novelraw Chapter 169 : The Third Component
Chapter 169 : The Third Component
Chapter 169: The Third Component
Yam did not know what kind of mindset he was in when he left.
His thoughts were still a little chaotic, and he was mostly replying on instinct.
But the members of the Kasein Family did not think much of it. They simply believed he was unwilling to see the Bourbon Family's legacy fall into their hands, so many of them wore schadenfreude expressions, especially Wade Kasein. He had been trying to intimidate Yam from the start, and at this moment, the look on his face was almost completely undisguised.
Only Tyrot and Dean’s expressions remained unchanged. In fact, Tyrot even came over to comfort Yam.
After all, if nothing went wrong, his daughter would very likely become in-laws with Akar in the future, and Akar was Yam’s younger brother. By that relation, he naturally had a reason to be more friendly with Yam.
The Kasein Family was no longer the minor noble family it used to be, not with Marquis Visen at its helm. It was now a genuine great noble house.
There were even several factions within the family.
For example, Wade was highly respected by the elders because he carried the Berserk Ape Bloodline. If it weren’t for his son Burton’s death, which led to Monica taking power and, as a result, elevating Tyrot’s standing, he probably wouldn’t even have had the qualifications to say these things to Yam now.
But Tyrot also understood that the next generation heir of the Kasein Family would only emerge from the descendants of Wade or Arsen. After all, both were born after Marquis Visen had advanced to the Sixth Tier, and they carried the Berserk Ape Bloodline. Therefore, the chances of birthing a genius were much higher than with his or Hans’ offspring. However, Hans was already dead, and his son was a failure, with only a granddaughter, Angelina, whose aptitude remained uncertain.
Still, she could be considered lucky. Due to her slightly older age, she became the fiancée of Aches Arsen Soderbell. Tyrot and Wade were both aware of this, but since the decision had come from Marquis Visen, they naturally had no objections. Tyrot was even quite supportive. After all, Hans, like him, was a son born before their father reached the Sixth Tier, which meant their relationship was inherently closer.
When Yam faced Tyrot Kasein’s consolation, his expression finally showed a trace of clarity. “I’m fine, Lord Tyrot. I wasn’t thinking about the Secret Vault just now.”
“Then was it your nephew’s engagement?” Tyrot asked again.
Yam hesitated. With no better excuse, he could only nod. “Yes.”
“Then you don’t need to worry.” Tyrot chuckled. “Angela is a good child, and she’s very beautiful. She’s received the best education since she was young and will definitely be a good match for that boy Aches. Once you meet her, you’ll see I wasn’t lying.”
Yam certainly understood that since Marquis Visen wanted to win over their Soderbell Family, he wouldn’t let a problematic child marry Aches, as that would risk straining relations. So if Marquis Visen approved of a great-granddaughter, she must be one of the more outstanding members of the younger Kasein generation—either in temperament or appearance, she must have some attractive qualities.
As for Bloodline Aptitude?
Yam wasn’t that naive.
Normally, a child’s aptitude could only be tested around the age of fifteen, and Angelina was only ten, so testing was impossible. Moreover, Yam speculated that Marquis Visen chose to arrange Angelina’s marriage to Aches largely because she was the granddaughter of his second son, Hans. For the Kasein Family today, only members who inherited the Berserk Ape Bloodline were considered true direct-line, core members.
The descendants of the eldest son Tyrot and second son Hans clearly no longer counted as core members of the Marquis Kasein Family.
But Yam didn’t care about that. After all, their Soderbell Family possessed the Demonic Sword. As long as the child wasn’t an idiot, they could become a Bloodline User.
Especially now—he had already obtained another component of that sword, and it was the most important one: the Sword Guard. Once he returned, he could immediately use it, further enhancing the Demonic Sword’s power.
Yam was already eager to see what new ability the Demonic Sword would gain.
