I Regressed to My Ruined Family – 85

 #I returned, and my family was ruined (86)

The Ardan Royal Family.

It was a family that had endured tremendous sacrifices, to the point where it was hard to believe that such a foolish family could exist in this world.

How far had they fallen that even their direct descendants were forced to live away from their family?

But what if…

“What if there was a reason for this sacrifice? It’s a ridiculous claim, but what if… the Ardan family somehow passed down their experiences from the Dragon Clan War to the Grand Duke?”

“…!”

Everyone’s eyes widened.

If that were the case, then their seasoned combat skills, as if they had fought hundreds of wars,

They would have been able to skillfully handle the dragon clan’s sword techniques used by the Third Prince Teron and Count Marek, and they would have grown at an incomprehensible rate.

It all made sense.

“Then… the fact that the Grand Duke was unconscious for ten years… Could it be…?”

“…We are currently investigating whether the Ardan family made some kind of arrangement for the Grand Duke.”

“…

Everyone’s eyes lit up.

They didn’t know exactly what that arrangement was.

It could be an artifact or a magic circle that passed on experience, something they had never heard of before.

If not that, then…

“…It could be that they used a secret method unique to the Ardan family.”

There were many possibilities.

“Furthermore, the Grand Duke lit the white flame that is said to have been lit by the first Duke of Ardan. If all of this was the Duke’s arrangement to light the white flame…”

“…!”

The first head of the Ardan Duke’s family.

There were only a few records left about him, but based on those records, there were a few things that could be guessed.

He was a master who could not be called human.

He was not simply a transcendent being with a lot of mana, known as an 11th or 12th rank in the current world, but a monster who had truly surpassed that level.

It was then.

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“Heh heh. You talk a lot of nonsense.”

The voice belonged to the archbishop wearing a black robe.

His interruption broke the silence and changed the flow of the meeting.

Everyone’s eyes turned to the archbishop. Count Marek was the first to ask a question.

“…Are you saying that you think this story is completely impossible?”

“The Ardan family is renowned for their swordsmanship, not magic. If there was some kind of item or magic circle that could pass on such knowledge, why did it take until the 18th generation to use it?”

“…”

Come to think of it, that made sense.

From the second to the 17th duke, they were all knights with extraordinary skills and talents who had reached the level of transcendence.

“If the duke’s family had such a means, they would have used it long ago. Furthermore…”

The archbishop looked around at the seven heads of the families seated at the round table and continued in a forceful tone.

“Even if such a means was discovered belatedly by the 17th head of the family, do you think it makes sense to sacrifice an entire family to pass on their knowledge and experience to just one person? And all for the sake of reviving something as legendary as the White Flame? Is that what you would do?”

Absolutely not.

Sacrifice everything for the sake of passing on outstanding skills to future generations?

To put it bluntly, it was nothing short of madness.

Moreover, the Ardan family was recognized as the best swordsmanship family in the Western Continent for their black flames alone.

There was no reason to make such a sacrifice for the sake of a new technique called white flames.

Whether it was black flames or white flames.

After all, the former Duke’s family was clearly not the best noble family.

“The Archbishop is right.”

“Then…”

Some of the heads of families lit up.

“In the end, what the strategy analysis department confirmed was… that the Grand Prince is extremely talented. Even beyond our imagination.”

“I agree. The Grand Duke is definitely a prodigy. However, he is still a growing seed. To kill a seed, you need poison.”

“Poison…”

“Third Prince Teron. If he takes over the Duke’s family, our sect will be able to expand its influence.”

The Grand Duke was an enemy of the sect.

Now that he had risen to become the ruler of the west, the sect’s expansion into the west would inevitably be greatly delayed.

The archbishop whispered quietly.

“Delphion. That madman is imprisoning all the dwarves he planted in the kingdom. Starting with the printing press, our infrastructure is gradually being paralyzed. The cause of this is ultimately the Grand Duke, who not only cooperated with the king but also passed on information about our sect.”

“…”

The archbishop glared at the seven lords. Several of them flinched under his sharp gaze.

“That is why I had high hopes for this opening ceremony. However, the results were completely different from what I had expected. What did I tell you? I said we must strengthen our power even if it means completely destroying the Three Princes’ will!”

“Ahem…”

Just then, several heads of the families turned away, clearing their throats. The archbishop added a warning.

“If you cannot stop the king, our church will have no intention of continuing this deal. Remember that we have already given you a great deal.”

When the atmosphere calmed down,

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Duke Gerond spoke up.

“Archbishop, please calm down. We, the Seven Houses, are also making efforts. We are continuing to keep tabs on the king’s personal shadow knights. As you know, Archbishop, there have been no further incidents on the church’s side since then, right?”

“That’s not enough. The Three Princes must take over the Duke’s family for the king to calm down.”

Whether it was the king or the grand duke,

they were both thorns in their side. However, for now, it was better to target the grand duke, who was relatively easier to take down.

“…All right. By the time the Three Princes exercise their right to challenge, we will be able to defeat the Grand Prince. Count Marek?”

“…Yes, my lord.”

“Teron. Make sure he feels even more negative emotions toward him.”

Teron Ardan.

The black magic and negative emotions that dwelled within him were reaching their limit.

Even now, he spent half of every day losing his sanity and raving like a madman.

“…It’s a shame.”

