Suddenly, their presence vanished.

Julian’s eyes narrowed. One moment, he could sense the Duke and the captain clearly, then, in the next, everything went silent. It was as though a thick veil had been drawn over the platform, cutting off all traces of energy, sound, and presence.

He could no longer sense anything from within the hall.

Julian waited for exactly ten more minutes, making absolutely sure that the Duke and the captain had truly left and were not simply hiding behind the veil. Only after the full ten minutes had passed without any fluctuation in the barrier did he finally enter the hall.

The massive space was truly empty now.

Julian looked around for few moments before walking toward the raised platform. As he got closer, his brows furrowed in confusion.

There was not even the slightest hint of the Duke and the captain. It was as if they had never been there at all.

They must have used a powerful teleportation spell, he realized.

What confused Julian more was how the spell did not leave a single trace. Even the most advanced teleportation techniques (in this mortal realm) usually left behind faint ripples in the mana or a momentary distortion in space.

But here, nothing. The hall was pristine, as if the two men had simply vanished into thin air without any effort.

If his possible opponents had such powerful spells in their arsenal and Julian was not even able to sense a trace of it, then if they were to confront each other, Julian would undoubtedly be the one losing.

I have to train, he thought, his mind already shifting toward future preparations.

The gap between his current capabilities and the true powers at play in this world was becoming clearer with every passing day.

For a moment, he even thought of discarding Kraven’s body and using his real body from here on out. His original form carried the suppressed power of a peak Grand Mage, far beyond what this borrowed vessel could achieve. It would give him an immediate advantage in raw strength and control.

But he quickly ruled that out.

Though his real body had the power of a Grand Mage, it was still vulnerable. If it were killed by someone powerful enough, the consequences would be catastrophic. He would lose everything and did not even know if he would reincarnate like the previous time.

So, instead of using his real body, it would be wiser to continue using Kraven’s. Even if someone were to kill this body, it only contained twenty percent of Julian’s soul. He would still be alive in his original body, though injured.

Injured was millions of times better than death. He could recover, rebuild, and strike back with even greater fury.

Julian stopped at the base of the stairs leading up to the platform. He closed his eyes once more and extended his senses, searching for any remnant of the teleportation spell.

Nothing.

The veil was absolute. Whoever had cast it, whether the captain, the Duke, or some hidden protector - they were operating at a level that demanded respect.

**

In the silence of the afternoon, Julian sat alone in his room, surrounded by several ancient scrolls he had managed to obtain from the library earlier that day.

The light from the window cast long, golden beams across the wooden desk, illuminating the faded ink and ancient papers. He had spent the better part of an hour carefully unrolling and reading through the historical records of the Hermes Kingdom.

One thing stood out immediately.

There was no mention of any other kingdom besides Hermes, Apollo, Ares, and Hades. Not even a passing reference.

It was as if the entire history of the southern lands had been scrubbed clean, leaving only the four great kingdoms standing tall in the official narrative.

Something shady and fishy was definitely going on. They were removing the existence of "that" kingdom from history and erasing it so thoroughly that future generations would never even know it had existed.

knock knock

He was still lost in these thoughts when a soft knock came at the door.

"Kraven," came a familiar, elegant voice from the other side. "It is Louisa. May I enter?"

Julian’s lips curved into a faint smile. He had been expecting this. After the events in the grand hall, she would be even more restless.

"Come in," he called.

The door opened, and Louisa stepped inside. She was still wearing the elegant dress from the meeting, though she had added a light scarf over her shoulders. Her posture was straight and composed, but Julian could see the subtle tension in her shoulders and the way her fingers gripped the edge of the scarf a little too tightly.

click

She closed the door behind her with a soft click and turned to face him.

"Aunty," Julian said, his voice calm and slightly amused, "it’s a surprise to see you here."

Louisa smiled. She walked toward him slowly and as she approached, the subtle scent of her perfume drifted toward him, wrapping around the space between them like an unspoken invitation.

"Kraven," she replied casually, though her tone carried an undercurrent of something deeper. "What are you doing?"

Julian gestured toward the scrolls spread across the desk in front of him.

"Just learning," he said simply. "I have a few interesting topics to research about."

Louisa raised a brow, her expression shifting to one of mild curiosity as she stopped a short distance from the desk. She leaned slightly forward and her eyes fell over the scrolls. The movement caused the neckline of her dress to shift just enough to draw the eye and Julian’s did exactly that.

"Interesting topics?" she echoed. "What type of topic?"

Julian waved his hand lightly.

"Forget about that, Aunty,"

He paused for a moment, letting the silence stretch just long enough to make her shift her weight slightly.

Then he added, "What brings you here?"

She took a slow breath, choosing her words carefully.

"I wanted to speak with you privately," she said, her voice low enough that it would not carry beyond the door.