The cheers for Techxin's victory echoed through the arena, a thunderous roar that filled the air. As the blood geysers continued to spout, Techxin stepped down from his perch on the crimson waters, his figure rising from the pool of liquid as he walked toward the still form of Tengen. He reached out, grabbing Tengen's decapitated body with an almost casual gesture, and as he began to fall, a blood hand emerged from the crimson sea, effortlessly catching Tengen's severed head and bringing it to Techxin.
Still falling, Techxin carefully placed Tengen's head atop the body, and then with a murmur, the blood around him shifted.
"Blood of life. Blood of everything alive."
Techxin's blood magic surged, weaving through the air like a dark force, and Tengen's wounds began to close. A shudder rippled through Tengen's body as his chest rose with a breath, shallow at first, then deeper as he came back to life.
"Finally,"
Tengen wheezed, the first breath he'd taken in what felt like eternity.
"I nearly went to the 1000 spiraling hells."
Techxin chuckled darkly.
"BLESSING SLEEP."
As the final remnants of Techxin's magic faded, the entire arena seemed to still. The blood that had poured from the geysers mixed with the broken ground beneath them. It seeped into the cracks of the earth, then slowly rose, a visual representation of the lingering power that Techxin had once commanded.
Techxin's voice rang through the stillness as he spoke to the king, his words clear and firm.
"Father, he survived five minutes, right? So, five conditions for each of us."
The King, still watching the scene unfold with an air of detached amusement, nodded slowly.
"Yes. How will you be doing your conditions first?"
Techxin gave a sharp, confident smile. "I'll go first."
With that, he began listing the conditions. "CONDITION 1st: You are not allowed to speak to Maxi as if he is weaker than you. You must call him 'Young Master,' just as his maid does. CONDITION 2nd: You must arrive here within 10 to 5 minutes early, and you must stay for the same amount of time you were supposed to stay. CONDITION 3rd: In two years, you will have to go on a trip with Maxi so that he can see more of the world. CONDITION 4th: You will have to teach him magic. And CONDITION 5th: If, for any reason, I am not available, you are responsible for training Maxi."
The King stared at Techxin for a long moment, nodding. "Very well."
Then Techxin looked over at Tengen. "Now, you, Tengen."
Tengen scratched his head, clearly irritated by the conditions but accepting them with grace.
"Okay, my king. I'm going to use my 1st condition to cancel out Techxin's fourth condition."
The King raised an eyebrow.
"You know you can only do that once."
"Yeah, I know," Tengen muttered.
"Proceed," the King commanded.
Tengen smirked before continuing.
"My 2nd condition is that I get my own personal early morning and overtime maid who will tend to me in the mornings and when I stay late."
The King nodded, indicating that Tengen could continue.
"My 3rd condition is that I get my own room again, to be ready for early arrivals and late hours."
The King raised an eyebrow again, but he said nothing.
Tengen grinned.
"The 4th condition..."
He paused, tapping his chin thoughtfully.
"Yo, Maxi, what should my 4th condition be?"
A collective gasp passed through the room, and Maxi felt his body freeze, sweat trickling down his forehead. The eyes of his siblings, his stepmothers, and even the King were now all on him.
Maxi swallowed hard, stuttering, "I... I... I don't know."
Tengen laughed loudly.
"I couldn't hear you, but you know what? It's fine. I've got something."
He turned to the King with a mischievous grin.
"I want Maxi to be able to visit the main castle a few times a week. How about 2, 3, 5, 10 days?"
Maxi blinked, confused. He wasn't sure what Tengen meant. In this world, the days of the week weren't named as in his previous life. Instead, there were ten days in a week, and 30 days in a month, creating a cycle of three weeks per month. There were 360 days in a year, and each month was named after one of the so-called main races.
Techxin clarified—Maxi would be allowed to visit the main house on the 2nd, 12th, 22nd, 3rd, 13th, 23rd, 5th, 15th, 25th, 10th, 20th, and 30th day of each month. Maxi thought about it and realized that the only reason he would ever enter the main house was for books in the library, books Colen had spoken of, and that's the only reason he needed.
Maxi nodded profusely, signaling his agreement with the condition, but his mind was already thinking ahead—thinking of how to avoid every single one of his siblings.
Tengen raised a thumb in approval. "My final condition... has to do with..."
He turned to Maxi and pointed at him. "Why don't you take care of this one, my dear student?"
Maxi froze, feeling the weight of all eyes on him. His throat went dry. His heart raced. The King's voice rang out, heavy with expectation.
"SPEAK, BOY!"
Maxi took a deep breath, his thoughts racing. He had to think carefully. His blessing awakening ceremony wasn't until his tenth birthday, but there was one thing he would need for the future if he didn't have his blessing powers he needed—something that terrified him to even consider asking for. He felt his pulse quicken, but he stood tall, summoning every ounce of courage. Finally, he pointed to the left side of the sitting area, directly at a man with long white hair and dark blue eyes—his dear brother Colen.
Maxi's voice was shaky as he stammered,
"S...S...S...Since...my tutor...isn't going to teach me magic...I wish for my brother Colen to teach me instead."
A ripple of laughter passed through the room, but Tengen only laughed louder.
"Oh, I'm just reinforcing my points. I'm not teaching you magic, checkmate, Techxin, you evil bastered."
Techxin sighed, laughing despite himself at the thought of Tengen struggling to teach Maxi magic—a man who could barely cast a basic fire spell.
"That's only if Colen agrees," Techxin said with a smirk.
Colen's voice cut through the room, low and cold. His eyes gleamed with a calculated amusement.
"Sure, I agree. But under one condition of my own. He has to pass a certain number of tests—both in intelligence and agility. If you accept, I will give you a hint."
Maxi's breath hitched, but he nodded with determination.
"I accept."
Colen's lips twitched into the faintest of smirk. It was barely perceptible, but it was there.
"Very well. Your hint for the intelligence test is simple: when you come to the main castle, you'd advise you to start reading about magic and magical creatures."
Maxi nodded, understanding the importance of that challenge.
"For the agility test..."
Colen continued, his tone as cold and detached as ever,
"it will be a fight like this, but your only goal will be to stay alive for as long as possible. Don't worry—this test won't happen until after your seventh birthday. You won't be facing me or Techxin. You'll face your other siblings of the same age."
Maxi nodded again, this time with more confidence, looking forward to what the future would bring. He knew the challenges would be difficult, but he was ready to face them head-on. maxi realized that Techxin and Tengen's fight was just a peek of what the power of blessings hold what powers he would have when he finally has his blessing awakening ceremony. Maxi didn't know, but he couldn't wait to see
And with that, maxi held his hands together and smiled for what advances awaited him in the his new world in this world called Pelady and with that first volume of Maxi's journey came to an end. But it was only just the beginning.
End of Volume One. A lost souls new home