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From a young age, Euphilia was trained to become the future Clan Leader, and her life’s ideal was to revive the family. As for whether this life’s ideal was self-generated, or brainwashed into her by the family, that no longer mattered now.

In the eyes of the Dragon Witch of the present, rights and duties should be integral. Since she had indeed received investment and support from the family during her growth, then revitalizing the family became her obligatory duty. Putting everything else aside, this was merely an equivalent exchange, quite fair.

Euphilia liked such fairness, and equivalent exchange had long since become her life’s principle.

Therefore, if someone dared to trample on this fairness, then they must pay a price for it.

The family had invested in her, and she made the revival of the family her mission. She wouldn’t refuse what a qualified Family Head should do, but that didn’t mean she would become a puppet for the family’s revival, mechanically completing missions and sacrificing everything for the family.

With her qualifications, back then, there were many shortcuts she could have taken to revive the family, the simplest of which would have been to marry into or become an in-law of another family in the Dragon Kingdom. With her talent, no other family would have rejected her. In fact, the families that came to propose to her could have flattened their thresholds.

But Euphilia had ultimately refused them all; she scorned such shortcuts and held onto her dignity and pride.

In life, there are always choices that are theoretically optimal, yet that doesn’t mean they are necessarily the right ones.

Her initial refusals indeed caused an uproar within the family, with many elders accusing her of being too young, too naive, and recklessly wasting opportunities, criticizing her for being overly proud and unappreciative. Some even brought out familial laws, intending to hold her, the Family Head, to account.

To this, Euphilia did not submit. She couldn’t be bothered to say much to those people, and back then, as the strongest in the family, she "kindly" convinced with "reason," and those old folks who opposed her "voluntarily" went to the frontier to break new ground for the family’s territory.

Since when had others started to dictate Euphilia’s life? She would revive the family, but how to do it and in what manner, she would decide on her own.

If the family had entrusted her with this heavy responsibility, then they might as well entrust her with it completely.

She wished that, from then on, there would only be one voice speaking in the entire family, and that would be the voice of her, the Clan Leader. She would lead the family onto the right path; everyone else just needed to obey, obey, and obey some more.

Those old folks’ ideas were too weak; they were the truly naive ones. Any so-called revival achieved through others’ strength would inevitably be influenced by others later on. And a family that couldn’t even be self-reliant, where could they talk about revival? Or glory?

The only path to revival that Euphilia had in mind was to emulate the way of the Ancestor Dragon King, to pioneer, conquer, and develop with her own hands.

Even if that path was the most treacherous, the most difficult, so what? That was the road to glory, the path to splendor, and reaching the end of this road was the realization of Euphilia’s life’s ideals.

Aside from this, all other shortcuts were but heretical paths, meaningless in her eyes.

..........

Yet, somehow, she began to lose sight of this original ideal at some point.

Looking back now, her previous opposition to her daughter was very much like those old folks who had once opposed her. The only difference was that now she was stronger, and her still weak daughter didn’t have the power to replicate her past dominance and send her, the mother, to dig potatoes on the border.

But similarly, she had no doubt that if her daughter truly had the ability, she might well have done just that.

Thinking about it, Euphilia couldn’t help remembering what Annie, that short woman who was Dorothy’s stepmother, had once said.

"Sigh, it seems I really do fall somewhat short in my role as a mother."

The Dragon Witch sighed inwardly, feeling a bit sad, yet also somewhat proud.

She looked up determinedly, gazing at her daughter before her who was still somewhat fearful because of her, and the more she looked, the happier she became.

This truly is my daughter, the continuation of my bloodline. Even after being influenced by that worthless Adam for so many years, her temperament is still just like mine.

So, even though her heart still resisted somewhat, the typically domineering and forceful Dragon Witch chose to concede for once. She looked at her daughter and spoke.

"I think I almost understand what you mean, Dorothy."

After saying this, Euphilia unsurprisingly saw her daughter’s confused and bewildered expression, which almost blatantly read, "What do you understand exactly?" The bewilderment in her daughter’s eyes gave the Dragon Witch a slight burst of joy — she hadn’t felt this genuinely happy in many years. This pure joy was like the thrill of a successful prank in her youth.

