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The Hero's Son wants to be the Demon King (3)
🕑 Added 2024-05-08 02:26:38 +0000 UTCChapter 3
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Arahan waited idly, keeping his mouth shut. His ankle was swelling, visibly and he worked on undoing the laces on his boots, trying to get the blood flowing. Experience taught him that he wouldn’t be able to put weight on it until he saw a Healer or until Father Time ticked the clock away. Even if his ankle was good, he knew it was near impossible to escape from Lorraine’s winds. He didn’t want to antagonize the girl further.
At least he could try and talk himself out of the situation.
He didn’t have to wait long; the Ghards arrived using their magic. Arahan had known he’d never really outrun the Ghards, but he had been counting on buying time with his legs to hide and give them the turnaround. But by the Stars, they were fast. He realized now, they’d have caught him within seconds.
They weren’t boys anymore. Just as Arahan had grown physically, his peers had grown magically and physically.
Old man Ghard ran with the wind at his back, propelling him forward like a giant ship sailing leeward. Rufus arrived a moment after, the muscles on his legs visibly trembling with strain; the young man using his life magic to enhance his legs to their limit. The youngest member, Wick, bounded over like a deer using earth magic. He created footholds of soil that acted like springs, each step sending him further.
“You idiot!” Old man Ghard ran over and twisted Arahan’s ears so hard that he thought it would tear right off. Tears came to his eyes, unbidden, more physical than emotional in nature. “What the hell were you doing at my farm? I swear if I can’t find my horses by sundown I’ll flay the skin from your bones! Your grandpappy will be lucky to find what’s left of you!”
Arahan half-rose, his body carried by Ghard pulling on his ear. He knew his face was scrunched up in pain but he had to get his two coppers in. “It wasn’t me! Let go! Stars take you-”
“Don’t listen to him.” Lorraine hissed. “He’s lying.”
Ghard released Ari’s ear and pointed at Lorraine. “You. Talk.”
“I was checking on those horses, Mister, the ones you promised my pops. For my sister, Lauren. I wanted a horse since I was a little girl, you see. Well, I found this idiot in the stables trying to take them! I scared him right proper. But the horses got away.”
Rufus looked back and forth between the two, like a snake. His uneasy eyes landed on Lorraine. “Truly?” His voice was a rasp.
Lorraine gulped. “Truly.” She swore, placing a hand over her heart.
Arahan saw his chance. “Don’t listen to her. She doesn’t-”
Lorraine kicked Arahan in the chin, sending him tumbling to the ground. The kick had come out of nowhere and he saw stars in his vision.
“It wasn’t me.” Arahan grunted out, clutching at dirt.
“Let’s string him up, father.” Wick was just as cruel as Rufus, just younger. His eyes drilled holes into Arahan’s face. “Let’s see how much whipping the hero’s son takes until he talks true.”
“There’s no need for that.” Rufus stepped clover to Lorraine. “We just need an Empath. She can tell us the truth.”
For all Lorraine’s faults, she was a match for Rufus when it came to underhanded means and planning ahead. “His granny is the only Empath in the village, dummy. We all know she dotes on him and we all know he’s a freak. It wouldn’t be the first time he managed to get by an Empath’s abilities.”
Arahan snarled. “You idiots, anyone can-”
Everyone thought he could lie to Empaths because he didn’t have any mana. Arahan knew that wasn’t true. It was just a matter of focus, creating a mental barrier and distracting the Empath in question. There were so many factors that went into reading someone’s thoughts. But because everyone grew up with mana, so used to creating a mana wall around their thoughts they never even considered that-
“Silence!” Old man Ghard glared at his two sons and then at Lorraine. “You go and tell your pappy what happened here. Tell him to meet us in the square.” Then he turned to Wick. “Boy, go fetch Old Man Arx. We have some talking to do, the three of us.”
Arahan’s heart sank.
