The Ancient Imperial Calendar, Year 1820
When Ricardo's aura-enhanced fist collided with Orsman's, the sound of bones shattering was so violent it could be heard for kilometers.
"Khh!"
Orsman didn't show his pain. He quickly clenched his other hand and delivered a hard punch to his son's stomach.
"Ihh!"
Ricardo, like his father, didn't show his pain either. His ribs had fractured, but he used a healing spell to mend the breaks.
Thanks to the Ashbrum blood flowing in his veins, he could perform powerful healing spells with minimal mana.
Ricardo used his remaining mana to create a fireball and hurled it directly at his father's face to burn his eyes.
"My eyes! Ahhhh!"
This time, Orsman couldn't hide his pain. His eyes were burned, his vision impaired.
Ricardo gathered his last remaining Nur in his hand, lunged forward, and delivered a powerful punch to his father's abdomen.
Before Orsman was thrown back by the force of the attack, he delivered his strongest kick straight to Ricardo's heart.
Ricardo was hurled meters away by the force of the kick, and Orsman was thrown back by the force of the punch.
When they hit the ground, Orsman's chest and rib bones were shattered to dust, and there were cracks in his arms, legs, and skull.
Ricardo, on the other hand, was in danger of a heart attack due to the kick to his heart.
Since his mana was depleted, he couldn't perform a healing spell. Passing out was a matter of moments.
"No! Pull yourself together! I've come this far. I have to win. I have so much to do. I must apologize to Marilin. I must make her happy. I must ascend the throne. I have to live!"
Ricardo struggled to his feet, walking with great difficulty.
After a few steps, he reached his father's side.
"Kill me, Ricardo Kislavein, the 66th Lord of the Kislavein House."
Ricardo knelt down, brought his hands to his father's thick neck, and began to strangle him with his last remaining strength.
Just as Orsman was about to take his final breath, Ricardo was kicked hard in the stomach.
He fell back several meters.
Despite his burned eyes, Orsman saw who had done it and flew into a rage.
"What do you think you're doing, Rodwel Karluk?!"
Rodwel had been Orsman's most loyal subordinate since the Blood Academy.
He had played a major role in Orsman's victory in the Heirs' War.
Rodwel looked at Orsman.
"House Lord, in my youth, I swore to serve you with loyalty until the end of my life, even if it meant defying all laws."
Orsman shouted angrily.
"Shut up! Do you realize what you've done?"
Rodwel replied with the same coldness.
"Yes, House Lord."
Orsman struggled to straighten up and shouted.
"YOU ARE STEALING KISLAVEIN'S FUTURE RIGHT NOW, YOU BASTARD! IF YOU DON'T STOP AND I SURVIVE, I WILL SLAUGHTER YOU AND YOUR ENTIRE BLOODLINE!"
Rodwel bowed his head.
"If you are to live, I do not care if my children, grandchildren, and my entire bloodline are wiped out. Now, with your permission, I will eliminate this traitor."
Rodwel turned his back on the severely wounded Orsman and advanced toward Ricardo.
"I knew you would one day become a great threat to the House Lord. Now you will die here, Ricardo."
Ricardo was writhing on the ground as if dead.
"Under normal circumstances, I couldn't even leave a tiny bruise on Ricardo, let alone knock him down with a kick. But now, I can kill the strongest of our century."
Rodwel aimed his sword at Ricardo's heart.
"Farewell, Heir."
Just as he was about to bring the sword down, Orsman smashed Rodwel's head flat with his fist.
Rodwel's brain spilled from his shattered face, staining the ground and creating a gruesome sight.
Ricardo was shocked to see that the father he had tried to kill had saved him.
"Father..."
Orsman first fell to his knees, then face-first onto the ground. Ricardo heard his father take his final breath.
"It's over."
Ricardo closed his eyes and passed out a few seconds later.
IV Orsman Kislavein
Real name: Orlando Kislavein
Son of Ryas Kislavein V and Demether Dornan.
The 65th Lord of the Kislavein House.
The world's strongest Warrior and Mage.
Just one of many rulers who wrote their names in history with blood, but one of the greatest.
Father of Ricardo Kislavein.
Conqueror of the Eastern Lands.
Patricide.
And with many other titles...
The 65th Lord of the Kislavein House, IV Orsman Kislavein, died at the age of 46 in the year 1820 from the severe wounds he sustained in his throne duel with his son.
Thus, the doors to a new era in the Kislavein House were opened.
The era of the 66th House Lord, Ricardo Kislavein, had begun.