Liora and Elias returned to Adrian’s room.
He was calmer now.
But his face looked older, like a man who had lived ten years in the past ten minutes.
His back was straight, but his gaze held a deep weariness.
"I’ll leave now," he said.
He looked at Liora.
"I know the family won’t let me leave alive, since I’m an exile. Originally, I planned to fight. But... since you two helped me, I won’t make things difficult. I’ll relinquish my sword.
"You can use my sword as an excuse, and say that you let me return alive in exchange for that. That way, your image won’t be hurt more than it has been due to what I did today."
The room went still.
"You’re... giving up that sword?" Elias said, disbelief clear in his tone.
Even Liora’s expression faltered.
The Round Table remained one of the major Hidden Clans because of one reason.
[The Twelve Arms of Albion].
These were twelve weapons passed down through legend, and tied to the myths of the Round Table.
They weren’t normal artifacts.
They were miracles of craftsmanship and power, comparable to divine relics.
The Daelthorn family had five of the Twelve Arms.
It was part of why they led the Round Table alliance.
Swords like Clarent the Bloodstained, Aeglas the Frostwhip, and Gae Rhun, the Spear of the Second Dawn, were all held by Daelthorn.
Each of them could destroy armies.
They were bound to their respective wielder.
Adrian’s sword, however, was not one of the Twelve Arms.
It was called Yorohan.
A black katana forged in the scorching flames of Wageah and bestowed upon Adrian by the Sword King himself.
In terms of power, Yorohan rivaled or even surpassed the Twelve.
When Adrian was exiled, the family had reclaimed Clarent, one of the Twelve Arms he had used as an heir.
But they couldn’t touch Yorohan, since it didn’t belong to Daelthorn, but to Adrian.
Elias and Liora suspected the elders wanted Adrian dead due to Yorohan.
As long as he refused to give up the ownership of the weapon, no one else could claim it.
The only way to take it forcefully was to kill him.
Liora stepped forward and looked Adrian in the eye.
"Okay. I’ll take your sword."
"Then I’ll relinquish it now—"
"No one is relinquishing anything," she said, cutting him off.
He paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
"What do you mean?"
"I’ll keep your sword," she explained, "but it’ll remain bound to you. You can take it back when you come home."
"Come back home?"
"Yes. Now that Frank is dead, the elders won’t sit quietly. They’ll come up with another plan to attack you. You don’t have any guards to protect you outside. So come back home, and live with us. I will protect you."
Adrian frowned.
"You know I’m exiled. I’m not allowed to—"
"You won’t have to worry about that," Liora said. "I’ll handle the elders. Let them bark. I’ll shut them up."
Adrian was silent for a moment, trying to process what she was suggesting.
"Even if you do that... this place is dangerous."
"It is," she agreed. "But it’s the eye of the storm. Here, elders will not reveal their true intentions, since the news might reach father’s ears.
"Out there in the human world, you’re exposed. You won’t have any real guards to protect you. The Elders can attack you, and hide it easily."
Adrian remained unsure.
Liora kicked Elias beneath the table, and beckoned him to persuade Adrian.
Elias was starting to realize he should’ve left when he had time.
But he had followed her due to his curiosity and was now paying the cost of it.
"Think about your son, Adrian. Do you really want him living each day wondering when the next attack will come? If he stays here, he’ll get formal training, and resources. He can become strong enough to ensure his own safety," Elias said.
Adrian clenched his fists.
Breaking his dantian in that desperate moment years ago had seemed like the right choice at the time.
Now?
He was regretting begin so weak that he had to train his son to protect himself.
"I’m not forcing you," Liora said, seeing his hesitation. "For now, stay in the human world. We’ll hide the news of Frank’s death for as long as we can. I’ll assign one of my personal guards to protect you. With that and the silence, you should be able to live a few more years in peace."
"And after that?"
"When the news does spread... come back," she said. "Bring your family with you."
"Give Yorohan to her," Elias reminded.
Adrian looked down at the katana in his hands.
The black metal glinted faintly in the soft lighting of the chamber.
It had followed him through countless battles. Through honor and disgrace. Through exile and blood.
Giving it up—temporarily or not—felt like letting go of a part of himself.
But then he looked at Liora.
And Elias.
Both of them, for all their flaws, weren’t enemies.
Even now, they were putting their positions in danger to help him.
He nodded.
Slowly, he held out Yorohan.
Liora reached out with both hands and took the blade.
