24 22. "I hate him, but he is my little brother.”

Kirkley swung his sword downwards with all his might towards Asher. He paid no heed to his incorrect posture and handling of his weapon. Kirkley knew that Asher would easily fall in defeat while going against a seasoned veteran such as himself. That fact was rather disappointing, but the thought of Kio's look once Kirkley made Asher go through hell and back with his 'training' filled him with unbridled anticipation.

Outside of the range of the battle stood Kirkley's buddy, Lyxio. Lyxio had both arms stretched outwards while he stared at Asher with a serious and concentrated expression. He will heal all of Asher's wounds and support him using his own magical prowess.

Seeing Kirkley's sword being swung directly towards him, Asher followed his instincts and clumsily dodged to the side. The sword ended up striking the ground with a powerful boom as small particles of dirt and rocks flew in all directions. Asher closed his eyes as Kirkley cackled maniacally. Lyxio wouldn't have been able to save Asher if he had been hit by that powerful swing since the young child's head would've been crushed.

"So the youn' master can dodge, eh?! What a surprise!"

"Kirkley, don't swing the sword that hard! You'll kill the young master!"

Asher didn't even have the time to sigh in relief after hearing Lyxio speak up. Without any type of warning whatsoever, Kirkley used the dirt as a smokescreen and stabbed Asher's left arm. The sight of the blade going through one side of his body and out of the other made Asher feel lightheaded. His blood trickled down his arm and Kirkley's blade. Lyxio had immediately healed Asher's wound after Kirkley removed his sword from Asher's body.

"You crazy bastard..." Asher whispered to himself while his hand touched the place the wound would've been if it hadn't been healed. Neither his mind nor his body could comprehend what had just happened to him. He had never been stabbed once in his two lives until now. The image of how the blade went through his arm like it was butter was still stuck in his head. Asher wanted to curl up in a ball, sleep, and forget all about his worries.

Kirkley saw Asher's pathetic state after the dirt had settled. Several small leaves and twigs stuck between his hair, his skin dirty and paler than usual, and his torn and bloodied white shirt. His body was trembling slightly and his eyes were cast downwards. The sword Asher had been given was laying by his side since the young child couldn't even carry it because of his weak physique.

Kirkley laughed. He laughed louder than he had ever laughed before. "The lil young master can't handle being stabbed! How disappointing!"

He threw aside his sword which was covered in Asher's blood and begun to swing his fists towards the young child's body. His scarred fists punched Asher's face, his stomach, and his legs. At one point, Asher fell down. It didn't matter if Lyxio was there to heal his wounds immediately after them being inflicted since he could still feel pain as if it hadn't been healed. It felt as if it had been hours since the spar commenced when in reality, only a few seconds had passed. Asher had even begun to think that it would've been better if his body wasn't being healed. Maybe that way his mind would shut down the pain he was feeling and he would just stay numb.

Once Kirkley had calmed down from his crazed state, he stared at the young child that was laying beneath him. There were no traces on his body of the spar. Only his blood was proof of the beating Asher just went through. Kirkley grabbed Asher by the hair while smiling. Because of Kirkley's height, Asher's feet hovering several inches above the ground. Yes, yes, Kirkley is strong. He is strong enough to beat up two of Alejandro's sons. He is strong. He has always been strong.

"How does it feel bein' inferior? I bet ya nobleness can't handle the stress of being beneath a commoner!"

Kirkley laughed. He laughed, he laughed, and he laughed. He looked at Lyxio and the other knights who had been training while grinning. "Why don't ya laugh with me?"

He kept laughing, but no one laughed alongside him. They stared at him with eyes full of fear and ridicule. Even Lyxio, his most trusted friend, wasn't laughing. He couldn't even bear to see the scene in front of him. This made Kirkley frown.

Why wasn't this funny?

Weren't they supposed to laugh and try to get closer to him because of his strength?

