“My son…”

In the distant, hazy memories of his past life, an image surfaced—his mother’s sorrowful face, looking down at him, bound hand and foot with a sad gaze.

"My son, please… don’t follow this unworthy mother’s path. Find your happiness.”

*Thump, thump, thump, thump!*

"I should have… I should have said this first. I’m sorry for being so late.”

It was the first time his mother, who had always walked a lonely and parallel path, had ever apologized to him, her words filled with warmth and love.

"So please…”

Her final plea,

"Leave this place."

It echoed deeply in Theo’s heart.

---

The moment Theo fled from his family was likely around that time.

His mother’s earnest wish for him to leave in search of his own happiness.

He had understood how sincere her words were and had tried to follow them.

But over time, he forgot.

Amid life’s storms and the passage of years, he had let go of her words.

And now, the memory resurfaced.

In both his past life and this one, his mother’s every thought had been for him.

This ungrateful son had lived his life without ever realizing that.

Theo bit his lower lip, his emotions welling up.

"So they framed and killed my mother… over a relic they believed might be hidden in the Rose Palace?”

The final mystery connected to his past life was starting to dissolve.

“And yet, even after failing to find the relic, they hunted me down to kill me after I had already left the family.”

*Grit*

The thought that his precious kin had died in vain for this burned him with fury.

It was as if he could still hear their anguished cries echoing in his ears.

Then a question arose.

"But Ed died in the rebellion he led with Aksion. My death was much later. Does that mean…?”

Several thoughts started to form in Theo’s mind.

With a more composed perspective, he carefully examined the latter part of the ledger.

He discovered a few additional details.

"Of course… so even after Ed’s death, the Troiban faction continued its schemes?”

Troiban was the root of all the plots.

Because of their conspiracy to obtain the Ancient Dragon’s relic, Cecilia and Theo had perished.

Ragnar had been dragged through countless hardships as a result.

"What could their reason for gathering the Ancient Dragon’s relics possibly be?”

Ancient Dragon relics were mysterious artifacts that anyone would desire.

But Theo knew something crucial.

For the latent power of the relics to be activated, it required the blood of a Ragnar.

Even if Troiban collected them, they’d be of no real use to them.

"Did they plan to use Aksion, the half-blood? But he was already dead by then…”

In both past and present lives, the conspiracy was ongoing, relentlessly moving forward.

"Could they have aligned with another bloodline? An estranged branch long exiled from Ragnar? Or perhaps someone secretly planted within the family?”

And were they amassing relics like Balmung, which carried legends of dragonslaying, as a means of control?

As Theo sifted through these theories, a new entry at the end of the ledger caught his eye.

“...They will soon retrieve what is believed to be the last remaining relic within Ragnar.”

The last remaining relic?

Theo’s eyes widened as—

*A flash!*

[Skill: Hatchling Syncro activates, summoning latent thoughts from the item.]

Theo’s vision blurred as a different scene unfolded.

In a dark room,

Ed was scribbling rapidly by the light of a small lamp.

Once the letter was complete, he carefully folded it and tied it to the leg of a waiting hawk.

"Deliver this to my father.”

*Flap, flap!*

The hawk nodded and took off, flying a long distance until it reached a grand castle in the east.

The massive fortress could have easily been mistaken for a royal palace.

At the top of the castle, an elderly man sat alone.

‘Granada Troiban!’

Theo recognized the face immediately.

The current head of the Troiban family.

Though he might have been a step behind Kyle in strength, Granada had built his family into a power to rival Ragnar and was the dominant lord of the eastern region.

He was also Ed and Emile Troiban’s father.

Granada read the letter tied to the hawk’s leg and chuckled.

"An interesting discovery. ‘The Enchanted Sword of Moonlight,’ which supposedly devours its own master under the moon’s light, is intriguing enough, but to think there exists a ‘Demon Blade of the Dragon’ that chooses its master on its own whim to test their skill? Just hearing about Ancient Dragons never prepared me for how extraordinary they truly are. If we can secure this ‘Dragonslayer’s Cursed Blade’ we’ll soon possess… it would be quite a fascinating picture.”

The old man stroked his beard as he penned another letter and tied it to the hawk’s leg.

"The Dragonslayer’s Cursed Blade and the Demon Blade of the Dragon… These twin blades must never be separated. Make sure that message gets through.”

*Flap, flap!*

The hawk took off once more, this time heading north.

It arrived at the Ceres Trading Company’s headquarters, where Theo currently was.

There, Quadrak cautiously received the hawk.

The vision ended there.

"So, there was yet another relic hidden within the family. And Ed and Troiban planned to take it.”

Theo didn’t know what this “Demon Blade of the Dragon” was exactly.

But from Ed and Granada’s words, it was clear that it was the twin of Balmung.

"Balmung is already in my hands… and now that I know where it is, I’ll have to intercept it before Ed makes his move.”

Theo’s eyes grew colder.

There was no way he would let these relics of the Ancient Dragon fall into non-Ragnar hands.

After thoroughly searching the storage, Theo quietly left once he was sure he had found all the clues.

---

Outside, the Holy Demon Sect had already been subdued, and Quadrak and his co-conspirators were being apprehended.

“Make sure not a single person in the main branch is left unaccounted for. Anyone who resists should be executed immediately.”

