<h4>Chapter 94: Viin Simtor, Ch 93</h4>


    The sacred council hall had turned into a chaotic scene of farce.


    However, what shocked the members more than themotion was how an outsider could possibly know so much about them. Could it be... that he truly was possessed by their ancestor?


    Seeing that some of them still seemed doubtful, Lucas decided to go all out, revealing everything he knew:


    "Gray, you still owe two million Mora in high-interest loans from gambling, don''t you?"


    "Morritt, you visit those brothels every day—be careful, or you might catch some unspeakable disease."


    "And Rutherford, that anonymous novel you published, portraying the Lawrence family as the biggest viins... I must say, you''ve got guts."


    As it happened, these people were ones Lucas had persecuted in the simtor.


    Who would have thought they''d end up persecuted again in reality?


    Of course, this was just the beginning. Since he had already revealed so much, Lucas thought he might as well take this chance to expose everything rotten about this decaying family. It was time to turn them upside down and give them a thorough clean-up!


    As Lucas continued revealing more secrets, the hall grew increasingly restless. The reason was simple: everything he said was true. If he weren''t really possessed by an ancestor''s spirit, how could an outsider know so many secrets?


    Every so-called "noble" Lawrence had hidden filth of their own.


    By the end, all the members were on edge, silenced into submission. Lucas was now ready for his final move:


    "Look at you all! Which one of you isn''t supposed to be the backbone of the Lawrence family? Which one of you isn''t my descendant? You''ve all decayed, and it breaks my heart! I entrusted the Lawrence family to you, and you''ve turned it into this mess. It pains me deeply. Perhaps I should never have saved the Lawrence family back then!"


    "And you, pretending to be noble aristocrats—are you really so clean? I know some of you are even filthier than those I''ve mentioned! More corrupt!"


    "Think about it—how did the Lawrence family fall back then? Have you forgotten? This sword, Song of Broken Pines, has stood here, watching you all every single day!"


    As he spoke, Lucas waved the broken sword in his hand. A blue light shot skyward, and to everyone''s astonishment, the shattered Song of Broken Pines miraculously restored itself.


    Even Lucas hadn''t expected this.


    He was puzzled. Could it really be that the ancestors of the Lawrence family were manifesting themselves?


    Not just Lucas; the other Lawrence members were now firmly convinced that this man was indeed possessed by the spirit of their ancestor!


    [Talent Activated: "Liar''s Bane"—almost everyone believes your lie.]


    Meanwhile, no one noticed a green-d youth sitting on the beam above, leisurely swinging his legs.


    Of course, it was none other than Venti, who had recently been tormented by Lucas.


    After what happened yesterday, Venti''s legs were bare, unlike his usual white socks. His slender, pale legs still bore faint red marks.


    "This time, you owe me a huge favor," Venti whispered to himself with a smile. "I''m definitely getting those photos back!"


    Holding the restored greatsword in his hand, Lucas''s expression of surprisested only for two seconds. He quicklyposed himself, walking confidently over to E with a smile. "E Lawrence, based on my observation, you are the only descendant in this family worthy of wielding this sword. Take it!"


    E was skeptical, but at this point, even if Lucas was acting, she had no choice but to y along.


    She knelt on one knee, raised both hands, and solemnly received the Song of Broken Pines.


    "My spirit now resides within this sword!" Lucas spread his arms. "If anyone dares to insult or harm her again, I shall descend upon this vessel once more and deliver punishment!"


    With that, Lucas''s body shivered, and his eyes slowly changed back to ck, feigning confusion. "Strange... what just happened?"


    Everyone remained silent. If Lucas had truly forgotten what had just transpired, that was for the best. After all, everything he had said earlier was deeply incriminating family scandal.


    "Ahem..."


    At that moment, the long-sleeping family head, Joseph, suddenly coughed lightly. He opened his slightly cloudy eyes and said in a deep voice, "There''s no need to pretend like nothing happened. The Lawrence family... does need to reflect on itself."


    "E, having already obtained the Crest of Frost and now receiving the family''s heirloom and the blessing of our ancestor''s spirit, I, Joseph Lawrence, officially dere E Lawrence as the sessor of the family head."


