Dragonfall Mountain Range, Sword Prison.
“I knew you'd be the first one back, kid.”
Just as Tyr reached the gates of the Sword Prison, Instructor Ed's voice drifted down from the city walls.
Tyr looked up at the wall, leaped, and jumped straight up.
“How many times do I have to tell you? Use the front gate like a normal person. Don't copy Boss Ryder and learn those bad habits...”
Ed stopped mid-sentence, suddenly feeling a chill run down his spine.
He whipped his head around, only to find Chief Instructor Ryder standing right behind him.
“Don't learn what from me?”
Ryder glanced at Ed, his tone ice-cold.
“Ah~ Of course, of course, they shouldn't keep trying to copy your style, Boss! You're a Ninth Circle swordsman, after all. How could these little brats possibly hope to imitate you? They'd only make fools of themselves trying to draw a tiger and ending up with a dog.”
Facing Ryder's incredibly oppressive gaze, Ed forced his brain to spin at top speed.
“I went to the Mercenary Guild and exchanged Ronal's head for proof of kill. That shouldn't be an issue, right?”
Tyr pulled a ring-shaped token from his pocket and walked over to the two men.
“Of course there's no problem. No one can fake anything in front of House Callis's intelligence network. We have plenty of ways to verify the proof in your hand.”
Grateful to Tyr for stepping in to defuse the tense situation, Ed immediately cast a thankful look his way.
“By the way, I have one more thing to report. It goes like this...”
Tyr then recounted how he had run into William and his mother on his way back, and how they had been ambushed by the son of Count Ronal.
“What a bold one. A mere Count dares to covet the Grand Duke's heritage? He must be tired of living.”
Hearing Tyr's account, Ed laughed out of sheer anger.
It wasn't as if no one had ever coveted the family's heritage before, but their ends were almost always miserable.
The most severe incident occurred when a previous Grand Duke Callis returned wounded from the Outer Battlefield. At the time, everyone believed that the Grand Duke wouldn't make it, and many began to harbor designs on the family's heritage.
This included three Dukes, seven Marquises, and thirteen Counts. As for Viscounts and Barons, their numbers were even greater.
The final outcome was that House Callis directly dispatched the Enforcement Squad to slaughter all the nobles who had harbored designs on their heritage.
This massacre lasted for half a year, and the Enforcement Squad's swords swung so much they practically began to smoke.
During this period, there was no shortage of terrified nobles fleeing to the imperial capital to seek help from the royal Christie family, hoping the Emperor would step in to stop House Callis's madness.
But all of their pleas were rejected one by one by the Emperor of that era; they didn't even get to see the Emperor's face.
As one of the six great families of the Kester Empire, the Emperor naturally understood what House Callis's heritage meant to them.
If anyone dared to interfere with it, House Callis would turn into a mad dog, biting whoever crossed them in a fight to the death.
In the end, all the ill-intentioned nobles were completely liquidated. The number of nobles and their family members who died at that time was simply astronomical.
It was also from then on that any forces harboring thoughts about House Callis's heritage were thoroughly cowed.
For all these years, no other family had dared to harbor such wicked designs again.
After all, the warning of the past was right there, and everyone could distinguish between taking a gamble and committing suicide.
“So many years have passed, yet someone actually dares to eye House Callis's heritage again. Do they think we can't swing our swords anymore?”
Anger flooded Ed's tone as he turned to Ryder. “Boss, leave this to me. I guarantee I won't leave a single one of them alive.”
None of those who could enter the Sword Prison were simple characters. Although Ed and Tina were not as strong as Ryder, they were still both Eighth Circle swordsmen, figures who had once struck terror into the hearts of foreign races.
“I will report this matter to His Grace the Grand Duke. All actions will follow His Grace's orders.”
Ever since they arrived at the Sword Prison, their mission had been to train the next generation of House Callis.
Wiping out transgressors was not something that required them to take action personally.
Ryder turned to Tyr and said, “I've noted the matter. Go back and rest first.”
“I also seized some swords this time and plan to place them in the training field.”
Tyr lifted the large sack behind him, which contained the swords he had confiscated from the masked men.
“Come on, I'll go with you.”
Ed walked over, slung an arm around Tyr's shoulder, and the two headed toward the training field.
The training field.
Ed leaned against the training field's wall with his arms crossed, watching Tyr place his captured swords onto the platform.
“Time really flies. Seven years ago when you first arrived, you still needed my supervision just to enter the training field to cultivate. Now, you're already placing your own trophies here.”
Watching the little squirts from back then grow up, Ed couldn't help but sigh at how quickly time passed.
“No, at least I don't feel like time has passed quickly.”
During these seven years, every day of cultivation had been pure torment.
Whether it was the medicinal baths or the sword qi body tempering, none of it was pleasant.
“Ha, even if you leave the Sword Prison, you'll just be suffering in a different place.”
Before they cultivated the 《Sword Qi Body Tempering Technique》 to the ninth layer, the torture they endured would never stop.
“At least I won't have to suffocate in this tiny, cramped place.”
The oppressive environment within the Sword Prison truly made Tyr feel uncomfortable; the scenery outside was far more refreshing.
“Ah? You call this place tiny? The Sword Prison covers an area of up to fourteen thousand acres, which is larger than many Marquises' estates.”
“But the environment here is too monotonous. Everywhere feels exactly the same.”
“Well, whatever floats your boat. You're leaving soon anyway.”
Ed shrugged and left the training field with Tyr.
...
Creak.
Tyr pushed open the door and stepped into his dormitory.
“You're back, kid.”
The Five-Clawed Golden Dragon was currently sitting on the desk, holding a book in its claws, with a steaming, aromatic cup of coffee nearby.
“Young Master, you're back. Did the mission go smoothly?”
“Perfectly. From today onward, I am officially a Grand Duke candidate.”
As Tyr's voice fell, Avia walked over to him, sank to one knee, and assumed a posture of submission.
“From this day forth, I swear in the name of Avia to submit to Young Master Tyr's command, to serve by your side, and to tend to your daily life. I will become the sharpest blade in your hand, until my magic power is depleted, my body is shattered, and my very last drop of blood is spilled.”
Avia's voice was firm and resonant. She had waited seven years for this day.
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