LUCIA

Chapter 46 Truth & Lies

"You may enter, young master."

Jerome led Damian till they reached the front of the office. Damian took a deep breath in front of the large door then pushed the heavy door aside and walked in. Before leaving for boarding school, he'd only been inside this room once.

The Duke had called the boy to tell him he was going to boarding school.

[I have done my part and declared you as my successor. The rest is up to you. Graduate. Then this place is yours]

From that day on, it became Damian's life goal to inherit the title of the Duke, someday. He'd never thought of the reason or what he would do after he became the Duke. The goal was just the boy's meaning for existence. It was his worth for living.

Now, Damian had found a true goal. Becoming the Duke was simply a means towards that goal.

Power.

He wanted to have power. Only with power could one protect whom they want to protect. Just as his father was able to protect his mother because he had the power, Damian wanted to have it too.

Damian admired his father. His father was a great knight and the strongest man in the world. However, he had no confidence of becoming like his father so he had to find a possible way for himself to become stronger. The greatest power the boy could obtain from his efforts alone were the abilities/knowledge he could gain at the academy.

The air inside the office was a little breezy. The unique shallow fragrance of wood drifted off the furniture and documents were piled up on the spacious desk positioned diagonally to the entrance. In the quiet office, only the intermittent sound of pages being turned could be heard.

Damian walked quietly and stopped a few steps away from the desk. Hugo lifted his head and saw Damian then lowered his head back to his document.

"Is this going to take a while?" (Hugo)

"No. I came to tell you I will be returning back to the academy."

"I believe it will be difficult to keep up with this semester's courses at this point."

"Yes. But if I return now, I will be able to listen to the session for the semester break. I can replace the semester I missed with this session."

"You can graduate even if you don't complete one semester."

"I want to have the best grades."

"I told you, you only need to graduate."

"I just want to do that."

"Why?"

"I want to gain power by increasing my knowledge."

Hugo lifted his head.

Damian was a little nervous receiving his father's gaze. Hugo studied Damian carefully. The boy stood upright and his gaze was lowered to the floor but there was no sign of intimidation.

It was much better than his vassals who turn timid once he laid his eyes on them. Hugo recalled the first day he saw Damian. The eyes of the child Philip brought were clear and pure. That was why he couldn't help but believe Philip's words saying that he was his brother's son.

A child of the Taran blood would not have such eyes unless it was his brother's child.

"Power, huh."

Hugo chuckled and turned his gaze back to the document. He signed it with a pen and moved it to the side.

"Scholars do not rule the world. How do you know that the knowledge you'll learn and nurture from the Academy will become your strength?"

Damian was taken aback by the unexpected problem presented to him.