Chapter 303

Chapter 303

Alfredo bowed his head first and stepped back.

Chenbi and Evelyn glanced at Leodis before quickly making their exit.

“Ah, Chenbi… could you give me a hand with this?”

Evelyn called out to Chenbi to help carry the slumbering Aster, and together they escorted him away from the spot.

…

In this manner, Evelyn and Chenbi grunted as they hauled Aster into the darkness.

A human-sized trough was carved into the sandy shore, which had previously been flat.

Leodis watched them depart for a brief period before turning his attention to Damian.

“Son.”

Damian offered no reply.

“Son.”

Moisture gathered around Damian’s eyes. They turned crimson, and his cheeks trembled slightly.

His breathing grew ragged.

“I am sorry, son.”

“It was my own greed. I merely wished for you to achieve success. Yet the path I chose to make it happen… well, it was somewhat flawed. No, it was completely wrong.”

Leodis spoke with serenity. His gaze no longer possessed that sharp, piercing clarity. A subtle yet unmistakable sentiment lingered within them.

“At a certain point, I began to mistake you for the young patriarch. It might be challenging for you to comprehend, but you and the young patriarch are distinct entities. You are endearing exactly as you are, but the young patriarch cannot afford to be. I desired your happiness, yet I was burdening you with the demands of the position.”

His feelings had grown subdued, which permitted Leodis to evaluate them dispassionately.

When it came to Damian, he had always let his heart guide him rather than his intellect.

But now, he disassembled those emotions thread by thread.

In other words…

He claimed it was for his child’s benefit, but in truth, he was attempting to force the young patriarch to satisfy the demands of the family head.

And he had misidentified that as affection.

He was making that admission now.

Damian gazed at Leodis with eyes brimming with unshed tears. It did not take him long to part his lips.

“Am I… am I inadequate as the young patriarch?”

“Inadequate… hmm, no. You do not lack anything. Just last year you were still sucking your thumb, running away from home, and even now at thirteen, you speak like a toddler, but I am aware. I know that you possess intelligence.”

“If… if I were not intelligent, would that make me deficient?”

“No. Even if my child were not particularly bright, what of it? We have no obligation to act like young patriarchs. Do you wish to fulfill that role?”

“I do not know. I have never given it any thought.”

“Yes, I figured as much.”

Unlike Leodis, who had entered the world as a second son and vied with his sibling for the leadership position, Damian was an only child and had been handed the title of young patriarch as though it were his birthright.

The designation of “young patriarch” was as intimately familiar to him as his own name. He had likely never envisioned himself without it.

“Son, you lack nothing. And even if you did, it would be perfectly fine. Truly, it would.”

“Really?”

“Of course.”

Damian began to sniffle before he even realized it.

Leodis rose to his feet, moved closer, and wiped the moisture from his child’s eyes.

At that instant, Damian peered up at his parent’s face.

Leodis looked down at his child and spoke, gently stroking his hair.

“Son, I apologize. We can proceed at a leisurely pace. You may stroll, or even take a seat for a while now and then. I was far too demanding.”

Then the boy offered a broad grin and answered.

“Yes. I forgive you.”

“That is well.”

For some reason, Leodis felt a pang in his chest.

“Extend your apologies to your companions as well.”

“Yes, I will.”

“And offer a morsel to Mother.”

“Yes.”

The brilliant moonlight cast its glow upon the father and son.

…

Damian and Leodis sat side by side near the campfire, conversing cheerfully.

Leodis listened in tranquility to what Damian had to share. The subjects centered primarily on occurrences at the academy.

What Chenbi did, what Evelyn did… But the figure who stood out the most was Aster.

“Son, do you fond of Aster that much?”

Damian replied without a moment’s hesitation.

“Yes, frolicking with companions is highly amusing.”

“That is typically how it goes with mischievous companions.”

“No, he is not entirely terrible. He is a bit petty and stingy. But he is a decent fellow.”

Leodis tilted his head. Parsimonious individuals were frequently narrow-minded, and narrow-mindedness tended to alienate others from goodness.

And contemptible on top of that? How could a person of that nature be considered good?

Leodis pondered the notion, but he could not visualize it.

Damian pressed forward.

“But he does not engage in play with me very often.”

“He does not?”

“Yes, he is consistently playing by himself. Or venturing out. Creeping around covertly. He believes I remain oblivious, but I recognize everything.”

“In what way?”

“It simply happens. The atmosphere shifts.”

“Something akin to that, though not precisely. Therefore, I pondered it. For what reason does he decline to play with me?”

Leodis tilted his head and inquired.

“Should we invite your companion to our estate?”

“No, it is fine.”

“But why does he refuse to play with you?”

“Well… it is somewhat identical to the reason I refrain from playing with the other youths.”

Damian spoke while constructing a mushroom-shaped structure out of sand.