She placed it behind her, treating it with the respect it deserved.
"I’ll keep it safe," she told him.
Even though she didn’t want to take her brother’s sword, this was necessary.
Without the sword, she would have not justification to let Adrian go after what he did today.
"And take this."
Liora reached into the folds of her coat and handed Adrian a small black box and a glass vial filled with pale green liquid.
Adrian stiffened the moment he saw the box. His hands trembled as he took it.
He knew this item.
The black box was only the size of a palm, but it weighed far more in value and meaning than gold or jewels.
Inside was a single pill, cultivated through generations of Daelthorn refinement technique.
"Feed that pill to your son when he turns three. Depending on his talent, he should awaken the Hollow Eyes sometime between age seven and ten," Liora instructed.
The awakening pill inside the black box could awaken the [Hollow Eyes] of Daelthorn House.
Only descendants who had gained enough merits were given the awakening pill normally.
"And the potion will help your son recover. Feed it to him as soon as you return. When he wakes up tomorrow, he’ll be fine."
Adrian swallowed the lump in his throat.
"Liora... I..."
"I don’t need thanks. I need you to answer your damn messages next time, brat."
He gave a faint, tired smile and nodded.
"Alright."
After Adrian left, Liora turned to Elias with a sharp gaze.
"Make sure to hide news about Frank’s death, and find out who protected Adrian’s son. We need to reward our benefactor."
...
MC’s POV
My mind was a mush.
The last thing I remembered was someone forcing me to drink something.
I struggled for a moment, but then the warmth spread through my body.
’Was that a healing potion?’
That was the last thought before I drifted into sleep again.
When I woke up, hours later—or maybe it was days—I could tell that something had changed in the house.
From that point on, my schedule wasn’t the same.
Mom stayed with me almost all the time now.
She never let me out of her sight.
I began sleeping in their room—wedged between her and Dad every night like a treasured book between two worn covers.
Seris started showing up more too.
She had always been close, but after the incident, she practically lived in our house.
Dad had become quiet.
He often showed enthusiasm, but I could tell he was shouldering a heavy burden.
’It seems he found out what Frank did.’
We suddenly had guards around the house.
I could tell they were supernaturals. And from how easily they talked with Mom and Dad, I guessed they were old friends.
My peaceful life began after that.
No one attacked me anymore.
I was pampered during the day, and I trained my Shadow Summon skill during the night.
Eventually, I turned three.
"Today is the day... finally!"
For once, Seris wasn’t sleeping over.
Mom wasn’t curled up beside me.
Dad and the guards had apparently gone out for something "urgent."
Whatever it was, it left me alone for the night for the first time in two years.
I sat up in the middle of the bed, barely able to contain my excitement.
"I’ve been under surveillance this whole time," I mumbled, grinning. "I get why they did it. But it was suffocating."
Every step, every breath, every word had been monitored.
I had been protected so thoroughly that it felt more like a prison than a home sometimes. Not that I didn’t appreciate it.
But still...
"Finally, I’m alone. I can do whatever I want now."
I had planned to complete several tasks today.
First, I opened my status.
Shadow Summon: Level 10 (Max)
Class: Shadow (Rank 0)
Evolution Available
My hand trembled slightly as I stared at the glowing line of text.
It was time my Shadow evolved, and I unlocked new skills.
I sat cross-legged in the center of the room. I closed my eyes, steadied my breath.
The process wasn’t difficult, not for someone who had waited this long.
But I still took it seriously.
I focused on the shadow that curled beneath my feet.
The moment I willed it to evolve, I felt a jolt.
My chest tightened, then expanded like air was being forced into lungs too small to hold it.
The shadow beneath me rippled, detached from the light source, and began swirling upward like smoke.
Then came the rush.
A burst of energy flowed through my limbs.
I gasped, leaning forward as I felt invisible flames licked at my spine, awakening something that had been sleeping since the day I was born.
My screen filled with notifications:
Class Evolution Complete
Rank 0 → Rank 1
+10 Strength
+10 Dexterity
+10 Endurance
+10 Intelligence
+10 Spirit
I opened my eyes, grinning.
My body felt stronger.
My senses buzzed like they were newly installed, each picking up more than before.
’I am finally a Rank 1 Supernatural.’
Three years old and already walking a path most didn’t even see until adulthood.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
Still grinning, I looked back at my class page, excited to see what had changed.
The class skill list had expanded. I didn’t even have to say anything. The system brought them up automatically.