The Square was the midpoint between all the farms, where a traveling merchant would set up shop or the meeting place for the farmers when there was a group decision to be made. It was also smackdab in the middle of the main road and by this time of day, everyone would be walking through it. They’d see him and ask what happened. They’d wag their tongues, saying that the ‘freak’ or the ‘hero’s idiot son’ had done it again.
Ghard was going to make this public.
“Stop. It doesn’t need to go that far. I’ll find your horses for you.” Arahan spoke low, panic setting in. It wasn’t that he was afraid of people talking about him, saying how he was acting up again.
He didn’t want to disappoint Gramps and Grans.
“You shut your mouth.” Ghard whirled on him, livid fury turning his face near purple. “One more word out of you and I’ll slap you upside your head.”
“Word.” Arahan quipped before he could help it.
He didn’t think it was possible but Ghard’s face got darker, the color of a prune when left in the jar too long. Arahan was sure that Ghard would beat him. Suddenly, the man deflated.
“You’re a disappointment, boy. A disappointment. Your father was a hero and what are you, eh? Just a freak. That’s all you are. A freak and a petty thief.”
Hot shame flooded Arahan’s face. “You keep his name out of your-”
Ghard slapped him.
This time, when the tears fell it wasn’t from the shock or pain. It was from the humiliation and shame. The helpless feeling that had accompanied him his entire life, that once again his father’s name was being used against him. Being unable to use magic was bad enough but he was a shame to a man who hadn’t done two shits for him and his grandparents.
Ghard spat on the ground near Arahan’s hand. “Rufus, bring him along with you.”
“Yes father.”
Ghard started walking towards the square without checking; he knew Arahan was helpless. Rufus leaned down and picked up the blonde man, making sure he was able to stand on his own. Arahan gritted his teeth, determined now to let pain show on his face. He wouldn’t give them the pleasure.
“You always were a tough one.” Rufus muttered and shoved Arahan in front of him, sending a little pulse of life mana along with it.
The mana traveled through Arahan’s body and coalesced in his twisted ankle and white hot fire consumed Arahan’s mind as excruciating pain entered his senses.
Just as he opened his mouth to scream, Rufus touched him again and the pain was gone. Arahan fell to his knees, gasping for breath and drooling. Just what the hell did Rufus do?
“Don’t try to put on a strong face, freak.” Rufus’ voice was flat and toneless, like he was talking to livestock, not another human being. “Or it makes me want to break you even more.” He shoved Ari forward. “Walk.”
Arahan began to limp along, Rufus keeping pace right behind him. Rufus might be a mean old snake, but surely he’d listen to reason.
“You know, it wasn't me.” Ghard was too far ahead to hear them, provided he wasn’t using some variation of Wind Magic to carry the sounds to him. “That’s why you turned on Lorraine. You’re a Life Magic user. You could tell can’t you?”
Rufus shrugged. “All the same to me, doesn’t matter who it is. All it matters is that one of you two delayed what’s been promised to me.”
“Then tell your father. Leave me out of your family drama.”
The young Ghard feigned thinking, then a small smile crept up to his lips. “I think I won’t.”
“Here’s how I see it. We get to the square and I get to humiliate you. Then your grandmother will step in, unable to handle it as her precious little boy is tortured. She’ll truthspell Lorraine and it’ll be revealed that she’s the culprit. Frederik will be humiliated.”
Arahan suppressed another surge of anger at the mention of his grandmother. “I can ask my grandmother to truthspell Lorraine.”
“No. I want to see Old man Frederik fall into despair. I want him to be sorry for haggling so hard for the bride price, like he was doing me a favor. Who knows, he might be so sorry that he might even offer me Lorraine as the cherry on top of Lauren.” He laughed humorlessly, then licked his lips. “Hurting you can be the icing on the top. Never liked you anyways, everyone talking about the Hero’s son and whatnot.”
Arahan had known Rufus was sick but hearing him talk about his plans –about Lauren and Lorraine like they were livestock– made Arahan sick.
“Eat shit, Rufus.” Arahan resigned himself to his fate, but it didn’t mean he would just keel over and let them do whatever they wanted. “Figures you’d need an underhanded tactic to get the ladies with a face like yours.”
