Ember looked at Beldum. To be honest, she didn't want to fight him—after all, he was a member of the Walker family's Steel Guards.
But Theo was indeed her younger sister's fiancé. Their engagement had been decided years ago, and the two shared a very strong bond.
Otherwise, Elara wouldn't have stood by Theo so steadfastly, even after the Dawson family was destroyed by Julian and Theo himself was being hunted down by the Steel Guards.
The marriage alliance between the Hearth and Dawson families wasn't particularly unusual—after all, the Dawson family was, at the time, the largest clan in Victoria.
What the Hearth family hadn't anticipated was that the Dawson family would be annihilated by Julian, who also issued a kill order for all direct descendants of the family.
This left Ember in a difficult position.
Beldum seemed to notice the hesitation on Ember's face and said, "Miss Hearth, you are a good friend of our young master, while Theo is nothing but a pitiful wretch whose family was destroyed by him."
"Now, he has no power or influence—he's just a worthless person, utterly useless to your Hearth family."
"Why not hand him over to me? That way, I can report back to the young master and fulfill my duty."
This was the Hearth family's territory. If Ember truly intended to protect Theo, then even with all his strength, Beldum would be unable to kill him.
"Sister, you can't let him take Theo away! If Theo dies, I'll follow him to the grave!" Elara, sensing that the situation was taking a turn for the worse, cried out anxiously.
Knowing her sister well, Ember was certain she meant every word.
Seeing the determination in her sister's eyes, Ember hesitated for a moment before letting out a slow sigh. She then turned to Beldum and said, "The Hearth family will protect this person. I will personally explain the situation to Julian."
Unexpectedly, Beldum shook his head. "I've already informed the young master. He should be arriving any moment now."
Ember's expression shifted slightly at his words.
No sooner had he spoken than Metagross arrived at the scene with Julian, using Teleport.
Julian had been resting at home when he received Beldum's message: "Theo had fled into the Hearth family's territory, and Ember had intervened."
So, Julian came without delay.
"Young Master."
At Julian's arrival, Beldum immediately stepped aside, bowing respectfully before retreating behind him.
Julian glanced at Ember before turning his gaze to Theo. The man's eyes were filled with raw hatred, his killing intent toward Julian so intense it was almost tangible.
"Julian…"
Ember looked at him with a complicated expression.
"I thought we were friends," Julian said calmly.
Hearing that, Ember's face grew even paler—she truly didn't know what to say.
Seeing Julian appear, Elara completely lost control of her emotions.
"It's you, Julian! Why did you have to kill Theo's parents? They never did anything to provoke you!"
"As a descendant of an aristocratic family, you really are naive."
Julian looked at Elara as if she were a fool.
He began walking toward Theo, his aura as a Champion pressing down on Elara and Theo like a flood.
The two of them were like small boats in a raging sea, at risk of capsizing at any moment.
But sometimes, one should never underestimate a woman's resolve when she's trying to protect the man she loves.
Even under Julian's overwhelming aura, Elara still stepped in front of Theo, her gaze resolute and unyielding.
Slap!
Without an ounce of pity, Julian struck her across the face with considerable force, knocking her to the ground.
"Julian!!"
Seeing her sister struck, blood even trickling from the corner of her mouth, Ember was instantly enraged.
Her Blaziken immediately stepped forward, flames flaring as it faced Julian.
But Julian merely glanced at Ember, then walked around the Blaziken, continuing straight toward Theo.
Ember's expression kept shifted constantly.
"Sister! Save Theo, please—save him!" Elara cried out, somehow finding the strength to crawl forward and clutch Ember's leg tightly, her tearful voice trembling with desperation.
By then, Julian was already standing before Theo. The latter was completely immobilized under the crushing weight of Julian's aura—he couldn't even lift a finger. All he could do was glare up at Julian with burning hatred.
"Not bad, the look in your eyes," Julian said calmly.
"You will die a miserable death in the future," Theo gritted out through clenched teeth.
But that was all he could do—his body refused to move. If he could, even at the cost of his life, he would have torn a piece of flesh from Julian's body.
"Die."
Julian raised his hand and brought it down sharply onto Theo's forehead.
Crack!
The force shattered his skull instantly.
Theo collapsed to the ground, lifeless—but his eyes remained open, still filled with hatred.
Through it all, Ember never spoke, and her Blaziken never moved. She knew very well that if she acted, Blaziken would be instantly killed by Julian's Metagross.
And if that happened, the relationship between the Hearth and Walker families would be destroyed beyond repair—they might even become mortal enemies.
The Hearth family was a Champion clan, having produced two Champions in the past, and naturally had Champion-level Pokémon guarding them.
But compared to the Walker family, which currently had two active Champions—one of whom could command a First-class Legendary—even mobilizing all of the Hearth family's resources would be futile.
The Hearth family was one of the few clans where women could also inherit the family head position.
And Ember was the current heir of the Hearth family. As the heir, her first priority was the interests of the entire family, not the interests of individuals or even her closest kin.
Ember's reaction was exactly what Julian had anticipated.
To become the heir of a major family, one needed more than just strength and skill—foresight and a broad perspective were essential.
When it came to the family's interests, personal emotions were insignificant.
"Theo! Theo!!"
Elara clutched Theo's lifeless body, her eyes vacant as she wept. The next moment, she suddenly screamed at Julian, "Julian, I will kill you! I swear I will kill you!"
Slap!
A sharp slap landed across her face.
Elara froze, staring at her sister in disbelief.
Ember's expression was icy as she said, "Shut up."
Theo was already dead—the matter was over. If her sister's reckless words led to open hostility between the Hearth and Walker families, then Theo's death would have been in vain.
From the destruction of the Dawson family, Ember had seen clearly what kind of person Julian was—decisive, ruthless, and utterly indifferent to life and death.
"Sister, have you lost your mind?"
"He's our enemy! Why are you hitting me? Our family has no reason to fear him! Just because he's a Champion, does that give him the right to act recklessly and take innocent lives?"
The bitter truth was—yes.
As long as one was a Champion, one really could act freely—so long as they didn't betray the nation or commit heinous acts.
In Julian's case, wiping out the Dawson family's main lineage had its reasons; it wasn't as though he targeted them without cause, even if outsiders didn't understand them.
Moreover, he only eliminated the main branch of the Dawson family. The numerous collateral relatives of the Dawson family were still alive and well.
So, from that perspective, Julian felt he was rather merciful. He hadn't completely eradicated the Dawson family line and had allowed many of their descendants to survive.
For this alone, Eric, wherever he was now, ought to thank him properly from the afterlife.
*****
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