"Don't you dare.."
"B-but-!"
"Don't come near me!"
"Young master.."
"Don't touch me! Go away!"
"Please calm down.. "
"I'll kill you if you touch me!"
"But we need to-"
"Grrr!"
Ale had practically gone feral. Neither the doctors nor the knights could approach him or get anywhere near.
Influenced by his extreme emotions, even the baby dragon that was pretending to be a cat had started to show hostility.
"Can someone call the duke? This is an emergency!"
"What's wrong with him?"
Xion couldn't help but ask as he grabbed one of the nearby knights. Everyone was running around frantically trying to find Ale's father or younger brother.
"The young master is afraid of splinters."
"Afraid...?"
"Yeah, anything small and sharp, like needles or splinters or small blades."
"Why?"
"I don't know? And don't tell anyone else! It's a secret."
Ale was currently hiding on top of a nearby tree. Noobdy knows how he managed to jump up so high without even using mana or one of his arms.
But one thing was for sure. He wasn't planning on coming down anytime soon. Like a wounded cat, he'd check and even try to take out the splinters by himself, but his hands would jerk back even before he can touch the splinters.
"Young master.. Please come down."
"We won't touch you, promise. So please come down. It's dangerous."
"That's what you said last time as well, you bastards."
The last time this happened, the knights grabbed him the moment he let his guard down and the doctor, although he looked so kind and benevolent, didn't miss the chance and took out the splinters.
Ale's trust on humanity decreased after that day. He promised to never trust any of these bastards words ever again.
"Are you really not going down?"
"Who-!?"
A voice sounded from behind him. Ale, startled, almost lost his balance but managed to recover soon like a cat. As he turned around, he could see someone else who had climbed up the tree without his knowledge.
"Xion? Why are you here?"
"I came cause I was worried."
Since it wasn't a human but a demon, Ale's guard went down a little and he calmed down.
"They're planning something, aren't they?"
"Hm?"
"Is it an ambush? Or a coercion? Are they waiting for me to get tired and come down?"
"Umm.."
"Cause that's never gonna happen!"
"Is that so.."
"Yeah! You should go down too!"
"But I'm on your side."
"....you are?"
"Yes. It's painful, right?"
Xion took a look at Ale's palm that he was carefully putting aside and asked. Ale's expression became dark as he nodded his head. He really looked like a child at that moment.
"It hurts."
"I can help."
"I don't need anyone's help."
"But you do need help."
"...I don't."
"My power can erase any and all sensations, you know."
"Mm?"
"I usually use it to blind my enemies or completely paralyze them."
Xion lowered his voice and spoke almost in a whisper. Although Ale had a fairly good idea of Xion's power and ability, the paralysis part was new to him.
He had a clue that Xion could take away his enemies sight or senses during battle, but he never saw him use that power. Xion hated using his ability since he felt like it was unfair and didn't give the opponent much of a choice.
In simpler terms, it was too over powering and took away the fun of fighting. Since he was super strong and enjoyed fighting, an ability like that was practically useless to him.
"Complete paralysis?"
"Yeah. You won't even feel like you have a hand."
"That's creepy."
"It's not. Why don't we give it a try?"
"Hmmmm... okay."
Ale sat down on a large branch and invited Xion sit next to him. Xion signalled the knights to calm down and go away as he followed Ale's instructions.
"Can I really sit here? You're not afraid?"
"Since it's you.."
"I'm feeling privileged haha.."
"But.."
"Yes?"
"Can you use your power without touching my hand?"
"Of course. See?"
A black mist spread from Xion's hand and slowly wrapped around Ale's arm. It felt like a cold yet soft blanket was being wrapped around his palm. And soon, the pain disappeared.
"Ah.. "
"You can't feel anything, right?"
Ale pinched his arm just to make sure but there really was no sensation left in his hand. He tried to move his fingers, but it felt like there was nothing to move.
"You can look the other way while I take them out."
Xion suggested as he carefully grabbed Ale's palm. Ale quickly looked the other way, focusing all of his concentration on a line of ants climbing up the tree.
"Done!"
It didn't even take a moment. Ale turned around to look and all the splinters were already gone. He had even managed to apply some ointment on the wound in such a short time.
"Now give me back my arm."
Ale's childishness disappeared along with the splinters. His voice returned to normal and his back straightened.
Xion looked at him with an intrigued expression before taking back the mist from his arm. His curiosity for Ale kept growing bigger and deeper the more he observed him.
"Whew.. Thanks."
Ale didn't forget to thank the kind fellow that helped him in his life and death situation and even gave him a small bow.
The knights on the ground, on the other hand, were too speechless to speak. The young master that they've watched growing up, the one they could never control or keep within the rules, seeing that young master so easily get subdued was a shock to all.
"Son! I'm here! Are you okay?!"
The Duke appeared right at that moment. He was sweating from running all the way here. As he looked around trying to find Ale, one of the knights pointed their finger towards the tree with a hesitating expression.
"The tree again?"
As the Duke approached the tree and tried to persuade Ale into coming down, the scene he was welcomed with shocked him to the core.
"Uh..son?"
"Father? It's fine now, see? No more splinters."
Ale flashed his clear palm in front of the Duke and jumped down. Xion followed suit and came down as well.
"This.. you managed to take them out? By yourself?"
"He helped."
Ale pointed at his back and spoke.
"Ah? This young man...?"
"Ah.. I forgot to introduce you guys. This is my father, and father, this is Xion. I took him in recently."
"Took him in?"
"Yeah, as my bodyguard. He's really skilled."
"I see. It's reassuring to see someone so skilled beside my son."
The two of them shook hands and the Duke welcomed Xion without much of an objection. He already had full faith in his son so he trusted Ale's decision over any of his own judgements.
"The pleasure is all mine, Duke. I'm the lucky one being able to serve someone so great like our 'young master'."
Xion, who had come to get a grip of the situation eventually, got down on his role immediately. Although Ale hadn't given him any instructions or shared his thoughts or plans, after all this, now Xion knew what he had in mind.
With quick wit and a friendly personality, it didn't take Xion much time to get along with everyone on the training grounds, including the knights and their captains.
"He's doing great."
"Isn't he? He's really good."
"Since it's someone young master chose."
"As expected, eh?"
"Haha yeah."
The older knights chatted amongst themselves as they observed the whole thing unfurl. It was a pleasant atmosphere.