?Eren inspected Michael’s Curses for a long time, but there was more to it. Without warning, he pressed his hands against Michael’s back and poured some of his silver energy inside.
Michael stiffened and tried to move aside. Unfortunately, Eren’s silver energy channeling into him restrained his movements. The World Serpent hissed in Michael’s mind and deactivated the Serpent Seals to enter temporary hibernation. Nobody could sense the World Serpent’s physical body within Michael for a few minutes. All they could feel was that there was a ginormous serpent – a Curse – inside him.
Eren retracted his energy after a while, releasing Michael once again.
“What the hell was that about?!” Michael asked in anger, but Eren merely smiled.
“I noticed something and wanted to check it out,” He pointed out, taking Michael by surprise.
‘Did he sense the World Serpent?’
Michael was unsure if he had to hide the World Serpent from the Nest as well, but since the World Serpent concealed itself, he figured he should help it a little bit. The World Serpent had already helped him a lot.
“Is asking for permission that difficult? You can do whatever you want because you are strong enough. I understand that sentiment. However, just because you’re a Divine Lifeform doesn’t mean you should do whatever you want, especially not if you want to establish an amiable connection,” He cursed quietly.
Eren didn’t respond to Michael’s complaints. He merely studied the young Lesser Lifeform with a tinge of curiosity before he said, “You have the Essences of other races inside you. Your Subordinates must trust you a lot if they’re willing to split their Essences with you.”
The Supreme Human ALliance could remove Michael’s Curses and accept him into their rows, but they would loathe him for accepting the Essences of the Berserkers and Warlock Centaurs. It tarnished his bloodline and transformed him into an enemy of the Supreme Human Alliance. The Essence that strengthened Michael would turn him into a target of the Supreme Human Alliance – if his Curses were not enough reason to hunt him down now that Bloodhound failed to purge them.
“Is that a problem?” Michael asked, his eyes narrowed to a slit.
“Of course not. It’s rather beneficial for the Nest. We know that you won’t switch sides. After all, the Supreme Human Alliance would never accept you,” Eren smiled at Michael, who nodded slowly.
“That makes sense…I guess,” He mumbled, “But why is someone from the Nest here in the first place? I took care of Danny’s Curse early enough. There shouldn’t be a reason for anyone to come here. The Curse has been removed from the Living Soul and devoured by my Curses right after. I have enough control of my Curses as well. I don’t think I need the Nest.”
Michael couldn’t hide his prejudice against the Nest. They might have helped his sister when she ascended to a Higher Lifeform—Michael was unsure about that—but their actions tore his family apart. Of course, his parents were also at fault for that since they didn’t bring him and his brother to the Nest either. That didn’t mean only one party was at fault. Both the Nest and their parents were at fault for the brothers’ suffering.
Thinking about his mother, Michael glared at Evalynn, who’d arrived beside him and Eren a few seconds ago. She’d helped the victims of the chaos and destruction, ensuring that the casualty rate wouldn’t increase any further. It would be a shame if more people died. The casualty rate was already too high in the first place.
“Danny was waiting to talk to you for months, but you disappeared just like that. You’re really the wo–…” Michael couldn’t finish his sentence because Eren intervened.
“That’s the Nest’s fault. Please don’t blame your mother for leaving like that. She had to pick me up from a little bit further away. Traveling through the universe is difficult, especially into a tiny galaxy like this. The energy density in this place is not high enough to execute an accurate long-distance teleportation,” He tried to explain, but Michael continued frowning deeply. He wasn’t busying Eren’s excuses.
“It would have been easier if I had been to this place before, but since that wasn’t the case until a few weeks ago, we had to adjust the coordinates. Teleporting through time and space is not that easy if–…Well, that doesn’t really matter right now. What matters is that it was our fault that your mother had to leave. Probably both times, in fact.”
“So?” Michael asked sharply, “Does that mean my family couldn’t have left behind some notes or any kind of explanation? Let’s say I understand the first time everyone left without me and my brother, who was way too young to be forced to mature and raise his younger brother, BY THE WAY, what about the second time? A short message saying ‘I have to do something. I will be back in a few months.’ is that difficult? Even if the Geas restricts her from mentioning stuff about the Nest and such, she could have sent a message!”
