Wirn opened his eyes in a space filled with nothing but darkness.
And the moment he became aware of it, ground appeared beneath his feet.
There had definitely been nothing but empty space before he blinked, yet now there was ground beneath him.
The incongruity made Wirn uneasy.
DRIP… DRIP.
At that moment, crimson blood began falling from the empty space above.
There was so much of it that a pool of blood formed on the ground.
―Wirn….
Once the pool formed, the voices of the dead began rising from within it.
Then figures with gruesome bodies severed between the upper and lower halves emerged.
―You killed me!
―You think you can live happily after killing us?
They were his former comrades who had endured brutal training alongside Wirn and survived as Imperial Hounds.
'No. I didn't kill you.'
Wirn shook his head at their accusations.
He had merely delivered the gift bestowed upon them by the Emperor.
'That was a mistake.'
And on the night they received that gift—
They lost their lives after being swallowed by the raging inferno that erupted from the object.
They died screaming as flames burned across their entire bodies.
―Traitor… You damned traitor!
―I'll devour you!
RIIIP!
At that moment, enormous mouths split open across their mangled faces.
―Atone with your death!
And just before those mouths swallowed Wirn—
JOLT!
“…Damn it.”
Wirn woke from his sleep.
It didn't take him long to realize that this was reality.
The moment he awoke from the dream, dazzlingly bright sunlight was already streaming through the window.
“Haa….”
Wirn stared at the light for a moment before letting out a sigh.
Perhaps because of the nightmare, his palms were slick with cold sweat.
“Damn.”
Wirn cursed as he looked at his hands.
TOSS!
Then he threw off the blanket covering him.
***
“That's Young Master Wirn over there.”
“Yesterday at the training ground—”
“Shh. Keep your voice down. What if he hears you?”
After waking from his nightmare, Wirn left his room.
However, the atmosphere in the hallway was different from usual.
The maids around him were the first sign.
'It's already spread everywhere in a single day.'
The story of Wirn defeating Began in their spar was spilling from their mouths.
'A prestigious family really is different.'
But Wirn didn't care.
There had been no reason to hide the spar in the first place, and even if people learned about it, there was nothing that would cause him trouble.
What surprised him was how quickly the rumor had spread.
At the time, Wirn and Began had definitely been the only two people inside the training ground.
'So there's nowhere I can escape prying eyes.'
Yet the rumor had spread in an instant, to the point that even ordinary maids knew about it now.
Through that, Wirn realized there were people observing him.
'Well… it's not entirely a bad thing.'
Still, he didn't view that fact negatively.
The gazes and attitudes of those around him had changed because of what happened yesterday.
Before the incident, they had treated him as either a twelve-year-old child or a Young Master whom the Family Head particularly favored.
“Young Master, was there anything uncomfortable about your sleep?”
“If there is anything you would like to eat, please tell us at any time.”
“If you would like a bath, we will prepare hot water immediately.”
But now, they treated Wirn with something more than that.
Previously, they had seemed to regard him as merely one of several heirs competing for the position of the next Family Head.
'Is it because this is a prestigious family of mages?'
Now it felt as though he had earned their acknowledgment as well.
“Enough. Just act like you normally do.”
Wirn waved his hand at the cluster of maids crowding around him.
Having them cling to him and bombard him with questions was extremely annoying.
“I'll call if I need anything, so go back to whatever you were doing.”
He dismissed them, saying he would call for them if necessary just as he always had.
Disappointment was plainly visible on the maids' faces, but none of them continued clinging to Wirn.
“Would it not be better to silence them even now? I will handle it personally.”
That was because Kemen, Wirn's personal butler, was glaring sharply at them.
“It's already too late. If we wanted to hide it, we should've killed everyone who was near the training ground at the time.”
“….”
“Don't you think?”
Wirn chuckled at Kemen's words.
To hide this matter, they would have to eliminate the witnesses.
And to accomplish that, they would have to begin by killing the maids standing around them right now.
On the surface, those women pretended to have no connection to any of the heirs, but behind the scenes, they were all walking a precarious tightrope between them.
“Do you know why I'm not interested in silencing anyone?”
“Why is that?”
“Because I have no intention of hiding the fact that I defeated Began.”
He would reveal his strength instead of concealing it.
By doing so, Wirn wanted as many people as possible to learn how strong he was.
If possible, even Family Head Ganderf.
“Many people will begin trying to keep you in check, Young Master.”
However, revealing himself like that carried the risk of creating many enemies as well as allies.
That was especially true among heirs competing for the position of the next Family Head.
“And just as many people will start trying to look after me. Whether their intentions are good or not.”
“….”
“Besides, they've already started trying to keep me in check. Yesterday alone proves that.”
Yet Wirn didn't care about that either.
“If they want to come after me, let them. I'll make them bleed and regret it.”
He had confidence.
Confidence that he could survive within the Daylin Family and climb to the top.
GULP.
Kemen swallowed at Wirn's words.
They were exceedingly arrogant and insolent words and thoughts.
'That isn't a bluff.'
Yet Kemen's instincts told him that the actions born from that arrogance weren't mere bravado.
“Young Mas—”
Just as he was about to say something more to Wirn—
“We have guests.”
Wirn cut him off and looked ahead.
Realizing what he meant, Kemen followed Wirn's gaze.
“….”
His expression stiffened unconsciously.
'Young Master Began.'
Began, who had used magic against Wirn in the training ground yesterday, was standing there.
'And… his mother came with him.'
Began's mother was standing beside him as well.
TAP.
The moment Kemen realized that, Began's mother approached Wirn.
Red hair and blue eyes.
She gave off an atmosphere like a calm sea concealing pitch-black depths beneath its surface.
“Young Master Wirn. This is the first time we have met face-to-face since the Initiation Ceremony. My name is Henesan, Began's mother.”
