Expectant

Sou gazed at the huge manor while being led by his sister.

(Heightened Senses.)

Sou senses have gone through many changes over the past years. 3 years ago, he could only sense lifeforms in a 2km radius and could somehow guess their location. Now, he could exactly pinpoint anything, be it a living being with mana equal to none or an item clad in a thick layer of 'Clothing'. But this was only the second-best thing. The main spotlight was the ability to perceive the emotions of living beings. Though the mastery was low, it was a great addition to his arsenal.

Living beings are full of emotions and desires. No matter how hard they try to suppress their inner desires and emotions, they always fail to do so, and their actions get influenced by what they are feeling. For example, ecstasy during fights means that the opponent is enjoying the fight and will try to match your attack pattern to draw the battle longer. Desperation during fights means the opponent will go to any lengths to achieve his/her goal, playing dirty included. restlessness in a fight means that the opponent is either waiting for something or buying time. You all can figure out the rest, it's a pain in the ass to explain every single one of them.

So, if you know what the opponent is feeling, you can manipulate them and make them dance in the palm of your hand. This was Sou thought when he first got the perk. but he got a long way to go before he could apply it in battles, the reason being it randomly activates so he can't rely on this skill until he perfects it.

(Hmm... The main house is quite big. Two cellars, so many rooms, wide storage and a pretty garden at the back. They even have a training facility embued with thick mana. Hoh... they have maids!)

Sou's lips curved into a wry smile.

(Was our family always this rich? No, can't be. I don't recall such luxury from Sou's childhood memories and my parents didn't seem like they were faking their wealth. Hm?)

Sou stared at the entrance of the huge mansion.

(Four people. Two males and two females, and one of them is a... child? Seems my age... None of them has developed mana stage except the one sitting... Stage III... that's a stage above me! And wait, there are some traces of mana around the man standing... something's fishy?)

"Haa..."

Lia stopped to look at her brother sighing.

"Brudher what?"

"Ah, nothing Lia. Keep going." Sou reassured Lia, received a cute nod from Lia, and again moved his eyes in the direction of the group.

He focused on the man sitting.

(Why am I getting a sense of familiarity from him? Perhaps he is...)

Bam!

Lia slammed the door open and Sou quickly put his mask on. Lia looked at Sou and winked and in return, Sou gave her a thumbs up.

Everyone in the room looked at them with doubt and confusion.

The man who was sitting spoke in a disheartened voice.

"Lia, who is that boy?"

Lily placed her hand softly on Sou's shoulder from behind and smiled before speaking up.

"He is someone who wants to have a battle with you, the Royal Guard Instructor, to gain some experience in battles."

"... fine by m-"

Swoosh!

Sou appeared in front of as soon as he heard the words of approval, his palm about to hit the man's face.

Swish!

Sou didn't hit anyone. It was like a wind passing through Sou's hand, a gentle but quick breeze, that averted Sou's trajectory.

"What are you doing? Attacking me out of nowhere like that?" The man started to emit an enormous amount of bloodlust. The atmosphere in the room became heavier and the people in the room took a step back and Lia cried intensely due to it.

(Wind magic huh...)

"Nothing, I just couldn't hold myself back. I am sorry for that."

The man withdrew his bloodlust and walked over to the crying Lia and patted her.

"..."

Sou stared at the man without uttering anything. They were dead, rotten and red from crying. His face wrinkled and broken which matched perfectly with his unruled beard.

"Let's go to the training facility." The man said and started to make his way to the training facility.

Sou nodded at the man's statement and followed suit. The people present in the room looked at the two leaving nervously and followed them without saying anything.

The other man asked Lily in a whispered tone.

"Who is that boy?"

"Fufufu... you will find out after their fight is over."

The man was taken aback by Lily's creepy laugh and behaviour around that boy. He has not seen Lily smile over the past years, much less laugh. The female jerked at her behaviour and gave estranged looks to the man.

"Aww, don't give that look to Mr Hols. You all will know why I am so happy after he takes off his mask."

They gave each other glances and continued to head to the facility without question her response.

***

[Hols Manor's Training Facility]

Both Sou and the man did some stretching to free their cramped muscles.

"You ready?" The man asked.

Sou nodded.

"Weapons or without weapons?" The man picked up a sword and asked.

"Your choice."

The man nodded and kept the sword in its initial place. Sou and the man entered an arena closed off by a thick mana shield. Inside the arena laid two armours to prevent excessive damage.

"Hoh... is it starting?" Mr Hols and the group took a seat near the arena.

"Usage of mana is not allowed and we will fight purely using martial arts. Is that okay with you?"

Sou slightly nodded.

Both of them out on their gears and took their stances, releasing the pressure they have built up over their lifetime. Again, of course, our dear protagonist was unaffected and also limited his aura to match his opponent's one.

"Fuu..." Sou inhaled and exhaled, calming his nerves.

(Let's see what kind of dad I have this time.)

***