5 Chapter 5: Their Promise

"Fuh~! That should do it for today... I mean I've been at it for like 3 hours already..." Titus muttered, then he continued; "I guess I should head back, I don't want to hear Sister Lily's 'lecture' again..."

Titus has been going at it for 2 Hours, 40 minutes and 36 seconds, 37 seconds now, he had trained his body to the limit, even though his body is actually a lot stronger than what a human should, his senses, endurance, physical strength, mental resistance, stamina, all kinds of traits! even his good 'little brother' is comparable to an adult...

This is the effect of the 'little' enhancement of the old man, he had improved Titus' talents in all aspects, hoping for him not to be a 'Jack of All Trades, Master of None' but a 'Master of All Trades, Jack of None', this is simply a gift for all of the sufferings he had gone through in his former world.

After deciding to end his training for the day, Titus hurriedly ran towards the direction of 'Hage Village' as he had long passed his curfew of 5 P.M.

After reaching the village he quickly ran towards the Church, inside of the dining hall he saw Asta, Recca, Father and Sister Lily who was holding Nash in her arms, sat around the table while frowning.

Feeling the tense atmosphere, Titus tried to ease the tension by..."*Ahem* what's up, everyone...?"

"Where have you been?" Sister Lily asked with a 'warm' smile.

Father didn't say anything, he just looked at Titus with an interrogating gaze.

"In the Forest...?" Titus answered with a wry smile.

Before Sister Lily could say anything, the Father interrupted her.

"Ha?! the Forest?! That's like a few kilometers away from here! Can you be more careful?! You are still a child, for god's sake, Titus! You should be at home...blah blah blah... So what can you say about this, mister?" he said while looking at him with an angry look.

He was worried for Titus, he had long treated Titus and all of the other kids in the orphanage as his own child, heck even Sister Lily!

Every parent would feel worried towards their children, after all, even Titus understand this fact.

Titus sighed as he apologized to them. "I'm sorry, I promise it won't happen again."

"Just make sure that it won't." Said the Father as his gaze began to soften.

Seeing that the atmosphere was finally going down, Titus asked. "By the way, where is Yuno? I've been here for a while but I haven't even got a glimpse of him...:

"You're right, I asked him to deliver a letter to the old man for me as you weren't here to deliver it for me," Father answered in a worried tone.

"Hn..." Titus merely nodded as he sat down in a chair as he took a look at the food on the table.

He began to smile wryly when he saw the food, it was all made of tatoes but cooked in different ways, there was Fried Tatoes, Grilled Tatoes, Boiled Tatoes, etc... He will never get used to this, he barely ate anything that wasn't a kind of tatoe after all.

He sighed as he took a plate and took a piece of boiled tatoe... it was torture.

He took a small bite at it before he put it down, he then took a piece of all the different tatoes in the table.

He took a bite in each of them...

'It all tastes the same...' he thought as imaginary tears began to roll down his face, he didn't dare to say it out loud because he was merely freeloading here after all, and he didn't want to hurt the feelings of Sister Lily.

As he was silently cursing in his mind, Asta suddenly stood up from his seat, saying that Yuno was taking too long to finish his errand.

"He's taking too long! we should go look for him!" Asta said.

"*Sigh* True, he's taking too long... Asta, Titus, do you mind taking a look for me?" Father asked.

"I don't! Let's go, Titus!" Asta immediately answered as he began to drag Titus with him.

'I do.' retorted Titus in his mind.

"Yuno can take care of himself, Asta. He's probably going back now as we speak." Titus answered before removing Asta's hand from his arm.

Asta had his eyes widened at Titus who actually just sat down on the chair again and began eating.

"Geez..." Titus muttered under his breath after sitting again.

Asta looked at Titus with his eyes widened before leaving angrily.

*Bang!* The sound of the Church's door.

"Damned brat..." Titus whispered, looking at the tatoes fallen in the ground after being surprised from the sound of the door.

He then uncomfortably began eating again while avoiding Sister Lily and the Father's gazes, not daring to meet their eyes.

Time continued to move without a single shadow of both Asta and Yuno being seen, Titus began to get agitated coupled with the two's silent stare.

