Knowing he didn't need to rush to make a decision, Theo continued his training. He split his every day's schedule into three. In the morning, he practiced his Materialization. This was the most important time of the day because it was one of Theo's offensive abilities.
After that, he continued in training his Awareness to the limit. He did everything according to the Pope's advice.
Last but not least, he tried to improve his skills, especially his new Illusion Construct.
These three became his daily routines.
The last few days felt so calm that it infuriated him, thinking it was just the calm before the storm. After all, he was going to meet with his parents in just a few weeks.
He didn't have the mood to level up, considering he also had increased his level too fast during a short period.
He simply used the rest of his time to either distract him with training or calm his heart down.
And the days continued so fast that Theo soon realized he was only a few hours away from his birthday.
When the night before his birthday came, Theo didn't have any preparation to welcome his parents, who seemed to be planning to meet him.
Theo just sat down on his couch, staring at the clock with blank eyes.
The clock kept turning as there were only five minutes before midnight.
He didn't know why but the weather felt a bit colder than other nights, but his mind was clear.
He simply waited for midnight to come.
3…
2…
1…
00:00
The moment he saw the day had changed, Theo closed his eyes while clenching his hands.
Just like how he expected, he felt a gentle breeze from his yard as two people entered his house.
He reopened his eyes and turned to the two people in the house, finding a man and a woman walking toward him.
Ray's face had yet to change from the last photo he had with them. His hair still resembled his and his body had yet to change. He wore a blue shirt and long white pants, appearing to be a normal man.
The same applied to Valerie. She had a plain one-piece dress reaching her knees while trying her hair into a ponytail. Her sharp gaze was looking at him with so much emotion reflected in her eyes.
However, Theo didn't share the same sentiment. His eyes were cold, devoid of emotion.
Despite the hatred and disappointment in his heart, Theo's mind was so calm that he didn't know why he should get angry at them. It felt like he didn't care anymore.
Instead of getting angry and pushing them away, he thought he could do something better in this situation.
Staring at their appearances, Theo said with a cold tone. "I guess living has been easy for you both in the past sixteen years."
Ray and Valerie didn't say a single thing. They knew there was no justification for what they had done.
"Why are you two not talking?" Theo kept running his mouth without changing his poker face. "Isn't it the tradition of the Griffith Family to send someone to explain everything to me about their family?"
Ray and Valerie's bodies shook as they caught Theo's hidden meaning. He just deemed them as someone coming from the Griffith Family, not his parents.
Ray clenched his hands and said, "First of all, happy birthday, Theo—"
The moment he heard those words, Theo raised his hand and his voice at the same time. "Please address me respectfully, Mr. Griffith."
Shocks were planted on his eyes as Theo just made clear they had no relation.
"We're here to talk about the Griffith Family, right?" Theo glared at them. "Then, please start. I would rather sleep than watch both of you not saying anything for a few minutes."
"…" Ray's heart felt as if it was gripped by an invisible hand and was about to crush it. Even then, he calmed his heart down and started talking. "I understand. There are three main pieces of information regarding the Griffith Family."
He raised his three fingers and explained them, "They are tradition, rule, and strength. I will explain it one by one.
"There is one tradition with several conditions. The tradition is… every child coming from the main family shall leave the family until they are eighteen years old.
"Then, there are four conditions. Everyone is in an equal position for the family head status and shall become the focus of monitoring. Second, killing any Griffith Family successor candidate is illegal. Whoever tries to kill them shall become the target of the Griffith Family's wrath; no exception is allowed.
"Third, not a single mention about the Griffith Family to each candidate, including spreading hate, belief, or good image. Everything shall be left to the hand of the successor.
"Fourth, there won't be any help coming from the Griffith Family, especially resources. Any help needed will be judged by the branch of the Griffith Family or its vassals in that particular country.
"These are the four primary conditions you need to follow. There are many minor conditions, and you can learn them inside the family.
"And this is what has bound you for the last eighteen years." Ray stopped for a moment, letting Theo understand the information.
Theo looked at him with a bored look as if he had speculated it.
Although he didn't know every single condition, he had anticipated something like this. Nella had also given him a few pieces of information regarding these conditions from her research.
"If you wish to participate in the real competition of the successor's candidate, you are required to choose the Griffith Family for your future and you are not allowed to join another influence later on, or the entire family will hunt you down."
"As I said, there are a few more 'conditions,' but you are only allowed to know it after joining the family." Ray shook his head, indirectly implying there were more severe conditions he couldn't say from his mouth. And those who had joined the Griffith Family would surely not spread that kind of information.
Still, Theo could only look at him while asking with a poker face. "That's it?"