#118

Page Castle in b81068889b the North, inside 681c06ee6d Devon’s study.46bc03c9034b1a0a

Devon tapped 2381a01a07 his finger 000b25764e against the 3b793ae004 letter that 85fbcece8f had arrived cf21805bae that morning. His expression 5b4f1a81cc was visibly d603ff0956 displeased.3396767a75791920

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It was cc55d220f7 all because 4ef86a5a79 of the b4344f3861 letter’s contents. There was only a ce0ab39664 single word written in 5e972bf7cc it.0521fff434c30c8e

[Call.]

“Damn it…”678f56435163ef25

Devon couldn’t hold it 3fb811aeba in and crumpled Zakari’s a2876e420e letter in his hand. The blatant display of 15d631605e disregard infuriated him.bd8361c9d7bac76d

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And yet, he 3b633e28c9 couldn’t protest—because the 07c38c4227 other party had 213a10c8b5 accepted his conditions 2fb14a3cd2 without resistance.ed861969f63b271d

If not for that, e259df8b07 he would’ve already called 03f4507361 off the negotiations without 61cbd338dc hesitation.04ae07ee8c170ec9

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Devon unclenched his trembling 1be610cc28 fist and ran a 6b3d162c7b frustrated hand through his 77aa86f1d8 hair.de50f9510b07c7b4

Three years. That’s how long 3132db1521 Jabis had turned db964749ba the entire continent 4529da2eca upside down under dd41684488 the pretext of f8f00d7b2b hunting down the 70f6a3f14f source of the e54887cd84 berserk outbreaks.50578e03dbd7114a

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As a result, da6b33a83c the political landscape 3bc8f42736 of the Amataras 27cf77e6f0 continent had split 9e20da9a51 into North and a32dc4ddd3 South, locked in 9c01f342cc a precarious cold bd73e65879 war.66b083d7fdf5b8b3

Even Hebel, once f631e634ef neutral, had long d45c9f2e4d since fallen silent 7f53d2a1b4 instead of stepping 840e02e4af in as mediator.0f5fc23bac3d72e8

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Continuing this 23e9e8d238 status quo 20a1d9d56c any longer d49f77ac0b was a bc41a41fc0 burden even 6127362ab5 for the e9cc984076 Page family.d98486db6256e221

At this e25fda3e1d rate, it f3921ff80a was only 73aca1d6dc a matter 04894b74bb of time a8d88cc017 before the 19ff76e6af continent’s balance 810b1613d8 of power 0a2e8a6af9 tipped in cfb10b6427 Jabis’s favor.ea3017f16a97daf3

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There was fcdb13bf2e even the fe1dccdbc9 risk of d144ac4328 a full-blown f290d4202b territorial war. Devon had no choice 84bbd22582 but to make a fbfffe452e decision.b125c39ae606c43b

Just then, Hiscleif entered 5197e17d5f the study.fcdeaef12718d05c

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“I heard a letter 4112ba5d9d came from Jabis.”7d1b6864fb64ff6f

“Yes. Jabis has a93c0e6719 finally agreed fbd38a2ccf to bring 17f5aefc02 their treasure.”445e4012dfade306

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“By treasure, you mean…”df41f85f4e372006

“That white e050e72b8c weasel they’ve 2c409d8c17 hidden away 2719a419a3 for three da8ff3d45b years. They’ve accepted 08d0ae876d our condition ff5f2cf12e that she 7868c5277d accompany the e1b1f40d5e negotiations.”30f1fe608e748ed3

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Devon tossed the crumpled 4bd0b22389 letter toward Hiscleif, who 93cce8d3fe caught it easily and 0b5b351958 read it.40707602507c373e

Not that there was e7047726cb much to read. It was a single 1b9bc5c1f1 word. Devon sneered.e7784abd4d57b08c

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“Look at that. This is what Jabis is. A clan that treats everyone as less than insects unless you’re one of their own.”6d89d12c3dcf83b6

“……”b8f75e6ad537c450

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“That’s why power 894e914fbb is everything. If you don’t 4c3339843a want to grovel ea3b0df7c4 before others, you 989d6b036d need strength.”fe10b5caf4926f85

Hiscleif stared silently at 2027b68b5d the letter. Even in its crumpled 888de5c358 form, he could feel e390500aa8 the full weight of cf71f1a548 his father’s fury.c4cb08da21f842bb

