The Raven Hall was teeming with the most prominent members of the Ravenstein family. Given the immense size of the family, with millions of members, it was impractical for every single one to attend.
Only the influential branch heads and individuals of a certain level of strength were in attendance of the event, and yet this still resulted in hundreds of powerful figures, all oozing with strength, filling the hall.
A continuous hum of murmurs and chatter resonated throughout the grand chamber as each person engaged in fervent discussions. If one were to listen closely on all these conversations, they would quickly discern that all the discussions revolved around a single focal point: Atticus.
"Do you really believe those trainees' reports were entirely accurate? An expert rank killed by an intermediate- rank?" A portly figure turned to Sirius and asked, an action itself that seemed make his ample cheeks and fat to quiver and vibrate.
They were currently seated not far from the trainees who were closest to the elevated thrones.
"Ugh! I've asked you not to speak to me, tubby! Just see the way you look! I feel like I'm gaining weight just by being close to you!" Sirius retorted with a playful smirk, discreetly inching his seat away from Nathan.
Nathan's face instantly flushed crimson with embarrassment, his ears practically emitting hot steam. "I'm not even fat; I'm just big boned!" he retorted.
Sirius was taken aback by the absurdity of Nathan's response, his expression momentarily frozen in bewilderment.
But before he could formulate a retort, someone beat him to it. Lyanna burst into laughter, her mirth resonating through the hall.
"Big boned? With that ginormous tummy?" Lyanna continued to tease, doubling over with laughter as she pointed at Nathan's bulging midsection, which resembled a thick roll of dough.
Nathan's face turned even redder at Lyanna's jabs. He muttered under his breath, "These bastards," before turning his head away, crossing his arms over his soft chest, and pouting like a child who had lost his candy.
However, both Sirius and Lyanna paid little heed to their friend's reaction and continued their laughter.
They were well aware of the cause behind Nathan's weight—stress eating. Nathan was what you would call a stress eater. Basically, anytime he was stressed, he ate a lot.
The past few years, filled with the ongoing war against the Obsidian Order, had undoubtedly been one of the most stressful periods of his life.
As the head of the Raven Consortium, Nathan was responsible for mitigating the consequences of the family's actions during the war. What compounded his stress was the sharp decline in Ravenstein stocks each time their family went on a rampage.
Since the start of the war, he had just been stress eating and constantly gaining weight with no end in sight.
Currently, Nathan's appearance was a sight to behold. He currently looked like a large, round man whose size was truly out of this world. He had a massive and rotund frame, with rolls of soft flesh that wobbled as he moved.
Every movement he took caused his voluminous bulk to jiggle and sway. His cheeks and chin were round and plump, seemingly defying the concept of sharp angles, and they flushed red easily, especially when he was flustered or embarrassed.
His belly was the most prominent feature, protruding like a sizeable barrel beneath his ample chest, causing the buttons on his shirt to strain with each breath.
His legs and arms were stout, and his fingers were thick and stubby, making it no surprise that he was being made fun of by Lyanna and Sirius. It was truly surprising that an individual could weigh so much in a world riddled with war.
"Just answer the question, you fools," Nathan finally chimed in after realizing that Sirius and Lyanna had no intentions of ending their mockery anytime soon.
Despite the fact that Lyanna and Sirius were making fun of Nathan's weight, no other family members dared to laugh or even cast a glance in their direction.
They all knew that the three of them were demons in human skin, three of the four stars of the Ravenstein family.
As laughter continued for a few moments, Sirius finally composed himself and decided to address Nathan's question more seriously.
"Honestly, I find it hard to believe too. An intermediate- rank defeating three expert ranks is just too implausible, no matter how I think about it," Sirius remarked, his tone initially steeped in skepticism.
Just as Nathan was about to agree with his words, Sirius continued, his voice becoming a little more serious.
"However, after spending two years training that boy, I've come to realize he's not like the rest of us. If it were anyone else, I wouldn't believe it, but that boy operates on a different wavelength altogether," Sirius finished speaking, a faint smile gracing his lips.
Sirius's words left Nathan staring at him with mild astonishment. 'This guy, who rarely gives praise, is offering such high compliments?' Nathan couldn't help but feel surprised.
He knew just how sparingly Sirius bestowed compliments. In fact, he doubted if Sirius had ever praised his own son as much as he had just praised Atticus. It was indeed shocking. 'Is he genuinely that talented?' Nathan contemplated.
Lyanna, meanwhile, nodded in agreement with Sirius. Though she hadn't met Atticus yet because of her busy schedule.
But due to her job and years of experience, she knew immediately when someone was lying to her. She was the one who had questioned the trainees, and she knew they were all speaking the truth when they reported Atticus's exploits.
Conversations similar to the one between Nathan, Sirius, and Lyanna were occurring throughout the hall. Everyone was curious and baffled by the boy who was said to have defeated an expert rank.
Their collective thoughts revolved around a single question: How?
Amid the lively discussions, the grand double doors of the Raven Hall abruptly swung open, and, as if a switch had been flipped, the entire hall fell into silence.