The Bones of the Ancient God

Chapter 3: The Prince's First Strategy

A week had passed since Kaelan started school in Ashvale Village. His memory had not returned at all, not even a glimpse could be seen. He simply continued his life with the neighbors' insults, and attended school calmly.

When the bell rang, Miss Bella returned to the classroom to continue the final hour of the lesson. Miss Bella began explaining the lesson again, this time about fractions and decimals, which Kael obviously considered very easy.

"Alright, children," said Miss Bella while writing a rather complicated question on the blackboard. "Who can solve this problem? This is the type of question that most often appears in the final exam."

The problem involved division, multiplication, and addition of mixed fractions. Most of the students, including Brad, looked indifferent, even thinking about how to answer the problem was already beyond him.

The problem was indeed intended for the smartest students in the class.

Meanwhile, Kaelan stared at the problem. To a normal person's eyes, it was a confusing sequence of numbers and solutions. But to Kaelan, it was a pattern that was immediately solved in his mind, within only a few seconds.

Without thinking twice, Kaelan raised his hand.

"Kael? You ... can?" asked Miss Bella as if she could not believe it.

"Yes, Miss," Kael answered, his voice returning to normal, innocent like a child.

"Alright, come forward." Miss Bella pointed to the chalk on her desk, the school still used chalk there, not markers like schools nowadays.

Kaelan walked to the front, took the chalk, and began writing the steps of the solution briefly but perfectly, ignoring the long-winded method Miss Bella had taught earlier.

In less than a minute, he had already written down his final answer.

The entire class, including Miss Bella, fell silent.

Kaelan's solution, although correct, felt far too advanced and fast for a child his age at a village school.

"R-right," Miss Bella murmured, checking Kael's calculations again in her handbook. "Your answer is correct. Your method of solving it is also very fast. This ... is excellent."

When Kaelan wanted to return to his seat, Miss Bella told him to remain there.

"Kael, can Miss give you another problem?"

"Sure," Kael answered without hesitation.

As soon as Miss Bella finished writing the problem, Kaelan quickly solved it correctly again, until there were five problems.

"Woooow... you are really smart, Kael. Miss is very happy that you are studying here. You can be sent to the city school if there is a competition. Our school will definitely win."

Kaelan returned to his seat, feeling relieved. Brad and his gang felt annoyed seeing that illegitimate child being praised by Miss Bella.

"Damn ... he doesn't have any money, but his brain can't be underestimated," Brad thought, the fear from the lunch box incident still strongly attached to him.

That afternoon, Evelyn was already waiting at the school gate because she was worried that something had happened to the Prince. When she saw Kaelan come out, she immediately ran toward him.

"Son! How was school? Was it fun?" Evelyn asked while hugging Kael tightly.

Kaelan returned Evelyn's hug. "It was okay, Ma. The lessons ... were very easy."

Evelyn smiled proudly, Kaelan really was that intelligent. Because of his intelligence, many officials' children were jealous of him.

"Mama is glad to hear that. But why does your face look a little gloomy, Son? Did ... someone bother you?"

Kaelan walked while lowering his head. He did not want Evelyn to know about the bullying. "No, Ma. It's just, my head suddenly hurt again earlier. Then there was a strange feeling. It felt like I wanted to get angry, I wanted to hit, I wanted to beat them up. Mama, do you know why I am becoming like this?"

Evelyn froze as her steps stopped. She knew that it was an outburst of the Sealed Violent Power. King Alaric had already warned her, the seal only restrained it, not eliminated it. The urge for power and strength would still appear when Kaelan felt threatened or became extremely angry.

"It ... might be because you haven't fully recovered from the accident yet, Son," Evelyn lied, forcing herself to smile. "Mama will make you some herbal drink tonight, okay. But, Kael must promise Mama, never let yourself become extremely angry again. You have to hold those feelings back, for your own sake. So, if there are people who bother you, ignore them. Treat them like barking dogs. Understand?"

"Yes, Ma. I promise. I don't want to make Mama sad."

Finally, they arrived at their small house. That night, while accompanying Evelyn cooking, Kael sat on the wooden porch, staring into the darkness of the village.

"Strange, I can still feel that strange feeling from earlier. Even though I cannot remember anything, Brad's expression was still clearly frightened. I have to find out about this strange thing myself."

