Episode 47

“How pure is the dark mana that Christian absorbed?”

“Judging by the condition of his core, it doesn’t seem to be very high.”

I see.

Marquis Langham nodded and made his decision.

“Is he able to move around?”

“Yes, he’s just simply exhausted. There’s no serious physical damage.”

“Then bring Christian to the Dark Hall tomorrow.”

“Your Grace?”

Langham’s gaze shifted back to the documents as he spoke.

“I will decide Christian’s punishment in front of the retainers.”

In front of the retainers.

That meant a severe sentence.

---

The Dark Hall.

A grand hall used for major events at the main estate.

Despite its name, the lighting inside was brilliantly bright.

Not long after Christian took his seat, a figure appeared.

It was Marquis Langham.

But he wasn’t alone.

The retainers who supported the main house followed behind him. Even Eshed, the one considered the next heir, was present.

Such a gathering of prominent figures was far too grand to be for just one man.

‘They’re dead set on this,’ Christian thought with a bitter smile.

The reason for this impressive assembly was obvious.

They intended to punish Christian harshly, in front of everyone.

It was clear no favorable verdict would come his way.

But—

‘Good. Just as I hoped, they’re playing right into my hands.’

Christian smiled quietly to himself.

Did they realize?

This was exactly the kind of stage Christian had been waiting for.

At that moment, Marquis Langham spoke.

“Christian, do you understand the mistake you made during the Sacred Dark Ritual?”

“Yes, I do.”

Christian answered obediently, which surprised Langham.

But then—

“I should have dealt more decisively with those foolish brothers who failed to live up to the reputation of the Dark Mana clan. I regret not doing so.”

“Excuse me…!”

The retainers murmured indignantly at the audacity of his words, but Christian didn’t flinch.

“You don’t mean to say it was wrong to defeat your rivals, do you? Unlike those despicable allied scoundrels.”

His words were provocative, his gaze challenging.

Langham met Christian’s eyes steadily.

Despite the insolence, there was no sign of anger.

Was the difference between them just too vast for such words to rattle him?

His look was indifferent, almost dismissive.

It was clear that, as the second-in-command of the Dark Mana clan, Langham was no pushover.

“Of course, I’m not blaming you for that. The rivals lost because they were weak. Your fault lies elsewhere.”

“What is it?”

“You stole the opportunities from your brothers but failed to achieve the results that should have come with them.”

“!!”

Langham’s voice turned cold.

“The Sacred Dark is a precious resource of the Dark Mana clan. Yet you greedily tried to monopolize it alone. Did you achieve results worthy of that?”

“…”

“Answer me. If you failed to achieve enough, and thus wasted the clan’s precious resource out of greed, you will pay the price.”

Christian chuckled inwardly.

“What exactly do you mean by ‘enough’?”

“Purity of at least seventy percent.”

Langham’s words caused a stir in the hall.

Normally, the amount of Sacred Dark mana a typical Dark Mana bloodline member absorbs during the ritual is less than thirty percent.

Because it’s divided among competitors, there’s a limit to how much one can absorb. Even a mediocre vessel struggles to reach thirty percent.

Direct descendants usually reach around fifty percent.

Among them, the exceptional ones can reach sixty percent.

And the geniuses—those rare few—sometimes absorb up to seventy percent.

Among the current generation of heirs, many absorbed around sixty percent.

But only one had ever reached seventy percent.

Eshed.

He alone had achieved that.

‘Marquis Langham is dead set on getting rid of that reckless Christian.’

‘There’s no way that brat absorbed seventy percent.’

The retainers glanced at Christian’s disheveled appearance.

He looked like a broken shell barely clinging to life.

And from a quick glance at his core, it seemed clouded and troubled.

Though the exact state was hard to tell from a distance, there was no way he had absorbed seventy percent.

“What punishment will I face if I fail to reach seventy percent?”

“You will receive no transmission of Dark Mana techniques.”

Dark Mana techniques were not ordinary skills. They helped one master the use of dark mana with finesse.

Without them, even if you had dark mana, your ability to wield its power across various fields would be limited.

“Furthermore, you will be permanently banned from entering the main estate, and forbidden from succeeding the Kazaar countship. You wasted the clan’s precious resource out of greed, so this is the price you must pay.”

Within the Dark Mana clan, this was tantamount to a social death sentence.

But to everyone’s surprise, Christian asked boldly,

“And if I do achieve enough?”

“What?”

“If I absorb more than seventy percent—enough to be a great asset to the main house—shouldn’t there be a reward?”

The retainers looked stunned.

Here he was, barely alive and looking like a wreck, yet spouting nonsense?

