The head of the Jura family was in his carriage with his children, all of them extremely irritated—unlike him, who remained calm and seemed to enjoy the situation. Suddenly, his daughter, Ji Jura, exploded,
"I don't understand, Father! Why did you let him go after he insulted me like that?!"
Their father smiled and said, "It seems you still don't understand anything."
"Huh?!"
Ji immediately focused on him, and the head of the family turned to Grimm Jura and asked, "Don't you want to listen?"
Grimm replied, "I don't understand anything about flattery, politics, or such things."
Their father shook his head and said, "Even though you are both heirs of the Jura family, you are selfish fools."
"What?!" they both shouted at the same time as it was the first time they agreed on something.
Ji said, "How is that, Father?! We have never disappointed you before!"
The head of the family said, "First, when Shion Lan entered the palace, he found Grimm wandering alone without an escort despite my presence inside. This shows he does not respect anyone and does not care about anything. Then, when you intervened in the conversation, Ji, you tried to assert superiority over me. I was the one being addressed, yet you disrespected both of us. That made me look like a man who cannot control his children, and my daughter appeared to lack manners. Because of that, he immediately rejected the offer."
He looked at them and said, "You both have displayed the worst image of the Jura family in front of a newly rising third-rank noble. Do you not feel shame?"
However, a vein of anger appeared on Ji's forehead as she said, "But still… why didn't you break him until he apologized? Why didn't you threaten him?! You only pressured him a little and left as if nothing happened!"
The head of the family said, "Because I know he understands the rules. If we had pushed further, we would have been the ones to lose."
Ji was shocked. Grimm then spoke, "But… what exactly would we have lost? He's only a third-rank noble, and we are one of the Six Great Families! He's alone, and we are many! He's in the fourth level, while Ji—who is the weakest among us—is in the sixth level!"
The head of the family sighed in disappointment. "As expected… you only think with your muscles. I don't know why our ancestor chose you as heir."
The ancestor within Grimm tried to speak, but the head of the family continued, "And this is your fault too! You only taught him physical techniques, and now he shows off without thinking!"
"...!"
The ancestor fell silent again inside Grimm.
"Alright, alright!" Grimm said. "What rules are you talking about that would make us lose?"
"First," the head of the family said, "we did not send a letter informing Shion Lan of our visit."
Ji scoffed, "Since when do we need permission from juniors to enter?"
"Have you ever visited another house without informing them?" he asked.
Ji hesitated, "No… but I always visit other families!"
"How many families have you visited familiarly if they aren't your friends?" he asked.
Ji could not answer.
The head of the family continued, "Shion Lan has the right to refuse hosting us, especially since we entered his palace without permission. Do you understand?"
Ji muttered, "So that's the mistake of…"
"Your mistake! Do not blame the family advisor!" he snapped.
She fell silent.
He continued, looking especially at Grimm, "We committed the first mistake by not sending a letter. Unlike inspectors, we cannot enter anyone's house as we please. We entered without permission, disrespected his status, and behaved as if invading a private residence. That is four major mistakes. Now tell me—how exactly were you planning for me to act?"
Ji quickly said, "We could fake a letter! Say we sent one but didn't expect him to be absent, or that he failed to host us properly. Problem solved!"
"And if he says he never received it?" he asked.
Ji hesitated, then said, "That doesn't necessarily make it our fault."
"So you plan to blame someone else. Who?"
Ji proudly said, "There are three people in the palace besides the guards… we won't blame the guards, so the remaining ones…"
Grimm interrupted, "The maid!"
Ji smiled, "Correct!"
In that moment of victory, both of them were struck on the head.
"What will happen to that maid?" the head of the family asked.
"Probably she'll die," Grimm said, holding his head.
"And who is that maid?" he asked again.
Ji didn't understand his meaning.
He continued, "She is a royal court maid. Personally appointed by the king. And now you are saying she disrespected the Jura family's message? That implies conflict between us and the royal family. Especially since Shion Lan is under royal protection and not subject to the Six Great Families. It would look like we targeted someone under the king's protection."
Ji swallowed and said, "Then we could say bandits intercepted the message…"
"And if that were true, the guards would have reported it. And the security forces would have issued a statement. We would still be in trouble."
She tried again, but he raised his hand to stop her.
"Ji… you may be intelligent in magic, but not much more than your brother. This mistake was made to teach you both a lesson. You are not ready to lead the family."
Both lowered their heads in embarrassment.
"Shion Lan, on the other hand, is a swordsman, a mage, a family head, a top student—almost a treasure of nobility. You should learn from him."
...
Meanwhile, Shion was explaining the same matters to his maid, Marie.
She asked, "Why would someone like the head of the Jura family make such a mistake?"
"I don't think he took this visit seriously," Shion replied. "Otherwise he wouldn't have allowed even a single error. And I suspect the recruitment offer is false. Who would leave Enfel Kito, a twelve-year-old level seven genius, just to come to me?"
Marie agreed, "Then he must have another reason."
Shion thought, 'Maybe it's for his children… but there's no proof.'
...
In the evening, Violet Night sat alone, overwhelmed by her family's crisis. Suddenly, Shion Lan's image appeared in her mind—his silver eyes, white hair, and calm brilliance. She recalled every moment he impressed her.
A knock interrupted her thoughts.
A maid entered: "Her Highness is downstairs and wishes to see you."
Violet immediately recalled Princess Jina Joul's cold presence.
"Take her to the guest room. If occupied, move her to the balcony."
She quickly changed and went to meet her.
Jina was already there, and they sat together under a night sky filled with stars.
Jina noticed Violet's formal attitude and felt pain in her heart.
"I'm glad to see you… how have you been?" she asked.
Violet replied calmly, "The family is going through difficulties, but everything will be fine."
Jina hesitated, "Can't you sit? Let's talk…"
Violet shook her head, "I can't, Your Highness. It would be improper without permission."
Jina whispered sadly, "But we're friends… sisters…"
Violet replied softly, "Of course, Your Highness. We are all your servants and friends… but everyone must know their place."
Even though her tone was calm, Jina felt as if she had lost something irreplaceable—her sisterly bond with Violet.