Free Web NovelChapter 150: Chapter 149: Seeing Family
Gaga’s wings tore the sky, carrying a low rumble of thunder as it circled above the castle.
Dusk coated the earth in an orange-red glow. The patrolling Guards were the first to look up, then the Long Spears in their hands fell to the ground with a CLANG.
"Mon... monster!"
"Gods! Is that a dragon?"
"To arms! To arms!!!"
The castle descended into Chaos. Bells tolled in a panicked rhythm as the guard corps swarmed the walls like startled ants. Archers drew their bowstrings, their hands trembling.
Servants screamed and scattered to hide.
Latour rushed to the highest point of the ramparts, Vincent close at his heels, their expressions utterly grave.
An Extraordinary pressure permeated the air, weighing down on everyone’s chest like a mountain and making it difficult to breathe.
The elite soldiers on the ramparts felt their legs give way; they lacked even the strength to lift their shields.
Even Latour, a Great Knight, felt his heart being squeezed by an invisible hand.
This level of Power was far beyond his comprehension.
"Father, it’s... it’s coming down!" Vincent’s voice trembled.
The colossal shadow blotted out the setting sun. Its wings kicked up a gale, making the banners snap violently and sending dust and debris flying everywhere.
Gaga slowly lowered its altitude, finally hovering in front of the castle’s main tower, level with the walls.
At that moment, everyone clearly saw the figure on its back.
A deep blue Wizard Robe, a gaze so calm it was almost indifferent, and that face...
Latour’s pupils contracted sharply.
Ignoring everyone, Ainoya pushed past the maid in front of her and shoved her way to the battlements.
She took one look, and her entire body froze.
Tears streamed down her face without warning...
"I... Ian?" Her voice was soft, as if afraid of shattering a dream. freēwebnovel.com
A dead silence fell over the wall.
Fear, confusion, disbelief... Everyone’s gaze was fixed on that figure.
Ian’s gaze swept across the wall, lingering on his parents’ and brother’s faces before he gave a slight nod.
Then, he took a step off Gaga’s back.
There was nothing beneath his feet, but he walked as if on invisible steps, steadily making his way toward the wall, one step at a time.
A Level One Wizard, walking on air.
The sight completely shattered the perceptions of every mortal present.
A ripple of thuds spread as people fell to their knees. The Guards dropped their weapons and prostrated themselves, too terrified to even raise their heads.
This was not a being they could comprehend or resist.
Ian landed a few steps in front of his father.
Latour opened his mouth, his Adam’s apple bobbed a few times, but no sound came out.
He looked at his son, his gaze filled with elation, shock, and a sense of unfamiliarity, which finally intertwined into a complex feeling of awe.
He instinctively wanted to step forward, but his feet froze. His fingers twitched helplessly.
In the end, this Count, known for his iron fist, bowed his head slightly before his own son, his posture taking on a hint of stiffness.
"Son... Ian," he corrected himself with difficulty.
Ian sighed to himself. ’Father’s stiffness makes me feel this invisible chasm between us more than any attack ever could.’
’Power brings status, but it also brings distance.’
Only Ainoya hadn’t changed.
She completely ignored everything around her; her eyes saw only her child.
She lunged forward, grabbing Ian’s arms and looking him over from head to toe, tears streaming endlessly down her face.
"You’re thinner... Have you been suffering out there? Are you hurt? All that matters is you’re back, you’re back..."
She rambled on, stroking his cheek, her fingers so careful they seemed afraid of breaking something.
The warmth of her concern was utterly pure.
Ian let his mother look him over, his icy expression softening. "Mother, I’m fine. I’m doing well."
He turned to his father, his voice calm once more. "Father, let’s talk inside."
Latour, as if waking from a dream, quickly stepped aside. "...Yes, yes, please, come in."
The castle’s great hall was brightly lit, but the atmosphere remained heavy.
All the servants had retreated to a safe distance, scared into silence. Only Latour, Ainoya, Vincent, and Ian remained.
Ian sat in the main seat. Gaga had shrunk down and was perched on the back of the chair next to him, its heterochromatic eyes curiously sizing up the mortal castle.
"...And that’s the situation."
After sitting down, Latour explained the family’s predicament as concisely as possible.
The pressure from Marquis Holden and the Minister of Finance, as well as the threats made by the butler who had visited that day.
His account was restrained, without much embellishment, but the pressure between the lines, and the humiliating contract that had already been drafted, said it all.
Vincent added a few details, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles turned white.
When they finished, Ian tapped a finger lightly on the arm of his chair.
"GAA." Gaga cawed, the feathers on its wings bristling slightly.
The temperature in the hall seemed to drop several degrees in an instant.
Latour and Vincent shivered, feeling a cold killing intent brush past their skin, making the hairs on their arms stand on end.
"Marquis Holden, Baihe City, the Minister of Finance, the Royal Capital."
"And the Great Knight under their command who handles the details, as well as... those wandering Wizard Apprentices who participated in the fight for the mine and might still be lingering nearby."
Ian’s voice was devoid of emotion. "Their locations. Do you know them all?"
"We do!" Vincent replied instantly.
He took out a map that had already been prepared and precisely marked several locations on it.
Ian glanced at it, committing it to memory.
"Wait for me here. I’ll be right back."
He stood up.
"Ian!" Ainoya grabbed his hand, her eyes full of worry.
"You... you have to be careful."
Ian squeezed his mother’s hand in return. "Don’t worry. This won’t take long."
He walked out to the terrace outside the hall. Gaga flew to him.
Its body swelled in the night wind, and in the blink of an eye, it had returned to its monstrous form with a wingspan of over fifteen meters.
Ian leaped onto its back.
"To Baihe City first."
"GAA!"
The massive black bird let out a long cry like the sound of tearing silk, and with a single beat of its wings, it soared into the sky.
In the span of a few breaths, it became a tiny dot on the horizon and vanished into the night.
In the castle, Latour supported his wife, gazing in the direction his son had disappeared, speechless for a long time.
He knew that after tonight, the fate of the Marcus Family was forever changed.
As for the fate of those jackals...
「Baihe City, the Marquis’s Mansion.」
Marquis Holden was in the banquet hall, entertaining several of his trusted Knights.
Fine wine and delicacies were served as they chatted and laughed, discussing how to divide the profits after "taking over" Black Stone Canyon.
"Five days. In another five days, if that stubborn old fool Marcus still doesn’t know what’s good for him, we’ll..."
The Marquis raised his glass, but before he could finish his sentence...
BOOM!
The magnificent ceiling of the banquet hall suddenly exploded, creating a massive hole. Splinters of wood, rubble, and fragments from the Crystal chandelier rained down like a storm.
A fierce wind poured in, extinguishing all the candles and the fire in the hearth.
Screams and Chaos filled the hall.
Through the dust and smoke, a figure in deep blue slowly descended, hovering in mid-air. Perched on his shoulder was a Raven with cold, heterochromatic eyes.
Moonlight shone down through the hole, illuminating Ian’s expressionless face.
"Which one of you is Holden?" His voice wasn’t loud, yet it cut through all the noise.
The Marquis was shielded by his Guards, both shocked and furious. "Who are you?! How dare you..."
