Under The Veil of Night

The previous day

Jay looked towards the paper in his hand with a complicated expression. He had heard that his father’s condition was not that good, so they had to be prepared for his passing. Never did he think that it would happen so quickly and suddenly.

"Young Master, are you alright?" At his side, Vero was asking with a wary tone. He was the Jay’s trusted attendant and in this clan, he always took care of this young master.

Jay nodded his head. "Where’s my brother?"

"Young Master Roy is in the hall. He’s complaining about the appointment of Master Ren to be the next clan head," Vero answered with a low tone.

Jay frowned when he heard that. He knew that his brother always treated the seat of Souhon Clan Head as something that would belong to him. However, the decision from their father should be final and there was no way it would change.

"Let’s try to talk with him," Jay stood up.

Vero nodded his head cautiously. Ever since the dispute several months ago, Jay already started to be braver and faced the problems they had little by little. Although it couldn’t be compared with his brother, who seemed to be extremely brave, Jay had involved himself in the matter of the clan more.

He still had a rather soft heart, which was completely unsuitable for their clan. In addition, he had an inferiority complex as he was always being compared with his brother. Jay never had any confidence to face his brother.

Inside the hall, Master Ren and Roy were facing each other.

"Master Ren, what is the meaning of this?" Roy asked with a thunderous voice. "Why is it that an outsider can gain the position as the clan head while the direct descendants cannot?"

Master Ren stood calmly. "This is the decision your father made before his death. You two are too young, so he doesn’t want you to hold the position as the Clan Head."

"You!" Roy shouted angrily. This position should be his! He was the first son and there was no way his useless brother could take care of the clan. Why did it change to this middle-aged man?

"You can go back to your training now and reflect on why your father didn’t choose you," Master Ren waved his hand.

Roy’s eyes turned red in anger. He recalled his father and how the latter seemed to always feel dissatisfaction towards him. He thought that it was only because his father has too high of an expectation. He didn’t think that it would end like this.

He laughed eerily. "What reflect? Don’t tell me that father never wanted me to succeed him and wants my useless brother to take his position. Am I right?"

Jay looked at his brother with widened eyes. He looked towards the two of them with a confused expression. Having just arrived in the room, he couldn’t understand why he was being accused like that.

"Your father has his expectation for you, but you can’t reach it," Master Ren answered calmly.

Roy shook his head as he pointed towards Master Ren and walked backward step by step. Rage filled his eyes as he glared at the people inside the room. "You’re the one who tells my father that I’m unsuitable just so you can become the clan leader. Don’t you dare tell me I can’t reach my father’s expectation!"

He ran outside angrily while Master Ren sighed to himself. It was not like their father didn’t want them to succeed, but they were just not qualified. After the test they conducted, they knew that Roy would bring their clan into a huge disaster while Jay couldn’t be compared with the other young masters.

This left the clan head in a dilemma. In the end, he had to ask Master Ren to replace his position as the clan head until one of them was ready to be his successor.

"Young Master Jay, is there anything you need?" Master Ren asked.

Jay looked towards Master Ren with question marks on his face. "Am I still the young master? Shouldn’t your descendants be the young masters?"

"I don’t have any sons, so you two are still the next in line for the clan head position," Master Ren answered composedly. "I’m just worried that Young Master Roy won’t be able to hold his temper."

"Clan Head, Young Master Roy has escaped!"

"Jay, you can have some rest first. I’ll take care of the matter," Master Ren said in a firm tone.

Jay shook his head. "I don’t want to run away anymore. Even if I’m weak, I can’t just let my brother destroy the clan. Let me come with you and chase after my brother."

Master Ren looked towards the young man before him. Jay had been trying his best to suppress his fear towards his brother and step forward to contribute more and more. However, his ability was not up to par yet and his soft heart made it difficult for them to allow him to become the clan leader.

"Prepare your sword, Jay. I’m afraid the matter won’t be this simple."

"Yes."

...

At this point, Roy already escaped and disappeared into the streets. He was very familiar with the area because he had been learning to deal with the matters of the clan from a young age. He was trained by his father to become the future successor of the clan, and he believed that it was his position.

He closed his eyes as he thought about what his father always told him in the past.

’You have to conduct yourself well. You’re the future successor of the Souhon Clan.’

However, when he tried to take over things, his father started to lessen his support. He didn’t understand. What did he do wrong? Everything he did was a mistake in front of his father, and he didn’t know what to do anymore.

"Since you already threw me away, I will take things by force. Don’t blame me, Father," Roy’s eyes glinted with determination as he stepped forward into the group of people he had gathered.

"Master, what is it?" one of the men asked.

They were all his loyal supporters that he had gathered over the years. Many of them were excellent fighters that would not lose easily even against him. This time, he would deploy them all.

"I want to take back the position of Clan Head. Are you all with me?" Roy asked with a firm tone.

"Of course, I will follow you until the end."

"The position belongs to you, Master. There’s nothing wrong with taking it back."

"I will definitely follow you."

Roy nodded his head as his eyes glinted in ruthlessness. "Let’s start our move. Our target is the necklace Master Ren wears. It’s the mark of the successor of the Souhon Clan."

One of the men smirked. "Don’t we need to eliminate the other obstacles too? I believe the other clans are going to interfere in this matter if they hear about it."

Roy recalled Kevin and the others. They were Jay’s friends, and he knew that it wouldn’t be good for him if the Ryukalin Clan got involved. The difference in their fighting ability would be too apparent.

"You take care of the other clans."

"Sure, Master."

Roy tapped his sword. "You gather more people to follow after me."

"Alright, I’ll do that."

"And you will lead our people to launch an attack on the headquarters with me."

"Aye, Master."

"Let’s move."