Eren’s lips parted for an answer, but they closed quickly as Michael took a deep breath to continue.
“As for the Nest, I still don’t know what you guys are doing here or why you accepted my parents into the Nest alongside Hesta but left us behind. Or do you want to tell me that my parents left us behind for real?”
“We usually don’t accept ordinary Awakened. Your Father was an exception because your Grandfather trained him. That doesn’t explain why you couldn’t come to the Nest, but we didn’t even know that you or your brother existed until we picked up the awakening of your Curse and the Hellbound Cataclysm started by your brother,” Eren explained.
“Great information network,” Michael murmured in ridicule, only for his head to flick to his Mother.
Evalynn Fang had no idea what she was supposed to say right now. She had so much to explain but couldn’t find the right words to say.
“My Father, your grandfather… He trained me and your father in a very…unique way… He always said that he came from the Nest and that the Nest was a lot harsher than he was. He always said I should be happy that I had him by his side and that the Nest didn’t come for me. I…was scared when the Nest appeared to take Hesta… I was too weak to block them, so–….”
[So you went with the Nest while trying to hide that we exist. You were afraid that the Nest would take us as well and that they would torture us. Is that it?] Danny asked all of a sudden, using Whispering Energy.
His control of Whispering Energy was not that great just yet. Thus, he spoke in the minds of Michael, Evalynn, and Eren simultaneously.
“D-danny?!” Evalynn asked, her voice breaking down as tears gathered in her eyes.
“I thought that they were going to hurt you. I…couldn’t return to tell you I had to leave. It would have exposed my home and your existence. I know that I could’ve have stayed behind as well, but leaving Hesta alone with the Nest was not something I couldn’t do either. Hesta might have been an adult, but she has always been my little baby. If I could help her just a little bit by being next to her while the Nest harmed her…I thought…”
Evalynn broke down, but Eren rolled his eyes. He looked at Michael, whose attention was pulled away from his mother as well.
“Your grandfather was a powerful man, but he was obsessed with your mother and the continuance of the Fenrir bloodline. He wouldn’t allow anyone from the Nest to come for aid. I guess that’s why he exaggerated how ‘bad’ the Nest is. Of course, that doesn’t mean we aren’t strict and that our training doesn’t hurt. But I guess you understand how hard it is to learn how to control your Curse. You have to learn to control your Curse in every possible situation. That requires training – special training.”
Michael frowned deeply, “So…it was all a misunderstanding?”
Eren scrunched his nose for a moment and shrugged.
“The Nest is a place for all Cursed Children and Curse Users. We protect their families as well if they need protection. We rescue Cursed Children who awaken their Curses without any preparations. That’s why we picked up Hesta. If your grandfather was still alive, he would have taken care of Hesta. Alas, he died a while ago. We had to interfere to protect your sister.”
He glanced at Evalynn, his lips pressed together tightly.
“The rest, I don’t know. Whether you misunderstood your Mother’s intention or if you grasped it properly is not my business.”
It was the first time Michael had heard anyone speak about their grandfather. For a long time, he had been certain that their family was nothing special. He believed the Curse existed, but he hadn’t believed much about it—at least, that was until he manifested his War Rune.
Everything changed after his 18th birthday.
His parents were powerhouses stronger than most members of High Society, and his grandfather was said to be a powerful man. Hearing that from someone like Eren meant that his grandfather had been really powerful.
[What a mess.] Danny cursed in Michael’s mind as he organized and digested the new information.
‘You don’t say,’ Michael stated in his mind, rubbing his temples, trying to figure out whether to trust everything his Mother had said or continue doubting her.
[If you cannot trust her… just read her Mind. What’s the issue with that?] The World Serpent commented, attracting the brothers’ attention.
‘Wouldn’t that be a bit…too much?’ Michael asked, but the World Serpent didn’t care regarding his moral compass.
[Does it matter whether you similar_to it or not? If you desire information, you ask her to reveal everything. If she rejects your request, you can decide whether to trust her or remain suspicious of her real intentions.]
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