Kingdom’s Bloodline

react, a maiden and a young lad outside cried out in fear.

”Daddy, stop it! Kevin is…
is only here to give me something… ”

”Mister… let ’s talk this out… ah-ah! ”

After that came Big Leather Belt ’s deafening roar.

”Give something?! Did you think that I don ’t know what you ’re thinking about, stinky brat! F*ck off! F*ck off! Stay away from my daughter Cecelia!

”My daughter is not at the age of marriage yet! If you dare to come and find Cecelia in secret again… I will break all three of your legs! ”

Amid the sounds made by the chickens and dogs next door, Kohen watched Big Leather Belt—whose words did not match his actions—with eyes wide and mouth agape.
He then met Miranda ’s eyes.

Both of them burst out laughing at the same time.

Smiling, Miranda raised her head and gazed afar at the top of the hill where Heroic Spirit Palace was situated.

Her sight soon became blurred.

’The silly lads at home…
are pure and loyal… ’

…..

Thales treaded Heroic Spirit Palace ’s floor tiles stiffly, one step at a time.

Compared to Renaissance Palace ’s simple, restrained style where the outside and inside were consistent, the interior design of Heroic Spirit Palace was very contradictory.

Some sections appeared rough and imposing, like the crude carvings on every portico, stair railings made of huge logs of wood, and animal heads that were specially made into war trophies.
However, there were many parts that were meticulously and intricately carved, such as certain exquisitely cut floor tiles, ceiling domes covered in paintings, and luxurious Everlasting Lamp holders.

Traces of the history and time were also varied.
The material and lustre of the wall tiles in some corners looked as if they have been there for a few hundred years, but it was obvious that other parts were renovated a few years ago.

In his opinion, the interior of Heroic Spirit Palace was like layer upon layer of murals.
New inscriptions were piled on past impressions, weaving history and the present into one.

But Thales was not in the mood to admire all of this.
He was trying his best to compose himself while thinking about the political identity of the ’king-cum-archduke ’ which was exclusive to Eckstedt, preparing himself to face the upcoming challenge.

Even though Nuven the Seventh had already reached out to him through Nicholas and Shiles, Thales ’ experiences had made him believe that life is always full of unknowns, and that accidents always happen suddenly.

He MUST be well-prepared.

Under Mirk ’s signal, the Second Prince of Constellation walked past the White Blade Guards who were staring straight ahead, and passed through countless porticos.
He then walked slowly towards an ovular ring-shaped stone hall with no corners.

The lighting there was not good and it was very dim, but there were six braziers in iron stands that burned vigorously.
Apart from chasing away the cold, they shakily illuminated the stone hall.

’Braziers again, just like Lampard… The suzerains of Eckstedt like braziers this much? ’ Thales thought mockingly.

He took a deep breath and stepped forwards into the stone hall.
Mirk did not follow and the doors closed behind the prince.

From afar, Thales saw a simple and sturdy table in the middle of the stone hall.
It was brownish-black and rectangular in design.

A white-haired old man sat facing Thales on the other side of the table.
He was around sixty to seventy years old.
He wore a thick, red-and-black robe, and a dark gold crown on his head.
The crown ’s design was quite simple and set into the forehead position was a dark red gemstone.

The old man had his hands placed on the table, but his head was lowered and he did not say anything.
Because of the distance and the dim lightning, Thales could not see his face clearly.

However, Thales could guess his identity.

The boy approached that simple yet sturdy table.

On both sides of the old man sat five men of varying appearances and adornment.
Two were on his left, three on his right.

The only similarity those five men of varying ages shared was that from the moment Thales stepped into the stone hall, they glared at him with unfriendly, almost ferocious gazes, sizing up the seven-year-old boy.

One king and five archdukes.

Thales frowned as he got to the front of the long table.
The Eckstedtians did not save him a seat.
They showed no intention of adding an extra seat for him either.

’This is bad. ’

He gritted his teeth slightly.

Thales was forced to stand on the ice-cold stone floor as he faced six of the most powerful and influential suzerains in Eckstedt.
He was not even tall enough so he had to raise his head and look upwards at them.

