"Young Master."
"Young Master."
"Young Master."
The security door swung open, and Scarface, One-Eye, and Tsubone bowed deeply in greeting, standing on either side to make way for Roy.
They bent their waists so low that even Tsubone's two pink pigtails brushed the tips of her shoes.
Roy pushed the dining cart forward: "I left the chrysanthemum inside; I don't want to see it wither."
Tsubone quickly replied, "I'll find a pot for it and water it diligently."
Scarface: "I'll take it out for sun every day."
One-Eye: "I'll weed and fertilize."
The youth quietly replied, "Thank you for your efforts."
Casually handing over the dining cart to Tsubone, he glanced around before leaving quietly with his hands behind his back.
"Tap...tap…" His footsteps slowly faded... The three stood straight for a long time, with Roy's figure already vanished from sight.
At that moment, the moon hung high in the sky, the sunset long swallowed by the darkness creeping across the horizon.
Strolling out from the basement into the ancient castle's mottled corridor, the walls on either side were already lit. At the end of the corridor, beside that dim little room, Roy looked up to see Maha. The old man leaned against the window ledge, gazing at the scenery, momentarily giving Roy the illusion he was seeing the elderly Jager... so alike, too alike. Roy halted and gently called, "Great-grandfather."
Maha stared intently at the willow tree in the garden, seemingly not hearing him, speaking as if to himself, ""Re: The Game of the Dead" is your Grandpa Jager's Nen ability; through physical contact, he forcibly pulls a person's consciousness into a game he weaves from his memories."
Roy listened silently; this mostly aligned with his previous speculations.
"The year he died, he set a Constraint and Oath using 'blood' as the medium: every descendant of the Zoldyck Family can enter his mind, the cost—excluding the source of the bloodline, which is me. At the time, I was so enraged I wished to beat him to death; who told him not to listen, running off when he shouldn't? And before I could act, he'd closed his eyes forever."
'So, is that eye Grandpa Jager's mind that mutated post-mortem?' Roy listened quietly...
Maha seemed angry: "That person always said Zoldyck couldn't be Zoldyck without me, fearing I'd scour through his memories and return to the Dark Continent seeking vengeance... That idiot, did he really think I'm the type to act rashly?"
Yes! You absolutely are!
Roy interjected with a jest, "Perhaps Grandpa Jager thought if great-grandfather accidentally killed the enemy, he wouldn't be able to exact personal vengeance,"
After all, the old man isn't the kind to let a nemesis roam freely without making an effort.
Otherwise, it wouldn't fit the image of an Enhancement type.
Maha shot him a sideways glance, the young man forced a smile, sensibly shifting the topic: "So, great-grandfather, is Grandpa Jager truly dead or just feigning death?"
A mutated mind also needs energy to sustain, truly dead... then what is the source of sustenance?
Roy suddenly thought of Scarface and One-Eye; just after his question, his eyelids twitched uncontrollably...
"Seems you guessed it." Maha, wise with age, noticed the youth's change in expression, spoke softly: "He's 'living dead,' and ironically... even unwillingly, he became the kind of demon he detested most in life, a Demon Eye that feeds off Nen."
Is it a curse? Roy thought of Nanika, the shadow over the Zoldyck hearts not yet arrived, yet not destined to vanish.
"So, great-grandfather called me to the ceremony, hoping I'd follow Grandpa Jager's path to find his killer?"
"You?" Maha chuckled slyly, patting his shoulder: "Don't overthink, what neither your grandpa nor your dad achieved just won't fall on your shoulders."
Heartache, although he truly lasted only fifteen seconds, barely spoke to the memory of Jager...
The old man looked at Roy with profound meaning: "Just a reminder, showing you the severity, in case one day you get an idea, it might..."
Maha laughed with eyes squinted: "Old man might break your legs without any guilt."
"This...." Roy remembered that dream, the vivid scene of Jager being dragged under the tree and beaten back then.
"You've overestimated me, great-grandfather." Roy pointed at his own head full of black hair, sheepishly said: "My talents are limited,"
Fifteen seconds isn't quite limited, you silly child... Maha rolled his eyes: "Off you go."
Roy accepted the reprieve, "Good night, great-grandfather."
Quickly brushing past the old man's shoulder...
At eight o'clock, Wutong should've prepared dinner, he needed nourishment, replenishing the expenditure.
Behind him, Maha with hands at his back, watched him slowly walk away, speaking out: "Visit Jager more often."
The youth agreed without objections. Not to alleviate Grandpa Jager's loneliness.
At least... 'Also must completely withstand that monster's Ren before discussing further.'
Night, was deep.
The youth rounded the corner, disappearing in a flash.
Leaving Maha alone to ponder....
The night wind rustled his garment slightly, footsteps sounding urgently from behind.
It was Tsubone.
"Ancestor, the timing's out."
"Noted, fifteen seconds." With a fling of his hand, Maha went inside, "Bang~" shutting the door.
Tsubone bowed without surprise, she came just to fulfill routine, glancing towards Roy's bedroom again before hurriedly leaving.
...
Roy's bedroom.
Today's dinner was western style.
Originally thinking, returning from the ceremony, he could enjoy some Chinese food alongside the offerings.
Reality taught him, the world is full of unimaginable things. Apart from a few leafy greens, all the meat had been consumed by Jager.
Helpless, Roy could only nibble on a sandwich, lamenting the depth of water in the Zoldyck Family!
Without substantial strength, some places are simply off-limits, even in the future, should he set off exploring the Dark Continent someday, as the old man hints... he must surpass his checkpoint.
Otherwise,
Look at how miserably Jager was beaten in his dream, just to get an idea.
"Young Master, Zebro called, saying that Haseki Dorou pushed open the first door today at dusk." Wutong handed over a glass of milk: "I've arranged for him to report to the butler."
Roy took it, finished in one swig, handing the empty glass back: "His talent's good, groom him well, put him guarding the mountain."
A guy with the ability to spar with Sisko in the original certainly won't be bad.
He let Wutong tidy the dining table while he finished his meal, took a brief shower, and went straight to bed.
His mind active....
Eagerly wanting to see, disconnected from Jager's consciousness link, whether the "Gate of the Dark Continent" standing on the Sea of Cognition still exists.
If it exists... the youth narrowed his eyes, entirely imagining... when he's strong enough, even without the old man's help holding him back, he can bypass all the world's constraints, ahead of everyone, first glimpse the true form of the Dark Continent!
And as his mood dictates, anywhere, anytime, come and go...