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Ethan stirred awake to the gentle caress of the morning sun on his face and the delightful chorus of birdsong. In his groggy state, he attempted to sit up but was quickly reminded of his injuries as a searing pain shot through his body. It all came back to him then, the incident of the last night, the murder, and the blood.

Hearing his rather loud groan, Maya and Sera, the two former slaves and currently Ethan\'s personal maids—entered the room.

Seeing Ethan awake, the worried expression on their faces turned to one of delight as they hastily moved to support him.

"Agh, tell me… What occurred last night?" Ethan asked with a muffled groan, holding his head in pain, his face contorting as he grabbed onto Maya and Sera\'s hand to sit up.

Maya and Sera looked at each other in confusion, nodding silently at each other presumably communicating in their storage way, they did not speak for a while making Ethan impatient.

"Young Master, you were brought in by the knights late at night. You were unconscious, covered in blood, and severely injured. His Grace sent for the Royal Physician to treat you but he hasn\'t come out of the office room ever since. We don\'t know what happened but His Grace has asked for you to visit him when you wake up." Maya said.

"Alright, you may leave. I will get ready and visit him." Ethan replied as he sighed seeing himself wrapped up in bandages.

"But… Young Master… You are injured. Let us help you!" Both Maya and Sera exclaimed in worry.

"That will not be necessary. Go now!" Ethan blurted coldly in agitation, making the two girls flinch in fright.

Seeing the frightened expressions on the girl\'s face, Ethan realized that he was behaving wrongly. His gaze softened as he said, "Alright, you should go. I can handle it myself. Just have my clothes prepared."

The girls hesitated for a moment but then seeing Ethan\'s ashen complexion, they nodded, bowed, and then left.

\'Huuu, how could I ever explain to them that my mental age is not seven? Well, I wouldn\'t mind the other elder beautiful maids helping me out…\' thought Ethan inwardly.

"Damn! What am I thinking?" Ethan exclaimed as he shook his head violently as if throwing away the distracting thoughts.

Groaning and cursing, Ethan managed to prop himself off the bed as he wasted no further time and immediately got ready to meet his father.

Despite the deliberate, and painful injuries he had made on his body, Ethan washed his body with warm water and rinsed his teeth with the paste of lemon leaves and herbal tree branches. Ethan always hated this inconvenience but it was very important to keep himself clean and watch out for hygiene. Who knew what kind of bizarre germs and viruses were lurking about in this new world?

Anyhow, after cleaning himself, Ethan wore the clothes that Maya had left for him. The clothes were nothing special just as Ethan liked them to be. coincidentally, his clothes weren\'t fancy which was appropriate considering that Alier had died to protect him. Or at least that\'s what people would think anyways.

Seeing himself in the mirror, Ethan thought that he was getting increasingly more handsome by the day, despite his frail complexion.

Ethan chuckled to himself thinking that he was truly having some obnoxious thoughts today. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, recalling the events of last night.

He hoped that Albaer wouldn\'t cause trouble and act as he had expected. Ethan narrowed his eyes looking at his reflection in the mirror as he briefly summarized his plans.

\'I\'m sure he will have doubts. He is in the end, a Duke, and not a joker. It would be stupid of me if I start thinking that he is so incompetent as to believe a made-up lie completely without doubts. Alas, it is often when humans believe what they want to believe.\' muttering inwardly, a bitter smile appeared on Ethan\'s face as he left to meet with Albaer.

Leaving his room, Ethan began making his way toward the inner part of the mansion where the office was located.

Although Ethan was ignoring all the concerned and anxious glances that were being shot toward him, he couldn\'t ignore the tense atmosphere that had enveloped the entire mansion.

The servants, slaves, and maids were afraid and anxiety was written all over their faces. So much so that they did not even dare meet Ethan\'s gaze.

A few minutes passed, and after passing by the innermost square of the mansion, Ethan reached the office.

Albert who was solemnly standing in front of the door worriedly pacing left and right jolted as he saw Ethan. He bowed deeply and shot a meaningful glance at Ethan as he pushed the door rather impatiently, gesturing to Ethan to go inside.

Ethan did not stand on ceremony as he understood Albert\'s predicament. It seemed like Alier\'s death wasn\'t yet announced but Ethan did not believe that Albert was unbeknownst to it.

Ethan entered the office and saw the familiar scene. However, it looked a lot more depressing this time around. The curtains were closed, blanketing the office with murky darkness, the scent of alcohol lingered in the air as the entire office was disheveled. Papers were spread out all over the place and Albaer was sitting on his chair while holding his head. His hair was messy and it looked like he hadn\'t slept the entire night at all.

"Father…" Ethan called out in a sorrowful tone.

Albaer flinched hearing Ethan\'s voice as he raised his head. To no surprise, dark bags were sagging below his eyes, his radiant and energetic face looked gloomy and depressed as if he had lost all hope.

"E- Ethan… Son… Are you well?"

"Yes… Father."

