Nata, Edward’s personal attendant, trembled at the scene before her.

It wasn’t just that Edward had been sent flying—
The real shock was that the one who struck him was Liam.

“This has never happened before...”

Until now, no matter how much trouble Edward caused, Liam had never scolded him.

And yet today, of all days, Liam had barged in with a ground combat unit and punched Edward straight across the room.

Setting up an entertainment facility in the business district—
Yes, that had been a mistake.

It was understandable that Liam would be angry.
But no one had imagined he would be this furious.

Edward clearly hadn’t either.

Even as he struggled to stand, his knees buckled.

Was it from the blow, or from fear?
Even Nata couldn’t tell.

(Maybe both? Either way, I have to protect Lord Edward...)

She tried to move immediately—but hands suddenly reached out from behind and restrained her.

Her mouth was covered as well.

“Mmmph!?”

Startled, she glanced back.
There stood a masked woman—one of her own kind.

Her name was Kunai, a name personally granted to her by Liam himself.

“Sorry, but I can’t let you interfere.”

Even though they were kin, Nata existed solely for Edward’s sake.

If Edward ever commanded her to betray Liam, she had been raised to carry it out without hesitation.

Kunai likely found such loyalty troublesome.

Once her hand lifted from Nata’s mouth, Nata immediately spoke up.

“Lord Edward is in danger!”

Her glare was sharp, as if to say she’d been raised to protect him even at the cost of her own life.

Kunai, however, looked entirely uninterested.

“For Lord Edward’s sake, stay out of this. This is between father and son.”

“B-but—”

“Just watch.”

Restrained and unable to move, Nata had no choice but to obey.

Liam spoke, watching Edward tremble before him.

“If a single punch is enough to make you cower, then stop causing trouble, you stupid son. If you want to stir up a commotion, do it somewhere else.”

Noticing Edward had no will to fight back, Liam lost interest and turned his back on him.

He gave orders to the ground forces.

“Take Ed back to the estate. Leave the rest to Rosetta.”

“Is that... alright, sir?”

“There’s nothing more to say. This is as far as it goes.”

Perhaps having vented with a single blow, Liam seemed to consider the matter settled.

“Well, troublesome as it is, let’s clean this up. This building doesn’t belong here anyway—I’ll just blow it to the ground.”

The entertainment facility Edward had set up was inappropriate for the area. Liam intended to demolish it completely.

The once-boastful young men who had gathered there now quaked in silence before Liam’s armed entrance, praying for the storm to pass quickly.

But Edward was shaking with rage.

His fists clenched, his teeth ground together, and his eyes glared at Liam with bitterness.

“No, Lord Edward!”

Nata shouted desperately, but it was already too late.

Edward activated a gaudy bracelet on his left arm, summoning a magic circle of spatial magic.

From it, a blade shot forth into his grasp.

“And now—now you want to act like a father!?”

Though he had been harshly disciplined by Ellen, Edward was used to being bowed to by everyone else.

Never once had he been mocked as an idiot, nor treated coldly.

That humiliation cut deep into his pride.

Consumed by anger, Edward drew his weapon.

Even Kunai looked uneasy.

“I didn’t expect him to go this far... This could be bad.”

Her words were deliberately provocative, meant to needle Nata.

But to Nata, they were chilling.

Edward might be Liam’s son, but in the context of the One Flash school, Edward was Ellen’s disciple—making him Liam’s grand-disciple.

And Liam was infamous for his uncompromising strictness when it came to One Flash matters.

Even if it was his own son, there was no way he would show mercy to a junior disciple who dared raise a weapon against him.

“Lord Edward!!”

Nata’s desperate cry echoed through the lobby.

Edward, blade in hand, faced his father—his whole body trembling with fear.

(Calm down. Calm down, me. He’s human. Father is just a human too...)

He had heard countless tales of Liam’s exploits, of the deadly battlefields he had survived—
But Edward himself had never truly faced his father head-on.

And that was why he had so carelessly taken up a weapon.

Yet, Ellen’s training was genuine.

Which was why Edward immediately realized—

Between himself and Liam stood an unscalable wall.

Seeing Edward quake even with a weapon in hand, Liam let out a deep sigh.

“You’re not an adult. Not even a child. Just a brat.”

His eyes carried no expectations at all for Edward.

To Edward, it felt like his very worth as a person had been denied.

“What’s with that look!? Do you really think I’m that much of a disappointment!?”

Despair gripped him—the despair of being abandoned by his father’s expectations.

