Repeatedly a noise echoes throughout the entirety of the residence. The sounds continue to bounce through the walls until eventually jolting Viran from his sleep.

“Hahh?” Viran yawns in an inquisitive manner.

Slowly Viran moves himself from and walks towards the door. The sound had only gotten louder in the meantime, and even more forceful. The sound was as if someone was constantly smashing their fists down onto the wooden walls, a sound that reverberated within Viran’s skull constantly.

As he is about to open the door, his hand stops just an inch away. Viran turns back slowly and firmly grasps onto the shaft of a metal candlestick. Viran wasn't sure what the noise was and who was the source, but Viran knew for sure not just anyone could enter his residence without permission. Even if it would be the last day of his house arrest.

Opening the door reveals nothing within the hallway in front of him, yet the sound still bounces off the walls and continues to only get louder as time goes on. A headache started to set in for Viran, the noise was simply intolerable. The dust and grime that lingers within his room and the hallways though showed the absence of the servants in its truest form, the heat coming from the sun above even made the residence damp and humid. The air had a suffocating feel to it due to the heavy heat.

“Huhh…” Viran breathes out heavily, a premonition begins to form within the back of his mind to the true nature of the noises.

His feet smoothly and slowly begin to go down the hallway. Viran was careful and easy in his approach, trying to make as little noise as possible was the main goal here. The source of the noise was likely Gregory trying to cause trouble, at least that’s what Viran thought.

The noise only got louder and louder, the headache began to get stronger on Viran. Damp sweat began to condense in his clothing and his breathing got heavier. Viran struggled to hold pressure onto his throat, he felt as if a sickness was coming onto him.

The noise led to the room he spent the most time in, the decrepit library.

A sharp pain shot through his head as he charged directly through the door. The activation of the spell as he shoved his leg through the door launches the door straight out of its frame launching itself directly into the center of the room. His gaze shifts through every direction of the room, he repeatedly checks every corner. The coughs only got worse, and the pain was terrible.

Blood begins to spray out of his mouth as his coughs continuously get worse. He staggers, dropping the heavy candlestick to the floor. His damp hands flailed as he walked further towards something. The source of the bangs, the loud noises. He didn’t know why but he needed to know the source, he needed to know everything about it. The sudden feelings were like a madness that overcame him.

“Where! Where? Where?” Viran yelled within the empty room as he shoved chairs over, kicked in tables, and smacked on walls.

His gaze descends onto the floorboards under him.

‘THERE. THERE. THERE.’ The same word rolls over his mind as quick as his heart beats.

He picks up his foot and he can feel the warm mana within him gush out and fill the entirety of his body, his leg falls onto the floor. The wooden floor immediately gives in and opens up a wide area that had already been dug, what he had dug before. The book that had been given to him by Sir Leonard those many weeks ago laid there dormant, the source of the sickness plaguing his mind.

Every night when Viran was done training he would always put the book back until the floorboards without fail, his own room had no places to hide such a large item after all.

His hands begin to rush towards the book picking it up. His gaze wanders through the words effortlessly as he tears through the pages, he didn’t know what he was doing. The vibrations in his skull were getting stronger, as if trying to tear his mind apart. His own skull felt like it was being pulled layer by layer from the inside, and something told him the source of it all was this book.

Directly in the middle of the book laid a page he did not remember being there, a page that was nonexistent before had suddenly shown itself. The lettering, grammar, and the language of it all was foreign to the rest of the book. The page felt warm within his grasp, yet his skull still split open from the sounds.

“WITHOUT SACRIFICE THERE IS NO SURVIVAL. WITHOUT STRENGTH THERE IS NO HOPE. WITHOUT ACTION THERE IS NO FUTURE. AS YOU STAND UPON THE GRAVE LEFT BEHIND, YOU MUST DECIDE YOUR FATE. CHAOS ENSUES IN THE TURNING OF THE ERA. ”

With a hard bite, blood sprays from Viran’s thumb. He wasn’t sure what he was doing as he smeared it upon the page in front of him. His eyes felt heavy and his body numb, his head feels clearer than ever before now. Yet his mana had a different feeling within his body, so similar yet different from how it was before. His eyes closed, and a feeling of lethargy fell upon him at that moment as he descended into slumber. His path had been chosen.

