Chapter 588: Is He Strong?

"Wha..." Edward, Amalia, and Braden all gawked.

The old couple had heard some stories about Lucas from their son and daughter-in-law, praising him as a genius who had come up with all kinds of interesting inventions, but they had always assumed that was their children hyping up their prospective son-in-law.

After all, how much change and innovation could such a young boy really bring about in a small place like Redwood Town?

If what Farah was telling them was true, and everything going around them was a result of Lucas’ suggestions, the answer, apparently, was a lot.

As for Braden, his mind had simply gone blank when he heard this.

He knew he had a cousin named Eris, and he may have heard his mother say something about her having a close friend named Lucas, but that was all he knew about the latter.

Even over the course of the last 9 months or so, while traveling together with his grandparents, Lucas’ name had only come up a handful of times and always in the context of him being friends with Eris.

Braden had never thought much about Lucas, not because he was dismissive of him or anything, but simply because there was no reason for him to think about a boy he had never met before.

Now, however, it seemed that Lucas, like his little cousin, was actually a really big deal!

Farah chuckled at this reaction, finding it both amusing while at the same time perfectly understandable.

It took the Newton Family trio a few seconds to regain their senses and hurriedly catch up with their guide, at which point Amalia smiled warmly and mused, "If he’s really such an outstanding young man, then I’m looking forward to meeting him even more so than before."

"Is he strong?" Braden wondered curiously.

As far as Braden was concerned, while personal strength wasn’t everything in life, it was certainly the most important quality one could have.

Seeing Farah turn back to look at him, though, Braden realized he had just spoke his thoughts aloud and hurriedly bowed, "Forgive me, Senior Farah, I was just..."

"It’s alright," Farah waved off his apology, her eyes scanning the youth in front of her for a bit longer before bluntly stating, "If you and Lucas were to fight, I’d say your odds of winning would be 50/50. They might even be tilted a bit towards Lucas. I can’t say for certain because I’ve never seen you fight before."

"He’s 11, right?" Braden was stunned by this evaluation, maybe even a little offended as he felt underestimated; however, having just learned that Farah was a Spirit Initiate, he also didn’t dare to question her judgement.

"Well, you can spar with him when he gets back and see for yourself," Farah shrugged, "Just be warned, if you challenge him to a spar, Eris will also want to spar with you, and that will likely be quite painful."

"Really?" Edward tilted his head in a same way that Charles often did, "Eris only just turned 14, and the last we heard, she was only in the Fifth Step Body Tempering Realm."

"That was over a year ago, Dear," Amalia commented, though she too seemed a bit skeptical, "But Braden here is already 18 and he broke through to the Third Step Vein Opening Realm a couple months ago. Are you saying that Eris has already managed to catch up to him in so little time?"

Shaking her head, Farah answered casually, "Eris was on the verge of reaching the Vein Opening Realm when I left about a month ago, so I’m sure she’s broken through by now, but she seems to have inherited her great grandmother’s fighting instincts, so her actual combat capabilities are significantly higher than her Realm might suggest."

"How much so?" Braden asked immediately, not in a jealous tone, but rather in one that said he was genuinely curious.

Back in his hometown, there were very few kids around his age strong enough for him to train properly with, so hearing that his little cousin was a talented fighter got his blood pumping.

Seeing the telltale signs of a battle-junkie in this young man, something she was quite familiar with given her time in the Royal Legion, Farah decided to humour him, "If she has indeed broken through to the Vein Opening Realm, I’d say Eris is about as strong as an average Sixth or Seventh Step Vein Opening soldier from any of the kingdom’s regular armies."

With a sparkle of both admiration and eagerness in his eyes, Braden let out an impressed whistle and grinned, "I can’t wait to trade blows with her, then!"

*Whack*

"Ow!" Rubbing the back of his head, Braden turned to his left and asked pitifully, "What was that for, Grandma?"

With a slight huff of exasperation, Amalia complained, "You should greet and get to know your little cousin first before you think about challenging her to a fight!"

"Isn’t fighting someone the best way to get to know them?" Braden asked honestly.

Understanding that her grandson was being perfectly frank with this comment, Amalia felt a bit of a headache coming on as she sighed, "You’re going to need to learn some common sense if you ever plan on inheriting your father’s title."

"But I don’t want to become the next Baron," Braden grumbled under his breath, earning him another whack from his grandmother.

Seeing how Eris’ older cousin was acting right now, Farah thought to herself, They’ll probably get along just great.

"You mentioned that both Eris and Lucas were Disciples of the Marquess, yes?" Edward asked, seemingly trying to move the conversation along.

"En, that’s right," Farah nodded as she turned off the main path and headed down a slightly smaller walkway.

"Impressive," Edward smiled, feeling quite proud of his little granddaughter knowing she had caught the eye of such an impressive figure.

"Does the Marquess have any other True Disciples?" Amalia followed up.

"One more," Farah explained, "But she’s currently out on a mission, so you probably won’t get to meet her unless you plan on sticking around for a few months."

"Hmm... we don’t really have anything urgent to attend to, so we can probably stay for a little while, but several months might be a bit much," Edward mused, turning to his grandson and asking, "What about you, Braden? Are you feeling homesick yet?"

"Uh..." Braden hesitated to answer, feeling a bit conflicted.

Did he miss his home, his family, and his own bed?

Sure, he did, but although this trip had a very serious purpose behind it, it had also been the most fun Braden had ever had in his life, as well as the most freedom he had ever enjoyed.

If he was being honest, he was actually a little bit sad thinking about how it was all be over now and he had to return home.

That, however, wasn’t exactly something he should be saying out loud.

Fortunately, the three adults around him understood just how appealing the idea of traveling around the country was for a young man like Braden, so they just gave him warm smiles before continuing down the pathway.

Soon, the group of 4 arrived at a massive, luxurious looking residence that looked like 50 people could sleep inside without it feeling the slightest bit cramped.

Stopping in front of the familiar building, which now had a plaque above its entryway with the words ’Disciples House’ written on it, Farah announced, "We’re here."