Kayne breathed a sigh of relief when he successfully evaded Peony's nagging.
"Sit," his grandfather commanded when he saw Kayne entering the dining room.
They ate in silence until a familiar face came in. He looked exactly like Rigel except that his eyes glowed bright yellow unlike Rigel's that's similar to the shade of a full moon. He smiled at Kayne maliciously and played on the kid's locks.
"Quite a fine child, my brother had. Tell me, who's your mother?"
Luke quickly slammed the table with his palm to silence his audacious child.
"Aris!," Reene called out. "That's enough."
"What?!," the one called Aris asked. "Are you going to defend him like how you shielded your favorite child? I understand that you loved Rigel because he's better than me but this unknown bastard, I can't accept him in our family. And I also bet that he's a tra—"
"Shut up." Luke intervenes when he suddenly feels the change of manas inside the room.
In a split second after his intervention, the room covered in bronze and golden things became an ice paradise. Icicles hang from the ceiling and the temperature dropped less than the freezing point. And it is Kayne who's managing it.
Aris laughed this off and called a weapon. His long sword emits fire that neutralizes the cold atmosphere.
"Look at this kid, what is your magic? Ice too? Ah, maybe that's the reason why Yna lost to you."
Aris took the initiative and attacked Kayne with his sword, aiming for his quick defeat by cutting his neck.
But Kayne is adept in dodging such flashy moves. He quickly moved on Aris' blindspot and slashed him with his jambiya. "Father keeps reminding me not to use mana carelessly and yet you're here saying wild things regarding my father. I'll kill you."
Before Aris could move from his spot, Kayne vanished on his sight again. He can't feel the kid's presence that makes him decide to swing his sword desperately in all directions. "Little scum, who's going to die?"
Kayne did not respond and chilled the room once more, freezing the sword in Aris' hand until it broke. Just in the moment he's about to slash his uncle's gut open, time froze and Luke Regulus turned into a black dragon, destroying the whole place in shatters.
"That's enough, Kayne, Aris. Both of you will receive punishment for breaking a family rule," Reene said.
"Punishment for what?," Kayne asked.
"Hah, you don't know this twerp but fights among family members aren't tolerated here unless we're on the safe wall," Aris answered on his question.
Luke changed back to his human form and slapped Aris hard, making him pass out. Then he turned to Kayne. "Are you going to receive your punishment quietly or do you want me to put you into sleep?"
Kayne can't look directly at the angry Luke. His grandfather's gaze alone seemed like a hot iron being penetrated to someone's skin. This is the second time he felt so small after Rigel. "I'll go."
On Kayne's approval, Luke called the house guards and ordered them to put the two of them in the underground cell. But when the guards tried to arrest Kayne, one of them fell from a mana bullet. Kayne saw this and before the family could even act to kill whoever shot it, he raised his voice and stopped the one who fired the mana bullet.
"Peony!," he yelled.
Peony rose from her position and jumped to the ground in front of the young master. "Young master, give me the order and I'll eliminate them all."
"Peony!," he shouted once more to bring senses to the girl. "I'll be back. Wait for me in my room."
Although reluctant, Peony stepped backwards and bowed to her master, acknowledging his decision. The tensed guards also laid down their weapons and guided Kayne to the basement while literally dragging the unconscious Aris away.
They spent almost ten minutes walking down a long winding path to the basement. It is dimly lit with small torches on the wall and the deeper they go, the stronger the scent of the blood is.
Kayne can sense that several more prisoners are being held in the basement.
Luke noticed Kayne's uneasiness and his interest in the captives. "They were family," he briefly said.
"Why?," Kayne asked.
"This is the best we can do. We're a family who live prosperously because of our strict rules. That's why those who commit crimes against our codes are being held here." Luke stopped in front of a strong looking metal door and opened it with a mana code. He also asked the guards to put Kayne inside the cell.
"How long am I going to be here?," Kayne asked in a low voice without a hint of guilt.
"While Aris will spend an entire month here, I'll let this incident slide with a few lashes on your back. You need to be present tomorrow and furthermore, you aren't well informed about our codes yet."
"Is this the norm?"
Luke blankly stared at his grandson. "This is our family's norm, Kayne. Don't make this more difficult by trying to break out of this place. I know that you can do it like how your father can't be restrained by us. But he isn't here right now and your standing is as shaky as a paper on top of a pen. Simply listen to us, your grandparents, and we'll make sure that you won't die."
The heavy door closed slowly and the light illuminating the room fades with it. Kayne felt the cold floor under his palm. He leaned on the wall on his back and sighed. The dark place he's in is as tiny as the institution's bathroom. He closed his eyes and tried to remember Peony's face when he yelled at her earlier. If only he knew that he'll be spending his night here, he quickly finished the food in front of him to not starve himself to death. He also tried to imagine how his father felt when he's spending his days here.
"Grandfather said that he broke out," he remembered.
As the fatigue crashes on him, his eyelids become heavier, pushing him into a deep sleep.