Inside the residence of Baron Albrecht, a heavy gloom hung in the air.
The towering stone walls, which usually stood firm and proud, now seemed to bear the weight of sorrow that blanketed the entire household. There was no cheerful laughter, no playful conversation.
Only silence.
A suffocating silence, as though everyone had sunk into their own thoughts and the unavoidable pain of loss.
In the main hall, Baron Albrecht stood beside a tall window overlooking the wide courtyard, his gaze distant and empty.
Behind the stern and resolute expression he always carried as a nobleman, something inside him had shattered.
He had just lost his son.
Not only physically—but perhaps emotionally as well.
Leon was now under the Emperor’s authority and the control of the Gelar Clan, dragged into the brutal training that Albrecht knew all too well would eventually transform the boy into a living weapon.
Behind him, Lady Selena, his wife, sobbed quietly on the sofa.
Her eyes were swollen and red, tears continuing to fall since the moment Leon had been taken away.
Albrecht’s large hand gently wrapped around her shoulders, trying to offer warmth and comfort.
Yet inside his own chest there remained only a crushing coldness.
“We should have done something,” Selena whispered hoarsely, her body trembling beneath his touch.
“Leon… he’s too small to endure all of this. Why are they so cruel? How can they take a child that young?”
Albrecht slowly shook his head, his jaw tightening with the helplessness he despised.
“The Emperor doesn’t care about age, Selena,” he replied quietly but firmly.
“All he cares about is power and control.”
“To him, Leon is a valuable tool. And he will not hesitate to use our son to serve his purposes.”
Selena looked at him through tear-filled eyes.
“But Albrecht… how could Leon possibly stand against Rigo?” she asked.
“We’ve never seen him train. We never even taught him how to fight.”
The question lingered heavily in the air, deepening the confusion surrounding the Baron’s family.
No one could understand how a seven-year-old child had managed to display such extraordinary skill against one of the Empire’s deadliest assassins.
Leon had always seemed like an ordinary child—innocent and fragile.
No one knew the great secret hidden behind the sharp determination in his eyes.
Albrecht let out a long sigh, trying to make sense of the absurd situation.
“I don’t understand it either,” he admitted.
“Leon… changed when he fought Rigo.”
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“It was as if something inside him awakened—something we never knew was there.”
Selena lowered her head as fresh tears streamed down her cheeks.
“I’m afraid, Albrecht,” she whispered.
“I’m afraid of what will happen to Leon there.”
“Will he come back as the Leon we know?”
“Or will he become someone we can no longer recognize?”
Albrecht fell silent for a moment before pulling her closer into his arms.
“I’m afraid too, Selena,” he confessed quietly.
“But right now, all we can do is pray.”
“Pray that Leon stays strong… and never forgets who he truly is.”
Elsewhere within the Baron’s estate, Frederick, Leon’s older brother, stood in the back courtyard.
His expression was filled with confusion and anger.
Though still young, the responsibilities of being the heir had already taught him many harsh truths—loss, helplessness, and the bitterness of powerlessness.
Watching his younger brother being taken away while he could do nothing made his blood boil.
But what troubled him even more was the skill Leon had displayed during his fight with Rigo.
How could Leon possibly possess such ability?
Frederick had trained for years in the art of combat.
Even so, he knew he could never stand against Rigo or the assassins of the Gelar Clan.
Yet Leon…
A seven-year-old boy…
had managed to hold his ground against her.
Even if his small body had ultimately failed him.
“This doesn’t make any sense,” Frederick muttered under his breath, frustration heavy in his voice.
Soft footsteps approached from behind.
He turned to see his younger sister, Clara, walking toward him with worry written across her face.
“Are you alright, Fred?” Clara asked gently.
“I know you’re worried about Leon.”
Frederick nodded slowly, though the frustration remained clear in his expression.
“I can’t calm down, Clara.”
“None of this feels right.”
“Leon shouldn’t have to go through this. He’s just a child.”
Clara lowered her gaze, nervously biting her lip.
“I’m worried too, Fred,” she admitted softly.
“But… we have to stay strong. For Leon.”
“He must be feeling the same pain we are.”
“And he needs us to keep fighting.”
Frederick looked at her with a mixture of admiration and sorrow.
“You’re right,” he said at last.
“We have to stay strong… even if it’s difficult.”
His eyes hardened with determination.
“But I swear, Clara.”
“I will find a way to bring Leon back.”
“No matter what happens, I won’t let my brother be destroyed by the Empire.”
Clara gave a small smile, though tears shimmered in her eyes.
“I know you will, Fred.”
“Leon needs you more than anything.”
Frederick nodded again, more firmly this time.
“I will,” he whispered.
“For our family.”
“For Leon.”
On the other side of the palace, inside a cold and dim chamber surrounded by thick stone walls, Leon sat alone.
His eyes stared straight ahead, filled with determination despite the exhaustion and pain that lingered in his body after the brutal training with Rigo.
But what weighed on him most was not physical pain.
It was guilt.
Guilt for leaving his family behind in such despair.
Yet he knew this was the only path forward.
As Leon, he had the chance to change fate—to alter the future where the Baron family would be destroyed.
But it would not be easy.
Especially in this fragile body.
Leon clenched his fists tightly.
“I have to become stronger,” he thought.
“I can’t allow the past to repeat itself.”
“I won’t let my family be destroyed again.”
But as he stared at the shadow cast on the wall, Leon realized something.
His greatest challenge was not the Gelar Clan.
Nor the Empire.
His greatest enemy…
was himself.
The past he carried as Rigo, the merciless assassin.
And the person he must now become—
Leon, heir to the Baron family.
Yet despite the confusion and pain, one thing was certain.
Leon would never stop fighting.
Even if it meant facing Rigo again.
Even if it meant suffering the same wounds once more.
“I won’t give up,” he whispered quietly.
“I will change everything… no matter what it takes.”
Meanwhile, Elina walked through the silent corridors of the palace.
Her thoughts were filled with the image of Leon.
There was something about that boy that continued to haunt her.
Something that reminded her of Rigo as a child.
Though she did not understand why, Elina felt a strange connection to him.
As if a piece of her heart had once been tied to that boy in another life.
When she finally reached her chamber, she sat down on the edge of her bed and let out a long breath.
“Leon…” she murmured softly.
“Who are you, really?”
“Why do I feel so connected to you?”
Outside the window, the stars shimmered in the night sky, silent witnesses to the tangled threads of fate unfolding before them.
Within their hearts remained pain, longing, and hope that refused to fade.
Their destinies were intertwined within a complex web, leading them toward a path filled with danger—and difficult choices.
And though the road ahead remained long and uncertain, one truth was clear.
This struggle was about more than power or honor.
It was about family.
About love.
And about a promise that must be fulfilled.
