"Champion Walker, that man is Tyler from the Hearth family. Is this really going to be all right?"
Dan had already thrown up most of what he'd eaten earlier, but the moment he saw Tyler yanking out his own intestines, his face immediately changed color again. He turned away and started retching once more.
Julian looked at Hannah and asked calmly, "The Hearth family?"
Hannah nodded, then looked at Julian with a trace of concern. "Will this affect your relationship with Sister Ember?"
She knew that Ember was Julian's cousin, and because of Julian, she and Ember had also become quite close in private—they were already on "sister" terms.
"What do you think?"
Julian lightly poked her forehead with his finger and looked at her, a little exasperated. "A beauty that brings disaster—I've truly experienced that with you."
"How many times has this been now? It feels like every time I'm around, something happens to you. So when I'm not around, do you just never run into trouble?"
Under Julian's intimate gesture, Hannah's face flushed slightly, and she also felt a bit embarrassed. Thinking about it, it really did seem that way—this pattern had been going on since their days at Imperial University.
As Tyler's cries grew weaker and weaker, he eventually died a slow death in extreme agony.
Naturally, news of the incident quickly reached Ember and her father, who used their connections to smooth things over and suppress the matter.
"Third Uncle's son ultimately died because of his lust. That bastard, even the way he looked at me sometimes wasn't right."
"Julian did the right thing."
Ember's expression was cold. She wasn't the least bit angry that Julian had killed a member of her clan, much less her own third uncle's son.
"Dad, how do you plan to handle this?" Ember asked.
No sooner had she spoken than a man who bore some resemblance to Travis, but looked much younger, stormed in furiously.
"Big brother, my son is dead! He's dead!"
The man who walked in was, naturally, the third uncle Ember had mentioned—Lucas.
As soon as he entered, he dropped to his knees before Travis, his face a mixture of grief and fury.
"My son died such a horrible death—his intestines were torn out! He died from sheer pain!"
"That guy is a demon! He killed my son over a woman! Big brother, we absolutely cannot let this go!"
Lucas's eyes blazed with intense hatred, his hands clenched tightly.
But Travis's expression didn't change in the slightest. He looked at his younger brother and said calmly, "I already know what happened. Tyler deserved his death, and this matter ends here."
"If you have an illegitimate son out there, you can bring one back. He'll still receive the treatment of a direct descendant of the Hearth family," Travis added.
His actions were all about weighing pros and cons, completely devoid of any familial affection.
That was the hallmark of a patriarch of a top-tier clan—his priority would always be the interests of the entire family, not personal emotions.
"Big brother, are we really just going to let this go? The Walker family may be powerful, but is our family supposed to cower before them?"
Lucas stood up in disbelief, his face full of shock. His elder brother's response had completely exceeded his expectations—he hadn't even sought to demand any kind of explanation.
"Uncle, how can the family possibly compare to the Walkers as it is now? Although you're getting old—has your mind also gone senile along your body?" Ember said, her tone full of mockery.
She looked down on Tyler, and she looked down on this third uncle of hers, who was just as much a lecherous good-for-nothing, with plenty of illegitimate sons and daughters on the outside.
If not for the Hearth family, this third uncle of hers would have long been beaten to death by others.
"But they can't just ignore reason! Our family has blood relations with the Walkers! You're even Julian's cousin!"
"My son was practically his cousin too, and yet he killed his own cousin with his hands!"
Put that way, Tyler really was Julian's nominal cousin. But when Julian killed him, he hadn't thought about that at all. Of course, even if he had, he still would have killed him anyway.
"Uncle, then what do you want to do about it?" Ember sneered.
Lucas's expression instantly turned greedy. "He killed a direct descendant of our family! He must compensate us—just have him give me his Moltres, and that'll be enough!"
"Pfft—"
The moment he finished speaking, Ember burst out laughing, her pretty face dripping with endless scorn and contempt; making Lucas furious as he pointed at her.
"What are you laughing at?! Am I wrong? Remember you're a member of the Hearth family too, or are you really trying to side with an outsider like Julian against your own family?!"
"Uncle, it's precisely because I'm a member of the family and because you are my third uncle that I've been exercising restraint. Otherwise, I would have killed you already."
Ember looked at this third uncle of hers coldly, a faint aura of killing intent radiating from her.
Having spent all his days in debauchery, Lucas had long since grown soft and useless. Feeling Ember's killing intent, his face went pale in an instant, and he stumbled backward several steps, looking at her in terror.
"What are you doing?! I'm your uncle!"
He then immediately turned to Travis.
"Big brother, aren't you going to do something about her?!"
But Travis remained unmoved.
"Moltres? Uncle, you've sure got the nerve. Why don't you just ask Julian to compensate you with his Metagross, or maybe even the Black and White Dragons?" Ember said as she walked up to Lucas.
Lucas's legs went weak, and he collapsed straight onto the floor.
Looking down at this excuse for an uncle, Ember continued, "Do you know the only reason you're still alive is because that cousin of mine gave me face."
"In his eyes, the Hearth family is nothing more than slightly sturdy ants. To wipe us out, he wouldn't even need a First-class Legendary to make a move—his Metagross and the rest of his Champion-level Pokémon alone would be more than enough."
"So my dear uncle, instead of thinking about going to apologize, you're actually coveting someone else's Pokémon. I truly have to admire how a man whose brain is filled with shit has managed to live this long."
Ember's words left Lucas's face alternating between pale and green, but instead of waking him up to reality, these words only filled him with more humiliation and fury.
He was Ember's elder! Yet now he'd been frightened to the ground by his niece. He had lost his dignity completely.
A surge of rage rose in his heart, and he immediately raised his arm.
"If you dare swing that hand down, I'll break it."
Ember's icy gaze locked onto Lucas.
Lucas was instantly intimidated. He turned away furiously and said, "I'm going to find Mother! There's absolutely no way this matter ends here!"
"No need. I'm already here."
Rose had already appeared at the doorway.
Seeing Rose, Lucas's face lit up as if he had found his savior. He immediately hurried toward her, opening his mouth to pour out all his grievances and indignation.
But the very next second, Rose's words sent him plummeting into the abyss.
"Travis, from now on, remove his line from the direct branch of the family. And for the rest of his life, Lucas is forbidden from setting foot outside the Hearth family estate."
Having said that, she looked at her third son, her face filled with utter disappointment.
"If you dare go out and stir up trouble again, then you will no longer be a member of the Hearth family. I will have Travis publicly announce your expulsion from the clan."
"Your life or death will have nothing to do with the Hearths ever again."
With those words, Rose turned and left directly, leaving behind a completely incredulous Lucas.
*****
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