Shion didn't know what had happened earlier.
"Being trapped like that during the first meeting? What kind of maniac is he?!"
Shion walked down the corridor toward the student housing, feeling stressed.
But then he felt a gaze fixed on him, so he immediately turned his head, only to see nothing.
"What was that?"
Shi Yun Lan answered him,
"A sixth-level swordsman was watching you."
"What? Why would an instructor watch me? I don't think I've done anything to them."
Shi Yun Lan said,
"He wasn't an instructor. I already know the aura of every instructor, but that person was different from them."
Shion didn't care much and said,
"Maybe he's a visitor or a guest. It doesn't matter."
But Shi Yun Lan sighed before retreating into his domain.
"He escaped the moment you turned your head."
"..."
Shion thought for a moment.
'Is someone targeting me?'
He closed his eyes and shook his head.
'No. If that person has bad intentions toward me, the director will make a move.'
Shion calmed down and reached his wing.
He prepared himself to go home. His punishment was over, so he wanted to spend some time with his family before returning to the academy.
"Mom, Solan, brothers. I'm coming home."
Shion felt warmth as he remembered their smiles, so he moved as fast as possible.
Within thirty minutes, he was completely out of the academy and heading home.
He smiled while standing on the teleportation circle.
---
Unlike the warmth inside Shion's heart, the Amoritchi Kingdom was suffering from freezing cold.
If it weren't for Natu Rioshi, there would have been many casualties.
The primitive tree absorbed most of the freezing energy, keeping the people safe.
But on the other hand...
COUGH!!!
King Natu Rioshi was in a convention with the heads of the Noble Families, but he wasn't feeling well, as he felt unusually cold.
"Your Majesty!"
"Don't panic. Let's continue our discussion."
King Natu looked at the hall where the noble families had gathered.
Bronze families, silver families, and the Big Four—the golden families.
King Natu noticed the new head of the Violi Family.
He remembered the previous one, who had died in an instant and turned into an ice splatter.
Then he turned to the other heads: Epiata, Poifa, and Medik.
All of them awaited him to speak, so King Natu didn't waste any time and began the main topic.
"Ostiferos Kingdom. What should we do with them?"
That question made the fury rise as many voices began expressing their most vicious ideas.
"We must burn them!"
"Destroy their lands!"
"Invasion!"
"Spread diseases!"
The voices grew louder one after another, but they were meaningless.
"How can we do this?"
That was the real question.
But the nobles didn't hesitate.
"We are Amoritchi! We can do whatever we want!"
"We will prepare the army and attack them!"
"We can—"
"Shut up!"
King Natu interrupted them.
"We lack the power to carry out any of your suggestions. So, I want an idea we can actually put into practice. Not some imagination!"
"..."
At that moment, every mouth was silenced, as none of them dared to make the king angry.
But then a hand was raised, making everyone's eyes fall on that person.
He was a man in his late twenties, but his eyes were confident, showing no sign of stress under all the gazes of the elders.
"Before saying anything, do you have a plan?"
King Natu asked first.
"Yes, Your Majesty. I can assure you that you will appreciate my opinion. But I have to say something that might get me killed. I need your protection."
No one was sure about that man, but the king gave him his protection.
"Say what you want to say, as long as it is in our best interests."
The man cleared his throat and said,
"Our great Amoritchi Kingdom is weaker than the Ostiferos Kingdom. So, we can't start a war."
"!!!"
All the nobles in the hall were shocked, as none of them had expected the man to say something like that.
"What did you say, son of a #####?!"
"You bastard! You have to die!"
"You traitor!"
"..."
The man listened carefully, but he could no longer hear a single coherent word. Even the insults had become impossible to understand.
But five people didn't react like everyone else—the Big Four and the king.
Although it was an insult to the Amoritchi Kingdom, it was also the truth.
The king spoke,
"I think you have a good reason to say something like that, or I'll open your head to understand what's inside your brain."
His aura filled the place, but the man understood the meaning behind this action.
'Even the king knows that I'm telling the truth. But instead of saying it himself, he threw everything onto me. At the same time, he didn't push his aura too much, allowing me to speak.'
The man smiled and said,
"We lost a lot because of Kaine's spell, and our supplies were destroyed. In contrast, they gained another ninth-level power. At the same time, they have a strategic location: mountains and deserts in the east, and the ocean in the west."
He concluded his speech,
"I don't like saying this, but we can't face them directly at the moment."
"..."
The hall fell silent.
Facing the truth was painful, but no one could avoid it.
"You said what you wanted to say. Now, I want to hear what I want."
King Natu spoke.
He thought internally,
'If he doesn't give me a satisfactory solution, I will execute him as a traitor.'
"A group of ten!"
The man spoke, attracting everyone's attention. Then he continued,
"Ten powerful warriors sneak into the Ostiferos Kingdom and kill the talented youths there."
The man explained,
"As I said before, we can't face them face-to-face right now. But... what about ten years from now? They won't be able to stand against us with ordinary soldiers. So, we can fight them and win."
"Hmm..."
The nobles murmured and whispered, and the man heard some of their voices.
"If we don't have the ability to face them directly, then this is the best choice we have."
"Ten years... I don't know. I think it's too long."
"Killing their future... I love it!"
