MSG – Volume 1 – Chapter 5
If no one intervened, Solon would die for a third time. However, he had a calm expression on his face and his mannerisms did not waver.
It seemed like to him, there was nothing else in the world as important as the plate of food before him.
"I gave you chance but you refused a toast only to drink a forfeit." Erwin said, fury in his tone unhidden. "When you meet your parents in the afterlife, blame them for giving birth to you as such a waste and yet failing to train you to be humble!"
As he said the last syllable, he released the ice cones towards Solon.
Many eyes widened upon witnessed this.
If the adults moved then they would be able to stop what was to happen, yet none of them did... except one.
"No! Stop!"
As expected, it was none other than Eleftheria.
Not only her, Saddie had shouted too but her power level was not high enough to make a reasonable move in time.
"Execute: [Rock Wall]!"
A rectangular rock wall appeared before Solon, serving as a shield, and protected him.
Seeing his attack nullified, Erwin did not immediately stop.
Instead, he opted to conjure and attack with more cones of ice.
Alas against someone at level 47, a Sage, like the woman with the yellow eyes and orange hair, his efforts were in vain.
"Erwin!" she shouted in an attempt to stop him but, that only served to only earn her his redirected rage.
"Ah!!!!" The fatso turned to face Ria, his cones of ice doing the same.
To the shock of all those present at the dining table, this boy actually attacked her… well, at least he tried to.
"Don't interfere!" he yelled as he let it rip.
Ria could just stand there all day and a simple rock wall of hers would suffice to tank all his attacks without leaving a scratch but… how could she just do that?
This little fellow had the nerve to actually attack her!
And in front of so many people!
The disrespect!
Then there was also the part where he had actually dared to try to hurt one whom she had publicly declared as her son, before her very eyes!
The nerve!
As a result, in a moment of indignation, she also acted impulsively.
She replicated the boy's spell with one that was of her own elemental preference, made of stone were conjured by her in the blink of an eye before flying straight towards him.
"Execute: [Earth Spikes]!"
There were so many of them that there was enough for three of hers to eliminate one of his and there would still be many more left to aim for his life.
He was dead meat for sure.
"How bold!"
This time, it was Erwin's mom who entered the fray. Shooting to her feet, she countered Ria's attack with a magic barrier that did not belong to any specific element.
"Execute: [Magic Barrier]!"
The woman looked to be in her 30s and had hair the same color as her son's—dark blonde.
Unlike her son who had inherited his father's crimson eyes, she had platinum color ones.
Her body shape was impressive, having a near-perfect hour glass figure that included an F cup bust, a nearly-flat tummy, and wide hips.
"Dare to attack my son in my presence!" she roared, conjuring three fist-sized balls that she immediately sent Ria's way.
Ria received her attack gracefully, literally grasping the balls of fire with a large hand made of rocks.
"Execute: [Rock Hands] [Rock Spear]!!"
An earth spear appeared above Ria's head, pointing in the woman's direction as she retorted with an angry snort; "That's my line, Maya! That's my son he was attacking!"
"And so, what?!" Maya argued, conjuring arrow-shaped flames above her head, ready to exchange more blows with Ria.
Although neither of them could not go all out because of where they were does not mean that they could not combat each other at all.
They simply had to limit the power of their attacks to a safe level.
The deciding factor was set to be their casting speed, creativity, and wits.
"We, the older generation, were not to interfere! It was an exchange between the younger generation!" Maya, Erwin's mother continued.
"Hmph! So, I should just watch my son being killed off in my presence?!" A vein was about to pop in Ria's head.
"Would that not be better than living on as a vermin incapable of using magic?!" Maya snapped. "An existence like him is not one that should dare to draw breath just as we do! Much less share the same space as us! I seriously can't wrap my head around how you can even associate yourself with him, Ria! His presence at this table sullies the Rafflesia family name!"
"Maya! Shut up!" Ria could hold back no longer.
Incited by the blonde woman's words, she let her spear made of earth loose upon her.
At this point, almost everyone who were sitting at the table had gotten up and spaced out so as to avoid being caught in any unforeseen effects of their exchange.
Alas, the exciting scene most of them were expecting would not come, since the head of the house could take it no more and hence could stay silent no longer.
"How discourteous!" he shouted, releasing a pressure that halted the attacks of both women.
The entire dining hall went silent.
With all eyes trained on the crimson eyed Count, he continued;
"Is it so hard to ask for a meal with the entirety of my family?" he asked with a sigh after dabbing his mouth clean of some smudges on his lip area. "Is it?"
The silence prevailed even after he withdrew his peak Sage mana pressure.
His eyes swept across the hall, observing every member of his family.
"First off, his name is not Solomon. It's Solon." he said while pointing a finger in the oddly still-calmly-eating boy's direction.
"Secondly, I have already declared that he is to be regarded as a proper member of this family. Whether you want to make buddy with him is of no consequence to me… but! Do not make a sport of targeting him."
As he said this, he turned in the direction of Maya.
"Just because I believe in fairness and righteousness does not mean that I am dumb." His tone was a bit sour. "Yes, I do heavily enforce the rule of not allowing the older generation to suppress the younger ones and let them settle things on their own, but that does not mean that they themselves should be allowed to kill or even severely injure each other as they please."
"Maya, I will say it again—and for the last time—" His brows furrowed in seriousness. "Stop it. Whatever you have against him. Keep it to yourself and bottle it up somewhere even if you cannot get rid of it."
"How can you instigate your son to do this? Is this really the kind of path you want him to follow when he becomes a man of his own?"