Ivan sat on a chair in his room and stared outside through the large rectangular window, his gaze swept across the Castellan family mansion. He could see the private soldiers of the Castellan family and the servants moving about; several carriages were packed around. These carriages had brought other members of the Castellan family who were currently holding a discussion in the meeting room.
Ivan's father and brother were also attending the meeting.
It had been five days since Ivan's awakening, and his father, Christopher Castellan, one of the strongest warriors in existence, finally returned from his mission, and a family meeting had been called.
The purpose of this meeting was undoubtedly due to what Ivan had awakened.
He had awakened as a paladin, an ability that was looked down upon by humans because it was only good for one thing and that was tanking hits.
To put it simply, a paladin was a meat shield that could speak and move on its own. Everyone who had ever awakened as a paladin was looked down upon and disdained because their ability was deemed near-useless.
But Ivan didn't share the same thought. As a former alien General of a race that could utilize even the weakest amount of resources and make out the true essence of not-so-important things, the paladin class was perfect for him.
The only problem was the family he was in, a family of elementals. It goes without saying that awakening a different ability would cause one to be scorned, much less an ability like the paladin which was looked down upon by even families of weapon users.
"Doesn't matter, I'll have to grow stronger quickly and prove that the paladin class isn't as useless as everyone thought," Ivan mumbled to himself.
He planned to prepare Earth before the arrival of the Skrivaloks, and to do that, he needed to change how humans looked at some of their abilities.
…
In the meeting room.
"How can the son of the head of the Castellan family awaken a weapon ability? This is a spit on the Castellan family's name!" A handsome man in his early forties said with an angry face.
"Not just any weapon ability, a paladin at that. What bigger shame could one bring to the family?" Another middle-aged man added.
The meeting hall currently had over ten people sitting around a long table, each one of them radiating the powerful aura of a level 4 warrior and above.
They were all members of the Castellan family and had come together because of Ivan's awakening as a paladin.
According to them, a disgrace like Ivan should not be in the main lineage of the Castellan family. After all, the Castellan family was a first-rate noble family, and the main lineage was in charge of maintaining the reputation of the family.
With Ivan bringing disgrace by awakening as a paladin, how was the Castellan family going to remain a first-rate family? It was only a matter of time before second-rate and even ordinary noble families would start to look down on them.
Ethan sat on the chair right next to the main seat with a hard look on his face, his fist clenched under the table, and lightning cracked across his pupils as he listened to the others raise one complaint after another.
Christopher Castellan, the current head of the Castellan family and the father of Ethan and Ivan, listened quietly in the main seat. He placed his right elbow on the armrest and supported his chin with his knuckles. His expression was blank, and no one could tell what he was thinking; even Ethan was currently nervous as he didn't know what decision his father would reach.
He knew that his father loved Ivan a lot but at the same time, he was the head of the Castellan family and needed to place the needs of the family first before anything else.
The family head had to see things from everyone's perspective and not be biased.
"Upholding the family name takes priority,"
Those were the words that Christopher had said to Ethan when the latter was still a teenager.
After listening in silence as the others made crude and ugly remarks one after the other, Christopher finally moved.
The air around him changed as he took a long breath. This action was instantly noticed by everyone else inside the room; they all stopped talking and waited for what the family head of the Castellan family was going to say.
"It is unfortunate that my second son has awakened an ability that isn't the norm in our family. Humans haven't been able to predict or choose the ability that they awaken, so we can't blame him for this.
I'll ask this once." Christopher said slowly, causing the faces of everyone inside the room except Ethan's to twist in discomfort.
They had noticed how Christopher addressed Ivan as his second son instead of calling his full name, this showed that he had already taken his stance on this matter!
"What do you all suggest should be done?" Christopher asked, his sharp eyes sweeping through the hall.
The room instantly fell into silence after Christopher's question as the other members of the Castellan family stared at each other with hardened expressions.
Ethan's face wore a relieved look and his fingers finally relaxed under the table.