King Natu raised his hand, silencing everyone.
"What's your name?"
King Natu asked.
The man introduced himself.
"Your humble subject, Trai of the House of Itar."
Trai was a silver noble of the Amoritchi Kingdom, but he wasn't known for his political activities.
King Natu looked at him for a few seconds and said,
"You will be responsible for the mission. I'll let you form the squad you want. Bring me good news, and I'll promote you to a golden noble."
"What?!!!"
Most of the nobles couldn't believe it. Becoming a golden noble wasn't simple, but Trai Itar could become one of them, gaining greater power and authority.
Trai bowed and said,
"I'll give it my best, Your Majesty!"
Then King Natu asked another question.
"What kind of talents do we want to target?"
Unconsciously, all eyes fell on Trai, who didn't hesitate and brought out some documents.
"I have already chosen the talents. All I need is your approval."
King Natu wasn't surprised, but he was disappointed that the other nobles had retreated and left Trai to bear the burden.
"Tell me."
King Natu ordered.
Trai said,
"The talents I have here in my hands are the best in their respective fields."
He opened a document with the word "Fight" written on it. Then photos of the strongest students of Karath Academy filled the hall.
Trai said,
"Currently, Karath Academy has the most powerful students in its history."
He chose a photo and said,
"For example, this boy is Baro Ferrer. He is a commoner, but he has the ability to fight against the other nobles."
Then he brought out another photo.
"And he is a friend of Fiore Tai. The other one is like walking chaos. But you know what's the most interesting?"
Everyone waited, and Trai surprised them.
"They are disciples of one noble. And one of the talents I chose..."
A photo appeared before everyone.
White hair, silver eyes, and the handsomeness of a king.
"Let me introduce this man to you. The son of the traitor family, the founder of the Lan Family, the successor of one of the most mysterious arts, and the champion of this year... Shion Lan."
That photo of Shion was engraved in the minds of the nobles, who began discussing among themselves.
"He is a family head?!"
"He is too young!"
"Are you saying he could surpass the great six families' young masters?!"
The king held the document and read about Shion with a faint smile.
"He did a lot... especially against us."
Trai said,
"Yes. His master was the main reason for the failure of the Dark Crows' attack. He was also at the Neumann Family's remnants at that time. And he was the main reason for the fall of the Ranus Family, who were our allies, even though they were his family."
"..."
No one could speak.
When someone encounters something strange, they become cautious.
And Shion could create that feeling even in the royal palace.
Trai smiled.
"There's also the successor of that bastard, Kaine Sano—Glass Sano."
When they heard the name Sano, they trembled.
None of them could forget Kaine's presence and pressure.
"And we have Kin Light. He isn't that special, but his art is."
Then he brought up the final outstanding student.
"Finally, we have Sol Hart. The successor of Solan Neumann and the Spirit Magic."
The rest of the documents were about other talents, but they weren't like the ones mentioned.
King Natu said,
"Whatever it takes, I want Kin Light dead."
"What?"
Trai was confused. He thought King Natu would want to start with Glass, the successor of Kaine, or Shion, who had destroyed many of their arrangements and plans.
But the Big Four understood why.
"The successor of the Master of the Moon's Art must die!"
A killing aura surrounded Trai, who was confused and afraid.
"If you kill him, I will reward you. And you mustn't fail."
Trai breathed with difficulty and nodded.
---
Trai went back to his province with a layer of sweat covering his face.
"My lord! There's a merchant inside!"
Trai gestured and entered his palace, heading to the office where the merchant was waiting.
"What happened there?"
The merchant asked directly.
Trai lowered his head and said,
"The Amoritchi Kingdom will begin its operation to kill the talents of the Ostiferos Kingdom, and we can use them to kidnap the targets and leave fake corpses, throwing everything on Amoritchi."
"Good."
The merchant said,
"I want you to retreat when it comes to Shion Lan."
"Huh?"
Trai didn't expect that kind of request.
"Why?"
"Bel Vido has his eyes on that boy. If he discovers that we are targeting Shion, it will be the last day for the Chameleon Forces."
The Chameleon Forces, which belonged to the Ishtar Kingdom, had begun their operation to kidnap the talents of Ostiferos. But Bel Vido's request was unexpected, so they would reevaluate Shion before laying a finger on him.
The merchant continued,
"When we sent the information about Shion to Master Bel, he threw it away and asked for two names."
The merchant gave Trai a paper with two names written on it.
The Head of the Shi.
The Radiant Star.
"Who are these?"
Trai asked.
"They are two names we have to search for. I think someone like Bel wouldn't give another glance to someone ordinary, and these names are connected to Shion. We have to reevaluate Shion Lan."
The merchant wanted to leave, but something caught his attention—a flower placed in the office.
That was strange.
He had been waiting there, but he hadn't noticed it until the moment he was about to leave.
"Trai, what is this?"
Trai smiled and said,
"That was from an old woman. I can tell you that she was like a lucky charm."
"How?"
"I was about to get captured by the soldiers before, with evidence of betrayal, but she saved me and helped me escape."
He continued,
"She hated the soldiers because they were the reason her son died. So I bought some flowers."
"I must say, they are beautiful."
But they didn't know that someone was watching them through those flowers.