Endless Evolution: Last Star

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"Eight Blades...?" Adam asked stumped, this was the first time he ever heard of such a thing.

It seemed like Franz should have answered, but instead, he only slightly waved his hand pointing at Silvana.

Unlike Adam, who only knew about the Twelve Branches and nobles superficially, she was well-informed.

"Ghm."

Silvana coughed before turning to Adam.

"The Eight Blades is the emblem of the Balo Family. Not that there's any mystery behind it, but if you agree to Franz's terms, you'll need to wear that emblem on you."

It was only Silvana's assumption, but neither Franz nor Rosalind interrupted her.

Adam frowned, looking intently at Franz.

"What, you didn't mention that. I'm not going to wear your emblem like some stigma!"

Franz raised his hand slightly, stopping Adam's indignation.

"Calm down. It'll only be for the duration of the fight in The Rule of Power, though no, it'll happen before the fight, just for a few seconds."

"Hmm?" Adam tilted his head in a puzzled manner.

Franz smiled weakly, snapping his fingers.

At the same moment, Rosalind nodded and leaned forward. She deftly pulled an object from her pocket and placed it on the table.

It was a black octagonal emblem, eight purple blades without a hilt, pointing toward the center, touching each other with their tips but not crossing the line.

It was the Eight Blades, the emblem of the Balo Family.

Every Balo Family member had to wear the Eight Blades in a visible place when attending some important event that was an official visit of the Balo Family. For the same reason, Franz's clothing now did not have the Eight Blades on, as his visit to the banquet was not an official act of his family.

True, most of the time it was a formality, but sometimes it was important, for without the emblem, the words of a noble family member, if it wasn't the head, didn't have the same meaning as if the emblem was on.

"To some extent, whether a noble took his family's emblem with him or not, it was an indicator of the seriousness of his intentions. Sure, it matters what status within the family that nobleman has, but I think you get the idea." Franz shrugged, looking at Adam curiously.

Adam nodded slightly before reaching forward and taking the Eight Blades in his hands. The emblem was the size of the palm, quite heavy and sturdy.

'What a nice and cool material... But, I have a feeling that this thing will only get me in trouble.' Adam pondered before placing the emblem on the table.

In those few minutes, Adam began to feel more comfortable, so he leaned back in the comfortable leather seat and glanced at Franz.

"You're offering to protect my family and do some things in the slums with the help of Yellow Shark, I want to hear the details." Adam said calmly.

Franz nodded about to say something, but no sooner had the first word escaped his lips than a cold voice rang out: "Before that, I want to know what you need me to do. My main goal is to help Osana, since I promised her that, everything else doesn't interest me much. I'm not going to immerse myself in the world of the nobles, even more..." Adam's voice grew quieter at the last words.

He realized that the very fact that he was here was making his situation more complicated considering he wanted to be as far away from noble affairs as possible.

Franz blinked a few times, then slipped his hands into his sleeves and nodded.

"Sure. Let's start with a little backstory. The Balo Family is not on the best of terms with the Rouzet and Marzo Families while those two families get along very well as they routinely schedule weddings between their offspring."

Adam and Silvana listened attentively to Franz. Silvana knew about the general situation with the Twelve Branches, but she wasn't familiar with the details because she just didn't need to.

"You might think that my family wants to ruin the wedding to harm the Rouzet and Marzo Families, but no, it was decided at the council not to get involved."

Adam nodded. From his conversation with Osana, he realized that nobles, especially high nobles considered weddings important and almost untouchable. It required a very solid reason for one family or nobleman to interfere with another's wedding, it almost never happened.

"However." Franz's gaze turned cold and his voice hard, "While I realize that my family does not want to take such risks, I personally, Franz Balo, will not leave it at that."

Adam leaned forward.

"Why? Didn't you decide in council that you shouldn't get in their way? At least this time."

Adam narrowed his eyes, he sensed Franz was hiding something.

"Though we've only known each other a short time, I'm sure you wouldn't go to such trouble to simply demonstrate your family's dislike of the Marzo and Rouset Families. Tell it like it is."

Oddly enough, it was Rosalind who entered the conversation this time.

"Mr. Adam, I understand your concern, but I'm afraid this touches on Sir's personal business, this is dangerous territory."

Whooooooosh.

Franz slowly raised his hand, stopping Rosalind.

"It's alright. I'm asking for his help, so he has a right to know. As a gesture of goodwill and for the sake of building our trust, I will tell you the reason for my desire to harm the Marzo and Rouzet Families, the Marzo Family especially."

The atmosphere grew heavier and more tense. Rosalind realized what should be done, so she picked up the tablet and placed it on the table.

After a few seconds, Adam and Silvana saw a picture of a young girl, in some ways, she looked like Franz, she also had purple hair, amethyst eyes, and soft pale skin like snow.

Silvana nodded slightly, as this was the kind of appearance most members of the Balo Family had, in some ways, it was their hallmark.

"This is Nelya, my younger sister. Unfortunately, unlike me, she is not a Light Noble, as she is an ordinary human and not a Phantom and..."

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Franz's aura intensified, making the furniture shake and the wooden beams creak. He folded his hands in a lock, staring at one point with a grim gaze.

"Some bastard thought that gave him the right to disregard her opinion..."