"If I was told students were meant to share a suite with their sidekicks, I would have abandoned you in the academy." Lucius said dryly as he opened the door with the key card.
"You know you don't have to be so mean all the time, right?" Ralph followed him in with a bright smile.
This was the opportunity he dreamt of, putting his family back in the spotlight, that was the only way they could fight back against the government.
Lucius dropped his bag filled with clothes on a sofa in the living room and sat down. His gaze shifted to the flat-screen television, which had some cartoons playing.
"Guardian Return! My best show!" Ralph left his bag at the entrance of the suite and jumped on a couch.
Lucius watched with indifference as Ralph picked up the remote and turned up the volume, and was left wondering why he even bothered with this kid.
[You can only help someone in motion, there are easier to push in the right direction, not someone stagnant. If you don't force him to fix himself first, this boy will only drag you down and leave you with so many enemies.] Lyxor said.
Pa!
Lucius snatched the remote from Ralph and turned off the television.
"Hey!" Ralph stood up while reaching for the remote, however, he saw Lucius's open palm racing toward his face from the corner of his eyes.
Pa!
Ralph fell back on the couch, his hand on his reddened face, with a look of shock in his eyes. Lucius has shown time and time again he cared for him, so he never expected to be physically assaulted by him.
"You are living in denial. You have conditioned your mind to find distractions to help you forget the danger looming around you, that is why you overeat and watch cartoons. Do you think ignoring a problem long enough will make it magically disappear?" Lucius asked with a disgusted glint in his eyes.
"I… No, th-that's why I-I wanted to come here in the first place." Ralph stuttered.
"I secured a spot for you here. I made enemies to do so. What do you think would move the people, an obese kid stumbling and being rescued on the battlefield or a kid from the Ashford family fighting in the front lines with grace and fearlessness?" Lucius asked with a cold look.
By this time, tears were welling up in Ralph's eyes and his body shivering. He wanted to say something, but he just couldn't voice out his thoughts.
He was broken.
"Your family can be eliminated any day, so live life with that sense of urgency. Anyone can talk, but only a few can act." Lucius snarled. "If you wish to save your family, focus on losing weight and master your ability. Be useful, or ask Moon to send you back to the academy." Lucius said.
He watched Ralph jump off the couch and run into the room with tears streaming down his face, then returned a few seconds later to take his bag before running away again.
[While you were honest to him, you were a bit harsh. He is still a kid, after all, and he doesn't have my genes to help him think clearly.]
'If his family is his number one priority, he will look past those emotions and change for their sake.' Lucius responded.
[And if they are not his priority?] Lyxor asked with a raised eyebrow.
'Then I will withdraw my support and let the wolves devour him. My energy is best channeled where it's truly needed.' Lucius shrugged.
Saying this, Lucius opened his bag and pulled out the scroll given to him by Master Zhang, and he unwrapped it. They had the entire day to themselves, so he decided to use it and practice his martial technique.
Lucius sat down on the floor and closed his eyes. According to the manual, to use the statue manual technique, there were two methods of practicing.
The first method was manipulating your Qi to form a thin, yet thick layer of world energy placed on the surface of the skin. Using this method repeatedly allows one to condition their body, slowly allowing the skin to take on the bronze statue qualities, but this method is extremely painful and requires a lot of control over the world's energy.
The second method is similar to the first but slightly different and is called body conditioning. The user is made to coat their skin with Qi energy and is struck with hard objects like wood, rocks, and metal rods. With constant injuries and under constant pressure, the body would begin to adopt the properties of the bronze statue.
While Lucius would have preferred the second method, he didn't have someone to help him with it. He could only practice this method in battle, turning the damage he takes as a means of strengthening his martial arts.
As for the complimentary fighting of the martial technique, Lucius concluded it was best to study this under Master Zhang's guidance where his mistakes could be pointed out and corrected early, if not he may end up building a faulty foundation for the fighting style.
Huff!
Lucius took note of the time, which was around 4:30 pm, before exhaling and slowly shut his eyes, falling into a meditative state in mere seconds. His body was soon shrouded in a translucent aura which began to shrink soon after, limiting itself to the bare surface of his skin.
Shhhhhhhh!
A sizzling sound slowly began resonating from Lucius's body, but he was already lost in his meditation, unaware of the steam slowly escaping his body.