Dragon Monarch System Chapter 1154:- Boris and His Two Disciples [iii]; Blood alone did not make someone family

Boris flexed his fingers a few times before letting out a disappointed sigh.

"I’ve gotten old." He looked down at his fists before lightly shaking them.

"My hands are already getting tired." The two brothers nearly burst into tears.

’Master...Please don’t say that this was only your warm-up...’ Boris looked at them again, his expression finally becoming serious.

"Tell me. Why didn’t you two come much earlier?"

"Did the two of you stop respecting your Master after not seeing me for a few decades?" Boris asked as he looked at both of them with narrowed eyes.

Sora and Ritsu instinctively moved closer together. Looking at Boris now, they finally realised that they had expected far too much from this reunion. Before coming here, both of them had imagined that their master would become emotional after seeing them again. They thought there would be warm words, perhaps even a hug after being separated for so many years.

Instead, they had received nothing but punches.

"Answer the question." Boris repeated calmly.

As he spoke, he slowly reached into his Storage Ring and took out a familiar black katana.

The moment Sora and Ritsu saw the sword, their expressions immediately changed. The color drained from their faces, and their bodies instinctively tensed. That black katana was something they could never forget.

During their childhood, whenever Boris felt that ordinary punches were not enough to correct their behavior, he would take out that very sword for their training. The memories of those days had left a deep impression on both of them.

"Master!" Sora quickly raised both hands in surrender. "We’ll answer. We’ll tell you everything."

Ritsu hurriedly nodded beside him.

"Yes! We’ll explain everything. Please put the Black Katana away first." Hearing their immediate response, Boris finally nodded in satisfaction before returning the katana to his Storage Ring.

Now that his two disciples had finally calmed down, they could properly explain why they had waited so many years before coming to see him.

His students were about to explain themselves, but Boris raised his hand, signaling them to stop. This was hardly the right place for such an important conversation. They were still standing outside Axel City with guards and soldiers nearby. Some matters were better discussed in private.

"Follow me."

As soon as those words fell, the three figures disappeared from where they stood. The nearby guards exchanged confused glances, wondering where the trio had gone, but none of them dared to ask.

A few moments later, Boris led Sora and Ritsu to a large lake located south of Axel City. The surroundings were completely quiet, with only the gentle sound of water reaching their ears.

The bright moon hung high in the night sky, its silver light reflecting beautifully across the calm surface of the lake. Several large boulders rested along the shoreline, making the place peaceful and isolated from the rest of the city.

Boris walked toward one of the larger boulders and sat down. After making himself comfortable, he casually waved his hand, signalling the two brothers to sit beside him.

Seeing that simple gesture, both Sora and Ritsu smiled.

For a brief moment, it felt as though they had returned to the days when they trained under Boris. No matter how strict or frightening their master became during training, moments like these reminded them that Boris had always cared deeply for them.

Like two children returning to their father after a long journey, Sora and Ritsu quickly sat down beside him, one on each side, with Boris naturally occupying the middle.

The three quietly looked at the lake for a few moments before Boris finally broke the silence.

"Now tell me everything."

Ritsu remained silent for a short while, his eyes fixed on the moonlight dancing across the lake’s surface. After gathering his thoughts, he slowly began to speak.

"Master, the moment we learned that you were alive and had successfully come out of the Dragon Mountain Range, we wanted to come and see you that very same day."

"But His Majesty gave us a very important task." Sora continued, his expression turning serious. "At the time, we believed it was an urgent matter that could not be delayed. He ordered us to travel to the Frost Mountains and search for a rare magical beast. The heart of that beast was required to create a special type of elixir."

Sora paused for a moment before continuing. "His Majesty repeatedly emphasised that the elixir was extremely important to him and that he needed it as quickly as possible."

"Naturally, we did not question his orders. We thought the mission would only take a few days. Once we completed it, we planned to come here immediately and meet you."

Ritsu let out a helpless sigh before taking over the explanation. "Unfortunately, things did not go as expected."

"After reaching the Frost Mountains, we searched for six straight days but couldn’t find any trace of the magical beast. We covered a large portion of the mountain range, checking every location where it was rumoured to appear, but it was as though the creature had never existed in the first place."

