I am the Only Son of Nyx

Chapter 176: Clash of Pain

Kai paid the one hundred usable exp entry fee and saw a domain manifesting in the distance.

Even through the mist, he could already see the imposing, shattered cathedral.

He straightened his posture and patted his clothes—almost like he was preparing for a formal interview. But then again, it was natural for him to feel nervous. The last time he encountered Kaelmorath, he was instantly attacked for daring to step into the broken cathedral.

It made them start off badly.

First impressions are the most important, but the second most important impression is naturally the second one. As long as he could show Kaelmorath that the first time was simply a mistake, he should be able to reverse their relationship.

So, he needed to be presentable.

Kai was about to walk, but stopped and looked down at his hands; they were empty.

And that’s a problem.

"Shit," He cursed under his breath. "I should’ve brought something."

Back then, right before he was attacked, he recalled seeing something in Kaelmorath’s hands.

He cradled it like it was something important.

And since it reflected light, Kai thought it must be a pendant or a piece of jewellery of some sort—but it was hard to determine what it was, considering he was attacked the second after. One thing for sure was that whatever it was, Kaelmorath seemed to treasure it.

From that, Kai could assume that something big happened in that cathedral.

Perhaps Kaelmorath lost someone in that cathedral.

If that was really the case, then it would be far better to bring something with him.

Unfortunately, he forgot about that due to the excitement.

"Should I come back later?" Kai deliberated silently—but eventually let out a sigh as he could not wait any longer. He needed to quickly finish Kaelmorath’s ending so that he could start his real hunt. "Let’s see how it goes."

Kai took the first brave step, and the next ones became easier.

He stepped through the border of Kaelmorath’s domain marked by a distortion, and saw the exact same scenery as he did before. A field of corpses with a broken cathedral at its core. And like the first time he entered, Kaelmorath was kneeling inside the broken cathedral.

Splintered pews and debris to his sides.

Instead of entering the cathedral as he did, Kai stopped at the entrance.

He knocked on the stone to announce his presence, "May I come in?"

"What do you desire from me, First Son of the Primordial Night?" Kaelmorath rose to his feet and pocketed something in his hand—the item he treasured. "Before you offer an answer, understand that all I wish from you is nothing. Your thirst for power... It sullies the air."

"In that case, why did you give your name to me from the start?"

"I was swayed, but not anymore."

He’s well-spoken despite looking like that.

Due to the animal hide that draped over Kaelmorath’s body—and his brutal offensive fighting style that left no room for defense—Kai made the assumption that he was a barbarian. Someone who lived in a tribe and was attuned to nature.

But he turned out to be silver-tongued, and it was surprising.

"I want to get to know you even better," Kai said without beating around the bush.

"Lies," Kaelmorath sneered in contempt. "Your hunger for power is as plain as the blood-red bleeding through your eyes. Do not take me as a fool, First Son of the Primordial Night. I have dealt with people like you."

"A Nightborn’s domain reflected who they are," Kai looked around—scanning the domain as if he was a buyer looking at a new house. "Broken cathedral. Corpses. Bleak—and depressing air. You lost someone, didn’t you?"

"..."

"Does that thing in your pocket belong to that person?"

"..."

Kaelmorath remained silent.

Not because he didn’t want to answer, but because he couldn’t remember.

Kai could see it on his face that he couldn’t remember anything before he became a Nightborn.

"Every time I remain within this broken cathedral, a stabbing pain finds its way into my heart. And each time I take this ring in my hand," He took out a silver band from his pocket, intricate and beautiful, "A voice awakens in my mind that made the pain worse. And yet... though it’s torture, I cannot leave this place. I cannot release this ring. It is as though my very body knows I deserved this suffering.

"But I... don’t remember why." He added with melancholy in his voice. "Just that I know I’ve failed someone."

From his voice alone, Kai could feel the hidden pain in it.

And from his words, Kai could understand his agony of not being able to remember.

Noxian made it clear that Nightborns came from living beings who perfected a mastery to the limit, and Perion taught him that perfection didn’t come to be on a whim. Because of that, Kai knew that whatever Kaelmorath’s past was, it must be extremely painful.

It might hurt Kaelmorath more to remember, but he deserved to remember.

Deserved to remember what caused him this pain, and Kai wanted to help him remember.

"Let me help you," Kai reached out his hand. "Let me help you remember. I can help. I want to help."

