"Wh..why are you here? How did you know I was here?" asked a shocked and confused Ellis.
"I heard what happened to you. By the time I got the information, it was too late. I received a report saying you were going towards the Rainbow falls. Even an idiot can figure out what you were going to do. I came to stop you, although now it seems like my trip was wasted." I replied.
There was a moment of silence as Ellis probably processed everything I just said.
"Why are you the only one always helping me, when everyone else just hurts me?" He asked, as he lowered his head, and clenched his fists.
"Because you wanted to live." I said
Hearing my answer, he looked up at me confused.
I explained to him "On that day I found you, although you were close to dying you were holding on with your sheer willpower. You wanted to live, so I gave you that life.
The life that you are living now is granted by me. I don't want you to throw it away just because you are helpless.
At least die trying instead of just giving up."
His body started shaking, while his head started turning red. A single tear left his face, and after a while, he replied "Thank you"
He started to walk back to the path leading back to the capital while going away from the pair of tree where me and Titus sat on.
Suddenly he stopped and turned towards the direction of the tree as he asked me for the second time "Who are you?"
"Like I said before come and find out." He was surprised for a moment before he walked towards the tree.
"Let me warn you before coming any closer. Coming in contact with me once placed you in great danger once and cost you your mum's life. Try it once more and my enemies will make sure to make you wish you were dead." I smiled as I saw him coming closer to me.
He stopped as horror crept through his face which slowly morphed into anger. "What did you just say?"
"You think it was just Phil's doing last night? Then you are mistaken, Ellis. The powers at play here are beyond your imagination.
To them, you, your mum and both of your hard work at your new life were just tools for them to use against me.
If you still don't understand let me make it clear to you.
What happened to you last night was an attempt by 2 certain families to please their masters, aka my enemies."
"Who?" Asked Ellis as his slowly last his cool while gritting his teeth.
"Are you su..."
"I asked you WHO?" Interrupted Ellis, as anger slowly crept through his whole body.
"The Springwood noble family and Sprinkles merchant family." I replied
Suddenly Ellis was frozen in shock. He had realised both of those family names. Two names he often heard when his teacher took attendance in his class. Phil Springwood and Ava Sprinkles.
His mind went blank.
"They were not out there to get petty revenge against you, in fact, revenge was only their least of concerns, their primary objective was showing their masters that they were able to touch me." I smiled while I saw the slowly enraged Ellis getting unstable.
"You see how the game is played now don't you? Just because I came in contact with you, they touched you. And if they find that you still have your magi capabilities, then they will at all costs clean you from the slate.
So, what do you want to do now?" I asked him. He simply ignored me as he turned around and walked back towards the capital.
"You plan for revenge, right? Forget it. To those two families, you are nothing but an ant." He kept on ignoring me.
"So, you just want to at least attempt revenge on Phil right? Well, that's going to fail as well." I said
Suddenly he stopped to listen.
"If you are not even capable of detecting the numerous amount of my bodyguards in this area now, don't mention being a rank 1 magi, even being a rank 4 or 5 magi won't even let you throw a scratch on him."
Then he suddenly shouted with his back facing towards me, while shaking his fist in anger "Then what do you expect me to do? Should I just give up on revenge and live a pointless life? You told me yourself it is better to at least die trying than to give up."
"I also said to not throw away your life just because you are helpless." He still seemed unsatisfied by my answer.
"You have only two choices here." He suddenly started calming down hearing what I have to say.
"One is to train grow strong, but at the same time find allies that are willing to help you. This way you can at least die knowing you tried.
But they will notice you before you take your first step inside the empire, and they won't wait for a thorn to grow and become a dagger that will stab them in the back." I let what I told him sink in before jumping down the tree and walking towards the cliff.
"Or what?" He asked still facing his back towards me.
"Follow me for the next 5 years, and I can promise you that those two families life and death will be under your feet, within the next 5 years." I said as I stood at the edge of the cliff watching the waterfall.
There was a brief moment of silence. I stood there watching the waterfall while Ellis stood there thinking what was his best option.
After a while, I could hear him walking towards me.
"Coming any closer to me will identify you as my follower. Only take the step if you are willing to follow me. In return I will gift you those two families, in due time." I said trying to convince him to back out.
But that didn't stop him let alone slow him down as he reached behind me.
I could hear him do something as he knelt down.
"I, Ellis from this day forth declare to be your follower for the next 5 years or till whenever you want in return for what you promised me. This will be the oath I take with my magi particles."
I suddenly saw a glowing light along with feeling a faint sense of warmth from behind me, as the effect of his oath took hold.
"Very well" I said as I turned around to face him.
I extended my left arm to greet the boy with short black hair "Nice to meet you Ellis."
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"Ellis has made contact with John." Said the agent kneeling down.
Albert nodded before he activated his communication crystal. "Your highness he has made his move."
Emperor James the 2nd nodded while smiling. "Finally, he will realise the true wrath of messing with a commandment especially someone like Steven."
Albert nodded as he to finally smiled.
So far they had lost all their battles against John. But now he has to defend from two sides, now they just have to wait for an opening, especially when he has finally challenged someone like Steven.
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A waiter walked into where two people where sat down. He looked at Steven and nodded.
Steven smiled after looking at the waiter.
"The tiger has finally decided to make it move against the lion's kingdom, after 3 months. Jack get ready for an all-out war, from now on."
Jack nodded. He stopped underestimated John since that day in the royal palace.
Jack took a communication crystal from his pocket and called Pablo. "Ellis has started to serve under John."
Hearing this message Pablo nodded with a visible frown. "I will arrange for a squad to take him out."
"You better not. It's not so simple now. He is not a nobody now, but a magi now. Arrange for the protection of your son and make him stay cooped inside your house, that's the least he can do after failing to even destroy a peasants accumulation.
I don't want him to die now, and lose the first match against that kid." Steven interrupted the conversation.
Hearing Steven's bone-chilling voice Pablo paled. He had made it clear for his son to make sure to destroy Ellis' accumulation, and his son was not someone who left things half done.
But not only did he not make sure that his accumulation was not scattered, but he had gone ahead and caused Ellis to ally himself with that crazy monster. Pablo wasn't sure where things had gone wrong.
Pablo nodded, as Jake cut the communication device down.