Chapter 141: Rite of Passage [12]

Yves had just defeated two out of the four strongest contestants in the Rite of Passage within the span of two hours.

It was something unexpected because no one really expected anything from him.

Whether he would perform well or not.

Yet here he was, defeating his siblings, who had spent two years training while he had only awakened two months ago.

It was absurd.

It sounded impossible.

But everyone in the hall had seen it happen live with their own eyes.

Even if some of them disliked Yves, they had to acknowledge what he had just accomplished.

Yves had done the impossible.

They could no longer take him lightly.

"But why did Siegfried act that way? It was almost as if Yves said something he didn’t like," Jean-Marc said in confusion.

The people around him nodded.

They were all asking the same question.

"That is because he has a mental-type ability."

Everyone’s head snapped toward the person who had just spoken.

It was Altair.

"A mental-type ability?" Andromeda muttered.

"Yes." Altair nodded. "That is the only reasonable explanation for Siegfried to completely abandon all reason and give up fighting."

The Greatest Assassin paused briefly before continuing.

"Whatever he said to Siegfried seemed to have influenced his mind and filled him with fear. More importantly, as we all witnessed, Yves had to touch him first. So I can conclude that his ability only works through physical contact."

Altair didn’t speak again, but his words remained stuck in everyone’s heads.

"If that’s true, then it makes sense why Siegfried behaved so strangely."

"Damn. Not only can he create constructs made of darkness and teleport through shadows, but he can also inflict mental attacks on others?"

A man with a peanut-brown complexion said this in shock.

His body was so muscular that the chair he was sitting on looked like a baby chair beneath him.

He was Jian Cloete Laurent, a cousin of the Duke.

"What kind of crazy Main Story does he have to awaken such abilities?" Jian asked.

Laporta, who wore a serious expression as he sat beside him, replied.

"I don’t know, brother, but whatever it is, it can only mean one thing—"

"—he has a Legendary Grade Main Story."

Lara finished for him.

Everyone went silent after hearing those words.

Not because they didn’t believe it.

But because it sounded right.

Everything Yves had done reflected the quality one would expect from someone with a Legendary Grade Main Story.

If that was true, then Yves would become the fifth child of this generation to possess a Story of such a grade.

The oldest was Josh.

Then Siegfried.

Arnold.

And now Yves.

Five in total who wielded Legendary Grade Main Stories.

And what did that mean?

It meant that the future generation was looking very promising for the Laurents.

There were so many talents rising, and not only among those with Legendary Grade Main Stories.

Throughout the earlier generations, the Laurent House had struggled to produce many exceptional talents. Only a few had truly stood out, including the Duke, some of his siblings, and others.

The number of talented children being born into the family had been diminishing for years.

That had made the older generation worried about the future of the house while the other great families continued doing far better.

But now, that feeling of worry was beginning to disappear.

It had started with the birth of Van Der Vaal’s first child.

Then his younger siblings.

And now Yves.

That meant they had to protect these children at all costs until they fully matured.

The thought of Yves being trash had already disappeared from everyone’s minds.

The family only cared about strength, and after what Yves had just shown, there was no doubt that he possessed it.

This was how the family worked.

You showed strength, and they valued you.

You showed weakness, and they wouldn’t even look at you.

However, Jean-Marc had other thoughts.

"I actually think that this kid might have a... Mythic Grade Story."

Everyone’s eyes moved toward him.

Even the Duke, whose eyes had never left the screen, turned toward him.

"You’re stretching it, Jeanie."

Andromeda glared at him and crossed her arms.

"Don’t call me that."

Jean-Marc snorted.

"You’re overestimating the kid, brother," Jian said. "He is not that type of talent."

"Just because he suddenly defeated almost half of his siblings after awakening two months ago doesn’t mean that he has a Mythic Grade Story."

Laporta frowned and clasped his hands over his crossed leg. ℴ

More people started talking about the crazy statement Jean-Marc had just made.

They weren’t unreasonable for disagreeing with him.

In order for someone to awaken a Mythic Grade Main Story, they had to be extremely lucky.

But even if they had luck, it wouldn’t guarantee that they would awaken one.

It depended heavily on the will of the God of Stories, who watched over everything that happened in this world.

Such people were so rare that throughout the generations, their numbers could be counted on two hands.

That was how rare they were.

And in the Laurent family, only one person had ever awakened such a powerful Story.