However, Kaelan understood that he could not let his mother worry. So he had to devise a strategy to stay safe at school.

"If I cannot use my hands to fight back, I will use my brain. Brad is stupid. He uses his physical strength because he has no brain."

Kaelan then remembered Brad's words when he challenged him: ‘If you want to stay here, you have to obey us.’

A cunning and clever plan began to form in his mind.

Not a plan to take revenge through violence, but to turn the situation around using his intelligence, making the strong Brad become dependent on him instead.

The next day, Kael returned to school with a smile on his face, a smile that was hidden. He had already found a way to survive in this cruel new environment.

When all the school hours began, all the students were already in the classroom. Miss Bella looked at all her students with a friendly smile.

"Children, as you know, next month is the graduation exam. But because of the daily test results, Miss is worried. Brad, you have to improve your grades, especially mathematics. If you don't pass, you will have to repeat the grade."

Brad's face immediately turned pale. Brad was the oldest child in the class, and he really did not want to repeat the school year.

When recess arrived, Brad, who usually hurried outside to extort money, instead sat gloomily at his desk, he would be scolded by his mother if he repeated the grade.

Kaelan walked over. He stood in front of Brad, looking at him without the slightest fear.

"What, City Kid? You want revenge?" Brad threatened, trying to show his authority again.

"No. I came to offer you a deal."

Brad laughed sarcastically. "Heeh ... What deal?" Although there was still a little fear over what had happened that time, he still acted like the strongest person in the class.

"I can help you pass the exam. I can make your grades above average," Kaelan said.

Brad looked at Kaelan in disbelief. "Huh? You? Don't joke! Why would you want to help me?"

"Because I know you will repeat the grade," Kaelan answered, his voice sounding firm.

Brad frowned.

"What business is it of yours? Acting like you know everything!"

"I'm not acting like I know everything. These three days, since I got here, I've been watching you. During mathematics class, your eyes always look out the window or you are busy scribbling on the desk, instead of paying attention to Miss Bella's explanation. Your hands tremble every time Miss Bella mentions the word fractions, especially when Miss Bella asks you to answer a problem. And when Miss Bella announced that you had to improve your grades, you immediately turned pale, you also immediately glanced at where you kept your bag. That is the reaction of a child who is afraid of being scolded by his parents," Kaelan explained.

"Then, if you fail, you definitely won't be able to hide it from your parents. Not only that, you are the biggest and oldest child in the class. You are smart, but not when it comes to calculations. You are like a boss who has subordinates, and you use your muscles to intimidate and command. That means, you only rely on your strength, without it, you can't do anything. If you repeat the grade, you will look pathetic. The younger students at school will definitely laugh at you because they will become your classmates next year. You will lose your power in this school. You are a coward. There is no use relying on muscles if you are stupid. A leader knows that power is not only gained from muscles. Strength without intelligence is an easy target. And right now, you are an easy target to repeat the grade," Kaelan revealed.

Brad fell silent. Kaelan's words struck deeply and made perfect sense. Brad felt exposed. His fear and strategy had been completely uncovered by the newcomer boy whom he had bullied just a week ago.

‘This kid really is smart!’ Brad thought.

"If you repeat the grade, you will become the laughingstock of this village, and you won't be able to extort anyone anymore like you always do," Kaelan continued, endlessly exposing Brad's character.

Brad felt very embarrassed, but he had not said anything yet.

"In return. I don't need your pocket money. I only need you to do something. You and your friends have to become my guards. In this school, no one is allowed to touch me. And, you have to make sure not a single villager insults my mama again."

Brad looked into Kaelan's eyes, which somehow looked so sharp. His aura was very intimidating.

"You're the strongest kid here. I'm the smartest. Join me. I will guarantee that you pass. And you, will guarantee my safety."

Brad swallowed. He looked at Kaelan's face.

"How? You don't need to think too long. No one will know about this either. Or you can repeat the grade forever. It's all up to you."

Kaelan ended his sentence with a cold smirk. As if everything was already under his control.

Brad looked confused. If he agreed, then he would become friends with the child he had bullied. But if he refused, his life would not be easy.

"Alright. I accept your deal. But, if you lie..."

"I never lie. A man does not take his words back."

"Hahaha, okay, I agree!" Brad replied, he did not doubt Kaelan's intelligence.