Arthur smiled at Tyson and said, "Isn't this the boy who called me a rooster when he was five? Where has your cuteness gone?"
Tyson refuted him. "I'm still cute."
Arthur shook his head and pinched his cheeks. "Maybe. But you're not as cute as you used to be."
"Your cheeks used to be chubby. I could grab a fistful of them and still have more left. Now they are lean. I can barely get enough to pinch between two of my fingers."
Tyson became sullen for what he had lost. He said, "I lost them because I began training. Mother was the one that made me train early."
Arthur cheered him up, "All is not lost. For the cuteness you lost, you gained a lot of height and muscle. You look very strong."
Tyson's face lit up. He asked eagerly, "Really?"
Arthur nodded in reply. "Without a doubt. Anyone who takes a look at you can tell that you're strong."
Tyson felt very proud. He showed off his muscles by flexing his biceps.
Arthur indulged him by nodding and exclaiming once in a while.
"Wow. And you're just eleven? Unbelievable."
After a while, Tyson stopped flexing. He said, "I'm now at the third transformation. I will soon catch up to you."
Arthur chuckled and asked, "Is that so? Why do you think you can catch up to me?"
Tyson was silent for a while. He couldn't find a reason after thinking about it for a long time.
Eventually he said, "Because I work hard."
Arthur replied, "I also work hard."
Tyson puffed up his chest and said, "Because I am talented."
Arthur shook his head. "But I am also talented."
Tyson had to find another reason. He said, "Because my mother is always rushing me to exercise."
Arthur said, "My mother used to do that to me too."
Tyson slumped. He said, "Then I don't think I can catch up to you."
Arthur didn't like seeing his sad face, so he said in encouragement, "You still have a chance with the support of your family. That is something I don't have. With enough resources, talent can be made up to a certain level."
Tyson became encouraged again. He asked eagerly, "Do you really think I can catch up to you in terms of talent?"
Arthur shook his head and said, "You can make up for some lacking talent, but I don't think you can make up for all of it. It is not even certain that you can catch up with me in terms of cultivation. You will need a lot of hard work."
"If you're really hardworking, have a lot of resources, and have average talent, then you can catch up to anyone if given time. You can't change your talent or your family background, but what you can change is how much hard work you can put into cultivation."
"So if you want to catch up to me, it has to be more than just talk. You must put in a lot of effort. Do you understand?"
Tyson nodded in understanding. He said, "I guess I will have to put in a lot of effort to catch up to you because your talent is so great. I heard that you began cultivating at seven, not ten like most people in the family or thirteen like those outside. That's extraordinary."
Arthur liked being praised. He puffed up his chest and said, "You're not wrong. It is honestly unfair for everyone born in my generation. My talent is so much that it is overflowing."
Tyson's face was shining so Arthur said more. He looked around to his left and right to make sure that there was no one around listening.
Then he leaned in to Tyson's face and said, "Even Augustus can't match me in terms of talent. I hear everyone praising him here and there and saying that he has a chance of becoming a patriarch. But I don't think his talent is anything much."
"His talent might be extraordinary compared to normal people. But compared to me, his talent isn't much."
Someone asked from behind him, "Is that so?"
The source of the voice was so close; it was right behind them. Both Tyson and Arthur jumped in shock when the voice appeared. It is because they recognized the owner of the voice before they saw who asked the question.
Augustus asked the question again, "Is it really so that my talent can't compare to yours?"
His voice was cold. It was cold; it made the two boys shiver.
Arthur turned to explain; he said, "I was just joking. Don't take it seriously."
But when he came face to face with who he thought was Augustus, he realized that it wasn't just Augustus that was behind him. Augustus was really standing behind him. But he was also standing beside a glowing man.
The man had a head of golden hair that seemed to be made out of light. The man also had a round golden circle on his forehead. This golden circle was producing a lot of light. The light it was producing was shining everywhere as if the golden circle was a torch.
Lady Vena and Lady Delia were both standing on the right side of the man while Augustus was standing on the left. Lady Delia had a calm, solemn look on her face while Lady Vena was glaring at Arthur as if she wanted to kill him.
Augustus had a teasing smile on his face. Both he and the glowing man had that same smile on their face. It made them look eerily identical.
Both of them were similar in terms of looks and features. They both had blond hair and identical face. If not for the light show and the golden eyes staring at him from one of them, he would have thought they were twins.
But Arthur knew that they weren't twins. He knew the identity of the glowing man with the golden eyes, so he bowed and said in greeting, "Greetings, patriarch. I am Arthur."