freedom.

Since Maria cares so little about them, why should they consider her their father?

This is pointless!

"... Yeah."

Maria lowered her eyes slightly and didn't say anything more.

Lamaline to the side, suddenly seemed to sense something and looked at Maria.

"You... your body..."

She stepped forward, her brows furrowing slightly, a hint of worry in her eyes.

She noticed that Maria seemed to be experiencing some health problems.

The most obvious example is the skin.

Although Maria was fair-skinned before, she was never this pale.

She couldn't even see a trace of color in the other person's skin!

Is she very weak?

Has something big happened recently?!

Lamaline's heart leaped into her throat again.

But as if sensing something, Maria raised her head, looked at Lamaline beside her, and shook her head slightly.

"... You're always like this."

Seeing Maria's state, Lamaline, though helpless, could only stop and silently observe the strained relationship between the father and son...

Could it be a mother and child?

Lamaline thought to herself, tilting her head slightly with a hint of curiosity.

Meanwhile, the Rhodes Island crew watched with curiosity.

As if by prior arrangement, they suddenly and gradually lowered their voices, curiously watching the family drama unfold.

Warfarin, hiding in the corner, watched quietly.

After hearing Aifanier's firm words, a hint of admiration appeared on her face.

"As expected of her son, he speaks with such conviction!"

"Um?"

Standing next to Warfarin, the little black rabbit, who had also been invited, looked at the unscrupulous doctor with a curious expression.

Although she is now the leader of Rhodes Island, Amiya had never actually heard anything about Maria since she joined. It wasn't until recently, when Maria appeared frequently, that she realized that it seemed like everyone on Rhodes Island knew something about Lady Maria.

Could it be... that she's very famous?

This made Amiya feel somewhat incompetent.

After all, she had been the leader of Rhodes Island for several years, yet she knew absolutely nothing about such an important figure!

I only started to understand them a little bit after they recently appeared...

"Well..."

Warfarin grinned and gave an awkward smile.

"I don't know how to put it, but... to be specific, the existence of Rhodes Island is inseparable from the Babel, and the existence of the Babel is inseparable from her."

"Huh?"

Amiya was clearly hearing this news for the first time; her ears suddenly perked up. "Ms. Maria... is it that important?"

According to Warfarin, Maria wasn't their founder, but she was certainly someone who saved the day from collapse.

Why had she never heard anything about him?

"Because what she did was indeed quite... big?"

I don't know how to describe Warfarin.

In my memory, Maria never seemed to do anything trivial.

Each appearance of theirs was accompanied by a momentous event that nearly altered the landscape of Kazdel.

They saved Kazdel for the first time.

This thwarted the Royal Court's rebellion for the second time.

The third time, she resolved the sudden anomaly in Kazdel —although to this day, there is still no convincing explanation for the darkness that enveloped the entire city back then, some people have deduced, based on the points where Maria appeared and disappeared, that Maria was very likely the one who resolved that incident.

Warfarin also believed that Maria was indeed capable of doing this.

Of course, no one would casually mention a person like that.

"Huh?"

Amiya clearly didn't understand Warfarin's meaning, and looked completely puzzled. But Warfarin didn't say anything and continued to look curiously at the family scene in front of her.

"You want me to take back my surname?"

Maria blinked, looking at the stubborn child in front of her, her face showing neither joy nor sorrow.

"Yes!"

It must be said that although Aifanier remained relatively calm, he was inwardly panicking.

This is Maria, after all.

He grew up listening to legends of miraculous heroes.

Faced with such a person who spoke of planting flowers, Aifanier had no idea what would happen next.

But...

To his surprise...

"Can."

Maria nodded, her tone calm.

This attitude also stunned the others.

They had assumed Maria would be angry about it, or perhaps feel guilty towards Aifanier.

It could also be a combination of both.

But they never expected that Maria would actually...

She actually agreed?!

Ah?!

Even Lamaline to the side, was somewhat stunned.

Not to Aifanier.

Although it was his own suggestion, there was a certain amount of anger and resentment in his words about giving up the surname given to him by Maria.

He had considered all of Maria's possible reactions, but he hadn't anticipated that Maria would actually agree so calmly...

Does this mean that the other person really doesn't care about them?

Thinking of this, Aifanier couldn't help but clench his fists.

Fortunately, Maria continued the conversation.

"But... before I take back my surname, I'd like to have a talk with you."

Maria's tone was calm, and she didn't seem to be threatening at all.

But after a moment of silence, Aifanier gritted his teeth.

"I'm sorry, I refuse."

His words caused the Banshees standing nearby to widen their eyes in astonishment.

Rejected?

Ah?!

They were expecting Aifanier to give a reason, such as having some important matters to attend to and not having time for the moment, and that they planned to talk about it later.

It seemed that Aifanier simply didn't want to communicate with Maria, giving his answer in the most curt way possible.

This left Warfarin was standing nearby, stunned once again.

"This kid... he's really something, daring to talk to Maria like that?"

"Um?"

The little rabbit was puzzled again, "Could it be... that Ms. Maria is scary?"

"... It's hard to say."