章 10: Chapter Ten
"Brother, I see them, I see them!" As Celius was setting up the table and his grandpa was taking the food out, Elrith, who was by the window with his stick sword, suddenly screamed out. He had excitement written all over his face as he quickly rushed to the front door. With his small height, he wasn't able to reach the door handle even though he jumped.
Celius looked at his grandpa as the latter also looked back. Both of them smiled and excitement could be seen in their eyes as well. Celius picked up a rag and quickly wiped his hands. Just as he was going to go and open the front door, his face turned pale. 'Crap… I forgot to change the bedsheets after barfing on it!' He quickly turned around and ran back into his room.
"Grandpa get the door! Don't let anyone into my room! I will be quick!" Grandpa Amlenor watched in shock as Celius ran into his room. Alura laughed while Elrith kept jumping for the handle. Rislia looked around in confusion, but when she saw Alura laughing, she also joined in and laughed.
"Jeez, this kid. What does he have to do now? Is he having another breakthrough?!" Raising his eyebrows as he looked at Celius' room, Grandpa Amlenor felt some expectation build-up. 'If he does breakthrough again, that would monstrous, no he is already considered a monster. Maybe godly?'
Knock Knock
'Shoot, they're already here.' He put on his most amazing smile, although somewhat awkward, and walked to the front door. He then opened the door and was greeted by a family of four.
"Hello, Elder Amlenor." Uncle Lorron was the first to greet him respectfully, with Aunty Lena and Ennie following right after.
"Haha, come in, come in. Also, we're are family, so cut the formalities. Haha." Seeing the family with his own eyes made Grandpa Amlenor even more excited. He just couldn't help himself and rushed the family inside.
"Of course, Uncle Amlenor." Although Uncle Lorron was still a little restrained, calling his actual uncle as uncle rather than elder made him feel a little better. He then looked around and asked with some confusion. "Is Celius not home yet?"
Aunty Vena who was chatting with the excited Elrith also looked around with some confusion. "Don't tell me he ran off before we even arrived? Haha." She felt a lot more comfortable than her husband. Although she had seen grandpa Amlenor only once, and that was from afar during her wedding day, she never really had anything against him. He was her elder, so she gave him his due respect.
"Don't worry about him. He ran into his room screaming about changing the sheets or something. He is excited you see. Haha!" Grandpa Amlenor spoke without caring about Celius' dignity whatsoever. There was no effort on his part to make an excuse for Celius.
When Aunty Vena and Uncle Lorron heard this, they couldn't help but burst out in laughter, while feeling a little warm in their heart. "Why don't I go and check on him?" Aunty Vena spoke before walking towards Celius' room. She placed Luna beside Rislia so that they could play. Elrith acted as the guide and heroically led Aunty Vena to Celius' room.
Knock Knock
"Celius, are you there? Do you need help with anything?" She spoke from outside the room and didn't barge in. Not only would it have been rude, but it would also be very awkward if Celius was changing and she just walked in on him.
"I'm almost done. Elrith dropped something on the bed and so I'm quickly cleaning it." Celius spoke from his room. He had already changed the bedsheets and even replaced the blanket. He was just shoving the sheets into a basket beside the door.
"I didn't drop anything. Hmph!" Elrith, after hearing his brother's lie, crossed his arms and said in a pouting tone.
Aunty Vena heard him and giggled before pinching his cheeks. She then turned around and headed back to where everyone was.
Soon after she left, Celius came out of the room to only find Elrith glaring at him. Celius was taken aback before his face became red. He quickly rubbed his head and then kissed his cheeks hard. "I was just joking, alright? Let's go back."
Elrith laughed and forgot about it in an instant. He ran back into the living room. Celius followed him from behind. He stepped into the room and saw everyone there and couldn't help but feel slightly nostalgic. He couldn't help but envision his parent's sitting somewhere in the room as well, laughing and conversing. Knowing that such a thing couldn't happen anymore, he sighed deeply before walking in with a smile.
