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96.58% Learning To Live As A Cultivator / Chapter 311: Chapter One Hundred and Eleven - What had happened to him

Chapter 311: Chapter One Hundred and Eleven - What had happened to him

Since Caprian had transferred to the inner alchemist school, thanks to a certain improved pill that he had stolen, then subsequently been expelled for the same reason, Tor had not actually seen the spoiled son of a renowned alchemy family.  Although it was true that his family were considered retainers of that family and therefore somewhat subservient, Tor had 'failed' in his duties as Caprian's person and allowed the other to fall upon the crooked path.  At least, that is how the two families saw things.  In fact, the moment he stepped a foot into his home, he'd been forced to kneel in shame before his angry father, who was enveloped in rage.

"We will immediately head to the Pricacorn Manor and you will begin for forgiveness from young Master Caprian and from the family head!"

"No," Tor had refused.  His father had raised a hand to silence him, but Tor had continued on; "Why should I be held solely responsible for Caprian's crimes?  A man can listen to advice, but he cannot be made to take it."

"Oh, so you claim that you advised the young Master not to rely on other's creations and pass them off as his own?"  His father had sneered.  Tor had not been able to respond as he'd known that this was not true.  He had not tried to stop Caprian from doing anything he wanted, all because of his own selfish wants that Caprian had promised to help him with, namely transferring to the Beast Taming School.  Instead, he had followed in Caprian's wake, just clearing up messes, bribing seniors and on one occasion providing a life sustaining pill...  "You waste of space!"

"While I can't deny that I did not stop Caprian," Tor had admitted, quietly, "it was his lack that had him destroy his future as a student of the Institute."

"Lack?  What lack?!" His father had refuted.  "Young Master Caprian has the greatest potential of your generation when it comes to alchemy!  All he required was a strong, guiding hand and yet you failed in this!"

Caprian was born with two roots.  Ordinarily, such would be considered a hindrance, not a boon, but there were always exceptions.  Those with a fire and wood type of either major or minor roots usually had the most prodigious talent in alchemy, able to better temper the fire and understand the herbs within their cauldron.  Though Caprian's roots were flame and plant, meaning that his potential while not peak, was not to be sniffed at either, his lazy and impatient nature meant that whatever talent he might have was wasted.  He hadn't the temperament to sit about a cauldron and create pills.

Tor had mentioned this to his father, but simply received another backhanded slap.  Tor  had spat out blood on the floor, unwilling.  "You're a fool!  Caprian is likely to become the next head of the Pricacorn clan and you slander him in this way!"  His father had lifted his hand ready for it to fall again.  But he then hesitated, not expecting that his younger son would begin to laugh.

"If that is so, then the future of the Pricacorn clan is bleak," Tor had shaken his head, then dared glare at his father in the eye.  "And what does that mean for the sons you willingly gave to the Pricacorn as slaves?"

"Tor..." his mother had pleaded him softly to stop, but Tor had simply shaken his head again, while his father had denied their roles in the hierarchy as such.

"Really?  Did you ask Caprian for his opinion on my position?" Tor demanded to know.  "Just because there is no official contract, to Caprian, I was no better than a little servant bought in from outside.  Or did you not know this already?"

"Young Master Caprian is just young," his father responded, dismissively, gesturing with his hand.  "Young Master Caplin's relationship with your older brother was also like this once."  Tor noticed his brother roll his eyes and shake his head a bit in denial.  Caprian's older brother had never treated Tau like he would a servant, only ever a trusted subordinate when it was necessary and a close confident at other times. 

Tor's earliest memory of Caprian was when they were six and the spoiled youth had ordered him to climb a tree as he wanted the sweet fruit hanging from it's branches.  And what had his father told him when he'd refused?  That it was his place to serve the young Master well, that he should have sought an older servant to get a ladder and get the fruit for the child.  In fact, anytime that Tor had made attempts to reason with Caprian in the future, his father would just remind him of his duties.

