Chapter 64

The Black Mamba was one of the three most powerful Clans on the continent.

Of course, if we are ranking Clans in order in which they were created, I expected the family to be at the bottom of the list.

But… it was the fastest to be built? Besides, there were no problems internally?

It was an unbelievable story.

“Actually, there was one incident around that time.”

“Incident?”

“…The oppression of the clan had begun.”

“Was the family…oppressed…?”

Even though I only heard the first sentence, my body hardened.

Who the hell did that?

Maybe that’s why they started flocking to the South? To escape from the oppression of other Clans.

But at the same time, a question came to mind.

…But how was the oppression done? Is that even possible?

“Who could do such a thing?”

I frowned.

I felt somewhat reluctant because the Clan’s beginning was caused by the oppression and rejection of those around them.

But Kasana was indifferent as if there was nothing to be upset about.

Rather, it was a natural reaction.

“All incidents started with our family first.”

“Huh?”

“The Lady knows that Black Mamba is born with poison, right?”

“I know.”

The degree of poison varies from person to person, but it was said that everyone is born with poison. In addition, I heard that some of them are born with a constitution specialized in poison.

“It depends on our constitution, but our Clan can poison others by spreading pheromones up to several meters in radius. The stronger the individual, the wider the range.”

“I see.”

It reminded me of the pheromone stone piercing that Messi used to wear.

I thought he was simply using it for exploding pheromones, but that wasn’t the only reason.

Messi can deal with the enemy more comfortably as the range of pheromones changes at his will. 

“But what does that have to do with the incidents?”

“That’s because… Sir Tamur, the first head of the family, had such an ability.”

Kasana sighed.

“Sir Tamur was extremely reluctant to share territory with others.”

“……”

“And it just so happened that his power was unmatched.”

Don’t tell me… 

It’s not what I think it is, is it?

He didn’t turn the whole area into a toxic jar of pheromones just because he didn’t like to share the same land with other people, did he? 

I hopefully waited for Kasana’s next words. And her mouth opened.

“It’s just as you expected.”

“……Gasp.”

“Because of this, other clans began to complain, and the Black Mambas who sensed that the situation was getting serious, quickly established a Clan.”

Kasana pointed to the map of the continent drawn in her book.

A star sign was engraved in the center of the south, where the Astrophel family first established its base.

“That’s why the Astrophel family first appeared on the continent.”

“R-right.”

“The Black Mambas declared that they would coil themselves up in the South before the entire tribe was oppressed.”

……I can’t believe there was such a reason. 

To be honest, the first time the word oppression came out, I thought it would be a heroic tale. Like a common story of saving the members of the family from a villain and setting up a splendid Clan.

But, nothing can be easily predicted in this Clan.

I glanced at the portrait of Tamur Astrophel with trembling eyes.

Somehow, seems like he could care less about the opinion of others even when he was a child.

I immediately settled his stereotype in my mind and gave a partial judgment for Tamur Astrophel.

“…There are no more stories like this, are there?”

The story of the first head of state has only just begun, so why am I already feeling exhausted?

“I mean… Grandpa Tamur was chosen as the head of the family, right?”

It was a kind of shackle so that he could no longer wander elsewhere. Maybe he was forced to take the position of the Head that everyone else would consider an honor?

The more I thought about it, the more I was at a loss for words while listening to the story behind this amazing and eccentric family.

Kasana coughed.

“That doesn’t mean Sir Tamur left the family unattended. Thanks to him, we can live in the South now.” 

“Right. That much is true.”

On second thought, I thought it was a very black mamba-like start.

I let out a faint chuckle. It was a lot of fun to listen to the story.

It felt like learning oral fairy tales that have been handed down since ancient times. I thought history class would be boring but seems like that was a pointless worry.

“But there were problems with establishing a family. Everyone was worried if Sir Tamur would be able to lead the family properly.”

It was a very natural concern to have.

It was actually strange to expect that the person who was forced to take on such duties would do it properly.

More than that, I thought that Tamur would have straight-up rejected the position of Head.

Noticing my curiosity, Kasana turned over the pages in the book.

The words ‘Grace Astrophel (510-609)’ was written in elegant cursive.

