​"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Ian asked, looking at her completely confused.

​"Why would I destroy something that took my whole life to build? I have worked on it since my childhood," Caroline said stubbornly, crossing her arms. "I’m sorry, but I am not planning on destroying my core."

​"But Mo—"

​BANG!

​"THAT IS NOT SOMETHING UP FOR DISCUSSION, SO SHUT UP!" Caroline yelled. She slammed her hands hard on the wooden table, making the inkwells rattle. She clearly did not want the conversation to continue anymore.

​"I understand," Ian said quietly. He stared at his mother, who immediately went back to writing something down with a deeply serious and angry expression. Ian also just went back to his own paperwork and continued to write, although the atmosphere in the room had become incredibly thick and awkward.

​’I shouldn’t have pressured her that much,’ Ian thought, feeling a sting of guilt. ’I don’t even know what she had to go through for her to reach the Second Stage. For me, I am just lucky I got a cheat system. That is the only reason I am getting this strong. I should apologize to her.’

​"Mo—" Ian started, about to apologize.

​Knock, knock.

​"Who is it?" Caroline asked, looking up from her papers.

​"It’s me, Mom," Emma’s soft voice came from outside the door. "There is a man named Vincent who came bearing a letter with the Family’s insignia. So, he must be from the Main House."

​"Where is he now?" Caroline said, quickly standing up from her chair.

​"I left him downsta—"

​"There is no need for that, little miss. I’m kinda already here," a deep, rough voice interrupted. "I know my way around the estate."

​The heavy office door pushed open, and a tall man stepped right past Emma and into the study room.

​"Thank you, Emma. You can leave us now," Caroline said to Emma. The young girl nodded nervously and left, quickly closing the door behind her.

​Ian just sat in his chair and stared at the armored man in front of him. The man had a long, sharp sword resting on his waist. Feeling Ian staring at him, Vincent stared right back. But as their eyes met, Vincent suddenly unleashed a wave of heavy killing intent directly at Ian.

​’What the hell is with this killing intent?!’ Ian’s eyes widened in sheer terror. ’Every single part of my body is screaming that I will die if I make even a sudden move! Even my peak Skin Cultivation feels weak against this. No, it is completely useless! Just what kind of power is this that I can even see the color of the intent? It’s bloody red! Just how many people have died by this guy’s hands?’

​Ian’s hands were shaking violently against the desk. He started gritting his teeth so hard his jaw ached, using every ounce of his willpower just to endure the crushing pressure.

​Vincent watched the boy struggle, his eyes narrowing slightly. ’Mmmmm, he is still holding on. The kid has some insane mental power to stay stable for this long. I guess God really can’t give you everything, huh? He gives this kid a strong mental fortitude, but absolutely no talent for Aura or even Mana. If he had even a drop of talent for Aura, reaching the Seventh Stage would have been a breeze for him with that kind of mental potential.’

​"I think that’s enough, Vincent," Caroline said sharply, giving Vincent a deeply upset look. "Have you had your fun yet? Let’s get back to business as to why you came here."

​"Serious as always," Vincent chuckled softly. "You are lucky, kid. I wanted to see more from you."

​Vincent finally retracted his killing intent back into his body. The second the heavy pressure vanished, Ian slumped forward. He started breathing incredibly fast and loudly, panting as if he had just finished running a massive marathon. His back was completely drenched in cold sweat.

​Just after retracting his aura, Vincent stepped forward and handed Caroline two sealed letters for her to read.

​As she opened them, Vincent’s sharp gaze returned to Ian.

​"I’m kinda surprised, you know. I didn’t think there would be another kid in this family who could keep up with that much bloodlust just after being tested by me in this younger generation of yours," Vincent said, looking at Ian, who was still panting heavily. Caroline was fully concentrating on reading the letters and didn’t even mind the conversation the two men were having.

​"That other kid, I can understand," Vincent continued, crossing his arms. "He had dark circles under his eyes, a broken arm, and a few nasty bruises everywhere. I really felt pity for him. But the resolve shining in that kid’s eyes made him scary. While you stopped going to the academy, that kid keeps on persisting. He keeps going back to that awful academy and getting all ruffled up. Some may call it guts, but to me, it’s just mere stupidity." Vincent sighed, pulling out a free chair and casually sitting down.

​’He must be talking about the Trillah Academy,’ Ian thought seriously, slowly catching his breath. ’It is the only academy in the kingdom that teaches children from noble houses, along with talented magic users and talented Aura users. Top aura users who manage to graduate from that academy is practically bound to become a Sixth Stage powerhouse in the future. The reason the previous Ian dropped out of that school was because he couldn’t take the pressure. He was constantly ridiculed and bullied by the students, and even the teachers. What was the point of even staying there? He had no talent for mana or aura, and making friends with other snobby noble kids was the worst. So, it was better to just stay home. Emma and Emily are almost at the age of going. I need to convince them not to go there.’

​"Sir, who is going to that academy?" Ian asked, keeping his voice as steady as possible. "Since the Family Head’s son can’t go because of his specific issue, and the others are below the required age, who is left?"

​"It was your Aunty’s son. What was his name again? Ah, yes, Isaac. How could I forget? That kid left a deep impression on me," Vincent said, rubbing his chin as he thought about it.

​’Isaac...’ Ian quickly searched through the original body’s memories. ’That kid used to be so quiet when we were kids playing at the Main House. He would just follow me and the others around without saying a single word. Nobody ever knew what he was thinking, and he never started trouble with anybody. Come to think of it, I don’t think I have ever seen that kid smile before. Maybe he has some deep mental problems he is facing.’

​"But Isaac... isn’t he fourteen years old right now, just like Emma and Emily?" Ian asked with a lot of confusion. "How could he get into the academy early? It only accepts students that are at the age of fifteen and above."

​"How would I know that?" Vincent shrugged lazily. "Maybe his family has connections or something. It’s a noble school, after all. It’s bound to have some heavy corruption behind the scenes."

​"I guess you are right about that, Mr.. Mr... wait, I don’t even know your name," Ian said, realizing the man hadn’t properly introduced himself.

​"Oh, did I not say it?" The man stood up from his chair and gave a grand, mocking bow toward Ian. "My name is Vincent Balvern. I am the Chief Headguard of all the Thorne family estates, at your service, Young Master."

​"You better enjoy that bow, Ian, because it is the last one you will ever be receiving from that scumbag," Caroline said, not even looking up from her letter. "He only listens to the Family Head so our opinion doesn’t matter to him. Also, he is a Fifth-Stage Aura User—the only one in the entire family, and he costs a fortune to keep around."

’A Fifth-Stage stage aura user’ Ian thought looking straight at Vincent.