Besil calmly accepted Keter''s choice of mission, but he felt some disappointment.

    An F-rank mission was completely safe, and it was more of a trivial errand than a real challenge. Besil assumed Keter chose the mission because it involved Katherine.

    Besil didn’t give much weight to Keter''s victory. He believed that Keter had relied on the power of Amaranth, the demon bow, rather than his own archery skills. The soldiers also reported that Keter had used Amaranth, so it was probably true. The soldiers weren’t lying—Keter had indeed drawn on Amaranth’s power, but what they didn’t know was that he didn’t use the bow at all during the sparring match.

    “Did you choose this mission because you know Katherine?” Besil asked.

    Keter shrugged.

    “It’s not entirely irrelevant, but it’s not the main reason either.”

    “Then it won''t matter if I assign someone else to the mission, right? Katherine hasn''t said a word since meeting you.”

    “A knight ignoring the patriarch? Sounds like grounds for dismissal,” Keter replied.

    “She seemed to have her reasons. Reasons that were related to you.”

    “I told her to do that. She''s doing well to follow through.”

    “I heard you and her made a vow and bet on it. You don’t intend to keep her silent forever, do you?”

    Katherine was a knight that Besil also valued. It wasn’t just because she was the only female knight; she had talent, loyalty, and an unwavering work ethic.

    The Order of the Galaxy was the Sefira family''s strongest force. The seven strongest knights among them were awarded the title of Seven Stars of the North. Two of those positions were currently vacant as there was no one befitting, but Besil hoped, and was confident, that Katherine would soon fill one of those spots.

    “It’ll be one month at most, maybe even sooner,” Keter replied.

    “It was Katherine’s mistake for making a hasty vow, so I won’t hold you accountable for it. However, you''re far too reckless to be left alone, so I’m assigning you a partner.”

    “I could use a subordinate to help me out, so that sounds good to me.”

    “Don’t think of your partner as a subordinate. A partner is a companion with whom you can open up, share your thoughts, and grow together. There’s no hierarchy between partners. This is a tradition all your siblings have gone through in Sefira, so you should accept it as well.”

    Besil was concerned about whether Keter, who had grown up so independently and doing whatever he wanted, would truly respect the traditions of the family. Especially now that Keter’s status had risen suddenly, he might feel uncomfortable speaking casually with a knight of lower rank. S~ea??h the n?velFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

    However, Keter was thinking something entirely different.

    Besil described it as a partnership, so it would most likely be someone around his age. He didn''t care who it was, as long as they weren''t spineless.

    It wasn’t just because Dork was his subordinate; he was genuinely impressive. His ability to use knowledge and wisdom at the right moments, adapt to situations, and plan for the future was even greater than Keter’s own.

    But on second thought, Keter realized that wouldn’t work. Dork’s talents should be used for his own benefit, not for Sefira.

    Besil, observing Keter’s calm demeanor, couldn''t tell what he was thinking. To be honest, Besil felt uneasy. Even if Keter had no malicious intent, all his actions would be carried out under the Sefira name, and ultimately, Besil would have to bear the responsibility for them.

    Freedom and unpredictability were qualities that Sefira lacked but Keter possessed. As the patriarch responsible for the lives of tens of thousands and centuries of history, Besil had already assessed Keter''s strengths and devised a plan to make the best use of them.

    There was a knight in Sefira whom Besil considered a white elephant—a talent too valuable to discard but not worth much as things stood. Besil intended to assign that knight as Keter’s partner.

    After their individual reflections, Besil stood up first and approached Keter.

    “Let me give you a hug.”

    Besil, not one to show affection toward his children, felt no hesitation in showing it to Keter, whom he pitied for having grown up in harsh conditions.

    However, Keter despised pity more than anything else in the world, especially when it was directed at him.

    “That’s disgusting.”

    Keter stood up and took a step back. Besil couldn’t bring himself to stop him. Instead, he grasped Keter’s right hand firmly.

    “I can tell how much you’ve been through just from looking at your hands,.”

    Keter’s hands bore the marks of calluses forming and peeling repeatedly, and there were deep scars so deep that it was a wonder all his fingers were still intact. His rough palms were clear evidence of the brutal and chaotic path he had walked.

    Keter also sensed something from Besil’s touch.

    Keter never let his guard down, no matter who it was, even if it were a crawling infant or a dying old man. Yet, here he was, letting someone take his hand.

    Besil was just holding his hand, but Keter could feel it. His father had reached the pinnacle, both physically and technically.

    His father was a Five-star Master, a rank only one in tens of thousands ever achieved. It was a level revered by all warriors.

    However, the final opponent of the Sefira family was Queen Lilian of this kingdom, and the kingdom had over fifty Masters in total. In addition, one had to surpass the Four Lords to even stand a chance against Lillian, and they were Seven-star Prime. Even one hundred Five-star Masters couldn’t defeat a single Lord.

    From the looks of it, Besil neither had the desire nor the time to grow any stronger. That meant Keter had to give him hints to reach the realm of Ein. But if it was too obvious, Besil would never accept it. It was easy yet difficult for a human who already mastered aura to absorb mana into their body.

    First, they would have to completely abandon all the aura they accumulated so far. Only after that could the body begin to accept mana, and in doing so, they became capable of maintaining both aura and mana simultaneously.

    But no one would be willing to give that up. Abandoning the years, the pain, the blood and sacrifice required to reach the rank of Master would be nearly impossible. But that was why it was all the more appealing. If it were easy, it would be boring. There was a particular thrill in accomplishing what everyone else deemed impossible.

