"ARGH!", Milo let out a sudden cry of pain, sweat trickled down the sides of his cheek as his body tensed when another shock of mana shot through his body.
The woman stood behind a glass panel, she raised her hand, "SHOCK 2! CLEAR!".
A group of masked men in a room next to the bed poured their mana into a machine. The mana ran through the wires at incredible speed, slowly being processed into pure mana and shooting into Milo's body.
The pain was something akin to an electric shock, and each time it struck the wounds in Milo's body he could feel the wounds start to close up. Without anything to numb the pain the sensation of his bones mending back together was painstaking. It had only been 10 minutes since the first shock and his constant agony hadn't faded, but still they continued to proceed.
Each time the pure mana struck Milo's own mana, they combined into a single particle and seeped deep into his muscles and bones. Milo's own core was desperately trying to resist and was constantly firing out new particles of mana in an attempt to stem the flow. This only served to make the pain worse, at the same time as his body was injured beyond belief, his own core was trying to prevent the healing by draining itself.
It felt counterproductive, yet somehow was working as intended.
…
"So then, Renny Van Belched", The king began, "Tell me more about Milo".
After leaving Milo to undergo treatment, the King whisked Renny away to the throne room. Now, the King sat perched atop his throne maintaining his usual air of authority and Renny was knelt on a red carpet in the middle of the room
Renny lifted his head slightly before responding, "Yes. He was born to a branch family, specifically that of my youngest sister, Sheila Van Belched and her husband Sion. I was informed about his birth and made my way to congratulate them, however it was then I noticed Milo's innate talents".
The King rested his chin on his hand, "Oh, what specifically was it that drew you to him?".
Renny's face paled.
'I can't just outright tell him what Milo's true identity is, that might get him locked up. I also can't just outright lie to the King, that would get me locked up'.
Renny was stuck at a crossroads. He had made the promise to keep Milo's secret safe, but now when he found himself before the King, he struggled to muster an explanation as to why Milo could be so great. After all, he was likely the first child in history to display the fighting prowess and mana levels Milo demonstrated against the basilisk.
Renny understood that even though they both wanted to move through the ranks quickly, it was too early to be in this position.
It was the first time Renny had seen Milo show any form of negligence in a fight. Normally Milo was calm and composed, freakishly so. But was the Milo in the fight with the basilisk the real Milo?
Renny bit his bottom lip and tried to conjure an explanation, "It was his talent with the sword my liege. I first saw Milo's combat capabilities first hand during a spar with his father when he was merely 4 years old. At that time, he was already more than capable of pushing his father back, even if his father is inexperienced and uneducated that is a feat in itself".
"Oho! So he is skilled with the sword as well?", The King asked, his curiosity towards Milo growing.
Renny returned a shallow nod, "Yes sir. Although he quickly abandoned the sword in favour of a close combat fighting style. As it turned out, his natural bounce and lightning-fast reflexes made him almost unmatchable in our region. If I had to guess …".
Renny lifted his head and peered towards the King, "… There isnt a single child in his age range that can hope to match him".
The King lifted his own head slightly, a smile creeping onto his lips, "That is quite the bold statement Baron Van Belched. Are you suggesting that Milo will easily sweep this tournament?"
"I am sir", Renny responded confidently, earning a surprised look from the King.
The two men sat in silence for a few moments before a guard came bundling into the room with Pavlor and Enalise in tow. Pavlor's wounds were easily patchable compared to Milo's and even though he sported a makeshift splint around his damaged wrist, he wore a confident expression and strutted towards his father with his shoulders pushed back and his chest puffed out.
"Welcome", the King shone a warm smile at them.
It was at this point Renny understood what was happening. The number of capable warriors had been dwindling since the previous great war and for the first time in forever, the human continent had stumbled on perhaps a world-shattering prodigy.
It was as Renny had thought, it was too early. Milo was likely going to be swept away by the King and trained, provided the adequate resources and propelling him further in a much shorter time frame than the Van Belched family could. Renny was confident Milo wouldn't abandon them, but was he confident that Milo wouldn't choose to swear himself to the king in return for faster growth? He wasn't sure.
The human continent had become sparse since the last war and was arguably one of the smaller continents. Humans themselves were far and away the weakest race. Following the last war, the human kingdom managed to secure itself some peace but struggled to maintain their current strength, never mind growing to greater heights.
Now when faced with the leader of that very continent, all Renny could do was hope that it would somehow turn in his favour. After all, Milo was a boy that they could raise to become their very own demon.
"Pavlor … I believe your name was", the King began, "It was a noble act for you to try to aid Milo during the battle, an unselfish act that shouldn't go overlooked. Tell me, what drove you to risk your life in such a manner?", he asked, causing Pavlor's confident demeanour to shatter.
Pavlor shrunk in on himself, "Milo has done so much for me and built me from the ground up. I made a silent oath to myself that no matter the situation I would be by his side if he needs it. It's the least I could do for not only my cousin, but also my best friend".
'Idiot!'.
Renny screamed internally.
"You say Milo built you from the ground up. Are you implying that you were trained by Milo?", The King asked again, raising his hand and preventing Renny from speaking.
"No …".
"Yes, he was your highness", Enalise butted in, completely cutting off Pavlor.
