Real-life drama often turns out more thrilling than any television plot.
When people placed the three accidental deaths spanning over forty years side by side, a chill inevitably crept up their spines.
And when Joseph openly voiced his suspicions, a flicker of panic flashed across Mars's eyes.
But having risen from the ruins of the once-declining Narcissus Family to its current status, Mars naturally wouldn't fall apart over a few baseless accusations without evidence.
His eyes reddened, his voice trembled, and his previously straight posture bent under invisible weight. In an instant, Mars seemed to have aged over ten thousand years, staring at Joseph with "deep" sorrow.
"My son… I don't know why you would harbor such dark suspicions, or perhaps someone has poisoned your thoughts…
But I, Mars Narcissus, swear on the thousand-year honor of the Narcissus Family… though I may not have shared great love and joy with every one of my wives, I always treated them with mutual respect and propriety!
If you all wish to split from the family and claim your mother's share of the inheritance, I have no objections… no resentment."
Suddenly, Mars choked up. At over seventy years old, his eyes went misty, and two tears squeezed their way out.
"This thousand-year-old lineage of the Narcissus Family… IS GOING TO END WITH ME!"
In that moment, Mars's sorrowful cry filled the hall, and many young people who didn't know the full story couldn't help but feel sympathy for him.
Judging by age, Mars could have been a grandfather to many of the people present.
Now here he was, kindly hosting a coming-of-age ceremony for his youngest son, only to be publicly betrayed by six children demanding separation from the family.
The soft-hearted Fifth Sister, seeing her father like this, had already started quietly sobbing. Doubt began to cloud her heart… perhaps Joseph's suspicions truly were unfounded.
If not for Fourth Brother holding her firmly in place, she might have defected on the spot.
But… did Joseph really have no proof?
"Hmph, what a grand performance! The mighty Narcissus Family still clinging to such outdated rules? This is the era of the Pokémon League. Such ancient customs… HAVE NO PLACE ANYMORE!"
A scolding voice suddenly rang out from the crowd. Everyone turned to look, quickly spotting a potbellied old man slowly stepping forward.
It was him… Grant of the Lane Family, the younger brother of Mars's second wife!
No one expected that, at a time when Mars was the target of so much scorn, the relative of a supposed "victim" would stand up in support of him.
Seeing their uncle Grant appear, the Fourth and Fifth visibly tensed.
The Fifth Sister shrank behind her brother, while the Fourth Brother kept his head lowered, his expression unreadable.
Was it shame? Or rage?
It wasn't over yet. After Grant Lane stepped forward, many others began to defend Mars as well.
"Mr. Mars has contributed so much to the Family. Don't you children understand that?"
"Exactly! Eating your parents' flesh, drinking their blood, and still shamelessly demanding an inheritance? Joseph, you're nothing but an ungrateful brat!"
"And not just him! I see five… no, six ungrateful brats! The Family Head is truly cursed with misfortune."
"And where's your eldest brother? As the oldest, he's supposed to set an example. Clearly Siebold failed to keep you all in check."
"Who knows what this Joseph learned during his years away. All he cares about now is fighting his father over money… has he no conscience?"
"Exactly! For all we know, the enemies have already gotten to him. Mr. Mars made a lot of enemies over the years building up the Family."
"Totally makes sense. Joseph's definitely been brainwashed by enemies, he doesn't even recognize his own father anymore."
"A disgraceful child like that doesn't deserve any inheritance. Just drive him out of the Family and be done with it."
"Yeah, that sounds right."
"Exactly!"
"I agree."
"..."
Joseph and the other five looked on in shock as the crowd's attitude suddenly shifted. For a moment, they thought there was something wrong with their hearing.
Even though they hadn't had time to present any evidence yet, the reaction from the branch Families and affiliated Houses was just too strange.
Among everyone present, only Mars's other three in-laws stayed silent. Everyone else seemed to flip sides in an instant.
Siebold -the most accomplished of the siblings- was not present. The Berrylang Family, backing Second Brother and Third Sister, wore dark expressions but didn't speak up.
The Lane Family, backing Fourth Brother and Fifth Sister, was the first to betray them. Their own maternal uncle's support left the two of them completely isolated.
As for the Saxon Family behind Joseph, they had wanted to defend him, but Joseph hadn't discussed any of this with them ahead of time, so they were caught completely off guard.
However, Joseph's uncle had already made up his mind. Once this whole ordeal was over, he would help Joseph escape Kalos again, just like years ago.
And this time… he would never let him come back.
As for the in-laws behind Mandy, they simply stood off in a corner, watching the Narcissus Family's disaster unfold with cold sneers.
After all, Mandy was still alive and had no children. They had no stake in this matter and no reason to intervene.
Of course, if the family truly ended up splitting, they wouldn't mind helping Mandy divorce Mars… at the very least, to reclaim the dowry they had given.
A crumbling Family with no heir left was hardly worth maintaining ties with.
But judging by how things were going now… it didn't look like any separation would happen.
Joseph, the "genius" of the Narcissus Family, was still far too naive.
The crowd's accusations and condemnation continued, and by now, Joseph and the others had been painted as selfish, lazy traitors with no sense of familial loyalty.
That ancient Family code, the symbol of a thousand years of heritage, was now being scorned as worthless.
And right at that moment, Mars said nothing. He simply leaned against the podium, head bowed, tears falling!
…Still looking like he hadn't recovered from the emotional blow.
In that brief silence, Joseph finally saw through the core of it all.
Most of the people present had always depended on the Narcissus main line. Their lives were tied to the commercial empire Mars had built.
They could enjoy the spectacle. Maybe even use it to leverage more benefits!
…But if the great Narcissus Family were to fall, how could any of them possibly escape unscathed?
A fragmented Narcissus Family would be powerless against the overwhelming pressure of rival Families, powerful conglomerates, and even the Kalos League itself.
When that happened, nearly everyone here would be staring down a survival crisis of their own.
And in the face of that, who would care about a few moldy old accusations?
Three dead people… what could that matter compared to their own survival?
Joseph felt cold all over. Trembling, he looked out at the crowd before him. His heart filled with hatred for the final shred of mercy he had shown.