When Sia was fighting for the thunderbolt fruit, in a location far away, another fierce fight was taking place.
"Charles! You are a genius, but you are still too young! Give up!" A reflection in the mirror said.
A handsome face, blonde hair, and green eyes.
The reflection was his.
But the words weren't.
"Roar!"
So, the giant white wolf responded with a ferocious howl and slapped the mirror with its paw.
Baa!
The mirror shook violently but didn't break. However, the reflection in the mirror dissolved.
"Greeh!"
The giant white wolf took a step forward in the narrow corridor.
The corridor's walls were filled with mirrors of all sizes and types. Some of them showed him larger, others as smaller, some taller, others shorter.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Even a single step brought forth significant change in the reflections.
"You know it better than anyone, Charles!" A woman surfaced in one of the mirrors.
The white wolf looked into the mirrors.
Except for the one mirror showing his aunt, the rest were showing a path.
"Charles, your talent is built upon the blood of innocents! Your aunt is a murderer! Your father killed your own grandfather! Do you even have a bit of honor to proclaim you're on the side of good?" The woman said word by word.
"Greeh!" The giant wolf lowered its head.
Its green eyes were forced shut as the man under the wolf underwent an inner turmoil.
Charles knew he was an asshole. He never denied it. He did a lot of bad things. He coerced people. He beat them up. He even made the lives of a few people hell.
But.
He never considered himself to be only that.
Even he had a shade he couldn't deny.
A side that sincerely yearned for the acknowledgment of his father.
A part of him which wanted to be the hero who saved humanity.
A tiny portion of his heart that was still untouched by the tragedies that changed him—the portion that yearned for the naive joy.
But after everything, after losing the few people that mattered to him, even if he were to lose that side of him, Charles was willing.
He was disgusted at his father's villainy, but as hatred filled his mind, he realized that he himself wouldn't mind being a villain.
For revenge, he'd smash every obstacle in his path.
'Varian, Sia, Enigma! Eye for an eye. Blood for blood. Life for life!'
"Roar!"
Charles roared out loud and raised his palm towards his aunt's reflection. His paw was infused with enough strength to bring down a mountain.
Boom!
But when it finally touched the mirror, instead of dissolving like the previous time, the image shot back.
The giant wolf stumbled on its hindlegs before quickly stabilizing.
Whoosh!
An entity emerged out of the reflection. It looked exactly like his aunt, and it smiled like her.
"Charles," It said, pointing a finger at him. "You are nothing compared to Varian. He grows so fast so soon. Do you think you can still win hi—"
"Roar!"
A giant wolf head reached her neck, about to bite her off.
The reflection sidestepped, but the teeth still pierced through its neck.
Pa!
No blood came out. But a part of its neck was gone forever.
"Oh dea—"
Boom!
The wind exploded as shockwaves swept the narrow corridor.
It was only then that sound finally caught up with Charles' speed.
"Roar!"
Charles jumped at the reflection again, his tail slapping it like a whip.
The reflection tried to counter his superior strength by using his huge frame against him and leveraging its high speed.
But the corridor was small and it couldn't do much.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Exactly after thirty-three seconds, the reflection broke into pieces and disappeared.
"Roooa~" The giant wolf panted lightly before raising its head and glancing into the mirror.
Hundreds of white wolves stared back at it from the mirror.
Except one.
It was the mirror from which the reflection came out.
Whoosh!
Without hesitation, the giant wolf jumped into the mirror half its size. But the moment its claw touched the mirror, the space around it twisted and its entire body disappeared.
The first thing Charles noticed after landing in his new location was that he was somehow back to his human form.
And more importantly, he was in a room…a dining room.
An old man sat in the main seat of the dining table. He was the legendary Ceaser Xander. The father of Julius and grandfather of Charles.
He was someone Charles never saw.
Now, that man, the Sovereign he always admired, stared at Charles with a kind gaze.
"Come on little fellow, you're later for dinner."
Charles' heart twisted. His eyes moved to the man sitting on the right of the elder.
It was a handsome middle-aged man.
"Didn't you want to visit mars for vacation? I booked tickets, but we'll have only one hour, not counting emergencies."
"…Father." Charles finally opened his mouth, but he felt like something was stuck in his throat.
"No, don't give me that look. One hour is the best I can manage." Julius said with an adamant expression.
"I—" Charles opened his mouth again, but he couldn't speak with his chest feeling continuously heavy.
Was he out of breath?
No. Surely not.
Then, what was happening?
Julius looked at Charles' expression and showed a helpless expression. "I'm really sorry, this is the best I can do. To compensate, how about a movie with you the next weekend?
Of course, it must be on earth, so I can use the teleportation formations in case of emergency."
Charles looked at his father before closing his eyes shut.
He tried his best not to let the tears fall.
He knew he was in an illusion.
An illusion that would show his heart's deepest desires.
Then.
'Was it really so hard spending a bit of time with me?'
"Charles, are you alright?" A soft voice called out in concern.
Roxanna.
She was sitting to the left of his grandfather and looked at him in worry.
Charles opened his eyes and stiffly nodded at her.
Roxanna sighed in relief before turning to Julius. "I told you, brother, children want their father to spend time with them, especially when they're young!"
"But Roxi, my duty is—"
'Young?' Charles was surprised.
Now that he thought about it, they all seemed a bit larger.
"Big Brother!" An innocent voice called out to him.
Charles' body stiffened and he turned to the young boy sitting in a chair clearly oversized for him.
The boy was only ten years old. His eyes exuded naivety and cheerfulness that adults lacked.
The boy patted the chair next to him and said. "Let's eat together."
Tap! Tap! Tap!
Charles moved towards the chair step by step.
When he sat on the chair, he realized that it was oversized for him too.
Looking at his reflection on the plate, he realized he was just twelve.
"Now then, let's begin." Ceaser Xander clapped his hand and the dinner began.
Charles didn't remember what they talked about, but he couldn't forget how they talked.
The way Ceaser stroked his beard in pride each time Narcis told his accomplishments in school.
The way Julius and Roxanna bickered to and fro.
The way Narcis secretly gave him his favorite fruit candy from his plate, despite wanting it for himself.
When the dinner finally ended, Charles had a big smile on his face.
But tears didn't stop streaming down his cheeks.
"Little guy!" "Charles!" "Sweetheart!" "B-Big Brother!"
Everyone stood up from their seats and looked at him with worried faces.
Charles took a deep breath and said.
"Thank You."
Kacha!
The illusion broke and a light orb flew into his hand.
The light faded away and Charles felt a hard, cold sensation in his palm.
{Congratulations on clearing the trial!}
As the space around Charles twisted and he was about to be teleported out, Charles closed his eyes and recalled the short, dreamy dinner.
Whoosh!
When he opened his eyes, he was at the foot of a brown mountain range.
The cold wind ruffled his hair and he longer felt any warmth.
Charles gripped the metallic treasure in his hand.
"Young Master!" His protector greeted in an anxious voice. "We have to start the journey now."
Charles nodded and the aura on his body rose.
"I've lived my dream. Now, I've to live my reality."