This made the atmosphere highly unfavourable for him.

’It seems that it isn ’t a thing here to respect elders and love children.
It ’s like I ’m back in my child beggar days. ’

Having thought of this, the second prince chuckled internally.
It took a lot of his anxiety away.

Thales calmed himself down.
He had toughened up from the immense dangers he went through ever since that night at Red Street Market.
He was confident that he can calm himself in a split second and think of a solution even in perilous situations.

’And… ’

Thales looked at the five men, but because they were facing away from the light, their faces were hidden in the dark and could not be seen clearly.
Only pairs of eyes could be seen flickering in the glow of the fire, casting immense pressure on the visitor.

Also among them was the culprit who co-conspired with Archduke Lampard and Duke Arunde in trying to meddle with the succession of the throne, attempting to assassinate the prince twice—having succeeded in their second attempt—and even caused an unprecedented crisis of foreign affairs between the two kingdoms.

’The culprit who nearly brought about war and conflict, as well as disasters and death… the culprit responsible for my current plight is among these five people… ’

Thales stared at the five indistinct figures in the darkness and clenched his fists in secret.

And then there was also the matter of his only possible ally who did not know how to be friendly towards him.

Thales raised his head and looked at the old man sitting furthest away, at the other end of the table.
That old man was the supreme ruler who had just lost his dearest son.

He could not help but notice that the stone hall was decked all over with flags that had the Cloud Dragon Spear symbol on them.
Only the area behind the old man was occupied by a large, square fireplace with a shelf made of darkwood mounted on the wall above it.
There was a strangely-shaped pike made of unknown material on the shelf.

It was different from the ancient knight pikes that Thales saw in the books at Mindis Hall, which had knuckle-guards and pike handles.
Even though this pike was two meters long, it had no knuckle-guard and its entire shaft was uniformly thick.
The portion near the bottom of the spear, the place where it was supposed to be held, was intentionally sanded.
The shaft of the pike was silvery metallic in color, but the part near the spearhead was dark and shiny.
The pike was equipped with a ferocious-looking and sharp spearhead which was shaped like a pyramid.

”Soul Slayer Pike. ”

A deep and slow voice rang in the stone hall.

”It used to be Raikaru ’s weapon.
It is the Walton Family ’s symbol, and the reason why we are known as the Dragon Spear Family. ” The old man at the other end of the table turned his head back slightly.
In the flickering firelight, his face could be seen in the darkness.

His face was resolute and steadfast, but covered in wrinkles.
Underneath his silvery-white hair, his facial features were that of a typical Northlander, with deep-set eyes, a tall nose bridge and a well-contoured profile.
However, the curve of his lips held a hint of coldness.

”It was said that only the Judgement Spear from Constellation could match up to its sharpness and the level of danger it posed to others.
It has taken countless lives.

”It had killed and wounded many highly renowned enemies in the past few hundred years, including the sinister ’Mourning Archduke ’, the cruel ’Human Slaughterer ’ Xyra Darkstorm, the powerful ’Enemy of the Wolves ’ Keira, the ferocious Night Wing King, and the strange Power Mystic. ”

Thales frowned slightly.
He suddenly recalled Kaslan ’s words about the old man in front of him.

’ ”When he was younger, he was a good king, the epitome of a sturdy Walton man. ” ’

When Thales met the old man ’s eyes, he realized that he had a pair of green eyes and wondered if it was part of the Walton Family genetics.
Thales himself did not inherit Kessel ’s sky-blue eyes, anyway…

Thales was suddenly dumbstruck.
He recalled the Head Ritual Master, Liscia, and Queen Keya ’s comments about his gray eyes—that they were from his mother.

His thoughts returned to the present, but Thales immediately felt a shiver run down his spine.

He vaguely noticed at that moment, the old man ’s green eyes had a strange emotion in it.
It was worn, gloomy, bitter, and sorrowful.
It was as if he had lived in despair for years.

Dangerous and horrifying.

”In the hundreds and thousands of years after this, the Soul Slayer will continue to live up to its name, ” said the steely looking old man slowly, ”It will definitely slaughter more people. ”