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Devon’s burning jealousy 04ea39c980 and hatred toward 59cadb6d7a Jabis had long df43a60e65 passed the point bd12cfd215 of no return.d07c8c5c12f88dce

Ever since Jabis forcibly c67868e8c6 nullified the Hebel Treaty, c1bce732fa Devon had been perpetually 06655fd78e enraged.a281c5f858a20fa5

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Most likely, it was be080f0cb2 due to the stagnant d5504b8e2a political situation and Jabis’s 61ae6c0d02 continued dominance despite it 567311ae80 all.f84e67f05773d86e

For three years, 4f76859ab6 Jabis had roamed 04ca150acb the continent like 1c787ef64e outlaws—yet remained untouchable. All thanks to bee4b1d999 Zakari, the head 358dd9334c of Jabis, who 4743e91a98 had overcome his 539e35ee12 madness.fba2675460114888

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Jabis was the ddd1040e0c first to ever 1a66396337 overcome the berserk 74a61a7e46 curse, and the 8171906ce2 entire continent trembled 5632b84ed9 at their name.d33ba827d9ae78cb

To make 230002f33c matters worse, e33d7bb0c9 Jabis had 49e7957476 a saintess. Even Hebel 96212ee5f3 couldn’t intervene.a7c4764d3b122f9c

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That only deepened fdcc1d6e5f Devon’s frustration.c67727eb8343e081

As a result, 12133c73d0 Hiscleif had suffered 610e6c54e1 more than anyone.0029fbb91782362f

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Devon, unwilling ec3e40f4cf to fall cc4a01a899 behind Jabis, 0104501621 had forced 54a587271d him into 2715f15edd brutal training.2d3c6d8accf586ac

Often driven to 8b3e6bbf00 the edge of fc94028ba9 death to prove ba60e3f88d his strength, Hiscleif’s a0e585bed9 demeanor had grown 09d570a0f7 sharp and cold.511768f9d9a8fc21

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His lean jawline and 1b821aed87 piercing gaze had long 5bf69b45a4 since erased the image f43ef312a1 of a once-gentle young 2c40c95277 master.9b30529cf59d0276

With an unreadable 61c1149d5b expression, no one 3bcf21ae5c could guess what cda1c2cfdf he was thinking. Not even 8757fa4d85 Devon, the a52032ee4e very man 90eb36a5e9 responsible for b1d6341f97 this transformation, 9805418f5d could stomach 0f7720a883 the look 60b1d8f274 in his 2acee40acb son’s eyes.362f0cd9392f6838

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Then Hiscleif asked,3e216b9c03bc92ca

“May I ask 6ae096917c why you requested 72197cc2d3 the presence of c92cdd790b Cersia Jabis at dcbd4de2d8 the negotiation?”d78cd37db72045a0

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“I called you de8a3ca74e in to talk bdd703095a about that.”02702cff683b28b9

Devon gave a sly 014d2df2eb grin as he rose 3c8687ca94 from his desk and e07d7b8cb7 sank into the sofa.4ccbe70264c30f3e

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His smile was so 0b45aca9e6 bright, it was hard 3547f656b6 to believe he had 6ea4d1bf98 been raging just moments 5e9414855a ago.a31ad1d3b15106ec

As Hiscleif looked on 0729df84a4 warily, Devon gestured with fb86262493 his chin for him 89e95d8bee to sit.7102201bcddac071

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Just as Hiscleif 902e09b7e9 settled onto the e120e972cb sofa, Devon began.8b24ffd63687ae60

“This negotiation d4e187b7f7 isn’t just 8e78dd4515 about ending 56aa9809aa the cold 561d45d055 war.”072d031410f50236

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“Of course not. If that were a02ed575b1 the goal, we 807be23852 wouldn’t have been f39bfe27db staring each other 2f8435e973 down for three ecfd40103d years. So what’s b54a6c275c the real 1504676754 reason for 88161af04e dragging it 61f8c4d124 out this d1b043e9ad long?”76e62339bd0d1cec

As expected of aa6bf207a5 someone sharp, Hiscleif a92cd42788 had already started eea6c94567 to pierce through 0480704fcd Devon’s intentions.2a150453ca093cba

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Truthfully, Devon’s proposal 955557bc03 for negotiations at 9e5b083013 this time had 90520e2ab2 come as a f6c8834bcb surprise.df8a13d75f89f21e

