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Ethan watched as one by one the rich guests bestowed him with various extravagant gifts before leaving the hall as a small hill of minor prized treasures accumulated beside the stage on a mahogany table.

These gifts consisted of rare and finest fabrics, jewels, perfumes, silk, artifacts, swords, bows, and a lot more.

Ethan was wide-eyed seeing such extravagance as the guests wore flattering smiles looking at him as they presented their gifts, praised the arrangements of the banquet, and bid farewell.

They were all trying to curry favor with him. Ethan couldn't understand, and although his progress with the Ancestral Blessing was quite impressive, no one knew this truth.

Ethan 'allegedly' had a lot of potential to become powerful but right now there were practically no signs of that happening. Who knew if Ethan would truly live up to the expectations or not? Then why are all these people acting this way? Ethan thought.

As he did not come from an aristocratic world, Ethan was unaware of the tenacity and farsightedness of the high society.

These people would not mind risking some investment that would likely pay off. Even if Ethan were to not live up to the expectations, he was still the heir to a Dukedom, and not just any Dukedom.

Ethan threw this particular quandary at the back of his head and nonchalantly gazed at the mountain of gifts. He never believed in materialistic wealth as he was an intellectual by heart, but he was also a realist and knew that the world was run by wealth. So he was happy to receive all the extra wealth that he already had plans for.

Thus, of all the gifts, only three stood out from the rest. The first one was from Elder Aries of the Tower; he had given a supposedly special and extremely rare talisman but didn't tell what it was useful for.

Ethan could do nothing but sigh excessively thinking in his mind, 'Old Man, why are you being so enigmatic? Is this revenge because your artifact broke?'

He even tried to ask what it was useful for but the senile old man simply shrugged with a gentle smile and said, "You will know once you need it the most."

To such reasoning, Ethan could do nothing but express his gratitude.

The second gift that stood out was from The Royal Physician.

To Ethan's surprise, The Royal Physician had come as an envoy of the Royal Family and not as himself. Apparently, the Royal Court had gone into an uproar when they heard of Ethan's successful early awakening. A debate had been struck on the topic, some wished to exploit his potential while others feared that the White Family was rising too quickly. However, that's a story for another time.

This time, The Royal Physician had been dispatched by the King himself although informally and off the records.

Naturally, his gift was not anything small either. In fact, it was arguably one of the most useful and extravagant gifts he had ever received.

It was an egg.

Albaer was very happy when he saw this gift. He told Ethan that taming an extraordinary Beast wasn't easy and the best way to have a Beast serving you was to raise it and form a friendly bond with it.

Of course, there were also some immoral methods to tame a Beast but they had their own drawbacks.

Ethan had seen Hooch and he also longed for his own Tamed Beast but they were very rare to come by and thus Ethan had no choice but to give up.

But unexpectedly, The Royal Family had gifted him the egg of a Magical Beast. However, infected by Elder Aries's mysteriousness, The Royal Physician also became secretive, refusing to elaborate on which Magical Beast's egg he had gifted.

Regardless, Ethan was truly grateful and did not shy away from expressing it.

The third gift that he received was a high-quality war horse from the Tribal Lands. This horse was of the Veti Breed which was one of the best breeds of horses best known for stamina and intelligence.

This gift was given to him by the representative of The Kuber Merchant Company. Albaer was astounded by the capability of the company as procuring one of these horses was not an easy task.

Just like this, at the first phase of the night, the banquet was concluded on a good note.

Ethan bid Anicia good night as if he hadn't said anything embarrassing minutes ago. Anicia was flushed red as she wordlessly left with her parents.

Ethan's gaze unintentionally wandered onto Alier as an indescribable emotion spurted in his mind

According to his predictions, it was a perfect time for Alier to act. Ethan hoped that it would not come to that but at the same time, he also wanted to get rid of the thorn in his way once and for all.

Ethan wanted more freedom and mobility to make preparations as soon as possible and for that, some things were necessary.

'I once lived a carefree life doing whatever I wanted without restraint. All day I lazed about in the garden and on the roof without any worries… And now I am forced to scheme against my own family… Alas… I will die young if I don't adapt to this world,' Ethan thought to himself and sighed in exasperation.

He closed his eyes distorted with a haze of uncertainty and abruptly opened them sharply, a vigorous, ruthless, and determined glimmer could be seen in his eyes that was missing before.

At this moment, Alier spoke in front of the entire family in his usual humble and cordial manner and Ethan's heart sank. He sighed with a tint of regret but the glimmer in his eyes did not waver.

"Brother, Ethan should pay his respects to the Ancestral Shrine and perform the Ceremonial Rites. Today is a good occasion for Ethan to pray for the blessings of our ancestors. What do you think?" Alier suggested seriously.

Aisha broadened her eyes thinking that it really wasn't a bad idea. It could be said that Ethan had made his first debut into high society and his Engagement to Anicia was also formally acknowledged on this day. It would be most appropriate to pay respects to the ancestors and perform the Ancestral Rites.

Old Lady Catelyn also nodded with approval at the thought as she looked at Ethan with an encouraging smile.

Albaer hesitated as he looked at Alier with a complicated expression. He seemed to be struggling inwardly.

"You brat! What are you thinking so much of? It's only proper to honor one's Ancestors on a happy occasion, for we live today to experience such happy occasions due to the immense sacrifices of our ancestors!"

Old Lady Catelyn snapped seeing Albaer's reluctance as she scolded harshly.

"Fine… I will also go." Albaer said raising his head.

"Ah, But don't you have to meet with the Northern envoy and The Merchant Alliance? Brother, we are severely lacking in the food supply. You must finalize the deal and decide the essentials at once so that we will be ready even if the God of Rain is Sulking¹." Alier said sternly.

Albaer still did not say anything and seem to be contemplating in distress. Just as Old Lady Catelyn was getting angrier and angrier, Albaer spoke again.

"Brother, The Northern Envoy is not going to stay the night. You must hurry. There is no need to worry about Ethan's safety. I will personally go with him and I give you my word that I would rather lay my life than see anything happen to dear nephew."

Alier spoke confidently and sincerely. His voice was determined and firm as if he truly would happily sacrifice his own life than see Ethan in any harm.

Seeing the sincerity and resolve on his face, Albaer's expression softened as the final bit of hesitation disappeared from his mind. But still being cautious he said, "Alright then, take fifty knights as well. Just for good measure."

"I wanna go too!" Naenna suddenly yelled out.

"No dear, it's nighttime and the Ancestral Shrine is not a casual place where you go on a whim. Let your brother and uncle go. How about this? Once you also get engaged… Then you can go as well. Okay?" Aisha said gigglingly as she held Naenna's hand.

Naenna pouted as if she was being wronged but did not say anything and simply looked at Ethan with reluctance. Her face also had a fare of apprehension, trepidation, and uneasiness. She looked like she wanted to say something but was dragged off by Aisha.

"That's right, alright then, we will leave before it's too late," Alier said looking at Ethan.

Albaer's gaze went over Ethan as he nodded in approval and then left.

Ethan who had silently witnessed the whole conversation smiled bitterly and snickered inside, his eyes momentarily shone with contempt as he glanced at Alier.

But then his demeanor become perfectly normal as if nothing had happened. He nodded at Alier with a smile and the both of them also left the banquet hall together.