Chapter 481 - 219: Brother-in-Law and Brother-in-Law

"Cognitive Magic?"

Sean froze for a moment before it dawned on him.

’So the reason Elvire recognized me as Carl Black, but not as Sean, was because my face is blurry and she can’t see it clearly?’

’But the thing is, it’s not like I put a mosaic over my own face, right?’

’Setting aside the fact that I never even thought of that method, even if I had, with my current Tier Three Magic Power, there’s no way I could interfere with a Tier Six’s perception. So where did this mosaic come from?’

Sean’s thoughts turned to his soul, which seemed to be perpetually unaffected by Mind Magic.

’Could it be that on top of having a Schr?dinger-esque Mental Defense, I also have a Schr?dinger-esque face?’

Before Sean could give it any more thought, Howard, who had been quiet for some time, suddenly let out a yell, instantly grabbing the attention of everyone present, including the servants.

"Holy shit!"

THWANG!

—Even the pianist was so startled his hand slipped, smashing out a dissonant chord.

Sean: "?"

Elise: "?"

The Daeli sisters: "?"

Viscount and Viscountess Mockray: "?"

"What in the world is wrong with you?"

Viscount Mockray glared at Howard. "If you’ve got a screw loose, go take your medicine!"

It was one thing to startle everyone with a sudden shout, but he had to use a curse word on top of it. ’Forget what Duke Daeli must be thinking,’ the Viscount fumed, ’I feel like my own son has no class at all. I want to slap myself across the face—how on earth did I raise him?!’

His mother quickly came to his rescue, asking, "Howard, are you not feeling well? Should we have a doctor take a look at you?"

Howard started, "It’s not—"

Viscount Mockray cut him off. "I think it is!"

’Get him away from the table before he has another fit.’

Howard insisted, "It’s really not!"

He didn’t even look at his father. Instead, his gaze was fixed on Sean.

Howard’s eyes were filled with an incredible, unspeakable dread. Even the way he addressed Sean changed as his voice trembled, "You... You are..."

"You’re Mr. Carl Black??"

He had felt something was off before, but Elvire’s words had been the catalyst.

Although Elvire hadn’t mentioned the name, she had mentioned the "Saintess."

It was common knowledge that the Church Court’s First Saintess, Olivia, and Daeli of the Blazing Angel Family were rivals for the affection of the same man. As a fellow Reshaper, Howard naturally approached the situation with a Reshaper’s logic.

He assumed the Duke Daeli before him was the same Miss Daeli from the Era of Polymath, since her name hadn’t changed.

By the same token, the current Saintess, Diana, had to be the First Saintess, Olivia. After all, Olivia had created the Reshaping Technique; it made no sense that others could use it successfully while its very creator failed.

Which led to the question—

"Have you been well all these years?"

Daeli had never forgotten her husband.

This meant her current husband was the same man as her previous one. He always had been.

So, who was this man?

Who else could it be?

It could only be the pioneer of the Era of Polymath, founder of the Hall of Truth, and the current Heretic Leader—Carl Black!

Howard was actually slow on the uptake.

Viscount Mockray was on another level entirely. He couldn’t remember many things from the past clearly. It wasn’t until he heard his son speak the name "Carl Black" that his long-sealed memories seemed to awaken. His eyes flew open as realization dawned, and a broken sound escaped his trembling lips.

"Ca-Carl Black...??"

’Isn’t he supposed to be dead??’

BANG!

In the next moment, Lady Mockray, who had been the picture of dignified grace until now, shot to her feet. The chair behind her toppled over with a crash. She reached out, forcing Howard’s head down with one hand and her husband’s with the other, making the father-son duo join her in an exceptionally deep bow toward Sean.

"The Grev Family greets Mr. Blake!"

"Our family’s reshaped memories are incomplete. We failed to recognize you immediately. Please, Mr. Blake, forgive our offense!"

Sean: "..."

Elvire: "..."

Daeli, on the other hand, couldn’t help but chuckle.

’And here I was wondering what all the fuss was about,’ she thought.

’This family... is actually kind of cute.’

’You can’t call them stupid, since they figured out Sean’s identity.’

’But you can’t call them smart, either, given how slow their reaction was.’

’Now, how to handle this?’

Daeli glanced at Sean.

’Best to leave it to Carl Black himself.’

’Whether or not to wipe this part of the Mockrays’ memories is Sean’s call to make.’

In truth, Daeli hadn’t quite had her fill of "fun" yet.

When no one knew Sean was Carl Black, she could have been the head of the household and made Sean listen to her. To outsiders, she was the Clan Leader of the Blazing Angel Family; it would have been perfectly reasonable for her to have a high status within her own home.

But now that everyone knew Sean’s identity, she couldn’t "boss" him around anymore. She had to give the great Mr. Carl Black some face. That’s why, in the face of the Mockray family’s grand bow, Daeli didn’t offer a response as she had before. From this moment on, she was no longer the one in charge here. Everything was up to Sean.

This interruption helped dissipate some of the unease in Sean’s heart. He adopted a slightly more dignified air and said with a smile, "Please, everyone, sit. Who I am isn’t important. All you need to know is that I’m Howard’s friend."

Howard: "!!!"

’A friend!’

’Mr. Blake said he’s my friend!’

Daeli had also said the Grev Family would be friends of the Blazing Angel Family from now on.

Though it was the same word, the feeling it gave Howard was completely different.

Family was family, and an individual was an individual—the two were entirely different matters. Mr. Blake had acknowledged *him* as a friend. This left Howard so moved and thrilled he nearly burst into tears of joy. He had never imagined that he, of all people, could one day be friends with the great Mr. Blake. With this status, he could finally hold his head high at home. Who would dare yell at him now?