If he had even a shred of sanity left, he could have been put to better use as a puppet. However, the situation had deteriorated to the point where that was no longer possible.

Teron would probably lose his sanity completely. Even if he took the title of duke through the challenge, he would clearly be called a madman.

Even so.

Now that the head of the family had made his decision, it was right to obey.

“…I will do as you say.”

That was when it happened.

“I don’t think that will be enough. How about teaching the Three Lords the Gangryong technique?”

“…Gangryong?”

Everyone was surprised.

The Gangryong Technique was treated as top-secret even within the sect.

In order to use the Gangryong Technique, one had to visit the sect and undergo special physical modifications.

Even among the heads of the Seven Houses, only a handful had been taught the Gangryong Technique.

“Won’t your appearance change if you use the Gangryong Technique? That’s problematic.”

“Even if the appearance inside the armor changes, it shouldn’t matter much. That much can be easily modified.”

“Hmmm…”

“We need to strengthen Samgongja to that extent to guarantee a 100% chance of victory against Daegongja. His lifespan will be greatly reduced due to the incompleteness, but that shouldn’t matter.”

That was right.

The important thing was that the Three Princes would be appointed as lords.

If the Three Princes lived for just five more years, it would not be difficult to completely dominate the Duke’s family during that time.

“I will do as you say.”

“I will summon you when the time comes.”

The archbishop’s figure completely disappeared. When the meeting of the Seven Families ended.

The eyes of some of the attendees were sparkling. Among them, the one who was lost in the deepest thoughts was Turian, the head of the Fractal family located in the west.

“…Baek-yeom.”

If, just if.

If there was something that could pass on the experience and memories of the duke’s family.

“…Perhaps our family could not only be bound to the Seven Houses, but completely rise to new heights.”

The knowledge of the duke’s family was too sweet to resist. If he thought about how much the power of the marquis’s family had increased after obtaining their secrets.

“It’s worth investigating.”

The marquis’s eyes lit up.

Perhaps his family could rise even higher than the three dukes who had obtained the Dragon’s Breath from the archbishop.

* * *

After appointing a large number of administrators.

He began to purge all the high-ranking officials of the ducal domain connected to the 10 families, and domestic affairs gradually returned to stability. Ethan looked at the seal given to him.

It was the seal of the lord, with golden flames burning.

It was necessary for opening the treasure chamber where the duke’s valuables were kept.

“How many are left?”

In the past, there would have been countless artifacts in the treasure chamber.

But now, it was different.

The ten branches of the family.

He had heard that they had gradually taken the items from the treasure chamber.

“Still, the sacred sword must be there.”

“Grand Duke! Even though we are the council of elders acting on behalf of the head of the family, we are not so mad as to take the sacred sword!”

Those were the last words of Baron Helmut, who was now dead and turned into a ghost.

“And the sacred sword…! As you know, it wasn’t broken, was it?”

He had heard that it had been broken.

The sacred sword Drainion was one of the sacred artifacts that only the head of the family could wield.

In his previous life, it was the weapon he had held until his death. It was bound to be special to him.

First, find it.

It wouldn’t be too late to think about whether it could be restored later.

He still vividly remembered the path to the treasure chamber.

He passed through the inner castle and several secret passages.

At some point, he began to see double and triple magic circles.

They were magic circles that prevented anyone without the lord’s seal from approaching. Of course, this did not apply to Edan, who had the seal.

When he opened the huge door to the treasure room,

he couldn’t help but laugh. The interior was completely empty.

“They took everything.”

It was just as he had thought.

The items that had been taken were probably sold all over the place.

The deepest place in the treasure chamber.

The divine sword hung there.

“Ha…”

It was completely gone, with only the hilt remaining, covered in dust.

Dranion.

I never thought this sword would be so damaged that only the hilt remained.

The handle looked like it was made of intertwined tree branches.

“It’s the branch of the World Tree.”

This was proof that the sword was real.

The outside of the handle looked fine, but the inside was a mess. There were cracks all over the inside.

“…What on earth happened in the battle with the Dragon Lord?”

Although he didn’t know exactly, one thing was certain: something had happened that had completely destroyed even the divine sword.

Carefully grasping the sword, he sent mana through the handle.

Uuung…

The handle trembled as if in pain.

“To repair it…”

Ethan recalled the documents he had read about the divine sword.

“The first head of the clan, Jeron Ardan.

The handle was woven from the branches of the World Tree.

The blade was forged from the divine metal Ardenhite.

―The flames of the lord were obtained by visiting the land of fire.

―The god of blacksmiths struck the hammer.

―The master of magic blessed the sword and engraved the circuit.

―A sword that contains the pure white light of the first lord.

―Jeron named this sword Drainion.

The broken divine sword.

The hilt barely retained its shape, but it didn’t seem like it would last much longer.

It was one of the items that had been neglected for over fifteen years since the death of the previous duke.

“Two years at most?”

After that, even the remaining hilt would completely crumble away.

The sword known to have withstood the pure white flame of the first lord.

As the head of the family who first ignited the white flame and a comrade who had once faced life and death alongside the sword.

Restoring the sword was not a choice, but a necessity.

He looked at the sword’s handle.

The first item he had to obtain was…

“The branch of the World Tree.”

That was it.

Once the internal arrangements were complete, he anticipated a busy period ahead.