Alongside it, bitter resentment burned: You never cared about me before, so why now?

With anger as his fuel, Edward unleashed an Isshin slash, just as Ellen had taught him.

A godspeed strike cut toward Liam—only for him to evade with a mere step, letting it pass harmlessly by.

“The technique passes. But you lack consideration.”

The floor behind Liam bore the scar of the slash.

Onlookers probably couldn’t even comprehend what had just happened.

But Liam was unimpressed.

“Do you even understand what it means to unleash Isshin upon me? I doubt Ellen failed to explain it. Even ignorance wouldn’t excuse you.”

His gaze sharpened.

Inside, Edward screamed with terror.

Run! Run away, even if it’s pathetic—just run!

But somewhere, a thought clung stubbornly—

(Even angry, he won’t kill me. I’m his heir. He won’t go that far.)

He was still clinging to the indulgence of a son toward his father.

Liam suddenly closed the distance—
And drove his fist into Edward’s face.

Edward was blown back, smashing through a wall.

For a moment he didn’t comprehend what had happened—
Then the pain surged, wracking his body.

(That blow... he meant to kill me!)

Unable to rise, he curled on the floor, blood spilling from his mouth.

(It hurts. I can’t breathe. At this rate, I’ll die...)

As he writhed in agony, Liam stepped closer, boots crushing rubble beneath him.

“I’ll deal with you personally.”

The murderous aura Liam radiated told Edward plainly—his assumptions had been dead wrong.

When Ellen finally arrived at the scene, chaos was already in motion.

From an armored vehicle outside came the sound of raised voices.

A finely dressed young lady was sobbing as she argued with what seemed to be her father, a high-ranking officer, over communications.

『How dare you behave so rudely toward Lord Liam!!』

“But—how was I supposed to know he’d be wandering around in plain clothes!?”

Ignoring her cries, Ellen passed by and asked a nearby soldier for an update.

“Is... Lord Liam inside?”

At first the soldier looked suspicious, but upon recognizing Ellen, snapped to attention.

“Y-yes! He’s currently disciplining Lord Edward!”

Hearing that, Ellen pressed a hand to his forehead.

“Too late...”

He sprinted into the building—
Only to find Edward, blade in hand, being chased around pathetically by an unarmed Liam.

“Stay away from meee!!”

Crying, Edward unleashed slash after slash—
But Liam expressionlessly closed in and struck him down with merciless fists.

“You damn brat!”

A crushing blow to the head sent Edward collapsing to the floor.

Seeing that, Ellen’s chest tightened.

Yes, Edward was unworthy and incompetent—
But he was still Ellen’s disciple. Still his precious junior.

(If I don’t intervene, Master will kill him.)

That was the one thing he had to prevent.

He rushed forward, throwing himself between them to shield Edward.

“Guh!?”

Liam’s fist struck Ellen instead, blasting him back.

Rolling across the ground, Ellen recovered quickly and stood.

Liam, unsurprised by his sudden appearance, brushed back his hair.

“You’ve returned.”

“Yes. I abandoned my duties as a knight, and I apologize for that. But as a swordsman, I felt I had to come back. Including this matter with Edward—I offer you my apology.”

Ellen bowed deeply in apology, kneeling low to the floor.

Behind him, Nata rushed in and gathered Edward into her arms.

“Lord Edward!”

Edward, clinging weakly to Nata, looked at Ellen’s kneeling figure—and burst into tears.

He believed he had forced Ellen into such humiliation.

“M-master... I’m sorry... It’s all my fault...”

Sniffling, Edward wept. Ellen, still bowed, spoke firmly.

“Don’t apologize to me. Apologize to your master—your father. You still haven’t apologized to him, have you?”

It was true. For all his tears and flailing, Edward hadn’t once given Liam a proper apology.

Liam, who had lowered his fist when Ellen stepped in, silently watched Edward’s face.

Edward clung to Nata and whispered:

“I... I’m sorry...”

At that, Liam let out a quiet sigh.

“You stupid son. We’re going home.”

With those words, it seemed the matter was finally at its end.

But suddenly, Ellen felt a chill run down his spine.

His hand instinctively went to his sword.

Liam, too, turned slowly around—
And stepped protectively in front of them, shielding them from the newcomer.

“...Rinho.”

The man addressed furrowed his brow.

“To bring parent and child drama into One Flash... you’ve gotten soft, senior.”

A sinister aura radiated from Rinho—
And her body bore fresh stains of blood.