The answer to why nobody laughed alongside him just didn't come to mind. He felt frustrated because of this and slapped Asher's face. Asher's body, which was being held up until now, crashed against the ground. Asher felt his bones heal after being severely broken after crashing against the ground. The feeling of the process of breaking his bones before healing them was sickening enough to make him vomit. Kirkley kicked Asher's ribs and broke them. Lyxio healed those broken bones as quickly as he could.

Kirkley tsked. Couldn't Lyxio stop healing Asher? Couldn't he just laugh along with him?

It was at that moment that Kirkley's world had momentarily stopped. Asher, who had stopped moving since the beginning of the battle, raised his head. His navy-blue eyes had turned into a dazzling sapphire color with the sun's help. However, this wasn't what stunned Kirkley. What had stunned him was his gaze. His gaze yelled 'I will defeat you despite my weakness. Just wait'.

How could Kirkley not remember that gaze?

His eyes widened in anger and disbelief. He kicked Asher's face before holding him up by his hair once more. But that gaze was still there. Kirkley threw him against the ground. His body was shaking. The earth around him began climbing their way to his fists, creating two gauntlets made out of solid earth.

Despite the fear Asher felt which was being expressed by his shaking body, his gaze still held the same conviction. He wasn't backing down from this battle. Yes, he was weak, but he was far stronger mentally than physically because of what he had gone through in both of his lives. And that mental battle was what Asher hoped to win. He wasn't going to let Kirkley have the last laugh.

Kirkley's anger exploded. He saw Asher's fear. Hell, he could smell the fear radiating from him from miles away. So how can it be that his eyes were the same? He hates it. He hates him. Kirkley swung his earth-covered fists towards Asher's body. The movements were so quick that not even Lyxio, the talented healer of the knight's squad, was able to heal Asher as quickly as before. When one wound was being healed, two more were created. However, this wasn't enough to satisfy Kirkley's anger.

He could still hear the words from the village people's words. He could still remember the ridicule, the hurt, and the pain he had suffered over and over.

He is weak. He has always been weak. He had never gone against his father's words after the swift beating he had given his mother after Kirkley had disobeyed his orders. His father's excuse was that Kirkley himself was weak. He was so weak that he wasn't able to protect his mother.

Word around the village flew by. Kirkley had beaten his mother in a fit of anger and ultimately, she ended up dying. But that wasn't the truth. His mother lived for a few more years after being beaten to death by his father. Unfortunately, everyone thought that it was him that had beaten his mother to death years prior to her actual death date.

His father was a blacksmith. He was always surrounded by metal and fire. One day, the house burned down, and Kirkley was ecstatic. He was finally free from his father's grasp. However, the village thought that it had been him that killed his father.

Monster, was what they called him.

Killer, was what he was branded with.

Weak, however, was what was burned in his mind and heart ever since he had been told that his mother was punished because of his weakness. It was because he was weak that his mother died. It was because he was weak that he had never refuted those words. Because he killed his mother; he killed her because he was too weak to protect her.

Asher's conviction was the same as his when he was young. The willpower to go against forces stronger than himself. He practiced day in and day out, waiting for the day he could prove them all wrong. But that day never came. After seeing that gaze on the small child, on the person who he thought had no reason to possess that gaze, he felt furious. He wanted to be strong. If he could beat that strength out of Asher then maybe, just maybe, he would be considered strong.

Monster.

Kirkley's fist kept hitting Asher's frail body without mercy. He punched and punched, but his weakness was still there. His anger and hurt had yet to disappear.

Killer.

"I'll make ya wish ya had never taken Kio's place!"

Weak.

Once coming in contact with Asher's body, small earth spikes were produced from his gauntlet and protruded his body. The process kept repeating itself with Lyxio trying his best to heal Asher's wounds. Unfortunately, his speed wasn't the same as before. There were too many wounds on Asher's body.

"I'll show ya how weak ya are!"

