GOD OF WAR WITH POWERS

Chapter 6

The tension in the room was suffocating. Ethan stood tall, facing the grandfather, who sneered at him with a look of utter disdain.

“You really think you can just waltz in here and take everything back after five years?” the grandfather mocked, his voice dripping with scorn. “You’re no monarch, Ethan. You’re just a failure who’s managed to crawl back from the gutter.”

Ethan didn’t flinch. His gaze remained cold, studying the old man with a mixture of indifference and calculation. His thoughts raced, but his face remained an unreadable mask.

“I’m not here for your games, old man,” Ethan replied flatly, his voice calm but laced with authority. “I’m here to take what’s mine.”

The grandfather snorted. “Take what’s yours?” He scoffed, clearly dismissing the idea as ludicrous. “You’ve been exiled, forgotten, for years. Do you think a little show of strength will change anything? You’ll always be that weakling I sent away.”

Ethan’s fingers tightened into fists, but he held his composure. The years in exile hadn’t been kind, but they had taught him how to hide his emotions. He didn’t need to prove anything to this man, not anymore. But he could feel the weight of the moment—an unfamiliar, simmering anger in his chest. It wasn’t just anger at the grandfather; it was a deep, ancestral rage, something that stirred beneath his skin with each insult.

“I didn’t crawl back,” Ethan said, his voice steady, cutting through the old man’s words. “I’ve returned, because I always knew I’d come back. And you’ll see just how much things have changed.”

Maria, standing beside her father, scoffed and crossed her arms. “Oh, look at you,” she sneered. “Thinking you can just come back and claim your crown. You’re a fool, Ethan. Nothing’s changed. Not for you. Not for me.”

Ethan didn’t look at her. He could feel her eyes on him, full of bitterness and venom. She had always been cruel, always belittling him. The years had hardened her, but they hadn’t changed her, not one bit. The sting of her words, though, was less than it used to be. He could see her for what she truly was—a woman living in the shadows of her own insecurities.

“You don’t control me anymore,” Ethan said, his voice low. “I’m done with your games.”

Maria’s face flushed with anger. “Oh, so now you’re a king, huh?” She stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “What makes you think anyone here will listen to you, huh? You’ll always be the exiled fool. You’ll never be anything more.”

Ethan’s gaze darkened, but he held his ground, letting her words slide off him like water. He wasn’t here for her. His focus remained squarely on the grandfather, who had yet to take his eyes off him, the disdain still clear on his wrinkled face.

“Enough!” the grandfather barked suddenly, his voice sharp, cracking through the tension like a whip. “You think I don’t know what you’re trying to do? You think you’ll just come in and take my place? You’re out of your mind!”

Ethan didn’t answer immediately. He just stood there, waiting. His fists were clenched, but his exterior remained calm. Every inch of his body was controlled, his movements slow, deliberate.

Maria’s voice broke the silence again. “Do you really think you have what it takes to rule this family again?” she mocked. “You were nothing before you left, and you’re nothing now.”

For a moment, Ethan thought he might simply turn and walk away. But then, something in the room shifted. The air itself seemed to grow heavy, almost suffocating. There was a subtle hum of pressure building in the atmosphere. It wasn’t something anyone could see, but it was there. It pressed down on them, creating an unspoken sense of power.

“Listen to me carefully, Maria,” Ethan said, his voice suddenly quiet, but somehow resonating through the room. “You think you know who I am, but you have no idea. You’re just a tool, another pawn in a game you don’t even understand. And as for you,” he turned to face the grandfather, “you’ve underestimated me from the beginning. That’s been your biggest mistake.”

The grandfather’s lips curled into a snarl. “And what’s your plan, exactly? Threaten me? Throw your weight around and pretend you’ve changed? You’re nothing but a puppet. The moment you think you can rule again, you’ll learn just how small you are.”

Ethan stood still, absorbing the words, but it wasn’t their words that mattered. It was the weight of his own presence that had shifted. The room wasn’t the same anymore. The people in it weren’t the same. The silence between them stretched longer than it ever had before.

Then, without warning, Maria stepped forward, her hand rising to strike him across the face. Her slap was swift, the sound of it sharp in the tense air. But just as it reached him, Ethan caught her wrist with surprising ease, holding it in place, his grip strong yet controlled.

“You don’t get to hit me anymore,” Ethan said quietly, his voice colder than ever.

Maria’s eyes widened in shock. “You—”

Ethan didn’t let her finish. With a sudden movement, he twisted her wrist, forcing her to step back in pain. The room fell silent, the tension nearly unbearable.

Maria gasped, stumbling backward as she clutched her wrist. Her face was a mask of disbelief, her eyes darting from Ethan to the grandfather, who was now staring at him in stunned silence.

“You don’t have the power to humiliate me anymore, Maria,” Ethan said, his voice unwavering. “And neither do you.” He turned his gaze to the grandfather, who recoiled, unable to say a word.