The uncomfortable feeling and tense atmosphere keep escalating as Titus wasn't able to handle it anymore as he angrily stood up and ran towards the door while shouting.

"Ah! Damn it all! Fine, I'll go!"

Looking at his gradually disappearing figure, Sister Lily and the Father couldn't stop a smile creep up to their faces.

They knew that no matter what, Titus can't bear his 'younger siblings', he would always act like this.

"Fufufu..." Sister Lily chuckled while gazing at the place Titus went.

-----

"Damn it!" Titus grumbled before sighing.

"*sigh* Where did those two brats go now?" he muttered before hearing the shouts and cries of children from the distance.

He already went to the place the Father wanted him to but the man there said that Yuno never got there which made him more worried and guilty.

Even though not blood-related, Titus still thinks of the both of them his brothers, and obviously, he believes that he himself is the big brother among all the children in the orphanage as such he would naturally worry for their well being.

Titus immediately ran to the place where the cries and shouts are heard until he saw a pair of bloody boys as well as a drunk bastard.

The drunk bastard was beating an ash-haired boy.

Behind the ash-haired little boy, a black-haired boy who was about the same age as the ash haired one was sobbing while trying to stop the man from beating up the other one.

Seeing their bloodied looks, Titus felt a rush of rage ran through his veins as he ran to that man at his currently fastest speed with the intent of killing him.

"What are you doing?!" He roared as he tackled the man to the ground and used all his strength to smash his face to the ground creating a small crater.

"Arggghhh!!!" The man screamed in pain.

*Bang!* *Crack!*

One could hear the man's skull cracking as the man was nearly unconscious from the force and was bleeding from his mouth, nose, ears...

Titus then lifted him and threw him to some wall and gutted him using some his power which then made the guy cough up blood and broke a few of his bones as well.

"...Monster..." The man whispered before passing out from the pain and fear.

Titus wanted to kill him right here and now but he knew that he can't do that in front of Asta and Yuno as such he limited his actions to just some broken bones.

He didn't like it...

It reminded him of something.

Something he doesn't want to repeat.

Titus then threw his unconscious body to the ground and left it there.

He then walked toward Asta who was looking at him with stars in his eyes and Yuno who was looking at him while sobbing silently.

Asta then woke up from his dream and realized why Titus was here.

He was probably here for him...

He realized how much trouble he was in for.

He wanted to run away but his body couldn't move from the pain from the beating he just got.

"Y-Yo! It's a nice night, isn't it? Iyaaa! I thought I was done for then! Thanks!" Asta was seating cold sweat from fear.

Seeing that Titus didn't stop walking towards them.

Even Yuno felt some dread in him.

After arriving at the front of them, Titus then bowed. "I'm sorry! If I just came with you this wouldn't have happened in the first place! Anyways, I'm sorry!" Titus apologized.

Asta and Yuno who was preparing for the scolding they thought that they'll get from Titus were dumbfounded.

Was this really Titus? that Arrogant Prick, Titus? that Lazy Titus? That one called a Prodigy?

Asta was the first one to wake up from his bewilderment. He then grinned and said. "Don't worry! This much is nothing! Right, Yuno?

" Un." Yuno nodded.

"But...!"

"I'll become the Magic Emperor! Just you wait and see! I'll become much stronger than both you and Yuno!" Asta said with a toothy grin.

"I'll become the Magic Emperor before you Asta!" Yuno said.

"You know that I don't won't to be the Magic Emperor, right?" Titus asked with a smile.

"Eh?!? Why?!? Wasn't this supposed to be the part where the three of us become rivals?!" Asta exclaimed.

"Yes, but there is a way for me to become a rival of yours as well..." Titus said with a mischievous smile.

"How?" Asta asked, even Yuno listened.

"...Sister Lily." Titus said.

"What?!" Asta shouted.

"I said we'll be rivals for both Sister Lily and The Seat of the Magic Emperor." Titus answered.

"I WONT LET YOU HAVE SISTER LILY, TITUS!!!" Asta shouted from the top of his lungs.

"We'll see about that." Titus said.

"But for now..."

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"We.."

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"Are Rivals"

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"From now on!" The three of them simultaneously said.