Chapter 18 - This is a stupid conversation
Darren followed his father behind after dealing with unimportant negotiations for Duke Leon.
"What other trouble has he done?" whispered the waiter to another colleague.
Along the way, there was an uncomfortable hissing sound as he walked down the road to a place that the young man was almost sick of hearing. His father hadn't said a word either.
Then suddenly stopped and immediately turned around and said, "Put your hand away!" he stretched out his right hand.
Darren seemed hesitant to welcome the invitation in front of him. However, there was no way he could refuse the helping hand that had helped him escape the trouble this time.
Slowly welcoming, seeing his son's left hand wrapped in a bandage, his gaze turned sharp, but he said nothing.
[Siiiing….]
A circle portal enveloped the two of them; the light shone brightly; they walked in already inside the tall tower where Dareen's father worked.
After arriving at Duke Leon's destination, letting go of his hand, he went towards the door and locked it. The room that initially looked cramped immediately enlarged and expanded, amazed by his father's abilities as if the tower welcomed the two of them there.
Remembering when he sneaked in the early morning to steal his family's cup, the labyrinth's walls are no longer visible and have been replaced with solid walls. In front of the desk was a simple cupboard lined with neat and essential books that only Magic Mana Controllers could thoroughly read; there was a layer of Mana that was impossible to penetrate.
Coincidentally, he saw a giant spider wanting to make a nest inside but burnt, and smoke was coming out of his body; Dareen shuddered.
Faced with the pile of work and papers on the table looking messy, Duke Leon went over there and poured a cup of tea for his guest. With magic, in an instant conjured objects around him, moving a chair closer to his banquet.
[Kreeek]
He used to see Dareen's match a few days ago.
Direct the chair in front of the work desk. After serving the drinks, Duke Leon used his magic again to clean up the scattered items, gathering them together.
Arranged neatly according to the code been prepared, put them together into a small book, looking clean on the side of the table.
"Sit down!" Duke Leon sat facing the direction his son was still standing.
When he looked at Dareen, he wished his son would drink the tea served earlier.
A feeling of worry overwhelmed him, looking at his father's prowess this afternoon and being confronted by the extraordinary magic movement.
"Just to move things around, this guy is already amazing; it would be straightforward for him to put something in this cup," Dareen thought, seeing the reflection of his face, still billowing smoke.
Because someone sitting enthusiastically killed him with just a cup of sweet tea.
"Then tell the people, I die by suicide due to a slump and as a captive bound to Vicount Igor. Then my body will be used as a test material."
"Dareen?" the man interrupting his daydream
Looking expectantly, his father's expression was waiting for him to drink the served tea immediately.
Darren took the cup hesitantly with fear, gulping down the liquid in his hand. It was so sweet that he couldn't stop himself.
"Oh no, I've been bewitched into being unable to stop; I'm going to die soon." He Panic.
[Tak] "Ahhh…" put the empty container on the table and took a deep breath. Realizing that the tea he had been drinking had run out, his face quickly turned pale with cold sweat.
"Hahaha, Hahaha." Duke Leon laughed heartily at Darren's expression. Perhaps, for several hours, he was not given water or food by Viscount Igor.
"O, my son, seeing you like that, it's like I'm going to kill you with that little thing." He said, chuckling.
"That's right." he thought.
Darren is surprised to face his father's different nature, always cold treatment shown before him, and now he has become close.
"Here, give it back," said Duke Leon, holding his hand out in front of him.
Darren was confused by the question, what should be returned to him?
Suddenly the limbs moved on their own; it turned out that Duke Leon was controlling his hand, which was trying to resist; he was no match for him. Looks very relaxed and loves magic games.
The ring on Dareen's index finger suddenly slipped off by itself, and he finally understood the meaning of the word 'return'; it meant that his father already knew the purpose of the departure and the intended plan.
The magical item was already in Duke Leon's hands, and apart from the controlling magic, it instantly reverted to the ring's original form with ease.
"I don't know what you're using this cup for," showing the empty container.
"I'm proud of you," he added again.
His mind still couldn't grasp what had happened, especially when facing his father; it differed from what he had seen.
"Perhaps you wonder, why am I acting like this now," said Duke Leon, this time showing a severe face.
"You know, my son, if we are revealing another side of us to others, while they can't make us who we are, it's better not to," he stood up from his seat.
"You out there must have heard how the people of Rhodes hate people from outside,"
He walked towards the window of the magic tower with a blank look.
"Our people (Rhodes) believe in peace that we can get from the outside, but it is because of our kind that they are easy to betray."
"I understand your attitude trying to look troublesome to everyone because you hate how they look at you. I only hope that you become a strong person, able to live your own life as the next successor of Magic Mana Control," said Duke Leon looking closely at his son's handsome face from afar.
Speechless, he felt that his father's words were not for him but for Dareen, who was there; it was too late.
Why was he only now showing affection for him? Why not when the real Dareen listens and gets that love?
Where has he been cold all this time?
There were so many questions Darren wanted to ask himself. However, he seemed to eat a ball of thorns and couldn't get through the hole in his throat.
"Unfortunate for you, Dareen," he said, bowing his head. He must have felt the sad things in his life.
Even though it wasn't even a day before they had promised their own lives, find happiness, and now there was some nonsense that Duke Leon's father was throwing, it made Darren want to laugh and feel sick at the same time.
The teenager could not utter a single word; he just hoped and prayed that his other self was filled with happiness with his mother there. Now, it's just how he struggles to maintain what is already there.
Seeing the young man beside him not responding to words, just sitting limp and lethargic, made Duke Leon give up. He realized the consequences of his treatment so far that he did not immediately tell his heart.
He knew Dareen had hated him all along; as a father, he had high hopes for his son.
"Hmmm .." averting his eyes so that no one saw his disappointed face.
"You may return to your room, now," said Duke Leon while looking out the window.
"You were punished for leaving the residence, causing trouble with other nobles until your maturity ceremony was carried out. So that no more rumors."
Darren stood with a frantic mind, stepping on his feet and processing what he had just heard. Even though it is only an expression of affection parents show to their children, it isn't easy to accept.
"For the matter of the cup, let it be a secret for the two of us," he said again.
The boy came out of his father's study, leaving him alone in the very tall and old tower there.