"Uncle Lorron, Aunty Vena, thank you for coming." He quickly thanked them before finding a place to sit. It was a respectful gesture to thank the elders, which was why he didn't say the same to Ennie.
"Celius, thanks for having us." Uncle Lorron was the first to reply. Ever since his little mining session with Celius, he felt a lot closer to him.
"So Celius, I heard that you and my husband had some bonding time this morning. How was it?" Aunt Vena was the first to bring up the topic. Uncle Lorron turned his head away in slight embarrassment as he grunted a little.
Celius nodded his head with a bright smile. "Yeah, it was great. All thanks to Uncle's help, we were able to get the place cleared extremely quickly." He didn't say his thanks again knowing that it would only make uncle Lorron a little angry, plus he did thank him lots before.
"Oh? I heard my husband say that you are a man. 'Hard-working with big muscles' was what he said, I think." She laughed cheekily as she looked at her husband slyly. The latter stared back at her confused and flabbergasted.
'When the hell did I say such a thing. Sure, I did mention him being very hardworking, but I never complimented his muscles.' He coughed a little before wanting to speak up. "Ve--"
Aunt Vena cut him off immediately. "Honey, you did say such a thing, right?" She looked at him with gentle eyes, but Uncle Lorron only felt shivers down his spine.
He made a defeated expression as his lips twitched. "Y-yeah, I said that. Celius, you are a hard worker. Just seeing the area with no trees made me almost faint. There must have been over thirty trees." Quickly he saved himself and emphasized the hard work part. These were genuine feelings he had.
"Thank you, uncle and aunty." He felt a little awkward when they talked about him having a good body since that wasn't something he cared about.
All of them conversed for a bit. Celius talked to Aunt Vena and Uncle Lorron with his grandpa about a variety of topics. Ennie sat on the side and couldn't say much since the topics revolved around areas which she didn't completely understand. This made her a little disappointed. 'I want to talk too. Mom, help me out here.' Of course, her mother didn't notice this.
"Why don't we get the food served? All of you must be hungry." Celius then got up and began to get the food. Alura and Elrith accompanied him while his grandpa sat and chatted with everyone.
"Ennie, why don't you go and help him carry the things." Uncle Lorron surprisingly said this. Of course, he had no motives, unlike his wife who had her own goals.
Ennie nodded her head and a smile appeared on her face. 'Finally, I can contribute to something. I couldn't talk, the least can do is help to serve the food.' She got up quickly and rushed into the kitchen.
"Hey Celius, let me help you out." Celius saw her come in and nodded his head. He didn't mind Ennie helping, plus he could tell Ennie felt left out a while ago during the chat he had with the others, but he couldn't just change the topic as that would have been a little rude.
"Thanks. Can you grab the plates? Alura, show Ennie where the plates are." Alura nodded her head and grabbed Ennie's hand before pointing to a box in one corner of the room. Ennie opened it up and saw a few shiny metal plates. They didn't seem like the expensive kind, but they had a pretty flower design in the middle. Grabbing a large stack, she walked to the table and placed them in the middle.
Celius followed from behind and placed a large bowl, which was steaming from the surface, beside the plates. Alura carried a few glasses and so did Elrith. Ennie took those from their hands and placed them on the table.
Slowly the table filled with food. There was no place for them to be seated, so Celius just thought of having them eat in the living room. It felt awkward, but his house was just a little too small.
He quickly walked into the living room and called them all to get their food. Uncle Lorron and Aunty were the first to get it, followed by Grandpa Amlenor, then Ennie, and then Celius. Of course, the children would just share with the adults. Celius fed Alura and Rislia, grandpa Amlenor fed Elrith, and Aunt Vena fed Luna.
"Wow, Celius this is great food." Aunt Vena took a bite and couldn't help but compliment the meat dish. Celius smiled back as he fed his sisters and also took some bites.
As they ate, they also conversed about many things. They would tell stories and other things. Grandpa Amlenor was incredibly good at hosting so his stories and conversations were the easiest to follow and the most laughed at. At one point, Uncle Lorron even choked on his food.
