by Daman
“Goddess… why did no one tell me that there was a goddess in our school?”
One of the younger males passionately spoke aloud.
A female disciple standing behind him smacked him on the back of this head, as she fiercely whispered.
“Idiot, that’s Lady Felice Axier of the Axier family! Do you want to die by pursuing her?”
“Shit! She’s from that Axier family?”
Another nearby disciple exclaimed in a sudden surprise.
…………….
Both the new figures did not pay any attention to the commotion caused by the disciples around them, and continued stoically walking towards the two youths involved in the fight.
“Chax! I thought I had made it clear last time that you were not to involve yourself in fights anymore. If you want to remain as my disciple, then you will have to obey my commands! Even your father has no say in this.”
The middle-aged man agitatedly scolded the large boy.
The man’s voice had a rough huskiness to it that made it sound deeper than it really was.
“Master Dane! It was this boy’s fault! He intentionally provoked me and even insulted my family’s honor!”
Chax hurriedly replied with a flustered expression, and it was obvious that he was afraid of this Master Dane, so he tried to present himself as the victim instead.
“He’s lying! Chax was bullying me and he even beat me up along with his friends over there! Look at my eyes, they’ve lost all their cuteness! Which girl would ever take a second look at this bruised face? Thankfully, big brother valiantly stepped in and stopped Chax from hurting me!”
The fat kid immediately interrupted Chax, and blabbered his version of the story while shooting Calron a mischievous wink
Although Calron was still furious with the fat kid for dragging him into this mess, he could not remain angry after seeing the fatty’s playful and childish attitude. An involuntary smile suddenly slipped from Calron’s face.
“Rory! What are you doing here?”
Fatty abruptly turned around and squinted his eyes to determine who it was that just spoke as the voice was oddly familiar. His eyes were swollen from the beating he took earlier, so his vision was still blurry.
“Wha-? Big sister!”
Fatty loudly exclaimed, as fresh tears poured down his cheeks, all the while running towards the girl. Tightly hugging her, Fatty wailed and complained nonstop about the abuse he had suffered at the hands of the “demon” Chax and his “minions”.
After hearing snaps of the story from her crying little brother, Felice suddenly turned a baleful glare at Cha, and if looks could have killed, then Felice’s would have definitely obliterated Chax right there and then.
Feeling the murderous killing intent directed towards him, Chax visibly paled.
The background of this little girl was absolutely terrifying! Even his father as the city Lord would have to pay respects to her if she demanded it, and if he had known that the weak looking fat kid was the brother of this girl, then he would have never even touched the chubby boy!
“Your name is Chax, right? Who gave you the right to torment my brother?”
A frosty voice sounded out from the girl as she questioned the petrified larger boy.
Cyan wisps of essence coalesced around the girl as they formed into a whip that slowly spiraled around her. Her ice-cold eyes contained a fury that asked for retribution. Even the air around her had suddenly chilled, and the nearby Fatty began to feel the frost creeping up on his skin.
“Enough Felice!”
Master Dane irritatedly bellowed as his essence cut through Felice’s and dispersed it.
“I will decide the punishment for my students, and not you! Chax is a new student of mine and he will be joining you in learning Martial Arts from today onwards. I was just going to introduce you to him later today, but things seem to have not gone according to plan.”
Hearing the last sentences of her Master, Felice was immediately appalled, as her face turned frostier. Her arctic-blue eyes continued to fiercely bore into Chax.
Both disciples knew that this matter would not be settled any time soon.
“By the way, Rory, who is this person you’ve been calling big brother?”
Felice lovingly asked Fatty while tending to the bruises on his chubby face. It was clear to anyone who could see, that this girl heavily dotted on the fat kid.
“Hmm, big brother? Oh, that’s him right there!”
Fatty cheerfully said as he pointed towards the hidden Calron behind the tree.
Damn this Fatty! He puts me again in a dangerous situation!
Calron cursed inwardly the moment when Fatty pointed towards him.
A few minutes ago, when Calron had seen Felice walking, he had immediately hid behind the nearest tree as the disciples had blocked off the whole path around him, and that was the only decent place that provided a cover to hide.
Unfortunately, Fatty had already noticed Calron jumping behind the tree.
Since the beginning, Felice had not paid attention to anyone except Fatty and Chax, so she had completely missed the other person who was involved in the fight: Calron!
Calron recalled the last time when he had encountered the girl, and noticing the proud and arrogant nature of this girl, he knew that she would definitely have her revenge if given the chance.
Especially now that Felice knew that he was just a lightning cultivator, and if Calron could turn back time, then he would have just ignored those girls that night and continued walking.