Now that the Secret Vault had been opened, Marquis Visen naturally didn’t intend to keep Yam in the Withered Wood Forest any longer. So he had Dean escort Yam back to the White Mountain Territory. Yam, in turn, used the excuse of needing to discuss something with Akar, asking Marquis Visen to send a letter summoning Akar to the White Mountain Territory for a discussion.
Marquis Visen naturally assumed it was about the marriage between the two families, so he agreed and assigned a Bloodline Knight to deliver the letter to the Gem Territory. Dean would escort Yam from the Red Soil Territory back to the White Mountain Territory. They did not cut through the Withered Wood Forest because the rumor of a Fifth-Tier Magical Beast residing there was not a rumor—it was real. Moreover, that beast’s strength was extremely formidable, nearly comparable to an ordinary Sixth-Tier Magical Beast.
However, it only roamed the central area. As long as they did not venture too deep into the Withered Wood Forest, they wouldn’t encounter it. Marquis Visen hadn’t dealt with it before mainly because he didn’t want to worsen his injuries. Now, he was genuinely powerless to do anything about it.
More than half a month later, Dean finally brought Yam back to White Mountain City.
But this time, Dean did not stay in White Mountain City for long. The matter of the Bourbon Family’s Secret Vault being opened was a confidential secret. He had to rush back to ensure no unforeseen accidents occurred. So after resting for only a day, he departed.
Akar had also arrived at the White Mountain Territory, bringing Liam with him.
Ever since Liam’s arm was bitten over half a year ago, Cindy had been severely reprimanded by Yam and Lily. The Soderbell household’s attention toward Cindy increased significantly. They no longer treated her with the same near-neglectful freedom as before.
They had long realized that Cindy was more intelligent than other children, but a child under six still had a very different understanding and perception of the world compared to adults. They did not want to ruin Cindy’s innocence and cleverness, but they tried their best to guide her to think more deeply and to recognize that there were great differences between people.
Yam also had Aliman lead the Shelf Mercenary Group in an attempt to capture a few Magical Beast Cubs.
They didn’t need cubs of lord-level Magical Beasts like the Shadow Panther—even Tier One or Tier Two would suffice.
Then they discovered that Cindy was not actually able to manipulate or control the Magical Beast Cubs. Even after a period of Cindy’s training, those Tier One and Two Magical Beast Cubs still would not obey her commands, nor did they feel any particular closeness to her. But since there was no second Shadow Panther cub, they still couldn’t determine whether Cindy could only tame Shadow Panther cubs, or if the Shadow Panther cub they had previously caught was unique, or perhaps Cindy had simply established some kind of special master-servant relationship with that specific Shadow Panther cub.
Still, the matter wasn’t entirely fruitless.
Or rather, the results were simply different from what Yam’s family had imagined.
Ion discovered that Cindy’s tolerance for blood and gore was far beyond what was normal for a child her age: he had inadvertently seen how fascinated Cindy was by scenes of beast fights and dogfights, and she had even begun trying to feed live livestock to the Shadow Panther cub.
However, Ion did not immediately tell Yam or Lily about it, but instead had a private conversation with Cindy.
It was during that conversation that Ion learned that Cindy’s experience with the Demonic Sword was completely different from how the rest of them felt when interacting with it.
Ion didn’t know whether this was a good thing or a bad thing, but when he wanted to discuss it with Yam, Yam had already been taken by Dean to the Withered Wood Forest.
And in the nearly month-long period since Yam left, Cindy’s behavior hadn’t changed much from before: aside from her liking for gory scenes, she exhibited no other unusual tendencies. Moreover, she had clearly expressed that Liam getting bitten by the Shadow Panther cub was an accident. She had fully recognized her mistake and was now even more aware of the difference between herself and ordinary people.
After much thought, Ion ultimately did not tell Lily about Cindy’s fascination with gore.
