Seed of Titan-Chapter 177: The Velles Estate

In a small clearing amidst the trees, Max and Drai lay in their sleeping bags. Beside a nearby bush, Horsie was fast asleep, gently snoring. A meter or so from their sleeping spots was a pile of faintly glowing embers, remnants of the fire they used to roast tonight’s meal a short while ago.

"You asleep yet?" Max quietly asked while gazing at the night sky.

"No," Drai murmured. Unlike Max, his eyes were completely shut as he lay sideways, slowly drifting toward slumber.

Max fell silent for a moment, choosing his next words. Eventually, he muttered, "You know, we could’ve let that girl live."

"...Yeah, we could’ve."

Max glanced at his companion, who seemed unfazed by the remark based on his nonchalant tone. Realizing that subtlety wouldn’t work, Max decided to be direct and asked, "Must you be that ruthless, Drai?"

Drai, who was about halfway into falling asleep, regained a bit of clarity upon hearing these words. With his eyes still closed, he replied, "Those fanatics don’t deserve any sympathy."

"I know, but still—we weren’t really in danger. Knocking her out would suffice—"

"Stop it, Max," Drai interrupted as he sat up. Looking at the stars above, he continued, "I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that. I haven’t turned into a heartless killer nor do I plan to. But when it comes to the Crimson Order... it’s an entirely different matter. You only heard my recollection about them, so you might still see them as humans. But from what I’ve seen with my own eyes, I can only think of them as organized, deranged fiends."

Drai’s words left Max silent. The old man knew he couldn’t view the Order’s members in the same manner as his companion did, as he hadn’t been directly impacted by them. However, he also preferred not to judge them collectively. He believed that just as there could be weeds among the finest wheat, there could also be wildflowers in the most barren fields.

’But judging by the lad’s current mindset, he probably would just obliterate the entire barren fields in a single strike if he could,’ Max mused wordlessly.

Meanwhile, Drai continued muttering, "Professor Samara was killed in cold blood. Uncle Jack ended up dying too. If Liam and I hadn’t interfered, all the first-years would’ve probably gotten captured. Even now, I don’t know if the upperclassmen managed to avoid capture or whether any of them got killed. And if Nero decided to join the battle near the professors’ residence, I’m sure there would be many casualties there too."

As he kept recalling that tragic night, Drai’s drowsiness subsided, replaced by a bubbling rage. With trembling fists, he remarked, "If only I could turn back time, then I could pulverize all four of those snake bastards before they could bring any harm to the academy..."

"Hey, calm down, lad," Max advised upon noticing his partner’s agitation. However, Drai didn’t seem to listen and stood up instead.

"I’ll be back," he simply said before activating Nova Flux and taking off.

Not long after, Max felt the ground tremble faintly, and a series of booms and rumbles could also be heard from afar.

The commotion woke Horsie up, who hurriedly moved from his spot and snuggled anxiously into Max’s side.

Gently petting the quivering oversized foal, Max gazed into the distance. His lips pursed into a rueful smile as he felt a wave of pity for the rampaging young man.

***

Inside a fine-looking gatehouse, Clive yawned while leaning back on his chair. In front of him were numerous screens showing live feeds that monitored most of the outdoor areas of the estate in which he was employed as part of the security team, a gatekeeper specifically.

In the weeks following the shocking incident around two and a half months ago, he had been overwhelmingly busy due to the constant flow of visitors. However, the commotion had died down quite a while ago, so he was now back to his usual uneventful routine.

As long as he didn’t completely fall asleep while on-duty, his chill job was relatively secure. One of the few catches of this work was that if the estate were to be attacked, he was obliged to put his life on the line. But since his salary was much higher than what most places would ever offer for this kind of job, Clive neither worried nor minded the risks at all.

Just then, his eyes caught some movements in a couple of the monitors. He immediately leaned forward and fiddled with the controls, projecting the selected monitors onto larger virtual screens that hovered before him.

Clive’s eyebrows rose upon seeing the unusual group standing a few meters away from the gates—on the screens were two hooded figures and a large, strange horse with a dark coat and mane standing behind them.

After pushing aside whatever thoughts he had on this peculiar party, Clive turned on the intercom and ordered, "State your identities and business here."

The smaller figure turned to his partner, who nodded, before removing his hood, revealing a striking young man with partially white hair.

"My name is Drai Varz. I’m a close friend of Auri. I don’t know if she’s here or at the academy, but I want to meet with someone from her family, preferably a key figure, to discuss highly important matters that I unfortunately cannot divulge here."

Listening to the youngster’s words, Clive spontaneously snorted. With a sneer, he inwardly remarked, ’I thought these people were travelers that wanted to trade their goods—turns out they’re just another group of delusional admirers. Geez, I know Young Miss Auri is pretty and smart, but must all these people be so hopelessly smitten with her? It’s been the third time already this month that someone claims to be her friend.’