He wished he could have met Elias earlier, so his Master could have taught Calron to control his emotions before he encountered those girls that night.
Felice slowly tilted her head to look at the figure that her little brother was pointing at.
The smile on her face instantly froze.
“YOU!”
Felice furiously screamed, and just as she was about to release her essence, Fatty quickly grabbed her hand and yelled.
“Big sister, what are you doing? Big brother here risked his life for me! I can’t let you hurt him!”
Although Fatty had intentionally pulled Calron into his mess, he was only goofing around and did not really want Calron to get hurt.
He had initially sensed a powerful aura around Calron and that was the reason why he chose to hide behind him. If he had known that Calron was just a lightning cultivator, then Fatty would have probably taken the beating all by himself!
In the past, Fatty had always been accurate in sensing the aura of others, and he was confused as to how he had made a mistake with the lightning boy.
Fatty was a mischievous kid, but his heart was still innocent and pure.
Seeing her little brother start to get teary-eyed again, Felice forced herself to calm down and softly petted his head while she whispered.
“Big sister is sorry, Rory, I promise that I won’t hurt him, so why don’t you bring your “big brother” here?”
Although her voice was gentle when she spoke to Fatty, everyone could hear the chilliness in her voice when she mentioned “big brother”.
Fatty was completely oblivious to all of this, and happily walked towards Calron. Grabbing his hands, Fatty forcefully dragged him towards Felice while ignoring Calron’s protests.
Meanwhile, Calron resigned himself to his fate and let Fatty lead him. Calron’s body was still injured from the previous exchange with Chax, so he did not have the strength to resist anymore.
Master Dane was just quietly watching this scene unfold along with the rest of the gathered disciples.
“What’s your name.”
Felice sweetly asked once Calron arrived in front of her along with Fatty.
Hearing the mock sweetness in her voice, Calron slightly shuddered and he knew that once Fatty left his side, the ice demon in front of him would force countless tortures upon him.
“Uh, Calron.”
“Calron? That’s a weird name.”
Feli
ce responded as she wrinkled her nose.
This brat! How is my name any weirder than hers? She is just trying to provoke me!
Calron inwardly thought, but kept it to himself. It was not good to add oil to the already burning fire.
Before Felice could speak again, Master Dane abruptly interrupted her.
His low husky voice slowly reached Calron’s ears.
“Boy, who is your Master?
Chapter 21 – A New Bond
“Boy, who’s your Master?”
Calron’s mind froze when he heard those words.
There is no way he could’ve detected the Blood Legacy. I didn’t even release the source energy! Maybe he sensed the Azure Lightning? No, that’s impossible!
While Calron’s mind raced with these thoughts, Master Dane continued.
“You have the heart of a warrior, Calron. Do you wish to become my personal disciple?”
Both Felice and Chax gasped in surprise!
Others might not know the complete identity of Master Dane, but how could his own students not know his background?
Although Dane did not know much about the boy in front of him, he had seen the fight from far away. He wanted to test Chax, but he found the smaller boy to be more interesting. He only took in Chax due to the insistence of his father and to give him some face, but he had no real expectation from a boy who liked to bully the weak.
It was the valiance of the smaller child that ignited his admiration! To stand in front of a larger and stronger foe without hesitation – that is the heart of a true warrior! Even if the child were an Elemental-Less, Dane would have still taken him under his wing. The path of a warrior had nothing to do with essence.
When Calron heard those words, he inwardly sighed in relief but his expression remained the same on the outside. He was afraid that his secret had been revealed.
However, now he was faced with an even greater dilemma. He couldn’t say that he already had a Master nor could he outright refuse the offer, as that will be far more suspicious.
“Um, can I take some time to think about this?”
Calron hesitantly asked. The best option right now was to delay as long as he could until he talked further with Elias. He didn’t get a bad feeling from Dane, but he already had a Master to whom he was completely devoted to.
When the others nearby heard those words, they were stunned. This kid was a lightning cultivator and he actually refused an offer like that? No Master would be willing to take in Calron within the entire school and this kid actually asked for more time?
The other disciples might not know the complete story, but it was clear that this middle-aged man was powerful as even the Axier family had connections with him. The only reason others could think of for Calron to refuse Master Dane’s offer was that Calron’s brain must have been addled in the previous fight!
Chax visibly sighed in relief the next moment. If Calron had chosen to become a student of his Master and a fellow disciple, then that would have just added more to his humiliation! Even Felice seemed a bit more relaxed after Calron’s words.
Unexpectedly, Master Dane was not offended by Calron’s decision.
“Take your time, kid. Felice, let’s go, it’s time for our lesson. Chax, follow me. We still have to decide your punishment for disobeying me.”
