“Lord Harrow, Lord Tuckstone, you have returned from… your mission.” Lord Cedric curled his lips and greeted them, faint tension radiating off him and his smile forced.
“Lord Harrow, Lord Tuckstone, I am Lord Thomas.” Lord Cedric’s friend introduced himself, exchanging brief words. Lord Tuckstone nodded at him while Adrian looked behind them and asked, “What is happening, Lord Cedric? Punishing little boys?”
“Punishing an offense.” it was Lord Thomas who answered, as if seeing no wrong in it.
“What offense did these two kids commit? Tried to assassinate you?” Adrian spoke.
Lord Thomas laughed, as if Adrian were joking.
“Not as exciting as that. These commoners simply blocked our path, even going so far as dirtying Lord Cedric’s boots.” Lord Thomas gestured to Lord Cedric, who kept his gaze fixed solely on Adrian, hands behind his back. If Adrian had to guess, those hands were clenched right now.
‘He’s still holding a grudge, huh…’ Adrian also recalled the rumors about him and narrowed his eyes at the lord, meeting his gaze calmly.
“Oh, how poor your boots must be.” Adrian said sarcastically, Lord Thomas finally catching on as his smile faded. Adrian then gestured with his chin. “So brave to punish children for something like that. Tell me, is that a hobby for both of you?”
“What are you saying, Lord Harrow?” Lord Cedric asked.
“I think it’s quite obvious.” Adrian looked at the child shielding the older teen, trembling, covering his mouth as he sobs.
“Do you have a problem with the manner in which we practice our rights?” Lord Thomas stepped forward, gesturing.
“Not that.” Adrian shook his head, and just as Lord Thomas and Lord Cedric began to smile, he added, “I just see what you’ve done as low and pathetic.”
That froze their expressions before Lord Cedric frowned. “Your words, did we hear them correctly?”
“You did. Unless you have hearing problems despite being so young.”
Lord Thomas was about to say something, before Adrian stepped off his horse, his boots hitting the ground with a thud as he looked at both of them.
“I assure you, Lord Thomas, I said what I said.” Adrian looked the lord in the eye as he stepped forward. Dexton also dismounted, following his lord.
The two lords involuntarily took a step back while the guards behind them stepped forward, hands resting on their weapons.
Dexton saw this and frowned heavily, his hand moving to the sword at his waist as well.
As if oblivious to the tension, Adrian simply stepped through the guards and past the two lords to reach the child and the bleeding teen on the ground.
“Hey…” Adrian said to the child, who flinched at his appearance. Adrian tried not to flinch himself upon seeing the child’s bruises.
He raised his hands and smiled as he lowered himself to the child’s level. “Is your friend alright?”
The child didn’t respond, only hugging the older teen tighter.
Adrian sighed and slowly moved his uninjured hand, showing the child he meant no harm before checking the teen’s pulse. His heart was beating, but with the blow to the head, his condition remained uncertain.
He was no physician, however, his knowledge of head injuries was limited to what he had learned on the battlefield.
“Do you have a parent? Or anyone close?” Adrian asked softly. The child turned away and looked toward the far end of the alley.
Adrian followed his gaze and saw a weathered man running toward them, hesitating only briefly at their appearance before bravely pushing forward.
Adrian stood up and stepped back as the man immediately fussed over the two boys, looking at the noblemen with fear.
He would have given them some coins for a healer, but then he just came from hunting, he didn’t carry coins with him.
“What is the delay?”
A naturally commanding voice echoed in the alley, and Adrian turned to see Lord Corvus and his retinue pulled up on their horses.
Lord Tuckstone explained the situation. Lord Corvus, with his long black hair and aloof expression, frowned slightly, looked at Adrian's side, and then at the two lords, particularly at Lord Thomas, before clicking his tongue.
“Of course…” He shook his head. Lord Thomas was about to speak before Lord Corvus snorted at him, silencing the man before turning his gaze to Adrian.
“Lord Harrow, is the matter there finished? If so, we have to get going.”
Adrian nodded and looked toward the guards and the two lords. “Are the lords continuing to explore the town and beat up kids along the way? While that sounds… intriguing to people of low character, I’m sure there will be a welcoming party for our group at the keep. You wouldn’t miss it, would you?”
