I Can Summon Legendary Figuress

"Hm? Is that true?"

The king frowned slightly, his sharp gaze shifting away from Liana and settling on Kang, who stood quietly among the representatives of the Punishment Hall. Unlike the nobles filling the royal court, Kang showed no signs of panic. Instead, he calmly reached into the inner pocket of his coat before pulling out a neatly folded bundle of official documents.

Every pair of eyes in the hall followed his movements.

The chamber, which had been filled with murmurs only moments ago, fell into complete silence.

"Scanned and notarized," Kang replied as he stepped forward, offering the documents with both hands. "The contracts have already been verified by the Kingdom’s Marriage Ministry. The name written beneath the agreements belongs to the individual who consummated the engagements, confirming that he was a willing participant."

There was no emotion in his voice.

He simply stated the facts.

The royal attendant accepted the documents before immediately presenting them to the king.

Arian remained perfectly calm throughout the entire exchange.

She had expected this confrontation long before she ever set foot inside the capital.

Ever since she contracted her S-Rank summon years ago, she had understood exactly what kind of person her mother truly was. Liana had never tolerated anyone threatening her authority, not even her own daughter. Once Arian became strong enough to stand on her own, their relationship ceased to resemble that of a mother and daughter. Everything became politics, influence, and control.

The moment Arian decided to return to the capital, she knew Liana would eventually make her move.

That was why she had moved first.

Every document had been prepared months in advance. Every signature had been witnessed. Every procedure had been completed through the Kingdom’s official Marriage Ministry instead of the Dracontis Family’s private records.

She had intentionally left no legal loophole.

As Kang walked back toward his position, he passed Ethan and couldn’t suppress a quiet sigh.

It was a sigh filled with helplessness.

And perhaps...

A little guilt.

Only he and Arian knew whose name appeared beneath those contracts.

He briefly looked at Ethan before quickly looking away again.

If the young man happened to read those papers now, in front of the entire royal court...

Kang honestly wasn’t sure whether Ethan would faint first or lose his head to embarrassment.

Fortunately, the king had no intention of revealing the contents aloud.

"Ah... I see."

The king slowly flipped through the documents, his expression changing ever so slightly.

Then he reached the final page.

His brows rose.

A faint smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he reread the name to ensure he hadn’t mistaken it.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

His eyes slowly swept across the room, pausing first on Arian before shifting toward Ethan, who still appeared completely oblivious to what was happening.

For someone who often prided himself on staying three steps ahead of everyone else, the king had to admit he was impressed.

He had initially assumed Arian had merely rushed to legalize the engagements before her family could interfere.

Instead...

She had quietly ensured that every possible argument would collapse before it was even raised.

Even the issue of consent had already been addressed.

"These two..." the king thought to himself with growing amusement. "I believed I was being clever by watching from the sidelines, but compared to them, I might have underestimated just how far they were willing to plan ahead."

His smile widened ever so slightly.

"I protest!"

Liana’s voice suddenly rang throughout the hall.

She stepped forward dramatically, extending a trembling finger toward the documents.

"How could she arrange a betrothal without the approval of the Dracontis Family Head? Every engagement involving our bloodline requires the clan seal!"

Her breathing became ragged as she clutched her chest.

"Those papers are forged!"

"They have to be forged!"

"No marriage involving the Dracontis Family is valid without our authorization!"

She staggered backward as though the injustice had physically wounded her.

Several younger nobles looked uncertain.

Had they not known Liana’s reputation, they might have genuinely believed she had been wronged.

The king, however, simply closed the documents before looking directly at her.

"Liana."

His voice was calm.

Far calmer than hers.

"I do not care about your family seal."

The hall immediately quieted.

"These contracts were processed, witnessed, verified, and notarized by the Kingdom’s Marriage Ministry."

He lightly tapped the royal insignia embossed upon the final page.

"That ministry acts under the authority of the Crown."

His gaze sharpened.

"Or do you believe the Dracontis Family predates the Kingdom of Bark itself?"

The question landed like a hammer.

No one dared answer.

Suggesting that a noble family’s authority surpassed the Crown bordered on treason.

Even Liana’s expression stiffened.

The king continued before she could recover.

"Under ordinary circumstances, questioning the legitimacy of a royal ministry would be enough for me to order your arrest."

