Chapter 37: Harsh Reality!

"Do you believe in magic?"

Just as he had asked Elena if she knew what mana was, Ethan planned to use their curiosity to win them over.

Walking toward the table, his eyes scanned everyone present.

From the angry George to the expectant Christian and even the curious Emilia, all eyes were on Ethan.

Waiting, they all wanted to know what this future patriarch was about to say.

Fortunately, Ethan didn’t plan to keep them waiting long; he already had an idea.

Feeling the mana circulating in his heart, Ethan felt confident.

"Listen everyone, I’m sure you all remember what happened on Grandpa’s birthday."

"The attack by that fanatic Marcus."

"What do you think about the strength both of us displayed? Do you think that was normal?" said Ethan.

"Wait a minute! Are you trying to say you and that lunatic both used magic?"

"Isn’t magic like pulling a rabbit out of a hat or making a pair of cards disappear?"

Sneering on the side, George wondered if his brother was alright.

Could this kid have tricked him?

If so, he wondered how Ethan did it and if he should focus on taking him out to secure his position as patriarch.

Yes, even with a gun pointed at him, George had not given up his goal of becoming head of the Smith family.

And the others, although not quite as cynical as George, hearing Ethan suddenly talking about magic, couldn’t help but wonder the same thing.

After all, after that day, using each of their own resources, they all launched various kinds of investigations.

However, none of them yielded true results.

If there was something like magic, they felt they would be the first to know.

’Tch, look at these guys, thinking they know everything.’

’I can’t wait to see the look on their faces when Brother shows them his strength.’

Covering her lips with her hands, Elena stifled her snicker as she looked at the people around her.

She couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride that out of everyone, apart from her brother, she was the first to know.

And speaking of her brother, since he helped her awaken mana, Elena felt that she was much stronger.

After this, she silently told herself she must challenge Ethan to another duel.

’Hunh?’

’Why do I sense a sudden chill?’

Feeling a burning gaze on him, he turned only to find Elena pointing at him in a fighting pose.

Looking at her like this, he could already tell what she meant.

Unfortunately, he had no plans to spar with her soon, as right now he had more important things to do.

Facing George who had interrupted his words, Ethan smiled. In fact, he had hoped someone would jump out in disbelief.

That would make his next actions more dramatic.

"Grandpa George, I know you doubt my words, but that makes sense."

"You see, if I hadn’t experienced it personally myself, I would have just been like you," said Ethan, his eyes shining brightly.

"A few weeks ago, I awakened an ability called Library of the World."

"An ability that allows me to access all kinds of knowledge of the world."

"Unfortunately, while my rank is still too low to browse the highly sensitive and more detailed information, I was able to find out two things."

"One is that on the first of this coming new year, the world is going to end!"

Hearing this, everyone was shocked, even Elena and the others.

You know Ethan only told them the apocalypse was coming soon, but he never told them when.

Hearing that it was on New Year’s Day, how could they not be shocked?

However, Ethan wasn’t done yet.

Dropping one bombshell, he didn’t give them any chance to react.

"And the second thing I learned was magic! And how to train it!"

Stretching out his hand, Ethan began to use the ability he had just acquired from the Clown.

Gathering the mana in his heart and moving it into his brain, he began to activate his low-level illusion magic.

"Just like you said, magic can be like pulling a rabbit out of a hat," he said, conjuring an illusory hat and rabbit in his hand.

"Or it can be used to summon flames, lightning!"

"It’s even possible to use it to increase your strength, just like you saw with Marcus!"

As Ethan spoke, the illusions in his hands began to change, leaving everyone stunned.

Even though their eyes were seeing it, they still found it hard to believe.

How could a human being possess such power?

"This... how is this possible..." muttered Emilia, unable to believe her eyes.

"The Blue Star as we know it is about to be flooded with a new kind of energy called mana."

"With it, people will begin to awaken all sorts of abilities, animals will mutate, and all manner of otherworldly beings will descend."

"In such an era, the wealth and money we Smiths have will be worth nothing."

"Only true strength can survive."

Remembering the time he had experienced in his past life, Ethan felt his words were an understatement.

"It will be a world where a mother can sell her daughter for a loaf of bread."

"A world where the top models and beauty stars will sell themselves to the ugliest of men for a drop of water."

"A world where governments will fall and order is nonexistent."

"Such a world is the apocalypse."

Hearing this, everyone fell into a trance.

They seemed to see the Blue Star as a whole covered in blood-red clouds as screams of terror and despair became the norm of the land.

For a while, everyone was silent, faces were pale, and mouths were left wide open.

If such a world was truly going to come, then even if they prepared all they could, would it still be enough?

This was the question everyone asked themselves.

And sensing this doubt, Ethan decided to strike the iron while it was hot.

"However, you all do not need to worry much."

"With the knowledge from the Library of the World, not only am I sure I can lead the Smith family to safety in the apocalypse..."

"But if you all believe in me and follow me, the Smith family will not only surpass our peak, but will reach heights that none of you could ever imagine."

"While this is a disaster for the world, it is an opportunity for my Smith family!"