I Regressed to My Ruined Family Chapter 163

＃When I returned, my family was ruined (164)

I had secret contact with Duke Gerond. It seems that he is trying to transfer power to Prince Mileton through this sacrificial ritual. Currently, a report has been made to Prince Mileton….

Ethan looked at the letter quietly.

‘also. ‘It’s as I thought.’

Before I faced Duke Gerond and the Sword of the Heart, I thought he was simply someone who went crazy with power.

However, after facing trial, the evaluation changed a little.

It was true that he was a person who sought power.

But power was only one of his tools.

What is it a means to?

‘The revival of the family.’

Gerond’s purpose was simple.

To increase the power of the family and create a prestigious family like Ardan whose name will last forever.

That was the reason he ran all this time.

‘He wasn’t someone who valued his life.’

If he could preserve his family through his own death, he would do so. That’s how much he was a man crazy about his family.

Because I figured it out, I was able to guess how Gerond would move in the future.

The radicals have already been pushed out of the kingdom’s mainstream. Although it has enormous power, it is not enough to overturn the trend.

‘At best, all we can do is entrust ourselves to a religious order or a foreign country.’

Would that help the family’s revival?

It didn’t seem like it to Ethan.

In the end, they were just strangers.

As time passed, there was a high possibility of facing the worst situation. There was no way that an old noble like Gerond would not have guessed that fact.

If that happens, there is only one solution left.

‘To completely overcome the wall of transcendence.’

There was no way it was easy.

Ethan knew because enlightenment was already located in a higher realm than Gerond.

The wall of transcendence is not an area that can be overcome using so-called ‘tricks’.

If it were possible to overcome a wall by making sacrifices, then both dogs and cows would have already overcome the wall of transcendence.

In the end, the sacrificial ritual that Gerond was currently performing was not a means to overcome his own wall.

Perhaps it is a means of passing power to the next generation. The old duke was preparing his own closing ceremony. To preserve Lacian, pass it on to the next generation, and create opportunity.

‘It’s a milestone.’

In any case, Lacian was a family he could not take over. Until now, Ardan had not been a family that was greedy about expanding its territory.

Ardan’s loyalty to the kingdom.

‘This is a phrase that will continue to be used in the future.’

He was able to persuade the moderates, including the Duke, and continue the deal with the king’s forces.

That was because of Ardan’s strong cause.

If Ardan had been running only for his own ambition like a radical, he would not have been able to provide trust at a critical moment. The true benefit comes from a cause that can be asserted.

‘This is enough for now.’

Even the duchy is not yet complete. There was no need to be unreasonably greedy. For now, it was enough to improve Lacian’s constitution and create allies that would suit our wishes in the future.

Please do it according to your will.

Ethan wrote down a reply.

* * *

I was lost in thought for a while.

A decision was made in Mileton’s mind.

‘…If I have to do that, I have no choice but to do it.’

My father was not a person who could be persuaded by his words. Moreover, he now had vassals he trusted and followed. If you go to Gerond and try to stop the sacrificial ritual…

‘If you’re not careful, not only you but all those who follow you may suffer damage.’

His power was still weak.

If even this weak power is completely defeated before it can do anything, it will never be able to exert any influence on the family again.

‘This… is the right choice.’

Gerond probably did not make the decision to proceed with the sacrificial ritual with a light heart. If it were something that could be persuaded through words at best, I wouldn’t have even started it in the first place. It was okay to say that resolving things in a moderate way was no longer a good idea.

‘We don’t have much time.’

The Bone Marrow faction were people who could laugh off even their own death for the sake of the revival of their family.

The most important sacrifice is the sound of readiness. Since we are cooperating with Agiles, the materials will be ready in no time.

There wasn’t even time to think about it.

The hastily written letters began to be delivered to some of the family’s senior officials.

Soon after, a secret meeting was held. Mileton looked at the ministers and said.

“Does anyone know what is going on in the family right now?”

The eyes of the ministers wavered at those words. I knew that the family head had been meeting closely with the hardcore faction recently. However, I did not know exactly what the content was.

Alienation from power always makes us feel anxious. As Mileton’s serious tone was added to this, the awareness was slowly growing.

One of the retainers spoke, raising his hand cautiously.

“…Aren’t you in the process of collaborating with Aguiles in some way? “I heard that people from there have been visiting the main house recently, but…”

Mileton handed the documents to his vassals. The faces of the personnel who were examining the contents with puzzled expressions began to harden one by one.

“…is this really true?”

A sacrificial ritual on an enormous scale.

If this was true, the head of the family must have gone crazy. The Bone Marrow faction was the core power group in the family.

He would sacrifice all of them to elevate his own status!

Everyone trembled.

This was a problem even if I succeeded, and it was a problem even if I failed. It’s not for nothing that they say that the first time is difficult.

‘The reason the head of the family moved so secretly… was because of this?’

It was as if the light had been set on fire.

Mileton said after seeing the vassals.

“This is where the sacrificial ritual will take place. “We have already completed our investigation and found loopholes in consciousness.”

As he said, on the back of the document were written instructions on how to prevent the ritual.

“If this is true, His Excellency the Duke…!”

“We have to do it now.”

Sogaju answered with a cold look in her eyes. The retainers trembled at the sight. This was because Sogaju’s cold eyes resembled those of a duke.

“Everyone must keep this in mind. Whether this ritual fails or succeeds, the Duke’s family will decline. Your lives will not be safe either.”

“….”

That is correct.

This is an operation that even intends to use members of the hard-core faction, who are absolutely loyal to the head of the family, for ritual purposes. What if they were the ones who were left out of this incident?