The founder of the house.

Since then, no one had ever awakened another Story of such a grade within the family.

It was said that the reason the Laurents were so powerful was because their founder had awakened such a Story.

Someone who awakened a Mythic Grade Main Story was believed to be someone destined to change history and the world.

Many believed that the God of Stories purposely bestowed such power upon those people because of that.

"Then what else would explain his preposterous amount of mana and his unbelievable regeneration?"

Jean-Marc raised an eyebrow as he looked around.

"You’re not going to tell me that it comes from having a Legendary Grade Main Story, because if it did, then the kids he just fought should have displayed the same thing instead of losing that easily."

Jean-Marc wasn’t just talking for the sake of talking.

Yves had just displayed some ridiculous feats.

"Plus, he stepped into the awakening world only two months ago. Are those not already good reasons?"

The hall went quiet.

Jean-Marc continued.

"We’ve also heard the rumors that the other families potentially have children who awakened Mythic Grade Main Stories. So why are we completely shutting down the idea that our family could have birthed one as well instead of at least hoping for it?"

Andromeda, who had listened to him, opened her mouth.

"It’s not that we are doubting the possibility. It’s the fact that he hasn’t really shown the main characteristic of a Mythic Grade Main Story."

She paused.

"Influencing the world."

The world of Estoria was built upon stories.

There were more than a billion stories, and each single day, new stories continued to be created.

But within the world of Stories, there were particular ones that behaved differently from the others.

The Mythic ones.

The reason they were different was because they could influence the real world when used.

For example, someone who had a Mythic Grade Main Story related to Life could make those surrounded by them healthy and full of energy, removing even sickness from people who had been ill for a long time.

They could even bring life to a dead forest that had been deemed unsalvageable.

That was how such Stories worked.

Yves had not shown such characteristics so far.

Jean-Marc sighed and nodded.

"Maybe I am indeed overestimating him."

"We don’t blame you, brother," Jian said.

"And if he does indeed have one, we can test his Main Story rank after the Rite of Passage. Everyone has already been tested except for him."

Everyone nodded in agreement and looked back at the screen, where Yves was shown sleeping on the floor.

Meanwhile, Ezio was having the best time of his life seeing the different expressions on the faces of his fellow Shadow Guardians.

Of course, this was all happening inwardly.

He still had to maintain his cold expression.

"How does he get Shadow Step that easily when we had to go through a hard time just to get it?" some of the Guardians asked with a frown.

It felt unfair to them, seeing some kid who hadn’t gone through the horrific trials they themselves had experienced just to awaken it.

Ezio felt the same way.

But there was nothing he could do about it.

He wasn’t the one who decided who got what and who didn’t.

"Just kill yourself and meet the God of Stories in the afterlife. Then you can ask him why."

Ezio said it sarcastically.

The rest of the Guardians simply glared at him.

Ah, shit, Yves. Please win this... I’m hours away from becoming rich.

Ezio was already imagining himself buying every type of food he could think of with the money he would earn.

At the dais, Van Der Vaal sat alongside his wives and concubine.

The third wife leaned toward the second wife and whispered with amusement.

"Aww, what a shame. Both your sons were eliminated."

She smiled.

"You must be fuming right now, especially knowing that they fell by the hands of the trash."

The second wife didn’t react at all.

She didn’t even turn her head.

"Unlike you, I don’t expect my children just to win. I also expect them to lose."

She paused, her grip on the armrest tightening.

"There are always unknown variables, after all, and Yves was just that."

Viviana’s expression remained calm.

"There is always someone stronger."

She paused again.

"I would be lying if I said that I’m not even a bit upset, but it is what it is."

The second wife frowned in displeasure.

Only after a few moments did she finally turn her head toward Antonia.

Then Viviana smiled coldly.

"You better hope your children do their best to defeat him because he is coming for them."

Her smile widened slightly.

"And since they have always shown animosity toward him, I bet he would do something worse than cutting their limbs off."

"They won’t lose to your children."

Antonia scoffed, though there was slight unease in her tone.

"Hehe~"

A sudden laugh made both wives look to their left.

Yversa, who was sitting beside Antonia, had her face completely red.

She covered her mouth with her slender left hand as she giggled.

Noticing their stares, Yversa looked at them.

"What?"

She tilted her head innocently.

"Can’t a mother be happy for her son’s achievements?"