About half an hour passed and they all finished eating. Celius took the dishes to the kitchen and began to wash them. Aunt Vena sat in the kitchen with Ennie and the kids, while grandpa Amlenor conversed with uncle Lorron quietly.
"Uncle Amlenor, I have a question for you. Although this is something that may be a little personal for Celius--" Grandpa Amlenor cut him off with a smile.
"Just speak your mind Lorron. We're all family here." Uncle Lorron nodded his head before clearing his throat.
"As you know, Celius and I were doing some work together a while ago." Hearing his words, grandpa Amlenor nodded with a smile. "Well, when we took a break me and Celius got to talking and…" He began to explain the details of their conversation.
"Alright?" With a confused expression, grandpa Amlenor looked at Lorron.
Seeing that grandpa Amlenor wasn't able to get the hint from his story, he continued. "Do you not think that Celius is... how do I say this? Extreme in his care for his sibling? Like, it is a good thing, but his life seems to revolve around them. I'm worried that in the future Celius would find himself extremely lonely once his siblings begin to move on."
Amlenor's smile faded slightly as he deeply contemplated this. "You're right, he would probably get lonely, but he would hopefully have a wife or something by then, so it shouldn't be too bad for him."
"Yes, but what if he doesn't? For now, he has no intention of marriage anytime soon or even the future. What I mean is, what would he do if he is left alone? I don't want to sound dramatic or anything, but Celius only lives for his siblings, without them, he may not be anything. I'm just worried that something may happen in the future." Lorron spoke seriously and didn't hold back much. His words weren't ruthless, but straight to the point.
"So, what you're saying is that Celius may be done for without his siblings?" Amlenor asked this with a slight frown.
"From what I have seen and the way he speaks, that is what I mean." the room became somewhat tense for a moment, but Amlenor suddenly sighed heavily. The frown was still present, but now his face was slightly pale.
"Seems like you also noticed this then? I agree with you. Ever since his parents died, Celius has changed, and the fault lies with his parents too. Their teachings weren't bad in any way, but after their deaths, Celius took what they taught to the next level. In his mind, he must bear everything for his siblings, and make sure they live a peaceful life." He stopped for a second to take a breather. "He did have his likes and dislikes, but even those vanished with his parents. I know that the future would be very bleak once his siblings move on. By then, I won't even be alive to help him as much as possible. For now, all I can do is find ways to build his interest in his previous likes again. Give him reasons to like his life more."
The topic was heavy, but Grandpa Amlenor found it relieving to know that Lorron knew about the issue and even wanted to help with it. It gave him peace of mind, much more than anything.
"Lorron, for now, don't mention this topic in front of Celius. We have lots of time, plus Celius seems to be gaining interest in cultivation once again." A smile appeared on the old man's face, while Lorron also sighed in relief. Suddenly, Amlenors face brightened a little. "Let me tell you a piece of news. I'm only telling you this since I trust you."
"Go ahead, Uncle." Lorron smiled as his ears perked up and he listened attentively.
"When Celius finally turns into an adult at the upcoming ceremony, all of us plan to leave the clan village and move to the nearby town." He spoke in a whisper so that no one else could hear him. Although no one else, other than family, were around, Grandpa Amlenor wanted to be careful just in case.
His eyes widened a little. "Uncle Amlenor, why did you guys decide to do this so suddenly? Isn't it difficult to move into a town without enough money, plus the road to the town is filled with danger. That was where cousin Adilis and Yinsi…" He didn't speak any further, but Grandpa Amlenor knew what he was going to say.
With a shrug of his shoulder, Grandpa Amlenor smiled wryly. "I didn't decide this, Celius did. He seems to want to move to a new place to give his siblings a better environment. I honestly understand his reasoning. Everyone already alienates him and even humiliates him in this wretched place. If I wasn't so weak, I would have destroyed the clan leader and all those bastards who make my grandchild's life so miserable." He spoke with seething hatred.
