Lidien stared at his finished plate while playing with the end of the napkin, then smirked
"So tell me, what is it that you want?" he said before staring back at Aria's squinting eyes.
Time seemed to stop. Lidien activated his Incite of Blood as his nails, pinching the napkin, quietly transformed into claws.
Woosh!
A large, thick, and long claymore swept down between them, severing Lidien and Aria's locked gaze.
"Aria... stop teasing Lidien..."
The full-plate-armored man stared at Lidien with a warning.
"And you, Lidien, visit me in the afternoon... let me remind you how to control that hot-blooded rage of yours..."
Lidien only gulped so hard it made Aria laugh, even as she stared at the man with annoyance.
The man was no other than the teacher of the past Lidien who taught him how to fight; he was more of a monster than any enemy Lidien had fought.
Azer, the Greater Demon of Wrath, one of the most trusted Generals of Mother and a Sword Master. Though Lidien hadn't seen him fight using his ability as a Demon, rumors said he could match any small clan in the Savage Expanse alone, and no one lived to tell the tale of how much of a Demon he truly was.
"But Brother... I need to go to the Knowledge Spire to learn some techniques and meditation."
Azer laughed and put back his giant claymore in his space ring before gesturing for Aria to get back to her original seat, which Aria unhappily complied with while staring back at Mother for help, to which Mother didn't respond.
"You think meditation and some random technique will help you conquer the Dark Wolf Clan with some soldiers who only know how to swing their swords like sticks?"
Then he pointed at Kyer, still laughing while receiving the heavy blows of the man wielding the hammer.
"Do you think that idiot would have lived if I hadn't interfered, stopping their Patriarch when he stole their slaves?"
Lidien listened intently, carefully analyzing Azer's words, trying to get some information that would help him fight the Dark Wolf Clan.
As Azer carefully filled up his teacup with a dark liquid, a strong bitter smell lingered in the air before touching Lidien's nose, making him cringe from it.
Azer caught Lidien stopping his breath before laughing.
"I see, Lidien, you're still not yet a man..."
Lidien closed his eyes, trying to endure the strong smell.
"What the hell is even that?"
Azer smiled, twirled the teacup before gulping the contents in one go.
"Xocoatl... a gift from the Gods..."
Lidien's eyes widened, staring at the small teacup studying its content.
'A gift from the Gods...'
"C-Can I have a taste?"
Azer only nodded his head, then a maid gently put a teacup in front of Lidien before pouring it with a dark brown liquid, thick and gritty.
Staring at it intently, Lidien gulped before putting the teacup near his face. As he made his nose get used to the smell of the Xocoatl, he drank it slowly... while using his Incite of Blood just to analyze the taste.
As he drank, a sharp clarity pierced through his mind, and the lingering fatigue from overusing his Sparkline the previous day seemed to vanish.
'It really is a Gift from the Gods!'
His excited eyes met with Azer's, smiling sweetly, contrasting the bitter taste of the Xocoatl.
"Where can I have more of this tea?"
Azer was stunned for a moment before thumping the table with his loud laughter.
"I didn't know you would challenge yourself just because I told you that you were not a true man yet... how was it? Is it good?"
Lidien mirrored his excitement, laughing as Azer laughed.
"Yes! It is truly a Gift from the Gods!"
Azer stopped his laughter before pointing at Kyer, who had stopped moving, unconscious...
"This commodity is too rare and hard to find; try asking that idiot... maybe he can help you... and don't try to ask something from me, because I will definitely... not give you."
Lidien gazed at Kyer and sighed.
Kyer, a Demon of Greed. Though Lidien was much stronger compared to him, his connections and cunningness knew no bounds, even scamming his own brother just for a few Merit Slips, saying that he could make him rich.
Well, the one he scammed was the man wielding the hammer.
Rax, a Demon of Pride. Though he was the weakest of all the siblings, the sin of Pride was the rarest Demon that existed; they excelled at leading and commanding, but never in fighting.
Slowly, Kyer got up from his acting, smiling as he licked the blood dripping down his face.
"Rax... relax... I'll definitely give back to you your Hundred Merit Slip!"
Rax stomped; though it was just a small amount for them, his Pride couldn't take it when he was scammed by his brother.
"Kyer... you scammer! I'll definitely--"
Rax's voice halted when a tapping of a table was heard throughout the hall.
"Rax... stop. Kyer... give it back... how many times do I have to tell you that you need to help each other and not the other way around."
Lady Rose said softly, yet all of them were forced to listen.
There was only one rule Mother wanted with her adopted children.
It was to never betray their siblings and Mother.
That is why, no matter how they hated each other, no one dared to deliberately attack their siblings in a way that would cause death or cripple them.
And a fight between siblings was only considered a "misunderstanding" or just training.
Lady Rose sighed softly, making everyone behave in their seats.
"Everyone here knows that Lily has gone to scout the Dark Wolf Clan, and I have tasked Lidien to lead the fight against them... does any one of you want to help?"
Then she smiled and gazed at Aria.
"Except you, Aria... I know what you're planning with Lidien."
Aria sighed, pouting while crossing her arms over her chest.
However, no one presented themselves to help Lidien, making Mother glance at him worriedly.
"It's okay, Mother... I have a way... and maybe instead of fighting them, we'll gain a valuable vassal."