The night was dark and silent, except for the sound of the wind and the fire. In a quiet room, a single torch illuminated a solitary figure. It was Lucius, seeking to expand his Vital Center. He sat on the floor, legs crossed and hands resting on his knees. His eyes were closed, and his breathing was deep and rhythmic.

Lucius seemed to be in a state of deep meditation, but his face showed signs of tension and pain. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead and neck. He was exerting great effort to concentrate, as if striving to achieve some goal. In his mind, he visualized the energy of the path produced by the elixir he drank, being absorbed by his body, gathering in his heart with great difficulty, while much of it dispersed throughout his body, like water flowing through a sieve.

"This is much harder than I expected, now that the bottleneck of my Vital Center no longer exists, the energy of the path disperses through the body as if it had a will of its own," thought Lucius as he exhaled heavily and opened his eyes. It had been five days since his encounter with Sir Michael, where the direction of his training had been decided.

Pressured by the dangers he might encounter in the future while away from home, he did not want to waste time and was completely focused on training. However, he knew that this would be his last night at home, as this morning the doctors from the house had come to see him to check his wounds, which were surprisingly completely healed, thanks to the effect of advancing to the metamorphosis stage, which accelerated the healing process of his injuries, despite only two weeks having passed since the incident with the wolf. The only reminders of his wounds were the various scars scattered across his body, especially the one on his face, which was quite apparent and gave the formerly cute boy's face a touch of brutality.

The doctors, seeing that he was completely healed, probably already sent a report to his father, Count Tiberios, and Lucius would soon be summoned to fulfill the order his father had given him. So Lucius decided to interrupt his frantic training to enjoy his last night in Kaapurina, his hometown, and sleep peacefully.

In the morning, he woke up to a servant calling him, with a respectful voice, saying that his father had summoned him for breakfast in his office. Walking there, Lucius encountered in front of his father's office door, Sir Damian, a very tall and muscular knight, one of the most intimidating knights of his father's personal guard. Although he had seen him dozens of times, Lucius had never heard the knight speak a single word; he only grunted in agreement when receiving orders from his father.

Giving a nod when he saw Lucius, Sir Damian opened the office door and gestured for Lucius to enter. Entering the office, Lucius saw his father's table, once filled with scrolls, quills, and ink, now filled with food. There were hot chicken and lamb soups, served in silver bowls, accompanied by soft and crunchy bread made from refined wheat flour. There were also roasted meats of pork, beef, and game, such as deer and rabbit. The meats were cut into generous pieces and arranged on silver platters, decorated with fresh fruits. There were also cheeses and wine, a veritable feast. His father, as usual, was seated in his chair.

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Seeing Lucius, he spoke in a cheerful tone, "Come, Lucius, sit and eat a bit; I also want to talk to you about some details of your journey to the Kamaiura House."

Lucius obeyed; he sat down and began to eat slowly. After the conversation he had with his grandmother, Lucius knew his father's intentions in sending him to the north and had already resigned himself to the fact that he would have to go. However, his father probably thought he would still be upset about the order he had given him.

"You know I'm very proud of you, don't you?" Count Tiberios continued, picking up a wine glass and offering another to Lucius. "Reaching the metamorphosis stage at 10 years old is very rare; even I only reached the second stage of the path when I was 15, and it was through the Ether Elixir."

Lucius thanked him with a subdued voice. He felt a mix of joy and strangeness towards his father now, as the Count had never said he was proud of him before.

"How is your training going? Any difficulty?" Tiberios asked, and Lucius quickly replied, "My path training is progressing without any problems, father."

"Well, as Baron Oliver gained his noble title through war, he is an extremely warlike noble; he will surely appreciate the talent of a boy who has reached the metamorphosis stage so early," said the Count as he drank some wine and continued, "which brings me to the next subject; you're probably curious about why I'm sending you to train under Baron Oliver's guard."

"And the reason is quite simple: Baron Oliver has no sons, only daughters, three to be precise. Your main goal while at the Kamaiura House will be to get close to the baron's eldest daughter," Tiberios said.

Lucius widened his eyes, surprised. He thought his father would probably speak veiledly about tekoha, but he didn't let his thoughts be seen by his father and quickly asked a question, "But if that's the goal, why don't you make a marriage proposal for me directly to Baron Oliver? Being from a small and young noble house, he must be desperate to create more enduring political connections, isn't he?"

Showing a surprised look at Lucius' question, Tiberios replied, "That would be true for a newly created common noble house, but the Kamaiura House is anything but common. For starters, they are self-sufficient in everything except, of course, elixirs. And although they don't have mines as abundant as ours, they still have some mines that meet basic needs. And most importantly: many of the foundation stage warriors who served in the army 10 years ago under Baron Oliver's command, when he was still a knight, and who were discharged, were hired by the baron when he gained the noble title. Nowadays, a good portion of these soldiers has advanced to the metamorphosis stage. So much so that I can say with absolute certainty that the Kamaiura House is the strongest barony in the kingdom in terms of military matters, not losing to any viscounty."

"That's why Baron Oliver would never go against the will of his precious daughters and agree to a political marriage. Therefore, the only way for this marriage to happen will be if you win his daughter's heart," the Count said calmly.

"But father, why is this marriage so important for the house?" Lucius asked, to see if his father would be as honest as his grandmother was with him.

With a firm and authoritative tone, Tiberios replied, "You don't need to know the reason; all you need to know is that this marriage is of vital importance for the prosperity of the Apurina House."

Lucius saw his father's smile turn into a cold and calculating expression. He realized that his father didn't care about his feelings or his happiness. He realized that his father only wanted to use him as a pawn in his power game, as a bridge between two houses. He realized that his father was not his friend but his lord.