Valdis stepped into the circular chamber, his crimson eyes sweeping over the gathered elders and family scions.
The air was thick with incense and anticipation, yet it felt nothing compared to the pressure that gripped his own blood.
His blood, dormant but unyielding, whispered like a storm beneath his skin.
At the center of the hall lay the pool. It was unlike any water he had ever seen.
The surface shimmered with three colors: the deep, rich red of blood; a faint blackness curling like smoke; and a delicate silver light that lingered at the edges, barely noticeable unless one looked carefully.
The pool seemed alive, vibrating with potential, exhaling power in waves that made the hairs on his arms stand up.
And his blood seemed to crave it.
The blood in his body was restless, as though something was calling it.
His bloodline, although dormant, seemed stirred awake; his blood felt like it was boiling, and his heartbeat was erratic.
Valdis approached with deliberate steps, his reflection fractured across the crimson-black surface.
He could feel the pulse of the pool matching his own heartbeat. It called to him, beckoning the essence sleeping within his veins.
He paused at the edge, staring down into the depths, and for a heartbeat, the world fell away. No elders, no hall, no expectation—only the pool remained in his view.
'This is definitely going to help me break the limitations that hold me,' he thought.
Valdis took a deep breath and stepped forward.
The moment he entered, the water embraced him like a living thing.
The water felt cold—extremely cold—it was as if he had been thrown into a frozen lake.
"Calm yourself, just relax and prepare your mind for what's to come," a voice suddenly spoke.
Valdis recognized the voice.
It was his brother Malrik, the top prodigy in the kingdom.
As he heard his voice, his body and mind instinctively relaxed on their own, as if controlled by another.
As his body relaxed, it started sinking slowly into the pool, and before long, his entire body was submerged.
After he disappeared beneath the surface, the pool regained its initial calm.
"Beguiling voice, when did you learn such a technique?" Draven asked.
Malrik heard this and yawned.
"I was fortunate to meet a Tier 6 beast in a brothel, and the beast just happened to be a fox king."
"A fox king!" everyone exclaimed in shock.
Their reaction was understandable because when beasts reach the sixth tier, they undergo a drastic change in both form and power.
Their power increases so massively that a beast at the peak of the fifth tier can be easily crushed like an ant by one that just broke through.
That's not all—tier 6 beasts acquire a second form that looks human, allowing them to walk openly in cities without detection.
Killing such a beast is very difficult due to their tough defenses.
While everyone focused on the beast, one person focused on something else entirely.
"You visited a brothel," Isolde asked, eyeing Malrik with disdain and disgust.
Malrik who had a smug smile suddenly choked on air and he quickly explained to his sister.
"I didn't go there for those reasons. I just tracked her to that place, that's all," he said, looking like he might cry at any moment.
"But how did you learn the beguiling technique from the fox? Those techniques are innate, not teachable," Grand Elder Mircalla asked.
"It wasn't easy. I had to stay constantly alert. Any slip-up, and I would have been in serious danger," Malrik sighed, recalling his ordeal.
"But how did you do it?" Grand Elder Arkan asked, clearly interested in how Malrik accomplished what others have tried and failed for centuries.
Everyone looked at him, eager to know how he pulled this off.
"After I defeated her, I was very interested in the technique that nearly got me killed, so I kept her for a few weeks and analyzed how the aether in and around around her responded whenever she activated the technique.
When I finally got a rough idea of how it works, I made some modifications so I could use it myself."
Everyone fell silent.
Malrik had achieved something that countless others studied for years without progress in just a few weeks.
"You are a monster through and through," Grand Elder Thalor said.
"It's not that complicated. I even wrote down the technique," Malrik said, tossing a leather parchment toward his father.
Duke Draven looked at it and then said.
"You used a sixth-tier beast to create a seven-star beguiling technique, with notes on how it might be used by individuals in the law manifestation and saint realms."
"So you gave it to us because you haven't reached that level of power yet?" Grand Elder Arkan said.
"Basically, you need test subjects to verify your hypothesis—that's why you gave it to us," Grand Elder Mircalla added flatly.
Hearing this, Malrik shrugged at his father.
"Well, you came to the right place. If there's one thing we don't lack, it's powerful guinea pigs. We got a potential saint-level technique from you, and the least we can do is help test it," Grand Elder Thalor said with a laugh.
Malrik nodded, but just as he was about to relax, a voice beside him said something that made his blood run cold.
"I'll tell mom that you visited a brothel in search of a female fox," Isolde said with a sly smirk.
Malrik's face paled at that. In the Ebonhart duchy, he believed he feared no one in the Ebonhart castle except his mother.
She always had a way of cornering him.
Make no mistake—everyone in this room, except Isolde, could obliterate him in seconds.
And his mother wasn't any weaker. The reason they let him run wild is that the Ebonhart House is full of battle junkies who care little for etiquette and only for strength.
That's why they're known as 'barbaric and uncultured' among the noble circles, though no one dares say it to their faces.
But his mother is an exception. She values etiquette and grace highly. When she hears he's done otherwise, she'll beat him up before giving him a lecture.
She terrifies everyone else in the family. Even his father and the Grand Elders aren't spared.
"I'll tell mom unless you help me with a small problem I've been having lately," Isolde said.
"No problem. I'll do anything you want," Malrik replied.
"Good. I'll see you in two weeks," Isolde said with a triumphant smile.
Malrik sank into his seat, feeling like he'd barely escaped disaster.
Just as he was about to relax, a voice broke the silence.
"He's been under for too long. He should be out by now," Grand Elder Thalor said.
"Everything feels too peaceful. Something's not right," Grand Elder Mircalla said.
As Malrik was about to respond, a terrifying aura enveloped Ebonhart Castle. His pupils constricted.
"Not this again," Duke Draven muttered.
Soon after, the awakening pool started boiling fiercely, as if something terrifying was about to emerge from its depths.
Duke Draven looked at everything that was happening and felt a massive headache coming.