    * * *

    There were three knight orders within the Sefira family: the Sacred Order of Sefira, composed of one and two-star holy knights; the Order of the Galaxy, made up of knights ranked three stars and above; and the Order of the Star, which served as the commanders of the soldiers.

    One knight was packing his belongings at the Sacred Order of Sefira’s barracks. After gathering all his belongings, the knight glanced at the nameplate on the shelf.

    Luke packed his belongings, taking his nameplate last, and stepped out into the hallway. The corridor was completely empty. He glanced around with a bitter expression. It was a sudden transfer, but surely everyone knew he was leaving today. Yet, no one came to see him off.

    It was because of Luke''s nickname.

    It was more of an insult than a nickname, but it was a nickname widely used to refer to Luke, one even he acknowledged. It was because Luke hesitated and feared killing for any reason. Not only that, he also struggled with causing harm to others in general.

    “It''s not like I want to be this way.”

    The instinct to avoid killing was natural for humans, but it was something that could typically be overcome. But for some reason, Luke found it impossible. It wasn’t due to trauma or any psychological issue. He considered his inability a curse, though no one else believed him.

    Luke had basically given up on fixing this problem, so he was surprised when he received word that the patriarch had summoned him. At first, he thought Besil was going to personally tell him to quit; after all, a knight who could not fight could hardly be called a knight. Anyone would find a person weaker than even a soldier being called a knight distasteful.

    However, Besil said something unexpected to Luke. Besil asked him to become Keter’s partner, to grow alongside him by complementing each other’s weaknesses.

    Luke told himself this would be the last time; he would overcome this curse and become helpful to the Sefira family, even if it meant he would die.

    With big goals in mind, Luke headed to the mansion where Keter, his partner, was.

    * * *

    Luke arrived at the mansion Keter was staying and gulped.

    “This is where Keter lives.”

    The mansion was a remodeled three-story storage. Its appearance didn’t quite match the grandeur of the Sefira family, which could be because it seemed so hastily constructed.

    “It feels colder here than anywhere else.”

    Feeling a sudden wave of unease, Luke glanced around. The soldiers were quietly standing guard as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

    Before coming here, Luke had been briefed on some basic information about Keter. He knew that Keter was from the lawless city of Absinthe and was eighteen years old—an age full of energy and vitality. Luke had heard rumors about Keter causing various major incidents on his very first day in the family, but he didn''t believe in gossip.

    Contrary to his resolve, his hands began to sweat.

    .

    After what felt like an eternity, Luke finally grabbed the door handle. All he had to do was turn and pull; it was a simple, easy action, but Luke couldn’t do it.

    Luke’s hand starts trembling uncontrollably. It wasn''t because he was nervous; he knew exactly why.

    Luke had experienced a peculiar phenomenon since he was very young: right before something unfortunate was about to happen, his body would start to tremble. If he ignored it and tried to push through, the trembling would turn into paralysis, tormenting him.

    At first, he thought it was an illness, but no doctor or priest ever diagnosed it. They simply concluded that it was a psychological issue.

    However, Luke thought differently. He believed it was a curse bestowed upon him, someone who was not originally from the Lillian Kingdom. His inability to kill also stemmed from this curse. Even just thinking about harming someone made his hands shake so violently that he couldn''t even shoot an arrow.

    However, the curse didn’t only bring misfortune. It saved his life many times in various dangerous situations. There were instances where he had planned to cross a mountain but decided to take a detour after feeling the trembling, only to later learn that bandits had been ravaging the area. He had even once detected poison in water through the curse''s trembling.

    But this was the first time something like this had happened. His curse was reacting to the prospect of meeting someone.

    The trembling only grew worse as Luke tightened his grip. However, he didn’t give up. It didn’t matter if he ended up paralyzed and collapsing embarrassingly—this was his last chance. He wanted to at least try, even if it meant fainting disgracefully.

    At that moment, a voice came from behind him.

    “What are you doing, kid?”

    The sudden voice snapped Luke back to his senses, and he quickly turned around.

    The man looking down at him had sharp features but a soft demeanor—a combination that didn’t seem to match at all. It was impossible to guess his rank or occupation from the way he dressed.

    Fortunately, the trembling had stopped, but unfortunately, the man looked suspicious. Although the absence of his usual shaking suggested he wasn’t a dangerous person, Luke still felt uneasy.

    “And who are you to be here?”

    Luke, who hated being called a kid, wasn’t going to respond politely.

    “I asked first. Answer me.”

    “I am Sir Luke Blendere, Knight of the Sacred Order of Sefira. And for the record, I’m an adult, so I’d appreciate it if you refrained from calling me a kid.”

    “Seems like Sefira is really running out of talent if they’re recruiting kids like you into the knight order.”

    “You take that back. I can tolerate you insulting me, but I won’t allow you to insult Sefira.”

    “And what if I don’t?”

    The man lowered his stance and even offered his cheek as if inviting Luke to hit him. Luke’s fists trembled in frustration.

    For some reason, the soldiers nearby were just standing by, watching without intervening. They were probably leaving it to him because he was a knight. While Luke couldn’t resort to violence, he could at least push the man away, and he was about to do so when a familiar figure appeared behind the man.

    It was Jacques, his father. Jacques also seemed to have noticed Luke and quickly walked over. Luke thought they could team up and chase this rude person away. However, Jacques spoke first.

    “My lord, why are you standing by the door? Hm? Luke? What brings you here?”

    “Huh?”

    Luke knew his father was Keter’s personal butler. But why was he calling this thug a lord?

    A flash of realization struck Luke’s mind.

    Luke’s eyes shifted back from his father to the thug. The man flashed a smile that was both innocent and devilish.