Lucius walked calmly through the gates of the Asturias Mansion. The guards looked at him, sized him up, and didn't stop him.
Not because they couldn't. They had orders not to let Lucius in, but who would have thought that guy would show up just a few hours after leaving?
"Hey." One of the guards turned abruptly. "Who just walked in?" he asked his friend.
"That was…"
The guards suddenly trembled when they heard a scream coming from inside.
"Bastard, what the hell are you doing here?!" Darius was furious and began calling out to the guards.
They weren't the only ones who came out; Valerius watched from a distance, and Elara Castelier peeked out from her temporary room.
Lucius was surrounded, but he didn't care.
"Are you trying to make me go deaf?" Lucius pressed his fingers to his ears as he glared at his brother.
Darius, furious, stepped forward and grabbed him by the shirt. "You bastard, you got away from me before. But now that you're here, don't think you'll be able to escape my grasp."
Lucius looked at his wrinkled shirt and frowned. "You know I don't like my clothes getting wrinkled, right?"
"Huh?"
"I said." Lucius pressed two fingers together and tapped Darius's arm several times. "That I don't like my clothes getting wrinkled. Wasn't I clear?"
"Aghh!" Darius pulled his hand back. The pain numbed his entire arm, immobilizing him for several minutes. "You…" He pointed at Lucius with his other arm, but Lucius simply walked away, paying him no mind.
"I've come only to collect my things. Once I've done that, I'll leave. I don't want anything to do with any of you ever again." Lucius acted coldly and, in full view of everyone, entered his former room.
There wasn't much to pack, but he put everything his mother had left him into a bag and took it with him.
In particular, a perfect square. 'This is undoubtedly a tool from the system from a long, long time ago. Who was my mother?' He looked at the perfect square with its dull inlays.
It looked like a magical tool; except it didn't run on mana. It also had no screws to take it apart; it remained hermetically sealed.
Each corner had a grayish crystal inlay, which meant it hadn't been activated yet.
In the Great Islands of Civilization, this perfect square would be recognized as a tool of the system. A tool that holds secrets from bygone eras. But activating it requires special procedures, currently unknown.
He would need a Master specialized in forging mana tools to determine the necessary requirements to uncover what it hides.
But this isn't something a small family would possess; even the Asturians hadn't been able to figure out what it was. Only world-renowned families would treasure or seek such items, so his mother was likely someone important.
'From what I know, she was a Laboratory Researcher.' He thought.
If he could ask her, he would. Unfortunately, she had died years ago.
After gathering everything into a large bag, he left his room with it slung over his shoulder.
Outside, a sword was waiting for him. He felt a chill run down his spine when the cold blade in Darius's hand touched his skin.
"Who gave you permission to take those things? You're a homeless piece of trash who's going to die soon. You have no right to…"
"I don't want to hear your nonsense, Darius," Lucius retorted, cutting him off. "We'll face off in the end-of-year tournament. Then I'll claim your position as my own, and you'll never raise your head to me again."
"Tournament?" Darius suddenly burst out in genuine laughter. "You, a homeless piece of trash, think you'll be qualified to join the prestigious New Creation Academy? You're delusional, Lucius!"
"Homeless trash? Unqualified?" Lucius raised his hands and pressed a button on his system. "If I were you, I'd learn to open your eyes. You're too old to still be so blind."
[Regional Notice – New Asturias City: User "Lucius Asturias" has achieved a "Great Feat."]
[Regional Notice: User "Lucius Asturias" has climbed 450,000 ranking spots and has officially entered the Battle of the Rankings.]
[Regional Notice: User "Lucius Asturias" has been featured on the Bulletin Board.
New Milestone Unlocked: Gain 450,000 Ranking Points in 24 hours to surpass him.
"New Milestone Unlocked Reward": 500 Mana Credits.]
The various regional announcements exploded like wildfire before the eyes of the Asturias Family. Darius read the announcement more than 15 times in a short period of time and trembled.
"You…!" When he went to point at Lucius, he realized that Lucius had already walked to the other side.
"Bastard, stop!" Darius roared with intense anger and disbelief.
Lucius stopped and turned to look at him. A golden coldness covered his eyes.
Although Darius wanted to roar again, his vocal cords tightened into silence. That murderous gaze swept over his body like that of a predator hunting its prey.
For several seconds, the air left his lungs. His body instinctively recoiled. As he reacted, he fell to the ground, gasping for breath. His heart was racing.
"Impossible… Something like that… is impossible," he muttered to himself.
On the local bulletin board, at the top of all the featured posts from the past few years, was the name he hadn't expected to see.
[Lucius Asturias has climbed 450,000 spots in the local rankings in 24 hours.]
It glowed with a grayish hue and flashed blue, but how could that be possible?
Elara wasn't too far from him, clenching her fists hidden beneath her sleeves.
"It's a trick, Darius. It can't be anything else. He used mana tools," she said, though her mouth trembled as she read the regional announcement over and over.
"There's no way he can kill beasts with that dying body… There's no way." Her constant repetition did nothing to help Darius's confused mind.
"In such a short time?" he asked in shock. "He was expelled yesterday!"
Elara frowned.
"Oh. I get it," Darius said suddenly, his eyes sparkling. "He didn't do it earlier because he was going to be expelled anyway for failing to reach Rank D. Now he just wants to mock us—that bastard!"
His reasoning made sense. Elara nodded thoughtfully.
"You're smart, Darius." She patted him on the shoulder. "Don't let Lucius's words get to you. You're a good kid; I'm sure you'll be able to advance to the Capital in the next tournament. I hope to see you there." After giving him a smile, she left.
Darius felt a rush of emotions course through his body. He felt… that she was flirting with him.
The beloved daughter of the Casteliers, Lucius's former fiancée…
"Right…" He murmured to himself. "She was trapped in a meaningless engagement with Lucius, but now she's free…"
A sinister smile spread across his lips as he watched Lucius walking in the distance.
"Enjoy your little moment of fame, dear older brother. In the end, you won't be the one sitting with the greats. As proof of that… I'll take your wife, too," he muttered.
-
Outside the Asturias mansion.
Old Garen saw Lucius coming out and ran over to bombard him with questions.
"You bratty bastard, are you the son of the Asturias? And what's with that announcement? Since when have you been so good?"
"Are you surprised by something so small?" Lucius laughed.
Walking down this road lined with luxury and adorned with precious stones, the two of them looked like a pair of beggars collecting scrap metal. Adding to that image was the black sack Lucius carried on his back.
They were proper scrap collectors. But they looked happier than many of those who looked down haughtily from the tops of their castles.