"Don’t worry, I won’t just give you money or allocate you land directly anymore, that would be an insult, wouldn’t it? My daughter."

Euphilia spoke again, and this time she saw surprise in her daughter’s eyes. For the first time, the daughter who had always looked at her mother as if she were a stranger appeared somewhat close and tender.

The Dragon Witch became even more certain that her previous thoughts were indeed not mistaken; her daughter’s temperament truly did take after her own.

"So, choose whichever academy you want, I won’t say anymore," she offered.

As she spoke, the sudden brightness in her daughter’s eyes comforted Euphilia; she knew that this conversation had advanced their relationship significantly.

If improving their mother-daughter relationship was the only goal, then perhaps with a bit more effort, the daughter might move from the distant "Mother Superior" to the more intimate "Mom."

But...

My foolish and naive daughter, do you really think I aspire to be merely a so-called "good mother"?

The Dragon Witch’s mouth curved slightly upward, revealing a smile brimming with malice.

This naive child still didn’t understand the importance of compelling respect with "reason" in this world. Surely, she didn’t naively believe that everyone she encountered in the future would indulge her as I have? Did she know that if she weren’t my daughter, her attitude alone would have killed her many times over?

In this cruel world, one cannot move an inch without strength.

Even if it meant being an unqualified mother, even if it meant being hated or misunderstood, I would spare no effort. This one thing I must ensure she learns and remembers.

.......

Dorothy looked at the Dragon Witch in front of her with surprise and elation. She astonishingly found that this estranged mother could truly understand her own thoughts.

Moreover, she actually agreed with her somewhat ambitionless ideal to just get by, not forcefully dragging her back to take over the family business.

At this moment, Dorothy felt a surge of emotion. For the first time in two lifetimes, she had a mother, and this mother also seemed to be a confidant. The doubling of joyful circumstances bred even more happiness.

Dorothy unconsciously started fantasizing about a blissful family life ahead of her.

Yes, this is how it should be. I never had grand ambitions; all I wanted was a peaceful and fulfilling home—family harmony is more important than anything else.

As she looked at the Dragon Witch smiling in front of her, the wave of emotion nearly manifested into reality, almost causing her to blurt out that heartfelt title.

"Mom..."

However, just as she began to speak, she saw the smile on her mother’s face turn sinister.

"But..."

The Dragon Witch gazed directly at Dorothy, the aura of the Peak Witch rising torrentially, creating an overwhelming atmosphere.

"Dorothy, I’ve listened to your reasons, and I’ve understood them. Now isn’t it time for you to listen to my resolve?"

"Do you know about equivalent exchange? My daughter, this is my life philosophy. I believe in the principle that everything can be exchanged for equivalence."

"When I gave birth to you at such great cost, it was to leave myself a worthy successor. All the achievements I’ve struggled for my entire life must have a successor. But now, you’ve grown up and have your own ideals and path, yet you are unwilling to accept this duty destined for you. So, what will you offer as reparations to me? Or how will you exchange your freedom from my hands?"

Euphilia’s golden dragon pupils fixed on Dorothy’s bewildered gaze, then she imperiously presented three choices,

"I’ll give you three options," said the Dragon Witch, raising three fingers.

"One is to abandon your silly dreams and dignity right now, come back with me, and properly take your place as my successor. I’ll entrust all my domains to you to manage, and you can freely create the blueprint of your dreams. However, you must also fulfill your duty to ensure the continuation of our lineage; you must become an Armed Witch."

"Alternatively, you can freely control your life for the next 50 years, do whatever you want, and I won’t interfere. But after those 50 years, I will personally capture you and bring you back. I will initiate a Lord’s War against your territory. If you can successfully resist me, you will be free.

But if you fail and I capture you, you can only obediently become my successor and follow the path I have set for you."

"As for the third option, it’s the simplest: marry Sophia right now. I hope you two can quickly give me a granddaughter. I don’t care which one of you gives birth, as long as I get a granddaughter. Once I have a granddaughter, you both will be free. How about it?"

Dorothy: "....."

Sophia, who found herself embroiled in the mother-daughter drama: "...."