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“Here are my terms,” Oliver stated, forcing the men to listen carefully. “I won’t need a down payment, but I want no one in your family claiming power over me and I won’t claim to be an official member of the family or seek special treatment. I’ll need full control of my own course selection in the institute and you aren’t allowed to question my decisions, no matter how unconventional they may be. Also, I don’t want to remain under your family’s influence after the institute, though I’m fine with remaining friends or possible allies should it be beneficial for the both of us.”

“You understand that you’re success or failure in the institute will affect our reputation, correct?” Hurman added.

“And you realize that I’ll be giving you free publicity after I graduate at the top of my class?”

Jonon laughed in disbelief. “Without taking the warrior course, how could someone like you be at the top of a class?! Pops, there’s no need to work with him if you don’t want to. I’m sure he’ll be quiet since he doesn’t want others trying to enforce their rule on him.”

But Hurman was busy staring into Oliver’s eyes. Part of him wanted to agree with his son but there was something else overtaking his mind at the moment, the thing that Hurman had only felt briefly in his previous exchanges with the young man. The determination in Oliver’s eyes reminded Hurman of his past, when everyone else had been questioning his own decision to seek an original path. While his family and closest friends all harped on him, Hurman had fought it out and beaten the odds, creating his own original cultivation technique. That was only possible through Hurman’s unordinary willpower, something that Hurman now spotted in the depths of Oli’s gaze.

It was rare to find someone like-minded in that sense. Though their shared mindset wasn’t on everything, sharing such a core belief was something Hurman hadn’t found in anyone apart from the territory leader.

.....

“So, you won’t be asking for special treatment or an allowance of gold or any coin?”

“Pops!”

“No, I won’t,” answered Oliver.

“Pops, you can’t be–”

“Then I’ll agree to your terms, though you’ll still be seen as a secondary member of the family so that the rest of the city will correlate your success with us.”

“That’s fine with me. You scratch my back, I scratch yours.”

“Seriously?! Why are we–”

“Calm down, Jonon. You wouldn’t understand...” Hurman shook his head, struggling to believe that he had just agreed on a whim and a chance, gut feeling.

“What do you mean?! Why wouldn’t I? We just agreed to get him into the school so that he’ll ruin–”

“So, what’s this herb your after and how long will the journey last?” asked Oliver, glad to move the conversation along.

“You and the boys will depart tomorrow morning to gather as many Living Lilies as you can find. We’ll have an herbalist hired and waiting for you by then. At dinner, I’ll inform them all of what’s going to happen, so please don’t yet mention this to them. And there’s no need to mention your entry in the upcoming tournament nor your sparring match with Jonon.”

“Thank you, Hurman.” Oliver bowed to the old man, happy to reach an agreement.

Jonon was still stunned that his hard-to-please father accepted Oliver’s terms, but he wasn’t going to contradict him. Apart from Oliver wanting to take a questionable path through the institute, Jonon agreed that Oliver was the best option to get Living Lilies as well as the best option to get the family more immediate influence among the other prominent families via the city-wide tournament. And should Oliver be concealing a second essence type with the same level of control, Jonon wouldn’t be able to argue that Oliver at least had a shot to pull off that miracle, not when his father was a living testament of that miracle.

“Mind if I keep the sword?”

Blinking, Jonon nodded to the strong young man. “Sure, consider it yours. But don’t break it outside of our future lessons, or you’ll be charged for it.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Oliver smiled and stepped back. “If there’s nothing else for now, then may I leave?”

“Go ahead, Oliver. I’m sure we’ll have a more interesting conversation in the future after your return from the mountains,” mentioned Hurman, surprising Jonon again with his unusual friendliness.

As Oliver opened the door to step out of the sealed space, he stumbled upon Pauller who was suspiciously standing just outside.

“Pauller, get back to training!” Jonon shouted, turning back into the strict uncle he was on the outside.

“Y-yes!” The preteen dashed away, not wanting to be questioned further for his failed eavesdropping.

“Don’t worry, Oliver. That’s what the silent formation is for,” Jonon added with a shake of his head.

Noting the similarities between the formation on the wall and Vloz’s formation in his old cultivation chamber, Oliver nodded and closed the door behind him. He waved to Pauller and Leon across the training grounds, also spotting Johan practicing leisurely on the opposite end. Oliver passed through and hurried to his room.

Once there, Oliver locked the door and immediately began cultivating to regather his recently exhausted energy. Despite his calm appearance, his match against Jonon had exhausted a lot of Oliver’s energy in an incredibly short time. It was the only way for Oli to keep up, both functional but short-lived.

As the guest of the property, Oliver was undisturbed for the rest of the day. When lunch rolled around Oliver didn’t even think of food or consider it worth his time. Deep inside his spirit jade, Oliver was busy steadying his essence. Only when Pauller and Leon knocked on his door for quite some time did he come out of his long trance.

Oli opened the door and smiled. “Is it dinner time?”

“Yup, and Grandpa wanted to make sure you were joining us!” shouted Pauller, excited for his daily training to be over and enjoy a good meal.

“Calm down, Pauller. It’s only dinner,” sighed Leon. “Sorry, Oliver...”

“No worries. I’ll follow you.”

The three young men made their way through the property at a casual pace. Pauller went on and on about the incredible progress he was supposedly making, stating that he wouldn’t need to train so long each day since he was so proficient. At least, that was until Leon offered to take the new sword due to Pauller overconfidence.