Only Lord Cedric grew stiff at his words, his eyes flashing with anger, though he didn't dare speak up. Lord Thomas, on the other hand, went pale. Judging by his fleeting glance toward Lord Corvus, the two might have known each other.
Adrian didn’t wait for their response and mounted his horse. It was then he realized the entire group, not just them and Lord Corvus, but the others and the cart carrying the monster, had stopped to wait for him.
Now slightly embarrassed, Adrian spoke up without further delay. “I apologize for the wait. Let’s go.” But as he said so, he whispered something to his knight Dexton who nodded and after making an excuse to others, the knight left their group and headed towards the injured kids from before.
The small ordeal was quickly set aside as Adrian, Lord Tuckstone, Lord Corvus, and Sir Harold shared a few words along the way.
All too soon, despite Sir Duante choosing a route that took them the long way around, they reached the keep, where a grand welcoming party awaited.
Taking in the crowd of lords, ladies, royalty, soldiers, and commoners alike, Adrian sighed inwardly.
Things weren’t over yet, but he could reasonably assume the worst was now behind him.
--
It turned out the worst wasn’t behind him, but right in front of him, to be specific, on his chest.
“What in the hell…”
Adrian looked in horror into the mirror at his bare chest. To the side, just below his pec, there was a patch of blackness.
He touched the mark. His skin didn’t feel like skin anymore, and he flinched as he watched it spread ever so slightly further.
“The fuck?!” He cursed like never before. He involuntarily stepped back as if to run away, but the problem was attached to his chest.
How did this happen? Where did this blackness come from? And what even was it?!
“Could it be… dark magic?” Adrian concluded. It was the only explanation he could think of on short notice, after all, he had just recently tangled with monsters, including that strange beast.
But then, how had it touched him? Was he bitten? Or did simple contact with the monsters cause this?
If so, he shouldn’t be the only one with it. An urge to find Dexton and ask if he had something similar rose inside him, but he resisted, choosing to examine the blackness first.
He stepped closer to the mirror again.
It definitely didn’t look like a bite, and he didn’t remember being bitten. The only injury near his chest occurred when he was blown away and…
!!
He remembered being blown away and crashing to the ground, or rather, a stone hitting his chest before he fell and tried to stand. He hadn't been able to process it then, but he had fallen right on top of that strange obsidian stone!
He recalled how the black stone seemed to merge with and corrupt that powerful monster earlier. Could it be… was he being corrupted as well?
Adrian felt chills all over as a terror he had never felt before washed over him.
“Am I… will I become a monster?” he uttered.
The room remained silent for a long moment before Adrian released a breath, tension slowly seeping out of his body. There was no point in panicking, he had to figure something out.
And then it struck him. There was one extraordinary thing about him, something that could be considered magical, known to no one but himself.
His gift, which he called Mending.
With a thought, he activated it immediately, focusing on the black spot on his chest. But a sharp pain suddenly struck his mind, forcing him to stop.
“What the-?” Adrian was incredulous. This had never happened before.
Then he remembered, it had happened during the fight. He had experienced that same sharp pain, though he hadn't thought much of it at the time, assuming it was just from his injuries and the strain of combat.
Moreover, he had felt that same pain when the elves used that strange green light. It was the corruption of the obsidian stone, that was why he felt pain from the elves' magic, which was meant to fight it.
If that was the case, he needed to deal with this discreetly before anyone found out. Otherwise, he might no longer be treated as human.
Was this a punishment from the heavens? All those monsters he had killed, only to be turned into a monster himself in the end?
He snorted at the thought, then chuckled. What kind of biased heavenly punishment was this? What about all the people he had helped and saved?
He shook his head, refusing to believe this was some divine mandate, it was just an unfortunate accident.
His gaze hardened as he stepped closer to the glass. He didn’t know if it would work, but his gift was reacting to it. While he wasn't entirely sure of the full nature of his power, he knew it was tied to life itself, and he had never doubted it before.
Bracing himself against the coming agony, Adrian channeled his gift once more.
A searing pain tore through his mind, but this time Adrian didn’t stop, forcing every drop of his power directly into the blackness on his chest.
Groans and muffled screams echoed through the silent room before the heavy sound of a body hitting the floor followed.