And since Yam had returned last night accompanied by Dean, the Knight Commander of the Kasein Family, Ion hadn’t said much to him. It wasn’t until today, after Dean had left, that Ion immediately approached Yam and told him about how Cindy’s interaction with the Demonic Sword was different.
However, after hearing his father’s words, Yam felt confused. “Didn’t we already confirm that Cindy is the Swordbearer? She can resonate with the Demonic Sword and understands some of its functions. We even learned these things because of Cindy.”
“It’s different,” Ion said with a stern expression. “Cindy’s bloodline has already been confirmed.”
“What do you mean?” Yam was taken aback.
“Do you remember Molly?”
“The Blood Knight of the Karco Family from the Spring Breeze Territory?” Yam frowned. “What about her?”
“Cindy inherited her bloodline route. The Bloodthirsty Beast’s bloodline seed is already inside her,” Ion said gravely. “This means that Cindy’s future bloodline path must align with that. She cannot awaken any other bloodlines.”
Yam’s expression darkened immediately. “So Cindy… shows bloodthirsty behavior?”
“Yes,” Ion nodded. “She’s deeply interested in performances like beast fights and dogfights. Also, I suspect her strength far exceeds that of normal children. That’s certainly due to the lingering effect of Molly Karco’s bloodline power on her. Perhaps this is the true difference between a Swordbearer and a Guardian of the Sword. Only those recognized by the Demonic Sword as Swordbearers begin to undergo its power’s transformation from childhood.”
“But we have no idea what Molly’s bloodline progression path was…”
“Cindy already knows,” Ion interrupted Yam’s urgency. “Or rather, the Demonic Sword gave her several options. For Tier One, she must choose one from Bloodsucking Worm, Plague Worm, or Blood Snake. For Tier Two, one from Savage Beast, Bone-Eating Wolf, Blood-Mouth Worm, White Bone Bird, or Black-Crowned Rooster. As for Tier Three, it must be Bloodthirsty Beast.”
“She can just choose freely? Isn’t that dangerous?”
“Of course it’s not just random choice,” Ion shook his head. “If she chooses Bloodsucking Worm at Tier One, then Tier Two can only be between Blood-Mouth Worm and Savage Beast. According to Cindy, the purpose is to enhance her recovery and combat ability. If she chooses Plague Worm, then Tier Two options are White Bone Bird and Bone-Eating Wolf. That path makes her blood develop special poisonous effects. If it’s Blood Snake, then she must choose between Black-Crowned Rooster and Blood-Mouth Worm. That route strengthens her control over blood.”
After hearing Ion’s words, Yam fell silent.
Bloodthirsty Beast had never been a normal or righteous bloodline.
Although it significantly enhanced a Bloodline User’s combat ability, the side effects that came with it were just as pronounced.
Liam was what a normal child should be like.
And Cindy?
At just six years old, she had already displayed clear signs of bloodthirst. If she continued to develop in that direction, what would she become? Yam didn’t dare to imagine. He had deliberately collected information about that Blood Knight from the Spring Breeze Territory after the battle years ago. If her father hadn’t been there to restrain her, and if she didn’t have an Abyss Passage in the Spring Breeze Territory to release her urges occasionally, she could have been considered an extremely brutal individual.
“No matter what you’re thinking, we have to start making preparations and decisions right away.”
Yam nodded with a headache.
The joy he had felt from retrieving a component of the Demonic Sword from the Bourbon Family’s Secret Vault had now completely vanished.
After all, to Yam, his daughter was clearly more important than the Demonic Sword.
“By the way, why did you call Akar to the White Mountain Territory, and bring Liam along as well?” Ion finally asked.
Yam did not answer directly but took out a chunk of iron about the length of a palm.
Ion took the iron and inspected it. Other than discovering a hole drilled through its center, he didn’t find anything unusual. But after turning it over a few times, a look of realization appeared on his face, and his voice even trembled slightly. “Could this be… a component of the Demonic Sword?”