After Lis had returned Cecil back to her father Igley's home, Igley happened to be in.
As the leader of the Elf Guard of Jade City, Gale Sword Saint Igley Alce was also, in a sense, one of the high-ranking figures of Jade City.
Therefore, he was among the first to be notified when the Elf Royal Court Jonor City was completely destroyed by Demon Prince Demogorgon and turned into a dead land.
Perhaps others would be anxious and fearful about this, for even the Elf Royal Court, protected by the Elf Gods and full of Elf Legends, could be destroyed by that Demon Prince, let alone other powers.
Though the Elf God System had declined a lot compared to ancient times, it still possessed a strong Divine Power and was a top-tier Racial God System, not something anyone could provoke at will.
But for Igley, his heart was filled with nothing but worry and rage.
He had absolutely no fondness for the Illiser Sun Elf Family that ruled the Elf Royal Court.
If it were not for the stubborn elders of the Illiser Family, how could he have been separated from his wife and how could his daughter have left the Elf Forest to live in a Human city?
Even so, Igley didn't wish for the destruction of the Elf Royal Court, for his beloved wife Ariana was still there, and his daughter Cecil had returned to the Elf Royal Court with the elders of the Illiser Family.
When Igley heard the news that the Elf Royal Court had been utterly destroyed, with no survivors, he felt as if the whole world had collapsed.
While he hoped his wife and daughter were safe, the development of events did not follow his wishes.
Days passed, and not only had he not received any news of his wife and daughter, but he also had not heard from any survivor from the Elf Royal Court to this day.
If it weren't for the fact that the ruins of the Elf Royal Court had been sealed by the Elf Kingdom, forbidding anyone from entering;
If it weren't for the news he received that the Elf Great Sage was looking for a Human named Lis, said to be related to the destruction of the Elf Royal Court...
The name Lis, Igley was very familiar with.
He was the mercenary guard hired by Cecil, who had saved his daughter once and had come to see him when he brought Cecil to Jade City.
After that, Lis traveled with Cecil and the entourage of the Illiser Family to the Elf Royal Court.
If the person the Great Sage was looking for was this Lis, didn't that mean this Human had not perished in the destruction of the Elf Royal Court?
Didn't that mean there was still hope that Cecil, who was with him, could have survived?
This gave Igley a sliver of hope and allowed him to maintain the last bit of his sanity.
Even so, the days went by, one after another.
With each passing day, the hope that Cecil had survived grew smaller.
Igley felt he was going mad, his whole being nearly suffocating.
His soul was as if pierced by sharp arrows, bleeding every moment, with the world around him losing all color, left only with a dreary gray.
Worried that his daughter wouldn't be able to find him upon her return, Igley stayed at home during this time, not leaving for a moment.
Even the matters of the Elf Guard didn't concern him; to Igley, family was the most important thing.
The sound of knocking echoed in the empty room. Lis, with Cecil following, opened the door and stepped into the cozy treehouse, only to see the great Gale Sword Saint of Jade City sitting despondently in a wooden chair, his eyes somewhat vacant.
Slowly, Igley lifted his head, thinking it was another member of the Elf Guard coming to comfort him.
But when he saw Lis's figure, and the small-statured golden-haired Elf Girl following behind him, suddenly new colors returned to his gaze.
When Cecil saw her father, the rationale she had barely maintained finally broke down, and she burst into tears, throwing herself into Igley's arms.
"Cecil, my daughter!"
Igley, trembling, brought his daughter close into his embrace, all the sorrow, anger, and helplessness seemingly finding an outlet at this moment.
The man known as the most powerful Golden Warrior of Jade City could not restrain his emotions any longer, and tears silently slid down, falling upon his daughter's soft locks.
It was the heart-wrenching pain of a father for the loss of his beloved, and also the endless gratitude and joy for his daughter's narrow escape from death.
"It's good that you're back, good that you're back!"
Igley murmured, his eyes filled with the joy of regaining a treasure.
But Cecil, weeping, said,
Igley's eyes instantly lost focus, his heart jolted, and he clenched his jaw after his lips quivered several times.
He realized that, even though enveloped in the endless grief of his wife's passing, he must now stand strong for his daughter.
He was a father, and he needed to be strong!
Gently touching his daughter's soft hair, although his voice trembled slightly, it was exceptionally warm and comforting:
"Cecil, although Ariana has left us, her love, just like the breeze in these woods, every green leaf, will forever surround us, never leaving!"
Cecil buried her head in Igley's chest and cried unrestrainedly.
Lis just stood quietly on the side, not disturbing the father and daughter comforting each other.
A moment later, Igley lifted his head to look at Lis and said softly.