With one last punch, Asher's body flew towards the opposite side of the training ground. He was now way too far away to receive Lyxio's healing. His body was riddled with holes, displaying the effect Kirkley's earth gauntlet had on him. Kirkley had begun walking towards him in a slow manner as he tried collecting himself. His gaze was serious yet crazed. He was in a far too dangerous state.

"Ya see that! He's weak! Ya are all weak!" Kirkley bellowed in anger and frustration. He felt weak compared to Asher.

Just as Kirkley's arm reach towards Asher to grab him and drag him all across the training grounds, a flash of light appeared right in front of Kirkley and Asher before disappearing. He stopped, feeling slightly astonished before a loud boom of electricity came down from the sky.

Boom!

The ground rumbled as Kirkley's surroundings turned to white. His arm was burnt by the electricity, however, he felt no pain. His mind was suddenly clear. He only knew of one person who held the electric elemental power.

Ian came out from the thicket of trees that surrounded the training grounds. His eyes were filled with anger while staring at Kirkley. Once Ian's eyes fell on Asher's beaten-up body, his eyes contorted in a different mixture of emotions that was hard to read.

He walked towards Asher and took him in his arms while Pinpin took care of Kio that was on the other side of the training grounds. Ian's eyes glazed over every single injury present on Asher's body. He also took note of Asher's erratic breathing and the amount of blood he had lost. Ian's eyes had once again contorted in mixed feelings before they settled on pure anger.

"Who are you to beat up my brother?"

"Excuse me, youn' master?"

"Who are you to beat up the youngest child of the Pierce household?" Ian's voice was angry. Ian's voice was cold. He was angry that Asher was beaten to such a state, but he wasn't comfortable with the idea of helping Asher. He held mixed feelings towards his younger brother, and his feelings were only confusing him even more.

Kirkley was both confused and slightly shocked. He had obviously noticed when Pinpin ran away to get help. Actually, it was better to say that he had let Pinpin go. It would've been very interesting to see who he brought back and how they would handle the situation. However, the situation didn't flow the way Kirkley predicted it would flow. First was Asher's unyielding gaze. Then was his memories resurfacing and him losing his cool. Finally, it was Ian's appearance. Out of everyone Pinpin could've brought, he brought the eldest brother? The one who is known to ridicule and make fun of Asher? The most surprising thing here was how Ian was quick to help out his younger brother. If anything, Kirkley had expected Ian to either join in or ridicule Asher for his weakness. He had never expected Ian to come to Asher's rescue.

Kirkley tried standing up. He put pressure on his burnt arm and fell down. He hissed as the burning feeling made its presence known to him. Using his other arm to stand up, Kirkley spoke, "Youn' Master Ian, it was only a small sparrin' match. I lost control a lil bit, but it wasn't much."

He laughed awkwardly as the pain in his burning arm kept increasing. Ian's navy-blue eyes, which were the same as Asher's except for the small tinges of an electrifying yellow, glared at Kirkley. It was true when people said that Ian was much more similar to Nikola than to Alejandro. The burning anger in his eyes was the same as Nikola's.

Ian walked away with Asher laying still in his arms. He has to quickly get him to a healer. Lyxio was out of the question because he had used up almost all of his healing prowess. The best he could do was bring Asher to the estate to stabilize his condition and bring Zara, Asher's personal maid, back from her stay at her mother's house.

The teenager glanced back at Kirkley. "I hate him, but he is my little brother. The way I feel about him isn't his fault, but I can't help but hate him."

Ian smiled weakly. Of course, it wasn't Asher's fault. It has never been his fault. But he has no way to express those feelings. He has no healthy outlet. He had never been taught how to properly express his feelings. Ian only knew to hate and discriminate whenever he was feeling inferior.

"I hate him to my very core. But I won't allow anyone other than myself to hurt him."

"You touched and hurt them both."

Ian's eyes turned menacing. His body was surrounded by electricity, yet they didn't seem to bother the two brothers.

"If I see you near them again, I'll crush your head with my own two hands."