Throughout the discussion, nobody talked about Protector Avin's investigation leading to the Rellion Family. It was obvious that they would be in trouble soon. So, why did nobody mention it? The laymen sees the trees, but the expert observes the forest. The Engelsheft Families were not as united as they seemed! The Lanark and Winhelm Families were the strongest Engelsheft Families. Since they were joined by marriage, their strength had grown to eclipse every other family. They were like the suns at noon! Everything paled in comparison. And their ambitions did not end there. The two sages wanted to consolidate their authority and force the other Engelsheft Families into submission. The Conquestian did not have children and he was already old. When he dies, the two sages would inherit his position. They would become the rulers of the Zino Kingdom! Hence, they could not tolerate the existence of Protector Avin and the Arcellius Family!
As for the Arkfell Family, they were in an awkward position. They were considered the third strongest family, right under the Lanark and Winhelm Families, but after losing Ten Dawn Rosemary, they did not have any strong Arcanists to support it. The core of an Engelsheft Family still rested in its Arcanists. Without them, they could not carry on their Bloodlines. And once this cycle begins, it would be hard to stop. Externally, the other families were eager to exploit this weakness and take them down. They were in a dangerous spot! Lord Denno faced extreme pressure from all sides. So, he wanted to negotiate with the Hochlaegen Families under Protector Avin. If he could appease them with some wealth, that would be for the best. The Arkfell Family was rather affluent. He easily could afford their demands.
Unlike the Arkfell Family, the Cisvernia Family did have many promising Arcanists in the younger generation. Lord Aster Cisvernia was one of them, having Half-Condensed Drop Core Level. He was fairly popular. Many believed his breakthrough into Condensed Drop was guaranteed. And aside from him, there were many Peak Gaseous Fog Arcanists in the family. It was just a thin barrier that stopped them from advancing to Half-Condensed Drop. So, while they did lose Ten Dawn Iris, the impact was not as grave as the Arkfell Family. Assuming they developed steadily, their future looked bright. And most importantly, their matriarch, Lady Alice, once taught the Welgen Family's matriarch! Although it was many years ago, they were once teacher and student. That made the ties between the two families much closer. The Arkfell Family was particularly concerned about this alliance.
The Welgen Family was solidly in the middle tier of the Engelsheft Families. They rarely stood out and mostly kept to themselves. This made them very forgettable. People often overlooked their existence. But because of this, they were very stable internally. Although they lost a Ten Dawn, Lady Solis Welgen was rapidly displaying her genius and splendor. She had Half-Condensed Core Drop, and an excellent appearance and lovable personality. Her immense popularity pushed the Welgen Family into the spotlight! Her mother, Lady Joanna, was the matriarch of the Welgen Family. She was excited to see her daughter grow. At the same time, the threat of Protector Avin and the Arcellius Family was pushed to the back of her mind. She quickly forgot about it, only remembering to send a representative for this meeting at the last second.
Then there was the Vensire and Rellion Families. These two pitiful families were duking it out at the bottom, doing everything they could to stay afloat. They were quite miserable. The Vensire Family used to have Ten Dawn Tengon until he was mysteriously assassinated at home. Nobody could find the culprit to this day. Many rumors swirled in the city. Some thought that he committed suicide. Others believed that people in the Vensire Family killed him. These rumors were baseless, and probably spread by the other Engelsheft Families, but they managed to degrade the entire family's reputation. Lord Kensus, the patriarch, was also a meek individual. He did not have the decisiveness necessary to lead. His representative was the same, being the perfect fence sitter.
The Rellion Family was the most awkward. They were arguably the weakest Engelsheft Family, a notch below even the Vensire Family. They had no Ten Dawns, and no one promising from the next generation. It was apparent they were one foot in the grave already. One small push, and they would fall from grace. The powerful Hochlaegen Families were happy to see this, doing everything in their power to make them collapse. The position of Engelsheft could become theirs! However, the other Engelsheft Families did not wish for that to happen. A weak Rellion Family was easier to control than a new family, so the Engelsheft Families worked behind the scenes to prop them up. It was a game where the Rellion Family was stuck in the middle, helpless to dictate their own fate. This was bad enough, but they had to go and anger Protector Avin. Their guts were truly inflated!
This was actually related to Freon. When he was in university, he had two friends: the quiet Yuna, and the boisterous Gunther. Freon and Yuna did not realize this, but Gunther was a scheming individual. He approached Yuna for her hidden Bloodline. If they had children, then their Bloodlines could mix. There was a chance of a powerful mutation! With it, his family could rise from their Hochlaegen status. They could vie to become an Engelsheft Family! The basis for an Engelsheft Family was in their Bloodline after all. This was his plan, and he tried to court Yuna in every way; however, the girl only had eyes for Freon. It was like he was invisible. This made him deeply resentful. He was an accomplished Arcanist, and he had a good background. What did Freon have that he did not?
These feelings boiled over when Protector Avin revealed Freon and Nassandra's background. They were of the Arcellius Family, a legendary Engelsheft Family! All of the sudden, it was like heaven and earth turned over. Gunther's background became a joke and Freon's status towered over him! Freon did not care, but Gunther did. He saw his hope of courting Yuna and becoming an Engelsheft Family dwindle in front of him. He was driven into a corner. To prevent this, he sought help from his father, the patriarch of the Paralun Hochlaegen Family. This father and son had the same ambitions. Their family was a branch family to the Rellion Family, and they had many interactions. Using one of their favors, they convinced soldiers from the Rellion Family to go and kill Freon!
They might have succeeded, were it not for Protector Avin's intervention. Even when weakened, he was a force to be reckoned with. Gunther was shocked to discover the attack failed, and the soldiers were annihilated. The captain of the assault demanded answers, and learned that Gunther hid the truth, that the person they attacked was Protector Avin, the protector of that legendary Arcellius Family! This terrified Gunther's father and the captain. This was someone who should not be angered! The consequences would go beyond the small Paralun Hochlaegen Family. It would even implicate the Rellion Engelsheft Family! In his fury, the captain killed both father and son. Even in death, Gunther did not understand the gravity of what he had done. To remove their traces, the manor was burned, the family was killed, and everything was destroyed. The Paralun Family was thoroughly exterminated!
Despite that, the Rellion Family was worried about Protector Avin's retaliation. They contacted the Whispering Shadow's Third Shadow to assassinate the Arcellius Family. The Rellion Family was afraid, but the Third Shadow laughed boldly. After all, the Whispering Shadow was an existence that even the Alzar Kingdom had to be afraid of! Their power was unimaginable! And their opponent was an old man from a family destroyed fifty years ago. Sending the Third Hand was already overestimating his abilities. Unfortunately, in that fight, Protector Avin revealed his Blue Depth Core Level, caused the heavenly phenomenon, rescued Freon, and annihilated the Third Hand! Later, when he wanted to investigate the Whispering Shadow, they had been wiped out by the Alzar Kingdom. This kept the Rellion Family from Protector Avin's notice for a while. However, the Rellion Family's patriarch knew this would not last. Eventually, the truth would be exposed!
Currently, Sage Pannark knew everything, and wanted to sacrifice the Rellion Family to probe Protector Avin. The Arkfell Family was concerned about their own affairs, so they did not care. The Cisvernia Family was ambiguous in their stance, while the Welgen Family thought little of the Arcellius Family. The Vensire Family was rivals with the Rellion Family, so they would not help. They might even kick them while they were down! So, the Rellion Family did not have any allies in this conversation. The representative was frustrated, yet there was nothing they could do.