Chapter 127: The King of The North [1]

I walked through the corridors alone until I finally found the dining room.

Two knights were standing guard in front of the enormous double doors.

I had left Ezio in my room because Guardians weren’t allowed inside the main family’s dining room unless they were given permission by the head of the family. It was mainly for privacy purposes.

So I greeted the knights and waited for them to open the doors.

I could already feel the presence of more than five people inside, some of whom I was already familiar with.

Hopefully, everything would go well.

Although, knowing this family, I’d probably be attacked somehow.

But I wasn’t scared of any of them.

The only thing I was worried about was the family head noticing something strange about me and deciding to end me right there.

This would be my first time meeting a truly powerful being who could probably detect if something strange had happened to his son.

Even though I was worried, I had a hunch that the Man in Yellow had probably made sure I wouldn’t be discovered.

’’...’’

I hoped so.

Another thing I wanted to accomplish tonight was to show that I was different.

I was no longer the same Yves they remembered.

If I could show the family head that I had changed, perhaps he would see me in a better light.

But for that to actually work, I’d have to win the Rite of Passage.

The doors finally began to open.

I activated [Calm Mind] and stepped inside.

The doors closed behind me.

The dining room was huge and luxurious.

Picture frames covered the walls, displaying what were probably portraits of past ancestors, along with pictures of the current family. Every child and wife of the family head seemed to have their own portrait hanging somewhere.

Far in the middle of the room was a long table filled with all kinds of food.

The sweet aroma was the first thing to greet me.

If Ezio could see all this food, he would probably be drooling while begging me to bring some back for him.

There were six people seated around the table.

On the right side of the head chair sat four women whose beauty couldn’t be described with words alone.

The first woman sat directly to the right of the head chair.

She had golden hair and matching golden eyes, her hair styled into smooth waves that fell over her shoulders. She wore a beautiful blue dress and sat with the grace of a noblewoman.

A gentle smile rested on her face, one that made anyone who looked at her feel inclined to smile back.

She was Lucélia Belladonne Laurent, the first wife of the Duke of the North and the mother of Yves’ oldest sibling.

She was also the daughter of one of the richest merchants in the northern part of the kingdom.

Next to her sat another woman.

She had short ginger hair and obsidian-black eyes. A silver necklace rested around her neck, while she wore a beautiful red dress.

She was Viviana Sal Laurent, the second wife of the Duke of the North and the mother of my first and second older brothers.

She had a mean expression on her face and didn’t smile at all.

The third woman had long brown hair tied into a bun, with two long bangs falling over her forehead. She had blue eyes and wore a pretty white dress with a golden necklace around her neck.

She was Antonia Herstyl Laurent, the third wife of the Duke of the North and the mother of those freaking twins.

She sat elegantly with a cocky smile on her face that gave off the same aura as Arnold.

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

The last woman on that side wore an obsidian-black dress and black gloves that reached her elbows. Her hands were clasped together beneath the table.

Her hair was black as coal, shining beautifully under the light of the chandelier.

She wore black lipstick, giving her a gothic appearance.

Her skin was pale, just like mine, and her eyes were a deep purple—the same color as mine.

They were so deep that someone could probably get lost if they stared into them for too long.

Her eyes moved from whatever she had been looking at and locked onto me.

She didn’t say anything.

She simply stared at me.

I could see some resemblance between us.

That’s right...

That was Yves’ mother.

She was also my mother now.

The Duke of the North’s only concubine.

Yversa Lancy Stormbreaker.

She really looked like Yves, especially her purple eyes.

They were exactly the same.

She was also a mother who had given up on her own child simply because he didn’t meet her expectations.

I couldn’t help but feel a bitter taste in my mouth.

Such people didn’t deserve to be mothers.

I felt pity for Yves.

I had loving parents.

His parents, on the other hand, had never really been there for him.

It was sickening.

But there was nothing I could do about the past.

Across from the women sat my siblings, positioned on the left side of the head chair.

The first seat belonged to Josh Noctis Laurent, the oldest brother.

His snow-white hair was styled into a buzz cut, and his crimson eyes practically screamed boredom.

I swear, this was my first time seeing someone in this world with a buzz cut.

Almost everyone here had either long hair or short hair.

Next to him sat Siegfried Noctis Laurent, the second-oldest brother.

His snow-white hair was styled into dreadlocks that fell over his shoulders. His crimson eyes moved from his empty plate toward me when I entered the dining room.

Next to him were Arnold and Ana.

I walked toward the table and stopped in front of them.

I looked at everyone without showing any emotion.

With the most detached voice I could manage, I said,

"Good evening, everyone. Good evening, Mother."

The two oldest brothers simply nodded at me.

None of the wives replied.

Not even my own mother.

She simply continued staring at me for some reason.

The only person who actually greeted me with a smile was the first wife.

"Good evening, son! How have you been? Look at you, you’ve grown up so much."

Lucélia spoke in such a warm voice that, for a moment, I was reminded of my own mother.

I took the empty seat next to Ana and sat down.

"I’m doing well, Lady—"

"Call me Mother, please."

She interrupted me.

"...Mother. Thanks for asking."

I corrected myself.

I thought Yversa might somehow react to that, but when I looked at her, she was still staring at me without any change in her expression.

Well, I didn’t know what was wrong with this woman, and honestly, I couldn’t care less.

"That’s great. I’m glad you’re alright, son."

She smiled genuinely before covering her mouth with her slender hand and giggling.

"Almost forgot. Congratulations on your awakening. We heard months ago that you had awakened, and now that I can actually sense mana inside your body, I can confirm that it’s true."

"Thank you, La—Mother."

Lucélia giggled with satisfaction.

Out of all the wives, Lucélia was actually the kindest.

She never hated the other wives or their children. She treated them as if they were her own, including Yves.

It was one of the reasons she was the first wife.

Since she was willing to have a conversation with me, I engaged with her as well.

She told me about some of the things that had happened while I was away, and we talked about a few other things.

We continued conversing for a while until we eventually fell silent.

"You actually came."

Ana leaned closer to me and whispered.

"I thought maybe you would cower and stay in your room because of your fear of Father."

"Me? Afraid of Father?"

I glanced at her.

"Certainly not. But I do have a fear that my eardrums are going to explode because of your nasty voice."

Her glare intensified as her fingers curled into a fist.

"You ba—"

Before she could finish her insult, a very faint crackling sound reached my ears.

My head immediately snapped toward the left.

The head seat, which had been empty only moments ago, was now occupied by a man who looked to be in his late twenties.

He had long snow-white hair that reached down to his back, with a few strands resting against his pale skin.

His crimson eyes were incredibly deep.

The moment I looked into them, I felt as though my soul had been stripped naked before his gaze.

I could have sworn no one had been sitting there moments ago.

I hadn’t seen anyone enter.

I hadn’t even heard the doors open.

Yet somehow, he had appeared in that chair without making a sound.

But what truly caught me off guard was how similar he looked to me.

His face was almost identical to mine.

The only noticeable difference was our eye color.

Looking at him felt like looking at an older version of myself.

The man wasn’t releasing even the slightest trace of aura.

Yet every instinct in my body was screaming at me.

This man was like an atomic bomb compared to me, who was nothing more than a coughing baby.

This was one of the ten strongest people in the entire kingdom.

The man who had been given the title of king despite having no throne.

The man who had once split the sky with nothing more than a swing of his sword.

He was the Duke who ruled the North.

The King of the North, Van Der Vaal Noctis Laurent.