Chapter 228: Witch Contract

Cedric raised a brow, clearly surprised by the woman’s scepticism.

For a moment, he simply stared at Selene through the mask covering her face, as if trying to determine whether she was genuinely suspicious of him or simply being cautious.

But after a few seconds, a faint smile appeared on his lips.

"You are smart, Miss. I’ll give you that."

He nodded slightly before reaching toward one of the drawers beneath his desk.

With a click, it opened, and after searching through it for a few seconds, Cedric finally took something out.

A single sheet of paper.

At first glance, it looked completely ordinary, but the moment they laid their eyes on it...

Both Selene and Lucian slightly narrowed their eyes, while Leonardo’s eyes widened as he recognised what his grandfather had taken out.

"Grandfather, wha—"

"It’s fine, Leon..."

Cedric interrupted him in a serious tone, making Leonardo fall silent, though his brows remained furrowed as he stared at the strange parchment.

"This is a witch contract, if that is what both of you’re wondering," he answered, seeing the confusion on the lad’s face.

"Oh...?"

Lucian raised a curious brow, and almost instantly, a translucent screen flickered into existence before his eyes.

[Lesser Contract]

Rank: C Rank

Rarity: Uncommon

Description:

A basic magical contract—created by the Witch of Oaths—that binds two or more parties to an agreed set of conditions. Once accepted, it establishes a magical connection between the participants and records the contract within its magic.

Violating its conditions triggers the punishment established within the contract.

[Note: Its binding strength and punishment are limited compared to higher-ranked contracts.]

Selene’s brows furrowed slightly.

She knew what this was... she had read about witches before, as well as their bizarre inventions.

But...

This wasn’t exactly what she had asked for.

She had merely wanted some assurance that the Association wouldn’t suddenly turn against them after they left.

A normal agreement would have been enough, though perhaps using a magical contract was better, even if it seemed like a bit much.

Cedric noticed the change in her expression.

"I know this might seem like too much," he said calmly, his gaze shifting between the two of them. "But just know that I want us to be on better terms rather than become enemies."

There was no joking tone in his voice.

He was being completely serious.

"Why do you think we’ll be after you?"

Hearing Lucian’s question, Cedric slightly shook his head, a complicated look appearing in his eyes.

"You don’t know how many people want to be in my position. If not for my experience... I would’ve been replaced long ago."

Lucian tilted his head but said nothing.

He understood the general meaning, but he wasn’t particularly interested in the politics behind it.

To him, all of this was far too complicated, and he had no intention of ever involving himself in it.

He was someone who would rather let his blade speak for him than waste his time on words.

Perhaps Valentina’s way of thinking was rubbing off on him too much.

Cedric, unbothered by the lack of response, placed the contract flat on the desk. Picking up a pen, he began writing, the sound of scribbling filling the office for several minutes.

After some time, he finally looked up before pushing the paper across the desk.

"Check it, and tell me if there’s anything you want changed."

Lucian silently pulled it toward himself.

Selene leaned closer as well, and the two of them began reading through it quietly.

[Witch’s Contract — Mutual Non-Aggression]

Parties: Lucian Foster, Selene Frost & Cedric Grant, Leonardo Grant.

Duration: Until the agreement is formally dissolved.

Conditions:

– Neither party shall intentionally harm, assassinate, imprison, or betray the other.

– The Director—Cedric Ashwood—will make sure to hide Lucian Foster’s real strength from the others unless absolutely necessary and if he doesn’t have any other choice.

– Lucian Foster and those acting directly under his authority shall not intentionally harm the Director or recognised main members of the Association.

– Both parties may request assistance from the other during a crisis, but neither is obligated to accept.

– The Director and recognised main members of the Association shall not intentionally harm Lucian Foster or those directly under his protection.

– Adventurers and unaffiliated individuals are excluded from this agreement.

Violation:

– Deliberate violations shall trigger Contractual Backlash, with the severity determined by the Witch’s Contract.

– Accidental harm and legitimate self-defence shall not be considered violations.

— — —

As Lucian read more and more of the contract, his brows furrowed further.

Not just because of the conditions, but because of the backlash that would be caused by violating them...

’Isn’t this just caging me?’

The thought briefly crossed his mind, and a flicker of irritation surfaced within him.

It felt as if the Director was trying to control him, even though he knew that wasn’t actually the case.

Still, being bound by a magical contract wasn’t something he particularly liked.

Lucian’s eyes glowed faintly, his blood-red irises fixed on the contract before him as something darker surfaced within him... instinctively making him want to tear it apart.

Meanwhile, Selene carefully read through the contract before briefly glancing toward the Director.

’Why does it feel like... he’s afraid of my son?’

She had begun noticing it after his match with Leonardo.

The Director was being careful... too careful.

She tilted her head slightly, but as she looked back at the contract, her eyes narrowed faintly.

’No... it’s not because of my son.’

Her thoughts shifted.

’He thinks there’s someone behind Lucian. Someone of great standing... someone we’re working under.’

That was the most likely explanation she could come up with.

And after remembering how Cedric had asked about Seren, she became even more certain...

The old man was having a massive misunderstanding, believing that Lucian belonged to some great ancient family—one that he couldn’t afford to ignore and therefore had to treat with caution.

And somehow...

