Chapter 179: Maha's Dream Invitation x Kastro's Loyalty
Darkness cannot exist under the sun... Was Roy lucky or unlucky?
"Using 'Faith' to steal others' aura is... too dangerous, after all..."
Having heard Roy recount how [Nature] projected negative emotions upon him, nearly driving him to suicide from depression, Zeno glanced cautiously at Maha. "Great-Great-Grandfather was right not to let you walk that path."
Actively spreading faith and passively spreading fame were two completely different concepts. The former was wider and broader, but fraught with danger; the latter was a slow stream, far less efficient at gathering faith, but safer.
"That was the path Zzigg took back then," Maha said calmly, finishing his sandwich.
Zeno and Silva fell silent. No one knew the ultimate outcome better than they, who had experienced it firsthand.
"But..."
"Grandpa's visualization object wasn't the sun." Silva glanced at Roy. "He didn't have it as easy as Roy when dealing with the backlash."
The sun, inherently capable of dispelling darkness... Zeno stroked his white mustache, nodding in agreement. "It might be worth a try."
"He's already gone, what's there to try?" Maha shot them a look, grumbling, "Get out, all of you!"
There wasn't enough food to begin with. Didn't they understand respecting the old and cherishing the young?
Silva glared at Roy, pushed back his chair, and stood up. Zeno shook his head, hunched his back, clasped his hands behind him, and followed... Father and son vanished in an instant. By the time Gotoh returned with the food cart, Maha had devoured everything on it.
It was a mystery how the old man's withered body could hold so much food. Wiping his mouth clean, he finally gave Roy a meaningful look. "You thought I was joking?"
Maha's expression turned serious. "I really came to collect your corpse!"
Roy lowered his head, silent.
The old man stared at him quietly for a while, then reached out and tapped Roy's forehead three times. "Can't you enter dreams? See you in the dream tonight."
Roy looked up in surprise... Maha slid off his chair, turned to leave, and said with his back to the boy, "Don't look at me like that. Your dad said it. Told us to be on guard so we don't fall for your tricks."
Roy: "..."
"Yes, sir."
He watched Maha leave, staring out the window thoughtfully...
"Young Master..."
"Young Master..."
At 7 AM, the clock chimed.
Two calls pulled the boy's wandering thoughts back to reality.
Gotoh reminded Roy, "Kastro is here."
Creeak~ The half-open door swung in the breeze, revealing the white-haired boy bowing outside.
"Young Master, Kastro reporting for duty!"
It was Kastro's first mission with Roy, and he was noticeably more reserved than usual.
At the Heavens Arena, he was the spirited inheritor of the Tiger Bite Fist. Coming to the Zoldycks, he trained day and night... Finally catching a chance to go on a mission with Roy, Kastro had been tense for days, secretly telling himself he must perform well, inadvertently putting a lot of pressure on himself.
"Relax." Roy saw through the boy's thoughts instantly. He smiled. "I've already instructed 'Taiichi'. Just follow his orders."
Kastro froze, blurting out, "Not with you, Young Master?"
And who is Taiichi?
"With me, yes." [Swamp Space] opened, and a patch of mud appeared behind Kastro. From the mud rose another Roy.
He had a gentle smile on his lips and patted the boy's shoulder.
Kastro turned back. Taiichi nodded slightly to him. Subconsciously turning back again, he saw Roy sitting at the table, listening to Gotoh's itinerary report. Kastro froze... A moment later, his eyes lit up, and he mentally screamed: So cool!
It's... a clone!
If I could clone myself... then, two against one...
Kastro looked at Gotoh with a crooked smile. I'd beat him into a pig's head!
"Don't even think about it..." The boy's eyes were shining like lightbulbs, blindingly bright. Roy didn't even need En to know what he was thinking. Without looking up, he said, "An Enhancer trying to mimic a Conjurer or Transmuter to force a clone... that's going astray."
"Taiichi, take him down."
"Let's go." Taiichi smiled. "Wait until you've developed a Nen ability."
"Yes, sir." Kastro lowered his head, bowed, suppressed his desire, and followed Taiichi out the door, heading straight down the mountain...
Whoosh~ A gust of wind blew. The red sun leaped over the horizon, illuminating the two, stretching the shadows of master and servant long and thin...
Taiichi, wearing a robe, holding a scripture, with a sun pendant on his chest, looked a bit more divine and three times gentler than the usual Roy. Walking down the stone steps, he spoke to Kastro without turning around, "Say what you want to say."
Kastro shook his head, shaking off the image of two Roys appearing in his mind simultaneously. Choosing his words carefully, he cautiously followed Taiichi's back and asked, "Young Master, I want to know how to gain your approval."
"You're doing fine as you are..."
"No," Kastro took a deep breath, mustering his courage. "I want to be like Butler Gotoh, become the Young Master's right-hand man, and receive the Young Master's rewards."
"You peeked at Gotoh's training?" Roy (Taiichi) stopped, looking at the boy with a smile.
Kastro blushed, hurriedly explaining, "Not peeking, watching openly."
"Water Breathing"... "Infinite Pistol"... Kastro thought of Gotoh practicing with his gun by the pool every day without hiding it, and said indignantly, "He knew I was watching."
He added silently in his heart: He was showing off to intimidate me!
Roy (Taiichi) laughed... So... "Do you want approval, or rewards?"
"I want both!" Kastro raised his fist without hesitation. "I want the Young Master's rewards, and I want to be the Young Master's personal head butler!"
[Notification: Detected one "Potential Believer," awaiting development...]
[Individual Name: Kastro.]
[Loyalty: Absolute Loyalty.]
[Note: Host can increase trust and loyalty with "Potential Believer" through "Gifts".]
What comes after Absolute Loyalty...? Roy received the panel notification and glanced at Gotoh's panel. "Overflowing Loyalty," willing to give his life, shone brightly!
The boy gently held the sun pendant on his chest, looking at Kastro with burning eyes. "Do you believe in the sun?"
Kastro was stunned for a moment. He took a deep breath, met Roy's gaze, and said deeply, "If the Young Master is that sun, then I believe."
"Mm." Roy (Taiichi) pressed two fingers to the boy's forehead. "It's yours."
Kastro blinked. A piece of information appeared in his mind, named—"Flame Breathing!"
The white-haired boy stood rooted to the spot. Suddenly he called out, "Young Master, wait for me!"
He followed Roy (Taiichi) down the mountain...
That night.
They boarded an airship to Yorknew City, leaving the Padokea Republic.
"Young Master, they should have departed by now."
8 PM. A single bean-sized lamp lit the room in the Zoldyck castle.
Gotoh, having served Roy dinner, checked the time and spoke.
Roy gave a noncommittal hum. Distracted, he passed the evening, lay in bed, and remembered Maha's instructions from the morning.
With a thread of thought, he entered the dream, arrived at the Sea of Cognition, stopped before the multicolored dream tunnel for a moment, activated [Dream Parasitism]... found the dream tunnel exclusive to Maha, and walked straight in!
"You came?"
"I came."
☆☆☆
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