"Father, what are you thinking? Has age caught up to you!?"
Even after Liora and the unexpected guest had left, Martha continued to make a scene.
Her hand came smacking down against the desk.
BANG!
"Father! Are you even listening to me?! How could you even remotely think about giving away the cure like this?! You, of all people, should be aware of the amount of resources that we’ve poured into the cure! It won’t be long until the drug hits the market, and once that happens, our Guild will truly become the undisputed number one Guild in the world! The fact that you’ve leaked out such sec—"
"Why do you think I’ve developed a cure like this?"
Kaelric’s voice was soft, but the moment he spoke, Martha found herself immediately shutting up. Especially when she noticed the smile that lingered on her father’s face.
She silently swallowed her saliva before speaking again.
"That’s... we’ve developed the cure because there’s a massive market for it. There are many Guilds that have people with fractured nodes who are unable to work. If we can help them restore their nodes, then..."
"Do you really think that’s the reason why I invested so much time and money into the project?"
Kaelric tilted his head, his smile fading slightly.
All of a sudden, the temperature within the room cooled.
Martha found herself choking on her own words. Especially when she noticed the sudden change in the mood.
"Fa... father?"
"It wasn’t long ago when it happened. Maybe twenty years? No, maybe a little bit longer."
Kaelric suddenly started speaking, his tone growing heavier with each word that he spoke.
"Back then, I was busy with Guild matters and spent all my time growing it. I couldn’t pay attention to everything. That’s why, when you told me you had a miscarriage, I could only accept it."
The room fell completely silent, Martha’s face turning white.
"...I drowned myself in my work, trying to let go of the matter. It happens. Miscarriages happen. But..."
Kaelric’s head slowly raised, his face crumbling.
"How come I was the only one sad about it?"
"....."
Martha’s face remained completely white.
Kaelric turned his attention towards her husband. He was also at a loss for words.
BANG!
A thunderous smack resounded across the room as Kaelric slammed his hand against the table. His face flushed red as he roared at the top of his lungs, "Do you think I’m unaware of what the two of you have done!? Do you think I couldn’t figure out that the miscarriage never happened!? That you two simply abandoned him because he was born with a fractured node!?"
His loud voice bellowed across the entire room, causing the couple to flinch as Kaelric stood up from his seat.
"You two... you’re really something else. I was close, really close, to getting rid of both of you the moment I heard the news. If it hadn’t been for the fact that Liora existed, I would’ve killed you both."
Clenching his teeth, Kaelric’s chest started to even as he took a deep breath and turned around, facing the window that allowed him to overlook everything beneath.
"...I decided to forget about the matter since I couldn’t let Liora live without her parents. I couldn’t take that from her, but that was another one of my mistakes. In the end, you both don’t even qualify to be called parents."
"But that’s—"
"Shut up."
Kaelric didn’t shout this time.
He just spoke over her.
But that was enough to make her shut up as his eyes narrowed.
"The reason why I’ve decided to invest all of this money into the project isn’t that I wanted to dominate the other Guilds. Far from it. The reason is simple. I wanted to atone for the mistake that you two made."
Yes.
This was the simple truth behind the matter.
Upon learning the reason behind his grandchild’s abandonment, he was overwhelmed by a crushing sense of guilt. He resolved to pour all his resources into finding a cure, so that when he finally found the child, he would be able to heal him.
But who would’ve thought that despite all of the resources he had, he couldn’t find the child?
As if his existence had been erased from the world, Kaelric found himself unable to locate him.
Kaelric had given up all hope.
Until...
He had finally found him.
And not only was he doing fine, but he was also thriving.
Kaelric wanted nothing more than to reveal everything to him, but given the current situation in the Guild, he knew that it was impossible. Especially not when the very two things that had birthed him were like this.
Staring at his daughter and her husband, the disgust within Kaelric only deepened.
"I’m warning the two of you right now. Leave your hands off this matter. If I catch you doing anything..."
He stopped there, but he didn’t need to say anything more.
His gaze was enough to make the two look down.
"...I really hope you heed my advice."
***
Honestly, I was kind of curious.
’How effective is the medicine that they’ve developed? Is it at the same level as the one from the system? No, I doubt that’s the case. In fact, from what I’m seeing, they don’t even seem to be aware of the extent of my disease. They think I’ve got some fractures, but that’s not even remotely close to what I have.’
My situation was far worse than that.
I had a Cognitive Shard.
"...Are you sure that you don’t want to take the offer?"
Arriving at the SUV, Liora paused as she opened the front door. Without sparing me a glance, she got in and adjusted the rearview mirror.
Looking at her, I shrugged my shoulders.
"Even if I did take it, I know it wouldn’t be of any help."
"Do you really think that’s the case?"
"Yes."
I didn’t doubt this for one second. But even if it did help, I still wouldn’t take it. I already had my fair share of problems with the Guild Master. Taking the drug would only mean that he’d have even more leverage over me.
I could handle the situation just fine by myself.
"Alright."
Liora didn’t say anything else and started the car.
After that, we left the Guild as she drove me back to mine. The ride was quiet, neither of us speaking a word. I stared out the window, watching the passing scenery as my thoughts lingered on everything that had happened.
This persisted for a while, until a familiar building appeared in the distance. While it wasn’t as imposing as the Obsidian Bastion headquarters, it still stood out from the rest as the car started to slow down before eventually coming to a stop.
Unfastening my seatbelt, I stepped out of the car and turned to bid Liora farewell, only for her to suddenly roll down the window and toss something toward me.
"Take it."
"...Huh?"
Catching the item, I was surprised to see it was a small tube filled with numerous white pills.
My mind blanked for a moment as I struggled to process what had just happened. But when it finally registered, my eyes widened.
"Wait, I said..."
I was never able to finish my words.
The moment I looked in Liora’s direction, she was already gone, the car speeding off into the distance.
"That’s..."
The only thing I could do was just stare blankly in her direction before looking at the pills in my hand.
’Just what the hell is she trying to achieve?’