Xion Aijawa became Xion Vaelis

Despite being fifteen, Xion Vaelis looked barely older than twelve, especially when he was curled up in the corner, hiding from his older brother's prying eyes.

The sight was quite similar to the innocent rabbit cornered by a hound.

His otherwise loose clothes clung to his wet body, making him uncomfortable, yet the boy pursed his lips tightly, refusing to make a sound.

"Beg me, and I'll let you go. Ain't that easy for you to do?"

Soren Vaelis towered over Xion's small frame. In his hand was an empty jug, the very reason for Xion's miserably wet state.

Upon hearing the angry voice, the younger boy finally raised his head. Unlike Soren's golden hair, the emblematic trait of the Vaelis family, Xion had raven-black hair.

His wet hair stuck to his face, making his already pale complexion appear even whiter.

His blue, watery eyes blinked up at Soren with fear and confusion, as if he couldn't understand why he was being subjected to such cruelty.

Looking into those innocent eyes, Soren felt a sudden, unexpected urge to hold the shivering boy in his arms. The vulnerability and confusion in Xion's gaze stirred something deep within him.

This was the child his father had brought home three years ago, claiming he was the son of a deceased friend. It was a convenient story, but even a blind man could see the truth.

Xion's blue eyes, albeit a shade deeper were so strikingly similar to those of the Vaelis lineage, easily betraying his true parentage.

He was a bastard, born of his father's wild night with some unknown woman.

Everyone in the household understood that Xion was the illegitimate son of the Marquis, yet, no one dared to say anything to the head of the house.

All the dissatisfaction was left for the little Xion to bear.

The boy's arrival had disrupted the fragile balance of the Vaelis family, and, from that day onward, Soren had hardly seen his mother out of her chambers.

Soren stepped forward, the wooden floor creaking under his heavy footsteps. His eyes burned with anger as he crouched down and yanked the boy by his collar, forcing Xion to stumble forward.

"What are you pretending to be stupid for?! Open your fucking mouth!"

The little boy fell into the embrace of his bully like a puppet without strings.

Xion's weak fingers clutched Soren's shoulder out of reflex. His wide eyes locked onto the glaring ones, and Soren could see the panic rising like huge waves in those deep blue eyes.

At that moment, Soren felt his heart skip a beat. There was something disarming about Xion's helplessness and the soft, vulnerable way he looked at him.

The young master Vaelis had witnessed many of the vile things his father, Marquis Vaelis, had done over the nineteen years of his life.

He was not an ignorant brat; he knew damn well that what he felt for his stepbrother wasn't just anger. It was a darker, more disturbing urge,

A nasty desire to tear Xion's clothes away and...

"Young master, Master has asked for your presence in his study right now," a maid informed while keeping her head down.

Soren might kill his stepbrother, and she would still be standing like this. That was how the servants of the Marquis Vaelis family were trained.

Soren took one last look at the still-silent boy before standing up. He could not keep his father waiting, not when some important guests were about to arrive at their mansion.

"I'll come and find you soon, my dear little brother," his words were enough for the boy to tremble and Soren felt a twisted satisfaction at the sight of Xion's fear.

With that, he finally left the room, the creaking of the old wood echoing behind him accompanying the confused boy still sitting on the floor.