In Clark's chamber, he sits on the chair while Aksei's eyes burn with anger, almost spewing flames.
His anger isn't directed at his brother's lack of face-saving measures in the arena, but rather the humiliation today by Niya and the undead warrior's familiar!
"Brother, they humiliated me in public. We can't let this slide. It's not just an assault on me but on our Sahm family!" Aksei shouts indignantly.
The day's events would forever be etched in his memory. As the Sahm family's second son, though in a lower position than his brother Clark, their family held considerable sway in the Eastern Province!
Their family head, Varage, Clark, and Aksei's uncle, currently serves as the Minister of Finance of the Godlo Empire and is a hereditary Marquis. Though not as influential as the Emperor or Prime Minister, he's still a powerful figure!
Their father, now the Deputy Governor of the Eastern Province, is of Count status!
With such a prominent bureaucratic family, their members naturally adopt an arrogant attitude towards commoners.
Clark sneers and remarks, "What do you want to do? Fight him again? If you're up to it, go ahead!"
Hearing Clark's words, Aksei falls silent. If he could defeat the undead warrior, he would have done so already, instead of being reprimanded like this.
"Brother, he's too strong. I can't win," Aksei pleads for Clark's help again. "His humiliation of our Sahm family..."
"Humph!" Clark's heavy snort sends a shiver down Aksei's spine.
Clark glares at Aksei, the child who has done wrong, standing motionless before him. "Do you still have the face to speak? If it weren't for you getting involved with women like Riely..."
"Brother, Riely is a good girl." Indeed, she's quite the catch in bed.
Clark frowns. "Don't think I don't know what kind of person Riely is. You have quite a few flings among the fourth-grade students."
Riely's reputation for promiscuity has spread throughout the academy. Though she's only in the first grade, her notoriety extends even to the fourth grade. Though not for the right reasons.
Aksei's face turns green. While he knows his current girlfriend isn't exactly virtuous, he never expected Riely to stoop so low. "I'm doing it for the family's sake. Riely is from the Billy family. If I'm with Riely, won't our family become closer to the Billys?"
Though the Sahm family is a bureaucratic powerhouse in the Godlo Empire, it doesn't mean they have free rein. They also need to court local powerhouses like the Billy family!
"Uh-huh," Clark responds noncommittally to Aksei's words. "You don't need to dwell on this matter."
"Brother, are we just going to let this pass?" Aksei can't swallow this humiliation.
"Of course not. Humiliating our Sahm family can't be overlooked." Clark's anger towards Aksei's rashness is matched by his own fury at Yann's actions!
This isn't just about teaching Aksei a lesson; it's about saving face for the Sahm family!
If Clark doesn't respond to this matter, the Sahm family will become a laughingstock throughout the Eastern Province.
The scions of the mighty Sahm family being slapped in front of thousands!
And Clark himself might not fare well either! If his brother is bullied, as his elder brother, he can't just stand by and do nothing!
"Brother, are you going to take action? If it's you, you'll give them a good lesson! Brother, you have to get back at them for today's humiliation!" Aksei grows excited after hearing Clark's words.
His brother is a fourth-grade warrior, a prominent figure in the fourth grade. A single step could get him into the inner courtyard!
"It's not that simple." Clark squints, contemplating the events of the day. "That undead warrior isn't ordinary. I felt a tremendous sense of threat from him, like a dragon lurking within him."
Today, when Clark and Yann locked eyes in the arena, Yann's lifeless, bloodshot gaze sent shivers down Clark's spine.
"Brother, isn't that exaggerating? Can't you defeat him?" Aksei scoffs at the notion of an undead warrior harboring a dragon. If it were true, wouldn't he be at least a esteemed-level powerhouse?
Esteemed-level powerhouses can dominate the entire continent!
Of course, neither of them knows that the true identity of the undead warrior is that of an sovereign-level powerhouse...
Clark snorts again, staring at his wayward brother. "He could cut your weapon with ease when you attacked. Do you still think that was a coincidence?"
"Maybe his weapon was better..." Aksei tries to justify himself.
"Weapon? An undead warrior who has been dead for who knows how many years, wielding a weapon that may seem fine on the surface but is likely rusted within, and he's chopping at the wooden handle of a spear. But, it's not about the weapon; it's about his combat intuition. He found the right moment to disable your weapon. Could you do that?" Clark looks at his disappointing brother.
What they don't know is that Yann's weapon isn't just some rusty item but a brand-new magical weapon!
"...," Aksei admits. Though he has some talent in cultivation, he can't achieve such a feat.
"Truth be told, even I couldn't effortlessly disarm you as he did. It requires not just strength but also combat intuition."
"Then, brother, if you can't win, should we seek revenge?"
"Revenge, of course! Humiliate the Sahm family, and we can't just let it slide!" Clark squints, "But we must plan carefully, not rush into things."
"Oh, and isn't the intergrade ranking battle starting soon?" Clark asks.
"Yes, in a month."
"Good, you can't bring your familiar to the intergrade ranking battle. Let your girlfriend use her social skills to find some decent people in the first grade, and I'll manipulate things in the background to ensure Niya and those people end up together."
Without her familiar, Niya is still just a nobody.