Henesan calmly introduced herself to Wirn.
But her eyes gleamed like those of a snake.
“I'm Wirn.”
Wirn didn't shrink back in the slightest.
“I heard that you recently sparred with my son.”
“Yes. It was a fair fight.”
Instead, he faced her with complete confidence, as though he had absolutely nothing to hide.
After all, Began had been the one to challenge him first.
And hadn't Began still lost to him even after using magic?
“Is there a problem?”
So Wirn asked Henesan directly.
Was she dissatisfied with the spar?
“…No, there is not.”
Henesan shook her head.
Then she turned her gaze toward Began beside her.
FLINCH.
Began's hand trembled at that moment.
It lasted only an instant, but Wirn didn't miss it.
However, he saw no reason to mention it.
That wasn't what mattered right now.
“I understand that my son agreed to give you a High-Grade Elixir if he lost… Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm….”
A High-Grade Elixir.
The only reason Wirn was speaking with Henesan right now was to obtain that elixir.
“I was taught that promises are meant to be kept.”
So he continued when Henesan reacted strangely to his answer.
“And… I was also taught that a person's authority comes from trust.”
In other words, if you don't give me the High-Grade Elixir, I'll tarnish your name.
“I never said I would not give it to you.”
Henesan gave him a benevolent smile.
Then she took a small bottle from inside her clothes.
SLosh.
The liquid inside radiated a brilliant emerald glow.
It was the High-Grade Elixir Wirn had been promised if he defeated Began in their spar.
“I agree with you, Young Master Wirn. A person's authority comes from trust… Those are very good words.”
Henesan held the elixir out to Wirn.
“Thank you.”
Wirn politely accepted it with both hands.
At the same time, he met the eyes of Henesan, who continued staring at him.
His gaze asked whether she had anything else to say.
“However, authority does not come from trust alone. Overwhelming power has a way of forcing others to submit.”
“I see.”
“The Hunting Ceremony will soon be held in the family's forest. I hope this High-Grade Elixir becomes the reason Young Master Wirn can distinguish himself there.”
Henesan casually gave Wirn information about the upcoming Hunting Ceremony.
Then she placed a hand on Began's shoulder.
“We will take our leave now. We have quite a lot to do if he is to distinguish himself during the Hunting Ceremony.”
She added the words in a low voice and bowed her head.
TAP!
Then, as though she had no intention of waiting for a farewell, she turned away without hesitation.
“….”
Wirn quietly watched Henesan and Began disappear into the distance.
“The Hunting Ceremony, huh.”
A smile appeared on his face as he considered the information she had given him.
'Things are lining up nicely.'
He had realized that the perfect opportunity to obtain the remaining essential materials would soon arrive.
***
“Don't let anyone enter until I come out of my room.”
“…Do you intend to do this alone?”
“Yeah. Actually, this is easier alone. I know my own energy best.”
“Normally, someone your age would not know it well at all, but I do find myself thinking that you might be an exception, Young Master.”
The first thing Wirn did after obtaining the High-Grade Elixir was order his personal butler, Kemen, to guard his room.
“Other than the Family Head, I will allow no one inside.”
There was a simple reason Wirn had entrusted the task specifically to Kemen.
There weren't many people who could force their way past a 3rd Circle mage and enter his room.
Besides, rather than absorbing the elixir's energy somewhere outside, it was undoubtedly safer to do so here, in a place crawling with mages.
Without the slightest hesitation, Wirn sat cross-legged in the middle of his room.
'Things like this should be done immediately.'
'First, I'll use the High-Grade Elixir to establish the foundation, then I'll obtain the remaining materials during the Hunting Ceremony.'
Wirn's plan was exceedingly simple.
He would use the High-Grade Elixir he had extorted from Began to bring about the first transformation.
Then he intended to use that strength during the Hunting Ceremony to reinforce his body a second time.
'Then I'll be able to use more magic than I can now.'
Being a mage didn't mean one could neglect the body.
The stronger the body, the more magic one could wield and the greater the power one could produce.
That was why Wirn needed to develop his body faster than anyone else.
“Haa….”
Having reached that conclusion, he exhaled deeply.
'They say a man who's been beaten before knows how to take a beating… but that doesn't make the pain disappear.'
Using a High-Grade Elixir to transform the body was extremely dangerous.
He would have to endure his bones and flesh twisting.
If he failed to withstand it, Wirn would not only waste the elixir, but could end up in a worse condition than if he had never attempted it at all.
That was why most people received help from a third party.
Controlling one's energy while enduring that kind of pain wasn't easy.
Especially for someone who had only just begun walking the path of a mage.
“It's not like I'll die.”
But Wirn had no intention of receiving anyone's help.
He wasn't someone driven forward by enthusiasm alone.
He was a hound with enough experience and ability to make his arrogance reasonable.
He possessed more than enough capability to succeed through his own strength.
To grit his teeth, grow stronger no matter what, and become a sharpened awl—
That was the goal Wirn pursued above all else.
…POP!
Wirn opened the bottle containing the High-Grade Elixir.
A faint fragrance spread throughout the room.
“Hmmm.”
Wirn closed his eyes and savored the scent.
Was it a coincidence?
In his previous life, he had also drunk a High-Grade Elixir around this age.
But back then, it hadn't been because Wirn wanted to.
He had been forced to drink it in order to survive.
'Never thought the day would come when I'd drink this because I wanted to.'
This time, however, he was doing it of his own will.
So he had no complaints.
TAP.
With that, Wirn happily reached for the elixir sitting on the floor.
―WHUMMM!
Black light flowed from the Mark on the back of his hand.
SPLIT!
“…!”
And a mouth that emerged from the Mark swallowed the High-Grade Elixir whole.