Since his father had spoken like this, nothing would happen to Ivan, and he wouldn't have to do anything drastic.
Time ticked past slowly after Christopher asked his questions. Just when Ethan thought that no one would dare to speak up, the handsome, middle-aged-looking man who had complained first at the start of the meeting suddenly stood up with a resolved look in his eyes.
Christopher's eyes flashed for a brief moment but his expression didn't change as he stared at the other party. Everyone else also turned to look at this person, waiting to hear his suggestion.
This person was Christopher's elder brother, Charles Castellan.
It wasn't a secret that the two brothers hadn't had a good relationship with each other since their teenage years. Although Charles had kept his hostility in check because Christopher was more talented and powerful, it was still well known that he did not like his junior brother.
"My suggestions are, either you expel Ivan from the main family, or you step down from the position of family head and let someone more capable take up the duty of representing the family!" Charles declared.
Those words drew shocked gasps from the other people present in the meeting room. They stared at Charles in disbelief; they didn't expect him to dare say those words to Christopher.
After all, Christopher was a mage who had reached the level 5 warrior rank, he was one of the strongest existences in the whole world!
"Someone more capable. Is that how you feel, brother?" Christopher asked in a deep tone, his gaze was calm as he stared at Charles at the far end of the long table.
"Yes, that's how everyone feels. They are just too afraid to say it, truly pathetic for members of a first-rated noble family." Charles replied strongly, not backing down.
His words stabbed the confidence of the other members of the Castellan family, and they all lowered their heads slightly because Charles wasn't wrong.
They all had the same suggestion as him but who would dare say it to Christopher's face?
Ethan's eyes narrowed as he stared at his uncle and then moved his eyes to his father, waiting for what the current family head had to say.
Christopher didn't say anything immediately. The fact that the others didn't rebuke Charles after that statement meant that they were all on the same page.
After a brief moment of silence, Christopher slowly stood up. His movements were natural, but the mana within a radius of five meters shifted as he moved. This was a sign that he had achieved the pinnacle of strength known to humans.
"Truly pathetic for a first-rated noble family to have such arguments. Since that's how you feel, I'll grant your wish." Christopher said after standing up.
The expressions of everyone present changed upon hearing this, Ethan's eyes widened slightly in shock.
What did his father mean? Was he going to expel Ivan from the family or step down from his position?
Lightning flickered across Ethan's eyes while the others watched Christopher with anticipation, thinking he was finally agreeing with them.
But the words that came out of Christopher's mouth next were like a bucket of cold water splashed on their faces.
"I'll give up the position as head of the Castellan family by challenge. Defeat me and the position is yours." He announced.
Charles "..."
The others "..."
They all stared at Christopher's face with hideous expressions. What the hell did he mean that he would give up the position of family head by challenge? Who in their right senses would challenge a mage at the level 5 warrior rank?!
Not waiting for them to respond, Christopher turned around and started walking towards the door. Ethan also stood up, a small smirk on his face.
His father had taken care of everything perfectly, he had no other reason to be here.
But before the father and son pair could leave, a resentful voice came from behind them.
"You've always been a brat! Always forcing things to go your way since you were the most talented, not giving others the chance to survive; you don't even have regard for me as your elder brother!" Charles growled as he glared at his brother with eyes full of hatred.
Both Ethan and Christopher turned around and stared at the man, curious as to what he was doing right now.
The others at the table also stared at Charles, spooked by his sudden boldness.
Charles' hostile expression soon turned into a mad grin.
"I knew you wouldn't agree, you've already never considered others and I knew you wouldn't change now. That's why I have prepared this!" He suddenly exploded with a crazed laugh.
The next moment, a strange feeling swept through everyone present inside the meeting room as if an invisible shadow had moved over them.
Ethan's expression froze, same as for the others next to Charles. Since everyone here was a mage who had reached the 4th warrior rank, they instantly realized what had happened.
A powerful mana-blocking formation had covered the meeting room!