Chapter 481: A Painful Seperation [Part 2]
Shin stood still for a few seconds. The warm breeze of the cozy space tugged at his body from all sides, making the entire space seemingly heavy all of a sudden.
The atmosphere was rife with tension and both of them could feel it, although Shin more than Northern.
He clenched his hands again and tried to suppress all the emotion that kept causing his heart to thump disturbingly.
And he took another few moments to wallow in the thought of what to say to Northern.
After which he raised his head and frowned his face slightly to build up confidence to say what it is, as it is.
Through it all, Northern observed his father. All his disposition formed a visual emotion that Northern could see better than anyone would've.
They further informed him that the problem had to carry a more significant weight than he had thought.
He was already beginning to consider the worst case. And considering such worst case made him tense, like a large rock was pressing against it.
Even he felt the pressure as much as Shin did. And all the atmosphere needed from both of them was for one of them to just open their damn mouth and talk!
After another few moments again, Shin finally swallowed and started.
"I caused it." His voice shook and he clenched his fist tighter again, "No, it's my cursed family."
Northern widened his eyes a little bit at the mention of his family.
He had a first-hand experience of how cursed they could be with how they breed a spawn like Raven.
No sane family would raise a child like that or in that manner.
Shin continued, "If you remember, you wanted to know my family, you wanted to know their swordsmanship because I used to brag so much."
Northern remembered very well and chuckled at the memory.
'Those were fun memories'
It was quite sad how fate had stolen such beautiful moments and much better that could have been made from him.
Northern listened to Shin as he resumed.
"It was during her third trimester, I believe she was very close to childbirth. And they found me."
His breath was shaky. A pale smile deformed his face.
"Of course, Eisha knew of my past. However, she only knew what I was running away from, she didn't know who I was, she didn't know that I used to be exactly what I was running away from. And the sad part of it all was that when we first met each other, she didn't judge me and had trusted me to be naked with her as she was with me..."
"...but you weren't." Northern stared at him squarely and then let out a disappointed sigh before saying.
"So... What more?"
Shin looked at Northern, briefly surprised.
"What? I know that might have been enough to hurt her so much, but I don't think it's enough to make her leave."
Shin raised a brow, puzzled and shocked.
"How did you know about her leaving..."
"Judging by the way your story is going, I figured she's not dead. The worst case that can have you broken like this means she left. I mean, look at your jaws, roughened by stubbles of beards, your eyes look like they have lost purpose and you have just been trying to suppress everything, every time you come here, stopping by the door and taking a deep breath before coming in like I'm some kid you need to smile at and tell, all is good."
Shin's mouth fell and Northern continued, his gaze growing deep with fury.
"I don't need your protection, I've not had it for the past few months being in hell and you want to know the worst part, your reluctance to teach me about your world almost had me killed more often than not. So the least I need you doing right now, is trying to present this information in a version that you are currently thinking would be bearable for a kid my age. Don't do it."
Shin's mouth was slightly opened in astonishment. Northern had just released words that gutted him from all directions.
He gulped and tried to stand better, repositioning himself as he went over all Northern had said.
All those moments that he'd take to suppress the bitterness he felt and smile for this kid, apparently the very same kid knew of it all.
And his reluctance to teach him their world almost killed him more often than not?
Regret assaulted him internally like a jarring titanic spear striking down upon his mortal frame. The least he could do right now was actually be completely honest with this kid...
'...he is so not a kid anymore'
Shin looked at his son and said, "You certainly have changed. And it's quite sad that it all happened without my influence and contribution."
Northern looked away slightly. The atmosphere felt like it had turned on him, Shin's words took reins of the wistful air.
"It wasn't entirely without your contribution. Our daily drills went a long way in helping me stay alive at the very least."
His words sounded suppressed and muffled but Shin heard them clearly.
And hearing them only made him feel worse, but appreciating what Northern was trying to do, he sucked it all up and continued.
"The Kageyama clan is a family of assassins. They operate almost as a kingdom, they have vassal families that serve and honor them, they train soldiers, in the main family and in the branch family, all of them strictly committed to learning the Kageyama family arts which takes on different forms.
"There's much to tell about the family but I'll say it's a vile place for a child to be birthed and raised. Sadly, my brother and I were birthed and raised in such a place."
He paused, reflecting back on his life in the clan brought a film of memories that left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"Our father was a vicious patriarch, well, every patriarch is vicious, except that my father was more vicious because he kept giving birth to girls."
He looked at Northern who was about to say something but paused as Shin took the words right out of his mouth.
"It's not supposed to be a bad thing. But there's a written law in the family that prohibits a woman from ever becoming a Patriarch, it's simply tradition. Should the Patriarch fail to give birth to a male child. The mantle of the crow will depart from him and go to another branch family. His family will become the branch family while another family becomes the main family. Everything will turn around and the focal point will become the family with the
mantle."
'I see, so it really is a big deal that he had no female child. Was the first Patriarch a
misogynist?'
"So when my father gave birth to my elder brother and I, he became very hard on both of us. I'm saying, save the family's crude ways, he was even harder. He had nine daughters before my brother and I, so when I say he was hard, you can't even fathom." Those memories resurfaced as he spoke, wearing a slight frown upon his face.
"While things were specially hard for my brother and I in general, there was a certain degree
of hard between the both of us. And mine outweighed his... simply because I had something
he didn't."
Shin looked at Northern, his face serious without a shred of triviality. Then he said:
"I was referred to as a genius."
Unknowingly, Northern blurted out, "Sorry, you were what now?"