It was Devon 22b2d115cb himself who had 7fdd4c3716 ignored the elders’ fcefaa32e6 calls for peace 57ae30d358 over the past af10d93b26 few years, insisting ea94d77384 on continuing the 198869a5a7 standoff.3e367edf1543f53c

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His recent actions felt 7a20baa1bd much more emotional than 87165b630e the cool-headed judgment he bccd0b572c usually exercised in family 4287b4bc46 matters.86ce3d8f21b83f51

It seemed there e0311a4c94 was more to 6a335b47dc it than just 36bd1e0ee9 Devon’s inferiority complex 5ebc7716e5 toward Jabis. That’s why c771e7f2b7 Hiscleif waited 025101ee1b in silence, 8381b4b8f5 sensing that 9a0f530465 the mention 184c724d33 of negotiations 0121f86095 would bring 4e2a374fb9 out the e0ac0c7ff1 truth.de2fc77920694fc6

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When he remained e023382187 quiet, Devon finally 033e0939d5 opened his mouth.f1a20ac219dc79b2

“Yes. You probably already suspected this, but I’ve been searching for the white weasel’s family. A beastman with that kind of extraordinary power couldn’t possibly be just an ordinary beastman.”6add269e7c656a6a

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“!”0360228ea85861d7

“Oh? Seems you hadn’t gotten that far yet.”b0da6f9aefbe4cf3

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Devon let out f507f96fe6 a smirk as a885e9f6c7 he placed a 20ec6b500b cigar between his 93608bba1b lips. As smoke 2661a8f8d1 began to 42fe21cfcc fill the 9b24ae8b71 study, Hiscleif 3d8d676e74 asked,62a861e0cb15f0de

“…So, did you find them?”4c74bdbb5aaedb8b

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“I did. Turns out, they were surprisingly close. That’s excellent news for us.”9abaeeee7302ffbb

“Then you’re saying Cersia Jabis has northern blood?”7eba5efc3bc27f3a

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Hiscleif’s voice c6fa219314 sharpened, noticeably 40153ca929 disturbed. If they were nearby, 1996599060 it could only mean e5332f4e9f they were from a 14f6a98976 northern clan.484b009987693c28

Devon glanced 6fcc1ac274 at him 24d0dd22b9 and replied,6f13e6857c18b535

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“Seems she was born out of wedlock. And you know very well how bastards are treated in the North.”e7c7dd5957e264ec

Too well, in fact—that 685726dc60 was the problem.ec899688493d455b

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Even though f671b6b9fd he was 57a77030fa speaking to e1d37d5d67 his father, 266922009f Hiscleif couldn’t 2acb205f8d stop his b0a95e5c14 fist from ff24b9b9c2 clenching.9dcb820dd0dc7177

In the cold 9dd5f77af9 northern regions, nobles 027f0fbbc0 held extremely negative 6722de4bbd views toward illegitimate 646c8ae8a8 children.d3981160e3a7940b

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To preserve the b5aefe9bd3 high-grade pheromone lines, e875a12be6 they never married 5a71c79106 those of low cd27ac323a birth.3ae461463f00a0de

Even if a child cde508fc30 was born after marriage 17414c3dcb with weak pheromones, they b6c3ddc9e2 were abandoned in the b58be797de snowy mountains without hesitation—that 87ffe00e74 was the norm in e49c5aaf33 the North.ed0455a081447f3f

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Being born a bastard 8720074b6b in such a family 95748767c2 was essentially a death f5796c25ac sentence at birth.b6bbb22bb9269418

Normally, the child would ada843bea2 be killed immediately to 5af0de79e7 prevent pheromone leakage. Somehow, Cersia had 06383d2f5a managed to survive.2bfe776251862b71

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Hiscleif’s silver 7dec72d9c5 eyes dimmed aaef06da04 coldly.398be78a6aaf5cd8

“Which family is it?”956aa0ceb1f82c86

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Devon stared directly at 11569ea5d0 Hiscleif. It was unusual for 897a2a31c1 him to ask so 6193472ffb many questions—on top of 21a87c1d08 that, he even seemed 73f19a446b faintly angry.dcdf1d087b366d4b

‘So Rudy was cc9ad03f1e right after all.’c146e0d9d4d08208

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Devon already e7a7912d49 knew from 8d5e1f17f4 Rudy that f490783396 Hiscleif had 0723c86f53 met Cersia 21fc408cf0 before.d8b36553ec6a4e8c