‘As time passes….’

‘Life will become more dangerous.’

“I have already made up my mind. However, in order to proceed with this work, we need your help. “Can you help me?”

“…”

Rebelling against the head of the family.

It was something I had never thought of before.

But it was different now.

‘Sogaju has changed.’

Not only did he know what the head of the family was going to do through a surprisingly tight information network that was created when it was created, but he, who had never shown opposition to the duke since he was born, was about to draw his sword in earnest.

“All of this is for the survival of the family.”

“…How do you plan to move after stopping the matriarch?”

“We will have to cut out all the rotten parts and then develop the family. Although he may have to step back for a while, Lacian will be able to stand up once again. “I will make it like that.”

“…I will help Sogaju.”

The opinions of the ministers came together as one. This crazy ritual had to be stopped. This was especially true in situations where the blade could come back to them. Preparations for the rebellion were beginning in earnest. Two weeks passed quickly like that.

* * *

“Are you ready?”

“I don’t think there will be any problem in proceeding now.”

“What about milestones?”

“…If the matriarch moves, I think I’ll be able to see her today.”

He nodded at Marek’s words.

“Gather the people together.”

“…yes.”

That was the moment Marek turned around.

A calm voice came from behind.

“I’m sorry.”

The tone was the same as usual, but the meaning was different. Marek turned around and lowered his head.

“…No, Your Excellency.”

Because preparations had been made in advance, people gathered quickly. Gerond went with them to a location prepared in advance. One of the underground caves that exist in the duchy.

The warlocks who had come to support from Agiles were already gathered there. Perhaps because an important ceremony was being held, Count Volfar, Aguiles’ second-in-command, was visiting as a representative. Volfar, seeing Gerond, bowed his head politely.

“See you, His Excellency the Duke.”

“Are you ready?”

“The tuning of the magic circle has been completed. “If you just give me the order, I will get to work right away.”

“Let’s begin.”

“…yes.”

Volfar answered while swallowing his saliva.

‘I knew he was a cruel person, but…’

Looking at the people brought in today, I could almost feel that fact firsthand. Most of the people gathered here had no idea that they would be sacrificed.

At best, all I knew was that I was receiving ‘illegal procedures’ supported by Aguiles to increase my power.

‘…I guess that means they have been hiding this fact so thoroughly.’

Even though the Bone Marrow faction is known to be comprised of people who sacrifice everything for their family, there were only a few people who were so crazy about their family that they would willingly give up their lives. Only a very small number of people knew the truth.

The moment consciousness appears, it will become a sea of blood.

“…Proceed.”

Volfar and other warlocks gathered mana. The moment when dozens of reagents were sprinkled into a huge magic circle prepared in advance and mana was infused.

Ugh!

A magic circle made of blood was activated. The retainers who saw this trembled.

‘I heard it’s a magic of conversion prepared by Agiles.’

‘As expected from black magic, the color is strange.’

‘Can I gain strength now?’

It was then.

In an instant, the necks of nearly five people rose high into the sky.

The retainers gaped at the sight, which was so unrealistic.

The sight seen with the naked eye was so outrageous.

Before I knew it, the sword in the hand of the head of the family was cutting off the heads of the vassals. Each time that happened, the color of the blood gathered in the magic circle gradually became darker.

‘…I was tricked!’

Only then did the vassals realize one thing. The reason the retainers were gathered here was not for the purpose of the procedure.

rather.

‘…an offering?’

Materials for activating a magic circle.

It was clear that they had gathered together for him. What was even more frustrating was the fact that the head of the family was not the only one who started going on a rampage.

Count Marek, called the second-in-command of the family. Some of the key members of the Bone Marrow faction, including him, were cutting people’s throats with swords out.

‘I have to run away…!’

The thoughts didn’t last long. This is because the Transcendent is not a being so clumsy that it misses its prey.

A terrible massacre.

That sight was enough to make even a warlock who had been through many hardships frown slightly. Just like that, all the people in their 30s closed their eyes.

The only people left were five knights whose bodies were soaked in blood.

Volfar cautiously approached Gerond.

“…Power has gathered in the magic circle, His Excellency the Duke. Slowly accept the power…”

Before Volfar could finish his words.

Suddenly!

His head rose into the sky with an eerie sound.

‘…crazy!’

The warlocks were astonished.

Because they never even thought that they would kill themselves.

The magic circle had already absorbed the power and started to activate.

Even if they die, they will only be sacrificed and the magic will still work.

“Deal with it.”

“yes!”

They urgently began to use black magic, but there was no way they could do it in a situation where even dozens of vassals could not escape.

In less than a minute, nearly twenty warlocks were all wiped out. Gerond, who saw the powerfully vibrating magic circle, looked at the remaining knights. The knights were kneeling and stretching out their necks. These were not people who only superficially belonged to the hard-core sect, but people who were truly prepared to sacrifice their lives.

For Lacian to move forward, the key people who moved with him were bound to become obstacles. Gerond had already made up his mind a long time ago. For them, even saying sorry would be a luxury.

“I’ll see you again soon.”

“…For Lacian.”

Suddenly!

Marek’s throat was cut.

Next, the head of the 1st Knight Commander rose into the sky.

The two remaining knights also accepted death without hesitation. The magic circle that had absorbed the blood and flesh was vibrating as if it would explode at any moment.

Right then.

The sound of a sword fight rang out from outside the cave. The transcendental’s sensitive hearing did not miss the sound. As he concentrated his mind, a feeling of energy spread throughout the cave.

I could feel people approaching through the side road.

‘You’re here.’

The main character was climbing onto a huge play.