Dad and Son

After speaking for a while, it became late, so Viorica got up to sleep.

"Won't you two sleep too? It's very late, and tomorrow we are going outside"

Blaze replied

"You sleep first, I'll come in a couple of minutes."

She yawned and nodded, then went inside the bedroom.

Both Leus and Blaze wanted to discuss some things without anyone else listening, and both of them knew that, so they waited until everyone else slept.

Blaze looked at Leus and asked

"Want to go outside?"

Leus wordlessly nodded and got up, and the two walked together to the garden.

Blaze started by asking

"I'm somewhat curious, what exactly made Remedy come to the Library?"

Blaze knew that Remedy wouldn't just "Have work in the Library",

'Someone as important as Remedy wouldn't go out unless it's for an important person or reason'

And in the Library, the only person who would fit that description was Leus

'The guards don't need Remedy, they're too strong to get injured inside the city unless it was a literal death fight, and Arno ... is there even anyone who can injure him?'

'It must've been Leus, and it was something serious that he didn't want to say in front of his mother and brothers, so what could that be?'

"I was training on unlocking an Ice Abstract, but I got injured, so Arno called her"

"Are you ok now?"

"Yeah, perfectly fine"

"So, what happened with Remedy? "

Leus reiterated the interaction to Blaze, it was only 4 sentences from her.

Then he added

"She was too egoistic, I apologized for calling her by just her name, but she was still rude after that. I don't think she should've spoken to me in that way"

Blaze's expression didn't change

"Well, Leus, that's how life is, I won't sugarcoat it, she treated you with no respect because she didn't think you're worthy of it."

Leus nodded

"Yeah, that's exactly how it felt, that wasn't good"

Blaze shook his head

"Your perception is warped, you earn your respect, if you don't, then it's up to the other person to respect you or not.

That's how the world works, you're the different one.

You have friends from the slums, so obviously these things are of little to no importance to you.

However, for many, especially those in high positions, these things mean a lot."

"So what you're trying to say is that it wasn't personal?"

"Yeah, in all honesty, I don't think she cares about who you are"

Blaze expected Leus to show a displeased reaction, or reply with something childish like

'I also don't care who she is, or anything like that'

But

'He's calm about it'

Leus isn't egoistic, he is also aware of something really important

'The only reason she came is Arno'

'Arno is also the reason the matter with the Crimson Guards ended the way it did'

Leus was certain of something

'In essence, the only reason I have any sort of influence or power right now is Arno'

So, instead of taking it personally, he thought about it objectively

'Remedy is just a representation of the world outside of my tiny circle, outside those who love me, and those weaker than me'

'To those people, I'm not worthy of respect.'

After coming to this conclusion, Leus kept quiet.

About 10 minutes passed in silence.

Leus had a serious expression on his face.

Blaze had a neutral one, but he knew

'Leus must be coming to some realization right now'

So he kept quiet until Leus broke the silence with a confident voice.

"If I'm not worthy of respect, then I'll keep getting stronger until I am"

Blaze didn't like how Leus prioritized power over everything else

'I've seen people like this, and once they hit a bottleneck, they either lose their minds or suicide'

He knew that Leus was right

'But still ...'

'He shouldn't think of becoming stronger as the only goal in his life'

"You're right Leus, power is important, but don't let it consume you.

Remember that even your great Master, Arno, suffers from a bottleneck.

He's the strongest person we both ever saw, yet, he can't advance further.

Do not think of getting stronger as the only goal in your life, otherwise, once you are unable to be stronger, you will lose your purpose to live."

'Ah, but my path will be bottleneck-free for a couple more years'

Leus didn't say anything of what he was thinking about and simply replied with

"I understand, I'll keep that in mind"

With these things out of the way, Blaze started talking about what he called Leus for.

He looked at Leus and asked

"Are you sure about your decision?"

Leus asked back

"You mean about following Master Arno's plan?"

"Yes"

Leus nodded

"I am. I thought about it and I believe it will be better for everyone."

"You might be put under a lot of stress and pressure in that place, did you take that into consideration?"

"The pros outweigh the cons, so I think we should go ahead with it."

Blaze looked in the distance

"I don't want to stand against what you think is best, honestly, you're quite smart and can decide on your own, just remember that we love you unconditionally.

Sometimes we indeed push you to do some things, but that's only because we believe it is in your best interest."

Blaze looked back at Leus and continued

"If at any time you want to stop and just come back home and live an easy life, we won't complain.

If you don't want to become more powerful and want to live normally like a kid, then that's okay with us. Don't push yourself beyond your limits, Leus"

Leus smiled hearing that

'It feels good to hear that'

"Thank you, Dad, I will remember that"

It made his heart feel warm and took a bit of the stress off his mind

'My family is really nice'

'I will make all your lives better, it's just a matter of time'