Following Evelyn’s resolute order, the members of the 5th squad combed through the entire headquarters with vigilant eyes.

The Northern Merchant Alliance members who had been summoned for a brainwashing ceremony were now caught in a storm they hadn’t anticipated.

“I-I have nothing to do with this, I swear!”

“We had no idea what Ceres was up to! It’s the truth!”

“We only came because we were told there was an engagement between the Ceres Trading Company and the Bacchus family, and we were to attend!”

“This rebellion has nothing to do with us!”

These merchants were innocent victims summoned by Quadrak for brainwashing by the Holy Demon Sect.

Now they were being dragged into accusations of rebellion, risking not only their lives but also the reputation of their entire trading companies.

However, Evelyn couldn’t release them immediately.

There was a possibility that spies from the Holy Demon Sect or Troiban were among them.

"I understand your grievances, but we’ll need to conduct a simple verification process before releasing you. Please wait.”

Even this promise would be difficult to fulfill promptly.

The events at Ceres Trading Company’s headquarters had to remain confidential for now.

The success of the operation depended on speed.

They needed to finish this before Ed and Troiban became aware.

"Clébé, what about the Bacchus family?”

"Don’t worry. The Black Iron Unit should already be attacking them. They’re likely in complete disarray by now.”

Despite targeting one of the Six Great Families, Clébé’s tone was casual.

She believed that recent northern unrest stemmed from Ragnar’s leniency, and that it was necessary to discipline these vassals directly to keep them in line.

Then Clébé glanced at Naban.

"I’m tied up for now, but I did side with you this time. Shouldn’t I be given some leniency?”

Naban held up his bound wrists, grumbling with a hint of irritation.

"You’ve been given leniency, which is why it’s only come to this. But Naban Bacchus, you’re still not entirely cleared, so stay put for now.”

"Ah well, that’s my luck, isn’t it.”

He sighed, grumbling, but Clébé noticed the faint amusement in his tone.

‘Even with his family facing annihilation, he’s enjoying this? So it was true that the second son of Bacchus, an illegitimate child, harbored a deep grudge against his family.’

Clébé’s eyes gleamed.

‘While it’s impossible to entirely dismantle the Six Great Families, if we replace their leaders with rebels like him, it would make future control easier…!’

As Clébé considered a plan to bring the Bacchus family under Ragnar’s control, she stopped, recalling something.

Naban had suddenly sided with Theo after a conversation and now seemed quite close to him.

Did that mean…?

‘Could Theo have foreseen this?’

It felt like being struck on the back of the head.

She remembered Theo’s declaration at the Ascension Ceremony to challenge for the right of succession.

Without a significant backing, having the Bacchus family under his influence could be advantageous.

While some might dismiss this as coincidence, Clébé knew Theo well enough to consider it a calculated move.

“...!”

A chill ran down her spine.

She glanced at Theo just as he approached.

“My daughter… Lily… what happened to Lily?!”

Quadrak, his dreams and ambitions shattered, was staring blankly until Theo ne

ared, prompting him to scream.

Theo looked at him with silent contempt.

“You… you killed my daughter…!!”

Quadrak wailed as he sensed Lily’s fate.

But he didn’t get far before Hulcus slammed his head down.

“Can you be quiet? You’re getting on my nerves!”

Hulcus then turned to Theo with a big grin—almost unsettling.

‘…What’s with him? Did something happen?’

Theo, somewhat bewildered, gave a nod.

---

“Some of you may not know me, so allow me to introduce myself once more. I’m Theo Ragnar, recently appointed as a Combat Swordsman. I look forward to working with you.”

After things settled down, the 5th squad gathered, and Theo greeted them formally.

Both those who knew him and those who had only heard of him looked shocked.

“Huh?”

“What did he say? Am I hearing things?”

“A Combat Swordsman?”

Selford’s eyes widened as he asked urgently.

“You’re not an apprentice anymore? You’re already a Combat Swordsman? Is that true?”

“Yes. I passed the promotion test during my last mission.”

“No way…!”

“Wait, does that mean he was promoted after just his second mission?”

“Even Torkel Ragnar didn’t achieve this level of success. This is insane.”

“Legendary. I’ve heard stories, but this is something else…”

“Well, I guess it makes sense. Didn’t you see him take down those Blood Priests single-handedly? He’s the real deal.”

“True.”

Although surprised, none of the squad members seemed jealous, accepting Theo’s achievement as deserved.

Thanks to the atmosphere Julius had fostered, Theo believed most of them were genuinely supportive.

“Wow…”

“So, you really did get promoted. I thought I was catching up, but you’re miles ahead.”

Hulcus looked like his jaw might drop, while Erica scratched her head with a wry smile.

Although they were in the same cohort, it felt as if Theo was moving farther away with each step.

Hulcus, in particular, felt a sense of urgency.

‘I need to align myself quickly…!’

The problem was finding the time to talk to him alone.

Theo had been extremely busy in recent months, and his success on this mission would only add to his workload.

*Clap!*

Evelyn clapped her hands, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Now that everything is sorted, we’re heading back to the clan. However, due to the urgency of the report and the number of captives, we’ll split into two groups. Theo, Selford, Arin, Erica, Hulcus, you’ll come with me to Winterer first. That’s all.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

As Theo acknowledged the order, he summoned Umbra from the shadows.

And so, his second mission came to an end.