His eyes began glowing faintly with mana.

The pressure filling the room immediately increased.

"However... today is not an ordinary day."

He leaned slightly forward.

"Return the children."

His voice remained level.

"But if you continue to obstruct this matter..."

The mana surrounding him suddenly flared.

"...there will be consequences."

For a brief moment, everyone present felt an overwhelming pressure settle over the chamber.

It disappeared just as quickly as it had appeared.

The warning had been delivered.

Liana understood it perfectly.

She could continue acting.

She could throw herself onto the floor.

She could cry, scream, or accuse Arian of every crime imaginable.

The king would simply ignore her.

The Dracontis Family was no longer powerful enough to force the Crown’s hand.

As Liana stood there fuming, one of the younger men standing behind her finally stepped forward.

He bowed respectfully toward the throne.

"Your Majesty."

The king looked toward him.

"What is it?"

"The Dracontis Family possesses another clause regarding circumstances such as these."

The king sighed internally.

Of course they did.

The young noble continued.

"If a member of the family is bound by an engagement that they did not willingly accept, they are permitted to appoint a champion."

"If that champion defeats the opposing party in an honorable duel, the engagement is dissolved and the individual regains their freedom."

He lowered his head again.

"It is an ancient safeguard designed to prevent powerful families from forcing unwanted marriages upon weaker members of the clan."

Several ministers nodded quietly.

The custom itself wasn’t unreasonable.

In fact, many ancient noble houses maintained similar traditions.

The problem wasn’t the rule.

It was the timing.

The king rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"I swear," he muttered, "nobles spend more time writing exceptions than they do following laws."

A few ministers awkwardly looked away.

It wasn’t entirely untrue.

Every Great Family possessed centuries of traditions, emergency clauses, inheritance loopholes, succession rituals, and obscure customs that only seemed to appear whenever they proved politically useful.

It was exhausting.

Worse still...

The king immediately understood what Liana intended.

Legally, she had already lost.

Politically...

She was attempting to rewrite the narrative.

If this duel took place before the girls arrived, the story would become simple.

A cruel mother had secretly betrothed her daughters without their consent.

The Dracontis Family had stepped forward to save them.

The details wouldn’t matter.

Public perception rarely cared about legal technicalities.

The king clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Bring the girls first," he ordered. "Let them hear everything themselves before anyone speaks of duels."

"No."

Liana rejected the suggestion almost immediately.

The grieving expression she’d worn moments earlier disappeared entirely.

She straightened her back and spoke with perfect composure.

"With respect, Your Majesty, the children have already suffered enough."

She lowered her head dramatically.

"If they learn that their own mother arranged marriages behind their backs, they will undoubtedly be devastated."

"I believe it would be kinder..."

"...to resolve this dispute before placing such emotional burdens upon them."

Several officials exchanged knowing looks.

What an incredible piece of acting.

On the surface, she sounded concerned for her daughters.

In reality, she was carefully manipulating the order of events.

If her champion won first, Ella and Hela would naturally believe the family had rescued them.

Only afterward would they learn of the engagements.

By then, their judgment would already be clouded.

The king let out a long, exhausted sigh.

"Talk about annoying."

He turned toward Arian.

"What do you think?"

Unlike everyone else in the room, Arian didn’t seem the least bit irritated.

She simply shrugged.

"I don’t mind."

There wasn’t even the slightest hesitation.

She slowly turned her head toward Ethan, who had been quietly observing the exchange without understanding why Kang kept avoiding his eyes.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

"Ethan."

She called his name casually, almost as though asking him to fetch something.

"Go beat him up."

Her confidence was absolute.

She never once questioned whether he could win.

To her, defeating whatever champion the Dracontis Family produced was simply expected.

Of course...

She deliberately omitted one tiny detail.

She never told the court that the man listed on those marriage documents...

The one legally betrothed to both Ella and Hela...

Was Ethan himself.

The ministers remained unaware.

The nobles remained unaware.

Even the king merely watched with an amused expression.

But Ethan...

The moment he connected Arian’s words with Kang’s strange behavior, everything clicked.

His entire body froze.

His eyes slowly widened.

A cold chill ran down his spine as an impossible realization struck him.

"...Wait."

His voice barely escaped his lips.

"...What did I just get dragged into?"

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