Rufus looked at him, then reached out a hand. Ari couldn’t help it, he flinched like an animal who’d been beaten too much, an automatic reaction to the memory of pain that the Life Mage mage had inflicted on him earlier. By the stars, it had hurt and Rufus knew it. Arahan became certain at that moment that Rufus could never be a healer.
There were lots of theories about how someone came into their magic, most sources claiming that it simply ‘ran in the family’. But advancements of magic? It depended on who the individual was and what they wanted to do.
And Rufus was a bully, plain and simple.
The young Life Mage smiled, showing teeth too small for his mouth. “Yeah. Keep talking, Quen. I’m going to savor this.” He leaned in close, breathing down Arahan’s neck. “Give me one excuse, freak. I’ll break your legs and drag you by the hair for everyone to see what the hero’s son is really like.”
“I’ll walk. Need more exercise.” It took every bit of Arahan’s self-control not to recoil from the older boy’s breath. As he quipped, the delivery was lessened by the constant limping.
Rufus snorted and shoved Arahan. There was no mana behind it but the ankle hurt nonetheless, Arahan really wanted to get those boots off.
It took longer than usual to get to the square, mostly because Arahan’s ankle was getting worse. On the way here, they’d gathered quite a following. Kids out on their chores stopped to look, curious at what Old man Ghard was doing with his oldest son and the obviously injured village idiot. Some of them ran back home, eager to share the news with their parents. In a Weiler as small as this, even the smallest happenings got blown out of proportion.
It must’ve been Arahan’s lucky day because today just happened to be the day where travelers were coming through, bringing wares and services for the upcoming Seeding Day festival. All the nearby Weilers would attend and it would gather nearby townspeople and peddlers. As people looked at the resident poster boy for trouble, seeing Old man Ghard and Rufus, they all pointed and whispered.
In response, Arahan held his head up high.
They had gathered quite a crowd now. Old man Worton and his littlest were watching as well, worry evident in their faces. Other Weilholders were not standing. Even taxman Judd was here –coincidence or some sick joke by Lady Fate, Arahan didn’t want to know.
Finally Old Man Frederick came strolling in. He was the opposite of Old man Ghard in every way, a head full of auburn hair and built like a lean hunting dog. Old man Frederick was chewing on a piece of straw and was followed by his two daughters, Lauren and Lorraine. He wore his brown hunting vest with nothing underneath; showing off the impressive display of daggers on his person.
Gramps came from the other side. His once tall stature now bent and looking small next to the younger men around him, wisps of white hair that had once been golden blonde. But his golden eyes still shone with something fierce, anger and indignant fury in equal amounts. He carried Arahan’s bow and arrow in one hand, veins sticking out against his pale skin.
Rufus pushed Arahan towards Arxus. Arahan limped towards his grandfather.
“Gramps, I-”
“Not a word.” Gramps replied back, silencing Ari with a look. Then he turned to Ghard. “I already heard the details from your boy. You want your horse price? You can have them.”
Ghard shook his head. “No.”
Arxus frowned, the wrinkles on his face deepening. “What do you mean no? You want me to fetch your horses instead? Fine, I’ll-”
“No, Arxus.” Ghard, young enough to be Arx’s son, called him not by his title, but by his name.
Arahan had a sinking feeling.
“The boy is a menace and you’re getting on in the years. Who’s going to take your farm? Who’s going to do your share of the work the next time a Mana Storm hits or a Beast attacks, or gods forbid a demon raid?”
Ghard’s eyes shone with something sinister and Arx looked old. So old.
“Your farm is as good as dead, Arx.” Ghard shot a look at Rufus and understanding spread between them. “My son can take your farm. He’s strong with good magic. Leave the Weiler, Arx. Or I’ll have Rufus challenge Arahan to a Tul. And he’ll challenge your boy for the birthright of his farm, as is his Right for having something taken from him first.”
“So take your family and leave this place, Arxus. There’s no place for you here.”
***