"Although that is the case, I still think that it might be dangerous and difficult." Lorron still tried to speak a little to convince Grandpa Amlenor otherwise. Although he also planned to move away if things got bad, that would be his last decision. Changing homes and moving to a completely new place was anything but easy. Lots of money was needed, and strength was also a deciding factor.
Grandpa Amlenor shook his head and sighed. "I can't say much. I may be that kid's grandfather, but Celius makes his own decisions, plus the three are under his care for the most part. Anyways, I would rather not restrict him. His father taught him well enough to make mature decisions."
"As you see fit. I can see why he would do this, but the risk is very high. Who knows if he will live any better in the town than the village. At least he can find work easily here, what about in town? There a lot stricter when it comes to requirements for certain jobs." Lorron warned once again but then didn't say anything further.
The two continued talking a little more.
In the kitchen where everyone else was, Ennie and Aunt Vena talked amongst themselves, while occasionally asking Celius questions.
"Ennie, you���re really lazy now that I think about it." Aunty Vena spoke bluntly all of a sudden.
"Hey, what did I do? Why are you saying that so suddenly, mom?" A pout formed on her face as she glared at her mom.
"It's not what you did do, it's what you didn't, or rather, don't do. You don't help with housework, nor your dad with his work. You say you cultivate diligently, but even that's a lie. You sometimes cultivate, but you mostly go out to hang out with friends or just for a walk. My my, what a daughter I have." Patting her head with her palm, Aunt Vena shook her head. She then looked at Luna who was playing on the ground with Rislia. "Luna, you won't be lazy like your sister, right?"
Luna looked at her mom in confusion. She then looked at her sister who was pouting in her seat. "No." She said loudly with a cute giggle afterward. Aunt Vena pinched her cheek lovingly before looking back at Ennie.
"Just look at Celius, if he was a girl, he would be a fine daughter." She glanced at Celius who glanced back at her with an awkward smile. Of course, he heard everything that she said. He looked at Ennie for a second before looking back at Aunt Vena.
'Aunty is always messing with Ennie, reminds me of how mom teased me back then.' His smile brightened as he recalled his mother.
"Celius, when your aunty coming? I would love to learn some things from her. If she taught you all of this, I can only imagine how good she is herself." Aunt Vena asked with a slight smile on her face.
"She should be here within the week. It's close to the day she usually comes." Celius answered with ease.
Nodding her head, Aunt Vena went silent for a moment. "Celius, the Illeaf clan festival is around the time that your aunt is coming, right? Why don't you guys join us on that day?"
Celius was a little startled before shaking his head. "My aunt tends to just take these three to the festival with grandpa. I don't like participating in these things." He gave an excuse before continuing with the dishes.
"Why not, Celius? Just come with us, it will be fun. Since your family goes every year, it shouldn't be a big deal if you go, right?" Ennie spoke up before her mother could.
"It's no big deal if the kids and my aunt go since no one will say anything to them, especially to these three. But if I go, I know that things may become a little chaotic." He sighed and spoke about the real reason. It wasn't that he hadn't gone in the past, but when he did go, he was beaten up by a group of older kids to the point where he couldn't walk for a week. Plus, all of this was in front of his little siblings, although they probably have no recollection of such an event. He just didn't want to experience that again, for his and his sibling's sake.
Aunt Vena shook her head. "All the more reason you should go. Last time you were by yourself, but this time you have us. No one will or do anything, so just come. Who knows, you may enjoy it."
Ennie looked at Celius with some anticipation. Although she would most likely just run off with her friends, she thought it would be fun with Celius around as well. Plus, her mom would let her do more things if Celius was around since he was more responsible.
Celius thought deeply about it before sighing a little. "Sure, I'll join. Plus, my aunt would have tried to force me to come anyways."
A smile appeared on Aunt Vena's and Ennie's face.
"What are all of you smiling about?" Grandpa Amlenor and Uncle Lorron walked in with smiles. The former couldn't help but ask when he saw the two women smiling brightly.