    "W-Wait a moment. Wouldn''t that be like appointing her directly..." Hubbard, still unwilling to concede, protested, "Family Head, I suggest we hold a vote instead..."


    "A vote for this, a vote for that—does my word no longer hold any weight as family head?" Joseph replied coldly. "Do you really think I''m just a sleepy old man?"


    Even if his power had waned, the family head was still the family head. No one dared openly defy him, not even if Joseph was a frail old man.


    "Besides, if E isn''t made the sessor, should we allow one of your sons to inherit the position?" Joseph added nonchntly. "Are you even sure they''re really yours?"


    Hubbard''s face turned pale at those words, and he quickly lowered his head.


    "After I pass, E will inherit the position of family head..." Joseph''s voice suddenly grew faint. "I... I..."


    At that, his head slumped forward.


    Everyone was stunned. E quickly stepped forward in rm. "Family Head, you—"


    A strange, rancid smell filled the air.


    No way...


    Lucas felt speechless. Did he really just die? And how could it smell this bad already?


    At that moment, Joseph lifted his head again and muttered, "Old problem... couldn''t control it, let out a little..."


    Everyone: "..."


    ...


    Despite everything that had happened, the farce eventually came to an end. Not only did E escape punishment, but she also unexpectedly gained the Song of Broken Pines and the right to seed as family head. It was truly a big win for her.


    "Thank you for helping me today," E said, her expression somewhatplicated as she stood at the entrance of the Lawrence estate. "What happened just now... was it real, or were you acting?"


    "Does it matter if it was real or an act?" Lucas gave a vague response. "The important thing is that everything was resolved, right?"


    "That was just luck," E frowned. "Do you realize how dangerous that was? Not only could you have failed to help me, but you might have gotten yourself into trouble as well."


    "Of course, I knew that," Lucas smiled. "But even so, I had to help you."


    "Idiot..." E''s face softened with a hint of emotion. She hugged her arm and murmured, "Why go this far? We''ve only known each other for a day."


    "Only for a day?" Lucas replied with a teasing smile. "I feel like we''ve known each other for much longer."


    Deep down, both of them felt a sense of connection, as if they were "soulmates from a past life."


    Of course, neither of them could voice this out loud—whether it was a simtor or a dream, either exnation would sound absurd.


    "You know, you''re not using this line on every girl you meet, are you? I''m not that easy to fool," E narrowed her eyes. "And how did you know I was in trouble?"


    "Actually, it was Jean who asked me to save you." Lucas then recounted how Jean had requested his help earlier.


    "Jean, huh?" E mused. "Don''t think for a second that this will make me go easy on her when we duel."


    "Are you heading back to the Knights now?" Lucas asked. "Since you''re safe, it''s best to let Jean know."


    "Could you inform her for me?" E shook her head. "I need to return and handle the matters rted to my session."


    "Oh, I almost forgot," Lucas chuckled. "Then let me congratte you in advance on bing the head of the family."


    E seemed to think of something and handed the Song of Broken Pines back to Lucas. "Here, take this for now."


    "Huh?" Lucas was surprised. "Are you giving me your family heirloom? Isn''t that a bit much?"


    "Don''t tter yourself!" E huffed. "It''s just temporary custody. Right now, I''m not qualified to wield it. When I''m strong enough, I''lle and im it from you."


    "I... look forward to that day," Lucas said solemnly as he took the sword back.


    [Song of Broken Pines]


    [Grade: S]


    [Effect: Each time an attack hits, it umtes a Whisper Rune. Each rune can trigger one of the following effects: (1) Physical damage +5%, (2) Elemental damage +5%, (3) Attack speed +5%. (Whisper Runes can stack infinitely, but eachsts for 20 seconds.)]


    [Description: As light as the breeze brushing through the trees, yet as destructive as the hurricane uprooting them.]


    Indeed, an S-ranked weapon had extraordinary effects.


    Though it differed slightly from the in-game version, it remained extremely powerful. In simple terms, the faster one''s attack speed, the higher the stacked effects would be.


