It's been a rough six months but this day finally came. Three months ago something huge happened. After months of not trusting me, they finally felt sure that I was basically brain dead. After that, the king started having secret conversations in front of me. Not gonna lie… I really could've gone without some of them. Like the one that the king had with his physician…
"So you're saying you can't enlarge my penis?"
"Well we could but…"
"But what?!"
"We'd… we'd need to be able to see it to do anything with it."
"..."
"..."
"GUARDS!! EXECUTE THIS MAN!!"
There was also the conversation with his wife that I could've done without…
"Well honey I'm trying to please you and our son but it's just-"
"You know full well that's not your son and yet you pretend it is. I wouldn't sleep with a man as ugly as you to save my life!"
"Ohhhh I'd tell you to look in the mirror but you've already broken all of them. Not to mention the spoon that shattered last week while you were trying to see the reflection of your teeth!!"
Yes, some of the conversations were very… Like VERY entertaining, but it wasn't only those conversations that interested me. (Trust me though, those conversations were VERY interesting.)
What really interested me were the talks about different nations and the allies the king has. It seems that not only is the king being pressured into signing a treaty with the neighboring countries, he's also having trouble getting out of the national tournament of masters.
Lately, the countries have been at peace, and to maintain this peace, the nations hold a tournament of masters every five years. Each nation will send out two peak masters to fight for their honor. The nation that wins is given certain benefits from each country. After murdering my father, the king was running low on talents and since the country he rules is so small, there was nothing he could give as a benefit if he were to lose.
To offset this, he made the decision to try and get Uncle T to take part in the competition with me as a hostage. Luckily, he still doesn't understand the relationship we have, just that I'm important to him. However, even if I know this, there isn't much that I can do about it.
Anyway, today is the last day. All I need to do is move the combined knight-walker ki to my heart. I thought of that name by the way. Think it's pretty cool to combine "knight" and "night-walker". As promised, grandpa showed up again as soon as I was preparing to move it.
"Seems like you've had an interesting go of things lately."
"Well, it certainly hasn't been easy. Did you know that those whips have metal tips?! Who the f*ck does that?!"
"Well, at least your body has become far stronger because of it."
He's right. I stopped feeling any form of discomfort from the whips two months ago. My muscles had become far stronger and my bones were no longer breakable by normal means.
"I guess you could consider that a bright side."
"Back in my day, I had a bone that wouldn't even break or go soft."
"EWWW GROSS GRANDPA!!"
"WHAT?! I MEANT MY FEMUR!"
I couldn't help but laugh with him. A part of me just wanted to stay in this moment, to make these seconds last for an eternity.
"It's time…"
"..."
"I've served my purpose kiddo… you have to let me go."
"...what if I just don't move my ki center? What if I just leave things as they are?"
Grandpa tenderly touched my face and pulled my head up. He was slightly smaller than me but I still couldn't bear to look him in the eye.
"Your mother, your father, and I all need to be allowed to rest. We��re not leaving because we don't wanna watch you grow or because we don't love you, but you have to let us go. It's time…"
Despite all my efforts, tears streamed down my face as I began to sob like a baby. To move my ki center, I need to use ki. However, the only usable ki during the process is what grandpa left me. That's why he left it in all his descendants, so that we would have the opportunity to bridge this gap. I just… I don't want this…
"You just came back…"
"Yeah…"
"...and now you're gonna leave again"
"I know…"
I'm blubbering but I just can't stop myself. Hasn't enough been taken from me already? WHY?!
"LOGAN!"
Grandpa's voice snapped me out of my grief. I hadn't even realized that my ki center was beginning to deteriorate faster due to my stress. I won't do it though. I'll just die with grand-
*PAHH!!*
The sting on my cheek almost made me forget I was in my dantian. Grandpa's warm and kind hand had struck me for the first time in my life.
"Have you lost your f*cking mind?!"
"..."
"Is that your solution?! Just f*ck everything you still have because you're scared to move forward?!"
"I'M NOT SCAR-"
"YOU'RE TERRIFIED!! AFRAID TO MOVE FORWARD ALONE AND NOT EVEN REALIZING THAt YOU'RE NOT ALONE!!"
"..."
"You're so afraid of us leaving. Don't you understand that we'll always be with you? You're trying so hard to hold onto something that'll never truly leave you, that you're losing yourself."
"I just-"
"I know. I know you're hurting. But remember why you've struggled through these tribulations so far. All of the good in us SHINES in YOU! Hold onto that. There is more of me in you than there ever was in this sliver of ki. Let. It. Go."
…
I love you grandpa
"I love you too kiddo."
Grandpa read my thoughts one final time and with that, I closed my eyes and began moving my ki. The pain in my heart completely outweighing the physical pain I feel.
As my knight-walker ki began to set into my heart, I felt something. The sensation was exponentially different from when it was in my dantian. Every beat of my heart created a radar sensation around me. I could feel the breath of the insects outside, hear the beats of their wings, and even see my surroundings with my eyes closed. All the new information my brain was trying to process was giving me the worst migraine ever.
As if the struggle I was going through already wasn't hard enough, my uncle chose this exact moment to show up. I could feel his presence as he approached the stairs. His being here meant that a show was going to begin very soon. At that moment, the doors swung open furiously, and in walked the angriest version of Uncle T I had ever seen.
"WHERE IS THE BOY?! I DON'T HAVE TIME!"
"Halt!"
"ME?!"
Umm… that guard is done for… yup. Uncle T exerted his aura and sent the guard that stopped him through the wall on the opposite side of the room. Slowly, he walked up to me and saw the outward state of my body. At first, I didn't understand why he got even angrier but eventually, I realized. Although I was okay, I could only imagine how my body must've looked and smelled after six months of not bathing and being tortured all day every day.
My clothes - or at least what was left of them - were tattered and sticking to the blood that oozed from my body. The burns and bruises made my flesh look rotten and grotesque. Although I felt unhurt, my body was entirely devoid of strength. As Uncle T looked over me, I gave him a weak but reassuring smile to let him know that I was at least alive. The smile served its purpose of reminding him of what was at stake.
"Welcome to my humble abode, Terrance."
The trudged slowly into the throne room, waving his hand and signaling his men to commence the daily whipping.
*PAHHH!*
As the first whip struck my bare skin, the sound resonated throughout the palace. Although I was fine, it was my uncle's first time seeing my beatings. His anger would've gone out of control and exposed our relationship had he not been looking in my eyes. I let out a weak "ahhh" as usual so as not to cause suspicion.
"I believe it's time to hand over your side of the deal. I urgently need the boy for my expedition so if you don't mind, I'll be taking my le-"
"Slow down a bit. You see… I'm in a bit of a predicament."
Here it comes. I knew this piggy bastard would use me as a bargaining chip.
"What do you want Harold?"
"... I need someone to fight for our country in the upcoming tournament."
"No."
"Well... this boy is technically my slave still."
"You son of a-"
"EVEN YOU WOULDN'T START A WAR WITH ME FOR A MERE SLAVE!!"
My uncle's aura flared up exponentially. I was certain there was no avoiding a fight. I was also sure the king had figured out our relationship to some extent.
"YOU CAN'T PLAY ME TERRY!! I KNOW THIS BOY'S BODY IS EXTRAORDINARY EVEN IF HIS MIND IS GONE! YOU MUST WANT TO USE IT AS AN EXPERIMENT RIGHT?"
Ahh I knew with the king's advanced networking skills he would definitely find ou- wait… huh?... What the hell is he talking about? My uncle looked at me as confused as I was. It took everything in us to keep from bursting into laughter. You ever met someone so stupid but they say stupid shit so confidently? Yeah… Him...