—Click.
Early the next morning, Leon’s father cautiously opened the carriage door and slipped outside.
“Morning…”
Suddenly a voice sounded causing him to smile wryly, while clutching a bucket filled with feces and urine firmly. He intended to dispose of it sneakily after Caroline reprimanded him all through the night, but he didn’t expect Leon to catch him.
“Ah, Leon, what are you doing up so early?”
Smiling wryly after realizing that Leon had caught him, the old man scratched his head, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He could tell that Leon disliked him doing such demeaning work, but what choice did he have? They were family, after all.
“Hmmm.”
Leon didn’t bother to respond. Instead, he leaped from the top of the carriage to the ground.
—Boom!!
For a moment, the old man stood in shock. Just a few days ago, Leon had been malnourished and skin and bones. Now, he was performing such feats effortlessly? To claim that he wasn’t bewildered would be a lie. However, this confusion didn’t last long. He was Leon’s father, and all he wished for was his son’s success. How he achieved it didn’t matter to him.
Leon walked toward the old man with tattered clothes and extended his hand to take the bucket.
“No, don’t worry about it. This is my responsibility; I’ll carry it myself. But if you’d like to accompany me, I wouldn’t refuse.”
Pulling the bucket back, the old man prevented Leon from taking it. He didn’t want to degrade Leon any further. He was the one at fault for their circumstances, so he would bear the humiliation.
“Okay.”
Leon nodded, and soon they both left, side by side, into the open grassland. Along the way, the old man rambled about the kingdom’s political situation, a subject that the previous Leon had been exposed to throughout his life. However, this Leon found it informative and enjoyed the conversation.
“Honestly, if the Warlocks don’t unite in time, we’ll be wiped out.”
Finally arriving at the woods, the old man discarded the bucket and sighed. “There’s only so much we can do as individuals,”
The old man seemed delighted talking about these matters; at his age, he didn’t have many people to converse with, and his wife was difficult to deal with, so moments like these were special to him. Leon’s awakening was also a big boost to his moral, he hadn’t felt this happy in a while.
At least until he spotted a familiar silhouette on a patch of grassland not too far away. It was his daughter Phoebe, she was resting on the chest of a young man who was inappropriately touching her ass.
“Again?”
His face darkened with anger immediately after seeing this. he soon started stroding forward with annoyance in each step. The old man’s usual placid demeanor was gone the moment he witnessed his daughter’s inappropriate behavior in public.
“Byand! How many times have I told you to stay away from my child?!”
The old man’s shout echoed across the field, alerting not only Phoebe but also Byand. Byand was a strong young man who had been assigned as a clan guard, this alone stood as testament to his strength.
But, the young man was a playboy. He went around the clan having his way with beautiful ladies and was generally considered a leach. However for some absurd reason his daughter found Byand to be attractive, and always went close to him.
“Let go of her now!”
The old man retrieved his work hammer and surrounded it with a blood-red energy. Warlocks could use Mana, but they could also use another type of energy: life-energy, this energy could be derived from their surroundings, but Warlocks mainly relied on the life-energy of their bloodlines.
In the case of the blood serpent clan, it was blood serpent attributed energy. For the wind Eagle clan, it was wind Eagle attribute energy
“Blood serpent work: coating enhancer,” the old man struck toward Byand with all his might. The blood red energy congregated around the tip of his hammer. It seemed like a single blow from his hammer could easily break bones.
—Clangg
Unfortunately, the guard easily deflected the strike; he was too powerful.
“You dare attack a protector of the clan, old man? Are you planning to rebel?!”
Quickly pushing Phoebe aside, Byand drew his sword and swung it at the old man.
( this old bastard thinks he can attack me and go scot-free? He wishes!! I won’t let it slide.)
Byand thought to himself
“S***!!”
Seeing the sword cutting towards him, the old man dodged to the side. He didn’t expect to be attacked by a junior of the clan, so he didn’t have the time to block.
“Hmp!!”
The guard, after missing the first strike, pulled himself up and prepared for the next one, and once again the old man dodged.
However, before he could try again, he felt a chill across his neck, like it had been split open by a blade.
“S***.”
Terrified, he touched his throat but noticed no blood. Abruptly He turned to see a skinny young man with a calm expression.
(How did he get here?)
Byand thought to himself. The scene puzzled him. How had the young man approached without being noticed? and what was that feeling at his neck?
“Go home,” the skinny young man said calmly. Though his voice was tranquil, it conveyed a sense of dread.
It wasn’t just a threat; it was a warning, the kind that one could only hear once before their life ended.
“I… don’t have time for this,” with beads of sweat on his forehead, Byand quickly turned around andv left. This fear was An irrational one, he easily eclipsed this brat, but he couldn’t help but react this way.
“Senior Byand, please don’t go without me,” Phoebe called after him, but he paid her no mind and departed without a second thought.
“Hmp! It’s all your fault,” Phoebe barked at the old man before running off toward the carriage.
“You better come back here!” the old man shouted, but she didn’t listen.
“Sigh!”
Taking a deep breath, the old man sighed with regret. He had truly spoiled the child. She didn’t even respect herself, talk less of respecting him.
