CHAPTER 78: SANGUINE BOND

"Anyway, you don’t have to worry about me snitching about your power. Just be careful from now on."

After saying that, Velmara flapped his dense, feathered wings once, completely disappearing from Lucien’s vision.

"Hey, don’t go! Damn it... Why run off right after letting something slip and making someone curious?"

Lucien cursed after finding no one in the vicinity.

"Hope you won’t slip like this and tell someone about my power, too."

He mumbled when suddenly a voice entered his mind in response,

"Don’t worry, kid. As long as you didn’t tell Malcolm that I... spilled his secret here, I won’t tell him about you either. But... you really should go after that princess; she seemed interested, not gonna lie. Don’t be too dense now."

It was none other than Velmara who transmitted his voice to Lucien’s mind before once again disappearing right after. He didn’t forget to suggest conquering the princess, though.

"Tch... Think about yourself first."

Lucien was annoyed.

Whether Sera seemed interested or not had nothing to do with him. He already knew that girls were the cause of headaches. He didn’t want to get into such a quagmire again.

’Forget it, let’s think about the trouble of the Lionheart family first. Hope the system works the way I thought.’

He then shifted his focus to his plan, ready to inherit the Goldveil business within Edoria. Although he only got a portion of it for now, that was enough.

After all, his next plan for debt extraction was precisely going to be in the Edoria Kingdom.

***

At the heart of Bellenford Capital, right at the center of the Grand Market, stood the Goldveil Exchange, a broad, pale-stone building trimmed with deep-oiled hardwood.

Its walls were inlaid with gold, blue glass, and a faintly glowing array of lines that pulsed with protective runes and trade seals.

The structure stood tall, five stories high, its wide, arched windows catching sunlight from every angle. It looked magnificent from every side.

Only, unlike usual, the steady flow of merchants, envoys, and scribes was noticeably thinner today, probably due to the Lionheart family’s declaration of war.

Not to mention, rumors were already spreading outside that behind the Lionhearts stood the backing of Duke Castor.

The reduced traffic was expected, especially with several shops inside the tower already closed.

Unlike the stillness outside, though, the top floor of the Goldveil Exchange was anything but peaceful.

"Lord, this is too reckless."

"Yes, Lord. How can you do this? Isn’t this a joke?"

"Giving the entire control and assets to a young man who has only awakened recently. I think it will have a really bad impact on our business."

"Yeah, won’t people say the Goldveil family is scared and using their son as a shield?"

The top floor was like a vegetable market, as five middle-aged men in luxurious clothes tried to dissuade Cedric, who was sitting in the main chair.

After all, what he said was really absurd.

They thought the Goldveil family must have an important announcement to summon them so early in the morning.

From the news they got, their business chains and trade routes were already being attacked all over the Viremond Dukedom.

Funnily enough, their businesses were even being attacked in other duchies in the name of the Lionhearts. It was clearly someone trying to sabotage them from all directions.

In such a situation, letting a young man handle this mess, they really didn’t know what the hell the Goldveil family was thinking.

"Silence!"

Cedric suddenly shouted a little louder, causing all the members to stop, though their faces still didn’t look good.

"No need to argue. This is what Father has ordered."

Cedric knew these old guys might panic after hearing such a ridiculous thing. Even he didn’t think it was a good idea, let alone them.

So, he directly invoked his father’s name, causing all the chatter to stop immediately.

"Father said, now that Lucien has awakened his class, let him handle such things. Besides, this situation was clearly caused by him anyway, so let him solve it on his own."

"But Lord, won’t this cause a massive loss?"

One of the middle-aged men with glasses couldn’t help but ask, worried.

Once Cedric said it was the order of Malcolm, not a single one of them dared to argue.

After all, all five of them were bound by the Sanguine Bond, whose control rested entirely in Malcolm’s hands.

Although at other times they could enjoy their lives as one of the five pillars of the massive Goldveil Exchange trade in the Edoria Kingdom, when it came to Malcolm, they were nothing.

They could only express their thoughts, barely.

"Loss? What does that have to do with you?"

Cedric rolled his eyes at Gavien, making the man’s face darken.

"Okay, don’t think about these things. Even if my son loses all entire wealth, it is nothing."

He then added,

"Father has already said to give control of the Goldveil Exchange in the Edoira Kingdom to Lucien. He already signed the paper. Now, all you have to do is obey his orders and let him do whatever he wants, no questions asked."

Cedric suddenly looked coldly at the five figures, then warned:

"Don’t think I don’t know what you guys are doing behind my back, and what you’re actually trying to protect. Heh... as if you’re concerned about the loss the Goldveil family will face."

He scoffed, put his hands behind his back, and looked at each of them solemnly:

"Don’t forget who you all belong to. Just follow the order and do as told by the owner. Don’t argue too much."

There was a reason why the Goldveil family, despite being so small, owned a business that spanned three kingdoms.

If it were some other merchant family, they would have controlled such an organization by dividing the main positions and property between relatives they could trust.

But Malcolm didn’t have such a luxury. So, rather than doing it that way, he was extremely ruthless.

He found talented people with power in each kingdom, those without strong connections, and then directly tied them with his unique Sanguine Bond contract.

This was a soul-bound contract that could only be initiated under strict conditions and was carried through blood, binding the entire family.

It was ruthless and absolute, leaving almost no chance for betrayal. Of course, he didn’t force anyone, and Malcolm wasn’t too ruthless; he allowed those who were loyal to the family to earn incredible wealth and privileges.

Loyalty was rewarded just as fiercely as betrayal was punished. This was his way.

"Haha... Lord Cedric doesn’t need to warn us. We’re really sorry if we have offended you."

Sure enough, once they heard the warning, all five figures immediately began to lower their heads and step back slightly, their earlier arrogance vanishing like mist under sunlight.

"You misunderstood me. I wasn’t trying to defy your order, nor was I worried about the loss I might incur."

The middle-aged man wearing glasses immediately stepped forward and confessed sincerely.

"I only thought that Lucien might still be too young to grasp the intricacies of the world. If his decision led to the fall of the Goldveil family during such a precarious time, wouldn’t he carry that guilt forever?"

Gavien knew how to speak as his words carried just the right weight, making Cedric feel his concern was reasonable, even thoughtful.

"Of course, if this is Lord Malcolm’s will, then we have no objections. On the contrary, we will do everything in our power to support Lucien and help manage the business to the best of our abilities."

"Yeah, definitely."

"Yes, that’s exactly what we meant."

The remaining ones also echoed one after another, trying not to irk Cedric too much.

Honestly, they were just worried about the response from the outside.

After all, while Malcolm held the highest authority in his hands, that level of control didn’t extend to the lower circles of power, where influence was much more fragile and unpredictable.

If the small merchants and their connections below sensed that the Goldveil family was about to fall, even they would struggle to maintain control.

"Who said I will let my family fall?"