Chapter 12: Shadows of the Grandelbell Family
The night creatures in Sirius's painting moved at terrifying speed toward the helpless Theron. Red-eyed crows shot like black arrows, giant bats swooped with gleaming teeth, and shadow wolves leaped with claws ready to tear.
But seconds before the attack hit its target, something strange happened.
Theron's body, which had been covered in blood and severely wounded, suddenly began changing color. His skin, which had been normal colored, slowly turned gray, then darker until it resembled hard granite stone.
Within seconds, Theron's entire body had transformed into a perfect stone statue. No more blood flowing, no more groans of pain - only a stone statue standing still in the middle of the ruins of his defensive dome.
The attacks from the night creatures struck the stone statue with full force. Crows crashed with their beaks and claws, bats bit with sharp teeth, wolves clawed with gleaming talons.
But all that happened was the sound of metal meeting stone. Theron's statue suffered no damage whatsoever - not even a small scratch on its surface.
Sirius frowned seeing this scene. His ice-blue eyes stared at the stone statue with a mixture of bewilderment and slight annoyance.
"An interesting escape technique," he muttered softly while raising his sword that still glowed black. "Transforming the body into stone to avoid death. But..."
A thin smile appeared at the corner of his bloodied lips. "That won't change anything."
The night painting around him slowly began to fade. The terrifying creatures disappeared one by one like smoke, the black sky changed back to normal evening sky, and the dead trees were replaced with green trees.
---
In a luxurious house located in Asteria's capital, specifically in the noble family district, Theron suddenly opened his eyes with gasping breath.
He sat up hastily on the wide bed, cold sweat drenching his entire body. His trembling hands touched his chest and arms, making sure his body was still intact and uninjured.
"Father?" a young woman's voice came from beside the bed.
A girl around seventeen years old with long brown hair and brown eyes similar to Theron's sat in a chair beside the bed. Her face showed deep concern.
"Lyra," Theron muttered while trying to regulate his breathing. "How long was I unconscious?"
"Almost two hours, Father," Lyra answered while pouring water into a glass. "Your stone body suddenly appeared in this room unconscious. We all panicked."
The room door opened, and in came a woman in her forties with an elegant appearance. Her brown hair was neatly tied, and her brown eyes, the same as Theron and Lyra's, showed deep concern.
"Theron," the woman said while approaching the bed. "Thank goodness you're awake. What happened at the academy? Why did you use the emergency stone body technique?"
"Elara," Theron replied while looking at his wife. "I... met someone very dangerous."
Behind Elara came a young man around twenty years old with a build similar to Theron's but slightly slimmer. His brown hair was cut short, and his brown eyes looked at his father with a mixture of concern and curiosity.
"Father," the young man said with a deep but calmer voice than Theron's. "We've brought Kael to the family treatment room. His bones have started healing with the help of the best healing magic we could get."
"Thank you, Darius," Theron nodded to his eldest son. "At least Kael will be fine."
Theron rose from the bed and walked to the large window facing the Magic Academy. His brown eyes stared toward the academy building with an expression that was hard to interpret.
"Elara, Darius, Lyra," he said without shifting his gaze from the window. "Have you ever heard of someone with white hair with bright blue tips, and eyes as cold as ice?"
The three family members exchanged confused glances.
"Physical characteristics like that..." Darius said slowly while furrowing his brow. "Isn't that the characteristic of the highest noble family in the Kingdom of Asteria?"
"The Grandelbell family," Lyra continued with a voice beginning to tremble. "But Father, that's impossible, right? The Grandelbell family is famous for their unreasonable ice magic. Besides, they rarely leave their territory."
Elara approached her husband with careful steps. "Theron, don't tell me you met..."
"A young man around fifteen or sixteen years old," Theron interrupted his wife's words. "White hair with striking bright blue tips, eyes as blue and cold as winter ice, and..."
He paused for a moment, his hand clenching at the window sill.
"And power that's absolutely not ice magic."
"Not ice magic?" Darius asked in wonder. "Then what?"
