Chapter 4

Chapter 2: Days at Storm Castle (3)

“I don’t really know much about it.”

Jin answered calmly.

“You don’t?”

Shiron slightly raised his head. He had not expected the youngest to say he didn’t know, after speaking so clearly up until now.

“Yes, Father. This power is not aura; I don’t know what to call it.”

However, this was a calculated move. Just like a moment ago, he had deliberately acted innocent.

Whoosh.

A sound of flames rising, and a dark energy formed in the palm of Jin’s hand. It was the same power he used to beat up the Tona brothers.

The power of the Shadow God, Soldaret, obtained through a contract, known as spirit power. Although he said he didn’t know, Jin understood this power better than anyone.

And so did his father, Shiron.

“Would it be alright if Father gave it a name?”

Jin asked with bright eyes.

Shiron, who had become a Demigod Knight and reached the Creation Knight stage... for the first time, he was speechless.

‘Soldaret...’

Shiron, who had been staring at Jin’s hand, swallowed hard.

Could this child really be the reincarnation of the first patriarch? Such a sentimental question flashed through Shiron’s mind.

Soldaret. The God of Shadows. A being that all mages in the world yearn for.

But Shiron and Jin knew the truth.

Soldaret was closer to a God of Swords than a mage. Additionally, 1000 years ago, he had contracted with the first patriarch to protect Runcandel.

‘After the first patriarch passed away, I thought Soldaret had abandoned Runcandel. It seems he has shown interest in the youngest.’

Is this a signal for Runcandel to leap forward and flourish again?

Or is it just a capricious act from a God who once left?

Staring at the shadowy mass in the youngest son’s small hand, Shiron fell into deep thought.

‘He definitely hasn’t made a contract yet. If it were a power from a contract, the youngest wouldn’t be unaware of it.’

Jin could see through Shiron’s thoughts clearly.

The situation was so perfectly aligned with his expectations that it was almost unsettling. He had anticipated that a crisis born from suspicion would eventually come, but seven years old was indeed a good age to feign innocence.

“Youngest.”

Shiron organized his thoughts.

“Yes, Father.”

“This is the power of the God Soldaret. I cannot name it. He is one of our family’s long-held secrets.”

“Soldaret...”

“The one who casts shadows over the world. Even if you are clever, it might be difficult for you to understand.”

“He is...”

As Jin was about to ask, Shiron nodded.

“Is the God Soldaret stronger than Father?”

“Ha ha.”

Shiron let out a hollow laugh, as if admitting defeat. After becoming a Demigod, he rarely had reason to laugh like this.

A ripple ran through Shiron’s solid inner self, built through years of training and dedication.

“Well... I wouldn’t dare to challenge a God, so I don’t know.”

A truly arrogant answer, not knowing because he hasn’t tried.

But the one who said it was none other than Shiron Runcandel. Jin shuddered at his father’s response.

Indeed, the strongest on earth.

The patriarch of the Jip family, Kelliac Jip, couldn’t stand up to this man.

Shiron bared his teeth in a smile.

“Youngest. I feel I made the right decision to come see you today. Your innocent question has given me a new, significant challenge. Thank you. Come closer.”

Can you win against a God? Shiron expressed it as a challenge.

As Jin moved closer, Shiron stroked his head. Jin still had the swirling spirit power on his palm.

“How do you want to use this power?”

“I want to use it for the family, Father.”

For myself.

There was no need to confess this honestly. In his previous life, Jin had only faced disdain and contempt from the family.

He hadn’t experienced the warmth of family since he was seven. There was no longer any resolve in Jin to dedicate himself to the family.

Unless he became the patriarch one day, surpassing his monstrous brothers.

“Hahaha!”

Shiron suddenly burst into laughter. The loud sound caused a small tremor throughout Storm Castle.

His children, waiting outside, were startled. They hadn’t seen their father laugh so heartily in recent years.

After a long laugh, Shiron wiped the expression from his face and leaned close to Jin.

“What an interesting lie. You can be a bit more honest with this father.”

This was an unexpected situation. But Jin suppressed his surprise and spoke.

“For me.”

“I want to use it for myself.”

“Yes. You’ve knocked out and abandoned your brothers in the rain, so it’s clear that your claim to use it for the family is a lie. I will keep an eye on you from now on.”

Shiron passed by Jin and left the central hall. After his father’s footsteps faded away, Jin felt cold sweat running down his back.

