Chapter 015: The Nature of Rights

Du Fan couldn’t help but feel a strange sensation. He… actually remembered my height?
The last time they met must have been at least a year ago, yet this father still remembered my height?
For a moment, Du Fan wasn’t sure how to feel. He could only force a smile and say in a low voice, “My physique is still too weak. I don’t look that imposing. Compared to my two brothers, I’m far behind!”
Hearing this, Duke Green seemed slightly stunned. After a pause, he slowly stood up, walked around the table, and came to Du Fan’s side. He placed a hand on Du Fan’s shoulder and patted it gently before sighing softly. “You… forget it. Let’s not talk about this today…”
With that, Duke Green pointed to a chair beside him and said, “Sit down too…”
Du Fan nodded slightly and sat down obediently.
Duke Green let out a soft sigh. He gave his youngest son a deep look, his eyes showing a hint of surprise. After a moment, he sat down across from Du Fan. After thinking for a while, he said, “Du Fan, if I’m not mistaken… the last time I saw you, you were still a complete ‘waste’ who couldn’t do anything…”
When saying “waste,” Duke Green couldn’t help but show a mocking smile. “But now, even as your father, I’m surprised. Let me see… your combat energy has reached level five, right? Don’t rush to deny it. Although you’re practicing the Holy Church’s Light Combat Energy instead of the family’s Star Combat Energy, I’m not that easily fooled…”
Du Fan was slightly surprised. Before coming here, he had deliberately concealed his aura. Though he couldn’t hide it completely, he was confident he could cover up some of it… But his father saw through him at a glance, and he didn’t sense any observation from him. The only possibility was that his father must have already reviewed his recent information before he arrived.

Since his father had already revealed everything, Du Fan had nothing left to hide. He smiled lightly and said, “Father, my fifth-level combat energy was also achieved with external help. If it weren’t for the Milak potion provided by the royal family, I might still be a worthless person right now.”
“Is that so?” Duke Green smiled. “Then… why do you know magic? If I remember correctly, I had someone test you when you were ten years old… You… don’t have the talent to become a mage.”
Du Fan wasn’t surprised that his father knew this. Although he often tried to conceal his knowledge of magic, there were times when he had to use it. With the Green family’s strength, investigating such things was effortless. Thinking of this, Du Fan touched his nose and said calmly, “Father, though I know a little magic… it’s just mediocre skill. There’s nothing really surprising about it, right?”
Duke Green sighed softly and said, “I’m just curious about how you managed to do such things in just a few months.”
“Hm?” Du Fan couldn’t help but look up at his father.
Duke Green sighed again and said, “Du Fan, don’t think I don’t know anything about you. I know exactly what you’ve done, what you’ve said, and even what you eat for three meals a day during your time in the capital. Until you went to the north, there were at least three people protecting you every day—only you didn’t realize it. So I naturally know that you used to be a complete worthless person. That’s why, as the third son of the Green family, I never pressured you to do anything. If you wanted to become a believer of the gods, then go ahead… As long as the Green family remains strong, your status in the Holy Church will never be low. But I never expected that just one bottle of Milak potion could make my son grow to this extent… So I’m really puzzled—how did you do it?”
Du Fan inwardly smiled bitterly. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to answer this question, but he truly couldn’t… Could he tell his father that he accidentally entered the Holy Church’s forbidden area, rescued a mysterious woman of unknown origin, killed a bunch of Temple Knights, and then strangely acquired a bunch of abilities?

Can such things be spoken of?
So Du Fan could only remain silent.
After waiting for a while, as if he had already anticipated that he wouldn’t get an answer, Duke Green sighed again and said, “If you don’t want to speak, I won’t force you. After all, everyone has their own secrets. Even if I am your father, I have no right to force you to do anything… Du Fan, the only thing I regret now is that if I had known you had such talent, our Green family could have done everything in its power to obtain the Milak potion…”
As he spoke, Duke Green slowly shook his head.
Du Fan still remained silent.
But this time, Duke Green didn’t wait and continued, “Du Fan, actually, since you were young… I’ve always thought you were an exceptionally intelligent person… Even though your two brothers also have great talent, I’ve always believed that among our three sons, the smartest one is you…”
“Why do you say that?” Du Fan finally spoke up. “I’ve never thought… that I’m better than my two brothers in any way.”
Duke Green slowly stood up and looked in the direction of the Holy Church. After a moment, he sighed softly and said, “Because I think… you understood the nature of power at a very young age.”
Du Fan’s eyes flashed, and he said, “Father, do you mean…”
Duke Green waved his hand and said, “Your two brothers are highly talented and have received the best education since childhood… Du Fan, in this regard, I admit I didn’t pay much attention to you… And I’m quite satisfied with the growth of your two brothers. Your eldest brother will be a competent military strategist and politician. If the future of our Green family lies in his hands, I’ll be at ease. Your second brother is an excellent commander. With him, the Northern Army will still remain firmly under our Green family’s control… But what your two brothers do can only maintain our Green family’s wealth and status, not push us any further… Du Fan, do you understand what I mean?”
Du Fan was slightly stunned. The Green family was an imperial noble family, and its head was a duke. His own father, although not the top figure in the military, was second to none—no one would dare claim to be number one. If such a family wanted to go further, the only possibility was usurpation…
His own father… indeed wasn’t someone who would stick to the rules!

As if seeing through Du Fan’s thoughts, Duke Green suddenly smiled slightly and said, “Du Fan, it’s not as you imagine. Our Green family has always been loyal, and that will never change… But there’s more to this world than just secular power… In a sense, religious authority is even more stable and enduring than imperial power… So when you were very young and refused to become a civil official instead choosing to become a priest, I understood right away that my youngest son was by no means useless… On the contrary, he’s quite shrewd…”

Du Fan replied calmly, “It’s just my personal interest. What’s so shrewd about it, Father?”

Duke Green shook his head and said, “No, my son. You may be able to hide this from others, but you can never hide it from me, because after all, I am your father… So I can see that there were two reasons behind your choice to become a priest… First, as I said, you chose religious authority. Perhaps you thought you couldn’t achieve much in our martial family with your abilities, so you sought a new path for yourself… As for the second reason, I think it’s because you were afraid…”

Du Fan’s body trembled suddenly as he raised his head abruptly and whispered, “Father, what do you mean? What am I supposed to be afraid of? What is there to fear?”

Duke Green looked at his son and sighed deeply, saying, “Because you’re afraid—afraid that one day your two elder brothers will turn against you… That’s why you chose a different path. Because from the moment you stepped into the Holy Church, you were also cut off from the role of heir to our Green family.”