It seemed like Lucian was the one who had unintentionally started it.

From the moment he had entered the Association Building, he had displayed an unnatural confidence that simply didn’t fit someone who had only recently awakened.

But the truth was...

Even Lucian hadn’t expected that misunderstanding to escalate this far.

After reading through everything, a long moment of silence fell as Lucian and Selene looked at each other.

Cedric quietly watched them, not rushing them, knowing that this was an important decision.

Lucian eventually lifted his eyes from the parchment, biting his lip slightly as he fought against that instinctive, destructive urge.

"What do you think?" he asked in a low voice.

His mother was far more versed in these political matters because of her past, so if there was anything wrong with the contract, she would probably notice it before he did.

Selene remained quiet, wondering if there were any obvious loopholes that could potentially be used against them.

After a few seconds of thought, she finally spoke.

"I want to add another condition."

Cedric complied, and as he saw the added condition appear on the parchment, one of his brows rose slightly.

’She really seems to know a bit about these things.’

The added condition was simple.

– If either party deliberately committed any harmful act against the other, the contract would immediately become void.

Selene reread the condition once more before finally giving a quiet nod.

"We’ll sign it."

Cedric’s expression relaxed slightly, and a faint smile appeared on his lips as he felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

Lucian and Selene signed the parchment before handing it to Cedric, who did the same.

Cedric then glanced toward his grandson, who looked slightly hesitant before finally letting out a quiet sigh, picking up the pen and signing his name as well.

The moment his pen left the paper—

The entire contract began to glow faintly.

A strange blue wisp of light spread across the surface of the parchment, flowing through the written words like veins carrying mana.

And in the next moment—

A faint, barely visible strand of that mana shot toward each of them before entering their bodies.

Lucian felt something inside him rage at the very thought of being bound by the contract.

It felt as though invisible shackles had suddenly been placed around his very existence, making him grit his teeth.

Then, the moment the contract’s mana reached his heart—

[Ding~!]

[A Mutual Non-Aggression Contract has been esta—]

[Error!]

[Error!]

Lucian raised a brow, surprised by the sudden change, both on the screen and within his body.

’What happened?’ he asked internally.

But before he could understand anything—

[Ding~!]

Another screen distorted before his eyes, its words flickering for a brief moment before finally reforming.

[The contract has been rejected because of the title: Loved by ######.]

[Lesser Contract Rejected!]

[Note: No contract—of any type—will ever be imposed upon you unless ###### or you, the host, wish for it.]

For a moment, Lucian simply stared at the screen before him, his mind going blank.

"How...?"

The word almost escaped his mouth.

Cedric immediately noticed his strange reaction.

"What is it?"

His brows narrowed slightly.

"Do you want to change something else?"

There was no way he was changing the contract at this last moment, especially not when one of them had already been used.

They weren’t cheap, you know?!

Lucian’s gaze shifted toward him.

"It’s nothing," he replied calmly, though his eyes drifted back toward the notification.

First, he was surprised by the unknown being that had interfered, even though it had ultimately worked in his favour.

He was even more surprised to learn that he could now refuse any contract unless he willingly accepted it. And then there was the fact that this mysterious being... seemed to be helping him for some strange reason.

Almost as if...

They could read his mind.

Or perhaps they already knew enough about his personality to predict exactly what he would think or do.

Before he could dwell on it any further, Cedric spoke.

"I’ll show your talent as A Rank..."

Lucian’s attention immediately snapped toward the old man, though his mind still hadn’t completely moved away from the mysterious entity.

Cedric placed the contract aside, seemingly unaware of the chaos unfolding inside the lad’s head.

"Your talent," he repeated. "I’ll register it as A Rank."

Lucian stared at him with a distant look.

"...Is that alright? I cannot decrease it too much, since sooner or later, people will start becoming suspicious of your potential."

"A Rank..." Lucian muttered.

For a moment, he couldn’t help but feel ridiculous.

’What was even the point of that new Unique Skill? If he was going to lower it anyway, I might as well have shown him my real talent.’

It almost felt as though all that caution hadn’t even been necessary.

[I don’t think you should think like that.]

Akasha’s voice immediately entered his mind, understanding what he was thinking.

[If you had shown your talent as SSS Rank, much less revealed your Transcendental Talent... then I doubt the Director would have been this favourable toward you.]

Lucian frowned inwardly.

’Why? Isn’t it just a difference of one or two ranks?’

[It’s the difference between Earth and Jupiter... and there are fewer than five known SSS Rank Talents on Earth.]

’...Oh.’

[What do you think now...?]

Lucian remained silent for a moment.

Then...

’I’m... special?’

[Ara~ No, dear. You are more than special...]

Lucian felt a shiver run down his spine at the sudden seductiveness in her tone. He couldn’t understand how she had shifted her voice so quickly.

[You... you... are unlike anything in this—]

Her voice suddenly cut off.

Completely.

’...?’

Lucian was slightly confused and had no idea what had just happened.

After a brief moment, he decided to shift his attention back toward the Director, while trying to ignore the strange churning sensation inside his chest.

Cedric explained a few more things, and the three of them even discussed several other important matters.

After another few minutes of conversation...

It was finally time to leave the Association Building.

And, more importantly...

It was time to get the registration IDs they had originally come here for.