At noon, Lain went to the clan's main hall.
He was dressed in a white uniform with blue embroidery, wearing a cape with the clan emblem attached to it.
And on the left side of his chest, a blue emblem of a blade stabbing into a sea-creature was etched on his outfit—the symbol of the Solmere Family.
Three members of the Leviathan Squad, the vice-captain included, escorted him there.
'Leaving the Edge, which was becoming more dangerous by the day… the Captain would rather do this and spend most of her coming days at the Edge.
'Heh, how fitting of her…'
Lain thought as he walked through the long hallway, ignoring the stationed guards that were giving him varying looks.
Soon, he got to a tall, heavy-looking double door.
Etched onto its surface was the logo of a large shadowy creature embracing a small, water-covered planet teeming with crawling beasts.
"The young master, Lain Solmere is here!"
A hall with a high-domed ceiling was revealed. At the far end stood a platform with seven high-backed chairs, one of which was especially large and empty.
Six individuals, clad in high-quality outfits bearing both the Clan's and their respective family symbols, sat in the chairs.
Kaida was one of them, but instead of the Solmere family emblem, her Squad's logo was present.
At the sides of the hall were rows of seats for other elite members of the clan who were also called for this gathering.
And of course, for a setting like this, there were people there chattering amongst themselves as they saw Lain.
Among the audience was Cira, Liana, and Lain's childhood friend, Anatalia.
At the center of the room was the logo of the clan and that was where Lain calmly walked to.
As he did, one of the council members, a bulky man with jet-black hair and silver-grey eyes said in a simple tone, "Silence."
Everyone did as instructed. This man, after all, was currently seen as the strongest in the Clan.
He was Zacharia Von White.
Leading a squad of his own, he also fought at the Edge and was known to be at the Silver stage with a Grade 1 Heart of his own.
Basically, he had the most feats.
"Glory to Nalmere," he said, putting his hand on his chest.
Then the whole hall echoed with "Glory to Nalmere."
As the hall descended into silence, Zacharia asked, "Why have you summoned us, Lain?"
Lain's eyes twitched.
'He's the only person who outright doesn't acknowledge me as the Heir.'
Tilting his head upwards, Lain cleared his throat as he repeated lines he had practised.
"Yesterday, I survived an assassination attempt."
He paused upon this line, letting the impact sink in for those who were yet to know the truth.
"Outsiders, who want to build themselves on the Nalmere's honour, have begun attacking us.
"And as their first victim, I will not be taking it lightly."
Spreading his arms, Lain raised his voice.
"Those who dare seek Nalmere's downfall.
"Those who would drench our banner in ancient blood—
"Let;s let them know: we will not kneel.
"We will show them their place."
Squeezing his palms, Lain slowed his tempo as he said:
"I declare war on them."
Murmurs couldn't be suppressed as the watchers voiced various concerns.
"War? We don't even have enough power to defend the Edge!"
"What's he spitting!"
"It's clear he has finally lost it! His trauma has gotten to him!"
"We can't have a madman as the heir…"
Lain stood indifferent to the murmurs as he watched the reactions of the Elders.
The Elder in charge of finance, a bald man with a large moustache, had his mouth open, as if trying to understand.
The two strongest warriors, Zacharia and a man with dark green hair and black eyes, Dean, wore a slightly shocked yet calm look and a disdainful look respectively.
The elder with fair skin, Elena, furrowed her brows as she attempted to use her hand to cover her shocked face.
And a man with long blonde hair, Dino, was smiling with satisfaction as he rested comfortably on his chair.
'None of them are particularly standing out as potential traitors. That's to be expected.
'Even Kaida, who survived the longest after the clan's destrcution, never discovered the traitor in the novel.'
A loud voice suddenly vibrated through the hall, attracting everyone's attention.
"How dare a weakling utter such words?" Dean said, clearly angered. "Your incompetence is a part of why the clan is being belittled. You are our weakness!"
As he concluded, he concentrated his aura on where Lain stood, making Lain fall down with a yelp.
Fixed on one knee, Lain struggled to say, "I… have… more to… say."
Even most of the audience was slightly affected by this, forcing them to look down momentarily.
Kaida, wearing a slight frown, turned to Dean and let out a pressure of her own. "Stop."
"This is no time to play family favourites, Kaida," Dean said, his annoyance barely concealed. "This child has been given too much freedom!"
Kaida's pressure only grew heavier to suppress Dean's, a loud roar sounding from the forests beyond the town.
With an unwavering glare, she repeated, "Stop."
Standing up from his seat and breaking the tension, Zacharia said, "Let the boy speak."
Dean, without enough power to challenge both Zacharia and Kaida, acquiesced.
As the pressure on him suddenly washed away, Lain caught his breath.
"Lain," Zacharia's stern and deep voice resounded throughout the hall, "Those words aren't meant to be uttered lightly. War is not meant to be taken lightly"
As Lain stood back up, he dusted his clothes calmly as he replied.
"I'm aware. As someone who has acted unbefitting of the title of Heir, I'm acting foolish."
"But," Before anyone could say, he added sharply, "I plan to change that."
Elena, the clan's strategist, blurted with curiosity as she furrowed her brows.
"And how do you plan to do that?"
'Calm down, miss. I'm heading there,' Lain hissed inwardly as he replied:
"My declarations are yet to end."
Realizing she had spoken her thoughts, Elena's frown deepened.
He took his white cape and cradled it, then let out a long exhale.
A slight chuckle was heard from Dino as he muttered, "This is getting interesting."
Ignoring him, Lain said:
"As the current heir of the Ancient Clan, the Nalmere Clan, hear me.
"I declare a Clan Head Succession War… and I sentence myself to exile."