Chapter 92: Judgment: The Claim For Vaeloria
"Okay, one is benevolent, the second is filled with curiosity, that one is greed, the fourth is filled with arrogance... What about the rest of you?" He asked, his tone filled with sarcasm. His gaze swept over the remaining Awakened, completely unimpressed by the staggering amount of SSS-Rank aura attempting to crush him.
"Asher, you think because I am silent you can keep angering us... We ten are the Rulers of Silverspire, know how you speak to us." Tyson finally opened his mouth, his gaze fixed on Asher. As the Guild Leader of the Gods Guild, Tyson was accustomed to total obedience; to him, Asher was nothing more than an upstart wearing borrowed armor.
"Rulers of Silverspire? Let me ask you a question, is Aetheldawn a normal family, a noble family, or an Ancient Family?" He asked coldly.
Silence...
The heavy question hung in the air, suffocating the once-arrogant Awakened.
"As you are scared of answering this simple question, I will answer your question... Aetheldawn is the fifth Ancient family on the board, and with each family having control of their own countries, Vaeloria should belong to my Family, am I wrong?" He asked.
"....?!?"
"What?! Are you planning on going against the Ancient family in this country?!!" Katherine exclaimed in shock. The sheer audacity of his claim threatened to upend the entire global hierarchy.
What Asher said was indeed true; a century ago, there were a total of ten countries, but five were wiped out in the great world event, leaving behind five... The Ancient families occupied each country, but due to there being only four families, the second-strongest family then decided and occupied Vaeloria. They had ruled with an iron fist ever since, their authority entirely undisputed.
The benefit of having an Ancient Family in a country is mainly because of protection and resources; the smaller families pay tribute and taxes, while they gain resources and protection from the Ancient families. This was another reason the Ancient families were always based in the most dangerous cities—serving as an impenetrable bulwark against the monstrous tides.
This is also another reason why the Ancient families looked down on them, because to those families, they have the lives of every single soul under their control in their hands. They were the undisputed apex predators.
Now, Asher directly stated his right, meaning he wants all of Vaeloria, which is technically declaring war against the Ancient families.
He might have powerful gear, but so what? The Ancient families also have Mythic-Tier equipment, but being truthful, everyone knew the Ancient families don’t have a full set.
Asher has many advantages, but also a lot of disadvantages; if he truly goes against the Ancient families, he will surely not last long. A single fortress cannot withstand an empire’s siege forever.
Tyson closed his eyes for a moment, and reopened them:
"I thought you were smart, but do you know your current situation? You can’t even face us, and you want to take over Vaeloria... Be careful kid, arrogance is a very dangerous thing."
"Arrogance? As long as I have the strength and means, who cares if I am arrogant? And what makes you think you are qualified to be my enemy?"
"...?!"
The eight were stunned. The absolute, icy conviction in Asher’s voice wasn’t a bluff. He spoke with the authority of someone who held their very lives in the palm of his hand.
’Wow, I like this guy, he is interesting.’ Katherine thought with a smirk, her white flames flickering with genuine amusement.
’What has gotten into my baby brother, he seems like a different person!! Was I too lenient on him?!!’ Luna thought with gritted teeth, her toxic possessiveness warring with a deep, unsettling confusion.
’This young man is so arrogant.’ Danica frowned darkly, gripping her golden cane tight enough to dent the metal.
"It seems I need to open your eyes." Tyson said, raising his right arm, and without another word, he snapped his fingers. His signature sealing technique instantly locked onto its target.
"...?!"
Nothing happened, but...
Asher moved his head backward, staring at the red skull above his head; the next moment, the system screen appeared.
{Note: Spirit energy curse has been placed on Master.}
{Curse Ability: Seal off all Spirit energy, rendering you completely powerless to use abilities or equipment buffs.}
{When the local snake thinks it can face a true dragon, they will naturally end up burned.}
{Master doesn’t have Spirit energy but Aether and doesn’t have any Disadvantage towards any Elements, so spirit energy curse is completely Ineffective towards Master.}
’Oh, the system also knows how to insult, and it’s indirectly telling me to teach this little boy a lesson.’ Asher lowered his gaze to Tyson. The Guild Leader’s ultimate trump card—an absolute, unblockable energy seal—had just bounced off Asher’s Aether like a raindrop hitting titanium.
"Attacking anyone from the ancient families is nothing but an insult to that family name..."
"Stop calling yourself an Ancient Family!! You’re not even close to their ranks!!" He yelled, but the next moment, Asher appeared right behind him. The spatial displacement was instantaneous, leaving no residual energy signature for their SSS-Rank senses to track.
"How are you so sure about that?"
"This?!!"
Before everyone could think, Asher’s aura burst out from him, smashing right into the eight, sending them all flying backward. The shockwave was purely physical, unburdened by elemental weakness.
"What the hell?!!"
They landed on their feet, a distance from him, faces instantly turning dark. The realization that they had been out-sped and physically overpowered by a single burst of aura shattered their arrogant composure.
"How dare you attack us, Kid?!!" The old man yelled, as a staff appeared in his hand. The weapon hummed with lethal destructive magic, pulling the temperature down to freezing.
"I am going to turn you into dust!!" He pointed his staff at Asher in rage, preparing to unleash an apocalyptic bombardment.
The rest stood still, none stopping him; Asher actually dared attack them, he must be taught a lesson. They wanted to use the old man to test the true depths of this new Aetheldawn patriarch’s power.
"You are just an old attack mage, you dare fight me?"
With Asher’s words, the old man’s shadow rose up, and grabbed his arms, body, and legs, forcing him to the ground. The darkness detached itself from the pavement, turning into solidified, unbreakable chains of pure Aether.
"This?!! Shadow manipulation?!"
Everyone present was stunned, staring as the shadows forced one of them to the ground, speechless. Shadow abilities were exceedingly rare, but to restrain an SSS-Rank mage without a single chant was terrifying.
"This is impossible, I thought I sealed your spirit energy, how the hell can you still use skills?!!!" He asked in shock. Tyson stared at his own hands, his faith in his unparalleled sealing ability shattering into pieces.
"Placing that seal on me is no different from declaring war against my family, and this old fool dares attack me... He will receive his punishment today."
The moment Asher’s words dropped, the shadows wrapped around the old man’s arm, and with a violent downward pull—
CRACK!!
"ARGHHHHHHHH!!!!!"
".....?!!!!"