Chapter 55
Chapter 55
Kyon understood from their conversation that the patriarch was busy with the family issues, particularly with the incompetent youth who needed his special attention. Pretty soon, there was going to be a family tournament in the kingdom. The family rank for the next four years depended on how the young fighters would prove themselves. Based on current projections, the Stones would tumble down to the 4-5th place, after which their opponents would most likely buy out their mines and plantations, the main source of their income. The system allowed the strong families to get someone else’s possessions legitimately, without taking them over or anything of the kind. They used the special currency, tokens, that could be earned by doing some service to the empire, like winning in the tournaments and competitions…
Kyon had never heard about tokens, so he didn’t quite understand what they were talking about. He made a note to himself to find out about them later.
The conversation turned smoothly to the discussion about Elsa’s life. She was Juno’s sister, but when the patriarch casually mentioned his elder granddaughter, Juno immediately changed the subject:
«By the way, grandpa, when does the party take place?»
«In three weeks, on lovers’ day.» – The old man sighed. His two beloved granddaughters’ falling out greatly distressed him. – «I’ve sent letters to all the families in the kingdom. We can expect the most talented, high-ranking young men. I am sure that each of them will bend over backward to get your attention. I can’t wait to see those young talents show their feathers in front of you. They will put on a talent show here, hehe.»
«Hurray!» – Juno said glumly without much enthusiasm for “cockfighting.”
Bai went on talking dreamily. He didn’t seem to notice the mockery in his granddaughter’s voice, or maybe, he deliberately ignored it:
«No doubt they will be eager to pay a fortune for a single dance with you. After all, my sweet little Juno, you are the loveliest flower in the whole world. Everyone is fascinated by your beauty, manners and character. Believe me, your grandfather knows what he says.»
At this point, Kyon covered his mouth with his hand to smother a laugh. He also bit his tongue, to be sure.
Juno intoned above his head, sounding touched:
«Gra-a-a-andfa-a-ather, you’re embarrassing me!»
He could hear a burst of soft laughter from the sound transmitter:
«Everyone will be crazy about you when you put on your favorite black dress. You will be the brightest star at the party. All the boys will be stunned at the sight of you. The weakest lot will topple like ninepins and arrange themselves neatly in piles! I’ve said it before, and I am saying it now, I want you to find your soulmate yourself. A marriage of convenience is seldom happy… And I do not want to see my beloved granddaughter unhappy. Always choose with your heart but listen to your mind. As soon as you find someone you like, whisper his name to your brother XiaoBai, and he will get everything arranged: dancing-shmancing, whatever young people nowadays need to get to know each other, hehe! You will make the most beautiful couple in the world.»
Juno rubbed her nose, embarrassed.
«Grandfather, stop it… I’m already burning with shame. I haven’t even met anyone, and you’re already choosing the names for “our” future children.»
«So what? Alice is a great name for a daughter, in my opinion…»
«Grandfather, don’t! Enough of that!» – Juno exclaimed. When she heard a stifled grunting from the sound transmitter, she blushed to the tips of her ears. The old geezer was simply teasing her! Well, as the saying goes, “old men are twice children!” Juno rubbed her temples wearily and sighed: – «Do you remember Timothy Brown?» – She continued without waiting for his answer: – «He used to lick his chops every time he saw Elsa. He wanted to marry her… Only the stinker escaped, and now there are rumors that Timothy wouldn’t mind switching over me! I doubt that there will be any brave souls willing to rip me out of his grabby hands. Do you understand?»
In the opinion of many, Timothy Brown was the most talented of all the youngsters of his generation in the whole kingdom, with the exception of the royal family. His family was expected to get the first rank in the tournament. Juno knew perfectly well that no one would risk their lives to fight for a delicious prize like her, except for maybe a couple of idiots she would not look twice at.
«All these rumors are pure nonsense. The person who will decide your fate has not been born yet! I will let no one take you as a wife against your will. No one will ever command you, push you around, do whatever he likes regardless of your desires. I will never let it happen! If this presumptuous boy dares to say something…» – The indignant patriarch was spewing like an open hydrant, his sound transmitter was completely wet. – «My little sweet Juno, do not worry over trifles. Your grandfather will settle everything. I will take tough measures if the need arises. You know me. I’ll do anything for the sake of my family… especially for you.»
Juno just sighed. There was no point arguing with grandfather, he was too stubborn. He always tried to keep everything under control, especially her life. She couldn’t take a step out of the mansion without his knowledge. And yet, with all his pathological affection and care, they rarely saw each other. He couldn’t leave the post of the patriarch out of his sense of duty.
Soon, the conversation ended on a warm note. Juno thought about something long after she said goodbye to her grandfather. Then she turned off the light and went to sleep. If only she was aware of the monster under the bed… She wouldn’t fall asleep, that’s for sure.
Kyon twitched impatiently. He couldn’t care less about the problems her family had, who promised to marry whom and all that jazz, at least for the time being. The only thing that worried him now was the importance of applying the formation on the little skunk who had given him so many close calls. The right moment had come. It was time for action.
The clock struck two in the morning.
