Chapter 156 Conditions



The doors opened as three silhouettes entered the hall that had become the battlefield. It was Alden, who walked in front, Veronika, and Rina.

Alden had been waiting for this moment, a satisfied smirk on his face as each step he took made Edward and Reik more anxious.

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

The ice beneath his feet crackled as he stopped next to Zayne, holding his hands behind his back with narrowed eyes.

Alden stared at Edward, in absolute silence, then he reached out his hand to Zayne and in a sly voice said, "Would you be so kind as to pass me that stone."

Zayne nodded slightly and did as he said.

"Well, well... Though I didn't plan on being so lucky, you've trapped yourself in a trap you can't get out of." Alden muttered looking at the stone, "You do realize that the information stored in this stone is enough to send you to prison forever, don't you?"

Reik smirked, "Hah, just now we were ready to accept death, and you think something like that would scare us? We can always pay off any accusation!"

Alden said nothing, he just looked at Edward as if wanting to hear his opinion when really he was just waiting for the right moment.

"Alden... Bastard... I knew there was something wrong here. You must have been planning this all along, didn't you?" Edward frowned, clenching his fists in anger.

Alden shrugged, "It was your own fault, I only took advantage of your mistakes. No one forced you to try to get rid of Zayne, however..." Alden smirked, "That wasn't your biggest stupidity."

Alden stepped forward, raising the stone, "Reik, you're right, compared to the threat of death, prison for a nobleman is practically a vacation. You have nothing to worry about if it weren't for one thing. Veronika."

"Yes." Veronika nodded, stepped forward, and picked up from the ground a vial of red dust inside.

Reik and Edward's eyes went wide as they shuddered with fear. Alden noticed it, such a sight brought him great pleasure.

"My favorite move is to attack my opponent with the same thing they were going to hit me with, it's beautiful." Alden said with a wave of his hand, walking around Veronika and Rina.

Alden continued, "Prison is nothing to you, but what if I told what you were doing here to the Oracle Academy? I'm sure they would be quick to pass such valuable information to the Order." Alden stood behind Rina, "This fine lady will be the one to pass on my words along with all the evidence."

Rina blushed slightly, while Reil and Edward's faces turned pale as a sheet of paper. They knew that if Alden did this, they would face a fate far worse than death, and not only them but also their families and their entire bloodline would become outcasts forever.

"Agh..." Alden took a deep breath, "However, I have another option for you."

Reik and Edward looked at Alden hopefully, waiting for his words.

"Just live." Alden said calmly.

Reik and Edward didn't realize if they had heard him correctly as they looked at each other with confused expressions.

"What... Are you seriously...?" Edward muttered in disbelief.

Alden nodded, "Yeah, do what you did before. Develop your territories, train your Knights, and invite Mages into our city. I'm actually letting you go."

Happy smiles appeared on their faces, they couldn't believe this was happening, as a few minutes ago, they were ready to die.

Alden handed the stone to Veronika, stepped forward, and stood right in front of Edward. He bent down and held out his hand with a smile.

Edward nodded, about to stand up, but as he moved, Alden's fist came down on his face.

Reik's eyes went wide, Zayne was surprised, and Rina flinched, but Veronika had no emotion.

"My words are true, however, you must understand one thing." Alden clenched his fist tightly, slamming it down on Edward with more force.

"Agh!!!" Edward cried out in pain as blood gushed from his nose.

Alden took a deep breath, "I'm in charge in this fucking town! You can do what you want in your own territory, but now... At any moment I can get rid of you and I won't even have to do anything, Order will send you to hell once I show them this vial."

Edward shuddered as a chill ran down his back.

"That goes for you, too." Alden turned to Reik, who quickly began nodding in agreement.

"Well, I think you've made that clear, now you have to answer for what you've done. If you're Head of the Noble Family you have to take responsibility for the actions of all family members, don't you?" Alden smirked insidiously, clenching his bloody fist.

Edward wanted to run away, but he was too scared. He hadn't experienced as much humiliation and pain in his entire life as he had now, unfortunately for him, this was just the beginning.

Bam. Bam. Bam.

Alden's fists rained down on Edward's face, gradually turning it into a bloody mess. Like most nobles, Alden was much weaker than an experienced Knight or Mage, but, given factors like Purification, his blows were more devastating than those of a normal adult male.

The sound of the blows echoed through the hall, along with the oppressive atmosphere that engulfed everyone. It was a pure display of violence from power, as Edward wouldn't even be able to get revenge on him.

"Fuck... That was intense, wasn't it?" Alden muttered, lifting his head up. He glanced at Edward, who had already passed out but was still breathing, slowly and heavily.

"Veronika." Alden said sternly.

"Sure." Veronika pulled out a tissue, handing it to Alden.

Alden wiped the blood from his hands, crumpled the tissue, and threw it at Edward, then he turned and headed for the exit.

"You should be grateful that I asked Zayne not to kill any of you, though it wasn't necessary." Alden said coldly.

Crackling.

Suddenly, the girl who lay in the rubble of the table rushed forward like a shadow and brought her blade down on Alden.

Veronika appeared in front of him immediately, and grabbed the blade, clutching it tightly, as blood trickled from her hand, droplets falling to the icy floor.

"What did you say...? Not to kill anyone?" The girl muttered furiously, clenching her teeth in anger as her gaze was ready to pierce Alden, "Look what he did to her!!!" She pointed at the girl who had become an ice statue.

Alden glanced at her, then he turned to Zayne.

Zayne sighed, "I didn't kill anyone like you asked, especially since I didn't really want to do it myself. It just takes a little heat to melt the ice."

Alden nodded as his ring sparkled brightly. A red crystal appeared in his hand, exuding powerful energy as the temperature around him rose.

He walked over to the girl as the ice immediately began to melt, quickly turning into streams of water and exuding steam that filled the entire room.

Tap.

The girl fell to the ground. She was unconscious, but breathing and not seriously injured in any way.

"She'll be fine, that's for sure." Alden said calmly, returned the crystal to the ring, and walked out of the room.

Veronika frowned, she didn't attack the girl without orders and just followed Alden.