Chapter 105: Before the Sickbed

  The little princess is back!

  On the ancient streets and alleys of Rose Hill Castle, people rushed to tell each other. On their faces were surprise, nostalgia, and joy.

  The first in line of the Hamilton family is back!

  In the family, people of different identities such as elders, elites and knights had faces that were either stern or solemn, with an atmosphere like a dark undercurrent surging from the depths of the ocean.

  However, no matter what kind of people with what attitude, when that red hair from the central avenue of Rose Hill City straight into the castle, everyone turned their heads, and everyone's emotions were moved by it.

  Brute force over finesse, this is Feena's choice.

  Since it's already impossible to conceal one's return, then let everyone know at once and create a big stir, letting all the attention focus on oneself, so as to prevent those behind-the-scenes plotters from secretly doing something again.

  At this moment, when the crowd is surging forward, she has apparently succeeded halfway.

  Without lingering in the welcoming crowd, or going to see the esteemed family elders, as soon as the convoy entered the inner city of Rose Hill Castle, Fiona immediately got off the carriage and headed straight to the deepest part of the castle, where Iron Blood Duke was.

  "Uncle He Ping, long time no see. Take me to see Grandpa, okay?" Fiona said straightforwardly.

  An elderly butler named Heping wore a low-key black suit, a pair of tortoiseshell glasses perched on the end of his nose, and sported a well-groomed beard. Despite being over sixty years old, he still stood ramrod straight. However, when Midy tried to check his level, all she saw was an endless expanse of darkness.

  Even with Mide's current strength, a 50-level profession player at the top could sense it.

  But now, he couldn't sense this old man's level at all, which could only mean one thing——

  The other party is at least a once-awakened strongman.

  Mediterranean couldn't help but smile wryly in his heart. The foundation of the Hamilton family was also terrifying, wasn't it?

  "Mr. Heidrich is in seclusion, Miss, please follow me to the inner court." After a polite exchange of pleasantries, Pi Ping bowed deeply and then made a gesture inviting her to proceed.

  Behind him, however, lay the true secret of the Hamilton family, a place where even the elder members of the family were not qualified to set foot. It was a mysterious realm that only the head of the household and the first in line to inherit could enter.

  Midi stopped in her tracks and nodded at Feena.

  Although the two had a very good relationship, this was only a personal relationship and not between the Hamilton family and the Astaires family. For the first noble house of Bellmare, Middy Astaire was an outsider, and perhaps even a rather feared outsider.

  Having experienced rebirth, Middy, who had a good understanding of the thoughts of the nobles, would not make any mistakes at this time, which would only embarrass Fina and possibly even lead to her position as the first heir being questioned.

  However, just as the young man and woman were about to bid each other farewell, the old steward narrowed his eyes and sized up the black-haired youth, asking with feigned ignorance: "Is this not Master Midias of the Aslex family?"

  "It's right below." Midei nodded.

  "Before Mr. Heidrich went into seclusion, he gave an order that if the young lady brings Midy over, please let them in to see him together." The old butler said with a smile.

  That Iron-Blooded Duke wants to meet Middy, an outsider?

  Midi and Feena exchanged a glance, seeing the surprise in each other's eyes.

  However, the old steward did not explain anything, on the contrary, he naturally lit a magic lamp and walked forward by himself. The two of them didn't dare to say much, they could only follow closely behind him under the shocked gaze of the family's elderly members.

  Through the dimly lit corridor filled with restrictions, through several instant transfer arrays leading to unknown destinations, the Hamilton family's "secret realm" finally unfolded before Midi's eyes.

  Pushing open the secret silver gate engraved with a six-pointed star formation, there is a vast expanse of lake surface. The tranquil blue water stretches as far as the eye can see, just like the smoothest mirror, reflecting the crystal dome that rises to over twenty meters high.

  Lakeview Hall

  Mi Di blinked his eyes and stared at the lake surface, for a moment thinking that what he saw was an illusion.

  Medici had also imagined what the core of Rose Hill Castle, a secret realm that only belonged to the Hamilton family, was like - was it a classical study with goose quill pens on the desk, revealing luxury and years of sedimentation in a low-key manner? Was it a magical meditation room that was unrelated to the world, with all kinds of precious books scattered around? Or was it an alchemy laboratory filled with research atmosphere, with test tubes, crucibles, measuring cups and other precision instruments neatly arranged?

  But Meddy had no idea that the creative power of magic could reach this point.

  He can feel the strong pulse of magic from underground, and he can also feel the harmony between his mind and the surrounding environment. Although it's not infinite magic power, but practicing here, I'm afraid the speed will not be worse than in the autumn ancient city villa, and even better.