"Anyway, clean yourself up," the man had washed over Tor's arguments as if they were just an irritating cold breeze.  "We'll head to the main House after you are presentable."

"You haven't listened to a word," Tor had risen to his feet.  "While I have no problems apologising to the Pricacorn head for my part in the situation, I won't speak a word to Caprian.  If he is truly the heir, then he should admit to his own faults, not place them on my shoulders, which I imagine from this lecture, is precisely what has occurred.  He is no longer my master and I am not his subordinate."

"You dare reject this honour?" His father's expression had been incredulous. 

"What honour?  What rejection?" Tor had sneered.  "If I recall correctly, it was Caprian that abandoned me the moment he entered the inner school as he desired.  And after his expulsion, I was brought in for questioning by the Teachers regarding my role in the matter.  It turns out that Caprian claimed that stealing pills, beating and framing students, that was all my idea, that I had done so without his knowledge, just handing him the pills as proof of my loyalty to him."  He'd naturally denied it, he'd admitted he'd suggested to Caprian to buy pills from the poorer students when he'd found out Caprian was threatening students and he'd admitted very shamefaced that he'd kept quiet and just watched when Caprian beat others.  If it had not been for Teacher Volun and Teacher Sagi speaking up for him, he likely would have been expelled as well.  "I owe Caprian nothing."

His father had slumped back in his chair, at first seeming to have no words, but then, he'd said what Tor least expected; "From this day, I have no second son."

"Husband!" His mother had exclaimed, but as she was ruled by this man, she was unable to overturn his decision.  His father had always been loyally blind to the Pricacorn family, indoctrinated to think of the past glory of the two families at all times.  Forget the falling state that both were in now...

Tor had left the home of his birth without looking back.  He did have some regrets, he missed his warm older brother and loving mother, but he did not wish to have his name nor any possible descendants tied to the old alchemy family any longer.  Especially not one to be headed by a youth who despised his own heritage the most.


Chapter 312: Chapter One Hundred and Twelve - This feels familiar, but not...

Looking at his old 'Master' now, Tor had no wavering feelings in his heart, just shame.  Shame regarding what had occurred during those times they'd both walked these grounds together.  He glanced with cold eyes at the other man and also cast a glance over the youths that followed him here now.  There was a flicker of interest; they did not appear to be Caprian's usual lackeys...

It wasn't hard to make a deduction of how Caprian came to be here; his family must have made the decision to enrol him into another school.  Considering the reputation of the Red Savage Sands Force, the fact that the Mage Tower's school did not accept bribes (just high, annual tuition fees) and that the Azure Heights Finishing school was for girls, then it was likely Caprian had enrolled into the Qilin Academy of Excellence. 

Tor inwardly sighed.  If not for Caprian's innate, but unused talent, how else would he have swept the previous situation under the carpet to gain this chance?  He doubted that the other had changed his lazy habits, however.

Sure enough; "Why isn't it that my friends are interested in discovering the great talents hidden within the Institute's alchemy school?"

*****

Leon tossed the dirty water soiled from the breakfast dishes onto the wild flowering patch outside his courtyard home.  Stalks holding blossoms of white, purple, yellow stretched tall over smaller plants with pink, red, blue at their hearts, while grasses with jade green droplets dangled over everything else.  The tallest plants could easily reach Leon's slender waist and none were worse for wear considering the grey and other waste waters tossed over them from time to time.

The flowers began to move without the aid of the wind and two large bright eyes peered out from in amongst them.  Leon shook his head and sighed.  It was good that these wild flowers were hardy, or how else would they survive the frequent abuse of both man and feline?

Jin Li had left earlier with Wu Ye, hunting for whatever meat they could find and kill in the wilds of the mountains for their bottomless stomachs.  Li Ming had remained behind as the small alchemist's guard supposedly.  Few true guards would abandon their duties to track and chase butterflies after all.  The prey was indeed quite large, about the size of Leon's palm and it was attractive, but surely not much of a meal once caught. 

