"Hyeolmu, remember that you are the son of the Blood Cult, so always protect it. Never let it die. Even though it's part of the demonic faction, never be evil to your brothers—because family comes first," a pale woman said, her face blurred as young Hyeolmu looked up into her eyes.
"Hey, Mum… when will I start practicing martial arts? Dad only allows me to read books. Doesn't he want me to be strong? Most of my peers have already gone past third-rate!"
"Hyeolmu, your dad has his reasons. Don't worry—come next spring, I'll teach you how to master the Blood Arts."
"Mum… please, Mum, don't leave me! I promise I'll only focus on books. I'll never practice martial arts again! Mum, please… please, I love you—don't go!!!"
MUM!!!
As if frightened from his dream—by fear, sadness, or anxiety—Hyeolmu jolted awake. Even his expression couldn't explain what he felt, though faint tears slid down his face.
"What happened to you that you just jumped up screaming? Do you want to tell everyone you're awake or what?" came a voice from behind the door—a familiar, female voice.
"Mia! What are you doing here, and why are you here?" Hyeolmu said immediately as he saw the face of the one he feared the most.
Before he could even blink, she smacked him across the head. "Why do you keep screaming? Do you want to burst my eardrums?" she snapped angrily.
"Anyway, I was tasked with watching over you by that son of a b*tch called Red Mask. Why me, of all people? But anyway, why have you been sleeping so long? I had to watch over you for the past four days—four days!" Mia said, her tone bitter, though there was something oddly softer and more human about her presence this time—a strange mix of annoyance and warmth.
"Wait, four days?! Did you just say I've been out for four days? But… how?" Hyeolmu asked in shock.
"How the f*ck would I know? It's not like I know what kind of power-up potion you drank! You just suddenly became stronger to the point your energy core couldn't control itself," she said with a roll of her eyes.
"Thanks," Hyeolmu said unexpectedly, catching Mia off guard.
"By the way, what was that martial technique you used at the end—the one that caused all those spikes?" Mia asked, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.
"Hmm… you mean the Blood Arts I used at the end? So I should explain, huh? Yeah, not happening," Hyeolmu said, completely disregarding the question.
"What do you mean 'not happening'? Do you want to die?" Mia said, trying to intimidate him, releasing a wave of her deadly qi, "Remember, I'm still the Poison Ivy people fear. You wouldn't want to melt under my poison arts, right? So, spill the beans!"
But Hyeolmu seemed beyond fear. Ever since he woke up, he looked at her differently—not as a threat, but as a cute girl trying too hard to act tough.
"Hmm, still not happening. It's not that I can't tell you, I just don't see a reason to. Maybe if you offer something of equal value, I'll share," Hyeolmu replied calmly, trying to ease the tension.
"Okay, how about I tell you what happened during the four days you were asleep, huh? How does that sound?" Mia said energetically, her tone lighter than usual.
"Hmm… not a bad deal. I like it. The Blood Art I used during that match is one of the secret techniques of the Blood Cult I originally came from. I'd never tried using it before yesterday, so I didn't know how much of a toll it would take on my body. That's all I can say. The rest are secrets protected within the cult," Hyeolmu explained.
"Sigh… fine, I'll share my part too. Okay—immediately after you passed out and won that match of yours, murmurs started spreading like wildfire. Seems like your peaceful life is about to end, hahaha. But thanks to that competition, I managed to cement my control over this cave—of course, I'm perfect. Anyway, the new ranking system has been fully implemented," Mia paused for a moment, then continued.
"Now, the top-ranked children get living quarters within the cave. The higher your rank, the better the quarters. You're currently staying in my quarters, by the way. But as for the last ten in the rankings… their story's sad. They're treated like slaves now, barely given food. You ranked 11th from the bottom—you barely survived. Anyway, not my problem."
She sighed, crossing her arms. "Also, some demonic techniques were distributed by the guards. Most are only second-rate or worse—not really worth caring about. But because of that, many kids have started abandoning their origins and going fully demonic. I doubt they'll last long, though. The demonic qi in those techniques corrodes the mind. Soon, we'll be surrounded by more psychopaths and killers. Sigh… anyway, that's pretty much all that happened," Mia lamented.
"Wow… so much has happened in just four days. Hopefully, I'll still be able to live a decent life," Hyeolmu said, heading toward his usual dark, creepy corner of the cave.
"Seems like I've become stronger than I thought," he muttered to himself. "Now I just need to keep fighting and climb the ranks. I better not draw too much attention—not until I'm strong enough, especially not from the guards. To survive in this hellhole… I'll dominate them all and raise my sect bact to the top, this time far stronger than the Demon Cult."
"For the death of my brothers, I would take control and destroy it all. Everyone and everyone think connected will not be spared, but for now I need power." Hyeolmu said, a spike is his determination. Maybe the dream of his mum death which happened when he was four was the wake up call him.
The lion cub as finally awakened and he is about to take his step into revenge that will shake it all.
To be continued...