My Soul card is a Reaper

The ambitions of the Elves and the Minamoto Clan are clear from the start. They might be subtle in their actions and words, but they didn't hide their interests at all. They intend to make Azzy their clan's son-in-law for political gains.

However, Azzy's shocking announcement of his heir hurt their goals quite a bit.

Now, they were left with two choices. One, they continue to pursue their goal and later take away Affea from the path with either death or expulsion. Two, they give up on Azzy.

Even Azzy knew that when he made the announcement. That is why he did it in front of everyone, as if he was telling them to give up on him.

So, what choice do they make in the end? Azzy wondered after making it clear to them. The guests went silent for a few moments. The Elven Princess appeared a bit sad, and her brother's face hardened.

Thinking they would need more time to answer, Azzy got up from the throne and was about to climb down the steps. Just as he climbed down one step, the Minamoto clan heiress opened her mouth for the first time since they met, "I guess you aren't interested in clan affairs, and neither do you want your future generation to lead this clan. Clan Head Garcia. That means you would have no problem having your children inherit their maternal clans, correct?"

"Uhh… Yes?" Azzy fell into a trance for a second, not expecting such a reply from the woman. Her voice was quite melodic. For a second, Azzy felt an illusion of soothing music in his ears and felt peace in his mind. He just doesn't want her to stop.

The woman let out a smile as she bowed a little bit, "Then, I formally propose an alliance of marriage between Clan Head Garcia and my grandniece Fujiwara Saeko."

"What!!!" Her great ancestor, Fujiwara Shuichi, the Monarch of the Minamoto Clan, is the first to react to her news, and one could clearly see that he is surprised. "Saeko-chan? Are you crazy? She is only 14 years old. Do you hate her or something?" He scolded her right away, the woman shuddered for a second and averted her gaze, "Moreover, I brought you here to talk about your marriage with Lord Vesyrn."

Fujiwara Hikari replied while continuing to avoid his face, "Didn't you just want to establish firm relations with the Death Clan for the sake of the future anyway? Isn't it better for Saeko-chan to marry Clan Head Azrael instead? He even said that his children won't inherit his position, and not to mention our clan follows the patriarchal system. Their son could contend for the heirship."

As her ancestor fell silent, she grew more confident, continuing, "Your Majesty, even if she is only 14, she has already broken through to the Upper Elite realm (rank-6). In four years, she will turn 18 and enter marriageable age, and Clan Head Azrael will be 22. By that time, there is no doubt that she would break into the Exalt realm, too. Don't you think she would be a great match for Clan Head Azrael?"

"You…" Fujiwara Shuichi flared up but controlled his emotions with tightened fists, "I'll see about you at the clan."

He shifted his gaze to the silently staring Azzy and Qridus, "I apologize for my descendant's unruly behavior." He bowed in politeness, putting aside his pride as the head of the Minamoto Clan.

Qridus waved his hand calmly, unaffected by their conversation, "No, I agree with her suggestion. It is better to form an alliance through our clan head and your descendant. Moreover, Vesyrn is our Azrael's father, and it is absurd to even suggest a proposal for Vesyrn, who already had a happy family, to…" While Qridus is voicing his opinion, a sudden realization widens his eyes, and he looks at the scheming guests, "You…"

Hikari let out a smile, although hiding it with the paddle-shaped accessory in her hand, "I'm glad that Saint Garcia also agrees with my suggestion." She subtly shifted her gaze to Azzy and said, "If you accept this alliance, the Minamoto clan will forever side with the Death Clan's propositions in the hidden clan meeting as long as our self-interests aren't harmed in the process."
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A frown of displeasure appeared on Qridus' face as he responded with a comment, "I never expected the Minamoto Clan would adopt such a sly method, Shuichi."

"Eh? Sly? Clan Head Shuichi was taken aback once again by Qridus' accusation, "What do you mean Lord Qridus?"

"You never wanted to plan this little lady to Vesyrn in the first place. You know that Azrael would never accept having a stepmother when his mother was alive and well in the first place. Your objective was him all along. You shouldn't try resorting to such tricks, Shuichi. It was a great disrespect to Vesyrn and the Death Clan," Qridus' eyes turned cold, with his gaze on Shuichi. The latter was a Supreme Being, but feeling that cold gaze made his soul shudder for a moment. He instantly felt the difference between him and a demigod.

Shuichi immediately grabbed his descendant's head, using his force to let her bow. He, too, bowed long and apologized, "We apologize if we make Saint Garcia angry, but we genuinely came here in the interest of having a marriage alliance with Lord Vesyrn, for he is already married, and the curse on my daughter will be minimized. As for Clan Head Azrael, I apologize but we don't dare to have any designs on it. In fact, no hidden clan or an ancient family that has the knowledge of the curse would dare to give away their precious child to an unmarried direct descendant of Clan Founder Azrael. If something happens to their child, it will only destroy the relations between the two clans."

"Not all clans, Clan Head Fujiwara," a comment came from the side that was too silent until now.

The Elven King, Neymerin Searvale, outrightly displayed his arrogance on his face, "We Elves have different body constitutions and have a lifespan usually ten times more than your average human. The humans would have to live for atleast 10,000 years to make the curse ineffective, but it is impossible for them unless they reach the demigod realm. However, we just have to reach a 7-star rank to have that lifespan. It is more or less the same for those Asgardians, too. This is a common knowledge known to every Clan Head. So, please don't group us together when you are making a statement."

Fujiwara Shuichi bowed with a smile to them as well, "It was an oversight of mine. I apologize if you were offended by my statement."