Realm Kings

Chapter 9: What are your motives?

Niyad, who was at the river, examined his environment before entering meditation. The moment he closed his eyes Sercy appeared before, her white gown fluttering in the wind. 

She examined his face then sat in front of him without announcing her arrival. Her face wore a contemplative expression almost as if she were trying to solve a puzzle. After staring at him for a few minutes, she cleared her throat to announce her presence.

Niyad's eyes snapped open and he shivered a bit when he made eye contact with Sercy.

"You're on time. Sit still, I'm going to trace your meridians and make a diagram that matches how they are laid out in your body. Like mine, your veins are in a different pattern from humans so their cultivation methods would be useless to you. It's surprising that you even made it this far without killing yourself in the first place."

Niyad thought for a bit then nodded in agreement. Sercy gently placed her palm on his chest then began circulating her Qi. 

Niyad cursed inwardly because his heart rate suddenly sped up. How could his body betray him at such a time just because of a woman's touch?

She raised an eyebrow in amusement before closing her eyes. 

Niyad took a deep breath and looked anywhere but at her in an attempt to calm down his pulse. A wind blew which caused Sercy's veil to lift a bit. A pair of pink tinted perky lips could be seen below the veil which made his breath hitch a bit.

Sercy's eyes opened, she saw the  stupid expression he wore as he stared at her in a daze. She poked his chest, snapping him out of whatever state he was in before saying.

"You're going through puberty. I'll forgive you this time but if I catch you looking at me like that one more time I'll forget wanting to be your master and just kill you."

"This world is unfair, you watched me bathe and instead of an apology you talk about not feeling uncomfortable. But I look at you a little longer than I should and you want to kill me."

Sercy hadn't expected him to respond like this. Normally her threats would make someone apologize immediately, but Niyad instead pointed out injustice. She wasn't sure if she should laugh or cry at how brazen the kid was.

"The difference is I have no interest in you whatsoever other than to improve your cultivation base. You on the other hand have dirty thoughts."

"How do you know my thoughts are impure? I could have simply thought you were beautiful. You can tell if I'm truthful or not. "

~The truth~

Sercy's eyes widened a bit when he said this and her face flushed.

Niyad continued, "You on the other hand, I can only take your word for it. Why would you want to improve my cultivation base for no reason? Even worse, you're a dark fae, why should I trust you?"

Sercy who was just blushing in embarrassment could feel her blood run cold. The color visibly drained from Sercy's cheeks as her expression darkened... 'Even worse, you're a dark fae.'

Sercy raised her palm but managed to stop herself before slapping him. With the vast difference in cultivation base, a casual slap from her would result in him dying. She inhaled deeply to calm herself but that proved to be difficult. Clenching her palms into fists she stood up stiffly ;The temperature around them had dropped drastically and she was visibly fighting to control her anger.

Years had passed since anyone was able to make her this upset.

What angered her most was the way he spoke about being a dark fae, as if it automatically made her a terrible person.

As she turned and walked away, her voice drifted back.

"You're right. I have absolutely nothing to gain from helping you or anyone else for that matter.

Boredom has been leading me to do some questionable things for entertainment. I thank you for snapping me out of it." Her shoulders shivered slightly before she disappeared.

Niyad sat there in a daze for a while. Everything happened so fast that he didn’t even realise what he had done wrong.

~Why did she get so upset?~

"Whatever, at least now I'm free."

He got up then dusted off his butt before heading home.

Count watched them from a distance, with an expressionless face. A slight killing intent radiated off him before he disappeared into the shadows of the trees.

"You're back early." Niyad's mom said excitedly.

He nodded and walked lifelessly to his room.

"How did it go? Will the cultivation method work?" his mother followed him closely, a bit of anxiousness evident in her voice.

"No I don't think it will." Niyad responded a bit distantly.

His mother looked confused. "This isn't right, you hav- I mean it should work. Why wouldn't it?"

Niyad looked at his mother. "Why do you suddenly want me to cultivate mother?"

"I've always wanted you to cultivate. I just didn't have the correct method for you."

Niyad clenched his fists. "What do you mean? Why does my method need to be different?"

Niyad's mother hesitated for a few seconds before sighing. Her expression suddenly changed to a stern one. The one she would always wear whenever he asked why he was different.

"It doesn't matter. If you're not able to cultivate, knowing changes nothing."

She ruffled his hair then exited the room.

"Why are you always keeping things from me Mother!"

His mother didn't look back but she left a soft answer with him. "For your safety."

Niyad dropped himself aggressively on his duvet then took a deep breath.

He thought back to what happened with Sercy at the river.

"Why do I feel so bad about what just happened? It's not like I said anything wrong." Sighing, he laid on his duvet then closed his eyes as he replayed what happened in his head over and over again.