[A moment ago in Kaelan's Chamber]
The luxurious chamber, adorned with priceless antiques and golden dragon carvings on the ceiling, was filled with a suffocating tension.
The physician's final words caused Kaelan to grit his teeth, thick veins bulging visibly on his neck as his fists clenched tightly. His pupils contracted, his body trembled, and his face turned red with unbridled fury.
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY, YOU BASTARD?!" Kaelan roared, his voice cracking with rage.
The physician, clad in a white robe, flinched, trembling under Kaelan's wrath. "Y-You… you'll never be able to use it again…" he stammered, lowering his gaze to avoid Kaelan's fiery glare.
The words cut into Kaelan's soul like a blade. His eyes darted downward to the part of his body hidden beneath soft fabric, disbelief etched into his expression.
First, he had been born without the martial talent his siblings possessed, dismissed as useless by his father and scorned by his entire family. And now, he had even lost his manhood.
"All my life…" Kaelan muttered, his voice trembling with a mix of rage and despair. "I've been nothing but a shadow… a failure."
His gaze shifted to the doctor, sharp and murderous. "If you can't fix me," he growled, reaching for the sword propped against the wall beside his bed, "then you're better off dead, you worthless worm!"
"M-My lord, please—!"
SLASH!
Before the doctor could finish, his severed head hit the floor, blood pooling beneath his lifeless body.
Kaelan sneered, his twisted grin turning into a mad, hysterical laugh. But his laughter was cut short as the floor began to shake violently, and explosions echoed from outside.
BOOM!
Kaelan froze, startled. He sprinted to the window, pulling the curtains aside to peer out. His breath caught in his throat.
In the courtyard of the Vossmer estate, fully armed soldiers fled the grand hall, their faces pale with terror.
"What the hell is happening out there?!" Kaelan shouted. He barked at a nearby servant, "Find Darius! I want answers—now!"
As the servant scurried off, Kaelan's eyes narrowed, his mind racing. What is this chaos? Could it be the Zhang family? Or something worse?
-----
[Now - Grand Hall]
"So let's make this simple," Graviel said, his silver eyes gleaming with renewed interest. "I'll give you one final chance. The three of you may attack me together. If you can touch even a single hair on my head, I'll let you leave unharmed."
He paused, letting the weight of his words sink into the room like a stone plunging into deep water. Only the faint crackling of shattered marble beneath their feet broke the oppressive silence.
"But if you fail…" Graviel's voice turned cold, and his aura surged, a tsunami of power rolling across the hall. "You will join the Vossmer family, willingly or not."
The audacity of Graviel's decree sent a ripple of outrage through the room. The elders—silent for most of the confrontation—stirred uneasily. Their pale faces, strained from Graviel's earlier overwhelming display of power, now darkened with disapproval.
"This is madness!" Elder Cedrin, still weak from his earlier clash with Elara, forced himself to his feet, his expression a mix of indignation and fear.
"My lord, you would allow these outsiders—mere children—to mock the Vossmer family's authority with such a farce? They've spilled our guards' blood, trampled on our honor, and yet you offer them a test?" His voice cracked, the sheer disbelief echoing through the hall. "This is beneath us!"
A murmur of agreement spread among the other elders, their heads nodding grimly. The pride they carried as Martial Sages bristled at the perceived insult.
"This is unthinkable," another elder, a short, rotund man with a balding head and deep-set eyes, hissed. "They should be executed on the spot for their insolence, not give them a chance to redeem themselves!"
"Indeed!" added a younger elder with sharp features and a high-pitched voice. His hand trembled with barely concealed anger as he gestured toward Elion and Verion. "My lord, these brats have killed our men—our kin! They must be punished, not given the opportunity to rise above their station!"
Graviel remained silent, his expression calm and unbothered. He stood in the center of the storm of protests, his commanding presence silencing none of the elders but clearly making them uneasy.
"Lord Graviel," Elder Lysandre, a tall woman with long silver hair that shimmered like moonlight, spoke with measured authority. Her voice was icy yet composed, commanding the attention of the room.
"I must question your judgment. These children, no matter how talented, are an affront to everything the Vossmer family represents. To spare them now would be to show weakness in front of all Murim." Her cold gaze flicked to Elara, a flicker of disdain crossing her features. "And to accept their mother back into our fold after she defied and disgraced the family? It would set a dangerous precedent."
Several elders murmured in agreement, their whispers filling the hall like a low, menacing hum.
"This is unacceptable," Cedrin pressed, emboldened by the murmurs of his peers. He stepped forward despite his injuries, his voice growing sharper. "My lord, you are endangering the family's reputation. If word of this reaches our enemies, they will see this as weakness. They will see the Vossmer family as fractured and vulnerable!"