"Oh, Uncle Amlenor." Aunt Vena quickly got up. "We were just talking about the Illeaf clan festival. We were trying to convince Celius to join us with all of you, and luckily we succeeded." She smiled brightly, while Amlenor looked at Celius weirdly.
"Are you sure, Celius?" He asked again. It wasn't that he didn't want his grandson going, but he knew that the festival was a bad place for him.
Nodding his head with a slight smile, "Yea, I might as well. I haven't gone in a while, plus these three would feel more comfortable if I went anyways. If anything happens, I'll just handle it." He gave a reassuring look to his grandpa, who in turn nodded back.
"That's great then. Esadora will be so happy, she has been trying to convince you for a while." At the mention of his daughter, Grandpa Amlenor couldn't help but smile happily. She was the youngest of his three kids, so she was pampered quite a bit.
The few chatted for a bit longer, then it was time for the family to finally leave. The moon was up, and the clouds were eerily lurking in the skies.
"Well, thanks again for having us for dinner." Aunt Vena thanked them all, followed by Uncle Lorron, and then Ennie. Luna was busy talking to Rislia. The two of them got super close in the two days they hung out together. Celius, of course, was happy to see this.
"No problem. Thanks for coming and make sure to visit as much as you want, especially you Luna. Little Rislia likes you quite a lot." Grandpa Amlenor laughed loudly as he looked at Rislia who looked at him with her pretty green eyes. Luna also looked at him sweetly and nodded her head.
"Well, we better get going. It's getting late. Celius, make sure not to have your schedule full for the festival, I already have you booked that day. Haha." Aunt Vena laughed brightly before walking away with her family. Celius smiled wryly as he watched them walk away. After making sure that they were out of sight, Celius walked back in with his siblings and grandpa.
"Celius, so you're going to the festival?" Grandpa Amlenor asked once again.
"I might as well, plus I'm a lot stronger now, so if someone wants to mess with me, then they would find it difficult." He laughed a little as he tidied up a little.
"Alright then, but make sure not to do anything stupid, or let anyone know about your eyes." Celius nodded his head.
"Grandpa, what were you and uncle talking about?" He was rather curious about what they would talk about.
"Nothing really, just some casual clan related things. Also, I did mention the fact that we're going to leave the clan and head to the city after you become an adult." A smile formed on his face as he saw his grandchild's expression become a little confused.
"Why would you tell them that? Although I trust them, I don't wish for many to know about this." He was still a little confused.
"Celius, think about it. If they help us now, they will be facing problems down the road, so their best option would be to leave as well. If they know that we have plans of moving away, wouldn't that make them want to as well? If that becomes the case, then we will have a much larger group going to a new town, plus more helping hands." Grandpa Amlenor explained it slowly, with a sly smile.
"So, you basically want to use them? That's kind of low, Grandpa." Hearing those words, Grandpa Amlenor choked a little. Seeing this made Celius chuckle. "I'm just kidding, I know you don't have any ulterior motives or any kind of bad intentions. But I see what you mean, it would be good to have more family with us, plus uncle Lorron is older so he will have more sway in a town than me." Celius also gave it a thought and couldn't help but agree with his grandpa's thinking.
"Well, since that is settled, I'm going to go home and get some rest." Grandpa Amlenor walked towards the front door, but Celius stopped him.
"Spend the night here for now. It's late, plus Alura seems to want that as well." When he said those words, Grandpa Amlenor looked down at his leg and saw Alura tugging his pants.
"Are you sure there is room?" This was the only reason that grandpa Amlenor didn't live with the four. There wasn't enough room for him.
"Just sleep with the twins, if not then I can just have one of the twins join me with Rislia." Celius had Alura sleep with him and Rislia, while Elrith was to sleep with Grandpa Amlenor. Elrith didn't really mind, mostly because he just wanted to sleep.
"Alright, we'll do that then." After getting everything sorted, Grandpa Amlenor excitedly picked Elrith and walked into the room to sleep. He loved his grandchildren as much as his own kids, maybe even more, so being able to stay with them for a night was a great thing for him.
