Bab 8: Training
"I don't want to be the successor. Brother is here for that." Were the disappointing words I'd heard.
Since he didn't have the Alpha Gene, maybe it was cruel to have expected anything in the first place.
However, I didn't expect Caden to catch on so quickly. Knowing exactly why I'd asked.
To me, the Alpha Gene wasn't important.
It may have been a tradition in the past for the next Alpha to replace the former, but that was nothing.
The true leaders of packs weren't always Alphas.
So long as they were able to rally people behind them, that would've been enough to be chosen.
It was something Caden lacked.
The future of the Clan wasn't decided by battle talent, but in the ability to lead and strategise.
Something Adam was much better at since birth.
He may have thought his pranks were nothing but childish antics. Thinking himself as average.
Maybe that was why he fell for Caden's trick.
Accepting a match that ended up destroying any chance he had in becoming my future successor.
Nobody would accept a weak-hearted leader.
You needed both charisma and the ability to instil loyalty in the Clan. Something he couldn't do now.
His reputation had broken down…
Ahem… Now imagine my surprise when the very boy who had refused our family heritage found me.
And said the words I had eagerly anticipated.
"Train me. Give me the 'Successor Training'." My boy's attitude had completely changed overnight.
I didn't show any signs of refusal. Only asking:
"Why now?" He had many chances before, so what was the incident that drove him to be here now.
"…I don't want to lose." It was a simple sentiment to others, but not one Adam used to believe in.
Since when had his boy had this kind of thought?
Since when could he look at me with those eyes?
Maybe this was an improvement, but I wondered if I'd gone too far in changing the way he thought.
'This is for the sake of the Clan.' Such a thought calmed me. Allowing my actions to be resolute.
"I'll help." Was my simple way to conclude out talk.
…..
….
…
..
.
My plans were moved along quite well.
It didn't matter if Caden had more support. The only thing that mattered in the end was power.
To flip this situation, I needed to attend the Blood Banquet that would be held a few years from now.
Although it was originally supposed to be the ritual meant to show off the successor, now it would be a bloody battle to see who was more capable among the leader's children. Deciding this once and for all.
If I was honest, I wasn't feeling eager…
So many things had happened to me recently, but it hadn't changed the nature of our relationship.
We were brothers of the same mother.
So… why did he hate me so much?
We were blood brothers, so why did he send someone to kill- No… to traumatise and cripple me.
It's not something I could wrap my head around.
To train me appropriately, my father had taken out time he'd usually spend on the Clan on me instead.
Taking me someplace far from the Clan's territory.
We arrived at a cave entrance, but didn't walk in.
Instead, I found that the outside of this place seemed strangely clean. As if it was used before.
"Since you skipped out on a lot of lessons, I'll have to systematically teach you from the beginning. If you gone this boring, we can stop now." My father stood in front of the training dummies and spoke,
"I'll learn." There was no way I could refuse.
"Alright…" After saying as much, my father pointed to the nearby forest. His next words were crazy:
"Go hunt a goblin and bring back its corpse."
"…" I made a strange face, but then remembered that this wasn't a human village. This was a pack.
Well… Maybe it was weirder I thought there would be something more to this for a brief moment.
Still, I made an uncomfortable look at my father.
"What's wrong?" When he spoke like this, I could see the visage of Graham's father overlapping him.
That man would have patiently explained himself and easily read his thoughts. He was a good man.
Graham's father was sometimes teased for being too sensitive. A man who worked in the kitchen.
Thinking the werewolf standing in front of him had the same level of empathy was way too convenient.
Fenrir proved this by tilting his head at him.
Completely unable to relate to his son.
The only thing Adam felt happy about was that he was being given the chance to speak his mind.
"Sorry… I don't know anything about fighting whatsoever. It's stupid… but can you tell me exactly how we 'werewolves' fight?" Adam knew speaking like this came off awkwardly, but he had no choice.
The boy was completely ignorant about combat.
Fenrir looked at his son's embarrassed face. There wasn't any disappointment in his eyes nor scowl.
Instead, he nodded his head.
"Alright." Again, the man patiently went through whatever his son needed to become stronger.
He cleared his throat while walking closer to the child, then started to explain things one by one:
"Firstly, we werewolves have greater vitality than other creatures. Our regeneration is a side-effect of it. Once your stamina goes lower than a certain threshold, you'll start to experience rebound. It means you have to run before it gets to that."
[Your comprehension of your own abilities has improved. Seventh Sense created synergy effect.]
['Natural Regeneration' has been added to Intrinsic Skills. This is unable to be altered or sacrificed.]
Adam looked at his red message board that kept on pinging, but Fenrir kept on going without rest:
"Secondly, you have claws and a Spirit Wolf. It's easy to hunt if you rely on your instincts." (Fenrir)
"I want to hunt alone." (Adam)
"What…? Why?" (Fenrir)
"Wouldn't my instincts dull if I always rely on her for support?" Adam puffed out his chest in pride.
His father looked at him deeply in silence. That scary atmosphere lingering until he spoke:
"Good thinking!" A rare smile curved on his lips.
Believing his timid boy had finally grown enough a backbone to be considered a man of the family.
Adam knew this was a big misunderstanding, but there was no need to correct something so nice.
Power to him then…
"Alright… Last thing you need to know how to do before hunting is using your Dark Mana." (Fenrir)
"How do you do that?" (Adam)
"Like this." Fenrir exploded in pitch black flames similar to what Adam had saw in his dream earlier.
Mystical flames of dark energy encircled him.
"…" Adam started to have a bad feeling.
"Now you do it." Of course, his father would ask him to do it after demonstrating this literally once.
…This was going to take some time and effort.
The young boy decided to keep the back and forth between them going for a while as he learnt Skills.
Whenever he was stuck, Adam would find the best way to explain his problem before speaking of it.
Whenever Fenrir heard his thoughts, the man would patiently explain without shunning him away.
Even being inspired himself when he heard how his son was incorporating human ideas into his plans.
Seeing it as his boy becoming more independent.
Unknowingly, the two of them started to enjoy their time together while talking about his training.
Trying out new ideas instead of leaving it for later.
It was at this point Fenrir started to realise that he wasn't as incompatible with his son like he thought.
They were obviously getting along.
The man started to wonder if he had actually done his boy wrong by being indifferent to his emotions.
He wanted to say something, but didn't know how to bring it up. Adam also wasn't saying anything.
Almost as if he'd forgotten what happened earlier.
This attitude only served to make Fenrir more nervous. Feeling as if he was put under scrutiny.
'Is he testing me?' Thinking too much lead to this conclusion. Fenrir wasn't good at parenting at all.
He couldn't just enjoy this moment to the very end.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone