CHAPTER 34: STUPID PROTAGONIST

A relationship built on lies is like a sandcastle. One wave of water can crumble it away as if it never existed.

Xiu had taught him this from very early on and even made an example by being completely honest with him. She never lied to him, and if there were things she couldn’t tell him, she would be honest about that too.

That was why Aegon had also grown up believing in it and never lied to Xiu or anyone close to him. If he wanted relationships, he wouldn’t base them on lies.

If he couldn’t tell them something, then he would be straightforward about it.

That was why Aegon didn’t intend to lie about the system or even his reincarnation. He would have to lie a lot to hide those facts. After all, how would he explain the things he obtained from the system?

Others might call him stupid and an idiot for doing something like that. He had read novels where the main character revealed the secret of their system to their loved ones and readers always complained about it.

He was sure if his life was a novel, he would receive many comments calling him an idiot, stupid, reckless, and many other things.

But he didn’t care.

For him, the relationships he had developed in this world, the people who made him love his life, were far more important than the system or any secret.

He was infinitely grateful to the system that had given him so many things. It had helped him a lot, but he would still choose his relationships over the system.

That was why when the moment came and Xiu asked about something, Aegon was honest with her and told her everything about the system, even if it could be the most bizarre thing to hear.

But he received a great surprise that day. Everything he told Xiu went over her head or rather, she couldn’t remember any of it. It was as if every piece of information related to the system would be forgotten. As if the world itself had forbidden the knowledge of the system for others.

Thus, he tried telling her about his reincarnation, and that also didn’t work out. She quickly forgot everything he said, blanking out completely.

Then, he tried telling Opa, but the results were the same. After a few experiments, he was sure that information regarding the system and reincarnation was forbidden.

Since then, he didn’t try to tell them anything related to it, but Xiu was sharp and realised that things were amiss. She would remember every single moment she spent with Aegon, so how could she not notice that she was forgetting things?

That was when Aegon told her that he had a secret and also explained about the situation of being forgotten. Fortunately, it wasn’t forbidden, so Xiu understood the situation.

That was why he said those words.

Xiu regarded him for a while before asking, "Is it really safe?"

"It is. You can trust me on that, Xiu," Aegon said, trying to reassure her. "Something like this only happened because of my carelessness. I’ll take care of myself more."

"You better do that, young man," Xiu sighed as she came to sit beside him and gave a side shoulder hug.

Aegon could feel the hug was different from her usual ones. It relayed her concern and her worry for him. She seemed to be making sure he was there, her grip on his shoulder telling that clearly.

"I’m really fine, Xiu. You don’t need to worry," Aegon said, leaning in her embrace as she kissed the top of his head. "When I have all of you, then what do I need to worry about?"

"We won’t always be there for you."

"You plan to leave me alone?" Aegon asked.

"Of course not. I will never leave my baby boy. Even if I’m dead, my ghost would take care of you," Xiu said with a smile.

"Ghost Xiu... that version will be quite intriguing," Aegon chuckled at his own imagination.

Xiu laughed alongside him.

They stayed like that for some time before Aegon separated and asked, still looking at the sky, "Xiu, did this alert many people?"

"If that stupid old man came, then yes, the whole world probably knows of this," Xiu responded. "But there’s nothing to worry about. People already expected something grand from the last Valerian anyways."

’High expectations often lead to disappointment,’ Aegon thought but didn’t say anything.

"By the way, won’t you tell me about your Awakening in detail?" Xiu asked, a grin plastered on her face as her brows wriggled funnily.

Aegon chuckled and told her the things he had gained with the Awakening. He made sure not to mention anything that might trigger the forgetfulness effect, and Xiu also didn’t ask anything.

She just listened to everything in full seriousness, and when he was done, a beautiful smile bloomed on her face as she kissed his head again and said, "I knew my Little Sun would shine the brightest. Now, tell me, which Pathway would you like to follow?"

That was a hard question since he couldn’t come up with an answer.

"If you’re confused, then you can simply take your time and see which suits you the most, or you can simply follow all of them like I do with the Mana and Body Pathways," Xiu suggested. "Just choose what you like."

"Won’t I be left behind then?" Aegon asked curiously.

"Silly boy! You have plenty of time," Xiu said, stroking his silky black hair. "One doesn’t start practicing their Pathway seriously until they’re sixteen or seventeen years old."

"Huh? What?" Aegon got confused. "If the Awakening happens at five, then why do they wait for a decade?"

"There’s a reason for it," Xiu explained calmly. "For the Body Pathway, one needs a healthy body filled with Essence so they can use it. But as a child, the Essence inside one’s body is too little. If they practice using it, they would suffer backlash. They can continue normal training to hone their body, but usage of Essence is strictly forbidden."

"I see. I will get an increase in growth due to my Physique, so perhaps I can begin my training earlier," Aegon muttered.

"Perhaps!" Xiu nodded. "As for the Mana Pathway, it’s simply because it’s too complicated. There is so much to learn about even the basics that it takes kids around a decade on average to get through them."

"Magic is mostly about learning," Aegon said, remembering how Xiu had told him that.

"Yes. There’s a reason most Mages have weak physical stats. They devote their time to understanding the deep intricacies of Magic. It’s wonderful actually, just not my type. But to understand those spells, you need to clear the basics, and that takes time."

She tapped his nose, making him annoyed, and smiled.

"And it’s not just remembering them, so you’ll find them interesting too. You need to understand it. You can take a few years to go through the basics and see if Magic interests you."

"I see." Aegon nodded in understanding, finding Magic even more interesting now. "What about the Soul Pathway?"

"It progresses very slowly, so you don’t need to worry about that. Also, it’s compulsory for you if you want to have a dragon as your companion one day," Xiu said.

’Dragon, huh,’ Aegon thought as he raised his hand, as if trying to reach towards the scar in the sky. "I’ll be fifteen in a decade. Ten years. I’ll give them to all three Pathways."