"The harsh weather only made things worse. We spent those six days constantly moving through snow-covered mountains and freezing valleys without finding a single useful clue. Eventually, we decided to take a short break and gather more information before continuing the search."

Ritsu looked toward Boris. "We stopped at a nearby town, hoping someone there might know something about the beast. Instead, that was where we heard the news."

His expression became noticeably heavier. "We learned that the Harrington Household had been attacked... and that Axel City had become the battlefield."

"Only then did we understand that everything had been a deception." Sora said as he clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"The mission was never about finding that magical beast. It was only an excuse to send both of us as far away from the Imperial Capital as possible."

His voice gradually became colder. "Even then, our first thought was to come and see you. However, before we could leave, another National Treasure informed us about one of the clauses within the Soul Binding Contract."

"The contract clearly states that during a civil war, or any situation equivalent to one, the National Treasures are permitted to fight only alongside the legitimate Emperor. However, if they believe the Emperor himself is in the wrong, they are forbidden from supporting either side. In that situation, they must remain completely neutral and continue fulfilling their original responsibility of defending the Empire’s borders against outside threats."

Both brothers fell silent for a moment.

Then Sora’s expression twisted with anger. "That bastard tricked us."

There was no longer any respect left in his voice when referring to Ren. There was only hatred.

"If we had known those clauses from the beginning, we never would have stained our hands carrying out his orders. We would never have bent our own morals believing we were protecting the Empire."

They had faithfully carried out every task Ren entrusted to them because they believed they were honoring Boris’s final wishes. They had convinced themselves that every difficult decision, every compromise, and every order they disliked was necessary for the stability of the Empire.

Now they realized they had merely been used. They had been used by the very person they had believed they were protecting.

Ritsu’s expression was no better. His eyes were filled with barely restrained fury.

"It was only recently that we finally learned the truth." His voice trembled with anger. "His Highness Aditya was never exiled by His Majesty Alen."

"He was exiled by Ren."

"Ren controlled His Majesty Alen’s mind and used him to issue the Imperial decree."

Sora lowered his head, his fists trembling uncontrollably.

"We trusted him. We thought we were protecting the Master’s family."

A bitter smile appeared on his face. "But all this time, we were protecting the man who destroyed it."

The more they learned about everything Ren had done, the greater their hatred became. They hated that he had manipulated Emperor Alen. They hated that he had forced Aditya into exile. Most of all, they hated that he had deceived them and used their loyalty to Boris as a tool for his own ambitions.

If they had known the truth from the very beginning, they would never have accepted a single one of Ren’s orders.

Not even if it meant violating the Soul Binding Contract, the thought that they had unknowingly become part of Ren’s plans filled both brothers with deep regret and uncontrollable rage.

Boris simply remained silent as he listened to everything his two disciples had to say. He did not interrupt them even once, nor did he offer his opinion while they spoke. He quietly allowed them to finish, his gaze fixed on the calm lake before him.

What was he supposed to say?

These two men had loved and respected him as though he were their own father ever since they were children. Even now, after becoming Seventh-Order cultivators and standing among the strongest people in the Empire, neither of them had even considered resisting when he beat them moments ago.

They simply accepted it because, in their hearts, he was still their master and the father figure who had raised them. Yet the situation with Ren could not have been more different.

Ren shared Boris’s blood.

He was the grandson of Boris’s favourite son and a member of the Imperial Family itself. By blood, Ren should have been the one cherishing and protecting his family above everyone else.

Instead, he had repeatedly tried to destroy it.

He had manipulated his own father figure, exiled his own younger cousin brother, deceived people who had served the Imperial Family with absolute loyalty, and even attempted to eliminate those who stood in his way.

As Boris reflected on everything that had happened, he did not feel anger toward Sora or Ritsu. If anything, he pitied them. They had merely been loyal to the last order their master had given them, never realising that their loyalty was being exploited.

The only emotion Boris truly felt was disappointment.

A deep disappointment in himself.

He could not help but feel ashamed that someone like Ren carried the same bloodline as him. The thought that such a selfish and ruthless man was his own grandson filled Boris with nothing but regret.

Blood alone did not make someone family. To Boris, family was defined by loyalty, character, and the willingness to protect one another. By that measure, Sora and Ritsu had long ago become his sons.

Ren, despite sharing his blood, had failed to live up to the name of the Imperial Family.

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