Chapter 173

The noble families of the Triangular Alliance frequently mingled, forging close bonds among themselves.

Though their words were hardly appropriate for someone soon to become a Grand Duke, they paid no mind.

The Triangular Alliance—especially the Gui Sword and Beast clans—were notorious for their blatant disregard for others’ opinions, often coming off as rude.

They only showed respect to those they acknowledged as stronger than themselves.

As if to make sure Christian heard every word, they grew even more animated.

“An ‘lover,’ you say? Isn’t that a bit of an age gap?”

For context, these men were all around thirty years old.

“What does age matter? If they’re younger, you can just spoil them more. That’s even better.”

“Heh heh. True, he does look like the type who’d be wrapped up in an adult’s skirts.”

“Hmph. What’s with that pretty boy face? No sign of a tan either—what kind of trick is that?”

The room fell silent.

No matter how much they looked down on the Dark Mage, this was beyond rude.

The faces of the Dark Mage’s retainers nearby flushed bright red.

A tense, dangerous atmosphere filled the air, as if a fight could break out at any moment.

Yet the princes and princesses of the Triangular Alliance weren’t acting without purpose.

Let’s see how he handles this.

They hadn’t forgotten why they came.

They were here to size up Christian.

He seems to have some talent, but nothing extraordinary.

That was their assessment.

So they deliberately provoked him to test his reaction.

If he takes this insult in stride but then orders his minions to harass us, he’s not worth our time.

They knew they couldn’t kill the envoys outright, so they felt no hesitation.

Fortunately for them, Christian responded exactly as they expected.

He raised a hand to stop the Dark Mage’s retainers from lunging forward, then calmly stepped toward them.

Step by step, the distance closed, and all eyes in the banquet hall fixed on him.

Everyone was watching to see how Christian would handle this.

There’s no way Christian can take on all three of them at once.

They may have been sidelined from their clans’ centers, but each is a five-star rank.

Tension thickened as Christian stood before them.

“Pleasure to meet you. As you know, I am Christian of the Dark Mage.”

He extended his hand.

It was toward the Beast clan’s prince, who stood front and center.

The Beast prince reached out to shake.

Then Christian spoke.

“I heard some dogs barking nearby. Do you happen to know anything about that? After all, you’re not so different from a dog yourself, are you?”

“!!”

For context, the Beast clan was a beastkin family.

Their current head was the Lycanthrope Lord.

Christian had just insulted the beastkin as little more than animals.

This was the gravest insult a beastkin could endure.

“How dare you…!!”

“No? You don’t seem to know the time or place, just yapping nonsense. I can’t tell the difference between the Lycanthrope and a mutt. Well, at least mutts can be trained to hold their business, so maybe they’re better off.”

“You…!!”

The Beast prince’s face darkened with fury.

The Gui Sword and Phantom clan representatives behind him stiffened as well.

“Apologize for insulting my clan.”

“Apologize?”

Christian’s expression turned cold and unreadable.

“You’re the mutt here. Care to prove it?”

Their eyes met, and an inexplicable chill ran down the Beast prince’s spine.

An instinctive sense of danger.

He felt like he should flee immediately.

What nonsense is this?

He tried to ignore the feeling.

His rank was lower five-star.

He wasn’t weak compared to Christian.

But he shouldn’t have ignored that warning.

Something unbelievable—impossible—happened.

“Woof?”

A sharp, high-pitched bark escaped the Beast prince’s lips.

He was utterly stunned.

What? Why?

“Woof! Woof?!”

It didn’t stop there.

His body moved against his will.

As if truly transformed into a dog, he dropped to all fours.

“Woof! Woof?!”

He barked repeatedly like a dog.

Only then did the Beast prince realize what was happening.

Could it be… a control spell?!

Christian had cast a dark magic to manipulate the beastkin!

It was absurd.

Control magic was only supposed to work on beasts without intelligence.

“Ah, that’s because I’m a genius.”

Christian smirked, placing his hand atop the Beast prince’s head.

Like petting a dog standing on all fours.

“Handling a dumb mutt like you as if you were an animal? That’s the least I can do.”

“!!”

“Strictly speaking, beastkin are a type of beast, so if I want, I can control you with this magic.”

The banquet hall murmured in shock.

Everyone knew how outrageous this was, despite Christian’s casual tone.

“That’s impossible. Even if beastkin share beastly traits, how could you use control magic on them?!”

“And he’s treating him like an actual dog!”

The Beast prince’s face flushed crimson.

