The Old Man Tells You The Strategy

Chapter 9

Bastian Pavion.

A man who earned the infamous title of “The Butcher” for his fearsome reputation in the Demon Sea, where countless monsters poured forth.

He is also the commander of the prestigious “Red Shield Knights” of the Lavold Kingdom and the overseer of the Bloodline Ritual.

Moreover, he holds the authority to manage the Ironblood Fortress, which belongs to the Count of Pablo.

“Hmmm…”

Currently, Bastian was standing at the top of a tower inside the Ironblood Fortress, gazing down at the Door of Trials.

Before the door, there was a long line of boys and girls, still showing signs of youth.

Every three years, this trial was held, and all blood relatives of Pablo aged 15 or older were required to participate.

It was a stage to prove that they possessed the talent worthy of the name Pablo.

The Bloodline Ritual.

All of these people were members of the Pablo family, gathered to take part in this trial.

Since today was the deadline for signing up, the crowd was far larger than in the previous two days.

‘Well, let’s see…’

Gaze sharpens

Bastian’s gaze turned keen as he looked down at them. A faint killing intent mixed in his eyes, but no one reacted to it.

Seeing this, Bastian let out a sigh.

“…How dull.”

He had one peculiar hobby: releasing a slight killing intent to test the sensitivity of the trial participants.

But today, it seemed there wasn’t anyone sharp enough to sense his killing intent.

‘Well, it’s always been this way.’

The participants who rushed to sign up on the final day were usually those who couldn’t receive proper support from the main family.

Most of them lacked sufficient training, so it was no surprise they couldn’t hone their senses properly.

Still, despite knowing this, Bastian didn’t stop releasing his killing intent on the participants.

‘You never know. Maybe one of them will react.’

As he passed the time, Bastian’s eyes fell on a red-haired boy whose eyes were half-closed.

Unlike the other tense participants, this boy stood out for his calm, almost indifferent demeanor.

Considering he was the last to sign up today, he caught Bastian’s attention even more.

‘Is he just resigned to his fate? What kind of person acts so lax before the Bloodline Ritual?’

Just as he had done so far, Bastian sent a faint wave of killing intent toward the boy.

And then, something unexpected happened.

Whip!

The boy’s expression instantly hardened, and he slowly turned his head to look directly where Bastian was standing.

“…!”

Bastian was startled, quickly retracting his killing intent.

‘Did he pinpoint where the killing intent was coming from?’

It was unbelievable.

Even Liss Pablo, the fourth son of the Count of Pablo and widely regarded as a once-in-a-generation genius, could only sense the killing intent but couldn’t pinpoint its direction.

Bastian had carefully controlled his killing intent to the point where even wild animals would only feel a vague discomfort, so this was unheard of.

‘It could just be a coincidence that he looked toward the tower…’

But Bastian’s instincts, honed through countless battles, told him otherwise.

This boy had turned his head with purpose, not by chance.

‘Who is he…? I’ve never seen his face before.’

Gulp

Unconsciously, Bastian swallowed dryly and began flipping through the thick stack of papers next to him.

It was a list of all the Pablo family members required to attend the Bloodline Ritual this year.

Flip! Flip!

After searching for a while, Bastian finally found the name of the red-haired boy.

“Killian…?”

Next to Killian’s name, there was a note indicating something unusual.

“The son of a maid who worked for the Count’s household?”

A bastard born in the far-off outskirts, not even from the central region, possessing keener senses than Liss?

‘…Interesting.’

Bastian set the papers aside and focused on Killian once more.

His eyes were filled with more curiosity than ever before.

‘Let’s see if he can pass through the Door of Trials…’

The key factor that the Door of Trials evaluated was mana. No matter how sharp someone’s senses were, they needed a certain amount of mana to be acknowledged by the door.

‘The chances are slim.’

According to the file, Killian had grown up in a desolate environment, in a remote place called Solmer, which Bastian himself, despite decades of service to the Pablo family, hadn’t even known existed.

‘Living in a place like that, he likely didn’t even have access to basic mana cultivation techniques.’

It was a shame that someone with such keen senses might fail, but rules were rules.

Those who weren’t recognized by the Door of Trials couldn’t enter the Ironblood Fortress.

‘With such sharp instincts, maybe he’ll survive in the Demon Sea.’

Bastian silently wished Killian luck as he placed his hand on the door.

“Huh…!”

An exclamation escaped Bastian’s lips involuntarily.

The moment the door’s embedded detection spell flowed into Killian—

Srrrrk-!

Killian smoothly circulated his mana and responded to the spell.

At such a young age, where even sensing mana flow was challenging for most, Killian had already recognized and responded to the spell.

‘Has he inherited not only physical instincts but also an innate ability to sense mana?’

But the surprises didn’t stop there.

Woooosh…!

As the detection spell intensified to resist, Killian’s mana surged rapidly, flowing delicately through his body as if it had a will of its own, targeting the weak points of the spell.

It was something impossible unless Killian was consciously controlling his mana with extreme precision.

‘This is unbelievable…!’

Bastian was in awe.

