SYSTEM ASCENSION

”I’m... sorry...”

Kael was brought to tears. He wheezed so hard that he was almost suffocating. ”I didn’t mean to. I’m sorry.”

Haliad scoffed.

”Do I look like your father?”

”...”

Kael staggered to his feet. Without another word, he stood up and dashed off into the opposite direction. The place he remembered his home to be located.

He searched for a surrounding area teleporter, and took a quick teleporter trip to Cagary city. The place was the same as he had left it. The Winger domain. The gates loomed high and mighty.

He wiped his tears but it didn’t stop the flow.

The guards finally noticed a crying teenager.

”Young master?!”

”Open...the gates.” He covered his face.

They exchanged a quiet glance at themselves, before pulling the gate open. As soon as it parted for a little bit, Kael teleported from where he was standing, and he was already halfway across the yard.

”He’s really using his mother’s ability.” One guard muttered.

”That’s not our business.” The second smacked his head.

Kael on the other hand went straight to his father’s study. He wanted to see the man before the bravo wore off. Before he loses his nerve to speak.

It was empty.

Joe Winger was not in the study.

He proceeded to check every part of the house where he could find the man. He was only met with a perplexed look from the guards and maidens.

In the end, he slumped down beside the portraits in the hallway.

He could see his own picture with his grandparents. They passed away when he was young, so his memories of them were zero. Then, he turned his eyes to the family portrait.

Kael is the second child of the Winger family. It was a portrait of five. Him, his elder brother, and little girl he carried, his father, and the smiling face of his mother.

”Mom...”

”I heard you were patrolling the house like a madman.” Joe’s voice echoed in the hallway.

Kael froze. Somehow, the voice sounded worse than he had always remembered. He hastily sat up and wiped his sweaty hands on his clothes.

”Father...I...”

Joe narrowed his eyes. He didn’t need someone to tell him. Kael was a mess.

”What happened?”

”It’s...my... fault...” He began to walk forward. ”I... killed...she died because of...”

He was beginning to hear his own heart beat. The sound drowned out everything else. He soon staggered. Blood pooled down his nose. The world tilted.

Joe’s expression turned ugly.

”Kael!”

He dashed forward and caught Kael before he could reach the ground.

He realised how much the boy was overheating and breathing too fast.

”Call the healer!”

***

Five hours later, Kael woke up to a terrible headache. It was laying on a bed in an unfamiliar room.

A few feet away, Joe was talking to the healer, his expression grim.

Kael stretched his hand.

”Fat...her.”

The man turned around and walked to him.

”You’re awake. I hope you can explain what got you so worked up.”

Kael quietly moved his eyes to the healer, and the woman naturally understood that it was her time to leave. She parked her bag, and walked out.

Soon, it was just father and son.

”I wanted to cut the chattering, but it seems like I’ll still have to spill more beans.” He chuckled softly.

”Father,”

”Yes?”

”Mother was something called an upholder. I’m sure you know what that is.”

”She told me about it.” Joe confirmed. ”A role to protect something.”

”I...” Kael’s voice broke again. ”I was the cause of her death. It was something that should have been kept a secret, and I leaked it. Some men I saw on the street were talking about it... I thought they were nice...”

”So you told them.” Joe completed.

He painfully nodded.

”An upholder can transfer their abilities to another person. They tracked mother and killed her. She protected me and gave me hers.”

Joe’s next question caught him off guard.

”How is that a hard pill to swallow?”

”...huh?”

”You were young and inexperienced,” the man shrugged. ”Why do you have to worry about my feelings? All I asked of you is to tell me what happened to your mother, and how you got her ability, but instead you ran away from home. Just when I brought you back, some ridiculous light yanked you away and now this?”

Kael bit his lip.

”I’m sorry.”

”You didn’t kill your mother. It was her fault for telling you something so important.” Joe turned around and walked out. ”I already made peace with her death. I suggest you do that too.”

Kael was left there, feeling lighthearted. He curled up and shut his eyes. It’s been so long he had a rest at home. So long, he forgot what it felt like. He finally remembered this room. It belonged to his parents.

He began drifting off between consciousness and sleep, until a voice cut through it.

”That was a pathetic story.”

He flinched, and subconsciously teleported to the side of the room. Eyes shorn white for a second, then dimmed right after.

”Elias?!”

Elias looked around the room. Grabbed a vase and swung it like a usable weapon before putting it down. He cleared his throat, like he was admitting that the situation was indeed awkward.

”How long have you been here?” Kael narrowed his eyes.

”I followed you.”

”Follow me?” He let his guard down completely. ”Why?”

”I don’t trust someone plotting to kill me.” He muttered, looking for another material on the table to touch.

”Plotting...” Kael stepped closer. ”How did you get in?”

”Shealth.”

”How many abilities do you even have?”

”Hmm,” Elias raised his hand to count. ”Void, creation, time, sheath, regeneration, and curse.”

Kael’s mouth fell.

He just realised the sheer weight of the person standing before him.

”You could solo a city.”

”There are side effects.” Elias began to walk around the room and observe the patterns on the wall. ”Too much of the void ability and I’ll get lost in nothing, creation burns stamina, time rewinds my age, too much regeneration will affect my core, and too much curse will rebound. Sheath is the safest.”

Kael gulped down. He was suddenly feeling nervous again.

”Is it alright for you to tell me this? I have a loose mouth...they say.”

”Then don’t ask.”

Kael almost chuckled. ”Thanks...for coming. I... didn’t expect it...”

”And you awakened your domain ability.” Elias observed.

Kael’s mood brightened.

”Yes! I did. Vital eyes or something. I can’t control it though.” He ran forward. ”I want to ask a question. Does the domain ability count as normal ability? You must have heard that I don’t have an ability. My mother gave me hers. Now, I awakened my vital eyes, does it count as mine?”

Elias walked to him.

He had expected some speech, but got smacked so hard he stumbled.

”What was that for?!”

”An upholder can only transfer their abilities to another upholder. You were still a child then,” Elias explained. ”It’s a coincidence but you and your mother share the same ability. She didn’t give you. You had it already.”