On the evening our guests arrived in the city, it was quite breezy. A young, beautiful woman and a young man with a limp were walking towards their home. The man's face and eyes were swollen, and he could barely see. The woman was helping him.
"Damn you, Kasuur."
Evra wanted to cry at that moment, but with Maria by his side, all he could do was curse Kasuur.
'Ahh! I got beaten so badly in front of her!'
It was hard not to suspect that Kasuur had done this on purpose. He had already seen Kasuur chasing women around the city. It shouldn't have been surprising that he'd set his sights on Maria. This was the best way for Kasuur to eliminate his love rival.
Maria glanced at him. She gave Evra a bitter smile before releasing his arm.
"I'm going home from here. Are you sure you don't want me to accompany you?"
Evra shook his head. He couldn't even look at her.
"I've been embarrassed enough today. I don't need to bother you anymore."
Evra and Maria said their goodbyes and set off. Even though their homes were close to each other, they would eventually have to part ways.
Evra limped home, thinking about what had happened that day. He grew increasingly frustrated and wondered how he could get revenge on Kasuur and the man who had beaten him.
'Should I show some pity so that the older brother can beat them both up?'
Evra didn't have his older brother's talent. Although he had the same fighting spirit as his father and brother, Evra was weaker than most. He was beginning to realize that fighting alone wouldn't be enough to win battles he couldn't win.
"You little bastard! Did you really think you could defeat your father just because you reached the Sage Realm?"
At that moment, Evra heard voices. Fighting and noise. Shouting and screaming could be heard from outside the house. Despite the fact that the house had six bedrooms and a large garden, Evra had already heard the sounds of the conflict between his brother and father before he even entered the front yard. He frowned, shook his head, and sighed.
'Never mind. I shouldn't disturb him.'
He entered through the front door and saw them fighting inside. Their fists tore apart the walls, and even though they were restrained, they had to make a great effort not to destroy the house. Evra couldn't get close to them. He looked at them from afar. His expression grew even more sorrowful. Then, without a word, he left for his room. Yahut and Malehit ignored him anyway.
At the same time, a few doors away, a wise-looking figure—who was actually a sage—was watching them. He quietly listened to the noisy events from behind the window in his room. Yahut knew Baro would hear what was happening, yet he did nothing to stop it.
The sharp-faced city lord actually valued the father-son relationship. Once, Yahut and his wife, who was also a sage, encountered a monster in the forest at the pinnacle of the sage realm. While his wife was captured, Yahut fled like a coward. Malehit, who was only in the Core Realm at the time, had insulted his father and left home. These angry clashes flared up whenever they met.
"What should we do in such a situation?"
Suddenly, a voice came from the darkness. A thin, sweet voice. Yet it was warm. As Turna, the moon of Ferua III shining with Hades' rays, emerged from the clouds, its light entered the window and illuminated the face of the unidentified person.
With her short black hair and striking appearance, the young woman listening to her father was Maria. She approached her father the moment she entered the house and heard the fierce fight he was listening to. While Yahut had anticipated that Baro would hear them, he probably hadn't imagined that Maria would as well.
Baro stared at Maria, placed his hand on his chin, and looked thoughtful.
"It's Yahut's family matter. We don't need to get into it. If you're not talking about the argument..." the scholar mused. But when he saw his daughter tense up, he was reminded that she was only 16 years old.
"There's nothing to worry about."
Maria breathed a sigh of relief. For a moment, she'd thought that something involving the killing of Yahut would happen, and she'd been worried. She knew things had been getting increasingly complicated lately, especially now that her father had the chance to participate in the Star Path Tournament. While teaching her the ways of leadership, her father had constantly told her to break free from her emotions and obligations. Maria listened to him, but sometimes words weren't enough.
Baro noticed her relaxed state. A faint smile appeared on his face as he took a sip of wine.
"You seem relaxed," he said. Maria quickly wiped the expression off her face and tried to look calmer. But to her father, she looked happier than before.
"Do you like Yahut's talentless son?"
Compared to the city's other people, Evra might have been a prominent figure among the younger generation, but in the eyes of someone as talented as Baro, he was not worth considering. Now that the capital's geniuses had arrived, his incompetence was even more apparent.
Compared to the city's other people, Evra might have been a prominent figure among the younger generation, but in the eyes of someone as talented as Baro, he was not worth considering. Now that the capital's geniuses had arrived, his incompetence was even more apparent.
Maria reacted with surprise to these words. She had had romantic thoughts about Evra before, but only because they had been friends for a long time. Evra was a man. The opposite sex. Was it really surprising that she would think such a thing?
"No, but he's my friend. I don't want to smile beside him while plotting to kill his father behind his back."
Baro laughed. In that fleeting smile, it seemed as if Turna's white light had never reached him. His face seemed completely covered in darkness. Maria couldn't read the expression behind that smile.
"You must be very tired today. You should rest now. I still have work to do."
Maria smiled at her father, bowed her head, and left the room. Baro turned his head, and the light of Turna shining in the sky illuminated his face. His expression was much calmer now.
"We don't often do what we want. That's how we survive."
"My lord, I heard you calling me."
The moon had been enslaved by shadows again. A muffled voice called out to the city lord from the darkness of the room. Even though Baro was hosting someone else, the door hadn't been opened. It was as if the person in the darkness had always been there.
"It seems the ruins belong to the False Dragon," Baro said. A surprised voice rose from the darkness.
"This... how could the king allow a few sage young men to touch these remains?"
"Apparently, this is an inheritance, and the king's experts who could steal this inheritance are honored royal ancestors who would never do so. In that case, the king must have decided to abide by the terms of the False Dragon's inheritance."
There was silence in the darkness for a moment. Then, a voice with a hint of excitement rose from the darkness.
"If that's the case, maybe you meet the requirements. You're young and still within the realm of the sage."
Baro's face paled for a moment, but he quickly composed himself and took another sip from his glass. He sat up straight in his chair, clasped his hands together, and stared into the darkness.
"Unfortunately, I don't meet the requirements, but I'm not interested in this inheritance anyway. I still want my daughter to have a chance, though. With so many sages, it's difficult for her to have a chance. Even with the help of our little ally."
"Then what do you want me to do, my lord? Don't you expect a lowly being like me to kill these young lords? That would be like giving up my life."
Baro shook his head and opened a drawer in the corner of his desk. He pulled out a glowing needle from there. A surprised voice rose from the darkness.
"This—"
We both know it's not for you. It's too late for you, but not for your lineage. You can still do something."
There was a long silence.
"I don't think this is a good plan for you. You are the Lord of Yellow City. You're using me to gamble with an uncertain outcome. Someone will question this. Why are you doing this?"
The figure in the shadows thought Baro was taking too many risks. Was it because he was young? It wouldn't have surprised him if Baro had risen so high thanks to his talent. But he had never seen the qualities of a genius commander in Baro. He was just a sorrowful young man.
"If the tournament hadn't been moved to under 50, you might have been right. You're right that I was rebellious, but everything is different now. The heavens are giving me another chance to rise. To reclaim what I've lost... My daughter needs to grow up, and we both live for the same purpose." It shouldn't be surprising that I want her to be strong. You must understand."
Baro's hand lingered on the table for a moment, and then he looked into the darkness of the room. His earlier hesitation vanished.
"Therefore, I am prepared to offer you an even more intriguing proposition."