"A bow?" someone in the meeting room muttered, surprised.
The old man who looked like a monk scoffed. His eyes began to glow a deep indigo. He stared intently at the bow...
Suddenly, he shut his eyes and coughed up a mouthful of blood, making everyone turn to him in alarm.
"... I can't even evaluate its physical structure. It's definitely on a whole different level..." he muttered, trembling, as blood streamed from his eyes like tears.
The officer at the center spoke up again: "Like I said before. Anyway, the main issue is that this artifact didn't come from a mission, but from the Chromaraic God's Training Array."
Everyone listened in shock. That Array always gave out random rewards. Sometimes, even someone who barely made it to the second floor would get great items. But nothing this insane had ever come out of it.
"Well, that means the other empires won't ever hear about it," Freon said, almost laughing. "A bow is for long-range attacks, which fits perfectly with my clan's other artifact. I'm sure we all understand each other, right?"
No one said anything. The artifact that gave the Red River Pact clan its name was one that created a domain, strengthening allies and weakening enemies. A long-range attack-focused bow was the perfect match for it.
The officer snorted. "True. But... according to the rules, the owner of the bow has to agree."
"Some random rookie isn't a problem. I'll pay..."
Freon cut off his own words as he realized something. Only rookies could access the Array. And the only rookie lately was...
Everyone turned at the same time.
Their eyes landed on the small group from the minor clan — people who weren't even supposed to be there. Now it all made sense.
"Yes, the rookie Darian returned from the Array recently and brought this back," the officer confirmed. "The rules are absolute. He's the owner and decides what happens to it."
Everyone fell into deep thought. The main reason that rule existed was because all the Array's rewards were automatically bound to the person who received them, by the Array's own power.
In the past, the Empire tried to force rookies to give up their items. But because of that binding, if the owner didn't do it willingly, weird things happened... it was like a curse hit the item. It would end up destroyed, often killing whoever tried to take it.
So, to avoid those issues, the Empire made this rule. But... nothing on this level had ever shown up before.
"Young man, do you understand how important this is to all of us?" the high-ranking officer asked loudly, looking right at Darian.
Darian smiled slightly and nodded.
"I understand. I don't intend to keep it."
Everyone let out a quiet sigh of relief. Smart move. He was the owner, but if he refused to hand it over, his life would become hell, with the Empire pressuring him until he gave it up "willingly."
"But..." Darian continued, cutting off everyone's relief, "I guess selling it for a fair price is out of the question, huh?"
The officer snorted. Of course — there wasn't even a way to put a price on it. "What do you suggest?"
Darian smiled. "I don't care much about rewards. Since it's something so valuable, we should choose who gets it based on merit, right? If it feels fair to me..."
"Who cares what you think?" Freon cut in coldly. "My clan having it benefits the entire Empire. We'll pay any valid reward you want. Don't be childish — your little fight with my son doesn't matter to me or to the Empire. Let's handle this like adults."
Everyone nodded. That officer had only called this meeting because everyone knew about Darian's fight with Raon. He wasn't going to hand the artifact over to Freon easily, so other clans might try to use the situation to get the bow for themselves.
If that happened, the Empire wouldn't complain. After all, giving too much power to a single clan wasn't a good idea. Human greed had no limits — they might start thinking they were bigger than the Empire itself.
"Oh? Very mature," Darian said softly, his eyes glowing with a crazy red light. Rhea saw it and nearly jumped — that was a clear sign he was about to cause trouble.
"Then let's do it fairly and maturely, just like you said. I'll give it to you for free. All you have to do is kneel in front of me, beg for forgiveness, and, as compensation, cut off your son's head."
"YOU! YOU DAMN BRAT!" Freon roared.
Darian mocked him: "What's wrong? I'm being reasonable here. An honorable general doesn't have a scumbag son. Your son's just a reflection of who you are. Forgiving you would be like slapping myself in the face."
The clan leader narrowed his eyes, clearly losing his patience. Everyone in the room broke into a cold sweat. That leader always let his vice handle things because he was notoriously impatient and explosive. Once he got pissed... chaos was guaranteed.
Now, he'd finally found someone just as crazy as he was.
"Young Darian," the officer quickly cut in, "You and Raon are both young. Maybe he was at fault during that mission that caused a death..."
"No, I'm not talking about that," Darian interrupted firmly. "That bastard has a past with me and my family. Before I awakened, we lived in the same city..."
His eyes turned cold, full of hatred. Everyone in the room understood instantly, knowing Raon's history. "I'll only settle that debt when I kill him."
"You pathetic bastard! Think a nobody like you can just go around threatening whoever you want?!" Freon roared.
Darian spat to the side. "We'll see about that soon enough. I want to see how long he stays alive. Honestly, I'd rather kill him with my own hands."
"You..." The muscular man next to Freon finally spoke.
Instantly, the whole room seemed to heat up. Everyone started struggling to breathe, the air burning like fire in their lungs.
"Huh? You trying to bargain now?" Darian mocked, completely unfazed. "Alright then. Kick father and son out of your clan, strip them of all their belongings and resources. Let them survive from scratch on their own. That'd be way more fun for me. What do you think? Fair enough, right?"
The man stared straight into his eyes, breathing heavily. He clenched his fists, clearly trying hard not to kill Darian right there.
"Darian," the officer calmly stepped in again, "be reasonable. The whole Empire stands to gain a lot if you hand it over. Leave your personal issues aside for now. Just tell us what you want in return..."
"Alright," Darian replied quickly with a smile, "I don't want anything... Actually, I got it. Let's do something fun to decide who gets it. Everyone here should have a fair shot."
He said it with a grin, and everyone in the meeting immediately perked up. If they could get their hands on that bow... it'd be like rising straight to the heavens in status within the Empire.