But Christian ignored their looks and continued confidently.

“If I obtain a level of Sacred Dark that everyone here acknowledges as sufficient, I ask Your Grace to recommend me to take the ‘Heir’s Trial.’”

“!!”

The hall buzzed with murmurs.

The ‘Heir’ referred to the successor candidate.

Those without succession rights, like collateral branches, could not become heirs.

But exceptions were made for those with exceptional talent.

With the recommendation of a direct main house elder, they could take the heir’s trial.

It was rare.

In fact, almost unheard of in history.

Yet Christian was asking for such a special favor.

“Do you understand what your words imply?”

Langham chuckled dryly.

His voice still void of emotion.

But perhaps feeling the need to warn this arrogant wild child, he pressed down on Christian with an overwhelming presence—not as intense as the head of the clan’s, but enough to crush him.

The second-in-command of the Dark Mana clan, indeed.

But Christian had withstood even the head’s pressure before.

He took a deep breath, steadying himself, and spoke firmly.

“I understand perfectly. I’m simply requesting this according to the clan’s law that even collateral branches with exceptional talent may become heirs.”

“Do you consider yourself exceptional?”

“Of course.”

Christian lifted the corner of his mouth.

His smile was confident and proud, but his naturally unpleasant expression made it come off as downright arrogant.

“If I absorbed a significantly higher percentage of Sacred Dark than Eshed, the heir, wouldn’t that qualify me?”

“!!”

“Isn’t it strange that I’m better than the other heirs but can’t become one?”

The retainers gasped at his outrageous claim.

Wasn’t that too much to say in front of everyone?

But Christian shook his head.

Humility was never his style.

More than anything—

‘Being confident beats fake modesty any day. Especially among mages.’

Arrogance backed by skill was no longer arrogance.

Those looks of disbelief would soon turn to shock and awe.

Meanwhile, Marquis Langham frowned deeply.

‘What is this?’

Langham felt a strange disconnect rather than anger at Christian’s arrogance.

He knew Christian was a reckless madman.

But this was too much.

More than that, his face radiated unwavering confidence.

‘Could it be that he really absorbed more Sacred Dark than Eshed?’

Such confidence could only come from that.

Langham raised his eyes to examine Christian’s core, trying to estimate exactly how much Sacred Dark he had absorbed.

But even with his keen eyes, it was difficult to gauge the state of Christian’s chaotic, clouded core.

Christian thought calmly to himself.

‘Look all you want. Can you see it?’

Christian was using a secret technique employed by the shadowy swordsmanship clan.

It had been further refined by Evan, the greatest prodigy of that clan.

It was practically one of the union’s best stealth arts, so no one could penetrate the disguise by mere observation.

Then, unexpectedly, a voice rang out.

“I agree with Christian’s opinion.”

“!!”

It was Eshed!

He smiled pleasantly and addressed the crowd.

“What does it matter whether the heir is from a collateral or direct branch? The strong rule above—that is the natural order of magic.”

“Your Highness.”

The retainers hesitated, glancing nervously at Eshed.

Though he wore a friendly face, everyone here knew he was no saint.

As talented as he was, his ruthless and merciless nature was well known.

That smile was not kindness, but the grin of a predator eyeing its prey.

Indeed.

“However, there is a condition. I will personally verify Christian’s dark mana through a mana clash.”

Eshed revealed his true intention.

A mana clash.

A pure contest of magical power.

It sometimes occurred in real combat.

‘Dark mana always holds an absolute advantage in such clashes.’

If the mana amounts are equal, the one wielding dark mana inevitably overwhelms the other.

But if both have dark mana?

The one with higher purity gains the upper hand.

Eshed’s reason for proposing magi collision as a means of verification was clear.

“Since Christian’s core is tainted, making it difficult to accurately gauge the purity of his dark magi, I believe this is the most precise method available right now.”

Half of that was true, and the other half wasn’t.

There were plenty of other ways to check the purity of dark magi.

The reason Eshed insisted on magi collision was because he intended to use this opportunity to crush Christian.

More specifically, he planned to damage Christian’s core.

Those who lost in magi collisions often suffered severe wounds to their cores.

Everyone was aware of this, but whose idea was it? Who would dare oppose it?

Even Marquis Langham didn’t object.

After all, he too had been thinking that Christian needed to be punished.

And as a bonus, Eshed, as a noble, could put that reckless, wild thunder-brat in his place and assert his authority. That wouldn’t be a bad thing.

“There’s no problem with handling magi itself, right? I’ll only use as much magi as you can handle. Let’s limit it to the lower second rank.”