Deal for good future
1262 Words
Night descended quietly upon Guram Village.
Cold winds drifted through the narrow roads while moonlight illuminated the small broken houses scattered across the village.
Inside the Vanhard home—
The candlelight still burned softly.
Grey trained outside beneath the moonlight with a wooden sword in his hands.
SWOOSH.
SWOOSH.
Again and again, he repeated the same movements without rest.
Even at his age, his expression remained calm.
Focused.
Like a child trying to carve strength directly into his bones.
---
Inside the house—
Light quietly sat near the candlelight reading an old magic book he had found buried beneath discarded junk near the marketplace.
The book was damaged.
Most pages were unreadable.
Yet Light still absorbed every word with frightening concentration.
His silver eyes reflected the candlelight while his fingers slowly traced strange ancient spell symbols across the pages.
Unlike Grey—
Light trained his mind first.
Because knowledge itself was power.
---
Meanwhile—
Shesha practiced magic by herself nearby.
No teacher.
Only talent and determination.
"Gather… flow… release…"
Tiny blue mana sparks flickered around her fingertips before exploding into harmless smoke.
POOF.
"Agh—!"
Shesha coughed immediately.
Light calmly flipped another page.
"You lost concentration during the final mana flow."
Shesha puffed his cheeks angrily.
"You don't even look at me!"
"I don't need to."
Shesha narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"You're seriously scary sometimes."
Light only smiled innocently.
---
The wooden door suddenly opened.
Cold air entered the room.
Algar had returned from hunting.
A rabbit hung from his shoulder while exhaustion covered his face.
But the moment he entered—
He paused.
Grey training outside.
Shesha practicing magic.
Light studying ancient spells.
For a brief moment—
A faint smile appeared on Algar's tired face.
Pride.
---
Outside—
Grey suddenly stopped moving.
His black eyes narrowed slightly.
Someone had appeared near the dirt road ahead.
A tall man wearing an elegant black coat stood silently beneath the moonlight.
The atmosphere around him felt heavy.
Oppressive.
Even the wind itself seemed quieter around him.
Grey immediately recognized him.
The man from the talent examination.
The one riding the black horse.
The one whose eyes carried greed.
Grey tightened his grip around the wooden sword.
"Who are you?"
The man slowly smiled.
A sinister smile.
"What are you doing here?"
The man calmly looked down at Grey with amused eyes.
"Oh?"
"You noticed me immediately."
Grey remained silent.
The man chuckled softly.
"I'm your relative."
Grey's expression did not change.
"your Father knows me well if I tell him my name."
Silence filled the air for several moments.
Then Grey calmly spoke:
"Name yourself."
The man's smile widened slightly.
"My name…"
Moonlight reflected faintly across his sharp eyes.
"…is Arthold Jepstin."
Grey stared at him silently.
Then finally spoke:
"Wait here."
Without another word, Grey turned and entered the house.
---
Inside—
Light immediately noticed Grey's expression.
"What happened?"
Grey ignored the question and walked directly toward Algar.
"There's a man outside."
Algar frowned slightly.
"He says you know him."
"What name?"
Grey looked directly at him.
"…Arthold Jepstin."
The moment those words left Grey's mouth—
Algar froze completely.
The room became silent.
Even Light slowly lowered his magic book.
For several seconds—
Algar did not move.
Then slowly, memories long buried within the past resurfaced.
Lana Jepstin.
His wife.
Shesha's mother.
And Arthold…
…the eldest son of the Jepstin Noble Family.
Algar had never personally met him before.
Back when Algar still served as a knight, he had only heard rumors that Arthold spent most of his life away from the kingdom on dangerous training expeditions and adventures.
But there was no mistaking the name.
---
A few moments later—
Arthold entered the house calmly.
The atmosphere instantly changed.
Even the candlelight felt dimmer somehow.
His presence alone carried pressure far beyond ordinary people.
