All the executives gathered in Paon’s Audience Hall could not hide their astonishment.
“Eh? But, Lord Paon… You said today we would discuss the successor after the heir’s initiation ceremony…”
Indeed.
No matter how direct Ian’s lineage was in the Lichtenauer martial family, there was no way the elite of the house would drop their duties just to attend a half-hearted ceremony for someone treated like a mere triviality.
The true reason they had postponed their missions and returned to the mansion was this very matter: to officially begin discussions about the successor who would lead the family in the future.
Only by doing so could each captain ensure that the successor they supported would rise to the pinnacle of the Lichtenauer family.
“Do I really have to say it twice?”
Paon quietly asked the captain who had opened the topic.
But no one present was ignorant enough to think that Paon’s question was actually a question.
“…My apologies, Lord Paon. Please forgive my disrespect.”
“Hahaha! It seems the Lord has other matters to attend to, so let’s adjourn for today. It is an important issue, but surely it doesn’t have to be resolved today, does it?”
In the stiffening air of the Audience Hall, Grand Prince Alex stood, softening the atmosphere.
With both the current Lord of the house and the one closest to being the future Lord speaking together, no one else dared add a word.
‘Well, what can we do? If the Lord says so, we’ll return for now.’
‘Damn it… When will we even return to the field again…’
In the end, all they could do was leave, pouring their frustration over the unnecessary trip onto Ian.
A moment later, only Paon Lichtenauer, the Lord of the house, and Nedir, the sorcerer who had laid out the sacred jade, remained in the Audience Hall.
“Heh heh! Lord, could it be that you foresaw this outcome?”
Nedir asked with a small chuckle, and Paon, who had until now maintained a dignified expression, leaned back in his chair with a groan.
“Ugh! Holding a stern expression for so long has left my jaw all stiff. Did you ask if I foresaw it?”
Paon rubbed his face as he answered Nedir’s question.
“Do you think I could? If I had, I would have suggested celebrating Ian’s initiation ceremony in grandeur from the start. That Alex… meddling foolishly…”
Paon knew better than anyone just how little the family thought of Ian.
That was why he had no intention of holding a grand ceremony for Ian—he had even considered skipping it entirely.
After all, Ian’s cursed constitution would never allow him to complete the ceremony properly.
Alex, however, had dragged the house’s finest to witness the ceremony, unwilling to let the initiation of his younger brother—the direct line of the great Lord—appear so pathetic.
Of course, most of the order captains had come to discuss the successor.
But Alex had never worried about that. He firmly believed there could be no successor to lead the family other than himself.
“Heh heh heh! Still, it shows some ambition, doesn’t it? Anyone destined to reach the top of the house must have drive and ambition, or they will rot away and disappear.”
Paon snorted at Nedir’s defense of Alex.
“Hmph! If one wishes to become the successor of the house, one must prove themselves through strength, fairly and openly. I do not like that Alex resorts to such schemes, which is why I will not confirm him as the successor.”
“Very well, if you say so.”
Nedir simply shrugged at Paon’s stern stance.
Though he now served as the chief sorcerer and advisor of the martial house, Nedir was, at heart, a product of the Tower of Magic.
No matter how long he had fed from the house, questioning Paon’s decision would clearly be overstepping.
“By the way, what on earth was Ian thinking when he chose that weapon?”
Nedir naturally shifted the topic to Ian.
Three years of sidelong glances could steal a wallet—Nedir, having stayed long in the house, could immediately sense just how strange Ian’s choice of weapon was.
Paon, recalling the previous situation, let out a small amused chuckle.
“Hohoho! What’s in that child’s heart, I cannot know. But it will soon be clear whether he chose that weapon out of mere vanity, or…”
The warmth and geniality that had made Paon resemble a kindly neighbor moments ago hardened into a look of authority and resolve.
“…truly because he perceived its potential and has the ability to wield it.”
“Ah, so there really is some secret, then?”
“It is a weapon sleeping within a Weapon of. Do you think it’s possible that I am unaware of such a thing?”
Nedir calmly rebuked Paon, but Paon did not even blink.
“If he is too foolish to even draw out a weapon’s potential, it would be better for him to die now. Living with incomplete talent and skill will only lead to a more crushing defeat at Alex’s hands later.”
Before the initiation ceremony, Paon might have shielded his inept son.
But now, after the ceremony, Ian’s choice had to be respected.
He was now an official member of the martial house.
Step by step, Ian walked back to his quarters with his steward Hans after tending to his wounds, the sun casting yellow and red light across the yard.
Unlike other heirs, who walked around with countless attendants, Ian seemed almost pitiful.
Before and after the initiation, nothing had changed for him.
He had no supporters, and he remained a trivial figure in the family.
The elites present at the Audience Hall could not admire Ian through the ceremony; his past performance had been too amateurish.
The only difference before and after the ceremony was that two ridiculous swords now hung firmly at his waist.
That was all.
“Are those the weapons you’ve chosen, Master Ian?”
Hans glanced at Ian’s waist in surprise.