    Additionally, the Song of Broken Pines had a "hidden attribute"—its weight was astonishingly light, even lighter than a one-handed sword. This ensured the wielder could attack quickly and umte Whisper Runes more efficiently.


    ...


    Watching E turn and walk through the gates, Lucas finally felt relieved and prepared to leave.


    But as he turned, he noticed a familiar figure standing behind him with arms crossed, waiting.


    "Isn''t this Venti?" Lucas greeted him with teasing friendly smile. "So, did you enjoyst night''s drinks?"


    "Don''t y dumb!" Venti''s cheeks flushed. "You know perfectly well what you didst night!"


    "I was just fulfilling the bet we made during the drinking contest," Lucas said shamelessly. "Rx, it''s just a few photos."


    "A few?" Venti bit his lip slightly. "How many exactly?"


    "Three... three or four hundred, I guess." Lucas responded.


    "T-Three or four hundred?!" Venti eximed. "Let me see!"


    Lucas didn''t expect Venti''s first reaction upon hearing the number was not to ask him to delete them but to want to see them himself.


    "Sure, you can take a look," Lucas said, ncing around. "But are you sure you want to look at them here?"


    If the Knights of Favonius caught them, they''d definitely be charged with distributing indecent materials in public—no question about it.


    "Just hand them over already!" Venti demanded firmly for once. "I helped you back in the Lawrence estate earlier, didn''t I? That''s why you were able to trick them all."


    At that, Lucas finally realized why the Song of Broken Pines, which he had identally broken earlier, had magically repaired itself.


    It had to be Barbatos''s doing.


    Still, Lucas feigned ignorance. "And how could a simple bard like you pull off something like that?"


    "I''m a—" Venti nearly blurted out his identity but quickly regained hisposure, adopting a pleading tone. "In exchange for the favor, please... just give me the photos."


    As Venti made a face as cute as a kitten, Lucas, of course... chose to refuse. "Even if you did help, I never asked you to."


    Lucas''s words made Venti clench his teeth in frustration, while Lucas himself felt a strange sense of satisfaction.


    This was payback for all the times Barbatos had teased him in the simtor.


    "But I''m not ungrateful," Lucas said, pretending to be generous. "I''ll return half of the photos to you. As for the other half, I''ll keep them for now."


    The great Anemo Archon, Barbatos, had never been ckmailed like this before. Frowning, he asked, "What do I have to do for you to return the rest?"


    "I''m sure I''ll need your help in the future," Lucas grinned mischievously. "You wouldn''t want these photos falling into the wrong hands, would you?"


    If not for his divine vow to avoid interfering with humans, Venti might have alreadyshed out at Lucas.


    "I... I understand." Venti reluctantly extended his hand. "I''ll keep my promise. Now, give me half of them."


    "Hold on a second," Lucas said as he casually pulled out arge photo album from his pocket dimension. He began flipping through it. "Hmm, I like this one. And this one too..."


    "You even made an album!" Venti was on the verge of losing his mind. "And there''s no way this is just three or four hundred photos!"


    "Some of them are high-res close-ups, taking up an entire page," Lucas exined, turning the album toward Venti. "Look at this one—every detail is crystal clear!"


    "I don''t want to look!"


    Despite his protest, Venti covered his eyes with his hands but still peeked through his fingers.


    In the photos, his expression was dreamy, his pose seductive—a disgrace to the Seven Archons.


    He felt humiliated!


    "And while I was taking the photos, I noticed a little secret about you..." Lucas whispered close to Venti''s ear. "It seems like... you''re missing something down there."


    Hearing those words, Venti''s already grim expression turned toplete stone.


    ording to the lore, the body Venti currently uses was modeled after an old friend from long ago.


    Barbatos''s true form is merely a wisp of wind among the thousand winds, without a defined gender.


    Assuming a human form was purely for convenience while interacting with mortals, so there was no need to make the body too detailed. Barbatos had only created two channels for basic metabolism.


    This body was neither male nor female.


    Just like when Raiden Ei crafted the first puppet, Scaramouche, some "unimportant" details were left out.


    "I''ve been...pletely exposed..." Venti murmured, his voice tinged with disbelief.


    ---


    Author''s Note: HAHHAHA SUFFER MORE VENTI