It was a sweat of relief.

“Phew!”

Jin exhaled deeply and pulled off his sweat-soaked clothes. Reflecting on his 28 years of life in his previous incarnation, he had never faced his father so boldly.

‘Done, I did it!’

As the relief subsided, his heart was pounding.

Through today’s conversation, Jin gained the freedom to use Soldaret’s power and instilled hope in his father.

‘In my previous life, I died shortly after making the contract, and I never imagined my father would have any expectations of me.’

Even after being expelled from the family, he couldn’t use Soldaret’s power freely.

Runcandel never allowed those who left the family to wield power.

That’s why he was hiding and training in the Kingdom of Akin. Akin was a nation under the influence of Jip, part of the Lutero Magic Federation, and Jin was a mage at the time.

The family’s long-held secret, the contract between the first patriarch and Soldaret.

He already knew this in his previous life. Shiron only referred to it as a ‘long-held secret,’ but Jin knew the details better than Shiron.

After the contract, he heard it directly from Soldaret. It was natural that they conversed like friends for a while.

‘But he never explained why he left Runcandel and became a God of Mages, even when I was about to die.’

And now, with Jin’s regression, Soldaret remains silent.

Jin wonders if his regression is a phenomenon caused by Soldaret’s power, but it’s just a guess.

He first realized that the power obtained through the contract was still effective when he was one year old.

Right after choosing Barisada in ‘The Choice.’

That night, a curse from a 9th Circle Mage, ‘Mist of the Nail,’ fell upon the cradle where Jin lay. The same event repeated in both his previous and current lives.

[Contractor, it seems you were hated by someone when you were very young. You couldn’t draw out your power due to a minor curse. Perhaps that’s why I was drawn to you.]

This was what Soldaret said to Jin right after the contract.

Jin recalled these words as he watched the crimson curse marks slowly climb up his cradle. His mind was clear, but his one-year-old body couldn’t block the curse.

Feeling helpless in his weak, young body, unable to resist or call for help as the curse approached.

Suddenly, Soldaret’s power manifested.

The curse marks didn’t touch Jin’s body; they seeped into his shadow and disappeared.

Curses don’t affect the contractor of Soldaret. In the words of his previous life’s magic teacher, it was an ‘excessively unfair’ effect.

‘Just wait a little longer. I will definitely find out who cursed you and kill them.’

The ability to manipulate shadows, the magical knowledge accumulated in his previous life, and the sword skills he began to master late in life were vividly present.

His future would be completely different from the time when he lost his talent due to the curse and was expelled from the family.

“Master.”

“Nanny Gilli.”

Turning around, Gilli was standing at the entrance of the central hall.

“The patriarch is leaving. Please say goodbye.”

“Okay, I understand.”

“But... are you alright?”

Gilli asked with a worried expression.

She asked because she had seen the Tona brothers return to their rooms with pale faces after meeting Shiron earlier.

“I’m fine. Are the older brothers and sisters all leaving too?”

“Yes. They came to accompany the patriarch. And Miss Mary left a gift for you.”

“I’ll open the gift from my sister later. Let’s go see Father off first.”

The over a hundred guardian knights and Runcandel’s leaders.

Shiron began to leave Storm Castle. Once they left, the castle would soon return to its desolate and empty state, and Jin could enjoy a peaceful time without worrying about the Tona brothers.

A quiet time of growth, unknown to anyone.

“Honor!”

“Honor!”

The guardian knights saluted Shiron as he left Storm Castle. Jin and the Tona brothers stood beside them, bowing their heads.

‘The next time I see Father will be at the main house, not Storm Castle.’

Shiron returned to the Black Sea.

The people who had hoped for a conflict between Runcandel and Jip were disappointed, and the Runcandel leaders and guardian knights returned to their posts.

Shiron did not visit here again until Jin left Storm Castle. Instead, the guardian knight Kan occasionally visited the Black Sea to update Shiron on Jin’s status.

‘Even Sister Mary isn’t in her right mind. I’m still seven years old... Hahaha. To get this like this!’

Jin thought as he returned to his room and opened the gift from his third sister, Mary. Gilli, who had seen the gift, turned pale and covered her eyes.

The gift Mary left was the heart of a Jip family summon, which she had recently killed in the southern continent.

The heart of a phoenix, a precious gift he had never received in his previous life.

It meant to wish for his health and growth.