The vast amount of mana and the mastery with which Killian controlled it was on par with that of a seasoned knight who had been handling mana for over a decade. It was as though he was witnessing a veteran in action.

‘I thought he hadn’t even started training with mana!’

As Bastian marveled, the detection spell was completely neutralized.

It seemed no one but Bastian had noticed the anomaly.

The whole event had occurred in a flash inside Killian’s body, and only Bastian, with his 30 years of experience as the examiner, could perceive what had transpired.

“Haha…”

Bastian let out a complicated laugh, a mixture of amazement and disbelief.

‘I’ve overseen the Bloodline Ritual for many years… but this is the first time I’ve ever seen something like this.’

Surely, none of the previous lords of the Ironblood Fortress had ever witnessed such a sight either.

Even in the hundreds of years of records documenting the Bloodline Ritual, no such anomaly had ever been noted.

The son of a maid had just achieved something unprecedented in the long history of the Bloodline Ritual.

Huuup!

Killian, unaware of the extraordinary feat he had just accomplished, continued to channel mana into the door.

However, the Door of Trials remained firmly shut. It was only natural since all the embedded spells had been disrupted.

Clang, clang!

Approaching Killian was the stern-faced knight, Simon, assigned to guard the Door of Trials. After exchanging a few curt words, Simon reached out to grab Killian.

“Tsk…”

The situation was clear.

Simon had failed to notice the anomaly with the door and was treating Killian as if he had failed the trial. It was crucial to clear up this misunderstanding quickly.

But Bastian didn’t move right away.

‘It won’t hurt to observe a little longer.’

Bastian’s curiosity was piqued. What would this boy show next? For now, satisfying his curiosity seemed more important than fulfilling his duty as overseer of the Bloodline Ritual.

‘It’s been a long time since I’ve been this intrigued by a participant.’

However, Bastian’s passive stance could only last so long.

Simon, trying to seize Killian, was suddenly immobilized, his legs twitching awkwardly in place.

Bastian’s eyes widened in shock as he watched.

‘How can he perform such a high-level technique…!’

The strange behavior from Simon was due to Killian. By gripping Simon’s arm, Killian had redirected the knight’s internal strength elsewhere.

And Simon wasn’t just an ordinary guard; he was a member of the Red Shield Knights, capable enough to serve as the gatekeeper for the Bloodline Ritual.

‘To subdue Simon with just his hands… What kind of martial arts has he learned?’

Bastian’s curiosity intensified, but there was no time to delve into it further.

The kingdom’s eyes were on Ironblood Fortress because of the Bloodline Ritual, and if word of this got out, the Red Shield Knights’ reputation would be tarnished.

Whoosh!

With his mind made up, Bastian leapt down from the tower.

Soft landing

Despite the towering height, Bastian landed gracefully like a feather, thanks to his precise control over his mana. He then rushed toward the gate and spoke.

“Stand down, Simon. Killian has the right to pass through the Door of Trials.”

“C-Captain…!”

Simon froze immediately upon hearing Bastian’s command.

Satisfied, Bastian turned his gaze to Killian.

“I understand the situation, my lord. Could you step aside for a moment?”

“…”

Killian, lost in thought as he stared at the ring on his hand, finally released Simon.

“I should say this first. Congratulations, my lord. You’ve passed.”

“Phew…”

Killian let out a sigh of relief, clutching his chest in exhaustion.

At that moment, Simon, still shocked, couldn’t help but speak up.

“Captain…?! What are you saying? This goes against the principles of—”

Glare!

Bastian silenced him with a sharp look.

“I will explain later, Simon. For now, our priority is to escort Lord Killian.”

“…Understood.”

With that settled, Killian seized the opportunity to ask.

“Can I go in now?”

“Of course. But first, could you wait just a moment?”

Bastian turned to Simon.

“Bring two horses.”

“Yes, sir!”

Simon rushed off to retrieve the horses, and when he returned, Bastian spoke.

“Please mount up, my lord. I’ll guide you inside the fortress.”

“Alright…”

Killian mounted the horse, and Bastian led him toward the back gate, which was typically used by guests who couldn’t manipulate mana. Forcing the Door of Trials open now could cause further damage to its spells.

After a short ride, they arrived at the sealed back gate.

“Open the gate!”

Rumble…!

At Bastian’s command, the heavy gate slowly opened with a thunderous sound.

“Please, proceed.”

Thud!

Killian gracefully dismounted and began walking toward the gate.

Even though he was now entering the core of the Bloodline Ritual, there was no trace of tension on Killian’s face.

His half-closed eyes and relaxed demeanor were the same as when Bastian first saw him.

But Bastian’s perception of him had completely changed.

‘He’s truly composed.’

This was the attitude expected of a true member of the Pablo family, someone destined to spend their life on the battlefield.

Bastian had a strong instinct that this boy, the son of a mere maid, would one day lead the future of the Pablo family.

Meanwhile, as Killian basked in Bastian’s expectant gaze, his mind was elsewhere.

‘…I wonder if the beds here are soft? They’d better let me sleep for at least 12 hours a day.’

Despite the weight of destiny hanging over him, Killian was preoccupied with entirely different thoughts.