Dane’s husky voice resounded throughout the area. Chax slightly trembled when Dane mentioned his punishment as he could clearly imagine the pain he will be undergoing for the next few days.
“Kid, take this pill. It will heal your injuries faster.”
Dane threw a small Vermillion pill towards Calron and started walking away.
“Rory, take care of yourself and if you get in trouble again, just find me. I will deal with the bullies!”
Felice warmly said while hugging her little brother. She then followed behind her Master.
“I will, big sister!”
Fatty sadly responded back.
A tinge of pain flashed across Felice’s face when she heard the sadness in his voice, but she hid it as soon as it appeared. She hurried to catch up to her Master.
Chax gave a final intimidating glare to Calron, and started following behind Felice as well. Just as he was about to pass Calron, he whispered in a low growl.
“I’ll deal with you in the Ranking Tournament, runt. Let’s see who will save you then!”
He then walked away without waiting for a response.
Soon the other disciples started to scatter away as well. They had witnessed a pretty good show today and walked off chattering about it. It was certain that rumors about Calron would soon be spreading around the school. Some of the comments were also about Felice and her family.
……………
In a few minutes, everyone had left until only Calron and Fatty remained in the area.
Calron looked at the pill in his hand and not seeing any defects, he popped it into his mouth and swallowed. The pill immediately set to work and he felt a cool gush of sensation spread out from his stomach. Clearly this was a high ranked pill as Calron immediately started to feel its effects. He didn’t know how effective this pill was in terms of healing, but at least it removed the pain of his injuries.
“So Fatty, what’s up with that sister of yours?”
Calron asked curiously. From the day he met Felice, she always seemed to be getting on his nerves. He didn’t have much experience with girls, but Felice seemed to differ from what Calron knew about girls in general. All the girls he knew in his village were all shy and meek; however, Felice seemed to be the complete opposite.
“Huh, big sister? Well, she’s mean to everyone, but she really is nice and kind! It’s just that Father d-“
Fatty stopped mid-sentence as if he recalled something.
“Hey! Stop calling me Fatty! I’m not fat! I just gained a little bit of weight last week… it’s completely normal! All my girlfriends tell me how cute I am!”
Calron couldn’t hold it in any longer. He cracked up in laughter. Fatty really was humorous with his actions and words. This was the first time Calron had laughed this openly after the death of his parents. He didn’t realize how long he had been laughing but he only stopped after he started to feel his wounds open up again.
Fatty just blankly stared at Calron. He didn’t understand why Calron was laughing so hard, was he really this funny? Contrary to all of his boasting, like Calron, Fatty didn’t have many friends as well. As if that thought had just crossed his mind, Fatty puffed up his chest with pride.
Seeing the was Fatty was standing, Calron felt another burst of laughter coming but forced it down as he felt his wounds hurting again.
“Haha, Fatty! You’re really funny! Your sister called you Rory, right?”
Calron asked in delight. He never had a friend of his own growing up and this was the first time he simply enjoyed being in someone’s company.
“Mn, well, my whole name is Roran, but I’ll let you call me Rory as well!”
Fatty said with a cheerful smile and extended his hand towards Calron.
Looking at Fatty’s silly smile, Calron soon had a goofy smile on his face as well. He extended his own hand and clasped Fatty’s firmly while placing his other hand around Fatty’s chubby neck.
“Since you already called me big brother, you can continue to call me that! Hehe, Fatty, how does it feel to be my little brother?”
“Eh? But we are the same age! Why do you get to be the big brother? I’m much more handsome than you!”
Fatty whined.
“Well, you should have thought of that before you dragged me into your mess earlier!”
Faced with the instant reply from Calron, Fatty hung his head in dejection, but he continued to mumble about how he was still cooler.
In an empty courtyard in a small, unknown school, two boys formed a bond that would last for countless years and whose names in a few years would soon shake the continent.
“Hey Fatty, do you want to go eat something?”
……………………..
Far in the distance from where the boys stood, an old man in a simple white robe gazed from a high cliff. His long silver hair wildly flung in the wind but the man paid no attention to it. His grey opaque eyes glowed unnaturally while he scrutinized the whole scenery below him and it was unknown on how long he had been standing there.
“This disciple of mine continues to get himself in trouble…sigh.”
Elias softly said, but there was a faint smile lingering on his face.
“He’s grown powerful again, and that technique he used to suddenly increase his essence’s intensity must have been taught to him by someone else. That’s a high rank technique and no one in this school has the knowledge of such precious techniques, so it’s not any of the Elders… Haha, this boy has more secrets than this blind old man.”