What kind of sorcery is this?! I’ll kill him…!

To be forced to act like a dog in front of so many people.

Rage and humiliation overwhelmed his reason.

The result?

“Woof! Grrr!!!”

He looked even more like a dog.

Christian clicked his tongue.

What an idiot. Doesn’t even understand why he fell for control magic. And he calls himself a direct heir?

As others had said, control magic could theoretically affect beastkin.

But that was only in theory.

In practice, it was impossible.

Beastkin were intelligent beings, unlike beasts who acted purely on instinct.

Control magic worked by manipulating a beast’s instincts, so unless a beastkin was in a berserk state, it was impossible to break through.

But Christian had used a trick.

First, I rattled his emotions.

That was why he insulted him the moment they met.

By shaking his feelings, he created a faint opening.

Then, using “True Intent” — a technique he’d stolen from a cursed mage that never missed even the smallest gap — he exploited that opening.

Though True Intent belonged to curses, Christian easily combined different magic disciplines.

Of course, that alone wasn’t enough.

The key was the initial handshake.

I secretly infused dark magic then.

While the Beast prince was distracted by anger, the dark magic Christian slipped in exerted its dominion over the prince’s yellow aura.

Dark magic naturally held absolute superiority over other magic types.

Experienced mages avoided direct clashes with Dark Mage retainers, but the prince’s arrogance and carelessness led him to grab Christian’s hand without hesitation.

It was like asking to be killed.

Especially since Christian’s dark magic was pure—100% concentration.

Both were five-star ranks, so their magic power was nearly equal.

In an instant, Christian completely dominated the prince’s magic and cast a curse of obedience.

Enhancing control magic with curses was a secret technique of the Dark Mage’s branch family, the Count of Tyramine.

Christian had stolen their secret before and combined the two dark magics in his own way, successfully subjugating the prince.

Grrrr! I’ll kill you! I’ll kill you!

The prince thrashed wildly, eyes bloodshot.

But it was useless.

“Woof! Grrr! Woof woof!”

Christian sneered.

The more you freak out, the better.

The more agitated he became, the wider the opening grew.

Had he stayed calm, he might have broken free.

But the Lycanthrope’s naturally wild temperament made calmness nearly impossible.

He tried to resist by pouring all his magic into breaking the spell, but Christian’s mastery was beyond mere brute force.

Like a skilled trainer taming a wild beast, Christian immobilized the prince’s magic.

“Our little mutt has some bad habits. Time for some training. Sit.”

“!!”

A horrifying sight unfolded.

The prince assumed a sitting posture like a dog.

His face flushed so deeply it looked like he might faint from shame.

The Gui Sword prince and Phantom princess stepped forward.

“What is the meaning of this?”

Christian glanced at them and said,

“What do you mean? Can’t you see? I’m just training a naughty mutt.”

He reached out.

Precisely to the prince’s neck.

“But he’s not listening. I’m starting to wonder if I should just put him down. Is there any point in keeping such a bad mutt alive?”

They flinched.

This was no idle threat.

Christian’s eyes darkened.

He was ready to risk a life if necessary.

Since the Triangular Alliance had been the first to offend, Christian had the moral high ground.

“What do you think? Should I really spare him?”

The hall fell silent.

Everyone present was overwhelmed by Christian’s presence.

“…If you go through with something like that, the relationship between the Dark Maga and the Triangular Alliance will be completely ruined.”

“Do you think those who know that would be so rude as to say such things right in front of me?”

“……”

The members of the Sword Maga and the Phantom Maga were left utterly speechless.

“Honestly, if I just let this slide, I’m worried people will start looking down on our Dark Maga.”

“……”

“If you want to keep this guy alive, then show some respect. Don’t tell me you’re fine with spouting off dirty words together and then acting like it’s none of your business.”

The two bit their lips tightly.

It was a clear message: bow your heads and apologize.

It was humiliating, but the justification and momentum were already on Christian’s side.

They had no choice but to lower their heads.

“I-I apologize. I’m sorry for what I said earlier.”

“What was that? I couldn’t hear you. Speak up, please. So everyone here can hear you properly.”

Their faces turned pale with shame.

“Th-That’s…”

“Don’t like that idea? Fine. Then let’s settle this with your lives.”

There was no choice but to raise their voices in even more humiliating apologies.

“I-I’m sorry! I sincerely apologize!”

“…I-I’m sorry.”

Murmurs rippled through the banquet hall.

It was an utterly shocking scene.

Christian nodded, accepting their apologies with an air of supreme arrogance.