Light silently observed him.
Carefully.
Calculating.
Meanwhile, Grey stood quietly beside Shesha.
Arthold's eyes slowly moved across the room.
Then he smirked faintly.
"So this is where you've been hiding all these years."
Algar's expression remained cold.
"What business do you have with me?"
Arthold casually removed his gloves.
"I'm here for a deal."
Algar narrowed his eyes.
"What kind of deal?"
Arthold calmly looked toward Shesha.
Immediately, Grey's gaze sharpened.
Then Arthold spoke.
"I want your daughter to become the successor of the Jepstin Family."
Silence.
Shesha blinked in confusion.
Arthold continued calmly:
"You already know I cannot hold any of you directly responsible for my sister's death."
His voice remained calm, yet strangely cold beneath the surface.
"But Shesha possesses extraordinary talent."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"She deserves proper training."
Arthold slowly walked closer toward the candlelight.
"We can provide her everything you cannot even dream of."
His words pierced the silence sharply.
"We will enroll her into Siriana Academy."
The room instantly became still.
Even Light's eyes shifted slightly.
Siriana Academy.
The greatest academy on the Vordex Continent.
A place only nobles and monsters among geniuses could enter.
Arthold calmly looked at Algar.
"You know very well…"
His voice became heavier.
"…she can never reach her true potential here."
Algar remained silent.
Because deep down—
He knew Arthold was right.
No matter how hard he tried…
A poor fallen knight could never provide Shesha the future the Jepstin Family could.
Still—
Something about Arthold unsettled him deeply.
---
Then Arthold's eyes shifted toward Light and Grey.
"By the way…"
His gaze lingered on them carefully.
"Who are these two children?"
Light and Grey stood silently beside Algar.
Shesha also stepped closer nervously.
Arthold frowned slightly.
"I don't remember my sister having three children."
His voice became colder.
"She died giving birth to this girl, didn't she?"
Before Algar could answer—
Shesha suddenly spoke.
"What do you mean your sister?"
Her eyes looked confused.
"Who are you people?"
Arthold looked down at her quietly.
Then finally answered:
"I am your uncle."
The room fell silent.
"Arthold Jepstin."
"Head of the Jepstin Family."
"Your mother…"
For a brief moment, his expression softened slightly.
"…was my younger sister. Lana Jepstin."
Shesha slowly turned toward Algar.
"…Father?"
Her voice trembled slightly.
"Is he telling the truth?"
Algar closed his eyes briefly.
Then nodded slowly.
"Yes."
Silence filled the room.
---
Grey quietly looked toward Algar.
"You're not going to accept his deal… right?"
Meanwhile—
Light remained silent.
But unlike Grey—
He wasn't watching Arthold.
He was watching Shesha.
Carefully.
Observing every small expression on her face.
Fear.
Confusion.
Uncertainty.
Yet despite all of it—
She did not resist.
Instead, she quietly looked toward Algar and softly said:
"I'll do whatever you decide, father."
Light's silver eyes widened slightly.
For the first time—
He understood something unfamiliar.
Trust.
Complete trust.
Not fear.
Not obedience.
But genuine belief in another person.
And strangely—
That realization stayed deeply within Light's heart.
---
After a long silence—
Algar finally spoke.
"…Fine."
The room became still.
"Shesha will go with you."
Grey immediately clenched his fists.
Light's expression darkened slightly.
But Algar raised his hand before either could speak.
Then Algar looked directly at Arthold.
"But I have conditions."
Arthold smirked faintly.
"As long as they are reasonable, I'll accept them."
Algar's eyes remained firm.
"Whenever Shesha wants to meet us…"
"…or whenever any of us wish to see her…"
"…you will allow it."
Silence lingered briefly.
Then Arthold nodded calmly.
"Very well."
He turned toward the door.
"I'll return two days from now."
"At evening."
"And I'll take Shesha with me."
Then—
He left.
- Writer
