Uncle Leif

He had never been good at socializing, and dealing with Grellint, such a chatterbox, was truly agonizing.

As the conversations around them gradually died down, the black dot in the distant sky had become a massive airship, with the Royal Family of Ruun's emblem standing out prominently upon it.

It was also Lucius's first time seeing an airship. To him now, airships were obsolete relics, and he could not help thinking, It won't suddenly break down and fall, will it?

Ever since the King and his family had disembarked from the airship, the surrounding nobles had continuously gathered around them.

Watching those nobles, Lucius directly asked, "Grellint, aren't you going over?"

Hearing Lucius's words, Grellint immediately replied, "Me? I haven't officially come of age yet, so I'm not qualified to go over there."

"Besides, why aren't you going?"

Hearing Grellint's answer and question, Lucius said, "Do I look like an adult to you?"

Hearing Lucius's answer, Grellint said seriously, "I think you have already 'come of age.' When I spoke with you just now, that profound air about you wasn't something a young person should have. It was more like you had entered adulthood ahead of time."

Hearing Grellint's words, Lucius thought,

"...Perhaps."

Once nearly everyone nearby had left, Lucius heard,

"Lucius Sheffield."

Hearing his own name, Lucius looked toward the source of the voice and said,

"Yes, sir."

The man opposite him said directly,

"Please come with me. A friend of your father wishes to see you."

Hearing that someone was looking for him, Lucius politely said to Grellint, "It seems I need to attend to something else. See you later."

Grellint replied directly,

"Alright, see you later."

Following the officer away from this "outer area," Lucius kept walking forward. Seeing the obvious changes in the clothing of those around him, he roughly knew where he was probably being taken, but he still needed to ask. He said,

"How should I address you, sir?"

Hearing Lucius's words, the man in front casually replied,

"Marlin Westalia. Just call me Marlin."

Hearing the man's reply, Lucius directly asked, "Mr. Marlin, are we going to the Army officers' side?"

Marlin did not hide it and directly said,

"That's right, Mr. Lucius. You should know about your father's circumstances. Most of the people meeting you this time are your father's comrades, with a few friends and superiors among them. Don't be afraid. Though you may be unfamiliar with them to varying degrees, Lieutenant General Leif Strauss is also here."

Hearing Marlin's words, Lucius recalled from his memories that Leif Strauss was the original owner's father's uncle. In the original owner's memories, the two families had been extremely close. The reason was that he had wanted a grandson to raise, but his own son had never married. When Lucius was born, he had therefore doted on him greatly.

But according to those memories, his impression of him did not seem as simple as wanting a "grandson."

It was more like he wanted a "granddaughter."

This Uncle had often bought him "dresses" when he was little, saying that he should wear clothes like that. Fortunately, his father had been home most of the time back then and had not let him get away with it.

While Lucius was still thinking, Marlin said,

"We're here, Mr. Lucius. You can go in yourself."

Looking at the main door before him, Lucius politely said,

"Thank you, Mr. Marlin."

Then, looking at the main door before him, he could only helplessly open it himself and enter.

"Lucius, over here."

Following the voice, Lucius saw a tall elderly man wearing a Kingdom of Ruun Army uniform. Perhaps because he was a soldier, this Uncle Leif was entirely different from those elderly "gentlemen" outside. For example, he looked more energetic than them and lacked their more or less protruding bellies.

Looking at the man before him, Lucius politely said,

"Good morning, Uncle Leif."

"Good morning, Lucius."

After exchanging greetings, Leif directly pulled Lucius along and said, "Come, let me introduce them to you. This is Colonel Karel Duarte, your father's direct superior."

Lucius could only greet him, "Good morning, Colonel Karel Duarte."

"Good morning, Lucius."

Then Karel directly said to Lucius, "I am truly terribly sorry about your father..."

"These are Wyatt Pass, Bork Gilbert, Tim McDonald... They were all your father's comrades."

"Good morning..."

"Good morning..."

After the introductions, Uncle Leif directly said, "Lucius, the main reason we called you here this time was for you to get to know these people. Most of them are like us, professional soldiers of the Kingdom."

"That Karel Duarte just now took over your grandfather's position. People like us have basically had a place of our own in the Kingdom of Ruun's military since birth, so you need to get to know them, at least to some extent."

After saying that, he patted Lucius on the shoulder and gestured for him to follow. "Come, let's talk alone."

"Lucius, what plans do you have for the future?"