"Milo is a child of extraordinary talent but he is also a loose cannon who simply refuses to listen to anyone. Unfortunately, despite being the head of the household my foolish husband simply refuses to acknowledge any of Milo's wrongdoings, instead he chooses to serve the boy and aid him in the silly little conquests he attempts", Enalise barked, a look of hysteria planted on her face.
Renny felt his entire body deflate as the words left his wife's mouth. It was as Milo had told him, Enalise still couldn't be trusted. But even then, Renny wanted to believe that his wife would still be on his side. It felt like a part of him shattered and died when he saw the face of his wife.
She was no longer the woman he had fallen in love with, she was a woman hellbent on uprooting the promising seedling known as Milo.
Though strictly speaking, there wasn't anything she could do that would immediately shatter Milo's image at this current moment.
"He also has a Vampire aide", Enalise said.
Never mind, somehow she had found a way.
Renny felt his heart begin to race. The Vampire race was apart of the demon continent, the continent that attacked the human race all those years ago. The King finding out that Milo was hiding a Vampire and even worse, had made it his servant was almost guaranteed to bring problems.
Renny closed his eyes, opening one slightly. His face twisted in confusion when he saw the sparkle in the Kings eyes.
"Really!", The King exclaimed like an excited child, "You really mean it! He has complete control over a Vampire!".
Renny watched on, confused by the sudden change in the Kings demeanour. His eyes widened and he slammed his hand onto the ground, a small blood seal lighting up on the back of his hand.
A puff of dust filled the room and Marcos' figure emerged. He looked down towards Renny with a scowl on his face, "What the hell is it!? I thought I told you only to summon me if your life was in danger!".
Before Milo and Pavlor had left for testing, Milo took some time with Marcos to figure out the best way for Marcos to spend his time. It was then Marcos said he could partially give control of the pact to Renny, and that whilst Renny was in control he wanted to continue scouring the area.
Milo agreed and control of the pact was transferred to Renny for 3 days. Although, the distinct difference in attitude Marcos took towards Renny compared to Milo made him question if it was even worth it.
"Oh wow!", The King jumped from his throne and began circling Marcos, "It really is a Vampire!".
Marcos clicked his tongue, "Who is this weird guy?".
Renny let out a chortle, "The King".
"Oh", Marcos said, looking the King up and down, "Then forgive me for my rudeness. Anyway, why the hell did you call for me?".
"So how did it happen!?", The King blurted out, continuing to observe Marcos much to Enalise's displeasure.
"Your highness, shouldn't you get rid of this foul demon!", she spoke up.
"You be quiet!", the Kings demeanour instantly changed, his mana seeped from his body coating the hall in a thick mist like substance, nearly suffocating everyone besides Marcos.
It was the first time since meeting him that Renny had seen the King exude such pressure it made everything around him feel insignificant. Renny thought of him as nothing more than a righteous ruler, but he could see now that even that assumption may have been misguided.
Even though he is fair and allows everyone the chance to speak their mind, he doesn't tolerate any form of disrespect towards him at all. He had made that fact abundantly clear by stomping out Enalise before she had a chance to get too full of herself.
"You mean Milo, right?", Marcos asked.
The King nodded.
"Well …", Marcos began, "I stumbled upon him whilst he was doing some private training and noticed that his mana fluctuations were much higher for his age. I was without a master and typically vampires tend to struggle without that crutch to lean on, so I approached him. As luck would have it, Milo deemed it necessary for him to have a right-hand man and we have been joined at the hip ever since".
Renny could feel Marcos' pride spilling from his body despite the fact he had just told a blatant lie.
'Why does it feel like we are the ones in the wrong in this situation'.
"That's impressive", the King said, turning his back to Marcos and making his way back to his throne, "I recognise you as a citizen of the human continent … although if you filled out the correct forms then you are already a resident. What I really mean is that, I hereby allow you entry to the castle so you can stay by your masters side".
Before anyone else could get a word in, the King pointed towards Enalise, "You, get out! I'm sick and tired of you trying to interject and downplay Milo and Pavlor's accomplishments. I deem your presence unnecessary for their future development and the royal selections development".
"No way!", Enalise wildly swung her arm, her fear creeping onto her features, "You can't do this! Tell them Renny!".
Renny bit his bottom lip and averted his gaze, "You brought this on yourself Enalise", he said softly.
"Guard!", the King called out, "Remove her!".
Guards burst through the door and dragged Enalise out kicking and screaming, her constant cries for help tugged on Renny's heart strings but he had resolved himself. Her constant belittling of Zach and the betrayal of trust from her was too much to overlook.
He had wanted desperately to give her another chance, but before he could even get to it she had shown up and yet again tried to throw Milo to the dogs. Renny was tired, confused and tired, all he wanted was to live peacefully but Milo had disrupted that.
He didn't hold it against Milo, he knew that if he wanted to climb the ranks things like this would occur. He also knew that Milo gave him the best chance to do so. He just didn't think he would lose his wife in the process.
It left him once again asking the question.
Did this all happen too early?
"Mother ...", Pavlor's soft voice filled the room.
Renny had completely forgotten that Pavlor was unaware of what was happening, all he saw was his mother get dragged away and ignored by his father.
"Ugh!", Marcos spat, "Thank fuck she's gone, she was one of the worst women I have ever had the displeasure of meeting".