Chapter 324: Selyne Pendragon

"Isolde?"

Arthur rose to his feet. He would have never recognised her if they were in a public space, or even if she spoke to him, but seeing her beside Godfrey made him realise that this was his daughter.

"Dad!" Isolde rushed and hugged him.

"You don’t know how much you’ve troubled my heart," Arthur sighed in relief as he patted her back, then looked at Godfrey and nodded.

Godfrey responded with a nod.

"I’m glad you’re back. It would have been a huge ordeal if you weren’t. The family is in need of a new head." Arthur went to his chair and looked at Isolde.

"Your mother and I have been waiting for you."

"Who do you have in mind?" Isolde asked as she sat on the chair on the other side of the desk.

Godfrey, who sat beside her, blinked at that question. Was that all she could say?

"You," Arthur replied. "I’m going to appoint you, but under the guise of an adopted daughter. Of course, the reaction of the family won’t be warm, but I’ve trained you for this. It’s time to lead the entire family."

"I..." Isolde couldn’t say a word. She needed a moment to calm herself. This was big, leading the prestigious dragon family, one of the greatest in the entire world.

Arthur continued after a brief pause. "The core information of the family won’t be in my hands anymore. Once I’m done with this, I can face Cain. I suspect a member of the Heads might still be a clone. Even if I’m mistaken, it’s better to be suspicious, however I’m willing to go all in and trust them. All of them."

Arthur saw Godfrey’s eyes sharpen at those last words.

’I’ll be your light while you help Isolde,’ Arthur said inwardly.

"Ahem." He cleared his throat, brought out a file and handed it over to Isolde.

"We’ve prepared everything. The world will know you as Selyne Pendragon, the twenty-one-year-old girl I adopted to replace the void of my dead daughter."

Isolde picked it up. Godfrey crossed one leg over the other. The plan was feasible. If people like him and her father, who were extremely close to Isolde, had doubts, then it would be almost impossible for anyone to recognize her.

One was a beautiful girl. The other, a gorgeous goddess.

"Our first obstacle will be the elders. Once they agree, we’ll prepare for the banquet, which I’ll be hosting in two days’ time. After your appointment, we’ll move straight to the masquerade ball. Every head is supposed to dance with their partner there," Arthur explained.

Isolde looked at Godfrey. "But as Selyne..."

"You don’t have a partner," Arthur completed what she was about to say. "You don’t have to worry though, Isolde is still Godfrey’s partner, there’s nothing separating both of you."

Arthur called for the butler, who stepped in a few moments later.

"Introduce Selyne to her room."

The butler bowed. "Miss Selyne, please come with me. Your mother will meet you shortly."

Isolde looked at Godfrey until she left the library and the door was shut.

"She acts like both of you have been separated," Arthur sighed in resignation.

"I plan to get her a ring," Godfrey’s statement made Arthur pause.

"People will want to know who that ring belongs to. It would lead to you because she won’t remove that ring as Selyne." Arthur entwined his fingers.

"The world will consider you shallow and that you want to continue leeching off the Pendragon family, or that we want to keep you because of your strength," he added.

"Let them say what they want. People will always speak. If I’m seen publicly with Selyne, Cain will never think of Isolde and there’s almost nothing linking the former Isolde with who she had become. In the end, people will say I was seduced by her beauty."

’They’re not entirely wrong,’ he added inwardly.

"I just want to know your opinion?"

Arthur smiled. "It’s more than I could ask for. Mrs. Beijing reported that Miquella might be a fanatic, so we tried bringing her in for questioning, but she fled. However, what she said publicly has yet to be denounced. Some heads are proposing you take the oath and work for them before you’re cleared publicly and the bounty on you and your mother is brought down."

With a soft gleam in his eyes, Arthur continued. "They won’t be too hasty because they want to gauge your strength. Now, if you want to announce yourself as Selyne’ partner, you better have the strength to keep the authorities at bay."

Godfrey shrugged. "I think I can hold my own."

"Quite humble for a demigod," Arthur’s eyes gleamed. Godfrey raised an eyebrow.

"You can sense it?"

"That butler is like a family heirloom. The mana tree favours it every new age. It’s a Titled god with great potential, but I’ll pass it on to the next head soon."

’That butler is a Fortunate One,’ Godfrey thought.

"Once you do this, to the world you’ll be no different from a consort. Selyne’s consort."

Godfrey rose to his feet.

"I know."

Arthur’s eyes flashed. ’But I know who’s king.’

***

That same night, Arthur went to meet the elders with Isolde. They might not be the strongest, but they held the greatest influence. Once they rejected a notion, the entire house would be against it.

It took him years to make them agree to make Isolde the next head, so Arthur was prepared for a tough encounter.

The moment they stepped into the hall, one of the elder’s voices rang. "Who is this?"

"My daughter. She will take my place." Arthur’s reply resulted in a loud rebuttal.

"Is this a joke?! You brought a girl from nowhere, just two days before the next head is appointed, and you want this no-name stranger to become the head of this great family?!"

"Leave this place!" Another elder bellowed. "We have agreed for Michael to be the next head. No one has the capacity to lead this family of dragons better than Michael."

Isolde raised an eyebrow.

"Lead dragons? Please, if you were to be in the presence of true dragons, none of you would stand without shaking knees."

"What?!"