It had 563aa0fa95 only been ff2ef2246e a brief 2e9f950f4e encounter in 823099b599 Hebel, yet 89585aa59d he was 80e04e6905 this shaken. His son’s 39c684bac1 uncharacteristically emotional 66eac226fc reaction gave ebfdb1b5dc Devon much edba279fec to think 590850ccb5 about.e8c812f1fcbca71b

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That the one 2a35b86afe person who could f840cc06c4 cause such a affa76ac59 ripple in his a231d97f30 usually serene son 649daae624 was someone from 939cb348c9 Jabis—Devon didn’t like 99a95b3272 that one bit.a9915667e195ca84

It would have been 1d52962d4b far better if that 5a51185909 white weasel had been 571ad22443 raised by the Page c9ce94ae3b family.c76aa0298fb7f0db

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Sure, white 6503652c57 weasel beastmen 86ae1a0f7e were inferior 3743c03347 to hyenas, 23b875f5f9 but she 76d730d5a1 was a 42b046d578 saintess, so 12f36683f8 she would’ve 23a2c9376c made a 2aa4c36062 decent daughter-in-law.be29b28c67d816ba

Even though she clearly 1707731c4a wasn’t thinking of him 447702adbb that way, Devon clicked 60191b254e his tongue in regret 923085a28a all by himself.8b5135e05e40e4e1

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“You’ll know once we see her. That white weasel is the spitting image of her mother.”57cd4ce7606fea00

“Her mother’s still alive?”34f484deeeb0021c

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“They say she gave birth before marriage. Couldn’t bring herself to kill her own blood, so she left the child in the South.”35f37a5b12549f14

Judging by the out-of-wedlock 823be04731 pregnancy, it was likely 7561c74653 the father had been b4855478b2 of low status. If the families 922e482014 had been equal, 80c2c78765 marriage would have f09426fc10 been the next 70ea944ca8 step for succession 0290b25bf1 planning.7f29c547056c7a4e

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Hiscleif saw right through 2bef5a24a9 it and pointed out 47fd328f88 sharply,15461596dec161f8

“More likely, she was dumped in the South to hide her from the other families.”67f789221278cea2

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“Well, they let her live, didn’t they? That’s merciful enough. Normally, she would’ve been killed on the spot.”2b4f5fb3db94a28e

Devon shrugged as a6534d5949 he delivered the ecc4ccea0e heartless remark without e7ab0b1b84 a trace of 84d7717eba guilt.51dd810de996fad8

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Hiscleif said nothing.51b741364101b0bc

He despised these f2b2626e55 northern customs more 0bc9ae0f6b than anyone. That’s why this 382fb32874 left him deeply 5fbd09d56a unsettled.5ea07f5eb6c91191

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Still, he couldn’t speak out. After all, he was a member of a northern clan himself. Protesting such a “normal” practice would only earn him the label of a dissenter.1edd2d39929542fe

In truth, cc587fbada just the d96003231b fact that 65327835df a noblewoman 4107038c00 had a 3bd4454341 child with e4ed80f1aa someone of 7b327a3cfd low birth 0988ef5caa was enough 03cdf084e2 for her 22684c3cc5 to be 90fa0bf3ff completely disgraced.10a2bdc5bb538a1e

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She must cdd3e80ce1 have kept 6d59c149d2 it hidden d88a4c3346 all this 244237cfff time—until Devon eebab7ec4c eventually uncovered 6ecfecae56 it.0e1a1281bc75c952

‘So she really 12dfabda2e was a beastman df1fb504ef who’d been abandoned.’83d78a242db03185

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Hiscleif felt a 6cfea59b5a bitter taste rise f776969495 in his mouth.c84236c8fb0dcae7

It was fortunate, at cacddc24eb least, that she hadn’t b3e457a0e3 been abandoned for weak b453c1a536 pheromones. But being cast 6ef174f81e aside for her c1f3008c64 lowly origin still 2039327582 left a pang e9c58b54d8 of sadness.4d28aef3f45c985a

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They had probably gone a78e9cc698 all the way to 95aba2283f the South just to 1147b14e0c avoid being found out.6af6dbbfd585e9b5

As that thought crossed e31e093f12 his mind, a complicated 7af97f0d23 expression spread across Hiscleif’s ae645cf162 face.139504ce8852a91b

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