The moment the wolves moved to attack, the Master-level woman from the Lotus Union narrowed her eyes, filled with murderous intent—but almost instantly, five terrifying killing auras surrounded her from all sides, as two ethereal-looking women appeared at her sides.
"Make a single move, and it'll be the last thing you ever do."
Eleonora spoke in an icy voice, just as the other three Master-level members of the Jade Lotus Union ignited their mana, causing the very air to tremble. At the same time, an angry male voice spoke coldly—though it could only be heard by the Master-levels present.
"Are you treating us like nothing? Or are you declaring war on our Jade Lotus Union?"
"Do you think your pathetic excuse of a faction scares anyone?"
Sigrún quickly replied in a cold voice, while turning her gaze toward a man who appeared to be in his forties, with long pale blue hair and features typical of the Lotus Union. He wore an elegant black robe, characteristic of cultivators. Sigrún then added in a mocking tone.
"I'd love to see you stand up from that chair and declare war—go on, show me if you've got the guts."
"A tiger that hides its claws isn't a sick cat, Sigrún. Don't press your luck."
At that moment, another Master-level from the Lotus Union—this one standing, appearing to be around twenty-five years old, with long black hair tipped in silver and holding a beautiful black Jian sword behind his back—spoke with a cold tone and a sharp gaze.
At the same time, the killing intents of the Master-levels from the Arcane Order and the Jade Lotus Union intertwined in a silent battle, imperceptible to anyone below their level. But the winner of that 'fight' was far too obvious.
The Order had twice as many Master-levels present—the other side didn't stand a chance. However, just then, the killing intents of the three Master-levels from the Meridian Federation flared up, more or less evening the scales, though the fact that they were one short was still noticeable.
"I suppose it was to be expected—rats of the same kind always gather."
At that moment, Eleonora spoke with a scornful tone as she turned her gaze toward the Meridian Federation group, which consisted of two men and one woman. Among them, a man with golden eyes stood out, staring back at her coldly.
But just then, Sigrún turned to admire her beloved disciple, who had calmly stopped his young wolves from devouring the idiot who clearly didn't value his life—now simply eating a cookie as he watched his pathetic excuse of an opponent flee in shame.
That scene was so endearing to Sigrún that it completely erased her anger and killing intent, while a smile full of pride bloomed on her beautiful face. With a tone of utter smugness, she commented.
"But thinking it over… it's a common mistake among us youngsters—not fully understanding the struggles of decrepit old folks. Maybe I was being too harsh. What do you think, Eli?"
Sigrún's sudden words nearly made all the Master-levels present stumble—some couldn't help but glance at her in slight disbelief. It was genuinely difficult for them to understand how that troublesome woman could switch moods so drastically. Not even someone with bipolar disorder could manage something like that, which inevitably led the Master-levels from the Lotus Union and the Meridian Federation to exchange confused looks among themselves.
Meanwhile, Eleonora had to restrain herself from bursting into laughter at the sight of her sworn sister's expression—one that resembled a proud child reveling in a mischievous act. She could easily imagine what Sigrún was thinking: trying to imitate Erik and "win with style" instead of resorting to brute force as she usually did.
"That may be true, although I think it's important to set a precedent—that no one messes with our disciple or what belongs to him. Otherwise, they'll face a very painful death." Eleonora quickly added in a calm voice, directing a sharp gaze at the woman beside her. Sigrún nodded in agreement and replied.
"You're absolutely right. It's important to set a precedent. Do you think we should do something special to make it even clearer?"
"There's no need to do anything else." Thalia quickly interjected in a composed voice, wanting to prevent the troublemaking duo from causing a scene. She then added in a firm tone.
"Erik is a direct disciple of our Arcane Order, and if there's one thing that defines us, it's that we protect our own. And everyone knows the Arcane Order has never feared a war—no matter who the enemy is."
"Hehehe, as expected from my granddaughter."
At that moment, the cheerful voice of the Director echoed in the minds of all the Master-levels present, and immediately afterward, the figures of the four Legendary-level individuals materialized before them. The Director crossed his arms and looked directly at both Aelric and Xiuwen—the Regents of the Meridian Federation and the Jade Lotus Union, respectively—before asking.
"You're absolutely right. If someone lays a hand on one of our own, we'll crush everything in our path. So if it's a fight you want, now's the time to say it."
Though the Director's voice sounded casual, Aelric and Xiuwen couldn't help but narrow their eyes slightly. While it went unnoticed by most, those of similar power could feel it clearly—an aura as sharp as a blade surrounding him, ready to erupt at any moment. And that aura made one thing perfectly clear: he was dead serious. Which made things very problematic.
While Lysander wasn't vastly stronger than either of them in terms of raw power, both Legendary-level figures were painfully aware of one factor that changed the situation entirely—experience. Battle experience far beyond what either of them, or any other human Legendary-level, could even begin to imagine.
Even though no one at their level lacked experience in life-and-death combat—after all, their rise to power had been anything but peaceful—Lysander was in a league of his own. He had committed the most reckless act any human could dare to undertake… and not only returned alive, but much stronger than before. Lysander had dared to explore the universe on his own.