With a formal tone that completely hid his derision, Clive spoke again. "My apologies, dear visitors. Young Miss is currently not at the estate, and the other family members are also too preoccupied at the moment to meet with anyone. If you wish, I can note down your contact information and inform you when Young Miss or a member of the family is available to receive visitors."

Hearing this, Drai scratched his head helplessly, while Max grunted in annoyance before muttering, "What an outdated excuse—looks like things haven’t changed much since I left."

Max’s remark was picked up by the advanced device monitoring them, causing Clive to frown as he angrily barked, "What did you just say!?"

Max let out a sigh before pulling out a pendant, raising it toward the gates. Beside him, Drai burst out chuckling while shaking his head in amusement. Meanwhile, Horsie was still standing around blankly, wondering when he’d get his next meal.

Upon seeing the Velles family emblem in Max’s hand, Clive was jolted out from his seat. Wearing a shocked expression, he remotely opened the gates and ran outside in a hurry.

"Honorable guest, please forgive my rudeness," he greeted with an overly amicable smile as he stood before the visitors. "Before we proceed inside, may I trouble you with a quick verification? I’m sure you know how careful the family is these days."

Max let out another displeased grunt before tossing his pendant to the gatekeeper, who frantically caught it.

Clive pulled out a small scanning device and swiped it over the pendant. A beep immediately resounded, causing him to sigh in relief before turning nervous once more.

After handing the pendant back to Max, Clive touched his earpiece and said, "Cover my post, Jeff. I have to escort some important guests." He then turned to Max and Drai. "Please, follow me, sirs."

Clive then led the group toward the main mansion. During their brief walk, the three kept looking at their surroundings, each with different thoughts.

Max was of course looking around nostalgically, taking note of how much had changed since his days there. Drai, on the other hand, was mostly curious and amazed by the elegant architecture and fine details of the estate. Since Auri had always acted and appeared down-to-earth at the academy, it was only now that Drai truly realized how their backgrounds were worlds apart. Just the garden area with a fancy fountain and flower beds they walked by was already larger than his parents’ entire property.

Meanwhile, Horsie focused on scanning the lush trees and bushes, making a mental list of anything that looked remotely edible.

After arriving at the mansion’s front entrance, Clive handed them over to a maid and bowed deeply before walking away. Drai instructed Horsie to wait near the entrance before they were escorted by the maid to a spacious sitting area where refreshments were already set on the table.

While the two men sat there and eagerly filled their stomachs, a silver-haired butler walked in. After bowing deeply, he said, "Welcome to the Velles residence, gentlemen. I’ve been informed about your circumstances. Unfortunately, before I can let you meet my masters, I must verify several matters. Is that okay with you?"

"Mmf-hm," Drai replied with a full mouth, whereas Max silently nodded, his face still concealed beneath his hood.

"Then let us begin. To start with, is it true that the young man here is Young Miss Auri’s friend?"

Drai had to empty his glass of iced tea to flush down the food filling his mouth before replying, "Yeah. I’m Drai, Auri’s friend and partymate. We’re both in Valiant Ventures. I was with her when we stumbled into the underground jungle."

"I see. Pardon my rudeness," the butler said as he operated the device on his wrist. Shortly after, he spoke again. "Your identity and statements match our records, Mr. Drai. But forgive me for asking, why does your appearance differ slightly from the ones on the record?"

Drai shrugged. "Probably because of the transformation."

"Transformation?" the butler asked with a slightly raised brow.

"Yeah. I just evolved to the second stage a while ago."

Drai’s words stunned the butler, but he was able to quickly mask his shock and carry on with a smile.

"I see. Well then, congratulations, Young Master Drai. The Elders will definitely be delighted if they know Young Miss Auri has such a remarkable friend."

Drai simply replied with a smile before grabbing another cake slice.

"Now, may I know who the other gentleman is?" the butler continued. "I’ve been informed that you have the Velles family emblem, sir. Was it given by one of our family members?"

However, instead of answering the queries, Max said, "Long time no see, Walty."

Once again, the butler was stunned. However, he couldn’t hide his shock this time, as there had only been one person throughout his life who ever called him by that nickname.

With a trembling voice, he stammered, "I-imp-p-possible... A-are you..."

Max lowered his hood, revealing a weathered face with hardened features, a majestic mustache, and a patchy stubble. But despite how the arduous years had changed Max’s appearance, Walter still recognized that poised look and slightly mischievous grin.

"Y-young Master Max!" he bellowed. And right after that, much to Drai and Max’s bafflement, he dropped straight to the floor.

Looking at the old man that sprawled there motionless, Drai gulped nervously and muttered, "I think you just killed your old friend. Do we run away now?"

***