Epic Of The Demonic Sage

"I'll keep that in mind, Viscountess Blackshield. Thank you for your concern, but you and Mother need not worry because I have been taking care of myself," Lucius said. "I won't be able to take after my father if I cannot even do such a simple thing like that."

Count Gabriel's lips quirked slightly at Lucius's words. The man was immensely pleased to hear of that.

While the Viscountess was not aware of Asher's gift and his relationship with the Church of Etara and his people, it truly did worry the Count sometimes about what would happen in the future.

'Viscount Drew died without much of an heir. It was probably his wife, the Viscountess that led the army back then during the war and had disposed of his body there like Asher said… but there were and are no signs of his son, Young Lord Keith Drew.' The Count thought silently to himself.

It was easy to presume that things were over now that he had won the battle against Viscount Drew and probably crippled the Viscount's territory to a great degree, but the Count was too experienced to simply relax.

'Nothing dangerous happened at the banquet, only certain nobilities grumbling and the incident with the young ladies attempting to sneak into Asher's room, but one cannot be at ease. The Black Rose Knights may have gone to His Majesty now and the Earl of Aisse also cooperated with the investigation, but there might be other things that are unexpected for me.' The Count thought.

"Say something to your son, Gabriel." Countess Lita nudged her husband a little which took him out of his thoughts.

"I trust that Asher knows what he is doing. There are certain times when a man must make sacrifices to achieve his goal, and it will be up to him to measure when they are," Count Gabriel said.

"Thank you for your confidence in me, father." Lucius said.

"Of course." Count Gabriel nodded.

Once again, Viscountess Blackshield noticed the interaction between father and son alongside the husband and wife.

There was a certain reason why the Viscountess sometimes kept to herself, and she was reminded of it now.

'Even Count Gabriel has a soft side for his family. This man who is said to have been more frightening than me when he rampaged across the Grantz Kingdom by himself. Of course, this much is to be expected. One cannot have rage if there are no other strong emotions as well.' Viscountess Blackshield thought.

The conversation turned into a bit of a lull until the breakfast reached its end and the Viscountess turned to Asher and cleared her throat.

"Young Lord Asher, do you wish to spar now that we've finished our meal? It is the main reason why I came here and I'd rather not delay it any further if there is no issue with you right now," the Viscountess said.

'I'm not aware of Young Lord Asher's schedule, but with his relationship to the Masked Legion mercenary group and the fact that he is the one who also managed this rehabilitation center that he proposed to be implemented elsewhere, it is fair to say that he is a busy young man.'

"Now would be good," Lucius said. "I've made a promise to spar with the Viscountess and I have every intention of fulfilling it."

'After that strange nightmare from last night, this will also be a good chance to clear my head. Perhaps getting proper exercise will also help me sleep better tonight as well.' Lucius thought.

"Great." The Viscountess said.

"Mother and Father, will we leave the two of you here now?"

"Oh, we wish to watch this spar between the two of you," the Countess said.

"In fact, it will probably be a good idea to have the guards also see this spar. It will be an excellent learning experience for them, as this is a unique fight. However, if that is fine for the two of you?" Count Gabriel asked.

"I am fine with it. What about you, Young Lord Asher?"

"I certainly do not mind either, father. Please invite the guards," Lucius said with a smile.

'It will be a chance to put the guards under my influence more. They have already started to respect me due to what I've accomplished before with the fake bandits and during the battle with Viscount Drew, but compared to Neta or the rehabilitation center, their faith in me is too little.' Lucius thought.

"Now what type of spar shall we be doing, Young Lord Asher?" the Viscountess said and turned to Asher.

"Until the other person is either unable to fight any longer or would be considered dead in that situation."

The Viscountess' eyes glinted slightly at those words.

Something which Lucius noted with interest.

'It's much better to deal with this violent-inclined Viscountess than the one dealing with grief. In fact, I can also tip her to the edge a little further.'

"Are you sure, Young Lord Asher?"

"Yes, in fact, I wish for you to use your gift too, Viscountess Blackshield. I have heard praises about your gift and would like to see it in person," Lucius said.

"Well, if we're going to go with that, then it's best for you to use an artifact as well. We cannot let you be at too much of a disadvantage, Young Lord Asher."

Viscountess Blackshield said it, but it was clear that it was said out of a desire for an actual fight.

'Some people might enjoy a one-sided rampage, but some do prefer when the other person has combat ability as well.' Lucius noted.

"Well then, I'll inform Captain Donald to gather his men and prepare the training grounds. We'll have our servant escort you there once it's ready Viscountess, so you can prepare for the spar," Count Gabriel said.

"Thank you, Count and Countess. The hospitality the two of you have given me alongside Young Lord Asher has been the warmest." The Viscountess said with a respectful nod.

"Think nothing of it. We are looking forward to this match."

At this point, the servants of the mansion were already cleaning the dishes, but they all looked interested in the discussion.

'It won't take too long for this to spread.' Lucius thought.