"Father sent us a letter, he's on his way back. Let's not do anything rash and find another way."
"Negotiations with Dyer ended the moment I threw Rivan in prison."
"Father can fix this when he gets back."
"No, he cannot."
Kane spoke decisively.
In the original story, Kane's father returns to the family only to see it's collapse.
He will be rendered in a vegetative state due to mana crystal poisoning.
Once the family head falls, it's only a matter of time before the Rehinar family is ruined.
Of course, that was the storyline when he was Ray Hatzfeld.
Now that he had become Kane Rehinar, things would not go as they did before.
"There will be no negotiations with Dyer, remember that. While I create the evidence, you prepare to face Father and Dyer's people."
With those words, Kane began walking towards the prison where Rivan was held.
Thud!
"Get me out of here right now!"
Rivan immediately became agitated upon seeing Kane.
He violently shook the iron bars, shouting angrily.
Despite Rivan's uproar, Kane remained silent.
"Heh, heh heh. Judging by your expression, looks like my family has contacted you. Since I'm supposed to contact them regularly, they must have realized something was wrong when I was detained in this filthy place."
Rivan mocked him.
He thought this was the reason why Kane hadn't killed him yet.
"Seems like they're concerned about you, even if you are the abandoned son."
"There's no use being scared now. I will make sure you pay for the humiliation I've suffered here."
"Aren't you overestimating your family a bit?"
"A crumbling family like yours can be easily destroyed."
"That's why I'm going to test it. To see how long you can hold out against me."
A broad smile spread across Kane's face.
He already had a naturally smiling expression, but when he showed his white teeth, it was eerie.
"Camilla. Carry him."
"Yes!"
Camilla opened the prison door.
She then covered Rivan's face with a black cloth.
"Mmmpf! What are you—ugh!"
She struck his neck and knocked him unconscious.
Kane and Camilla carried Rivan towards the west gate of the castle.
* * *
They appeared at the west gate.
The guard captain, recognizing their faces, descended from the wall.
"Young Master!"
"Thank you for your hard work."
"N-No problem."
The guard captain tilted his head in confusion.
This wasn't the Kane he knew. The stuttering, timid man who had once left to find an engagement gift for his sister was gone.
"I'd like you to open the gate."
"Lady Sara has instructed us not to open the gate for the time being."
"I have business to attend to, so open it."
"Umm…"
"Shouldn't my orders take precedence over Sara's?"
"That's true, but…"
"I will take responsibility."
The guard captain hesitated.
'Should I open it? If something like last time happens, I'll be in trouble…'
He could've ignored Kane, but the change in Kane's demeanor made that impossible. The intimidating aura Kane exuded left the captain unable to refuse.
'It feels more dangerous to resist.'
His gaze shifted to Camilla, who had a person slung over her shoulder.
"Who… who is that?"
"You don't need to know. Open the gate."
When the guard captain met Kane's eyes, he involuntarily gasped.
He felt as if he were being pulled into something unfathomable.
Like Camilla, he found himself bowing deeply.
"I-I will open it immediately."
The guard captain opened the gate.
"You saw nothing today."
"Of course."
"Goodbye then."
"I wish you a safe return."
The guard captain bowed at a 90-degree angle as Kane and Camilla passed through the gate.
He remained bowed until they were out of sight.
"Captain, how long are you going to stay like that?"
"Are they gone?"
"They left a while ago."
"Haah…"
The guard captain finally straightened up.
"Is it really okay to disobey Lady Sara's orders? If she finds out, we're all in trouble."
"Do you think I don't know that, you idiot?"
"If you knew this, why did you still let Young Master and Miss Camilla out?"
"Do you think I wanted to? When I met the Young Master's eyes… Haah."
He was still sweating.
Just making eye contact with him made the guard captain shrink back.
"That wasn't the Young Master we know."
"I did find it strange. He used to have so much trouble talking to us before."
"For a moment, he reminded me of the Duke."
"Oh, come on. Don't exaggerate. That makes no sense."
"I'm serious."
"You must be sleep-deprived from the night shift. Let's just go home."
"I'm telling the truth…"
The guard captain glanced back at the gate..
"Aren't you coming? I'm heading out alone."
"Wait up, idiot."
He then turned around and followed.
* * *
Camilla remained vigilant, keeping her guard up.
Though they were still close to the territory and hadn't encountered any monsters yet, she knew they could be attacked at any moment.
"Young Master, can't we hunt here? It seems like there could be monsters around."
[A/N: Changing the way Camilla calls Kane, from 'Grand Duke' to 'Young Master'.]
"I know a perfect place for power leveling."
"Power leveling? What's that?"
"A place suitable for getting stronger."
"Where is that?"
"The Forest of Deadly Poison."
"Our destination is the Forest of Deadly Poison?"
"Why are you so surprised?"
"I've heard the Forest of Deadly Poison is only safe for mid-tier 3rd-class adventurers!"
From that moment on, Camilla couldn't hide her anxiety.
She didn't care about her own life. Her only concern was failing to protect Kane.
"To train effectively, you need to be in a dangerous place to grow quickly."
"You could die before you even get a chance to grow!"
"If you keep complaining, I'll leave you behind."
"Mm!"
Camilla covered her mouth with her hand.
She looked like she wanted to say something but held back.
Not long after she fell silent, the surroundings changed.
A forest shrouded in white mist appeared.
This was the Forest of Deadly Poison, the closest hidden region to the Rehinar territory.
"We're here."
Kane reached out toward the mist.
Crackle!
An electric current surged, repelling his hand.
"To enter, we need to dispel the barrier."
Kane pulled out a dagger and cut his finger.
