CHAPTER 32: GRANDPA WEIRD

Ever since he learned of the ranks, Aegon was extra careful towards this Ice Mana Circulation Technique. It was the highest rank reward he had ever received, so he didn’t dare to use it lightly.

’Did I get in trouble for using it?’

[As the Technique’s Rank was Mythical, it manifested a part of the Law of Ice, which resulted in the formation of a pure True Ice Prison around the Host. You were not harmed as the Harmony and Child of Duality Traits stabilized your body, but without intervention, you would have remained trapped in the ice for a long time and stayed unconscious.]

A chill ran down his spine thinking of that as he asked, ’What happened then? How did I survive? Did Opa do something?’

[The system can only detect the internal matters of your body. However, it registered extreme fire enveloping you, fire that contained the True Law of Fire and Heat. That force caused the Ice Prison to melt. Assimilation then proceeded normally and you awakened properly. There are still faint traces of that Ice Prison within your body, but they will fade with time.]

Aegon stared at the ceiling, his mind wandering on how close he had been to losing everything he held dear. Such a small mistake could have ended in disaster.

’I need to be even more careful in the future. Just because something is powerful doesn’t mean it’ll be good for me,’ he reminded himself. ’Fortunately, I’m cowardly enough to keep other things locked in the inventory. If I had pulled out Skybreaker, who knows what would’ve happened?’

He sighed quietly and thanked the Sun God.

’Was that flame from Opa or Xiu? Most likely Opa,’ he thought. ’He’s far too mysterious. Who knows what kind of preparations he’s made in case things went wrong? I’ll need to thank him properly.’

Just then, he noticed a presence beside him and turned his head slightly. Due to the awakening, his senses had sharpened; he could now perceive things more keenly. It was a bit awkward at first, but he was adapting to it faster than even he expected.

At his side sat a man in his sixties, leaning back in a chair, golden eyes gleaming with that familiar weight. He knew those eyes very well.

"Grandpa Weird!" Aegon called out.

"Can you stop with that nickname?" Grandpa Sam sighed.

"You sneaked into a five-year-old boy’s room without his guardian noticing. Doesn’t that make you weird?" Aegon pointed out, matter-of-fact.

"You brat! Don’t make it sound so strange." Grandpa Sam flicked a light tap on his head, but there was no real strength behind it.

Aegon laughed, and soon the old man laughed along with him. Over the years, Grandpa Sam had visited him quite a few times, and even with those rare meetings, they had grown surprisingly close.

"Seriously though, just come through the main entrance. It’s not like you’re Opa’s blood enemy, so why sneak around?" Aegon asked.

"Who cares about your senile Opa!" Grandpa Sam snorted. "If that lass didn’t hate me, I’d have barged in directly. But I don’t want to be under that murderous gaze constantly, believe me, it’s not a good feeling."

"So, you’re a coward." Aegon nodded in mock understanding.

"Indeed, I am," Grandpa Sam admitted shamelessly. "That’s how I’ve survived this long, Golden Brat. If you want advice then I’ll tell you. One need to become shameless. Utterly shameless."

Aegon was speechless, staring at him as he wondered why he was always surrounded by strange people. Who else taught a five-year-old to embrace shamelessness? Only this old man would.

"Can you stop calling me Golden Brat? It doesn’t even make sense. It doesn’t sound good either."

"Will you stop calling me Grandpa Weird?"

"Nope! It makes sense. You’re my Grandpa’s friend and you’re way too weird."

"Then, no from me too. Your eyes are golden, and you’re a brat. The name suits you perfectly."

Aegon rolled his eyes. "Have some shame, old man. You’re arguing with a five-year-old."

"As I said, I’m shameless," Grandpa Sam pointed out proudly, as if it was some great wisdom. "Also, behave like a five-year-old if you want me to treat you like one, brat."

Aegon’s lips twitched in annoyance, but soon he burst out laughing. He had been stressing too much about the awakening, yet this old man had managed to wipe that away completely. Perhaps, that was the reason he came in the first place.

"By the way, why does Xiu hate you so much?" Aegon asked.

"She’s always been headstrong. There are plenty of people she hates for no reason," Grandpa Sam shrugged lightly.

"Not true at all!" Aegon shook his head. "Xiu has single-minded focus. Sure, she might hate someone for a while, but she forgets them easily too. They’re not important enough for her to even remember. So if she still hates you, then you definitely did something unforgivable."

A flash of emotion crossed the old man’s golden eyes before he sighed. "You really do know your Xiu well, eh?"

"She’s my Xiu, after all," Aegon said calmly, but the pride in his voice was unmistakable.

"But you’re slightly mistaken there, Little Man," Grandpa Sam countered, tossing out yet another nickname just to annoy him. "She’s changed a lot since you came into her life. Sometimes she probably even hides her rough side so you can grow up better. Still, you’re not entirely wrong either."

"Last time I was trying an experiment, I burned her favorite dress, but she was only angry for a few hours," Aegon said, still not believing that Xiu could hate anyone without reason.

He still remembered that day. He had been experimenting with candlesz a reward from the system, and ended up creating something like lightsabers that burned straight through her dress.

It was the first time Xiu had truly gotten angry at him, and he had apologized over and over. But later he learned she wasn’t upset about the dress at all. She was furious only because he might have harmed himself in the process.

How could someone like her ever hate without reason?

He refused to believe it.