Steven Solam

## [source]

Duke Solam’s son.

Came to Deepblue as a paid apprentice to Sharon

his goal was to become a runemaster, but his dreams were destroyed by Richard.

Killed by Minnie after abusing her[Book 8 Chapter 76]

## Description

### **Volume 8**

The commander of the army camp was quite young, but his generals didn’t even dare to breathe as he stared at the map with knitted brows. His silver breastplate scraped against his thick mage robes as he stretched, marking another crimson arrow towards the south.

## Plot

### **Challenging Richard**

The only hopes he himself had for the competition was a large amount of resources, his family’s strength, and possible favouritism from Sharon. However, Richard’s words had made him think about the circumstances he had not dared even think about. What would happen the moment he lost? The Solam Family’s total investment in him was nearing twenty million gold coins, and even his mother and Marquess Niall combined couldn’t shoulder the burden if he lost.

Now, he was confronted with a nightmarish possibility. What if the Archerons were supporting Richard? What if Sharon was biased towards him instead? That evaluation of ‘’tender and delicious’ was a trauma weighing down on him, refusing to dissipate.

### **10 years later**

Steven was a prodigal talent in his own right, far stronger than ordinary mages at his level as well as an apprentice runemaster and skilled commander, but she couldn’t be satisfied with that alone. His shortcomings were just as obvious as his aptitude; ever since he had left the school, arrogance and vanity had started to drive every single one of his decisions. Most of his time was now spent socialising and politicking, and the sheer nepotism in his army left the rank and file on the verge of mutiny. Almost nobody without noble blood was promoted to positions of leadership, agitating his more talented soldiers.

Absolute fairness could never be achieved, but most commanders at least tried to maintain a semblance of impartiality. While fellow nobles were more likely to be promoted amongst equal candidates, a more qualified commoner would advance just as quickly. On the other hand, most capable officers had already left Steven’s army for another under Duke Solam, while skilled generals didn’t want to enter the army from the outside either. The youth himself didn’t think this was his own fault; to him, the peasants of low birth just had shallow world views.

Richard observed Steven intently. This was his biggest rival during his time in the Deepblue, but he looked nothing like the confident youth back then. Now, the only things he could see in Steven’s eyes were anger, envy, and deep-seated fear. Steven had aged ten years since they had last met, but this warlock whose talent had been greater than his own had only reached level 16. He himself had added a few more decades than that to his own life, but the difference between them was clear for anyone to see.

As Richard spent his time recalling past events, the surrounding Solam warriors struggled to their feet and surrounded him. However, Steven just stared at Richard, not giving them an order to attack. Most of the saints and generals had gathered around, but they were just staring at the pit in shock. Richard had forced everything a metre down in the pit, implying sheer power that could match a giant or a dragon.

Steven and Minnie had been let go; these two former rivals were now so far beneath him that he didn’t even consider them high-priority prisoners.

### **Regret**

The war had indeed come to a close, but to some it was only the start of a nightmare. Steven and Minnie went straight towards Duke Solam’s lands after being released, but it was a long journey so they stopped multiple times along the way.

One hundred thousand men had collapsed so easily to Richard’s ambush! Resting in the inn, Steven simply couldn’t get over the loss. The terrifying might of the legendary mage hadn’t just scared his soldiers, but also himself. It filled him with regret; just why hadn’t he had the courage to fight to the death?

The warlock knew he was never a match for Richard, but that couldn’t be a reason for cowardice. A glorious death would have been much better than the situation he was in right now; he would be stripped of all power the moment he returned, and there were still dozens of nobles and generals alongside his entire army waiting to be ransomed off! The sheer cost of a top-tier offering left him shivering in his boots.

Steven also knew that his fear for Richard had been carved deep into the soul, the knowledge that he would never measure up draining him of energy the moment they crossed paths. It was rage-inducing, but he just couldn’t do anything about it.

"I’m worse than Richard in every way. My runes are shit compared to his, and Sharon actually likes him. He’s already a legend, an Excellency, but me? Where even am I? I was wiped clean by the Archerons with more than triple their numbers, and you only have me in mind? How can a piece of trash like me be worthy of you, beautiful Miss Minnie?"

Back in the room, Steven kicked Minnie’s face so hard that hot blood vandalised the wall. A tooth even smacked into the wood before rolling away, the sight somehow calming him down. As he looked at the spasming Minnie on the ground, the girl not even possessing the strength to make a sound anymore, he suddenly felt a wave of arousal wash over him as his penis started to swell. He threw himself onto her and tore apart what little was still covering her body, slamming right into her with full strength.

Steven’s entire body suddenly froze amidst the rape, the warlock slowly lowering his head to find an exquisite dagger stabbed deep into his ribs. A massive influx of energy suddenly started ripping his internals apart.

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Book 8, Chapter 64
2. ↑ Book 1, Chapter 44
3. ↑ Book 8, Chapter 66
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Book 8, Chapter 75