"Are you sure about this, Anna?" Kevin asked Anna, who was putting on her belt. She had chosen to take the punishment that she never had to get.
"I don't mind, Father. It seems that the Royal Family is planning to do something." Anna shook her head helplessly.
"It's because you're getting strong too fast. I don't have a problem as your father, but the royal family has a different perspective. I'm afraid they're trying to pin you down here and make you rely on them." Kevin explained his point of view and the speculation.
"It's truly surprising. We have done a lot of things for the royal family, but the only thing we get is something like this…" Anna narrowed her eyes as if she was dissatisfied with the royal family.
On the one hand, her father didn't know she suspected the royal family. So, he thought Anna said this because she thought the royal family had betrayed them.
No matter what, Anna's teacher was Josephine. Even though she personally might not be related directly to the royal family, the relationship between her and the royal family should have been quite good before.
But everything changed after she came home. It looked like the royal family had betrayed her trust and she planned to get her revenge.
On the other hand, her father was hiding the matter between him and the Ardagan Family. It also became the main reason why they could force them into this.
Anna glanced at her father and said, "I don't know much about the family's matters, but I know this one thing. The Stargaze Family is strong. You're one of the Arbiters, so I'm pretty sure that not many can push us like this… I don't know why you're willing to accept this, but you should know that I'm unwilling."
"If that's the case, let me take care of this problem for you."
Anna shook her head again. "No. I'm going to take this fall for the family. But I have a request, Father."
"What is it?"
"I want you to acknowledge me as your successor. During this period, I'm going to show you that I have learned a lot and am worthy of being your successor. When I become the successor, you have to tell me everything…"
"What do you mean?" Kevin was confused for a moment.
"When I 'killed' Noel, he told me one thing… If only there were no barriers between us. I couldn't understand what he was talking about no matter how hard I racked my brain.
"There wasn't even remorse on his face as if he had accepted his own fate. I couldn't comprehend why a man, who should hate me to the bone, would be like that.
"So, I thought there were a few things I must not be aware of. The reason why you hid it must be because of my actions that kept troubling the family. That is why I will walk down this path and show you that I have the right to know the secret."
Anna didn't talk about Noel in this life. Instead, she recalled the one in her previous life.
As she said, Noel seemed to be torturing her, but because of them, she grew even stronger. Her personality also changed.
In their last moment, she could remember his exhausted but smiley face. It felt like there was no hatred in his heart. If there was an opportunity where they could talk to each other to know their circumstances, they might be able to understand each other.
So, she wanted to take this chance to directly ask her father. No matter how hard she tried to create a plan like Noel, she couldn't do it so perfectly. Hence, she didn't beat around the bush and asked her father while mixing a couple of lies to smoothen her words.
However, Kevin was startled because Anna seemed to have realized the connection between the Ardagan Family and the Stargaze Family.
Kevin thought for a moment and said, "There are four ranks as an Inquisitor: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Inquisitor. You're going to start at Bronze and will take mission after mission to get enough points to reach the next rank.
"The higher your rank, the harder the mission will be. If you wish to know about it, you have to reach Platinum Inquisitor at the very least. I don't have any doubt that your current strength can make you a Silver or even a Gold Inquisitor, but you have to become a Spirit Master and reach the highest rank.
"Only when you reach that level can you challenge one of the Arbiters to take their position. That's why you have to reach that level and challenge me. If you take my position, my job will be over and I have no reason to hide it anymore. The problem is… will you be able to accomplish it?"
Anna smirked. "Of course. In fact, I'm wondering what to do if you still refuse to talk about it. Since you've given me a concrete task, it'll make the whole thing easier. Just wait for a little bit since I will become a Platinum Inquisitor very soon."
"Yeah. I'll be waiting for you. Also…" Kevin took out a small notebook and handed it to her. "Take this as well."
"What is this, Father?"
"This is my notebook… Or specifically my friend's notebook. He gave it to me in the past so that I could grow stronger and overcome all the challenges.
"In that notebook, there are a lot of guides on how to be an Inquisitor, including all kinds of tricks that they might use to trap you.
"So, I want you to learn many things from that notebook since it's the one helping me become an Arbiter.
"Take care of that notebook since it's a precious notebook that I got from my friend."
"I understand." Anna nodded with a serious expression, planning to read it on the way.
"The royal family might use some schemes to put you in a different spot. So, you have to be careful out there. I can't help you too much because they're putting some ears and eyes around me. That's all I can say, I hope that you can overcome everything, Anna."
Anna maintained her silence as she walked together with her father outside. She hopped onto her horse, planning to go alone.
"I don't know how long we can meet again, but please take care of your health, Father." Anna politely nodded and began to ride her horse, leaving the mansion.
