From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

"Time flies so fast, in a few months I'll be thirty..."

In the private estate of Christine, the study was filled with the rich Lorne classical style furniture, including a solid wood desk with carved patterns, heavy bookcases, and a classical writing desk. Sitting in her wheelchair, Christine sighed.

She suddenly felt that time was indeed fleeting.

Unconsciously, nearly thirty years of life had already passed by.

She had step by step ascended, and she was about to fully grasp the Power of Consecution of the 3rd Rank.

She had discovered that servitude, even when the object of her service was her entire family, could effectively help her master the Consecution power of the Path of Authority.

"However, it will still be Butler Theo who will advance before me, after all, he has fully mastered the Power of Consecution of the 3rd Rank and only needs to complete the initiation ritual of a 'Glorious Knight'."

To advance to a "Glorious Knight," one must first complete the corresponding rituals, which means practicing the various codes of knighthood.

Each country's chivalric codes slightly differ, and the eight chivalric codes widely known in Cyart are "Courage," "Honesty," "Generosity," "Humility," "Mercy," "Honor," "Sacrifice," and "Devotion."

Only by fulfilling these can one achieve advancement.

"Speaking of the knighthood initiation ritual, if it were you, it might be easily completed..."

Christine's thoughts turned to the man standing nearby unconsciously.

Her sharpest sword, the man of noble knighthood temperament, Andre Leone, stood quietly in the study, calmly listening to Christine's words.

"Yes, Miss Christine, time always passes so swiftly, like a bird that never stops flying..."

"But no matter how far time travels, I will accompany you, replacing your legs and continue walking on."

Andre spoke of his feelings calmly, having stayed by Christine's side for many years without seeking any reward, but wholeheartedly planning and fighting for Miss Christine.

He was the grandson of Viscount Bast, the most talented person of his generation in the Leone family, inheriting the strong bloodline of the Bronze Lion and also an outstandingly upright man in character.

Originally the Lion clan even hoped Andre could lead the family back to prominence, yet it was unexpected that the man would be moved overnight by Christine and wish to become her guard, her blade.

People could not understand why such an outstanding man like Andre would not properly inherit the Lion clan, but instead become the protector of Christine Fischer?

Even though the Fischer family was very powerful, he should not so humbly rely on others, at least for the proud lions, it was unacceptable.

"Love at first sight."

When the members of the Lion clan asked him the reason, Andre answered calmly with his own.

Everyone was shocked, although Miss Christine was indeed beautiful, she was, after all, someone with a severe disability. They wondered what Andre was thinking to fall in love at first sight; could it just be to climb the ladder of the Fischer family?

Andre said seriously:

"I have already fallen in love with Miss Christine, she is like a broken butterfly, never having whole wings, yet always wanting to fly high."

"People think Miss Christine is a cold person, but I see a spirit of devotion deep in her heart."

"In fact, she has never thought of herself but always dealt wholeheartedly with her family, loyally and strongly for others."

Everyone had just heard that Miss Christine was skilled at scheming and rather cold-blooded towards outsiders, yet Andre saw so many merits in her.

His father, the new patriarch of the Lion clan, after deep contemplation, made a suggestion.

"Andre."

"Why not simply propose a marriage alliance? With our relationship to the Fischer family and adding some bargaining chips, you still have a good chance of marrying Miss Christine."

However, Andre shook his head and replied earnestly:

"I am not yet familiar with her, and she has already contributed a lot to her family. To marry a man she doesn't love is something I do not wish to see."

Andre's candid response left everyone in the Lion clan utterly speechless.

However, Christine initially did not acknowledge his unsolicited following and instead gave Andre three extremely difficult tasks to handle.

Verbal loyalty was meaningless to her; she felt that it was impossible to discern whether Andre was good or bad deep inside in a short period of time, after all, Andre was a descendant of Viscount Bast and might have hidden great ambitions deep in his heart.

So Christine decided to test this man.

"If you can accomplish all of them, I will allow you to follow me," she said.

The first task was to test his wisdom. Christine asked Andre to thoroughly investigate the sensational case of the Snow Night Murderer.

The murderer was very clever, orchestrating several incidents that looked like accidental deaths, and at the same time, framing three people who intended to kill, making them scapegoats for his own crimes.

Ordinary people would think the incidents were accidents. Clever ones might uncover the "truth" behind the accidental deaths upon first investigation and would at most arrest the three heavily suspicious scapegoats with motives for murder.

However, Andre not only identified the murderer's true identity from minor doubts but also pursued the felon through the snowy landscape for seven days and nights, ultimately capturing him alive.

The second task was a test of courage. Christine asked Andre to lead a team on a long sea voyage to obtain a Class 4 Extraordinary Material from the perilous Aphotic Sea.

It was indeed a very challenging task, yet Andre spent a full two years and managed to achieve it, even bringing back two pieces of Class 4 Extraordinary Material in the end.

The third task was to test loyalty. Christine required Andre to stay by her side for a year without speaking, to obey any command, without any defiance.

However, Andre did not agree immediately.

"The commands I can complete must not go against my principles," he stated calmly.

"Miss Christine, I hope you can respect my principles. I never kill innocent people, I will always respond to the calls for help from women and children, and I will not harm my own family and friends without reason," he explained.

Christine, in her wheelchair, nodded gently, and spoke just as calmly, "If that's the case, then leave. You are not suitable to be my subordinate. Hmm, you have failed."

Everyone thought Andre would persist or even beg desperately, given how much he had already invested and his apparent deep affection for Christine.

But contrary to everyone's expectations, Andre just nodded, turned around, and walked away.

In the end, he was called back by Christine.

"Although you didn't pass the test in the end, I agree that you can become my sword," she said.

"You have won."

At that moment, Christine felt she had also passed a test posed by Andre Leone.

If Andre had ultimately agreed to her and flawlessly completed the test, she would of course have made him a trusted subordinate, but that would have been the extent of their relationship.

——

After dealing with many family affairs, Christine on her wheelchair said calmly, "The time is about right. Andre, let them in."

"Yes, I understand."

Andre nodded gently, calmly opened the door, and went out to notify the three visitors who had not been waiting long.

Soon, the three "Purgers" walked in, wearing brown coats and revolvers at their waists, each bowing courteously to Madam Christine.

The leading Purger from the Path of World Order took a deep breath and presented a stack of documents to Madam Christine with great solemnity, saying:

"Madam Christine, here is the task you entrusted to us. After several years, we have finally completed it thoroughly, and it was no easy feat."

"Fortunately, all three of us managed to survive in the end."

Over the years, the trio had collected various intelligence and evidence across the East Coast, narrowly escaping being silenced several times, barely making it to this day.

Now, at last, it seemed their efforts were going to pay off.

Christine looked over all the documents indifferently, while everyone waited silently. After more than an hour had passed, she nodded seriously:

"Andre, go and invite my uncle His Excellency Byrne, my mother Vanessa, and Mr. Moore here," she instructed.

"These matters must be handled by my uncle His Excellency Byrne, as for my mother and Mr. Moore, they will together carry out the ceremony to ascend to the 'Arbiter' title of the 4th Rank."