“This is Grace Astrophel, the first hostess.”

“Wow…. she looks so pretty.”

Now I understand.

Why do the people here look so beautiful.

It must be a racial trait. Usually, portraits are meant to be glorified… But I think they were not able to capture all of her beauty in the picture.

Kasana laughed as I watched Grace’s portrait in a daze. 

“According to the records, she was the only one who could tie Sir Tamur down.”

The Hostess gracefully sat in her chair, holding a long pole that went to the ground. She was smiling beautifully, but there was a tint of strength in that smile.

“It is unusual, but it’s said that Lady Grace used to lead the family meeting.”

“Isn’t that what the Head does?” 

“That’s right, but it was an age of disorder and wars broke out frequently.” 

Territorial disputes seem to have occurred frequently. 

So, was Tamur often absent? To protect the family’s territory?

I frowned at the unsolved answer while thinking. 

“Do you have any questions?”

“Then, Grandma did not participate in the war?”

“……Gra-Grandma……”

Kasana regained her composure after stuttering a little. And she even praised me for the excellent question.

“Of course, Lady Grace was also at war every day.”

“Then, she went to fight together with Grandpa Tamur, right?”

“No.”

Kasana shook her head resolutely and said.

“Lady Grace played a role in controlling the temper of her kindred black mamba.”

….Ah… I had a hunch that Grace’s story was also quite formidable. 

“As Miss Irene knows, female werebeasts have a relatively stronger body.”

Nod, nod.

Instead of answering, I nodded to indicate that I knew.

Because of that, the numbers of female were tiny. It was to the extent that the female population became extremely rare towards the top of the food chain.

However, it was quite common to see them in the mansion.

A strong werebeast is a very good asset for the family.

Rosaria, Hestia, Kasana, and Surpia all occupied important positions in the family.

Kasana smiled faintly.

“And as you know, the Black Mamba is one of the strongest clans.”

“So?”

“That’s why Lady Grace was very devoted to the family’s internal affairs.” 

“Ah.”

“It is also the role of the hostess to control the clan in times of chaos.”

So, in a nutshell, the roles were divided.

Each of them had to take on one task because warfare and control of their own people were quite similar duties.

I wondered how managing the people of the family could compare to actual war, but… If we are thinking about the Astrophel family, not another clan, then it was a very agreeable fact.

That’s how hard it is to lead a family. 

Once again, Cade felt great. Because he’s in charge of such a large family.

“How strong was Grandpa Tamur?”

Kasana flinched again, as if surprised, but she seemed to have developed immunity from the previous events.

She opened her mouth as she quickly organized her expression.

“He’s the most powerful Head of all times.”

“Stronger than Daddy?”

“Currently, he is evaluated to have similar strength to that of Sir Tamur.”

So how strong is Cade?

I have never seen him use his powers before, so I couldn’t even take a guess. Will there ever be a day I will see him use his real strength? 

“Then what ability does Daddy has? Is it similar to Grandpa Tamur?”

“Yes, but I’ve never seen him use his abilities.”

“I heard that Messi has a similar ability.”

I remembered the aroma of Messi’s pheromone that I smelled last time. 

“Black Mamba’s pheromones have the characteristic of being fragrant when they contain poison. To lower the opponent’s boundaries.” 

“I see, so that’s why it was sweet.”

It was on a very subtle level, but I wanted to smell it more to know what kind of scent it was.

Agreeing with that, I nodded my head.

Then, as she was tidying the books up to finish the class, Kasana’s hand stopped.

“…What did you say now?”

“Huh?”

Why are you suddenly making such a serious expression?

I curiously looked at Kasana.

“Miss, by any chance… have you ever taken on Sir Messi’s pheromone?”

“Yes. Very little.”

They said it was not enough to cause problems with the body, right?

Rosaria and Messi, who were together at that time, weren’t too concerned.

But Kasana had a stiff expression and looked at me.

“…You were not poisoned?”

“Because Rodaria blocked it.”

Messi also quickly retreated and the poisoning was prevented.

“I see. That’s a relief.” 

Contrary to her answer, Kasana had a stern expression on her face.