Chapter 110: The Meeting of the Extended Families 2

What was the main reason Julian’s presence was even acknowledged, enough to attend this gathering between the great families?

At first, not many believed in Julian’s reputation. Even to the great families, it all felt like some staged setup orchestrated by the Zoldia family.

Julian did seem unique to them, like how he never showed any emotion on his face, how the man barely spoke, and how he turned out to have a disciple with truly extraordinary talent.

But again, that wasn’t enough.

It was only when it happened. When the fact came to light that Cessel Mivelo had tried to kill Julian, and ultimately received such a brutal response, with the heads of those hired assassins hung up on display.

Sure, that might not have been enough either. And indeed, the families in the elite region, or people within Central, struggled to find the cause behind it.

But the great families were different. They managed to obtain relevant information and connect every thread behind the scenes.

Recently, it came to light that there was an enormous information network called White Gloves.

That network was so massive it had families fighting each other, trying to forcibly seize control of that network’s leadership. Yet none of them succeeded.

Not that it was impossible, but it was more like...

"If I can’t have it, then no one else can either."

That group exploited exactly that, and by the time the great families realized it, it was already too late. That group had become an enormous force.

So, what did that have to do with Julian?

It was a cult that had suddenly formed in secret and revealed itself on its own.

They worshipped a figure wearing White Gloves. At first, they were a group that never explained who or what they worshipped, but even though it remained publicly unrevealed, the great families, who had worked extremely hard on this matter, finally uncovered the figure in question following what happened to Cessel.

Didn’t that fit Julian perfectly?

This made them reassess Julian’s identity all over again.

And the final piece of decisive information finally arrived, stating that...

Aveela Misquila, the Crimson Spire herself, had apparently given her full backing to Julian. Which meant the man indirectly held the Association itself as his own.

The Association, the cult, and finally that massive information network, all of it fell under his influence. Trying to seize whatever this man was quietly building behind the scenes could pose a dangerous risk, leading them all to the conclusion that they needed to be extremely careful with Julian.

That was exactly why Julian’s decisions could carry significant weight for humanity even now.

It also explained the reason behind Lurker’s excessively respectful and polite behavior. None of it was a setup, which was exactly the conclusion the great families had reached.

And now, with all that in mind, many from the great families regarded Julian as a genuinely unhinged man, since, of all things, he’d gone and built a cult for himself.

’What exactly are they looking at?’

Meanwhile, the figure in question stood there awkwardly, wondering if something was wrong with his appearance.

’....’

Of course, that wasn’t it at all.

Julian’s presence was clearly something that made all of them curious. Julian felt a bit confused, but as soon as his gaze met Lurker’s, who sat there pointing toward the empty seat across from him.

Julian didn’t hesitate, ignoring all those awkward stares and moving to take his seat.

But before that, halfway there, Julian stopped because someone spoke up.

"Excuse me... Lord Julian."

"...Yes?"

Julian glanced over slightly, and immediately spotted a man who looked similar to Cessel. The only difference was that this man was considerably older and more mature-looking.

’His smile looks far more infuriating than Cessel’s.’

That person had to be the Mivelo family’s representative. Julian immediately recognized it, because he remembered that his cowardly self had genuinely disliked that particular smile, something that seemed to come naturally from the Mivelo family.

And, if Julian remembered correctly, that man was Cessel’s older brother, the rightful heir, someone who could genuinely stand on par with Lurker currently.

Carlos Mivelo, a Rank-B Hunter of the great Mivelo family.

"I’ve heard a great deal. You’ve taken good care of my younger brother. My apologies for the trouble he’s caused."

The man spoke, oddly enough, in a calm, professional tone. Like a head butler who was exceptionally skilled at his job.

Julian was even slightly surprised, but only for that moment before he started feeling a bit irritated hearing it.

’This guy... he must be really good at wordplay.’

Watching how each sentence was carefully crafted to make it seem like he genuinely felt guilty about what happened, it certainly seemed that way.

Except... it was obvious that it was all just a lie, Julian didn’t even feel like he had the energy to respond to it.

So he simply nodded, thought about it briefly, then gave a small smile.

"It’s fine. The Mivelo family should probably do a better job raising their children," After that, Julian paused, took a small breath, and added.

"...Kina’s never once done anything wrong, by the way."

Julian himself hadn’t expected a line like that to actually come out of his own mouth. In fact, he was so surprised his lips twitched with the urge to laugh.

Of course, Julian held it back, thanks to the innate skill from his Talent.

Strangely enough, it felt genuinely amusing once said aloud, especially watching Carlos’s reaction, suddenly frozen with a darkening smile on his face.

And...

"Pftt—!"

Someone nearly burst out laughing, clamping their mouth shut tight before anyone noticed. Carlos turned, his face growing even darker, trying to find out who had tried to laugh.

But everyone looked calm, not a single one spoke up. It was just that a few of them seemed to be staring very intently at the empty table in front of them while their shoulders... were shaking.

Carlos, meanwhile, caught Julian’s gaze as he clenched his fists tight, his entire body trembling with fury.

’...He’s really angry, huh?’

Julian just blinked, feeling nothing except a slight sense of amusement. He felt like teasing him more, but held himself back because right at that moment, the door opened once again.

The bell rang and revealed a man with a muscular build, broad shoulders, and a face covered in scars.

It was Killac Zoldia, the Rank-A Hunter of the great Zoldia family.

The room immediately fell silent again, the air dropping into a genuine chill. His presence alone was enough to silence everyone, even shifting the air itself just from his existence.

That was the kind of appearance and charisma Killac carried whenever it came to work.

At that moment, the man’s gaze swept across the room. Looking at everyone one by one, until finally meeting Julian’s empty, deeply dark eyes, revealing a certain swirling depth that even left Killac momentarily puzzled.

Then, with a small smile on his face, the man didn’t hesitate.

The Mana in his body exploded outward.