At the same time, he manipulated his mana.
[Blue Tiger's breath (D-) has been activated]
When he smeared his blood on the barrier, a new message appeared.
[Bloodline of the Blue Tiger confirmed.]
[Barrier dispelled.]
'The method to dispel it is the same as always.'
This barrier was set by the knights of the Rehinar Family.
The mana encoded in his blood acted as a pass.
Kane was the eldest son of Rehinar.
He had the second-strongest bloodline after the family head.
"Let's go."
As Kane took a step into the dense mist, he vanished completely.
"The barrier will close soon."
His voice came from ahead.
All Camilla could see was the thick fog.
"This must be an illusion magic circle."
She had only heard of it before.
This was her first time encountering such a barrier.
She too, stepped in, following Kane.
About five seconds later, the barrier reformed.
"It's a bit different from outside."
The forest was just as dense.
However, the main difference was the bountiful, enticing fruits hanging from the trees.
The air was filled with a sweet scent, a fragrance meant to ensnare.
Camilla was about to take a deep breath enchanted by the aroma, when Kane's cold voice cut through.
"Protect yourself with mana."
"Huh?"
"Don't forget this is the Forest of Deadly Poison. The scent you're smelling is a toxic fragrance laced with demonic corrupt energy."
"Mm!"
Camilla quickly covered her mouth with her hand and activated her mana breathing.
Though she was shielding her body with mana, the airborne toxins were still trying to infiltrate her system, mixed with potent demonic energy.
"What about him?"
She asked, glancing at the unconscious man.
"Just leave him be."
"Is that really okay?"
"I brought him here to die. There's no reason to protect him."
"Right…"
"He's from the Dyer family, a family of Paladins. He won't succumb to poison easily."
"I forgot about that."
The Dyer family was renowned for producing Paladins, much like how the Rehinar family was known as the birthplace of Swordmasters.
Thus, he likely had a strong resistance to poison and demonic energy.
"Don't worry about him. Just stand still and protect yourself with mana."
"But I…!"
"You have a different task."
Srrng—
Kane drew the practice sword he had brought from the family.
He eyed the fruits on the trees, his sword hanging loosely at his side.
'They look like delicious fruits, but they're actually Speeders' eggs.'
Speeders were spider-type monsters, typically 1.3 meters in size.
However, in this hidden region, strengthened by the potent demonic energy, they had evolved.
Their bodies had turned as hard as steel, and their size had increased to 2 meters.
Moreover, they always appeared in swarms.
'Breaking the eggs will trigger a spider party.'
Kane infused mana into his sword.
A purple aura began to emanate from it.
Once the mana reached a sufficient level, he swung his sword towards the fruits.
Swoosh—
The blade's aura cut through the air, aiming at the 'fruits'.
Slash!
The fruit or rather egg, split open, and a sticky liquid oozed out onto the ground.
Kane raised his left hand and pointed at the split fruit.
The dripping liquid turned into small droplets and floated in the air.
"Blood Wave."
As Kane finished speaking, the floating droplets dispersed in all directions.
Splat—
[You have perfectly executed the skill "Blood Wave".]
The visible fruits all burst open due to the droplets.
[You have perfectly executed the skill "Blood Wave".]
[Margin of error: 0%]
With the Dullard trait gone, Kane's body and mind moved in perfect harmony.
Although the skill typically required blood, he utilized water and other liquids to achieve the same effect.
The Pure-Blooded trait allowed him to acquire skills based on the precision of their execution, and he had fully exploited this trait.
[You have achieved an incredible feat.]
[The skill "Blood Wave" has been registered in Blood Dance(S)]
[You can now use Blood Dance 2nd Move: Blood Wave.]
Kane barely had time to smile at the message.
"Kreee!"
The mother Speeders, having sensed the death of their offspring, emerged.
Each was about 2 meters tall, and there were ten of them.
"It's going to be quite a struggle."
He enveloped himself in mana and charged into the midst of the monsters.
* * *
Kane had lost track of time.
The constant onslaught of mutated monsters left no room for such concerns. His focus was solely on slashing through the Speeders.
[You have defeated the mutated monster 'Young Speeder'.]
[You have gained experience points.]
The more he fought, the faster new fruits appeared on the trees.
The Speeders hatched from these fruits and attacked Camilla.
"Kreeek!"
A young Speeder, hatched from an unhandled fruit, leapt at her.
Slash!
Camilla's sword cut diagonally, slicing the Speeder in half.
[You have defeated the mutated monster 'Young Speeder'.]
[You have gained experience points.]
"Haah… Haah…!"
She panted heavily. The mana used to cut the tough fruits and the mana required to shield herself from the poisonous air drained her. The dual effort was exhausting.
"I've never… fought this many… monsters before…."
She was nearly at her limit.
Splat—
A young Speeder was cut in two mid-air by a blade of water mana.
Despite her exhaustion, her body moved on its own, driven by the instinct to survive the onslaught of mutated monsters.
"Haah…! Haah…! Where's… Young Master…?"
In a brief lull, Camilla looked around. The monsters were now wary of her. She turned her gaze towards Kane.
"…Monster…!"
Kane was killing the mutated monsters effortlessly, moving freely despite the toxic air. It was chilling to watch. These were not ordinary monsters but mutated beasts.
Yet Kane handled them with unflinching composure, as if he had done this hundreds or thousands of times.
Meanwhile, Kane was scanning the battlefield, searching for something. He spotted it amidst the mother Speeders, a particularly large one at that.
'Mana Crystal.'
The true reason he had come to this forest. Embedded in the back of that massive Speeder was the crystal he desired.