"Tell me… What happened last night? Tell me in detail without missing anything. The knights told me that an isolation barrier isolated them from you in a very timely manner. Is that true?" Albaer asked with reddened eyes, his tone carrying a hint of agitation.

Ethan squinted his eyes as he held his head in deep thought. Albaer did not interrupt, simply looking at him with a despondent gaze giving him the time to gather his thoughts.

Ethan shivered as if the events of the last night had given him great fright. But then soon composed himself giving off an impression of a brave and calm demeanor. He then opened his mouth and began reciting everything that had happened with intricate details, with a firm tone.

Ethan began recalling everything, from his performing the ancestral rites to when the barrier suddenly appeared in front of him and Alier isolating them from the knights while dozens of enemies were lurking in wait for ambush. Ethan then told Albaer that the men announced themselves as the cultists to which Albaer raised his brow, his gaze carrying doubt and flames of rage.

Ethan also recalled how the six knights had bravely defended him, he did not forget to exaggerate the prowess of the ambushers. Then Ethan went on to explain how Alier protected him inside the ice dome and went on to engage the leader of the ambushers in battle.

"I could hear screams and cries of men and enemies near me. I couldn\'t see anything due to the ice dome around me but I could feel the knights clashing nearby. Then I could feel the scorching heat and the cold in the air simultaneously. The temperatures would drop and rise every five seconds, but the heat, or the flame, never reached me. Gradually, the fighting intensified even more as I heard the farewell war cries of the knights one by one. The ice dome was being pounded and I feared that it would break anytime. But it didn\'t. Every time a knight died, the enemies would make noise, they would laugh callously and bombard the other knights even more ferociously. As the knights died one by one, the pounding on the ice dome increased tremendously, causing cracks to form on its surface. At one point I suspected that all six knights were slain and feared that it would be just a matter of time before… Even… I…"

Ethan said as he shook momentarily, taking a pause he breathed deeply and continued.

"But then it suddenly began snowing, then I heard some booming and piercing noises coming from the forest. Soon after, the ice dome broke apart on its own as I saw my uncle coming from the forest, a dagger plunged into his chest, covered with many wounds and scars. He looked frail but appeared in front of me in a blink of an eye."

"The ambushers seemed enraged as they realized that their leader who had been battling uncle was nowhere to be found, about twenty of them brutally attacked uncle Alier at the same time. It was then that uncle engaged with the enemies in a bitter struggle. But he.. he… Despite suffering countless injuries… he… Kept me safe. However, during the desperate skirmish, I suffered some injuries, making me faint. What happened after that…  I do not know." Ethan explained in a muffled tone, a few sobs escaping from his mouth.

A long silence ensued as Albaer\'s gaze turned even more saddened. He clenched his fists, the fingernails scraping his skin.

"After the protective ice dome broke apart, did he use the power of the blessing?" Albaer asked in a hoarse voice as he coughed lightly.

"No… After that, he seemed pale and weak. He was covered in blood and only fought using his sword."  Ethan replied, gritting his teeth and clenching his fists.

"I knew something was wrong with him… He denied it many times but perhaps he had suffered from a heart demon, weakening his elemental essence. The contradictory Elemental of Fire must have been too strong to defend against. But I know my brother well. He managed to kill the enemy leader despite the odds but suffered a grave injury. In the end, he… He couldn\'t make it despite slaughtering all the enemies." Albaer mattered to himself with a bitter smile.

"Ever since we were children, he was always like this. He always kept his feelings to himself…  I knew that he had changed ever since Luceryc\'s mother died. From then on, he acted cheerfully but I knew that it was just a facade… But I neglected this, thinking that it would be fine eventually."

"It was my mistake, I underestimated the enemies. I could have never imagined that they would use such a special artifact to get to you. I don\'t understand some things… But it doesn\'t matter now." Albaer muttered to himself depressingly.

Albaer raised his head, a determined yet murderous glint flashing by his gaze as he stood up stumblingly.

"I am leaving… I must avenge my brother. I will find every single one of those cultists scum and kill them all!" Albaer exclaimed with rage as he narrowed his eyes.

"F- father… Will you be fine? What of the Duchy?" Ethan blurted with hesitation and anxiety wearing an expression of uncertainty on his face.

"I will be fine… And as for the Duchy… I have been watching you as of late. I know of your activities in the slums and the marketplace. Miss Earlene told me recently that you are capable. She showed me the test papers that you took, along with your writing. It\'s time for you to gain some real experience yourself. Your mother and Albert both will be here to help you. Do not worry, my son." Albaer said as for the first time, a gentle smile appeared on his face before completely disappearing.

"Yes, I understand," Ethan said obediently, hints of anxiety, uncertainty, and resolve lingering over his face.

Albaer nodded nonchalantly, his expression becoming stoic as he swept through his disheveled hair and moved to leave the office. Before leaving, he abruptly stopped and asked without turning around, "Have you… Comprehended your Ancestral Blessing?"

Ethan flinched in surprise at the sudden question, narrowing his eyes he contemplated and answered a second later, "Not yet."

"I see…" Albaer muttered plainly and left the office.