Li Ming leapt out of the flowers, spraying petals and pollen everywhere as it clawed at it's prey... and missed.  The butterfly nonchalantly drifted on a convenient breeze up and out of reach.

The coeurl stared after it longingly before seeking pity from its Master.

"There, there?"

Apparently, Li Ming was that easy to satisfy, lowering its neck to nuzzle Leon's chest with its large head.

Just as Leon began to reciprocate, stroking that soft halo main about its head and neck, a loud barking caught their attention and their first thoughts were that Brother Tor was coming to visit. However, here was Xiao Xiao running up to them frantically, but no beast tamer in sight.

Xiao Xiao used its teeth to grip the hem of Leon's sleeve and tugged it with a growing whine. Li Ming growled in response, a warning, to which the Cooshee quickly responded;

'Master says that I should protect human Leon from the bad humans wanting to hurt him.'

'Bad humans? Wu Ye says bad humans can't come to this place with Master's aura... why so worried?'

'Master's family was threatened by the bad humans, Master felt he had no choice but to lead them here. But if human Leon is out of their reach, then the bad humans will have to go away again.'

Naturally the one they communicated about only heard a series of barks and growls, couldn't know of the danger and instead tried to calm the beasts down. After all, every human on Earth understood that felines and canines seldom got along. But seeing that they weren't engaging in all out war, just exchanging a few warnings, Leon decided to just keep an eye on the situation while returning to his house with the washing up bowl. As he did so, he felt an extensive hard warmth push at his back, forcing him to hurry forward and nearly causing him to trip. He glanced back to see Li Ming's large head was responsible.

"Wah! W-what are you d-d-doing?"

'Hurry!'

'Too late!'

"Tch, trying to confuse me by taking us the same way... isn't that just like what you did in the past? Traitorous bastard."

A wave of unwelcome familiarity washed over Leon, just as the mist thinned within his mind around a few still forgotten memories, all containing a particularly unpleasant figure with a smirking sneer and a wide girth. He couldn't help but reflexively shiver.

Caprian, by himself, was not a frightening man; his soft, round face while not handsome, was not something scary or unappealing.  However, his attitude was frightening, the way he regarded so many of the students as grass beneath his feet, how he perverted others, gathering them around himself and having them do his dirty work while he watched.  Even now there was a crowd gathered behind him and a shamefaced Tor unhappily dragging his feet beside him. 

However, the situation felt greatly different from the scene in one of his memories. For one thing, though the posture of his former bully was still expressing his cruel pride, it lacked a bit of his former confidence. Also, these youths behind him did not appear to be currying favour with Caprian... in fact, if Leon wasn't wrong, these youths looked upon Caprian with some disdain. 

That look he'd seen in the eyes of his lover too often to mistake it. 

But before he could question it in his own mind, Caprian's beady eyes found him.

Although Leon could see varying differences in Caprian, the other's eyes saw only what he wished to see which was a trembling villager boy who was humble and meek before his mighty presence. Behind him however, the youths steps hesitated as they glanced about themselves; what weak, isolated country bumpkin that had been exiled to the periphery under Caprian's underhanded guidance? Wasn't that a walled courtyard property not a tumbling down hut? And wasn't that a young adult Coeurl beside him? His clothing did not appear to be tattered and patched either for all it still appeared to be made of cheaper cloth.

However, they then considered Caprian's previous boast, that this youth had accidentally made adjustments to the Beast Calming Pill that the Teachers had mistakenly thought was his doing, only to cover up their mistakes by expelling him when realising this. Although they did not wholly believe the large youth's claims, seeing that the structure was fairly new in fact and that this village born man wore a small amount of silver and jade, they calculated that the youth had indeed created pills that garnered him such benefits. Their resolves settled and expectations increased. Wasn't it still just a commoner before the mighty them? Wasn't it just a pet Coeurl yet to have felt the tamer's whip? Exchanging looks, they stepped forward ready to claim what they had come for.


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