Dimensional Descent

"Hm…"

Leonel hummed, but didn't answer immediately. Of course, he had come here wanting to deal with Midas and Radix families, so to turn his attention toward the Florer family in exchange for their obedience wasn't too much of a problem. But the confidence in Libli's voice made him curious.

He had really thought much about it before, but it seemed that this inheritance they were talking about might not be too simple. In fact, if he recalled correctly this inheritance should be related to the Silver Empire as well.

Leonel remembered the first time he had heard about the Silver Empire. While it had been intriguing, it wasn't enough for him to be in shock and awe. But suddenly, he seemed to hear their name echo wherever he went.

Libli squirmed somewhat nervously. Although she had said as much, she was still worried about whether or not Leonel would really help them. Much like one tended to do in negotiations, she had exaggerated their position a bit. Whether or not they would be able to maximize the inheritance or not wasn't something she was sure of. In fact, she wasn't even certain what the Silver Empire inheritance would look like when it fused into one.

"Explain your half of the inheritance to me," Leonel finally said.

Libli exhaled. So long as Leonel was asking questions, there was a chance.

"The inheritance is… a bit difficult to describe. But it boils down to my Radix family's Radix Cube and Dynmo's Midas family's strong bodies.

"The Midas family's is much easier to explain. They are able to use large amounts of Fire Force materials to strengthen their bodies. It not only ups their fire affinity, but it also gives their body a durability and recoverability most do not have.

"When you returned Dynmo to us, he was half dead with disastrous brain injuries, but he was able to survive thanks to this. He's even able to heal his body just by taking in high quality Fire Force, though the limit is dependent on his own affinity, the strength of his talent and his overall strength itself."

Leonel's eyes narrowed when he heard this. Dynmo had, indeed, been half dead when Leonel returned him to his family. In fact, he remembered being shocked that he survived his blow at all.

However, this wasn't why Leonel was intrigued. He just felt that Libli's words sounded… greatly familiar.

"My Radix family's Radix Cube is a lot more complicated. We are able to form a special Force within us that can be used to influence and change metals. Once this metal is changed through the use of our Bronze Force, it gains a symbiotic relationship with us and we are able to take it within our bodies. This allows us to create Crafts that can be controlled like limbs extending from our bodies.

"We nurture our Radix Cubes through our lives and we grow along with them. As we get more powerful, so too do they."

The more Libli talked, the more sparks flew within Leonel's Dreamscape. But even so, he couldn't understand why… Time and time again, the name Morales and Metal Synergy Lineage Factor came up. But… What did portions of an Inheritance from the Silver Empire have to do with the Morales family?

Swallowing Fire Force to strengthen one's body… That sounded eerily similar to Metal Body.

Fusing with metals and controlling it like an extension of yourself… That sounded eerily similar to Divine Armor.

These seemingly unrelated matters all of a sudden fell entirely too related when they were reframed.

Leonel's gaze turned sharp. What about the Florer family, then?

**

"We have to be more cautious, things aren't looking good. News that the four families were destroyed has been circulating, although that might just be a rumor right now, we should at least confirm if it's true before we take another step."

A voice of reason echoed in a secret meeting room.

This location was none other than an underground lair of the Florer family, but the people here were entirely split.

The individual who spoke was an old woman who went by Elder Cherie. She looked especially kind, and though her face was filled with wrinkles, she had a rosiness that seemed very healthy. Out of her greying hair, branches of trees seemed to grow and blooming red cherries became like ornaments to her style.

On her shoulder, a beautiful white dove sat, picking at the red cherries from time to time with a blooming happiness in its eyes. By the time it finished eating one, a second would appear in its place almost immediately.

This woman exuded endless vitality and was one of the three strongest warriors of the Florer family. Even so, she seemed to be in the minority on this day.

Elders Seaward and Rosellia were entirely opposed to her views.

"I disagree," Elder Seaward, an old man who seemingly had seaweed in place of his hair spoke out, "if anything, those rumors should make us hurry all the more. That boy is the very one who killed little Belize back when he was just in the Fifth Dimension. Now that he's returned, what chance do we stand if we do not finally complete our ancestors' wishes and fuse the final inheritance together?"

Elder Cherie shook her head.

"You only need to take the Midas and Radix families as an example. Just because we have the inheritance does not mean we will be able to fuse it. If it was so easy, why haven't their Midas and Radix families fused their quarter pieces together in all this time? Isn't it precisely because we can make use of a full half while they can only separate it that we are so much more powerful than they are?

"Even after centuries of inter-marrying, they've only just finally produced a young genius that can use the two. By the time we succeed in producing a genius who can fuse all three pieces, our actions would have long since offended the Ascension Empire to the point where we would be eradicated. By then, our hard work would fall in the hands of others.

"I believe that this is a foolish decision that will lead to the downfall of our family."