Geir knelt before Kyran respectfully as he gave a detailed report of their Elite group's first expedition around the surroundings where the Blade Dancer Clan's land had taken refuge.
Under normal circumstances, Geir would not have shown such respect, especially to a mage who appeared so young. The fact that he was treating this young mage with such deference was a clear indication of the pressure he felt from Kyran, a pressure that was no different from that of the Dragon Emperor's aides. In fact, he even sensed a trace of the young man's Draconic aura.
Most of the smart and sensible members also sensed it, and that was why they chose to keep their mouths shut. They also knew that there was some truth in the rumor of a Dragon Clan representative being the one responsible for the recent tragedy in the Tower of the Ancients. They guessed that the Dragon Clan representative had been Kyran.
Although Kyran's participation was not mentioned by the surviving representatives, and they only testified of four representatives of the Dragon Clan; there was no telling if, like the Solis Clan and most of their loyal followers, also sent hidden participants.
In any case, no matter what Kyran's intentions were for saving the Blade Dancer Clan, he did save them from total annihilation. The could not ignore it.
Kyran listened to his report while mentally taking notes of the beasts the Blade Dancer Elite group encountered.
Similar to the ones Kyran encountered in the swamp, monsters in the surrounding area used Earth-based magic. The Elite group, despite the odds, bravely led the first expedition and was not at a disadvantage when fighting these rampant beasts. Their courage and determination were truly inspiring. It was also fortunate that none of the Sound House joined them.
Otherwise, the local beasts' natural immunity to Sound magic might become advantageous to them.
"... they managed to secure most of the carcasses, and the Head Alchemist, along with the Alchemy Division, are currently dissecting them. If we are lucky, we can turn those beast carcasses into useful materials."
"I'll visit the Alchemy Division later and check on their progress."
"I will inform the Head Alchemist."
"There is no need," Kyran said, shaking his head. Then he said, "For now, let's talk about the most pressing matter."
His eyes narrowed as he asked the question that Geir seemed adamant about avoiding. "How many are voicing their discontent about our current arrangement?"
Geir's brow furrowed slightly. He hesitated for only a brief moment before replying, "Most of the conservatives are still unhappy. But rest assured, once they properly comprehend the weight of how you have saved our clan, they will come around eventually."
"I don't want to deal with vague things like coming around eventually. Gather everyone voicing their discontent, and I'll address them myself."
Though Kyran did not change his expression or demeanor, Geir still felt cold shivers up his spine. The younger mage's indifference was far more stifling than the Emperor's obvious oppressive demeanor.
"T-There is no need for you to step up yourself, L-Lord. I will see to the matter and—."
"I won't question your capability, Head of the Blade Dancer Clan. You managed to maintain a good relationship between the Blade Houses even with the ongoing rivalry behind the scenes, after all."
Geir's expression did not change, but he was somewhat surprised upon hearing Kyran's remark.
He expected the latter to have enough intel about the internal affairs of the Blade Dancer Clan since he suspected he was being raised by the Dragon Clan secretly, but he did not expect him to fully understand that it was the sole reason none of the Blade House Leaders had gone overboard with their hidden propaganda.
"But the longer we left such vague matters on their own, the harder it will make the younger generation listen. At the moment, they only follow what their superiors are telling them."
Geir did not miss Kyran's implication, and he looked at the latter with a grim expression and said, "You think they will not heed my words as the Head of the Clan?"
"They will, but reluctantly. I don't want such emotion to rule over the clan."
"Pardon my brazen words, Lord. But... you have marked the House Leaders... won't they receive appropriate punishment if they do not heed your words and allow their house members to run rampant?"
"T-That's true, but..."
"I'll leave the meeting arrangement to you."
Geir sighed. It appeared his audience with their new Lord was now over.
"I understand."
Once Geir left the audience chamber, Kyran addressed someone who had been waiting for them to finish from the shadows.
"You have put me in such a bad position."
"Fufufu~"
A muffled yet full of mirth laughter answered as a figure moved out from the shadows and into a spot with enough light.
A handsome young man with auburn hair and aquamarine eyes came into view and was smiling at Kyran candidly.
"Would you believe me if I said I was 100% lending you a hand?"
Kyran looked at the face of the young man with mixed emotions.
The face was none other than Tyr, but the one speaking was obviously Ruin.
"How did you take control of Neo's body?" he asked without even bothering to comment on Ruin's question.
"By injecting my essence's magic energy, of course~," Ruin replied matter-of-factly. "Don't worry, I made sure not to destroy your precious creation's energy core."
His eyes lit up as if remembering something. He added, "Ah, but don't worry. I can't do this anytime I want. It just happened that your precious creation's energy core was quite receptive to my magic energy being modeled to absorb magic energies in the surroundings. Besides, he birthed a very stable sentient. That made it much easier to take advantage of him."
Kyran's eyes narrowed, and they glinted in a dangerous light. Because he was currently in disguise, he looked like most mages in the Blade Dancer Clan, with golden blonde hair and light brown eyes. Thus, when his eyes glinted, instead of appearing silver, they appeared golden.
"Get out of Neo's body while I'm still asking nicely."
Ruin's face distorted slightly as he sensed Kyran's rising murderous intent.
"You know I can't do that. At least, not yet."
"..."
"You should have noticed by now that what happened back there was out of your control."
Kyran did not respond. But he did sense that something was amiss.
"That's right~ you have been played~."