After several days of rest, he sat in the palace garden, as he had often done in his previous life.
It was not out of love for tranquility, but rather a deep-seated desire to find a point of stability amidst the storm raging within his thoughts.
He sat in silent contemplation, trying to calm his turbulent mind and escape the mire of excessive thinking.
The image of the mysterious figure he had encountered in his dream refused to leave him, along with the question that gnawed at his mind:
How could a few minutes stretch into an entire week?
Surely, it had not been a dream.
He leaned his head back and closed his eyes briefly, before murmuring inwardly:
"It seems the Sovereign is somehow tied to that lunatic seated upon the throne…
That madman who smiles with such treacherous intent.
Every time I remember him, my rage boils anew.
At least now, I understand that the Sovereign's intentions conflict with his, if only from the Sovereign's hesitant answers and unstable denials."
His thoughts were interrupted by the soft sound of approaching footsteps, followed by Kray's voice as she neared, carrying a tray of cakes and drinks.
In a warm tone, she said:
"Only a few months remain before we return to the family…
Don't blame me for wanting to seize every moment by your side."
He lifted his gaze toward her, lost in thought, offering no reply.
She sighed as she placed the tray on the table, then sat beside him with a mischievous glint in her eyes:
"I don't like that look of yours…
Which is why today, I'll tell you about the former Lord of the family—the man whose name you carry."
His eyes gleamed with a silent curiosity, and interest tightened his features.
Kray laughed lightly as she poured him a drink and offered him some cakes.
She leaned back into her seat and began speaking, as if unveiling a long-buried legend:
"Karilto Noxvere, known as the Shadow of Death, was the founder of the Noxvere family and the first to contract with the Sovereigness Sylferd, the Sword Legend.
He was a true monster… sweeping across the earth, imposing his dominion.
As you know, the Sovereign stage represents the pinnacle of existential power;
those who ascend to it are freed from the world's natural laws and enter a realm governed solely by the heavens.
Yet even then, they cannot interfere in the physical world freely without either forming a contract or sealing their powers.
Karilto was born with a terrifying talent that transcended humanity's limits—so much so that even dragons, the mightiest race known, acknowledged and respected him.
Under the Noxvere banner, he subdued the entire human continent, and never entered a battle he did not win.
With his swordsmanship and lethal intellect, he established the strongest elite force the continent had ever seen.
Eventually, his family rose to become an empire, ruling over all beneath them.
His power reached a level that led to his classification as one of The Twenty Catastrophes…"
Isaac cut her off with a sharp, increasingly intense gaze:
"Tell me about them.
The information in the books barely mentions their names."
Kray paused for a moment, as if choosing her words carefully, then continued in a voice laced with caution:
"The Twenty Catastrophes are entities that should never be approached—or even thought of as enemies.
Their very existence throws the balance of power into chaos.
I have never met one myself, but the current family lord, Rainer Noxvere, once encountered one… and did not even dare to draw his sword."
She fell silent for a heartbeat, her expression distant, before adding with a thoughtful air:
"Thinking about it…
During your childhood, you met Sunblade—my lord and mentor—one of the greatest and strongest swordsmen in existence.
What makes him even more remarkable is that he is the twin brother of one of The Twenty Catastrophes.
It had once been nothing more than an old rumor…
but I confirmed it myself during the years I trained under his guidance."
She paused briefly, as if weighed down by the memories, before continuing:
"I don't know much about his brother,
but my father, at the peak of his strength, did not even dare consider fighting him when they crossed paths in the Extended Void.
And perhaps even more chilling…
There's an old story whispered through the family:
After Karilto formed a contract with the Sovereigness Sylferd, he once challenged one of the Catastrophes—attempting to dispel the rumors that surrounded them.
It turned into a battle fought from only one side.
Even Karilto, with all his might, could not keep up.
That entity did not even bother to kill him…
Instead, he simply said, {Well done}, before vanishing like a mirage."
Silence hung between them, heavy and unspoken.
Kray turned toward him—and found him—
A faint, unconscious smile had crept onto Isaac's lips, a brightness in his features that could no longer be contained.
At that very moment, without planning or intent,
the voice of the Sovereign, buried deep within Isaac's mind, echoed the exact same thought Krai had:
"Truly… that smile."
Kray caught the strange glint that flashed in his eyes and smiled to herself quietly.
After a moment of stillness, Isaac regained his composure and asked in a low voice:
"How much do you know about The Twenty Catastrophes?
Why is there so little reliable information about them?"
She answered calmly after a brief hesitation:
"Because only the royal family holds the original and updated records.
What we have are merely scattered fragments."
Isaac exhaled, as if making an absolute decision:
"It seems I'll need to build some connections in the future…"
He then added with a curious gaze:
"And where is the founder now?"
Kray replied quietly:
"He once set out on a raid into the Extended Void…
and never returned.
Neither he nor any of his warriors.
Since then, he has been considered dead.
The Extended Void itself is a graveyard from which no soul returns."
Isaac tilted his head towards the sky, leaning back as he crossed his legs, shading his eyes from the blazing sun with one hand.
He whispered in a voice almost lost to the breeze:
"How delightful it is for the future to be as restless as a sky crowded with storms."
Krai watched him silently, her gaze brushing over his features, brimming with both hope and fear.
And deep within herself, she whispered:
"I must grow stronger…
strong enough to become the power he will choose when the time comes.