Reborn as the General's Useless Daughter-Chapter 44: We will go to wedding

His words were cautious, but the concern behind them was real.

Today’s wedding was no private affair. The entire Imperial City was watching. Even the emperor would arrive in person. To marry from outside the General’s Residence was the same as publicly slapping the face of General Helius.

If General Helius did not attend, gossip would explode like wildfire.

If he did attend, his dignity would be trampled flat.

In either case, the General’s Residence would lose face.

Zora raised her brows slightly, her expression calm and indifferent. "What does that have to do with me?"

Her tone was light. Too light.

"I severed ties with them long ago," she continued, unhurried. "From that moment on, I ceased to be their daughter."

Even more so... she had never truly been General Helius’s daughter to begin with.

"If today’s wedding makes them lose face," she said slowly, her eyes cool and clear, "then consider it repayment."

For more than ten years, she had lived without dignity inside that residence.

Now, she was merely taking it back.

Eric Welsh, Storm, and Silver exchanged glances once more, their expressions complicated.

It was already clear to them.

The rift between Zora and General Helius was no longer something that could be mended.

"I’m only worried that once you do this, the impact will be enormous." Eric Welsh’s voice held genuine concern. Today was supposed to be a joyful day, yet undercurrents of stormy tension lurked beneath the surface.

Zora’s lips curved slightly. Her smile was calm, unhurried, and unafraid. "The emperor will be present. As long as General Helius still has a functioning brain, he won’t dare cause trouble."

Her tone was light, but the confidence inside it was absolute.

Only then did Eric Welsh, Storm, and Silver truly relax. They had all been worried about one thing. If General Helius lost control in a fit of rage and disrupted the wedding, today’s celebration would turn into a disaster.

But with the emperor personally attending, no matter how bold General Helius was, he would never dare to make a scene.

Some grievances could only be swallowed whole.

Meanwhile, inside the General’s Residence, thick tension filled the vast front hall.

General Helius sat at the main seat, his expression dark as thunderclouds. Jasmine, Luna, and Icarus stood below him, each with a face equally grim.

They had waited.

And waited.

From morning until now, there has been no invitation from Zora.

No message.

No consultation.

Only when the entire city began spreading the news did they finally confirm that today’s wedding would truly be held at Zora’s Manor, not the General’s Residence.

She was really marrying from outside.

She had completely ignored the existence of the General’s Residence.

Ignored General Helius.

Ignored her so-called "family."

"This Zora and the Prince have gone too far!"

Jasmine slammed her sleeve against the armrest, her chest heaving with fury. "This is a deliberate slap to our faces! What face does the General’s Residence have left in the Imperial City now?"

General Helius’s face was ashen. His jaw was clenched so tightly that the muscles stood out sharply.

Once in his lifetime, he had been respected wherever he went.

Now?

Because of Zora, he had lost face again. And again.

Last time, after Icarus’s hand was crippled, the emperor merely soothed him with empty words and let the matter pass lightly. Forced to swallow that humiliation, he had tried to convince himself it was temporary.

But this time?

This was public.

This was loud.

This was unforgivable.

"What angers me most," General Helius said coldly, "is that Prince Kael never even consulted us before holding this wedding. He didn’t give the General’s Residence even the slightest respect."

Luna’s nails sank into her palms. Her eyes were filled with poisonous resentment. "That woman is clearly doing this on purpose. She wants the whole city to laugh at us."

"Dear," Jasmine said bitterly, "since she doesn’t put us in her eyes, then we won’t attend this wedding!"

Her voice trembled with rage and humiliation. "Let the entire city see how heartless and unfilial she is!"

General Helius’s expression stiffened.

After a long moment, he squeezed out his words through his teeth. "The emperor personally granted this marriage... and he will attend the wedding in person. If we don’t go, what does that mean?"

His eyes darkened as he added. "It means we are openly defying the emperor."

The room fell dead silent.

Only now did Jasmine finally realize the seriousness of the situation.

Her face instantly turned pale.

If they refused to attend, they would lose far more than face. They would lose political standing. They would lose the emperor’s grace.

General Helius’s breathing grew heavier by the second.

At this moment, a terrifying speculation surfaced in his heart.

Had Zora calculated all of this in advance?

Had she already foreseen that once the emperor attended, the General’s Residence would have no choice but to attend as well?

If that was true...

Then this girl was far more dangerous than he had ever imagined.

"Then... we can only go?" Jasmine asked weakly, her voice full of unwillingness.

"Nonsense."

General Helius glanced at her coldly, impatience flashing through his eyes for the first time in many years. "Of course we go!"

Jasmine froze.

For the first time in her marriage, she clearly saw disgust in General Helius’s eyes.

That look pierced straight through her heart.

When Elizabeth was alive, General Helius never treated her this way.

Over all these years, he had never once looked at her with such cold contempt.

And now—

Because of Elizabeth’s daughter...

Because of Zora...

He was beginning to resent her.

Her fingers trembled faintly inside her sleeves.

For the first time, a chill crept quietly into Jasmine’s heart.

She suddenly realized that the girl she had despised and trampled for more than ten years...

Had already turned into a razor-sharp blade.

At the thought of everything that had happened, Jasmine’s tears finally broke free and streamed down her face.

"Dear... how can you treat me like this?" Her voice trembled, filled with grievance and despair.

General Helius’s brows twisted even deeper in annoyance. The sight of her tears only added fuel to his frustration. "All you know how to do is cry! Other than crying, what else are you capable of?"

Jasmine’s body stiffened violently.

Her tears only grew fiercer, blurring her vision as a crushing sense of sorrow surged from the depths of her heart. For the first time, she truly felt how fragile her position had become.

At this moment, Icarus stepped forward and bowed slightly.

"Father, since there’s no way to change things now, it would be better for us to attend the wedding openly and with dignity. You are still a grand general. Who would dare to mock us to your face?"

He paused, then continued calmly, "Even if Prime Minister Henry and those people take the opportunity to ridicule us, we can simply ignore them. These matters will fade with time. They won’t cling to it forever."

General Helius’s expression softened slightly. He looked at Icarus with rare approval.

Among all the children in this household, only this son still made him feel at ease.

As for Jasmine and Luna...

It would already be a blessing if they did not cause him more trouble.