Chapter 73: The Curse of Love [1]

By the terms of the contract, Darian StarHold must father a son before the age of twenty and marry Pirren's granddaughter, who turned six this year.

Pirren's granddaughter and Gilbert's daughter would bear a son for the StarHold family, but he would carry the Morningstar name and be the heir to the MorningStar Sword Art.

Once Darian agreed to these terms, it was quickly decided he would become the heir to this martial art. Seven months had passed since he became Pirren Morningstar's disciple, and he had already mastered the first step of the MorningStar Sword Art.

"Nothing..." Pirren sighed and sat back down, feeling somewhat agitated upon discovering the truth of his son's death.

'So he was alive in the east all this time...' he brooded deeply.

He had heard about the fleet Ceasar SunHold sent to the Puppets Society Island and considered going with them for a moment. But there was no point in doing so… He was at least aware of this.

He still needed to guide Darian during this critical period and prepare him well for the upcoming war. And even if he wanted to go collect Gilbert's remains, he knew well that after using that skill, there would be no remains.

If he went there, he might find nothing, just some lingering scent as evidence of a star's demise…

He had died in a bad way... but he was a hero in the end, and he certainly contributed greatly to liberating humanity.

Thus Pirren consoled himself and decided to focus on what he found more important.

"How far have you mastered the second step?" Pirren asked.

Darian quickly responded in a tone filled only with seriousness and determination: "13%."

"In just a month and a half, it seems you barely sleep at night." Pirren laughed lightly upon hearing that.

For him as a teacher, there was nothing better than having a diligent and smart disciple. He made things so easy for him by understanding everything at first glance.

"Show me your skills," he commanded.

Darian grasped the short sword that always rested on his back and quickly stood up.

The scabbard was white, as was the short but sharp blade, and the black hilt created a sharp but beautiful contrast.

The hilt was wrapped in black fabric cords to prevent slipping during long battles. Darian kept the scabbard fixed on his back and held the blade with one hand.

"The MorningStar Sword is a light martial art and often requires only one hand." Pirren didn't forget to give his instructions while watching.

"Show me the first 60 moves of the first level," he commanded swiftly, as if he were saying something ordinary.

If anyone else had heard him say those words, they would have at least opened their mouth in astonishment.

MorningStar Sword, first step: 60 consecutive moves.

Here was displayed the difference between heavy martial arts like the Commandment of Sloth and light ones like the MorningStar Sword.

While the Commandment of Sloth provided mental fortitude and resistance to attacks of all kinds, it only granted a single straightforward move for the first step.

On the other hand, the MorningStar Sword, which focused solely on offensive power, granted 60 moves at the first level.

Darian relaxed his body and took a deep breath, then moved harmoniously with the wind around him. Although he was only at rank C+, his movements were enough to make those at rank A- feel ashamed.

He didn't just use the most intricate forms of mana to assist him, but also partially utilized his beast form to enhance his movement. As long as he didn't fully transform, his teacher had no objections.

A quick lateral cut followed by a swift low-side lunge, then another semi-circular slash that could cut the enemy in half.

An immediate circular movement to unbalance the opponent if they blocked or dodged the sword, then pushing the blade behind the user's back through the armpit, stabbing the target in the back.

Before the opponent could react, a severe overhead strike would cut them in half again.

...

...

At the fifteenth move, Darian's eyes began to turn yellow, and the surrounding atmosphere became somewhat hot.

Sweat droplets flowed from his forehead, but he didn't stop. This heat was accumulating slowly for a specific move.

A slash from the right, just missing the opponent's head by a hair, only to return from the left immediately.

The user drops to their knees, cutting the opponent's legs entirely.

...

..

The twentieth move...

All the accumulated heat gathered at the edge of the white blade, while the room and surrounding areas became completely cold. Every twenty moves, an encounterable main attack occurred.

Like the one Elara used to cut off the leg of the war machine (mimicking Gilbert). And like that time when Gilbert pierced Sebastian's shoulder.

This time, Pirren appeared in front of Darian and stopped the blade in a distinctive way.

He gently placed his palm under Darian's wrist, which held the sword, and absorbed all the heat into his body. Then, with his other palm, he released hot steam and some red flames.

"Twenty moves are enough; you've mastered them completely." Pirren smiled as he looked at Darian's tired face.

Choosing the King of StarHold as the heir to his martial art was not a mistake!

***

=+=

"How will we handle it?" I asked in one of the empty meeting rooms.

After the doctor finished using his healing skill on my face, he placed some temporary bandages for a day, and then we left.

Currently, I sat with Killian and Alfred in the room. The latter seemed somewhat enthusiastic.

As for Killian, he was as worried as always. It was clear he didn't want to get involved in royal family troubles after escaping from one.

"Should we review the family laws just to be safe?" Alfred asked hesitantly. Although he was elderly, he likely hadn't spent much time outside the palace.

He became my father's—Maximus StarHold's—personal servant in his youth and continued to serve for many years. After his master ended up in isolation, his services were passed down to me.

He's only an expert in keeping schedules, storing things, cooking, and driving… So in times like these, he wasn't particularly useful.

"You're a genius, Alfred," I quickly praised him, then grabbed the book he brought with him.

This book was written many years ago, concerning the inheritance systems of the four royal families.

StarHold, SunHold, NovaHold, and MoonHold—the latter had already lost their status as kings.

The inheritance laws were clear and straightforward:

1- Since a female cannot retain her family name after marriage, she cannot inherit the family.

2- The heir must be healthy in mind and body.

3- The heir must possess the family inheritance skill.

4- There must be a direct blood connection between the heir and the previous king.

5- The heir must be approved either by the previous ruler or the family council.

6- The eldest male child inherits the family.

7- An inheritance trial can be held if opinions differ.

Since opinions did indeed differ within the council, there was no solution other than engaging in an inheritance trial. I wasn't too worried about it since I had planned to use it to reclaim my throne from the beginning… Okay, I'm lying.

All the factors surrounding this trial are unstable. No matter what arguments or methods I use to win, there is no guarantee of success.

Everything depends on the opinions of the family elders, and I have only secured one in my favor, with another not guaranteed 100%.

"Where do I even start..." I muttered under my breath and took a deep breath.

First, I need to improve my relationships.

I had already ensured that Alios would vote for me, but as for Lionel and the others, I needed to win them over myself. It might seem that Lionel was already on my side, but that was far from the truth.

He should hint at his desire any time now… and I knew exactly what it was. He and his son Lucas wanted the legendary healing potion in the family's vault.

I looked at the ceiling with some boredom.

If I truly wanted Lionel on my side, I would have to sign a soul contract with him stating that if I became the family king, I would give him the potion immediately. And then I would have no way to heal Elara, which would ruin everything around this group that I didn't want to lose.

Killian, Daristan, Elara… all of them would become great warriors in the future. Losing any of them would only deal a severe blow to my overall strength against the Demon King.

So I had to choose… It was really difficult!

Option one: Daristan, Jin, Elara, and Killian.

Option two: Lionel and Lucas.

My choice? The third, of course.