Although none of the Legendary-level beings knew for certain what Lysander experienced during his journey through the universe, what they did know was that he not only gained overwhelming power—reaching the Legendary level, as he had only been a Master-Peak when he left. Also, his technique and combat skill allowed him to fight all three of them at once without losing. Moreover, from his journey, he also brought back a certain terrifying monster that made the Arcane Order literally impregnable.
But without a doubt, the one who felt most uneasy at Lysander's sudden seriousness was none other than Aelric. After all, provoking Lysander a little was usually harmless—the guy might fight a bit or, at worst, swindle some resources and let things go. But a serious Lysander was a whole different matter. There was a reason he looked like the oldest of the four, despite being the youngest. And Aelric could still hear the warning of that red-haired monster echoing in his mind.
"Old man, while it's a common mistake for us youngsters not to understand the hardships of you decrepit elders, this time I like your style—let's start a war and show them who's boss."
As the tension among the Legendary-levels quickly rose, Sigrún spoke with a cheerful tone, hands on her hips, while Eleonora chuckled softly beside her, and Thalia facepalmed in exasperation. She truly couldn't understand how that troublemaking blonde could turn Erik's sharp and clever retort into such a dumb and reckless insult.
"Hehe, that's a great line—I like it."
For his part, the Director turned to look at Sigrún with an amused smile, almost like a father watching the antics of his mischievous daughter. That made Sigrún laugh in delight, and she quickly replied in a voice full of smug pride, puffing out her chest.
"Right? Totally worthy of my Erik."
"We should find a good calligrapher and have it framed." The Director responded cheerfully, which made Sigrún's eyes light up. She nodded quickly and replied.
"That's a great idea, old man—seriously, you come up with the best stuff."
Meanwhile, the others present exchanged confused looks, unsure where all the fighting spirit had suddenly gone. But the Legendary-levels understood perfectly well—this was Lysander's way of offering them a graceful exit. Though, of course, he'd likely show up later to swindle them as usual, so they'd better hide their truly valuable treasure before he arrived.
Similarly, Eleonora and Thalia couldn't help but chuckle a little. While Sigrún could be impulsive, she was far from foolish. Knowing the Director well, she offered him an excuse to deescalate the fight. After all, even though she would kill and dance on the corpse if anyone ever laid a hand on her Erik, he had already won—utterly defeating his opponent. There was no need to sour his victory with a greater conflict, or worse, make him feel guilty about it.
As the Director and Sigrún began a lighthearted debate about how to frame the phrase, the beautiful blonde Master-level couldn't help but feel her heartache—a sentiment shared by Eleonora. After all, the mockery directed at their Erik for lacking a surname still stung deeply. It struck a nerve like few things could because it was a wound they had been avoiding for many years now.
That insult tore at their hearts and nearly drove them to madness—especially Sigrún. After all, she was the one who gave Erik his name when he didn't have one. And at the time, since she still needed to verify his backstory, she refrained from giving him a surname, knowing how delicate a matter that could be across the galaxy.
But as time passed, that sweet child became a handsome and captivating young man who ended up stealing her heart. And Erik's lack of a surname began to weigh on her more and more, filling her with regret for not having given him one back then. At the same time, the three of them—she, Eleonora, and Seraphina—wanted Erik to choose a surname for himself—one that would truly represent him. After all, that surname would one day be carried by their future children.
The problem was that reason and emotion don't always align. While rationally, they wanted Erik to choose a surname of his own—just as Sigrún had done, taking one in honor of her master and adoptive mother—the pain and shame she felt for never giving a last name to the one she loved, who had once lacked even a first name, didn't lessen in the slightest.
…
…
…
At Erik's table—where the little 'war' between Master-levels had gone completely unnoticed by everyone except Seraphina, who had pulled out a full plate of ultra-special cookies to spoil her young master—Zoe looked at Erik with sparkling eyes and said in a voice full of admiration.
"You were amazing, Erik. You completely destroyed him."
"It was just a casual conversation, nothing special." Erik replied in good spirits as he reached for one of the ultra-special cookies. At that moment, Elara spoke up with a delighted smile.
"Don't be so humble. That was honestly the first time I've seen someone lead another person around by the nose like that."
"Oh? You noticed?" Erik turned to look at her with a playful smile as he asked, to which Elara cheerfully replied.
"Not at first, but when I saw your smile and heard your next response, I figured that's what was going on."
"Well, the guy was throwing around 'truths', so I just returned the favor." Erik said with a laugh, then broke into genuine laughter.
Erik commented playfully, then laughed—a moment when Elara and Zoe exchanged a glance, a particular sparkle in their eyes. Meanwhile, Chen stared at the star-haired boy in surprise; he truly found it hard to grasp how someone who rarely spoke with others could be so eloquent—an absolute mystery.
(Maybe I should read more… Erik is always doing it. Maybe that's what I'm missing…)
As Chen reflected on the path his life was taking, Erik turned to look at his beautiful fellow disciples and spoke in a more serious tone.
"But setting that aside, things have gotten a bit complicated, so... are you still sure you want to team up with me?" Erik asked doubtfully, then casually pointed toward the group from the Lotus Union and added.
"Those guys want to skin me alive."
***
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