There was a heavy moment of silence in the room. Ian just waited, watching his aunt sob, not knowing what to say at first.

​After a few moments, he caught Tracy’s eye and discreetly signaled for her to leave them alone. Tracy nodded in understanding and quietly slipped out the door, closing it softly behind her.

​Ian then walked over to the bed and sat down next to his aunt. He gently placed his hand over hers. "There is no need to blame yourself, Aunty. You didn’t know who he truly was. Don’t push yourself too hard," Ian said, his voice soft and comforting.

​Martha looked up, meeting his gaze. Her golden eyes were brimming with tears. "Sniff... You are taking this news quite well. I thought you were going to get angry at me and throw a fit like you did back there in the hall," she said, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

​"Well, you did just lecture me about not getting angry so easily," Ian replied with a light chuckle, awkwardly scratching his cheek.

​Martha just stared at him, and a small, genuine smile finally broke through her sorrow. "But still... you should at least show some emotion. Why are you comforting me when I am the one at fault?" she asked.

​’Well, I already guessed it was Uncle Alarick who wanted me dead the second I got here. That’s why this news isn’t much of a shock to me,’ Ian thought, looking at his aunt with sympathy. ’But to her... realizing that her own husband killed her brother, and likely orchestrated the murder of Jacob’s wife too if she thinks about it deeply? That is a massive, life-shattering blow.’

​"To tell you the truth, Aunty, I am angry. But what would throwing a tantrum do for us in this situation?" Ian said calmly. "All I know is that you were in the dark. Let’s just focus on figuring out how to stop him first."

​"The way you talk... you sound like someone much older. It is totally different from how you acted this morning. There is no way a teenager changes this much from just one pep talk," Martha noted, her sharp spymaster instincts momentarily cutting through her grief. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

​"Well... I’m just a very good listener, that’s all. Ha-ha!" Ian deflected, feeling slightly flustered by her sharp observation. "Anyway, Aunty, how much concrete evidence do you actually have on him? And does Uncle Jacob know?"

​"I don’t have much physical evidence. It is mostly just strong assumptions and connecting the dots," she admitted with a sigh. "And as for telling Jacob... I don’t want to add more pressure on him. He already has enough problems on his plate."

​"I see," Ian murmured. He leaned in, his expression turning dead serious. "Then, forgive me for being blunt, Aunty, but... have you tried just killing him? Since he is a normal human and not an Aura User or a Mage like us, it should be easy, right?"

​Martha stared at Ian, her eyes widening in absolute shock.

​"Don’t get me wrong, Aunty, but the guy murdered my father and will most likely try to kill me too if given the chance," Ian justified coldly.

​"I know that! But I am just shocked hearing those words come so casually out of your mouth," Martha exhaled, looking down at her lap. "And it’s not like the thought hasn’t crossed my mind."

​"Then why didn’t you do it?" Ian pressed.

​"Because of his family. We might hold the same nobility rank, but his family has been established here for more than five decades. If they find out we killed him—especially without any concrete evidence—it would lead to massive political problems," Martha explained. "I bet his family originally sent him here to marry me hoping he would be killed, giving them an excuse to declare a territorial war on us. They probably never expected him to survive this long, which is why they are getting impatient now."

​"Now that I think about it, that does make sense," Ian nodded. "But what if we just make it look like a tragic accident?"

​Martha gave Ian a flat stare. "You really are a greenhorn in how this world works, aren’t you? As I said earlier, their family is old. That means they can have at least one or two Mages in their ranks, and Mages are really mysterious. You should know that high-ranking Mages can actually project or view the final moments of a deceased person’s life and catch the culprit in no time. That magic is one of the main reasons the assassination and crime rate among nobles in the Capital is so rare and they used assassination on us because they know no mage would help us. "

​"I see..." Ian muttered, realizing his modern logic didn’t account for magical forensics. "Then, if we want to kill him, we need to be strong enough to wipe out his entire family too, just in case they try to use it as an excuse for territorial war right."

​"Exactly. But that is wishful thinking," she said, waving her hand dismissively. "The best we can do is try to hire some powerful mercenaries with a crazy amount of money, like you suggested earlier."

​"Then what if I told you that we can become that powerful? Powerful enough to make sure no noble house ever looks down on us again," Ian said, his golden eyes burning with absolute certainty.

​Martha just stared at Ian for a second before bursting into a soft laugh. "You got me good there. For a second, I thought you were actually serious."

​But Ian didn’t laugh. He kept his serious gaze fixed on her. "I am serious," Ian said.

​He stood up, walked over to the desk drawer, and picked up a sharp hunting knife.

​’Sigh... people in this family really don’t believe me unless I have to stab myself. How many times have I done this now?’ Ian thought wearily.

​"If you were serious, you would..." Martha stopped mid-sentence as she saw the glint of steel. "Hey, what are you doing with that kni—"

​She stopped talking completely as Ian, without a single warning, plunged the blade directly into his own thigh.

​DING! A loud, metallic chime echoed in the room. The sharp steel completely deflected off Ian’s bare skin,leaving a white mark.

​Martha just sat there on the bed, completely dazed, staring blankly at the spot where the blade had failed to pierce him.

​"Now do you see what I was talking about?" Ian smiled, tossing the knife onto the desk. "You can get this strong too. If you trust me, nobody in this kingdom will ever look down on the Thorne family again. What do you say?"