Black Phoenix City had returned to peace.
But beneath that calm, undercurrents were surging.
Canina had been restless these past few days. He had a feeling something bad was about to happen.
One day,
he was summoned by the king and went to the palace.
"May I ask why Your Majesty summoned me?"
"I summoned you mainly so you could meet someone. Come in."
With a smile on his lips, Jonathan walked from behind Canina to stand beside him, then bowed slightly. "Greetings, Your Majesty."
Prell said, "Canina, take a look. Do you know who this is?"
Canina turned around. His eyes suddenly widened like saucers, his face full of disbelief. Before he knew it, he blurted out, "Big Brother?!"
"No, that's not right. You're not him. Who are you?"
He quickly came to his senses. The reason he had reacted that way was that ever since that incident, he had often had nightmares in which his big brother came back to take revenge on him.
"Looks like you still remember your big brother, Canina. After investigating the matter, I have confirmed that you were the mastermind behind the murder of your big brother's entire family all those years ago. Isn't that right?"
Canina shook his head repeatedly. "Your Majesty, you can't make accusations like that! I was heartbroken when my big brother's family was killed."
"We were brothers. How could I do something so inhuman?"
"Denials won't help you. As for the man standing before you, he now goes by Jonathan Rhode."
"He's Jonathan?!"
Canina had never met him, and was shocked. A vague sense of dread welled up inside him.
"Before he turned three, he was called White Bred!"
Canina's eyes filled with terror. He couldn't believe it.
"That's right. He's your big brother's youngest son, your own nephew!"
"The net of Heaven is wide, but no one escapes it. You sent your own son to capture your younger sister, but she fell in love with Jonathan's adoptive father. It was Heaven's will that the tragedy from all those years ago came to light."
Prell didn't give Canina a chance to offer any excuses. He immediately ordered, "Guards, take Canina to the dungeon. His wife, children, and the rest of his household are to be imprisoned as well."
This was the art of kingship.
To win Jonathan over, he had dealt with a marquis outright. As for evidence, so many years had passed—what proof could there possibly be?
It was all because he wanted it done.
By swiftly dealing with Canina, even if others had their suspicions, they could only let the matter drop in the end. It would do nothing to tarnish his image as a wise and mighty king.
Jonathan naturally understood what was going on. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for avenging my family's deaths."
Prell said, "The entire Canina family will be executed soon. I will appoint you the new marquis of the Bred Family. You will be its head, and you may do as you please with everything the family owns."
"Thank you, Your Majesty. From now on, I, Jonathan, will serve you with all my heart."
Knowing that Prell wanted to hear those words, Jonathan said them specifically to please him.
They were only words. It wasn't as if saying them would cost him anything, and they didn't bind him to anything either.
Prell burst into laughter, his deep voice resounding through the room. "You are the greatest genius in the Bandas Kingdom. I have great hopes for your future. Keep working hard, and if you ever need anything, you can come straight to the palace to see me."
After leaving, Jonathan returned to Rhode Mansion and continued to study Heavy as Light, cultivate, and inscribe Micro Magic Arrays.
A few days later, the entire Canina family was executed. The news sparked heated discussion throughout Black Phoenix City, as did Jonathan's background: he was the youngest son of the Bred Family's first branch, which had been wiped out more than a decade ago.
It was truly a spectacle for everyone to witness.
People continued talking about it for half a month.
A few days after the Canina family's deaths, Jonathan officially moved into Bred Mansion.
He kept the guards and maids who were already there, telling them to carry on with their usual duties. Hilton became the Bred Family's steward, and his status rose considerably overnight.
Many families came to offer gifts. Since it was the first time, Jonathan couldn't very well refuse.
Now that he was part of their world, he still had to follow certain conventions.
Duke Hanna, in particular, seemed almost eager to curry favor with Jonathan. He had also prepared lavish gifts, treating Jonathan in a way entirely different from how he had treated Canina before.
He acted this way because Prell had warned him. His former interest in Sanita hadn't been a problem, but now Sanita was his stepmother. If he dared to keep pursuing her, Prell would punish him severely.
Hanna greatly respected his older brother, so he had no choice but to comply.
Most of the gifts were apologies.
"Jonathan, I offended you before. I hope we can put the past behind us. By the way, since you've taken over the Bred Family, why not let me entrust the Water Jade Ore Vein business to you?"
Jonathan smiled faintly. "Duke Hanna, wouldn't that be inappropriate? Wasn't it supposed to be put up for public bidding?"
Hanna said, "That's just a formality. I can give it to whoever I want. And if I give it to you, my big brother certainly won't object."
"Then I'll accept."
"Let's keep in touch from now on."
They were all pleasantries. After the banquet, Jonathan barely left the house again. He focused on cultivation and left the Bred Family's business in Hilton's hands.
Time flew by. Another month and a half passed in the blink of an eye.
It was now the second half of the year.
At around this time last year, he had first entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range for training.
The entire back courtyard of Bred Mansion had been declared off-limits. No one was allowed inside without permission.
Even if they had something to report, they were only allowed to do so from outside.
In the courtyard, Jonathan had his fingers embedded in a boulder and swung it around with abandon. It was as if the several-thousand-pound rock were merely a weapon weighing a few dozen pounds.
As he swung it, terrifying gusts of wind howled past. Sand and stones flew across the ground, and the trees swayed violently.
When Jonathan stopped, he set the boulder down. The ground gave a deafening boom.
"Now that I've mastered Heavy as Light, the weapon best suited to me would be something like a greatsword. But weapons like that aren't easy to find. If I could find the materials..."
"Forget it. Those materials would be just as hard to find. I'll think about it when I get the chance. I can always study the Gravity Spell first. If I can work out a Micro Magic Array for the Gravity Spell..."
"Then even a weapon weighing several hundred pounds could be inscribed to meet my requirements."
After that, Jonathan sat cross-legged and began inscribing Micro Magic Arrays to train his spiritual power.
Even though Jonathan was now a Level Seven Mage in the late stage, inscribing Micro Magic Arrays still consumed a great deal of spiritual power.
After five or six arrays, his spiritual power was completely drained, forcing him to stop and recover.
Over and over, his spiritual power steadily and rapidly increased, bringing him ever closer to the peak of Level Seven.
"Ulada Magic Academy doesn't have much to offer me anymore. I might as well apply to graduate."
After thinking it over and making his decision, Jonathan went to Ulada Magic Academy the next day and submitted his graduation application to one of the instructors.
"You want to graduate? Isn't that a bit too soon? You could keep training for another four or five years. I'm sure you'd become a Level Seven Mage by then. You could graduate after that."
The academy's vice dean looked at Jonathan and tried to dissuade him.
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