The Founder's POV

Chapter 58: A final fight

"Drop your weapons and storage rings!" Lucas commanded from a distance, gesturing to the surrounding troops.

Cassian and the others complied without hesitation, placing their weapons and Storage rings on the ground and raising their hands.

"Until we can fully verify your identities as humans, we won't take any of your words as truth. But rest assured, we won't act aggressively unless necessary." Lucas spoke from a distance, clearly wanting to avoid any unnecessary confrontations.

The StarHold forces separated the group to prevent communication, surrounding each individual with about four soldiers each.

The other S- rank and the remaining A+ ranks all surrounded Jin, indicating their awareness of his true strength.

(POV: Cassian.)

"Cassian StarHold, is that really you?" Lucas approached me after separating me from the others, his expression still neutral but slightly warmer.

"Yes, cousin." I replied with a bit of awkwardness, having never seen this person before in Cassian's memories and not having written such a character in the game.

Calling a complete stranger "cousin" felt somewhat embarrassing. I tried to go along with it since Jin wouldn't speak unless he was certain.

"Cassian... I heard you disappeared in Mountain of Fog seven months ago, and no one has seen you since. Council forces stormed the mountain a month ago and found no traces either. Can you tell me what happened there?" Lucas spoke informally, clearly testing my identity.

"The fog there deceives the senses, but by using the Northern Lantern and the Pendant of Certainty, navigating was manageable." I replied honestly, not wanting to raise any suspicion and start another unnecessary fight.

"How was your journey from the south of the mountain? I heard a council member helped you move there." Lucas began to speak with false information, hoping I would fall into his trap if I were an imposter.

"I made a deal with Lady Loana, and a member of her secret team transported me to the north of the mountain, near the goblins nation." I replied quickly, making it clear that I didn't need to think to explain the truth.

Then, the final proof...

"Here is a copy of the contract we made." I extended my hand towards Lucas, and a copy of the soul contract appeared.

After signing a contract between two people, a mental copy is given to each of them, which can be materialized just as I did now. In some important military locations, these contracts are used as identity verification documents.

Lucas looked at the contract for a moment, then began to laugh. "So, you really survived from there! Delaying our judgment on you wasn't a mistake!" Lucas suddenly put his hand on my shoulder and started acting strangely friendly.

I'm sure... even the previous Cassian had never seen this person before. Why is he acting like this?

Does he want something from me? The sudden change in his demeanor once he confirmed my identity was unusual. It seemed Lucas realized this, as he immediately withdrew his hand and apologized politely.

"Sorry, I got carried away. You just don't know how much my father and I struggled in the family council, arguing that something like this would happen!" he paused to catch his breath, then continued:

"Although Darian has already inherited the rule, you can still initiate an inheritance trial with my father and Alios' support. I'll introduce you to them later."

I was a bit stunned to see how quickly this man's personality changed. From a cold soldier to a friendly cousin.

"O-Okay!"