When Avia brought up the issue of his heir in front of all the clan leaders and pavilion masters, she might have appeared like she was standing against Velez but in reality, she was actually reminding everyone of the clan tournament in order to corner the clan leader.
Now, if Qridus suddenly snatches away the position of clan heir from Velez and gave it to either Azzy or Vesyrn, it will be deemed not only as a misuse of power but also destroys the purpose of an ancient tradition such as the clan tournament.
Of course, she was confident that Velez will face difficulty if he were to be challenged by Azzy but still, she doesn't want him to suffer injustice at the hands of the clan head.
At the same time, she too wanted to see if Velez really has any supporters who will stand by him even against the Supreme realm expert.
If he can't have their confidence, then, there is no use in him succeeding Qridus. Despite breaking up with him due to unavoidable circumstances, six years ago, she might still have some lingering feelings left. But, that doesn't mean that she could outrightly show her support to him. As the judge of the disciplinary hall, she was supposed to be completely neutral and stay forever loyal to the throne.
The only reason she decided to act like this is because of Azzy's move to annul her father's two decades of expulsion as soon as he returned to the clan.
Meanwhile, Qridus Garcia fell into deep thoughts. Indeed, he planned on announcing Azzy as his heir once again. However, he was aware of Velez's potential and so were the others. If he turns back on him without giving any sufficient reasons, the opportunistic clan leaders will use him against the throne in the future.
Hence, he decided to stay as the clan leader for a longer time than he originally thought, at least, until he feels that Azzy is ready to take his place.
Qridus then rose to his feet and announced, "No matter the reason, it is true that Velez Garcia is the current clan heir. He will stay as one until he loses his position through the clan rules. Now that I have made myself clear, I don't want to hear this topic again."
The elders and the pavilion masters fell on their respective left knees and bowed to the old man. As the latter nodded and took his throne, they got up on their feet to talk about the other things.
Meanwhile, on the third floor of the palace, Vesyrn was still in the middle of the forced awakening from the Reaper.
He was shrouded by the Death energy and his soul power was steadily rising while his spirit was in his mindscape, meeting with his new partner.
Since the whole room was put inside a spatial barrier, no one in the building sensed the changes in Vesyrn. Not to mention, there's Qridus' order of not disturbing Azzy and his parents. So, no one had any idea what was going on here.
The process lasted for an hour. Azzy and Izora were patiently watching him. The Reaper also waited with them to see it to the end.
Once it was finished, Azzy observed his father using his "Eyes of God" skill. Vesyrn successfully made a breakthrough into the legendary realm (rank-8). His soul energy also thickened a lot compared to before and he was no longer weak as he was earlier. As for the other things, it can only be explained by his father.
As Vesyrn opened his eyes, he clenched his fist with a smile and admired the surge of strength inside him.
He then fell onto his knees and kowtowed to the Reaper, "I'll forever be grateful to you, Lord Chronos."
The Reaper waved his skeleton hand, "No, I'm not giving you any gift, Vesyrn. I merely did what I had to do to make sure your clan tradition stays alive. That's all. And before I go, I must warn you that the power you received is dangerous in its own right. The more you do the right/noble things, the more you will keep it under your control.
However, if you use it for evil purposes, then, it will slowly corrupt your soul, and in the end, you will be controlled by your Arcana."
Vesyrn nodded firmly, "I understand, Lord Chronos. I give you my word that I will never use it irresponsibly."
"Good." The Reaper proceeded to remove the spatial barrier and disappear from the real world.
For a while, Azzy talked to his parents, explaining his next move, and they agreed to it without having any second thoughts.
And very soon, Azzy and his parents entered the throne hall, taking everyone by surprise despite the fact that they were expecting the arrival of these three.
"This guy... isn't he..."
Meanwhile, Velez furrowed his brows as soon as he saw Azzy's face. "How is that possible?"
He immediately recognized Azzy, not through his personal memories with him but remembered from the match video of the world league's finals. As a sore loser, Velez kept that thing in his mind for more than two decades.
Azzy not only shares a similar name to the person who defeated him but also shares a striking resemblance. Was Azrael originally 41 years old, not 14 years, perhaps?
There's a chance that Izora actually gave birth to Azzy long ago but kept the secret from the clan for several years and then took the advantage of his teenage-looking face to fool everyone. Since Vesyrn had an arranged marriage with Izora, perhaps, he stood by her. Or maybe, Qridus threatened him to keep the secret.
Did Avia know the truth? Is that why she was insisting that he is no match for Azrael?
Or maybe, this was just a giant coincidence and he was mistaking Azrael Garcia for the guy from the finals of the world league.
Several theories popped up in Velez's mind.
However, he didn't voice it out and kept his mouth shut as he was too happy at the moment. After all, the clan head just announced that neither Azzy nor Vesyrn will become the clan heir.
And Velez planned to reach the Supreme realm faster and take away Qridus from his path before the father and son grow strong enough to challenge him.
Perhaps, the only confusing thing that was disturbing is how he couldn't feel anything from Azzy. If he is the same guy, then, he should be in the 7-star realm. Did he lose his power, somehow?
Whatever the case, the truth will come out once this teenage boy starts fighting and summons his Arcana.
The black lightning wolf and the black lotus will give away his identity. Or so Velez thought as he intently stared at Azzy. As for Izora and Vesyrn, he only spared a couple of glances at them. Both of them appeared to be in the 7-star realm, and with their gold-grade Arcana, they aren't a threat.
Little did Velez expect that very soon, Vesyrn Garcia, the guy who he looked down on will turn his world upside down.
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m