“Yes. Do they look strange to you, Hans?”
“No, Master Ian, I’m sure you had your reasons. But…”
Hans, fiddling with his monocle, stared at the swords.
“…I’m not sure if you can truly handle these weapons.”
“What? Hahaha!”
Hans’ blunt, almost provocative words made Ian laugh with delight.
Hans clearly was a man with insight—one who could sense the potential of the sword.
No one would begrudge having capable allies by their side.
“We’ll see soon enough.”
Ian’s eyes brimmed with confidence, undeterred by Hans’ cryptic remark.
‘I’ll tame them soon enough.’
The twin swords merely swung at his waist as he walked, responding to Ian’s movements.
A few days passed since Ian’s initiation ceremony.
In that time, a few simple documents arrived from the Lord’s office.
They contained a brief description of the weapon Ian had chosen.
Now, as a proper warrior of the Lichtenauer family, he needed to know every detail about the partner he would wield in battle.
Rustle.
Ian sat on a sunlit rock in the backyard, reading the documents calmly.
“Twin-Headed Blood Serpent…”
A two-headed crimson snake.
Even the name of the Black-and-White Sword was terrifying to hear.
Yet Ian’s face reflected satisfaction as he read on.
As he turned the pages, the description revealed: a large serpent with a long, slender body, and a smaller, short but strong serpent.
Two heads, large and small, forming a single weapon, but their essence was one.
The two heads, aware they share a body, always yearned for a new form.
Therefore, anyone handling the Twin-Headed Blood Serpent must be careful.
The incompetent would have their heads struck down, and the weapon would seek their body.
…Snap.
Ian’s smile deepened as he finished reading the last page.
“It suits me.”
Compared to Geumcheon Chain, it was lacking.
Naturally. Geumcheon Chain was the ultimate weapon, forged with magic from the Eastern Continent, blessings from the Western, and metallurgy from the Southern.
Even if Geumcheon Chain were before him now, it would be like a pearl necklace for a pig—treasures only serve those worthy of them.
The Twin-Headed Blood Serpent pleased Ian immensely.
It was a treasure only he had discerned.
Swoosh!
Grasping the twin swords in both hands, Ian channeled blood energy through his body and pierced the chains of the Sun Vein Meridian.
Vwooooom!
Concentrating the energy in his hands, he swung the long sword, the large serpent.
“How useful it is, beyond what I expected.”
Having tested its length and balance, Ian gave a short assessment.
Unlike Geumcheon Chain’s chain, a sword limited his range of motion, but its sharp edge promised devastating lethality.
Just then—
Shing!
The large sword’s head lunged toward Ian’s neck.
Clang!
He raised the smaller sword, deflecting it naturally.
“…Hmm. So this is how it will be.”
Taming this insolent twin blade would take time.
Tap, tap, tap.
The night of the full moon.
A man gazed at the sky from the window, his face like a painting.
He tapped the railing lightly with his fingers, lost in thought while watching the bright moon.
“Hmm… troublesome. Very troublesome. If you insist on showing your presence unnecessarily… I cannot help but notice.”
He recalled his incompetent younger brother from days past.
At the Weapon of the initiation ceremony.
Among the family’s finest, the inept younger brother had obtained a weapon beyond his level.
Unexpected, yes—but not significant.
The man had chosen weapons of even greater depth in his own initiation.
So there was no reason to fuss over his brother’s slight overachievement.
Yet why…
Tap!
His fingers stopped tapping.
“…Annoying.”
Lately, events involving his brother had been like fishbones stuck in his throat.
By rights, his brother should have been buried in a nearby mountain the day before the ceremony.
By rights, he should have been quietly erased during Johan’s visit, who understood his murmurs.
By rights, he should have fallen like a fool at the ceremony.
Yet…
His brother was still alive.
And Johan, who would have followed his instructions, had disappeared without a trace.
At the ceremony, he had elicited surprise if not admiration.
Yes.
Truly trivial events.
Ordinarily, he should have worried more about the successors of the collateral and vassal families.
Yet…
“If trivial events keep occurring, then they are no longer trivial.”
Alex remembered exactly when he first felt unease about his brother.
When he hugged Ian returning from the mountain.
His fool of a brother, who had always trusted him blindly, acted with surprising confidence.
A fleeting moment, yet Alex did not miss it.
“…What a cheeky one. Yes, the blood of the Lichtenauer family runs in you, after all.”
He had never expected his brother to reveal claws just before the ceremony.
If he himself had been deceived, how much more the others.
If true, Ian’s cunning exceeded imagination.
“Hmm…”
Tap, tap!
Alex closed his eyes again, tapping the railing.
‘I don’t know what happened… With Johan gone, the chance to quietly handle this has passed. Now, what should I do…’
Finally, Alex made up his mind.
“Very well, Ian. Let’s see how you truly judge. Were recent events all coincidence, or were you indeed a lion hiding your claws?”
As the moon set and the sun rose the next morning,
Alex set out early toward the Lord’s mansion.
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