“-well yes we will need something of the sort to serve as a reasonable excuse for my Lord, lest he gain suspicious of anything of course. Something showy enough that will not make Lord Idicium wary of your intentions, he knows very well how distrustful you all are of him of course.” Spion smoothly spoke to a group of Nobles within a corner of the estate.

Not too far away from Spion sat Gregory with a despondent look in his eyes, opposite of him sat a boy not too dissimilar to him yet with a wary look in his eyes and an older complexion. That boy was the one representing Baron Axrid, his true son Cline Axrid. Cline looked to be older than Gregory by some years yet his face still held a semblance of adolescence and baby fat.

“Don’t mistake what my intentions are Greg- Lord Gregory.” Cline corrected himself. “I’m not agreeing to this because of our past relationship, I am merely doing this because this is what is best for my House. He took a son of the Axrid House, so now we’ll take his own.”

“Oh, y-yes of course.” Gregory showed his emotions clearly in the face of his old brother. “But Cline, do you really think Spion’s plan is going to work? I don’t see this plan working out- I m-mean I don’t see Viran following exactly as Spion plans… I didn’t get much of a good impression after all, he just seems to be too much of a soft hearted bastard.”

Suddenly calls of confusion ring out gaining the attention of the crowd filled with numerous Nobles. A young boy, yet taller and more robust than his peers, was walking towards the crowd. A head of umber hair and a face exuding a rugged handsomeness, yet with eyes full of fire.

“Huh? You got him outside already Spion?” Baron Ohrid enthusiastically says.

Everyone in the entourage was confused, yet were enthusiastic at the entrance of Viran. The conspiracy was centered around Viran and his appearance now only meant that the next steps to their plan wouldn't be questioned as much. Spion’s expression on the other hand was one of surprise, and distrust.

“I didn’t call him here yet. Try to provoke him into fighting you in a duel Gregory.” Spion said in a gruff tone, his expression was evident he was not enjoying these sequences of events.

Gregory nods his head in confirmation. Walking forward with dull swords in hand he throws one onto the soft grass in front of Viran.

“Hey. I’m not gonna question why you left your house arrest earlier than you should or how you got past the guards-.” Gregory said before being interrupted by Viran.

“Let’s fight.” Viran said with an angry expression.

The Nobles there were dumbfounded at the proposition of Viran, it was unexpected yet what they had hoped for. Spion stood there still with a harsh glare as he stared at Viran from head to toe, the drastic change in the boy did not expect the eyes of him.

“-Huh? Y-yeah sure, I’ll go easy on you and not use magic during the fight. Don’t worry.” Said Gregory as his expression changes to one of confidence.

With a nod of approval from Viran the two boys set themselves some distance apart from one another. Multiple Knights had already surrounded the two boys preparing for the duel, their reason for being there was more to protect the Nobles behind them though. Another two Knights had already put their spells onto the two boys, the same spell that was put onto Embren in his duel with Baron Ohrid’s son. As the two boys waited for the call to start, Viran spoke out.

“You may not want to keep yourself in check, bastard. Even with magic it's hard to say you’ll beat me.”

“Start!” The call of a Knight said immediately after.

In a close enough distance the boys immediately jump at one another, both attempting to go fully into the offensive. A standstill ensues between the two as they attempt to capture the offensive on one another, both of their styles exuded a fierce aggressiveness and being forced into the defensive spelled disaster.

Viran continuously struck at multiple angles towards Gregory, yet to no avail as he is forced to step back a moment. Gregory had won ground against Viran and went onto the offensive. As the attacks struck Viran again and again, he can feel himself losing in only a few moments. Gregory’s strikes had gotten slower, yet with a renewed ferocity that only served to push Viran back.

Viran’s eyes turned into one of anger and ferocity, taking in a breath of air he decided his next move with a resounding resilience. As the blade goes towards his arm to his left, Viran switches the direction of his body from Gregory to the sword aiming for his arm.

He can feel the mana surging throughout his entire body. A warmer feeling than he had ever felt before. His head was buzzing from the joy of fighting with a sword after so long, it felt like centuries since the last time he held one. As he turns quickly his leg jumps up with an amazing sturdiness and launches itself towards Gregory’s gut, a single wrap of cloth springing into the air as it holds tight onto his arm.

The attack connects immediately and Gregory is launched away, grass flies up into the air as he tumbles across.