Pale purple hair and long ears marked her as an orthodox Elf.
Her blue and white attire, from the swinging sleeves to the bow behind her waist, had a distinct miko style.
No matter how sweet and cute her face was, it could not mask the cold majesty she carried—the aura of someone in a high position of power, known as a Higher-order Predator.
The only difference between her and Valo was likely the pair of elastic-looking magic orbs on her chest.
‘A giant-breasted loli… truly a heresy.’
The elf loli, whom Finney called the Great Sage, barked a command to stop the Hero Party’s rowdiness before sweeping a cold gaze over Valo.
“So, you’re the biological mother Finney found?”
“Follow me.”
She coldly dropped those words and turned around, walking toward a vast building nearby that resembled the Bakshe Tower of Babel.
Though Valo was confused, she had no choice but to follow.
The pressure was mounting. In this timeline, Valo shouldn’t even know the Great Sage… and she certainly shouldn’t have offended this “adoptive mother” of the Female Hero, Finney.
The Great Sage — she was one of the ultimate veterans in Valorant.
Her true name was a hidden achievement that no player had managed to uncover by the time Valo had transmigrated.
In her capacity as the Great Sage, she was the head of the Clock Tower, the largest and most authoritative academic institution in the Kingdom of Havoc.
In the game, if the player didn’t choose to start as Finney, Finney would be picked up and raised by the Great Sage.
She would study and grow within the Clock Tower, eventually attaining the status of Hero and becoming the rival of the protagonist’s daughter!
In this timeline, Valo and the Great Sage should have stayed out of each other’s way.
Yet, Valo couldn’t shake the feeling that the little old hag in front of her was being incredibly unfriendly.
Was she jealous of Valo’s flat chest? Or perhaps she was jealous that Valo looked more like a loli?
Soon, Finney and the other girls of the Hero Party were sent elsewhere by the Great Sage.
Valo followed the woman onto a magic-driven lift, riding it all the way to the top floor of the Clock Tower.
The two-story space was surrounded by windows on all sides. The ancient decor screamed low-key luxury.
Taking any random collectible from the room would likely net a high price.
Just like the layout in the game, this was the Great Sage’s office.
The bad feeling in the pit of Valo’s stomach turned into reality the moment the elf loli took a proper seat.
“Since Finney let it slip earlier, I won’t hide anything. I am Finney’s adoptive mother. You may call me the Great Sage, just like everyone else.”
“As the commander of the rear guard for this Subjugation Team, I have some questions for you—the ‘Demon Clan mother’ Finney was separated from for so many years.”
Questioning and scrutiny, mixed with cold hostility, washed over Valo. For some reason, Valo also caught a whiff of the sour scent of jealousy.
The adoptive mother’s suspicion wasn’t without merit; after all, Valo really wasn’t Finney’s biological mother.
However, aside from managing her daughters’ Blackening Value and Justice Value, the protagonist of the Fall of the Country Route had to maintain their disguise as the Villainous Demon King.
Therefore, Valo had no choice. Whether she was Finney’s mother or not, she had to play the part.
‘Bring it on!’
She wasn’t a pushover. She knew the Finney route like the back of her hand; no one understood how to be Finney’s mother better than she did.
“How did you recognize Finney? She must have been a mere infant when she left you.”
“I… I recognized her through the pendant around her neck,” Valo said, forcing out two fake tears. “That was the only mark I had time to leave back then…”
The Great Sage’s expression shifted slightly.
“Tch… such an obvious feature cannot serve as evidence. Where did you leave Finney? If you cannot answer that, then your identity as a member of the Demon Clan will be called into question.”
‘Heh, you’re trying to trick me, you old hag?’
“…I didn’t send her away. At the time, I was forced to hide Finney in a merchant carriage heading toward the Kingdom of Havoc.”
Silence fell.
“…Great Sage?”
‘Why aren’t you continuing your suspicion? Why aren’t you slamming the desk in objection?’
Valo struggled to suppress a smile, swallowing the rest of her words. ‘Trying to catch me in a lie? Speak up, old hag!’
When Valo looked again, the Great Sage had a “delicious” expression on her face—the look of someone who didn’t want to believe it but had to admit that Valo was indeed Finney’s real mother.
The Sage furrowed her brows and took several deep breaths. Her expression shifted rapidly, and she even puffed out her cheeks in a jealous pout!
Finally, she let out a frustrated sigh. “…I will arrange suitable accommodations for you. However, Madam Valo, your status is unique. You are not permitted to move outside the Clock Tower without my permission.”
“In exchange, if you have any reasonable requests, I may grant them.”
Valo nodded, inwardly sighing with relief. The Great Sage’s suspicion had been expected. Now that she had passed this hurdle, she had a chance to sever her mother-daughter relationship with Kaika.
The Great Sage was the perfect candidate for this. The Clock Tower she managed was one of the academies in the game where players could raise their daughters.
In terms of gameplay, enrolling a daughter was an effective way to boost their stats, change their personality, and, most importantly, lower their Blackening Value!
Most importantly, if the protagonist enrolled a daughter but rarely communicated with her, leading to an estranged relationship, there was a chance the daughter would proactively propose “cutting ties”!
This was especially true for a daughter like Kaika, who currently had a terrible relationship with Valo.
That was exactly the result Valo wanted!
What was she waiting for?
“I do have a request, Great Sage.”
Taking a deep breath, Valo interrupted the Great Sage’s pleasantries and said, “You must have seen the black-haired Elf beside me earlier, right? She is my other daughter, Kaika.”
“Your Clock Tower seems to be an incredible academy. So… I want Kaika to enter the Clock Tower to study.”
The elf loli, who had been ready to dismiss her, suddenly tilted her head. Her cold gaze flashed with a trace of disdain, as if she had finally seen Valo’s true colors.
“The Clock Tower is a breeding ground for the empire’s young geniuses. It is not a place where any random person can just wander in.”
She let out a cold laugh and disparaged Valo without hesitation. “Madam Valo, you are indeed Finney’s biological mother, but I am the one who raised her and molded her into a Hero.”
“You want to use your status as Finney’s birth mother to make me open a back door for your other daughter? Hmph… you don’t have the right.”
Valo’s eye twitched. ‘Hey, if you don’t want to do it, just say no. There are other options. But why is this old hag being so snide?’
Come to think of it, Valo had felt this way since the beginning. The Great Sage seemed to be specifically targeting her.
She didn’t know what phantom enemy the woman was fighting.
However, it wasn’t over!
Just as Valo was about to give up and find another way to cut ties with Kaika, the Great Sage seemingly wasn’t finished.
It was as if she couldn’t feel satisfied without finding another chance to humiliate Valo!
“Wait… under normal circumstances, I certainly wouldn’t agree.”
“However, if you are willing to make a small sacrifice for your daughter, I wouldn’t mind giving that girl named Kaika a chance. After all, she is technically Finney’s sister.”
As she spoke, the Great Sage did something unexpected.
She stepped out of her wooden clogs and pulled off her white socks. Then, she extended a pale, rosy foot toward Valo.
“Come and lick my foot… maybe then I’ll consider it?”
“Heh, you can’t do it anyway, can you? After all, you’re the kind of person who could even abandon her own daughter. How could you bear to throw away your dignity for something like this? Stop pretending, Madam Valo.”
Valo didn’t process a single word of the loli hag’s babbling.
She only understood one thing: licking a foot would get Kaika into the school.
‘Hm?’
‘Hmm…’
‘HMM!!?’