Graviel let their protests boil for a moment longer, his silver eyes coldly surveying the room.
"Enough."
His voice, though soft, cut through the rising tension like a blade. The murmurs ceased instantly, and all eyes turned to him. He stepped forward, his silver eyes scanning the room with a cold, calculating gaze.
"I do not recall asking for your approval," Graviel said, his tone as smooth and sharp as polished steel. "Nor do I require it."
The elders froze, their collective auras dimming under the weight of Graviel's authority.
"But, my lord—" Cedrin began, his voice trembling with frustration, only to stop mid-sentence as Graviel's piercing gaze locked onto him.
"Are you questioning my authority, Cedrin?" Graviel asked, his voice devoid of emotion, yet carrying an unspoken threat that made the elder's blood run cold.
Cedrin swallowed hard, lowering his gaze. "N-No, my lord. I would never…"
Graviel's gaze lingered on him for a moment longer before sweeping across the rest of the elders. "You are all so quick to speak of family honor and tradition, yet none of you possess the strength to enforce it. These children—my blood—have done what none of you could: stand before me without crumbling in fear. That alone makes them worthy of my attention."
"But their defiance—" Elder Lysandre began, only to be silenced as Graviel raised a single hand.
"Defiance?" Graviel repeated, his lips curling into a faint smirk. "Do you not see? Their defiance is what makes them strong. That is what the Vossmer family needs—not cowards who hide behind traditions and titles." His words echoed in the air, each syllable bearing the weight of his conviction.
The elders exchanged uneasy glances, their pride warring with their fear of Graviel's wrath.
Graviel turned his attention back to Elion, Verion, and Elara, who stood at the center of the hall, their bodies tense but unbroken.
"I do not care for your approval," Graviel said, addressing the elders without looking at them. "And I certainly do not care for your notions of honor. The Vossmer family has become complacent, basking in their achievements as the world shifts around them. These children are the future—strong, defiant, and unyielding. If they can prove themselves, they will have earned their place among us. If not…" His smirk widened, his silver eyes gleaming with deadly intent. "Then they will serve as an example of what happens to those who fail to meet my expectations."
The elders fell silent, their protests stifled by the sheer weight of Graviel's authority. Though their eyes burned with resentment, none dared to challenge him further.
The tension in the grand hall thickened, and the three—Elara, Elion, and Verion—each processed the decree differently.
Elion, still trembling from the aftershocks of his failed attack, narrowed his eyes at Graviel. He didn't care about the politics or the elders' disapproval. All that mattered now was surviving this ordeal—and finding a way to make Graviel pay for the humiliation he had inflicted on them.
That sly old man… He already knows we can't defeat him. He just wants us to surrender and join this family on his terms.
On the other hand, Verion's signature grin remained fixed on his face, unyielding as always. Even after being slammed into the wall and bleeding from his head, his will had not faltered. If anything, Graviel's overwhelming strength only fueled his fighting spirit.
He'd rather die than have his pride crushed under the weight of Graviel's demands. And it wasn't just about pride—something about Graviel reminded Verion of his own strength from his previous life. The resemblance stoked the flames within him, making him eager to fight even longer.
In the midst of the rising tension, Elara's gaze flickered between her two sons. Her heart clenched. She no longer cared about her past ties to the Vossmer family. All she wanted now was one thing: the safety of her children.
No matter what happens, I must protect them… even if I have to die here today.
Realizing the determination in his family's eyes, Elion let out a small, resigned smile and exhaled deeply. He released his [Levitas] skill, allowing his feet to touch the blood-soaked marble floor.
Slowly, he walked forward, his golden eyes fixed not on Graviel, but on his family—Elara, the mother who had shown him unconditional love for the first time, and Verion, the brother who had begun to fill the emptiness in his heart.
Elion's lips curled into a faint, bitter smile as a memory surfaced.
The first advice from his future self, given to him before he reincarnated into this world.
[Love and protect your family no matter what happens.]
At the time, Elion hadn't understood why those words were the first piece of advice he received. But now, standing in the grand hall, surrounded by danger, he finally realized the truth.
Family was the only thing that made him feel alive. And to keep feeling alive, he would protect them until his very last breath.
Elion took another step forward, his golden eyes locking onto Graviel's cold silver ones. The oppressive weight of Graviel's Qi didn't falter, but Elion forced himself to stand tall.
"Don't worry, Mother," Elion said with quiet resolve, his voice firm and steady despite the storm raging inside him. "I'll find a way to get us out of this."