200 Chapter 200: Father and Son (1/2)

”Hey, Dad, I'm home.”

After Sergeant Jamie Wolfe dropped me off at Jing Tian City, I headed straight home. To my complete lack of surprise, Dad was watching anime on the couch when I pushed the door open. I waved at him as I took my shoes off at the entrance.

”Oh, Richie! You've been gone for a couple of days now! How did your mission go?”

Dad paused his anime and raised his head from the couch to glance at me. I smiled briefly and shrugged.

”Okay, I guess?”

Dad gave me a stare as I proceeded toward the stairs and headed up to my room. He snorted in disbelief.

”Seriously? You take down the Grim Reaper and flushed out several nests of Goblins, and you say it is just okay?”

I paused at the bottom of the stairs to gape at him.

”How did you know…?”

”Hah!” Dad crowed. ”What do you take your old man for? I'm a mercenary as well, you know? I have access to the mercenary information network. Your feats are all over the news today! You and that young lady…Anastasia, was that her name?”

”Uh, yeah.”

Dad nodded thoughtfully. ”She seems to be a fine young lady.”

He said nothing more than that. Dad was aware of my relationship with Alicia, even if I didn't explicitly tell him about it, and that it was still too soon for me to move on. It had been less than two weeks since her death. Maybe three. I had lost track of time.

”Anyway, good job out there.” Dad sighed as he looked at me seriously. ”But really…you're too reckless. Why did you try and fight an enemy like the Grim Reaper, anyway?”

”Because she and her spirit attacked me,” I replied simply.

Dad studied me, inferring that Anastasia and I was unable to escape and thus were forced to fight to the death, and nodded understandingly.

”I'm glad you're all right,” he said. ”As long as you're fine…” he frowned. ”Well, you probably got healed by a healer in the military.”

”The Silver Wolves,” I corrected. I didn't tell Dad how injured I was, or how close to death I was when they found me. He would probably get mad and concerned. He wouldn't fuss over me – Dad wasn't the type to do that – but he would still be worried.

”Ah…I think I've heard of their healer. Heather, was it?”

”Heather St. Helen.”

”That's the one.” Dad nodded. ”That's good. She's a very competent healer, and considering that you're in one piece, she must have expended quite some mana.” He pursed his lips. ”I hardly imagine that you'll be in good shape after fighting a monstrous enemy like the Grim Reaper.”

”What do you think your chances are against someone like Selina Wright and Hades?” I asked. When Dad gave me a blank stare, I quickly amended,” I mean the Grim Reaper.”

Seemed like the Grim Reaper's true identity wasn't common knowledge. People just knew of her legend, but they didn't know who she really was.

”Ah…fifty-fifty, I guess? That guy is quite the troublesome one.” Dad was nodding. He grinned. ”In a way, you've surpassed your dad. You should be proud!”

I didn't feel proud. Just tired. It was only because my Constellation magic happened to counter Hades' ability that I defeated him. Any regular mage who didn't have a bunch of different magical techniques or Soul Beasts would find it near impossible to defeat that murderous spirit. And when all was said and done, I just felt…weary.

All I wanted to do was go to my room and sleep. Probably because my body was still sore and I needed some more time to fully recover.

”Oh, Dad…”

Before I went upstairs, though, I suddenly remembered something. While we were on the topic regarding Hades…no, the topic of contracted spirits, I might as well ask him about it. it had been bothering me ever since Selina mentioned something about a sacrifice…a vessel, and a terrible price to pay to establish the contract.

”About Angelica…”

”Hmm? What about her?”

Dad turned back to look at me, his hand on the remote. Having seen that I was about to go upstairs, he intended to resume watching anime. This time it was some trashy series about cheat magicians in another world, except that the protagonist didn't really have any ”cheats.” Despite the protagonist and his childhood friend using the word ”cheat” over and over and fucking over again, I still didn't understand how his isekai power was a cheat. He was just different from all the other characters living in that world. That was the basis of a fucking isekai protagonist. Now, if he was literally hacking the world because it was a game and his power was gameshark, I would understand his insistence that he was using a ”cheat”. However, all he did was control spirits…like wow, that was so game-breaking (no, it really isn't)!

After a while, I honestly just couldn't give a shit about the show…not just because of the cheesy premise, but because of the bland dialogue, the flat and one-dimensional characters, the overabundance of clichés and a poor, predictable storyline.

Whoops…I was digressing too much from the topic at hand. Dad was still waiting for me expectantly, a bemused expression on his face.

”Why are you asking me about Angelica?” he prodded, bringing me back to reality. I stared at him and hesitated for a moment.

Then I shook my head and scratched my scalp.

”No…never mind.”

This wasn't the appropriate time to ask about Angelica. No, that was just an excuse. I found myself afraid to ask. I had a feeling that I didn't want to know the answer. That my dad had committed an unforgivable sin and sacrificed someone he loved.

A truth that would shatter my imagination of him as a hero. I had always looked up to him and admired him as a hero, an ally of justice. For Dad to have done something…so inhuman was unthinkable. I just couldn't imagine it.

I didn't want to imagine it.

”Sorry. I'm just confused after such an exhausting mission. I've a report to write, so I'll go get it done.”

”Don't push yourself,” Dad called out to me as I ascended the stairs. I merely nodded and waved at him, and he started playing the video.

Yeah…this was for the best. I was not ready to know the truth. Not mentally prepared or emotionally strong enough. I wanted to continue believing that Dad was an infallible hero.

…yet I knew that he was the type who would sacrifice the minority to save the majority. For him to exchange a single life – albeit the one he loved the most – to gain power to save the world…that was unmistakably Dad.

I knew that. I knew that Dad was not beyond sacrificing the few for the many. What was one life balanced against the world?

However, the truth would be…devastating, somehow. It would still alter my perception of Dad. Even with his cold, methodological thinking, Dad was still human. There had to be a price he would refuse to pay, no matter what. Even if it was to save the world.

If he was willing to sacrifice even the person he loved the most…then was Dad even human? How could someone like him see me, someone who wasn't even related by blood, as his son? Despite his friendly demeanor, did he always see me as a tool? A tool to be sacrificed if the circumstances called for it and he needed power to save the world?