Night fell over the Draven Clan estate.
Moonlight spilled across the inner courtyards, illuminating ancient stone paths and training grounds that had not echoed with laughter in years. The air was heavy with restrained power—just like the man who stood alone at the center of the clan's primary training field.
Lucien Draven.
Kai watched from the shadows.
His father stood bare-handed, clad in simple black robes, striking the air with controlled, devastating precision. Each movement tore through space, leaving faint cracks that sealed themselves moments later.
He wasn't training.
He was venting.
Kai remembered this scene.
In the original timeline, Lucien had trained like this every night after Kai began orbiting Elara—trying to drown the shame, the anger, the helplessness of watching his heir destroy himself.
Kai stepped forward.
The moment his foot touched the training ground—
Lucien stopped.
Without turning, his father said, "If you're here to talk, leave."
Kai didn't.
"I'm here to listen," he replied.
Lucien laughed softly.
A humorless sound.
"You never listened before."
Kai swallowed.
"That's true."
Lucien turned slowly. His gaze was sharp enough to pierce steel.
"Then why now?"
Kai met his eyes.
"Because tomorrow," he said, "I leave."
Silence stretched between them.
Lucien folded his arms. "And?"
"And I don't want my last memory before the academy," Kai continued, "to be you standing alone."
Lucien's jaw tightened.
"You chose that solitude," he said. "You chose a woman who treated you like a tool over the blood that raised you."
Kai did not deny it.
Instead, he bowed.
Deep.
Lower than protocol demanded.
"I failed," Kai said simply.
The words landed heavier than any excuse.
Lucien froze.
Kai straightened and continued, voice steady.
"I won't explain myself.""I won't justify what I did.""And I won't ask you to believe me."
Lucien's eyes narrowed.
"Then why are you here?"
Kai raised his right hand.
A faint aura flared—dark, vast, ancient.
The Void Dragon Bloodline stirred.
Just a whisper.
Just enough.
Lucien's pupils contracted.
"That power…" his father murmured.
Kai clenched his fist, dispersing the aura instantly.
"I didn't come to show strength," Kai said."I came to show control."
Lucien stared.
For the first time, he truly looked at his son.
Not the reckless heir.Not the obsessed fool.But the man standing before him now.
"You learned restraint," Lucien said quietly.
"Yes."
"You learned patience."
"Yes."
Lucien exhaled slowly.
"And you learned that love," he said, voice low, "is not something to beg for."
Kai's gaze hardened.
"I learned that loyalty should never be wasted."
The words struck true.
Lucien closed his eyes.
For a long moment, neither spoke.
Then—
Lucien turned away.
"Tomorrow," he said, "you will carry the Draven name into a nest of righteous hypocrisy."
Kai nodded.
"They will provoke you.""They will bait you.""They will try to break you."
"I know."
Lucien glanced over his shoulder.
"If you lose control," he said, "I will not save you."
Kai's lips curved slightly.
"I wouldn't ask you to."
Silence.
Then—
Something unprecedented happened.
Lucien Draven's lips curved upward.
Just barely.
Not a full smile.
But unmistakable.
A crack in the ice.
SYSTEM NOTIFICATION
[CONDITIONAL TASK PROGRESS UPDATED]
[TASK: MAKE YOUR FATHER SMILE][STATUS: SUCCESS (PARTIAL — GENUINE EMOTIONAL RESPONSE DETECTED)]
Kai's breath caught.
[REWARD DISTRIBUTED]+5,000 EXP+Passive Skill Unlocked: Patriarch's Recognition (Lv.1)(All Draven Clan Authority Effects +20%)
[HIDDEN BONUS UNLOCKED]Bloodline Resonance Increased
Lucien turned fully this time.
"Don't embarrass me," his father said.
Kai smiled faintly.
"I won't."
Lucien hesitated—then placed a firm hand on Kai's shoulder.
For the first time in years.
"Come back alive."
Kai bowed.
"I will."
As Kai walked away, moonlight followed him.
Tomorrow, the academy awaited.
And fate—
Had already begun to panic.