  For this world, there is already a condition for a professional "awakening"!

  "Miss, Mr. Mi Di, I've sent you here. The old master's sickbed is just above the Lake Heart Pavilion." Upon arriving at this place, the old steward no longer used the excuse of "closed doors" to speak, but instead made another inviting gesture.

  Fina took the lead, stepping onto the crystal-clear lake surface with one foot, followed closely by Middy, and finally Old Butler Bulping. An invisible force caused the water under their feet to recede at an incredible speed, while transparent stepping stones rose up simultaneously, holding them firmly in place, accompanied by crisp footsteps.

  Step by step, the water surface continued to open up in front of the boy and girl, then reassembled behind them, the surging waves rippling out endlessly in this parting and merging, forming countless ripples on the mirror-like lake surface, as if a group of invisible fairies were dancing.

  Like a fairyland.

  And finally, when arriving at the center of the lake, the light around suddenly distorted. The next moment, a Baroque-style elliptical pavilion appeared with its exquisite outline. And in this pavilion, on a huge bed, an old man lay quietly with his eyes tightly closed.

  Heinrich Hamilton, Iron Duke

  The last time he faced the Iron Duke, it was before the war of the nobles, but in just a few short months, now looking at him again, the duke had clearly aged a lot. His forehead and eye corners were covered with wrinkles all around, age spots also faintly appeared, his skin was loose, his face was pale, and his breathing was weak.

  Even when Fiona walked to the bedside and carefully grasped the old man's hand, he still didn't wake up, his eyes remained tightly closed, occasionally frowning and muttering a few meaningless words.

  And his surrounding magical powers were extremely chaotic, even affecting the ghost god on Mide's left arm, causing it to stir slightly, as if burning with fire.

  "So that's it, an aftereffect of awakening." Midei pressed down on his left arm, opening his mouth in a sudden realization.

  What is meant by awakening is actually breaking through the "Level 50" limit.

  So far, professionals on the continent of Arad can only upgrade to level 50 at most. Beyond that, they will encounter a threshold that cannot be broken through by their own strength alone. This is similar to the initial job change, which requires the assistance of a magic circle to achieve a breakthrough in physique in an instant, thereby accommodating more magical power and using stronger skills.

  Awakening and Transcending are essentially the same. However, transcending requires less magical power, and with the powerful support of a Nibelungenlied Array, it is even possible to achieve "perfect transcending".

  However, as of Medius II's time, in the year 985 of Arad's calendar, there was still no place on the continent of Arad that could be used for "awakening".

  It will have to wait until the Sky Tower of Faro Bay appears for a perfect "awakening" to be possible.

  Whether it was the old butler, Phipps, or the Iron Duke, they had all undergone awakening, which was a result of being in an environment where awakening was artificially created.

  For example, this Lake Light Hall, if at the beginning Mi Di thought that its environment already had several "awakening" conditions, then at this moment, after scrutinizing the completely unguarded Iron Blood Grand Duke, he almost confirmed that this was the place where the strongest people of the Hamilton family were awakened!

  However, this kind of artificial environment that is explored on one's own initiative cannot possibly achieve true awakening. This level of breakthrough will inevitably make the awakened person pay a considerable price.

  It's just like this now.

  "I didn't think you knew about the 'Awakening' that breaks through level limits." Listening to Middy's words, a flash of surprise passed through Fiona's eyes. "That's right, this Lake Light Hall is the most important place for the Hamilton family, we call it the Land of Awakening. Very few people can enter here, but once they succeed in awakening, they will become the backbone of the family. This is our biggest secret."

  "If that's the case, then you should also have research on aftereffects." Medici furrowed her brow slightly, "Why would something like this happen at such a critical juncture?"

  Midi didn't think that Iron Duke's condition was caused by a relapse of his old illness.

  At this time in the previous life, the Iron-Blooded Grand Duke was still steadily sitting in the position of the house owner, and even went to the front line a few months later when the civil war broke out, causing the Sais family to retreat again and again. It wasn't until the Delos Empire intervened that he finally fell in the intense capital defense battle.

  Even so, he took away several top knights of the Delos Empire when he died, and can be called a strong warrior.

  But now, without a war and no turmoil, why did the Iron Duke suddenly fall ill?

  Is this also caused by the butterfly effect?

  Because of his return, the body of Iron Duke deteriorated, and then the sequelae acted prematurely?

  Midi fell into deep thought.

  "It's because the medicine can't keep up." The old butler, Ping, spoke in a slow and measured tone. A rare hint of anger flickered in his eyes.