Chapter 151: Ongoing Talks

Chapter 151: Chapter 151: Ongoing Talks

Damon didn’t get angry.

He understood why they were reacting like this.

If he were in their position, he probably wouldn’t believe it either.

They had known him as the useless Calloway heir.

The boy without an elemental affinity.

The family failure.

That was the Damon they remembered.

What they didn’t understand was that things had changed.

And judging from the way the Winterbourne family treated him, it should have been obvious.

Damon glanced around the room.

Nobody here was treating him like a useless noble.

They trusted him.

They listened to him.

They had even allowed him to work directly with the Zone Heart.

The representatives simply hadn’t let go of the past yet.

The sooner they did, the better it would be for them.

And judging from the way they were looking at Caelia now, that moment wasn’t far away.

"Lady Caelia."

One of the representatives leaned forward.

"Please."

Caelia looked at him.

"Please what?"

"Tell us how you found the Zone Heart."

Another quickly added,

"Anything. A clue, a direction, even a small detail could help."

Their earlier arrogance was slowly disappearing.

They were becoming desperate.

"You said the mutation could eventually consume the Zone Heart completely."

Caelia nodded.

"It could."

"Then we don’t have much time."

The man clenched his fists.

"If we waste more time searching, our Zone Heart may be completely corrupted."

"And if that happens," another representative said, "it may become much harder to stabilize."

Caelia didn’t disagree.

They were finally beginning to understand the situation.

But there was still one thing they hadn’t figured out.

They knew Damon had stabilized Frostveil.

They just didn’t know how.

"Then please."

The representative looked at Caelia again.

"Tell us what he did."

Caelia stared at him for a moment.

Then a small smile appeared.

Damon noticed it immediately.

That wasn’t a good sign.

Caelia looked away.

"I don’t know."

The representative froze.

"What?"

"I don’t know."

She said it again, this time with an innocent expression.

The corner of Damon’s mouth lifted.

Caelia continued.

"Damon was the one who stabilized the Zone Heart."

She looked at the representatives.

"You should ask him."

Damon almost laughed.

She was enjoying this.

The representatives knew it too.

Their teeth clenched.

They looked toward Damon.

For a moment, nobody spoke.

Then the Calloway representative took a slow breath.

"Young Master Damon."

The change in his tone was obvious.

Damon raised an eyebrow.

"Yes?"

"We may have misunderstood you."

Damon said nothing.

The man continued.

"Although we once saw you as a failure because you had no elemental affinity, it seems you’ve accomplished something remarkable."

Damon almost smiled.

Once again, they were trying to say something nice without actually admitting they had been wrong.

The representative continued.

"That is why we would like to ask for your assistance."

Damon leaned back.

"With Tempest Hollow?"

"Yes."

"And Haven’s Edge?"

"Yes."

The man nodded quickly.

"And especially the Calloway family."

There it was.

Damon already knew where this was going.

The representative straightened his clothes.

"If you help us solve this crisis, we can speak to the family head on your behalf."

Damon remained quiet.

"We can ask him to take you back into the family."

Another representative joined in.

"You would be given a position suitable for your current achievements."

"And resources."

"Enough resources to support your cultivation."

They continued talking.

A better position.

More resources.

A return to the family.

It sounded generous.

But Damon could hear what they weren’t saying.

They still thought he wanted them.

They thought he was waiting for the Calloway family to accept him again.

They thought this was an opportunity for him to regain what he had lost.

Damon smiled.

The representatives smiled too.

They seemed to think they had succeeded.

Then Damon laughed.

Not loudly.

Just a small laugh at first.

The smiles on their faces disappeared.

Damon laughed again.

This time, he couldn’t hide it.

"You..."

One of the representatives clenched his teeth.

Damon shook his head.

"Sorry."

He wiped the corner of his eye.

"I just didn’t expect that."

Their faces darkened.

"You think this is funny?"

Damon looked at him.

"A little."

The veins on the representative’s forehead became visible.

But he swallowed his anger.

They needed Damon.

That was the problem.

So they endured it.

The Calloway representative took another breath.

"Then listen to us."

His voice was more serious now.

"Tempest Hollow is getting worse."

Damon’s expression settled.

They finally stopped trying to sell him on the Calloway family.

"The zone has already expanded beyond the areas we originally controlled."

The representative continued.

"At first, we were able to contain it."

"Then the beasts began appearing outside the normal boundaries."

"They attacked our defensive lines."

"Some even reached settlements."

Damon listened quietly.

"The number of attacks kept increasing."

Another representative added,

"We reinforced the walls around Haven’s Edge."

"They still broke through."

"More people died."

The room became quiet.

"We moved civilians away from the dangerous areas, but there are too many people and not enough safe places."

The Calloway representative’s voice became heavier.

"Even the mansion has been affected."

Damon’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"The Calloway estate?"

"Yes."

"Several attacks reached the outer defenses."

He lowered his voice.

"We’ve lost people protecting it."

Damon didn’t respond.

The representative continued.

"Tempest Hollow isn’t staying in one place anymore."

"It’s expanding."

"Every time we think we’ve contained it, the boundary moves again."

He looked toward Caelia.

"That’s why your theory matters."

Caelia listened closely.

"If the unstable Aether continues moving between connected zones, then Frostveil won’t remain safe forever."

Caelia’s expression changed.

The representatives continued.

"Your Zone Heart is stable now, but Tempest Hollow is still sending unstable Aether through the connection."

"So if we don’t stop the source..."

He looked around the room.

"...it could eventually reach Frostveil again."

Caelia’s eyes narrowed.

Cornelius’s expression became serious.

The elders exchanged uneasy looks.

Damon remained calm.

The representative nodded.

"That’s what we’re afraid of."

"If Tempest Hollow keeps spreading, other zones could become involved too."

"And once enough zones are connected..."

He didn’t finish.

Nobody needed him to.