Chapter 772 - Raised For Revenge
Barnes House, Ishtar.
Ander sat on his desk deep in thought. Some things could never be forgotten. And, there was one for him too. A day he regretted the most in his life. The situation today could be said to have started from that very day he failed to save Arnold's father.
He had a feeling that the attack that day wasn't done by any outsider. But, there wasn't any proof of it. To be honest, the higher ups in the House didn't like Anrold's father. Even his father had once asked him to maintain his image as a Lord and readjust his relation with him.
After all, their friendship was very deep, and when the two were together it looked as if both of them were on the very same level.
This was not a good thing for him as a Lord.
He had even felt a threatening tone in his father's voice. His father hated Arnold's father because of his loud mouth, and not caring about hierarchy and other stuff. You couldn't blame him though as these things were important in their society.
Ander had felt that the situation was beginning to change. He hence promised his father to correct things, and asked him not to do anything that would make him regret being his son.
His father understood it, and allowed him to handle the situation on his own.
But, then that incident happened…
Arnold's father, his good brother died…
Since Ander hadn't inherited the throne as a Lord, the investigation on the matter was carried on by his father.
Later, it was declared that Arnold's father had sacrificed himself trying to defend Ander, and was made into a hero for the House.
But, was that the truth?
Ander knew it wasn't. He clearly remembered that the attackers were after that guy, and he was the one trying to save him.
Two day later after this announcement, a strange event occurred.
The then 3rd Elder who was one of the most Orthodox Senior of the House suddenly retired, and disappeared from the surface. This person hated Arnold's father the most, and had even arguments previously in the past.
Was this all a coincidence?
Ander had no idea. Nothing related to that incident was made known to him. The only one who knew about it was his father, and he denied it.
This was the reason that Ander had a soft spot for Arnold in his heart.
"I might have lost a good brother in this struggle for power. What will you do now my sons? Will you follow your father's footsteps?"
….
A day before the competition…
The atmosphere in the Barnes House was very odd. There seemed to be an eerily silence, one which made people feel a bit creeped out. Lear's situation had already made the atmosphere become gloomy, and now the problems in the House seemed to be further escalating the situation.
In the midst of all of this, the Competitions had inched closer, and with that the different factions in the House had gone silent. It was as if they were waiting for a decisive battle. They had all been supporting their individual candidate whom they wanted to inherit the seat of the Lord.
Several arguments were made, and praises were sung. But, it was all words until now. With the competition this time, a head on confrontation would reveal things for everyone. And, the event would have a bigger significance in the power struggle because the people and different powers of the Ishtar were all going to be watching it live.
Arnold was taking a walk across his place. He knew that things would change after this. He would either win, and be the king or lose and disappear forever.
As he stood near the window looking at the garden, old memories began to flash through his eyes.
A swing used to stand there in the garden, but he was never the one playing on it. He could still remember those days clearly, his body spoke louder of those days than anything else.
He slowly turned around, and walked towards the mirror before unbuttoning his shirt. His body was actually full of scars, and it seemed to have been formed very long ago. But, in the midst of all of those scars, a few letters, etched deep into his skin, were very eye-catching.
It was 'REVENGE'.
'Remember Arnold!!! You must avenge your father!!' His mother's words were clear as day to him as she forcefully carved those words onto his chest with a red hot knife.
His father was killed! He was a kind man, and was taken advantage of. He was killed because his influence had been on a rapid rise back in the day, up to a point where he was almost comparable to Ander.
It didn't matter whether he had any other intentions or not, but no ruler would tolerate this situation.
Hence, he was removed.
This was what Ander believed, or this was what he had inherited from his mother.
Even though people referred to his father as a legend, it irked Arnold thinking that these were the very same people who had plotted to kill his father. His mother on the other hand was devastated with his father's demise, and ended up living her short days fueling Arnold for revenge before passing away.
And now the time had come for this revenge to be fulfilled.
As Arnold was lost in his thought, a knock sounded on the door.
"Knock!"
"Knock!"
"Are you there Arnold?" A voice came from the door, and Arnold instantly recognized it. He slowly put his shirt back on, and replied, "Yes, come in."
A second later, the door opened and Arthur walked in.
The look on Arnold's face had completely changed by now. There was no sign of his cold and gloomy face from earlier, and it was replaced by a cheerful face.
"It's been a while since I last came here.." Arthur lightly said as he looked around.
"Did you need anything?" Arnold asked with a smile.
"Why? Do I need a reason to visit my brother?" Arthur asked in return as he rubbed his head.
"Of course not, I was just asking.." Arnold shook his head. "Just wait a second...I will get you something to drink.."
"This sure reminds me of the old days. The three of us once dreamt of becoming chefs. Did you remember? You were the only one who cooked anything decent though." Arthur laughed as he walked into the kitchen behind Arnold.
Arnold's face slowly turned a bit a dark onto hearing that, but luckily, he had his back towards Arthur.
Those were the days when he was still a kid, and kids at the end of the day were kids.
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