Oliver enjoyed watching the two brothers go back and forth. It was fun to watch and proved how healthy their relationship was for the most part.

Arriving at the dining hall, they were greeted by the others already present and waiting. Johan gave Leon a cheeky grin and commented, “Always so late... even for something as simple as a meal...”

“Enough of that, now we can eat,” stated Hurman, stabbing what looked like a tough chicken breast with his fork.

For a few moments, everyone was quiet as they began eating. Oliver took the moment to evaluate the meal and spot the few unfamiliar faces present at the table.

The meal was made up of some form of poultry that had been lightly seasoned and baked along with a plain-looking salad. It may not have been the most delicious meal but Oli wasn’t able to argue that it wasn’t well balanced. The additional dinner rolls helped as well, offering another texture to contradict the firm meat on the plate.

There were five people at the grand table that Oli didn’t recognize. One woman sat at the corner between Hurman and Leon, likely making her Leon’s and Pauller’s mother. Another woman was sat between Jonon and Johan, letting her age and wedding ring prove her to be Jonon’s wife. On the same side as Jonon’s family sat Mertin, who was with the last three unfamiliar faces. Oli assumed that the woman was his wife and the two children roughly his age and a bit younger were Mertin’s daughter and son.

As the meal progressed and a few raced to finish their plates, namely Pauller and Mertin’s son of about the same age, a conversation finally broke out at the table.

“So, Oliver, allow me to introduce my lovely wife, Cethlin.” Jonon grabbed his wife by the hand, kissing the back of her palm with a warm smile. “You already know Johan, Leon, and Pauller, but not their strong mother.”

After wiping her mouth with her cloth napkin, the woman beside Leon spoke up with a genuine but fragile smile, “I’m Sisslia, Leon’s and Pauller’s mother. I’m sorry for all the trouble that Pauller has caused you.”

“Hey! Mom!”

“Pauller, no shouting at the table.”

As the preteen grew quiet, Mertin spoke next, “Oliver this is my wife, Melida, and our two children, Melinda and Milo.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you all.” Oliver humbly bowed his head, offering them all a big smile.

“You’re definitely not from here...” Melinda commented, scanning over Oli’s muscular frame that couldn’t be hidden through his casual shirt and pants.

“No, I’m not. I grew up a nomad and have always been a nomad... This is my first time spending time in one place,” commented Oliver.

“Wow, Melinda, why are you so talkative all of a sudden?”

“Mom... Not now,” the young woman replied quietly.

“It seems she’s taken a liking to you,” chuckled Hurman. “You know, we haven’t yet met with any of her suitors to confirm a fiance...”

“Please, Patriarch Hurman,” Oli interjected, “there’s no need to get me too involved. I don’t come from any background and I don’t have much to offer. Melinda is a lovely young woman and I’m sure she’ll be fine finding someone more suited for her and your family’s prestige.”

Smiling, Mertin replied, “Oh, you think she’s lovely? Maybe we should at least arrange a date, to at least test the waters.”

“Master Mertin, I’m sure she wouldn’t–”

“I wouldn’t mind...” Melinda mentioned with a tinge of blush in her cheeks.

“See, or were you wrong in saying she’s beautiful?”

Choosing his words carefully and glancing at Hurman to get on with the main topic of the night, Oliver responded, “Of course she’s beautiful, very much so in fact. I can tell that she’s put more time into her cultivation than she may be willing to admit, but that only allows her essence to compliment her beauty.

“However, I’m not a suitable suitor and I’m not currently sure where I’ll be going in my life. As a nomad, I like to wander and explore, only briefly visiting new towns while I get to know nature and beasts more personally. Besides, I’m far too brutish for someone as pretty as her.”

“You’ve got quite the silver tongue for such a brute,” Melida chuckled as she reexamined Oli as a potential suitor for her daughter.

“Since we’re about finished with the meal, there’s something that we need to discuss as a family,” Hurman declared, redirecting the conversation. “You all know this but Oliver has only come to learn the truth of Lyle’s situation by recent coincidence. There’s also been a new development impeding us from further purchasing the necessary herbs from Keldon.”

The tone of the room grew more somber as Sisslia gasped, “You mean–”

“Calm down...” Hurman placed his hand over Sisslia’s as water began to swell in her eyes.

“Father, why is that so?” Mertin asked, worry riddling his face.

Hurman stated, “Due to supplier demands, the necessary herbs will no longer be affordable for us through our usual means. However, that doesn’t mean there’s no solution available to us.”

Looking to his second-born son, Hurman let Jonon speak, “There’s still the option of hiring an herbalist personally and acquiring the lilies directly without the market’s involvement.”

“But we can’t afford an herbalist,” argued Mertin with a dejected look in his eyes. “Even if we found one willing to work at a great discount, we can’t afford to pay for the protection they would need nor can we afford to have either father or you join them as protection. That wouldn’t–”

“Oliver, however, is available.”

Jonon’s statement rocked the hearts of everyone at the table. Sisslia and her sons were in awe that Oliver would be considered for such a job. Johan and Cethlin were startled to hear how confident Jonon was. Melida smiled lightly along with Melinda while their appraisal of Oliver as a suitor shot up the ranks and Milo was stupefied like Pauller.

Mertin was the only one who had a questioning stare placed on Oliver. It was hard for Oliver to understand the meaning of that stare but Mertin blinked and averted his eyes, looking back at his older brother in confusion.