Meanwhile...
Away from the Elder's residence, at the residence of one of the village's most distinguished families, an important meeting was taking place.
"What!!! How can an insignificant stranger hurt a member of the Baum family!"
The older members of the Baum family were gathered because of the circumstances that had come about after the Alcas incident.
"Quiet!!!"
Aaron Baum current head of the family, silenced everyone present with a raspy voice full of charisma. His strong presence was also due to his imposing stature. The Baum family had always prided themselves on physical prowess above the norm.
"Head of the family we must take action immediately, if we allow any stranger to go unpunished, the good name of the Baum family will be tarnished!"
One of the family's most distinguished elders expressed his opinion in a grave tone.
"What is the condition of Alcas?" asked the chief to one of his assistants.
"His condition seems good head of the family, however I think his mood is not at all..." replied the assistant in a hesitant voice.
Although he felt a deep respect, the assistant could not help but fear the head of his family.
All the other members felt the same way, after all, Aaron Baum's leadership was one that had been achieved by force. Only the strongest could give breath to their rights, with the force of an iron fist, anyone who turned out to be weak instead was destined to be crushed.
"I've heard something about this, bring in those involved."
Despite his rough exterior, Aaron Baum was a very rational, cold and calculating guy, no matter what situation he found himself in. It was because of these talents of his that the Baum family grew prosperous.
After a few minutes, three boys were brought before him, they were the followers of Alcas.
"You are following my son, you follow him practically everywhere, explain to me what happened."
His words sounded simple but had a stifling tone to the listener.
"Ca-head things went like this..." one of Alcas' followers mustered up courage and took the floor. Despite his fear, he still had an ounce of courage compared to his two companions beside him, who were totally bleached by fear.
"Foreigners are not allowed to stay in the village too long, unless they are merchants or part of the Imperial army, I doubt those two options," he said. However the boy was roaming the village with Logar's sons, for some reason he is under the protection of the Bran."
After listening to the boys' tale, Aaron began to think aloud under the tense stares of everyone present, who didn't dare to make the slightest noise so as not to disturb him.
"Um... Something's weird..." he said, touching his dark beard with the end of his fingertips.
His ice-colored eyes were fixed on an unspecified point, along with his huge yet elegant stature he exuded a strong sense of authority to all who followed him. Aroon Baum was a born leader and no one in the family thought otherwise, those few who opposed his leadership ended up disappearing from the family forever under seemingly unknown circumstances.
"Send someone to find out more about this person, Logar is not an idiot, there must be a particular reason, I need to know more."
Hearing the words of the head of the family, everyone present nodded without hesitation, the elders immediately gave their respective orders.
"Also find out what the Elder's intentions are."
The tale of the boys intrigued him quite a bit, especially when he heard about the Elder of the village who did little talking about himself.
The assembly ended shortly afterwards and Aaron Baum headed towards the room where his son was. Opening the door he suddenly saw a flaming ball coming towards him. Without the slightest hint of concern, he grabbed it with his hand and crushed it under his icy gaze.
"You look fine already," Aaron said in a cold tone.
"Father?!" Alcas stood petrified for a moment.
He had no idea how to deal with his father at that moment, the shame of being knocked out by a random stranger in front of the entire village was too great.
An unnatural silence fell in the room, Alcas remained with his gaze fixed on the floor, not daring to look his father in the eye.
"If you have time to indulge in childish rants, you should go out and try to make up for the shame you have suffered."
Aaron walked over to the only window in the room to observe the view. The light was still strong outside, but the entire silhouette of the man seemed to bring a dark aura to the interior of the room.
"Father I will do my best to make up for my mistake, next time I won't be caught off guard, I swear!" Alcas gritted his teeth, a line of blood spilled from his mouth.
"I don't think it's going to be that easy," replied Aaron.
"Why?" asked Alcas.
Despite his arrogant nature, when he addressed his father he seemed to be a completely different person, he too like the whole family, feared and respected him.
"The blow you suffered, is not a blow you receive from an ordinary person. In your veins runs the same blood as mine, the blood of the Baums, your physique and talents are beyond ordinary people. The fact that that boy knocked you out, although it was by surprise as you say, stands to testify that that boy is out of the ordinary," said the father in a serious tone.
Thinking back to what happened Alcas nodded, he might have been a bully but not a fool. The punch he received was anything but ordinary, otherwise, he wouldn't have even moved an inch. Instead, the power unleashed managed to unbalance him to the point of making him fly a few meters. No ordinary person could accomplish that feat.
"What do you think father?" he asked.
Although he had the same blood as his father, he was nothing like the latter; on the contrary, if Aaron Baum was cold and calculating, Alcas was quite the opposite.
"I have no idea of his present level, for I could not see him with my own eyes , but there is a high probability that that boy is a cultivator," said Aaron gravely.
"Impossible!!!" shouted the young man unconsciously.
Aaron gave him an icy stare.
The son didn't dare breathe a word; he knew his father hated yelling, but what he had just said shook him to his core.
Cultivators were feared throughout the known lands, and although there weren't many of them, a skilled cultivator could stand up to a master who possessed a spiritual pearl.
This might sound trivial to hear, but for any fighter who had a modicum of experience, he knew it was no small feat.
After all, master possessors of the spiritual pearl could rely on the help of their own pearl, which gave them enormous power.
But a cultivator's situation was quite different; he could only rely on his own strength, he had no outside help, he could only rely on his own spiritual power. That's why although they were in a clear minority, cultivators were respected by everyone.
"Father what do you suggest we do?" asked Alcas worriedly.
"Let's watch the situation unfold for a while longer, there are still too many doubts to be resolved, but if the occasion calls for it, we will have to kill that boy" Aaron's tone became even more ruthless.
He would have preferred to remove the obstacle from the beginning, rather than having future problems.