By Juno’s measured breathing, Kyon determined that she had entered the deepest phase of sleep. He silently crawled out from under the bed and glanced with a bloodthirsty look over the sweet sleeping creature with a black heart — it was she who was responsible for the hell that he had lived through. He knew that it was stupid of him. The former emperor shouldn’t hate the little one and yet, he hated her with all his heart. Oddly enough, his self-esteem did not suffer from the awareness of what he was about to do. On the contrary, he genuinely enjoyed the situation.
Kyon stretched his hands, put two fingers on her temples and slowly began to massage them in circular motions, pouring in Synergy.
If Juno wasn’t sleeping she would feel goosebumps all over her body and a relaxing thrill as if she was floating among the stars in the beautiful imaginary space.
The relaxation that swept over her body was so powerful and all-embracing that no one could wake her up, not even with a horn. Kyon put her into an abnormally deep sleep for a reason. He had to lessen her mental resistance to the formation.
A few minutes later, he saw the signs of her sound sleep, sighed with relief and turned her head up.
Kyon had an urge to pinch Juno’s little nose, but he reminded himself that he was not ten years old. He put his hand on her forehead. In a couple of minutes, there was a perfect slot that he had worked out and repeatedly tested on the swan. It didn’t only contain the formation but also protected it and concealed it from the others.
Kyon exhaled slowly, closed his eyes and put two fingers on the slot. The energy poured inward slowly, gently creating a formation as accurate as they come. Things looked good so far. His only concern was their difference in cultivation. He was on the 4th stage, and Juno, as he remembered, was on the 5th or even higher, which could cause a greater chance of failure.
Juno frowned and mumbled something in her sleep. Soon her lips trembled, the brows closed on the bridge of her nose forming a cranky wrinkle on her smooth forehead.
Kyon gritted his teeth. The formation was waking her up! As soon as she was awake, there would be no revenge and no life.
He was so close…
{Please, don’t wake up! Sleep or I’ll have to wring your neck and die soon after you!}
Juno mumbled something indistinct and lifted her lead eyelids with some difficulty. The picture that was still blurred from her dream was slowly focusing on the image of the dead slave.
Kyon had all his life flashed before his eyes. He added the last line of the code to the slot. The formation did not disappear, which meant it worked pretty well. It had to. It was the law of formacy.
Euphoria flooded his mind like a tsunami wave.
He was flying through the universe like a god. Everything was under his control.
All of creation was just the dust of oblivion at his feet.
Juno’s huge (by nature and surprise) eyes stared at the boy she thought to be long dead… To be more precise, who she had personally killed. But the dead cannot grin so mischievously.
«BUT…»
«I order you not to make a sound. I order you to freeze and not to move.» – Kyon ordered in a commanding tone. Flames of fire were dancing in his eyes.
The formation that he had invented, optimized and applied to the slot was subjugating, of course. Each phrase that started with “I order” was going straight to the limbo where for Juno’s subconscious to process and execute.
It was a success for several reasons: Juno’s mental state was suppressed by slow-wave sleep, the formation was hyper-dense and ultra-optimized, and Kyon’s key of pure energy had unprecedented 100% purity.
Flitz’s formation on Kyon was quite similar, but Kyon’s formation was hundreds of times better and more effective. Now Juno was his slave. Everything turned upside down. What a universal irony: the young lady, who treated her slave like he was nothing, became nothing for him.
Kyon thought for a while and added:
«I order you not to meddle with the formation on your forehead in any way. More than that, I forbid you to use any elements at all.» – It had to be done. The formation was meant to be secret. He couldn’t protect it every time from energy attacks.
Juno opened and closed her small mouth like a guppy fish but made no sound. She couldn’t believe her eyes. It must be a dream. It had to be another nightmare, a vision like seeing the slave on the way to the bathroom…
The atmosphere in Juno’s chambers, the patriarch’s daughter of the family number one in the Iron Throne, was very peculiar.
Kyon looked at her pretty shocked face with a victorious, triumphant smile. A black desire for revenge was growing inside him. He had an urge to hurt her, to return the feelings she had given him. Just a minute ago, he was nobody, and no one knew his name. Now he was Juno’s owner. The power was intoxicating.
Juno could not move from horror or her master’s order. She couldn’t even think. The only thought feverishly screaming in her mind was “it’s a dream, it’s just a dream, I need to wake up!” Her heart was trying to jump out of her chest as if she was a bunny driven into the corner, staring at a fox that was licking his lips.
Kyon stroked her gentle cheek. She was a beautiful bitch, it was hard to argue that. She had big enchanting eyes, her hair was like the rays of sunlight, and her pretty gray nightie that ended just above her knees was not a sight for the faint-hearted. He had never seen anyone like her, anyone so perfect, beautiful, devilishly charming. It would be a sin to disfigure or maim her, even by the evilest gods’ and devils’ standards.
Kyon grabbed Juno by her thin, tender neck and squeezed it a bit as if he wanted to kill her. If he made a little more effort, her fragile spine would break in his hands.
Juno’s face was a mix of helplessness, confusion and misunderstanding. Her long eyelashes trembled, diamonds of tears glistened in the corners of her eyes – a truly pitiful, heartrending sight.
Kyon bent over her and whispered almost tenderly straight into her lips:
«I order: you can talk but not louder than a mosquito buzz.»
Juno knitted her brows angrily and said softly through her teeth:
«I order you to kill yourself!»