Chapter 47: Flawed (1)

After a while, Malcom finally sat down in the office. His rib no longer hurt so much, and his sleeping arm inside the restorative plaster was immobilized to one side of his body.

He still felt uncomfortable, but it was already better compared to when he just woke up.

Malcom glanced at Skyler and realized that she was looking at him seriously.

"Don't tell anyone what I'm going to tell you now," he spoke seriously.

Skyler raised a brow before she nodded.

Malcom released a heavy sigh before carefully speaking, "I think I know who my attacker was..."

Just as he said that, Skyler stiffened. Those words alerted her greatly. "For real?" She asked doubtfully.

Malcom nodded stiffly, "I can't joke about these things, Ms. Sonfild."

Her eyes opened wide with surprise. "Oh my god…" She did not know what else to say.

Skyler looked at Malcom, hoping that he would say more to her, but he remained quiet.

Nevertheless, despite the silence, both thought how terrible that attack could have ended.

Malcom now had to be more attentive, and the next day, his fight in the tournament would take place.

He watched the night as he always did. From his balcony, he could see the tranquility of the city, and that still puzzled him, more so nowadays.

Now he knew how many dangers existed in it, waiting only for him. Jonah's guards protected him, but this time they were different. They seemed better

Malcom's approval towards the new guards increased by a notch. Just a tiny bit. Their capability, after all, could only be proven when they managed to capture the attacker.

He couldn't feel their presence in the slightest. If it weren't for the constant noise of a bird that he had never heard before, he couldn't determine if they were still there.

His immobilized arm caused him much frustration and discomfort, and as he concentrated on the thought, he heard, "Why don't you sleep a little, son?"

He turned to look at his mother, who was sitting in her wheelchair.

"Tomorrow, you have a fight, and you just got out of the hospital. You should rest, love," Malcom's mother encouraged.

Malcom let out a smile. His mother had always taken care of him, even when her illness began. She spent the first part of her illness working to make Malcom's childhood the best it could be.

Now that most of the mobility of her body had been lost due to her illness, he felt the responsibility to give his mother the best life possible.

Not only did he feel that he owed her, but she had also always been the person who had cared for him, and all the sacrifices she had made, taught him to be a responsible man.

"I'll do it in a second, mom! I am planning my strategy for tomorrow," he said with an assuring smile.

She smiled back and stared at his arm before asking, "You're not going to tell me what happened to your arm, are you?"

Malcom smiled, and walking towards her, he kissed her on the head and said, "It's not important ma, don't worry."

She looked at him in disbelief but, accepting what he said, retired to rest. Malcom thought a little more about the opponent he had to face the next day. Still, for some reason, his mind was not focused on a strategy.

Instead, an idea resonated in his mind, and with that thought he went to sleep.

The next day Malcom woke up as usual. After getting dressed, he went to the balcony, where he still did not feel any presence of his protectors, but the whistles of that bird that he did not know continued to sound.

While looking at the streets, he raised his voice and said, "If you're hungry, I can make you breakfast."

At those words, in an instant, two people appeared on his balcony. Malcom could barely notice the movement when behind him.

A tall young woman with collected blond hair and Albert, both in military uniforms, looked at him with a smile from the side of the balcony.

"I want eggs," Albert said with a grin.

Malcom looked at them, and surprised, he sighed, before nodding, gesturing for them to enter the apartment. Albert entered behind him in the company of the girl.

Malcom was walking calmly when Albert said, "You are very kind, but you do owe us your life, so it's really the least you can do."

The smile was not erased from his body when Malcom, looking at him with irony, said, "The one who saved my life was your sister! And lower your voice, my mother is still sleeping."

The girl hit Albert's chest, who, nodding, looked at her and made a sign.

Malcom was surprised when he saw this. "You do not speak!"

The girl shook her head as her smile lit up the room. Malcom still looked at her with curiosity and surprise.

"This is Jessika. We all call her Jess. She is one of Jonah's guardians," he answered Malcom's unspoken question.

Albert then placed his hand on the girl's shoulder before continuing, "The flawed ones!"

Malcom raised a brow. "Flawed?" What a weird nickname.

Albert nodded, sitting at the table while he said, "Yep! That's how it is! We are the Flawed ones."

"What kind of name is that?" Malcom asked curiously as he began to prepare breakfast.

"Every member of Jonah's team is known as the flawed! They call us that because we are simply people with limitations. Like Jonah," Albert explained casually.

Malcom stopped where he was and looked at Albert in suspicion, "Jonah, the virtue is a person with limitations?" He also wondered if that was true. Albert was part of the team, so did that mean he was flawed too?

Albert grinned, "Well, yes, Jonah was a premature child at his birth, and that made his affinity with magic practically nil. He got into the army to be a soldier because he couldn't use his magic energy for many other things. Still, somehow he increased his affinity with magic, and well, now he is a Virtue, the first member of the military to become a Virtue." He said that with an unmasked admiration.