A man with a striking build and pale-gold hair stood in the study.
His deep blue, almond-shaped eyes were cold and aristocratic.
Although Charles was the father, he always felt a sense of inadequacy when facing this son of his, who carried himself with such brilliant, untarnished character.
He looked at his son’s serious expression and couldn’t help but sigh.
“You are the only male in the direct line of the White Lion Family.
You will be the Family Head one day.”
“Since you know now, I won’t hide it from you any longer.”
Ize saw his father’s solemn expression, and a vague sense of unease grew within him.
He sat down in the leather chair before him, his right hand hidden beneath the desk as he twisted the clan insignia ring on his left index finger.
“Every family provides pheromones for its unbonded males each month.
You know this.”
“These pheromones are more effective than the ones developed by the research institutes.
Have you ever wondered why?”
Ize pressed his lips together.
He had never used the pheromones provided by the family, but he had heard others speak of them.
“Because these pheromones are extracted from the blood of females, not technologically synthesized like the ones from the institutes.”
Ize’s eyes narrowed.
“Extracted from blood?
Then…”
Charles nodded.
“That’s right.
Most of this blood comes from the females of the family’s branch lineages.
Only the successive Family Heads are aware of this.”
“Then why are you drawing Wen Ran’s blood?” Ize’s rugged features were cold and stern, his tone laced with urgency and anger.
Charles sighed.
“Do you think I wanted this?
But there are too few females in the White Lion Clan’s branch families—not nearly enough to supply the entire clan.”
“Wen Ran enjoys the wealth and status of the White Lion Family, so she must contribute to it.”
“Furthermore, the pheromones specially extracted from Wen Ran’s blood can enhance a male’s power.
If you just use a few more vials, you could break through to the SS Level.
You would become the first SS Level male of your generation in the entire Lion Clan.”
The Lion Clan has many branches.
The White Lion Clan was only able to distinguish itself because of Wendy, an S Level female, and his own years of political maneuvering.
Otherwise, with their dwindling numbers, they would have long since been crushed by the other branches of the Lion Clan.
“Sorry to disappoint you, Father, but I’ve never used the pheromones.”
Upon hearing that the milky-white pheromones were extracted from Wen Ran’s blood, Ize was suddenly overcome with relief that he had never used them.
Otherwise, he truly wouldn’t know how he could ever face Wen Ran again.
All those days and nights spent suffering from his soaring Frenzy Value suddenly seemed insignificant.
“What!
“You…
you’re being outrageously wasteful!”
Ize ignored his father’s grief-stricken expression and retorted coolly, “What about Wendy?
Does she have her blood drawn every month?”
At the mention of Wendy’s name, Charles’s confidence faltered.
He cleared his throat.
“Wen Ran fought with Wendy for nutrients in the womb.
That’s why Wendy was born so frail.
She simply can’t endure having her blood drawn every month.”
“Wen Ran felt guilty, so she volunteered to give blood in Wendy’s place.”
Ize’s eyes darkened, and his voice grew hoarse.
“So, you’re saying Wen Ran has her blood drawn twice a month!”
He closed his eyes, suppressing the rage in his heart.
“I will apply to the Imperial Palace for a family treatment room.
Then our clansmen can go there to have females soothe their spiritual power.
Don’t let Wen Ran donate blood ever again!”
Charles’s eyes shifted.
With a sigh, he pulled a stack of papers from a desk drawer.
“Take a look at this.”
Ize took the papers, his eyes cold.
As he flipped through them, his refined face grew even more frigid.
“Lu Yanting should be exiled to a barren planet for assaulting a female.
And they want Wen Ran to sign a settlement, withdraw her accusation, and let Lu Yanting walk free?
What a joke.” He slammed the settlement agreement onto the desk.
“Father, even if you’re partial to Wendy, Wen Ran is still your daughter!
How can you ask her to sign a settlement agreement after what happened to her?”
Ize found it difficult to breathe and tugged at the black and gold tie around his neck.
‘How did I never realize how biased Father could be?’
“What’s done is done.
Besides, she was already engaged to Lu Yanting.
His actions are understandable, in a way.
If it’s such a big deal, we’ll just have them get bonded now.”
“Besides, we get an offshore oil field in exchange for one settlement agreement.
It’s a good deal for us.”
“Father, I refuse!
Lu Yanting must face the punishment he deserves!”
The image of the girl’s pale face and the sound of her wailing sobs filled his mind.
A knot of frustration tightened in his chest with no hope of release.
Charles grew angry as well.
“Ize, an oil field would bring more profit than the White Lion Family could earn in ten years, and you’re just going to refuse it?”
“This settlement agreement must be signed!”
“If you insist, Father, then I’ll kill Lu Yanting before the settlement to withdraw the complaint takes effect.
If it comes to it, I’ll give up my position as Junior General!”
“Ize, you…” Furious, Charles slammed his hand on the desk.
Ize was the most promising of the White Lion Family’s younger generation.
He even had the potential to advance to the SS Level and lead the family to greater heights. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
‘And now he was willing to give up his uniform as a Junior General just to kill Lu Yanting.
It was utter foolishness.’
Ize stood up and smoothed the hem of his clothes.
His clear voice was as sharp and cold as a blade of frost, and his expression was more serious than ever before.
“Father, that is my position.”
He turned to leave.
Charles gritted his teeth, forced to compromise.
“Wen Ran can stop donating blood every month, but this settlement agreement must be signed.”
“Ize, you’re not the Family Head yet.
Even as a Junior General, you can’t break clan rules.”
Ize sneered.
‘So that was Father’s endgame.’
He gazed at the man before him—his father, both familiar and yet a complete stranger—and felt an indescribable sorrow and powerlessness well up from the bottom of his heart.
He said nothing more and strode from the study.
While waiting for his car in front of the main building, Hunter approached, holding the settlement agreement.
“Young Master, the Family Head said you forgot something.”
Seeing the conspicuous words “Settlement Agreement,” Ize’s hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into fists.
Once in the car, Ize’s fingers gripped the settlement agreement tightly.
He turned his head to look out the window, his gaze dark and unreadable.
By the time he returned home, the sky was turning the pale white of dawn.
He didn’t go to his room to rest.
Instead, he dismissed the servants, sat down on the sofa, and lit a cigarette.
[Warning: Your Frenzy Value has reached 70%.]
His head was splitting.
His agitated Spiritual Body thrashed, threatening to break free from his Spiritual Sea, but he forcibly suppressed it.
He chain-smoked one cigarette after another, locked in a standoff with his own Spiritual Body.
By eight in the morning, Ize, drenched in sweat, managed to send a message to Hunter.
He told him the servants didn’t need to make breakfast and that everyone was to stay two hundred meters away from the main house.
He then got up from the sofa and stumbled toward his bedroom.
As he passed Wen Ran’s room, the beast deep inside him roared, ‘See her, bite her, devour her.’
Just as his hand touched her doorknob, Ize bit the inside of his cheek, the sharp pain granting him a moment of clarity.
Just as he was about to enter his own room, Wen Ran’s door opened.
“Brother?”
The young woman’s voice, soft and husky with sleep, made the man’s control completely shatter.
Wen Ran felt a searing hand clamp around her waist.
The next instant, the door to the adjacent room slammed shut, and she found herself pinned against it from behind.