"No," Kaelmorath shook his head. "All you wanted is power. Even if you say you want to help me, I don’t trust you." He stretched his hand and pointed at Kai. "I don’t remember much of my past, but I know that I protected someone desperately with my life. Until you know how it feels to use your own life to protect another. Until you know how it feels to put everything on the line for someone else. I don’t trust you."

Swoosh—!

Kai wanted to say something, but an invisible force pushed him out of the domain.

He didn’t blame Kaelmorath for not trusting him.

After all, this domain and ending is Kaelmorath’s alone, and it’s something important for him.

It was his decision to share it with Kai or not.

And knowing that, Kai had been ready to yield, but Kaelmorath’s words changed everything.

From above, he called down the night, and a thick strand of darkness plummeted, striking the ground behind him—and erupting into a black wall that stopped him from being pushed out. A gasp escaped his lips when his back slammed against it, but he was still inside the domain.

Kaelmorath, who was about to return to his weep, stopped mid-turn.

His crimson eyes narrowed when he saw Kai refusing to leave.

"Your name and ending are yours," Kai landed on one knee hard and rose once again, meeting Kaelmorath’s eyes with newfound fervor. "And I am here to grow stronger, yes, but how do you know I have never used my own life to protect another? How do you know that I do not know how it feels to put everything on the line for someone else?

"In fact..." Kai’s eyes slowly turned to black, devoured by the night. "How do you know that I’m not putting everything on the line right now for someone else?"

Anger rose inside of Kai like a climbing volcano.

Initially, he thought he could escape the condescension that he had been constant for him while he was inside the House of Night. And yet, Kaelmorath, the Nightborn that his sister chose, made his opinion from appearance alone.

So, what if he wanted power? That does not mean he was doing this for himself.

"Nightborns went through something gruelling to reach their state—and I have learned from two of them already," Kai raised his hand and clenched it into a hard fist. "One forced me to endure the training for a hundred years, and the other forced me to experience the unforgiving side of nature. Do you think I like being in pain?"

"That’s different."

"Why? Are you looking down on your fellow kin? Thinking that your pain is greater?"

"..."

"I made a promise to someone important to me that I will be strong. Never again weak. And I’m trying to fulfil that promise," Kai pivoted his body sideways, intending to leave. "Kick me out if you don’t want me knowing you, but don’t ever say that I don’t know how it felt to use my life, everything I have, to protect another."

Kai spat to the side in contempt.

He doesn’t want to believe that his sister’s choice was wrong, but mistakes happen.

And since Kaelmorath has no intention of letting him in, then he won’t force the door to open.

"Convey my apologies to this treasured person you hold so dear without even knowing." Kai gestured to the spit glistening on the wet ground—beside him. "That was meant for you. You alone. No one else bound to this domain."

Kai walked, deciding that it’s not worth it to talk to Kaelmorath anymore.

Let his name be forgotten in the vast space of the House of Night.

It’s not like he couldn’t find another Nightborn that was stronger and more willing for him to learn their name. And though the Reckless Ruin Ending Fragment was enticing—and he had already spent three thousand usable exp on it—Kai didn’t care.

No use in convincing someone who already made their minds up about him.

Someone like Kaelmorath.

"Stop!"

"Hmm?"

Kai looked over his shoulder when Kaelmorath’s voice called out to him.

Inside, he was expecting to be attacked.

But since he was already near the border, he wasn’t worried. He could easily spring himself out of Kaelmorath’s domain and never come back again, as he was a few steps away to leave— and was also ready to move in an instant.

Yet attacking him wasn’t the reason why Kaelmorath called for him.

"I’ll... I’ll help you complete the two Ending Fragments," Kaelmorath finally said.

"And why would you do that?" Kai raised a brow. "More importantly—why would I need to accept that? I don’t see a reason to work together with you. I gave you the chance to have the person you cared about be remembered, and you spat me on the face by insulting me."

"I recognize that what I spoke was an error. Allow me to atone: I’ll help you complete it with greater ease and ensure it brings you less pain."

"You can do that?"

"Yes, any Nightborn could if they want to."

Every Nightborn could? I didn’t know that. That means—I need to get closer to every Nightborn I chose first before asking for this so that it wouldn’t be as painful as the method Noxian used on me. Good to know.

"Both of the Ending Fragments, you say? Retribution and Reckless Ruin? Both?"

"That’s what I said. Let’s start over, First Son of the Primordial Night."

"Alright," Kai shrugged, deciding to accept the proposition—as both had acknowledged their wrongs now. "What should I do?"

"Let’s start with Retribution first," Kaelmorath summoned something from the ground—and pointed at it. "You need to protect it."

"I need to what?"