Top Notch War God

Chapter 3

"This is a hospital. Don't kill anyone. I don't want to see you end up in prison just for killing this scum!" Just as Otto was about to pull the trigger, Talon's calm voice echoed in his ears.

Otto holstered his gun, grabbed Bertie by a leg, and threw him in front of Talon. "The General spared your life. Apologize to him!"

Bertie was dizzy from being thrown, his face bruised and bleeding. "I'm sorry, General. Please spare me. I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." He crawled towards Talon, devoid of any arrogance.

Talon glanced down at Bertie, saying nothing, then turned to Otto. "Clean up this place. I don't want my daughter disturbed again."

"Yes!" Otto agreed tentatively, then asked, "What about Bertie?"

"Strip him down and let him stand naked as punishment until I am satisfied."

By the time Talon returned to the ward, Maisy was awake in Ariya's arms.

His daughter's big eyes stared at him curiously, a look Talon couldn't resist.

"Mom, is he my dad?" Maisy turned to look at her mother.

Ariya hesitated briefly, then nodded. "Yes, he's your dad!"

"Then why does Dad never come to see me before?" Maisy turned back to Talon, angry. "Do you know how much Mom has suffered? And my classmates at kindergarten laugh at me. They say I have no dad! Hmph, I'm ignoring you!"

"Maisy, I..." Talon's eyes welled up with tears. He wanted to explain but was unable to find the words.

How could he tell a four-year-old that he had orders not to come back? How could he explain that not coming back was to protect her?

Just then, Flamestrike burst into the room. "General, the task is complete!" Behind him were four people, each carrying a stack of toys.

"Maisy, look! Here are Barbie dolls, Snow White, and so many Disney toys. Let's play together." Talon tried to attract his daughter's interest.

Toys had a fatal attraction for a four-year-old. Finally, Maisy's attention was diverted, and she slowly approached Talon.

At that moment, they acted as a real father and daughter.

Ariya sat on the hospital bed, watching them, her heart filled with a bittersweet feeling. Perhaps, this was the life she had hoped for. Now that her husband was back and her daughter had a bone marrow match for surgery, only the money was missing. If they could borrow it, their daughter would be saved.

"Daddy, I'm so happy today." Before bedtime, Maisy held Talon's hand. "I don't blame you anymore, but promise me you won't leave Mom and me again. We've really suffered a lot!"

"My good girl, sleep now. I won't leave you. I'll be right here watching over you." Talon, now wearing a big cat face mask and even a Santa hat, looked nothing like the fearsome Dragon Lord who could make the whole world tremble.

"Maisy hasn't been this happy in a long time." Talon leaned down and kissed his daughter lightly.

"Tomorrow, a doctor will come. If everything goes well, we can arrange the surgery. As for the money, don't worry. I'll figure it out. Ariya, these five years, you've been through a lot." Talon said with regret.

Ariya shook her head. "It's fine. But... this time, are you leaving again?"

"Don't worry. Even if I have to go, I'll take you and our daughter with me." With that, he kissed his wife passionately.

***

The next day, Ariya was holding Maisy while sleeping peacefully when she suddenly heard a commotion outside the ward.

"What's going on? Who made Master Gray stand here? Today is Bertie and Ariya's wedding day! If we miss the time for the church, will you bear the consequences? I'm Ariya's grandfather! I know that worthless Talon has returned. Where is he? Let him come out and see me!"

Talon frowned and strode out. Outside the door, a group of people were waiting. Azureblade and Flamestrike were flanking the entrance, and Bertie, who had been standing naked all night, looked disgraced.

Seeing Talon come out, the people around him fell silent instantly.

"Oh, look who it is! Isn't this the homeless man who left our family five years ago?" Mocking voices came. Talon turned his head and saw a man in his thirties, dressed in a suit. He was Ariya's cousin, Corey Willis. Over the years, he had bullied Ariya a lot!

"Dad, he's the one who forced Mr. Gray to strip and stand here all night!" Norah walked up to Ariya's grandfather and complained, "Yesterday, he didn't let Mr. Gray came in to visit Maisy. Today, we can't let him off easily!"

Talon dared to deal with Bertie, but would he dare to ignore Ariya's feelings and shoot them?

At Norah's provocation, Lord Willis's face became dark. Early this morning, he was ready to attend Ariya's wedding, but Norah called to say Talon had returned, so he rushed to the hospital.

As soon as he arrived at the ward door, Talon's two guards blocked him from entering, making him furious.

The Willis family was a small family. Having the opportunity to align with prominent families like the Gray family was rare, but Lord Willis never expected Talon, the useless one, to return at this time.

Lord Willis couldn't help but point at Talon angrily. "You punk! Did you and Ariya even have a wedding five years ago? When Ariya gave birth to Maisy, did the Willis family ask you for any child support? You disappeared for five years—no word at all. Can you justify yourself to Ariya and Maisy?"

"Shut up!" Azureblade was incensed by the insult to his general. He was on the verge of marching up and slapping Lord Willis.

But Talon held Azureblade back and calmly replied, "No."

"Then why are you stopping Ariya from getting married? Why did you beat up the Gray family's son and make him stand here? You've wasted five years of Ariya's youth. Do you want her to never marry for the rest of her life? Will you be satisfied then?" Lord Willis shouted.

But no matter how much Lord Willis shouted, Talon looked indifferently at the Willis family present. "Since you've asked, I'll announce two things here.

"First, Ariya won't marry anyone else. She's going to marry me. Return the money you received from the Gray family.

"Second, you've raised Ariya all these years. I'll give you a hundred million dollars. From now on, the Willis family doesn't have anything to do with her. If you dare to cause trouble in front of my daughter again, don't blame me for being heartless!"

Azureblade took out a check from his backpack. Talon signed his name and handed it over.