Celius smiled gently as he saw his grandpa close the room door. He then took the two girls into his room and laid them down. Rislia was on his right as usual, while Alura slept on his left. Both of them fell asleep very quickly, while Celius was still up for a bit. He wanted to slowly contemplate more on the power that was slowly accumulating in his chest. Although his grandpa said that an orb may be forming for him, he felt that there was a little more.
When his grandpa inspected his body, he was able to feel what essence felt like, but the power within him was slightly different. He was told by his father and uncle in the past the essence becomes very close to the cultivator, like another limb, but Celius felt that the description was an understatement for what he was feeling right now. The connection felt a lot closer, however, he just couldn't describe it.
'My future path seems to be linked with clouds, but this relationship seems much closer than what uncle and father described. It feels closer than even my own two arms. Maybe I will find out more once I breakthrough into Essence Engulfing - Earth.' Calming his mind, Celius closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
For the second time, Celius had another weird dream. It started the same, with the various clouds. Similar to last time, he walked through each one, immersing himself in all the sensations that the clouds gave. Again, he reached the large cloud. He entered it, just like last time, but this dream was different. He didn't encounter his past, or any scenario with his family, rather he found thousands of white fluffy clouds traveling within. Inside the large cloud, it was like an endless sky. He could see blue and white for miles, but they didn't stop there.
He walked forward and reached for the closest white cloud. The instant he touched it; all of the clouds began to rush towards him. Celius pulled his hand back in a panic, but the clouds didn't stop. Luckily, the clouds only seemed to rush towards him, not enter nor hurt him. They gathered around him.
For some reason, Celius couldn't help but extend his hand once again and touch the clouds. His palm lightly landed on the closest one, and he couldn't help but feel a little warm on the inside. He didn't know why he was feeling like this, but he was.
He continued to stroke each cloud. They felt extremely fluffy, similar to cotton, but his hand was able to penetrate through the clouds.
Laughs escaped from his mouth as he touched each cloud. Soon, he got tired of touching them and felt himself wobble in the air. The clouds then suddenly wrapped around his body and helped him stay afloat. He gently laid on top of the clouds and stared into the vast azure sky.
The dream continued with him laying on the cloud and playing around. He felt free in this dream. His heart was feeling extremely light and his mind empty. It was a stress-free place for him, a wonderful haven, his utopia.
Just as he thought everything was going well, in the distance he saw a large black cloud towards him. It was crackling with thunder and lightning. Although it looked frightening, Celius didn't feel any of that. He glided towards the black cloud and silently sat on top of it. He stroked it lightly was a smile on his face. It was as if he was pacifying his angry siblings. Surprisingly, the large black thunder cloud began to swirl around. A reverse tornado began to form with it being on top of the cloud, rather than below. Celius watched with an expression of serenity. It didn't bother him for some reason. Soon the large black cloud completely transformed into an enormous tornado with sparked with lightning and roared with thunder.
Unknowingly, Celius lifted his hand forward and the tornado began to turn smaller and, in a breathtaking speed, landed in his hand. A few moments passed and the tornado completely disappeared, but in its place was a yellow and black sword. The hilt and handle were made completely out of black fluffy clouds, while the blade was made from a bolt of golden lightning. The sword looked extremely beautiful, but it gave off a very powerful feeling. The sky around Celius and the sword trembled.
As Celius silently inspected the sword, a white cotton cloud appeared below him, allowing him to sit down casually.
The world became silent once more.
A few moments passed and Celius began to fall asleep on the white cloud. The black and yellow sword fell on top of his body, but Celius felt nothing. He slowly shut his eyes and fell asleep.
While he slept on the cloud, the black sword, which was previously laying on top of his body began to enter it. As if Celius' body was quicksand, the sword was slowly absorbed. The white clouds surrounding Celius were also absorbed into his body as if there was a vacuum within him. All that was left in the blue sky was Celius and the white cloud he slept on.
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