Ken rode his bicycle back home. As soon as he entered the house, he rushed to the bathroom and freshened himself.
While he walked out of the bathroom, he found his mother walking out of her room.
"Yawn! You are back so early? How was your bonding?"
"It was not good."
As soon as he said that, Flora's expression darkened instantly. She was afraid that Mighty King had done something to her child.
But before she could say anything more, Ken explained.
"I don't like him at all. I have decided something. I will not rely on my bond for my growth. Whether it is spell or elements, I will learn them on my own."
"Will it be okay, Mom?"
Flora's expression slowly cooled down, and a smile hung on her face.
"Of course, your father and I will support you with everything."
At this moment, Ken took a step forward and held his mother's hand. He looked her in the eyes and said.
"Mom, I won't rely on you and Dad too much. I want to surpass both of you and find a cure. That's my goal."
Hearing his words, Flora tried to dodge his gaze and whispered.
"You knew?"
"Mom, you and Dad love each other very much. To become S-Rank, Dad must reach a new Realm, right? That needs a lot of resources. If you weren't injured, wouldn't you try harder to get more resources for Dad?"
"If you hadn't gone to the forbidden land to get that artifact for me, Dad would've been S-Rank by now. I was very angry at myself when I learned about that."
"But slowly I realized that since I can't change what had happened, I will do my best to cure you and help Dad reach S-Rank."
Ken calmly explained, but his eyes were full of determination.
At this moment, her eyes stayed on her son's face. In her eyes, her son was a kid, so small but so important to her.
When she decided to enter the Forbidden Land, her husband denied it at first. But later, he even supported her with everything he had.
Because they entered the Forbidden Land illegally, which could've gotten them into trouble.
But they did it anyway. Because they wanted to keep their son safe. That's what parents should do.
If they didn't have the power, they couldn't have done it. They could've been sacrificed as well.
Even now, she just wanted her son to live a normal life. That's why she was so resentful towards the Mighty King.
Flora raised her hand and patted her son's head. He was almost as tall as her.
Nine years ago, when she made that determination to enter forbidden land, he barely reached her waist.
At this moment, she didn't want to discourage her son. She smiled and said.
"Then, from today, I will teach you swordsmanship every night."
Her son wasn't training with a sword just because he liked it. He was training because he wanted to surpass them.
He must've known about his bond a long time ago. That must be why he trained in swordsmanship.
Because swordsmanship was one of the Abstract Elements that didn't require a specific talent.
"Yes, Mom!"
A smile bloomed on his face when he saw his mother's agreement. For a child, having his parents agree to his idea meant more than anything else.
"Ken, since you already know about the artifact. I am going to tell you something about the Mighty King. There is a chance that he can end the bond but not get killed by it."
"I didn't get that artifact just for the sake of preventing him from bonding with you. That was a plan, but the artifact could do more than that. Its most important usage is that even if the bond ends, you will still live."
"But the consequences will still be dire. So, until you are strong enough not to suffer any backlash from ending the bond, don't raise any conflict with him."
Flora explained with a serious expression.
Hearing that, his expression didn't change much. Flora was a bit surprised by his reaction, so he quickly explained.
"I guessed it. He told me that he will not die even if the bond is broken or if I die. I believe with your strength, you would've guessed it too."
Flora nodded.
"Yeah, that was the main reason why I went to the Forbidden Land at the risk of losing my life. That wasn't a simple decision. We had made another plan in case I die there."
"Fortunately, my strength improved massively when I was in the Forbidden Land. But since I got severely injured, I couldn't reach the next Realm."
Hearing that, Ken clenched his fist.
The goal of his cultivation was to cure his mother.
No matter what happened, he would find the cure.
"But what exactly is this artifact? Can you tell me something about it?" Ken asked curiously.
"I didn't find much about it. After all, this artifact existed in the Forbidden Land. The only information that I found was that it was used by a very powerful individual."
"This individual's identity has always been a mystery. Because nobody knows his true name or race. Once he was forced to take an oath on his name, but later he broke that oath, but nothing happened to him."
"He used the method of breaking the oath constantly, making people believe that he had a way to ignore or destroy any kind of backlash. This was the reason why I went to find his inheritance."
"Of course, this move was dangerous. Since this man could break all vows or even restrictions, people had to combine their forces to kill him. Nobody wanted a rogue, powerful individual roaming around the world."
"Is that so?" Ken nodded his head.
"But you can figure it out yourself. It has bonded to you. It is in the shape of a strange triangle. Once you unlock your first Titan, you can use Spiritual Energy to open your Mind World."
"Unlike Inner World, Mind World is directly connected to your soul. Once awakened, you will find this treasure inside your Mind World. The Mind World exists in your brain."
Flora calmly explained. While they were talking, Flora began to make some snacks for Ken.
"Son, except for swordsmanship, which element do you plan to learn first?" Flora asked while drinking some tea.
"I want to learn Wind and Flame Elements." Ken replied. He had learned about the advantages and disadvantages of the elements from Rose and the scroll.
So, he knew which element would be best for him.
"I can teach you about Wind Element. Well, not much to teach about it since you have to comprehend it on your own, but I can feel Wind all the time."
"Your dad doesn't have a lot of free time, otherwise he would love to teach you Fire Element."
"But you can simply learn it by touching flames. Of course, you have to start with Wind, then unlock your first Titan before touching flames."
Hearing that, Ken's eyes lit up as he asked.
"Mom, I heard Spiritual Energy can increase one's offensive and defensive strength. Can you tell me more about it?"
Hearing that, Flora finished her tea and stood up while holding her teacup.
"Why don't I demonstrate it to you? I will show you the power of Spiritual Energy, Wind Element, and Swordsmanship."
"First, let's start with Spiritual Energy."
She said and walked to the corner of the living room where several large weights were placed. She casually picked few weights that weighed over a hundred kilograms and walked back to Ken.
"You see this number?"
[150KG]
Ken stared at the number and nodded. Then, he saw his mother holding that weight with her index finger.
She wasn't just holding it. She was balancing it as well.
It looked ridiculous for a moment, but he quickly accepted it.
Next, he saw her release a blue energy from her hand. It coated around the cup, and the next moment, she clenched her fist.
Creek!
Except for a small crack that appeared on the cup, it didn't break. On the other hand, she started squeezing the metal with her bare hand.
Suddenly, the blue energy around the cup disappeared, and the next moment, it also disappeared, replaced by small pieces of the cup and dust.
Gulp!
Ken heavily swallowed his saliva. That power was so astonishing that he didn't know what to say.
"This is the power of Spiritual Energy. Because I had reached a very high realm, I can use my physical strength, without even reinforcing myself with Spiritual Energy, to crush heavy metals like this."
She said as she showed an irregular-shaped metal ball on her left hand.
Then she showed those small pieces of cup and dust on her right hand and continued.
"But when I reinforced the cup with Spiritual Energy, I wasn't able to break it with just my physical strength. That's because my Spiritual Energy has been improved so much that I can break this house just by releasing it."