"Sword magic," Theron answered with an increasingly quiet voice. "He can create living paintings and control the creatures within them. Most terrifying was the night painting he created - I've never seen anything so frightening in my life."
Theron turned to face his family, and for the first time, they saw true fear in their family head's eyes.
"That boy defeated my stone body in one attack," he continued with a trembling voice. "The stone body I've strengthened for decades, which once withstood attacks from powerful magical beasts, crumbled like paper before him."
The room became silent. Everyone knew how strong Theron's stone body technique was. Among noble families mastering earth magic, Theron was among the top five strongest.
"But Father," Lyra said in a small voice. "If that boy is really from the Grandelbell family, why didn't he use ice magic? And why is he at Asteria Academy?"
"That's what confuses me," Theron replied while rubbing his forehead. "The Grandelbell family is famously very closed and there was only one woman from that family who entered Luminaris Academy but now she's graduated because she was too strong."
Darius crossed his arms over his chest, his expression showing he was thinking hard.
"Father, there's another possibility," he said slowly. "Maybe that boy isn't from the direct Grandelbell lineage. Maybe he's from a banished branch of the family or..."
"Or an illegitimate child," Lyra continued in a whisper.
Theron shook his head firmly. "No. I've lived long enough to know the difference between pure noble blood and mixed blood. That boy... he has the aura of true nobility. The way he moves, the way he speaks, even the way he looks - everything shows he was raised in a pure noble environment."
Elara approached the window and stood beside her husband. "Then what about Kael? That boy must know he's hurt a child from the Moldenheart family. What are we going to do?"
Theron remained silent for quite a while. His gaze was still fixed toward the academy, but his mind wandered to various possibilities and consequences.
"If that boy is really from the Grandelbell family," he said in a very quiet voice, "then we must not do anything."
"Father!" Darius shouted in disbelief. "Kael is my brother! He almost died because of that boy!"
"And I almost died trying to avenge him," Theron replied in a cold tone. "Darius, you don't understand how truly terrifying the Grandelbell family is."
He turned to face his children with a very serious expression.
"The current head of the Grandelbell family is Regis Grandelbell. That man isn't just an ice mage - he's one of the three strongest people in the entire Kingdom of Asteria. Even the king himself pays respect to him."
Theron's voice became increasingly quiet, as if he was afraid of being heard by others.
"It's said that Regis Grandelbell once froze an entire city in one night because someone dared to touch his daughter. The entire population of that city - tens of thousands of people - became ice statues within hours."
Lyra covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes widening in horror.
"And even more terrifying," Theron continued, "the Grandelbell family has tremendous political influence. They control ice and crystal trade throughout the kingdom. Almost half the kingdom's wealth depends on their family business."
Darius swallowed hard. "So if we oppose them..."
"The Moldenheart family will disappear from the map overnight," Theron finished his son's sentence. "Not just physically, but also politically and economically. All our business relations will be severed, all our political allies will turn away, and eventually we'll be exiled or even executed on charges of treason against the kingdom."
The room became very quiet. Only the sound of wind blowing from the window could be heard.
Elara finally broke the silence. "But Theron, we can't just let this pass. Kael is our child."
"I know," Theron replied while clenching his fists. "But we must think with cool heads. If that boy is really from the Grandelbell family, then we must be very careful in every step we take."
He walked to the desk in the corner of the room and took a sheet of paper and pen.
"Darius," he called his eldest son. "I want you to investigate that boy very carefully. Find out his full name, where he comes from, and whether he has any connection to the Grandelbell family. But don't let him or the people at the academy know we're investigating him."
"Yes, Father," Darius nodded. "I'll use our connections at the academy to get information."
"Lyra," Theron turned to his daughter. "I want you to stay home until this situation is clear. Don't go to the academy or any public places."
"But Father, I have nothing to do with this problem," Lyra protested.
"That boy has seen my face," Theron replied firmly. "If he's really from the Grandelbell family and decides to take revenge, then all our family members could become targets."
Elara approached her husband and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Then what about Kael? He's still severely injured and needs several days to fully recover."
"Kael will remain in treatment at home," Theron decided. "We won't send him back to the academy until this matter is resolved. Even after he's completely healed."
