Chapter 545: The Dragon Mark Ceremony III

Her very long golden hair fell down her back over her white clothes and reached almost to her waist, the beauty of her face was not the kind that made her look delicate or harmless.

On the contrary, the calmness of her face, the sharp lines of her gaze, and the way she stood made her look more like something complete and dangerous.

Her formal white clothes were decorated with thin black and gold lines.

She did not wear a large crown, only a thin golden piece among her hair, but just as Rhaenar did not need a crown to show his position, Isolde did not need one either.

If Rhaenar was a mountain that did not hide its own weight but did not need to move either, Isolde was more like a blade that was still inside its sheath.

Beauty was the first thing that caught the eye, power was what could be felt behind it a few moments later.

Lian did not keep his gaze on her for too long.

Even so, among thousands of people, Isolde looked directly toward his section for a moment.

It was only one second, and then her gaze moved away.

He said nothing, but he was almost certain that yesterday’s conversation with Rhaenar was no longer only between him and Seris’s father.

It seemed that the Matriarch of the family also knew about the conversation, and God knew how she felt about her possible son-in-law.

Rhaenar walked to the edge of the main stage.

"Twenty-five years ago, the generation before you stood before this same Mark."

There was no long introduction.

"Some of them are not here today."

Several faces in the Pendragon section became more serious for a moment.

"Some became commanders, some are responsible for our territories, and some are the fathers and mothers of those whose names we will hear today."

His gaze moved across the younger generation of the family.

"The new Ruined Realm has opened, and now it is your turn."

That was all.

He took one step back and sat on one of the two thrones with his wife, short and organized applause spread across the field, and then the ceremony entered its first part.

The young members of the Pendragon family were introduced one after another.

Not all of them were geniuses, some were introduced because of their fast growth, some for saving members of their groups, and some for finding important routes in the new Ruined Realm.

Some were introduced for successfully leading operations where not even one person had died.

Names were called, achievements were announced, the people went onto the stage, received their recognition, and returned.

Lian did not remember every detail, but he paid enough attention to better understand the structure of the new generation of the Pendragons.

Then the ceremony host paused and the atmosphere in the field became quieter.

"And now, the five outstanding members of the current generation of the Pendragon Family."

This time, even many of the powerful guests paid more attention.

The first name. Tristan Pendragon.

A young man who was even younger than most of the people who had been introduced.

He had light brown hair and a younger-looking face, but the presence of his Mana did not match his appearance.

The short report of the ceremony focused more on his fast growth and two rescue operations in the new Ruined Realm, in one of those operations he had rescued another group from being surrounded by several monsters.

Lian gave him a short look, he was definitely someone the Pendragons were counting on for the future.

The second person, Lysandra Pendragon.

A girl with dark hair tied behind her head, her behavior was so organized that even when she stepped forward to receive her recognition, she did not make any unnecessary movement.

Her achievements were more related to command than raw power.

Several difficult exploration operations, almost no deaths, and fast decision-making.

The third name was enough to make the young man who had given Lian several cold looks since the beginning of the ceremony stand up.

Caelen Pendragon.

One of the strongest direct fighters of the new generation, with the highest number of recorded hunts among people his age in the past few months.

Very strong performance in long battles, an aggressive fighting style, and from the way he walked, it was clear that he did not dislike the attention he was receiving.

As he passed, his short gaze stopped on Lian again, and his hostility was even clearer this time.

This time, Lian did not even bother to react, all of their achievements looked pale and ordinary in his eyes.

The fourth person, Lucien Pendragon.

When he entered, the reaction of the field was a little different, there was more respect and more controlled applause.

Lucien was older than the previous three and it was clear that his position among the new generation was already established.

He had a calm face and silver hair, movements without hurry, and almost everything could be seen in the report of his achievements.

Power, command, exploration, several important hunts, and before another name appeared, many people considered him the most natural choice for the heir.

Then the four of them stood in their assigned places.

The fifth place remained empty, no one asked why, almost everyone knew what name was left.

The ceremony host waited for a few seconds and then said.

"And the final member—"

The weak noise of the crowd itself became silent.

"Seris Pendragon."

Before Lian saw her, he noticed the different silence in the field.

Then the gate of the inner section opened and Seris walked out, her clothes were different from all the formal clothes of the women he had seen today. ℴ

No long and heavy dress that limited her movement, no excessive decorations.

A combination of white and black with very few golden lines, a design that belonged to the formal clothes of the family but was still made for someone who needed to be able to move and even fight in it.

Her hair had been arranged, but not in a way that changed her personality, her face had the same cold calmness as always, the same gaze and the same controlled steps.

But Lian noticed another change during those first few steps.

She had become stronger, he could not put a number on it from such a long distance, but the presence of this girl had become so powerful and destructive, that it was clear she still did not know how to control it.

During the time she had been in isolation, it was clear that she had not only returned to her previous peak, but had gone beyond it.

Seris first stood before Rhaenar and Isolde’s stage, lowered her head respectfully, and then turned toward the crowd.

The applause was louder than for the previous four, even many of the guests outside the family were watching her carefully.

The Jewel of the Pendragon Family.

A name he had heard many times during these past few months.

But what caught Lian’s attention was her gaze, she looked across the crowd once, from the right, the representatives of the associations, and several times toward the Vorhelm section, as if she was looking for someone among them.

When she could not find the person she was looking for, for a moment her face became colder and more indifferent instead of showing disappointment.

But before she completely moved her gaze away, she also looked toward the front, where the stage was closer, and her gaze stopped directly on Lian.

She only looked at him for maybe one second, but all of that coldness and complete indifference disappeared.

No big smile appeared, Seris was still Seris, but her gaze became softer.

Then she lowered her head just a little, a greeting that probably most of the people present did not even notice.

Lian answered just as briefly.

A few seconds later, she moved her gaze away and went to her place.

They had seen each other again.

But on the other side of the field, not everyone was indifferent, Caelen briefly looked between Seris and Lian, and this time his jaw became slightly tighter.

The other two young Pendragons also exchanged a few quiet words, apparently that one-second greeting meant much more to those who knew Seris well than it should have.

After the introductions ended, the atmosphere of the field changed.

The main part of the ceremony was beginning.

The six rings around the altar lit up at the same time with a weak golden light.

A deep sound passed through the stones beneath the field and the Dragon Mark rose a few centimeters higher.

The golden lines on its black surface moved slowly.

The ceremony host said.

"Every generation, the members who are considered worthy of standing before the Dragon Mark will make the family oath."