Chapter 836 T.D.O.N.B: Apology

After the fight, Leonel became quite famous. Especially among the teenage females, who for different reasons were in Arc. Maybe because of his otherworldly appearance after the transformation, or maybe was it how he behaved during the fight, or perhaps it was what he did the day before, during the party. A noble knight protecting his sister.

Nobody from the family of the guy who got kicked out came to complain. I knew because I stayed in touch with Will.

I was around for a few days, sacrificing my time for hunting in Loistavadvaar just to make sure everything was fine. Well, not really. I also wanted to keep an eye on my son, to make sure his fame wouldn't turn him into an idiot, but it didn't.

One of those days, as I was already considering returning to chasing the crystals, we finished the family dinner. John got invited by Tihana, which started to be quite a regular thing, and after we finished, he declared to help me with the cleaning while the rest of the family sat down in the dayroom to talk while drinking wine.

I thought at first it was his way to escape, because, I'll admit, for me it was the main reason behind my volunteering to wash the dishes.

There is a limit to how much you can listen about what other people wore to a hunt.

John took on himself washing, while I was left with wiping. After a few dishes in it became obvious what the reason for his action was.

- Maybe it's not the best moment but... - He started. - I just felt like I need to say it. I'm sorry.

My eyebrows climbed up my forehead, but I didn't say a thing, allowing him to continue at his own pace. The hum of water coming from the tap filled the awkward moment of silence.

- During Leonel's fight... I saw myself in the other guy, and it really hit me that I was like that, a lot... I never properly apologized to you - he picked up. - I apologized to Tihana, but not to you. At first not even really seriously, because it was my father who pushed me to do this. Speaking with her, changed my point of view, and I really started to understand that I fucked up.

He had trouble formulating his thoughts, as he was thinking a lot to pick the correct words. He would stop, wash another plate, give it to me, and then continue. I showed patience.

- Living in Petrograd made me understand even better, but I still didn't admit to you that I was wrong, and I'm sorry about it. I'm not sure you will ever be able to forgive me for that, but I just want you to know - he finalized.

I nodded, then after a brief pause also added:

- I'm not gonna pretend like you didn't do what you did. I will always remember it. I hope you changed, but only time will tell. I will always be watching. If Tihana forgave you, it's good enough for me, but I will keep my eyes open no matter what.

He nodded too, clearly understanding what I put forward. After that we didn't speak more, just kept washing and wiping the dishes, until the work finished. Then we joined everybody in the day room.

I tried to wiggle my way out of it, but I failed. Fortunately, we soon split into two groups. The girls talked about their stuff, and the guys found their own topic.

The next day I was able to finally return to Loistavadvaar, and chase some ghosts. Well... At least I tried to. Even at my spot finding them wasn't easy. I considered making a lot of ruckuses, but it didn't seem like something worth actually going for, so after a couple of days spent roaming the streets, I decided to visit the towers.

My time there was very limited since I would go only for the time my family would spend hunting inside the spots around Arc, so I was limited to just a couple of hours a day, which wasn't anything close to an optimal approach because of the size of that place.

The towers were so huge, that one, looking at them, thought that they are close by, but the actual distance was often just ridiculously long compared to what you would expect.

Imagine a city with over a hundred million people, with only a couple of creatures walking around. That was my 'good spot'. It was still basically looking for a needle in a haystack. The towers, though, looked promising, since I encountered the strong guy in one of them.

Yeah. When I put it like that, it's no longer such a good idea, isn't it? I still tried. As you probably figured out, I failed, then failed again.

Those towers, even when they were heavily sealed, and I practically had to rip my way through a bunch of enchanted doors, were empty. There was a lot of weird technology inside, but nothing more.

I figured that maybe I should go after the ones struck by lightning, hoping that it was because of the ghosts inside that this phenomenon occurred, but the closest I was able to spot was very far away. I barely noticed the faint glow around a much darker, small outline somewhere on the horizon.

I wasn't even completely sure it was one of those towers, but it has become my target, which I had to put on hold, as, once again, I have run out of time. The next day I returned to the same spot, and I headed straight for it. Not at full speed, because I didn't want to suddenly alarm the whole city, but the pace was fast enough to reach it in time, and then even have plenty of time for a battle.

My hopes were high because the grid kicked in. I wished to already be fighting my way to Aaraam'soturi. I really wanted to discover the secrets of that place.