Since Lucius had not yet made any plans, he directly said, "Not yet, Uncle. Father's death was too sudden. I haven't figured out what I plan to do afterward."

Hearing Lucius's answer, Uncle Leif helplessly said, "That's true. You're still far too young, Lucius. Don't grieve too deeply. Your father was a great hero."

"This war came too suddenly. No one could have anticipated it. You are not only the surviving son of a war hero, but also bear the burden of the Sheffield Family's future. Excessive grief will affect your judgment..."

Hearing Uncle Leif's advice, Lucius directly said, "I understand, Uncle."

"For you, becoming a Beyonder is a necessary choice if you don't want the Sheffield Family to completely disappear..."

"But your circumstances..."

Hearing the subject turn to himself, Lucius curiously asked, "Uncle, my 'circumstances'?"

Seeing Lucius's confusion, Uncle Leif directly explained, "Mm. By the time we discovered what happened between your father and her, it was already too late. We also discovered that she had already left Extraordinary Traits within you. Later, we tried methods to remove the Extraordinary Traits from your body, but every attempt failed."

"According to our later investigation, the Extraordinary Traits remaining within you came from at least a Sequence Five, and the Beyonders of that pathway are..."

Witches!

Hearing Lucius's words, Leif asked in surprise,

"? You already know? Who told you? Have 'they' approached you?"

Lucius explained, "No. I only found out by accident."

Hearing this, Leif was relieved. "Mm, it's good that you know. As long as they haven't contacted you, it's fine. Remember not to contact or cooperate with them. None of them are quite normal. After what happened to you, we originally intended to secretly purge their members in Bexland, but for some reason, the Royal Family intervened, and nothing came of it afterward."

"The military's upper ranks are all Beyonders; you know that as well. Because of the influence of your traits, and because we have no subsequent formulas, you will most likely be unable to advance to High Sequence in the future. That means that if you enter the military, you may not be able to reach the position you should have. But later, you can choose to cultivate some trusted subordinates, like the Clayton family, and have them develop in the military in your place. Once the next generation of Sheffield is born and grown, you can reclaim what belongs to the Sheffield Family."

Lucius asked doubtfully, "? That can be done? Won't there be other unforeseen changes, such as..."

Before Lucius could finish, Uncle Leif directly spelled it out: "For example, the fledgling's wings hardening and wanting to fly solo, or refusing to give up the position?"

Seeing Uncle Leif directly voice what he had been considering, Lucius answered honestly, "Yes, Uncle."

For some reason, Leif Strauss suddenly burst into laughter and raised an even more realistic issue: "Hahaha...

"You don't need to worry about any of that. If things truly turned out as you imagined, there would only be one possibility: the people in this room would have suffered catastrophic losses. Unless it was a large scale war of national annihilation, such a situation would basically be impossible."

"Besides, we protect one another. The things you're imagining basically cannot happen. We didn't become 'nobles' by donating money."

"Of course, there is one other possibility: those families decide to divide up your family together."

"As for how long that would take, and the matter of 'them' dividing things up together, don't worry. Your grandfather is about to advance to Demigod. By then, not only will my strength improve further, but my lifespan will greatly increase. With me watching over things, no accidents will happen."

Hearing this, Lucius gained a measure of confidence in his future life and happily said, "Wouldn't that be too much trouble for you?"

"What's troublesome about it? Your grandfather and I were comrades who had faced life and death together, men from the same trench. Later, your grandfather married my Sister and had your father. I watched him grow up. Now, your family only has you left. If I don't look after you, how will I face them when I go to the God of Storms's divine kingdom?"

But because Lucius knew some hidden knowledge, he asked in return, "Uncle, are you confident about advancing to Demigod? I remember that the Royal Family once decreed that no one was allowed to advance to Demigod without 'their' consent, didn't they? And I remember Father once saying that the Royal Family made everyone swear an 'oath.' Also, because of that Sealed Artifact, no one has successfully advanced to Demigod for many years."

"You're right. But some time ago, for reasons unknown, the Royal Family relaxed the requirements and allowed some people to become Demigods. However, the 'slots are limited,' and one must even pay a certain price. I agreed to the Royal Family's demands." At this point, Leif sighed.

"The Royal Family's actions have become stranger and stranger over the years. But don't worry. If I did not have the Royal Family's permission this time, I would not be preparing to advance to Demigod either. After all, your Uncle still wants to live a few more years. Quite a few people have been stuck at my level for years because of that Sealed Artifact. There should be many who agree to the Royal Family's demands."

Come on, the Memorial Service is about to begin.