The delicate particles piled up neatly beneath his small hands.

Thus, the explanation for why Damian did not play with other youths was…

“We do not occupy the same tier. Whenever I perform an action, they exclaim ‘wow’ or become frightened or… what is the expression? It is simply… bizarre.”

“Bizarre in what manner?”

“Oh…”

“That creates a barrier, does it not?”

“Yes, Father is clever.”

“Likely cleverer than my son.”

“Eh?”

“It is nothing. Proceed.”

Damian stared at Leodis with widened eyes and then reverted his attention to his sand stool structure.

“I suspect he refrains from playing with me because he despises it as well. Because secretly, he experiences great isolation.”

“Or perhaps he is engaging in illicit activities…”

“Father, do you harbor hatred for my companion?”

“Mmm… no, not precisely. Even though your companion covertly acquired our family’s hidden technique and plotted with your uncle to nearly bring catastrophe upon the household, I do not detest him.”

“Uncle? Which one?”

“Henji.”

“Oh.”

Damian nodded and moved to continue. Or rather, he attempted to, and then posed a query.

“What transpired with Uncle Henji?”

“That is complicated to explain.”

“Mmm… I am uncertain of what occurred, but he is a decent fellow. Father, grant him a reprieve. He is heartbroken.”

“I shall take it into consideration. Regardless, what else?”

“Oh, he is isolated, and his sole companions are myself, Chenbi, and Evelyn. If we neglect to play with him, he is entirely solitary.”

“Mmm.”

“So perhaps that is the explanation.”

Damian gazed at his finalized stool structure. Upon withdrawing his hand, fractures manifested on the exterior, threatening an imminent collapse.

Crackle.

Frost crystals materialized upon the toad structure.

Damian froze it entirely and then retracted his hand.

It appeared rather gratifying. Leodis observed the display and then inquired.

“Therefore, what path should you pursue, Damian?”

“Eh?”

“To engage in play with your companion, have you devised a method to accomplish it?”

“Uh…”

Damian could not formulate a reply easily.

The previous year, he imagined he might close the distance in two or three years. Now, he could not even compute the timeline.

He had sensed it dimly during the Baharmut crisis, but the chancellor’s ascension solidified the realization.

To bridge that chasm… in what manner?

The voice of Leodis resonated precisely at that instant.

“Are you unaware?”

“Yes, but I will not bring him down to our estate.”

“We shall not. Degrading someone to match your level is improper. Unless your intention is to remain stagnant and self-destruct indefinitely.”

“…… Eh?”

“No, it is of no consequence. Regardless…”

The realm Aster occupied was already peerless.

And he would flourish as the years progressed.

If the chronicles were accurate, he merely required reaching his twentieth year to have the entire continent at his feet.

Side by side with grand archmages and master knights.

Could his child bridge that divide?

‘Not through ordinary means… it will be arduous.’

Consequently, Leodis resolved to offer his child a modicum of assistance.

“Son, would you care for a hint from Father?”

“A hint?”

“Yes, a hint.”

Damian’s eyes sparkled with intensity.

“Yes! What might it be?”

“You mentioned… that you recently acquired frost magic?”

“Yes. It keeps me chilled during the summer season.”

“Then… let us observe. Direct your attention here.”

Leodis extended his index finger forward. Damian tilted his head and mimicked the gesture.

“The middle digit?”

“Yes, your companion stated it represents a greeting from the black and white slums.”

“I shall need to have another word with your companion. At any rate, retract that digit and observe this spot. What do you perceive?”

“My finger?”

“No, scrutinize it more thoroughly.”

Damian narrowed his vision, straining to perceive. How long did he remain staring?

“Frost!”

“Do you perceive it?”

“Yes, I cannot visually track it, yet I sense it.”

Upon the tip of Leodis’s finger, a hexagonal frost crystal blossomed.

The variety referred to as a snowflake.

“Now watch with absolute focus. If you master this… you might even overtake your companion.”

What emerged was…

The core of frost.

A profound chill capable of solidifying all existence.

Damian inquired.

“What is this entity?”

“I am uncertain. It marks the first occasion I have manifested it, even for myself.”

He had merely merged the concepts of Aster’s blaze with frost sorcery.

If a designation were required, it would stand as the antithesis to Aster’s incantation.

“May I assign it a title?”

“Would you like to?”

Damian nodded in agreement.

“It is… a blizzard.”

“A blizzard?”

“Yes.”

Leodis tilted his head.

A blizzard denoted ferocious gales bearing cold and heavy snow. To designate a single ice crystal as such?

But.

Damian’s intellect, with the winter storm mirrored within his gaze, perceived it with absolute clarity.

The manifestation it would assume when it eventually unveiled itself entirely to the world one day.

……And in this manner, on a night where the celestial starlight cascaded down in torrents.

Damian took a step forward.

Toward peerless heights.