Theron walked back to the window and stared toward the academy with a gaze full of worry.
"Most importantly," he said with a very serious voice, "we must not make any move that could be interpreted as a threat to that boy. If he really is from the Grandelbell family and reports this incident to his family..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but everyone in the room understood the implications.
---
Back in the academy garden, Sirius walked slowly toward Theron's stone statue. His steps were somewhat unsteady due to wounds on his body, and his broken left arm still hung helplessly at his side.
But his facial expression still showed terrifying calmness. Even in his severely injured condition, he looked like a predator watching its prey.
"An interesting technique," he muttered while raising his sword with his right hand. "Transforming the body into stone to avoid death and transferring consciousness to a safe place."
The sword in his hand still emitted deep black light, though not as strong as when he created the night painting earlier.
"But as I said," a thin smile appeared on his pale face from blood loss, "that won't change anything."
August and the other teachers who were still silent from witnessing the earlier battle suddenly came to their senses when they saw Sirius raising his sword toward the stone statue.
"Sirius! Don't!" August shouted while running toward the young man. "You've already won! There's no need to do that!"
But Sirius ignored August's shout. His ice-blue eyes stared at Theron's stone statue with a very cold gaze.
"This isn't about winning or losing, Academy Head," he said without shifting his gaze from the statue.
In one very fast and precise movement, Sirius swung his sword in a perfect vertical slash.
The black light from his sword cut through the air with a sound like tearing fabric. The slash hit Theron's stone statue right in the middle, from the top of the head down to the bottom.
For several seconds, nothing happened. The stone statue still stood intact, as if Sirius's slash had no effect at all.
But then, a thin line began appearing in the middle of the statue. A very straight and precise line, splitting the statue into two exactly equal parts.
With a very loud sound, Theron's stone statue split in two and fell to the ground with a rumble that made the entire garden shake.
"Finished," Sirius muttered while lowering his sword.
But the effort to maintain his strength and launch that final attack proved too heavy for his already severely injured body. Exhaustion and excessive blood loss finally took over.
The sword in his hand fell with the sound of clanging metal, and his body began swaying forward.
"Sirius!" several voices shouted simultaneously.
But the fastest was Astrid. The red-haired girl moved with surprising speed, catching Sirius's nearly falling body with both hands.
"So foolish," she muttered while supporting Sirius's unconscious body. "Pushing yourself this far just to teach a lesson."
Her red eyes looked at Sirius's pale face with an expression that was hard to interpret - a mixture of annoyance, concern, and something else.
August and the teachers finally reached them. "Astrid, take Sirius to the medical room immediately!" August commanded with a voice full of concern.
"Professor Elynne!" August called a middle-aged woman with neatly tied brown hair. "Please prepare the best medical room and all the healing potions we have!"
Professor Elynne, who was the best medical teacher at the academy, nodded quickly. "Yes, Headmaster! I'll prepare everything!"
Astrid lifted Sirius's body carefully, making sure the broken arm didn't get worse. Although her body wasn't too big, she had enough strength to support Sirius.
"Everyone," August called the prospective students who were still silent from shock. "Now we'll rest first before continuing the test."
The prospective students nodded obediently, though their faces were still pale from witnessing the terrifying battle earlier.
Fiora, who was usually always confident, now looked very shaken. "How is it possible for someone our age to have power like that?"
Gleen said nothing, but his trembling hands showed how shocked he was.
Behind them, August stared at the ruins of Theron's stone statue with a very serious expression. As an academy head with decades of experience, he knew that today's events would bring very serious consequences.
"I hope Theron doesn't report this to his extended family," he muttered quietly. "If the Moldenheart family decides to take revenge in an extreme way..."
He shook his head and walked following the group toward the medical room. What was most important now was ensuring Sirius received the best treatment and recovered completely.
Meanwhile, in Astrid's arms, the unconscious Sirius looked very peaceful. His face, which had shown a terrifying smile earlier, now looked like an ordinary young person sleeping soundly.
But the blood still flowing from his wounds reminded everyone that the earlier battle wasn't a dream - and its consequences might have just begun.